RE Requiem Best Weapons — Top Picks and Loadouts for Grace and Leon
The best weapons in Resident Evil Requiem for both Grace and Leon, what makes each one worth grabbing, and how to build a loadout around them.
Resident Evil Requiem hands you roughly twenty-five weapons across both characters, and most of them are situational. A few are not. A few are the guns you build your whole run around, and missing one of the early standouts can quietly make the back half of the game harder than it needed to be.
This is my take on the best weapons for Grace and Leon, what each one is actually good at, and how to put together a loadout that works. I’m keeping the damage numbers out of it on purpose. Exact stats shift with tuning and difficulty, and the point here is which guns to chase and why. For precise pickup spots, check our full weapon location guide. Below I’ll point you at where each one comes from in general terms.
The Split: Grace vs Leon
Before the picks, remember the two characters play completely differently. Grace runs an eight-slot bag, can’t upgrade weapons, and leans on stealth. Leon gets the roomy RE4-style grid, can tune his guns, and is built to stand and fight. That changes what “best” means for each of them. Leon wants weapons with upgrade headroom. Grace wants reliability she can carry in a tiny bag.
The Standout: Requiem Revolver
The Requiem revolver is the strongest gun in the game, full stop. It’s a shared weapon, so it’s relevant to both characters, and it hits harder than anything else you’ll get your hands on.
The catch is ammo. Rounds for it are extremely rare, so you can’t treat it as a workhorse. This is your “oh no” button, the gun you pull out for a genuinely dangerous enemy when nothing else will do. Carry it, hoard its ammo, and fire it only when the situation truly calls for it. Used with discipline, it’s a lifesaver. Used carelessly, it’s a heavy weapon with an empty chamber.
Best Early Handgun Upgrade: S&S M232
If you’re playing Leon, do not skip the S&S M232. It’s the best early handgun upgrade he can get, and it dramatically improves how his first several hours feel. Leon starts with a basic pistol (the B934 lineage), and the M232 is a clear step up.
You find it in the Bar & Lounge area, on the second floor. It’s easy to walk past if you’re not searching the place properly, and because Requiem doesn’t love letting you backtrack, a missed pickup can stay missed. Make a point of combing that second floor. Getting this gun into Leon’s hands early is one of the highest-impact things you can do in the opening stretch.
Shotgun: MSBG 500
The MSBG 500 is the shotgun you want, and it comes from a specific encounter. You get it by dealing with a Chunk, one of the game’s nastier foes. Beat the right Chunk and the shotgun is your reward.
A shotgun changes the math on close-range threats and on the heavier enemies that shrug off pistol rounds. For Leon especially, who can tune it further, the MSBG 500 becomes a reliable answer to the things that get in your face. Prioritize grabbing it.
Best Melee: Mortal Edge
Leon’s default melee is the Hatchet (his axe), backed up by his parry. It’s fine. The Mortal Edge is better.
The Mortal Edge drops from a Commander, and it straight-up outperforms the axe as a melee option. If you’re leaning on melee to conserve ammo, which you absolutely should be in a game this stingy, upgrading from the hatchet to the Mortal Edge is a real quality-of-life jump. Hunt the Commander that carries it.
For the record, both characters have access to lighter melee like the Makeshift Knife and Hunting Knife for stealth takedowns and emergencies, but the Mortal Edge is the one worth going out of your way for.
Long Range: Classic 70 and Marksman 1A
For picking off threats before they reach you, Requiem gives you sniper-style options in the Classic 70 and the Marksman 1A. These are the guns for the moments when a horde or a tough enemy is better handled from a distance, and they’re genuinely useful on the encounters built around range. Slot one in when you know a long-sightline fight is coming.
Supporting Cast
A handful of other weapons round out your options without being headline picks:
- Silencer 9 — a suppressed handgun, useful when you want to deal with something without drawing a crowd, which suits Grace’s stealth approach.
- 990-TAC and Stiri REVO3 A1 — SMG-class weapons for when you need sustained fire.
- Gal, W870 Police — additional sidearm and shotgun options depending on what you’ve found.
- Hand Grenade — situational crowd control for when several enemies bunch up.
None of these are bad. They’re just tools you reach for in specific spots rather than mainstays.
Building a Loadout
For Leon, the plan is straightforward: grab the S&S M232 early, pick up the MSBG 500 shotgun, upgrade to the Mortal Edge for melee, and keep the Requiem revolver as your emergency hammer. Then funnel your tuning resources into whichever of these you use most. Leon’s whole identity is “upgrade the guns you trust,” so commit to a few rather than spreading thin.
For Grace, weapons matter less because she can’t tune them and survives on stealth and crafting instead. Her loadout is about reliable, ammo-efficient tools she can fit in eight slots. The Silencer 9 fits her playstyle, and she’ll still want the Requiem revolver around for the rare moment brute force is the only answer. Mostly, though, Grace wins by not fighting.
The Bottom Line
The Requiem revolver is the best gun in the game, held back only by brutally scarce ammo, so save it for emergencies. Leon should grab the S&S M232 early, the MSBG 500 shotgun from a Chunk, and the Mortal Edge from a Commander. Snipers like the Classic 70 and Marksman 1A handle range. Grace leans on quieter, ammo-light tools and her stealth rather than firepower.
Don’t try to carry everything. Pick the weapons that match your character and invest in those. For exact pickup locations, see our full weapon location guide.