Horizon Forbidden West: All Spears, Ranked

Highlights

Horizon Forbidden West brings improvements in graphics, gameplay, and storyline to the successor of Horizon Zero Dawn.
Players can choose between a full game experience or a more relaxed playthrough with easier combat, more loot, and visual prompts.
Melee combat in the game is limited to three spears, with the Champion's Spear standing out as the best choice for players.

Originally released in 2022 for consoles, Horizon Forbidden West didn’t get a PC version of the game until early 2022. As the successor to the 2017 Horizon Zero Dawn, the game extends the storyline, improves on the graphics, and brings refinements to the gameplay features. With its clever combination of a free roam, sandbox-style RPG, with an excellent voice-acted storyline, Horizon Forbidden West is a polished game in every respect.

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Playing the role of the female protagonist, Aloy, the player can choose to take on the full game experience, or try a more relaxed playthrough, more akin to an interactive movie. If the latter option is chosen, combat is made easier, loot more prolific, and additional visual prompts are added to the main playing window and map.

Combat is generally undertaken using ranged weapons, and there is a wide range of potential weapons the player can choose from. When it comes to melee combat, the selection is much more limited. The only melee weapon available in the game is the spear, and there are only three variants.

3 Nora Legacy Spear

Special Edition Weapon

Nora Legacy Spear Horizon Forbidden West

Stats:

Damage: Tear, Explosive

The Nora Legacy Spear is a special edition weapon that is only available to beginner players who purchased the Regalla, Launch, Special, or Collector’s edition of the game. Players who qualify to receive this free special edition spear can find it in their stash, which is accessible from any village or settlement.

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During the main story arc, the player has the chance to have this spear modified. Two new functions are added to the Nora Legacy Spear as a result of the weapon modifications; Vine Cutter and a special ability that enables the spear to destroy Firegleam clusters.

Nora Legacy Spear Damage

This spear has light, heavy, and power attacks. It is perfect for using from stealth with heavier attacks, especially when stealth plus a combat leap is used in conjunction, as this triggers maximum damage from this spear. However, timing is key, as power attacks that are triggered too early will not do maximum damage.

Attacks:

Light: 17 + 30 Tear
Heavy: 31/34 + 35 Tear
Power: 54/25 + 50 Tear

2 Aloy’s Spear

The Basic Spear Given To All Players

Stats:

Damage: Impact, Tear

Aloy’s Spear is the standard melee weapon for new players in Horizon Forbidden West. Many players keep this speer for the entire game, unless they stumble across the quest for the Champion’s Spear, and decide to complete the quest for an upgrade. As less importance is given to melee combat in this game, the spear is generally considered to be a backup weapon.

aloy pulling a sharp, blue arrow back; aloy riding a charger machine; aloy pulling herself up through the air with a rope

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Aloy’s Spear Attacks

This spear can be used for either light or heavy attacks. Obviously, the former does more damage than the latter. The downside of the heavy attack being the longer attack charge time.

Light attack - Aloy will perform an animation of several horizontal strikes with the spear, after a short charge time. This attack is best used for finishing off enemies in melee range that have little health left.
Heavy attack - After a long charge time, Aloy will perform an animation of two long horizontal slashes. There is also a chance that this attack will result in the enemy being knocked down. The heavy attack is best used from stealth, or on enemies that are not directly engaging Aloy.

Attacks:

Light: 17 + 30 Tear
Heavy: 31/34 + 35 Tear
Power: 54/25 + 50 Tear

1 Champion’s Spear

Advanced Spear Given As Quest Reward

Stats:

Damage: Explosive, Tear

The Champion’s Spear is the best of only 3 melee weapons in Horizon Forbidden West. It is given as an automatic quest reward by Sun-King Avad, during the Point of the Lance quest. The design of this spear is based on the Syrlen’s Lance, which the player will see during the aforementioned quest. The basic spear can be upgraded by visiting a workbench. During the storyline, the spear will be given the Igniter and Vine Cutter abilities.

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Champion’s Spear Damage

The Champion’s Spear uses the same form of animations as Aloy’s Spear, when the player performs light or heavy attacks. Players will notice that the base stats for attacks across all three spears are identical. For this reason, any of the three available spears in Horizon Forbidden West is capable of being used throughout the entire game.

Attacks:

Light: 17 + 30 Tear
Heavy: 31/34 + 35 Tear
Power: 54/25 + 50 Tear

Best Use Of Spears

Melee weapons are something of an oddity in Horizon Forbidden West. Aloy is a bow user, and there are many variations of bows that players can choose from. Melee weapons are represented by just the 3 different spears covered in this list.

Because of this, most players concentrate almost solely on bow skills. Most combat takes place at range, and spending skill points on melee skills seems something of a waste. However, the spear is a fantastic weapon to use from stealth. Yes, this is a very situational weapon, and may not be worth spending skill points on, but in certain circumstances, striking from stealth with a spear is going to be the optimal way to deal damage, especially when playing hard mode.