The best Borderlands 3 Legendaries for true Vault Hunters

(Image credit: Gearbox)

Hunt down these Borderlands 3 Legendaries to add some of the best weapons to your Vault Hunting armory. Not only are the best Legendaries extremely powerful, they also come with loads of interesting effects and abilities to help out your treasure hunting. Ridiculous and amazing Borderlands 3 Legendary guns are obviously the main draw, but you'll also be able to grab grenades, shields, class mods, and trinkets to boost your abilities. Finding them all is where the challenge lies, however - some are just lying around, some are mission rewards, and others drop from certain defeating certain bosses. Here are the best Borderlands 3 Legendaries that you should get.

The Transformer

This shield only has two perks, but both of them are incredible for absorbing very particular forms of damage. For starters, any electrical damage you receive when equipped with The Transformer will instantly be converted into your shield's life bar, while there's a 40% chance that any enemy bullets will also be absorbed into the magazine of your own active weapon.

Those are some seriously impressive buffs, but catered to very specific situations. If there's a boss with electricity-based attacks, for instance, The Transformer is a life saver, but more well-rounded shields might be better to have equipped for the rest of the time during your adventures.

Mind-Killer

Can we just take a moment to appreciate how badass this Legendary shotgun look. Designed by Maliwan (a.k.a. the only weapons manufacturer with a fashion sense), the Mind-Killer is a seriously sleek killing machine, but we know that looks only account for so much in Borderlands 3.

The Mind-Killer offers a 20% buff to weapon charge speed, which means you won't be having to wait so long to fire up each powerful energy shot before pumping it into a bad guy for a (hopefully) one-hit kill. That extended magazine size, too, is not something to sniff about.

Ultraball

True to its name, the Ultraball is essentially what happens when a dog's chew toy is crossed with contact explosives. When first chucked, the item is a single throwable, but splinters into dozens of mini (yet not less dangerous) bouncing bombs upon its first contact, all of which can travel several yards before eventually exploding, hopefully next another target.

Best deployed as a last minute get out clause when surrounded by enemies, crowd control is the Ultraball's forte, and one of the most powerful grenades we've seen in Borderlands 3 thus far.

Cloud Kill

Cloud Kill is a legendary submachine with serious bite, and a returning weapon from Borderlands 2, complete with its high fire-rate but now upgraded with Maliwan's new bespoke charging tech.

This bad boy fires off caustic energy rounds so powerful that it can sometimes be hard to handle, making the Cloud Kill best for use up close against damage eating enemies like the Maliwan heavies. Still, Cloud Kill has a decently sized reticule that gives it some element of range, but - more than anything - it just looks and feels amazing to use.

Annexed Ferocious Lyuda

We're pretty sure that some of the stats on this Legendary Vladof sniper rifle are randomised, as is the "Annexed Ferocious" descriptors in the name, but the Lyuda itself is definitely out there and up for grabs in Borderlands 3, if you're lucky enough to stumble across it as a random loot drop.

The gun fires off two sniper bullets per shot, making a well timed headshot on a standard foe almost guaranteeing an instant kill. Don't be fooled by its decreased accuracy, either; you can easily hip fire the Lyuda's bullets into enemies from a distance, making it great to whip out for a chance at Second Wind when downed.

Diamond Butt Bomb

This particularly flamboyant throwable is inspired by Handsome Jack's faithful Butt Stallion herself (whereabouts still unknown), and homes in on the closest target when chucked with deadly efficiency.

Not only that, but the resulting explosions casts out a tide of mini butt stallions in the process, creating a wide radius of damage that'll hit anyone else caught in the shockwave. There's a lot of neighing, silly music, and rainbows, too, so what's not to like?

Deluxe Badass Combustor

One for the loot hoarders, the Deluxe Badass Combustor increases both the rarity of your drops alongside a 10% experience boost when equipped, though this applies only to the level above its own requirements (i.e. if you have to be level 9 to equip it, then it loses its XP and loot buffs once you hit Level 11).

The shield also lets out a area-of-effect blast when broken, dealing serious damage to anyone caught in your vicinity at the time. That, plus its elemental resistance and low-end recharge delay, turns the Deluxe Badass Combustor into a prime pick-up, especially during the later stages of the game when intervals between levelling can last for several hours at a time.

Stuffed Quadomizer

This RPG has a chance to be dropped by a certain boss around mid-way through the campaign, but to say any more would be to spoil the events of the narrative itself. In any case, the Quadomizer fires out multiple waves of radioactive energy balls with each shot, with a splash damage radius that likely can't be equaled by any other weapon in the game.

While it does eat up 2 rounds of RPG ammo per shot, making it a costly weapon to use, those damage stats are worth the expense. It's even got a weapon zoom buff, if you're wanting to go long range on a kill, too.

Smart-Gun XXL

Guns with legs aren't a rare sight in Borderlands 3, but guns with four legs and a brain? Now we're talking. When thrown to reload, the discarded Smart-Gun XXL transforms into a mobile spider turret that fires off rounds until its out of ammo… at which point you'll probably want to throw the next one into the action. It has a tasty chance at dealing Corrosive damage with every shoot too, and also happens to look like a handheld Cthulhu with blood pouring from its eyeballs… so that's neat.

Eridian Fabricator

The already infamous "gun that shoots guns", the Eridian Fabricator fires out 10 guns on a full magazine, all of which will be at least Uncommon in rarity. Each shot uses 10 pieces of your hard-earned Eridium as ammunition, however, so the trade-off isn't zero-sum.

Best enjoyed with friends (because, let's be honest, who needs that many guns?), the Eridian Fabricator is obviously hopeless at combat, but a great tool to keep in your inventory whenever you stir up a hankering for a new weapon.

Hyper-Hydrator

A water pistol with an electrified punch, this firearm has two alternative modes, the first being a "Squirt 'Em" spray that covers the enemy in water, and the second being a "Shock 'Em" taser that pumps bitesize jolts of lightning through their veins.

Safe to say, you're going to want to use the water pistol first, as this increases the damage of the electrical output when "Shock 'Em" mode is fired towards a drenched foe. Hyper-Hydrator also has a heightened splash damage radius (geddit?) and impressive handling stats that make this a must-have for your inventory.

Sanctified Batty Blast Master

This is one is, naturally, only of interest to those playing as Moze, The Gunner, but - boy - is it a lucky find if you do happen to pick this Class Mod up during your Vault Hunting travels. Firstly, lets talk about that Splash Damage, which can be be buffed by up to 100% the longer you fire without reloading - perfect for anyone dealing primarily in explosive rounds or when using The Bear mech with its grenade launchers or missiles.

Then, on top of those adds to damage, health, and resistance, we've got two extra perk points awarded for Fire in the Skag Den (bonus incendiary damage to all splash damage dealt) and Vampyr (restores health for every enemy hit by a grenade). Talk about Legendary.

Hazardous Sellout

A gift bestowed by the wonderful Ms. Moxxi herself, the Borderlands 3 Hazardous Sellout not only spouts out voice lines from Pandora's most famous bartender whenever you get a kill, but fires off explosive rounds with a seriously large Area of Effect capabilities thanks to its +100 perk on splash damage.

You also have the option to switch between Corrosive and Incendiary elemental damage via the pistol's alternative fire modes, while its 20% buff to charge speed also makes it perfect for last minute melee attacks.

One Pump Chump

Stop everything you're doing and hunt the One Pump Chump down, as it's quite possibly the deadliest and most powerful shotgun in the game, if not the best weapon overall. Better yet, it's easy to find, dropped specifically by One Punch Man in Lectra City as part of an Easter egg to the infamous anime show of the same name.

Just look at bonus buff to both its damage and critical hit damage, alongside that increased reload speed and 50% chance to not consume ammo when fired, and try not to faint in awe. For some perspective; I was still using this Level 13 weapon at Level 20. That's how powerful it is. Also, we've got a dedicated Borderlands 3 One Pump Chump guide that tells you how to get it!

Primeval Meditative Phasezerker

Another Legendary Class mod, this time for Amara, The Siren, the Primeval Meditative Phasezerker is all about upping the amount of damage this Vault Hunter can do with her unique phasing powers.

On top of both the additional perk points for Anima (enhanced status effects), Conflux (higher chance to inflict elemental damage), and Clarity (health regeneration), the Mod gives Amara a Max Rush Stack whenever she uses an Action Skill, which increases her weapon damage and cooldown rate.

Handsome Jackhammer

The Handsome Jackhammer is a rather obvious reference to past Borderlands games, and it's also a very powerful legendary gun. Every time you reload this SMG, it throws the weapon like a grenade. But that's not all; when it explodes, it bounces five times for five consecutive explosions, all while firing bullets haphazardly.

For comedic effect, there's also a series of Handsome Jack voice lines you'll hear while using the gun. Sure, it gets tiring after a while, but it's brilliant at first.

Infinity Pistol

A returning legendary from the last game, the Borderlands 3 Infinity Pistol is an incredibly rare drop. It does exactly what it says in that it has infinite ammo and you can fire it endlessly, never having to reload. If you grab it at level 50, it'll also deal a decent amount of damage, making for a truly incredible gun.

Check out our Borderlands 3 review, or watch our Borderlands story recap video to catch up on everything that's happened so far. You can also get yourself the Hellfire SMG by killing the Borderlands 3 Jabbermogwai boss.