Weird West Class Ability Guide

Weird West’s take on the American frontier features lots of deadly opponents, so getting the right abilities early is the key to success. You’ll have to make key choices based on your playstyle and upcoming encounters, with one wrong decision potentially making things harder in the long run. In our Weird West ability guide, we’ll take you through every ability available to each of the game’s 5 characters, along with a few ideas on how to use them

Unlocking Abilities in Weird West

Instead of levels or skill points, abilities in Weird West are unlocked through collectable Nimp Relics. These are found throughout the world — some in plain sight, some hidden in or under items — on enemies, or given as quest rewards. These can then be spent on abilities, with most requiring 1 or 2 Nimp Relics.

Unlike perks which directly carry over between characters, abilities are lost once a new journey starts. However, if you happen to recruit a previous playable character during a later journey, their unused Nimp Relics will be available to spend again.

Class Abilities in Weird West

Class abilities are unique to each of the five playable characters in Weird West. They can often be key to playing each character properly, especially early on when you generally have a smaller pool of strong weapons. We’d recommend picking up at least one of these first, if only to make each journey feel unique.

Bounty Hunter Class Abilities

Roundhouse Kick: Kicks deal extra damage and extra knockback for 20 seconds. This one has mostly niche uses, as the Bounty Hunter doesn’t have much reason to get close to enemies outside of stealth or when using a shotgun. Instead, this is often best used to kick explosives and other environmental objects at enemies from a distance.

Shrapnel Mine: Sets an explosive trap that’s triggered once an enemy is nearby. Useful if you’ve been spotted and enemies are rushing to your position. Traps can also be set up ahead of a fight, if you know one is coming. Since it deals explosive damage, the mines can destroy reinforced doors.

Charm: Makes nearby enemies become allies for 8 seconds. Allows for a quick breather if you’ve been surrounded. Its short duration won't give you much time to act, so it’s best used as a last resort.

Quick Thinker: Slows down time for 6 seconds, while also increasing your move speed. Useful for quickly mowing down an enemy or two in the middle of battle, or taking down a couple of unaware opponents while being stealthy.

Pigman Class Abilities

Putrid Cloud: Leaves puddles of poison wherever you’re standing for 3 seconds. Good for damaging melee enemies while running away, and the poison lingers for a while after the ability ends.

Rubber Skin: Ricochets bullets off your body for 10 seconds, hitting nearby enemies. Very useful if you need to close the gap to a gun-wielding enemy, or have no cover available. Worth picking up as early as possible, especially if you don’t play on being stealthy.

Unstoppable Charge: Quickly charge forward, dealing 80 damage and stunning enemies that are hit. Another solid ability that can be used to close gaps and deal good damage. Will often clear out weaker groups of enemies in one hit with little effort.

Shockwave: Deals 70 damage in a small radius around you, stunning enemies. Basically a worse Unstoppable Charge, though it can be useful if you need to stay in place.

Devotee Class Abilities

Yeb’s Fire: Summons a ring of fire for 8 seconds. Can be used to burn nearby enemies and objects, but also potentially allies and innocents. Acts as a way to deal bonus damage in close-range encounters — just be weary of oil or explosives.

Yeb’s Invisibility: You and your posse become invisible, but move slower. Great for entering heavily guarded buildings, or narrowly avoiding an incoming enemy.

Inun’s Strength: Creates a circle for 10 seconds that boosts the armor of anyone that enters by 20%. Best used from a distance so that enemies don’t also benefit from the effect.

Inun’s Healing: Creates a healing circle for 10 seconds that slowly regenerates the HP of all that enter it. This heals for a lot over the entire duration, but its area of effect is incredibly small. Worth taking if you want to save on healing items, or have allies that like to stand in the way of explosions.

Shapeshift: Unlocked from the start of the Devotee’s journey, allowing you to briefly turn into a werewolf. Allows for massively increased movement speed, damaging melee attacks, and a dodge that also stuns enemies. Can also eat dead enemies to heal, but usually not worth it due to the long animation.

Protector Class Abilities

Cousin Bear: Summons a spectral bear that fights with you for 15 seconds. Makes for a good distraction, though the bear’s AI often causes it to stand around or get stuck on objects.

Western Wind: Creates a tornado that moves forward, launching enemies and objects. Excellent for crowd control, with additional damage potential if you launch the tornado into fire or poison.

Surefooted: Move quietly and 25% faster for 10 seconds. Perfect for stealth, since you can run around freely without making noise. Can also be used to move between cover or chase enemies down with a melee weapon.

Thunderbird Strike: Summon a lightning bolt that strikes at your position. Unlike other class abilities, this is locked until late in the Protector’s journey. The shocked effect lasts for a while, giving breathing room during close-quarter encounters. Best paired with a shotgun or melee weapon.

Oneirist Class Abilities

Summon Wisps: Summons 3 lightning wisps which will home in on nearby enemies and detonate on impact. Good for shocking opponents that get to close, especially if you’re attacking with a melee weapon.

Shift: Teleport 8 meters, stunning enemies afterwards. Can be used to quickly attack or escape enemies. The stun incapacitates weaker enemies long enough for you to kill them with a melee weapon. The teleport range isn’t the best, but Shift’s short cooldown time means it can be spammed easily.

Spirit Ward: Creates a shield that absorbs projectiles and converts them to health for 8 seconds. Incredibly useful against opponents with guns, but unsurprisingly little help against more supernatural opponents. With healing during combat being limited for the most part, this is worth picking up for a non-stealth focused playstyle.

Astral Projection: Summons a clone for 8 seconds that draws enemy attention, while alsos making you invisible. A perfect way to escape if you’re surrounded, with the invisibility also giving you the time to set up a sneak attack.

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That's it for our Weird West Abilities guide! Check out more Weird West guides below: