Best Shotgun Build in Abyssus
Best Shotgun build at a glance
The Shotgun is a burst-and-exit weapon. Blood supplies brawler value and Barrier smooths mistakes, but neither makes it safe to remain inside a boss attack.
- Primary fire
- Full-automatic
- Secondary fire
- Unload
- Aspect
- Blood
- Weapon Forge
- Light Frame · Sawed-Off Barrel · Automatic Trigger
- Ability
- Anchor
Extremely powerful point-blank, but it forces you into harm's way — constant dashing and double-jumping to survive. Risky in boss fights with outward AoE.
Best for: Aggressive close-range bursts; risky vs boss AoE
Recommended Shotgun build
Get in, delete, dash out. Because you must brawl, pair Blood survivability with a Barrier shield and Supersonic so aggression sustains you instead of killing you.
Primary and secondary fire
Full-automatic (Primary) — Fully automatic shotgun.
Unload (Secondary) — Fires all bullets fast, ramping damage per shot.
Best Aspect and Blessings
Alternatives: Barrier (Defense)
Exact weapon Forge picks
- Light Frame — Moving during combat builds Momentum that increases fire rate by up to 80% and movement speed by up to 80%. Clears outside of combat and drains while standing still.
- Sawed-Off Barrel — Increases damage by 50%, but also increases spread by 50%.
- Automatic Trigger — Using your Primary makes the next Secondary attack deal 80% more damage.
Ability and Charms
Anchor — Swing and slam a heavy anchor in front of you, dealing wide area damage that counts as an explosion.
Editorial priorities
These are planning goals, not Ancient Forge item names.
Point-blank burstPrimary/Secondary alternationExit mobility
How to make the build work
- Take point-blank or pellet damage, then enough reload speed to complete an enter-fire-exit cycle.
- Add Blood when you can consistently apply it and Barrier when chip damage is breaking the loop.
- Use Supersonic before another offensive charm if the normal dash cannot escape expanding attacks.
Solo, co-op and boss adjustments
Solo route
Approach on a diagonal, fire during the enemy recovery, and leave through a different lane. Repeating the same entry path makes ranged attacks much harder to read.
Co-op role
Flank targets already facing a teammate. The Shotgun loses its advantage when you chase scattered enemies or pull the whole room away from area damage.
Boss plan
Only enter after a committed attack or exposed weakpoint. If an outward wave begins, spend the dash on leaving rather than squeezing in one more shot.
Common mistakes
- Confusing Barrier with permission to stand in telegraphed damage
- Taking long-range charms for a point-blank plan
- Using the dash to enter without preserving a safe exit
Depth 30 variant
Mobility and shielding are high priorities at Depth 30 because expanding boss attacks punish short-range entries without a reliable exit.
Shotgun fire modes
Choose one Primary and one Secondary fire mode at the Workbench. “Recommended” marks this guide’s editorial selection.
Primary fire
- Semi-automatic — Semi-automatic pump shotgun.
- Full-automaticRecommended — Fully automatic shotgun.
- Superheavy Slug — Precise slugs with increased Weakspot damage.
Secondary fire
- Buckshot — Powerful blast that knocks you backward.
- UnloadRecommended — Fires all bullets fast, ramping damage per shot.
- Pressure Shot — Stuns and knocks enemies back.
Shotgun Ancient Forge upgrades
These are weapon-specific Ancient Forge upgrades, not generic stat priorities. “Recommended” is an editorial pick for this route.
- Light FrameRecommended — Moving during combat builds Momentum that increases fire rate by up to 80% and movement speed by up to 80%. Clears outside of combat and drains while standing still.
- Long Barrel — Reduces spread by 50% and increases Weakspot damage by 50%.
- Sawed-Off BarrelRecommended — Increases damage by 50%, but also increases spread by 50%.
- Heavy Shell — Secondary Fire applies Slow and Weak on enemies hit.
- Compact Shell — Killing an enemy makes the next shot deal 100% more damage. Does not stack.
- Optimized Gauge — Deal 50% additional damage to Stunned, Slowed or Frozen enemies.
- Automatic TriggerRecommended — Using your Primary makes the next Secondary attack deal 80% more damage.
- Automatic Action — Using your Secondary makes the next Primary attack deal 80% more damage.
How to unlock the Shotgun
Act 1, Stage 2 (Depth 2): defeat the miniboss at the end of the stage.
Patch and source notes
Official baseline: Abyssus 1.3.62817, released. This page was impact-reviewed on. Read the official hotfix feed.
Reviewed against the hotfix notes; no documented balance-value change alters this recommendation.
Fire mode, ability and weapon Forge names are reference facts; the selected combination is an editorial recommendation.Names and taxonomy reviewed; legacy effect values are not all independently re-tested. Check the in-game Logbook for a live numeric value, browse the Forge catalogue, and see our methodology for the review policy.
Related weapon builds
Choose the alternative that best addresses this build’s trade-off.