No matter whether players are taking on the undead hordes in Strange Brigade solo or with a group of buddies, they're going to need to make use of the Gem system to stand any chance of surviving long enough to collect some valuable gold and loot. Gems are small trinkets that can be equipped with weapons in order to enhance their abilities, allowing them to be more efficient or even enabling them to perform some special abilities when in use.

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Gems can be found hiding away in chests throughout each level, so it's well worth seeking them out since they can be pretty game-changing and will help make enemy encounters much more manageable, especially in regard to the bosses. It's worth noting that all loot, including Gems, cannot be shared between players, so if one pops up in a chest, it's worth taking it as soon as possible, unless it fits a teammate's playstyle a little better, of course.

7 Stabilizing Gem

Ability: Reduced Weapon Recoil To Allow For More Accurate Shooting

• Best Weapon Pairings: Luger P08, Wesley Revolver, Royce M33 Carbine, Thompkins M1,Westminster 1895

This Gem can admittedly be a lot more useful on characters who start out with weapons that need to be reloaded often, such as Frank and Gracie for example, since it will be extremely important for them to ensure each shot counts. Every gun has a decent amount of kickback in Strange Brigade, and while this isn't as much of an issue when facing down slow-walking ghouls in the first few areas, this can become a real problem when taking on large and aggressive swarms.

It should also go without saying that the Gem works wonders on automatic weapons that can be found in chests; however, its overall effectiveness really comes down to the player's aim and how well they can manage recoil. If they feel confident enough in their skills, it might not be as important, but it can be a real lifesaver for beginners.

6 Ice Gale Gem

Ability: Bullets Have A Chance Of Freezing Enemies

• Best Weapon Pairings: Kingsley Special Repeater, Colbeck Wildfire, Chamberlain Automatic Rifle, Audley A40 Exemplar

The Ice Gale Gem is a slightly strange weapon enhancement since, while the ability itself is extremely strong, the chance of it actually going off is more or less random, so it can be very unreliable. Then again, this also means that it has a chance to shut down tricky enemies such as the Revenant Alchemist or Seteki's Revenants with a single bullet, which can leave them fully exposed for the entire team to finish off.

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It's definitely quite a risk to bring this Gem along when there are many others that are a lot more dependable, but there's no mistaking just how powerful the Ice Gale Gem can still be when it wants to work.

5 Gem Of Armorbane

Ability: Bullets Penetrate Through Armor

• Best Weapon Pairings: Audley A40 Exemplar, Chamberlain Automatic Rifle, Scarab Launcher, Blunderbuss

As players venture through the story, they will eventually come into contact with armored enemies who can be a nuisance to take down, but they can become a real cakewalk for anyone who has the Gem of Armorbane equipped. Skeleton Warriors and members of Tiberian's Crew are the most troublesome armored enemies to take down as they are extremely quick and can easily launch a flurry of attacks on a party in little to no time, so being able to defeat them with a few shots can save so much time and ammunition in the long run.

It's also an easy way to deal with the Temple Guards, who love throwing spears from afar and using their armor to protect them in the process. It's, therefore, another situational Gem, but it's downright devastating in the right scenarios.

4 Skull Breaker Gem

Ability: Extra Headshot Damage

• Best Weapon Pairings: Leamington Model 14, Eastleigh M1, Lee Ensham MK III, Wesley Revolver, Katzen Machine Pistol

Because of how fast and agile a lot of the enemy types are in Strange Brigade, it does make landing headshots quite the challenge, so it makes sense that there would be a damage multiplier if the player manages to land one. With the Skull Breaker Gem, though, headshots become more or less broken in terms of damage since it literally allows players to one-shot nearly every enemy in the game and will make bosses a whole lot more straightforward.

From the terrifying Grand Champion brute to the gigantic mythical beast known as Ammit, the Skull Breaker Gem can absolutely melt the health bar of these bosses, but it does largely rely on the player's own accuracy for it to be fully effective. Frank's starting bolt-action rifle is one weapon that can be absolutely unstoppable with this Gem, but really, any gun with a slow rate of fire will be compatible.

3 Quickfire Gem

Ability: Reload And Firing Speed Is Much Faster

• Best Weapon Pairings: Katzen Machine Pistol, Wesley Revolver, Thompkins M1, Audley A40 Exemplar, Blunderbuss

This Gem may seem pretty simple on the surface in terms of what it can do, but considering just how many hordes are thrown at players, especially if they're playing in a full squad of 4, it makes reload speed and rate of fire a real issue that can leave the character fully exposed. This will obviously be useful for every gun in the game, but it can make submachine guns absolutely lethal since they'll essentially turn into gatling guns that are capable of wiping out entire groups of enemies without needing to worry about reloading.

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It might not be the flashiest Gem in terms of its properties, but it's useful in literally any scenario and is also great for ensuring each player is doing their part for the team rather than lagging behind due to their firing and reload speed.

2 Brutal Gem

Ability: Deal Increased Damage To Enemies

• Best Weapon Pairings: Westminster 1895, Audley Burst Rifle, Leamington Model 14, AB Woolf Slamfire

Dealing a little extra damage to enemies is a handy buff in any video game, and while this Gem might not provide a huge boost since this would make every gun in Strange Brigade overpowered, it's still just enough to make the entire game a lot easier. The damage buff isn't as noticeable with submachine guns, but when using a shotgun or rifle, it's evident just how powerful these weapons become when it's equipped.

What makes it especially viable is it will also help damage armored enemies, which makes them far less of an issue, and it is undoubtedly one of the best Gems to use against bosses; just be sure to grab it as quickly as possible since everyone will be after it once it pops up in a chest.

1 Healing Gem

Ability: Weapon Kills Heal The Character

• Best Weapon Pairings: Blunderbuss, Eastleigh M1, Kingsley Special Repeater, Colbeck Wildfire, Audley A40 Exemplar

Lifesteal is such an overpowered ability that many games make the understandable decision to leave it out entirely. Strange Brigade hasn't only included it, but it's also made it extremely powerful since it will heal a good chunk of HP with just a single kill. Of course, the Gem can be used by any character, but it works especially well with Rushida, who can already drain health from enemies with her melee attacks, so it can literally make her invincible so long as she's dealing damage.

Frank is also a character who can become much stronger with the Healing Gem since he already starts off with more health than his allies, and he also has a pretty devastating haymaker, so he can become the true tank of the team with the Gem equipped. It's an incredibly powerful Gem and one that is most probably a little too strong for its own good, but players really should make use of it since it's, without a doubt, the best Gem in the entire game.