Road to Vostok Weapons Tier List — Best Guns Ranked

In Road to Vostok, having good weapons is just as important as armor, meds, and knowing the map. It's not only about damage and fire rate, but also about caliber, armor penetration, recoil, ammo availability, and the ability to add useful attachments. In this guide, we’ll break down which weapons perform best in the early, mid, and late game, why the M4A1, AK-74M, and M24 stand out, and which gun is best to keep as a backup.

In short, the most versatile guns in the current version are the M4A1 and AK-74M, while the M24 is the best choice for long-range fights. Early on, SKS, Remington 870, and Glock 17 (as a backup pistol) work well, but as you progress, armor penetration, reliability, and access to quality ammo become much more important.

Before making a tier list, it's important to understand how shooting works in Road to Vostok. There are no “hitscan” weapons here: the Godot engine calculates ballistics, armor penetration, weapon condition, and handling in real time. This means your success in a fight depends not just on raw power, but also on caliber, durability, recoil, and whether you can keep your sights on target.

High fire rate is useless if your bullets can't get through enemy armor. For example, a 9x19 mm SMG will barely scratch someone in heavy armor, especially if you shoot the torso. That’s why guns chambered for more powerful calibers and armor-piercing ammo rank higher: they kill late-game enemies faster and are less affected by what your opponent is wearing.

Guns you find during raids gradually lose durability. If a weapon is heavily worn, it can jam right in the middle of a firefight, leaving you almost defenseless while your character clears the malfunction. That’s why weapons are valued not just for their damage, but also for reliability: either they wear out more slowly, or it’s easier to find kits to clean and repair them.

Heavy rifles drain your arm stamina faster when aiming. When you run out of stamina, your weapon sways a lot more, making accurate fire much harder. So the ideal gun isn’t just the most powerful in the game, but a balance between stopping power, control, and comfort—especially on long routes where you can’t just stop and recover.

In the current meta, the best weapons overall are the M4A1, AK-74M, and M24. You’ll want to bring these into your most dangerous raids, since they combine solid damage, reliability, handling, and effectiveness against armored enemies. The M4A1 and AK-74M work as all-purpose primary guns for most situations, while the M24 is perfect for cautious, long-range play where you need to eliminate threats before they get close.

The M4A1 rightfully sits at the top of the tier list. Thanks to its modular design, you can customize it for different roles: add a close-range optic for clearing tight bunkers, or set it up for mid-range forest engagements. The 5.56x45 mm M855A1 ammo reliably penetrates medium and high-level armor, and the recoil remains controllable even with short bursts.

The main strength of the M4A1 is its versatility. This is a gun that almost never feels out of place — it’s great for high-risk raids, forest zones, or room clearing, as long as you pick the right attachments in advance.

The AK-74M is one of the most reliable rifles in Road to Vostok. Unlike more finicky guns built for accuracy and heavy modding, it keeps running smoothly even when durability drops below 60%. That’s especially important if you don’t have a cleaning kit handy.

Another advantage of the AK-74M is ammo availability. 5.45x39 mm rounds are common on early- and mid-game maps, so you’re less likely to run dry during a firefight. The AK-74M has a slightly lower fire rate than the M4A1, but makes up for it with stability, reliability, and predictable performance in combat.

At ranges over 400 meters, the M24 has almost no competition. This rifle uses 7.62x51 mm M61 rounds that can punch through nearly any standard armor in the game with a shot to the torso. That makes the M24 a perfect choice for open areas, where you can spot your target first and take them out before they get close.

The downsides are clear too: the M24 is awkward in tight spaces, and its heavy weight drains your stamina quickly when aiming. But on open ground, especially near the border, it gives you total control over engagement distance. If you find an M24, don’t sell it or carry it around for no reason—stash it and bring it only for your most important raids.

The current A-tier includes the AKM, MP5, and Mosin-Nagant. These weapons are great for routine loot runs and exploring medium-difficulty areas. They fall short of S-tier due to caliber limitations, recoil quirks, or less user-friendly handling, but overall are still dependable picks. As long as you manage your ammo, keep your gun in good shape, and avoid obviously bad fights, these will get you through most standard raids without trouble.

The AKM chambered in 7.62x39 mm hits noticeably harder than the AK-74M, especially against unarmored targets or enemies with early-game gear. But you pay for that high damage with heavy recoil—when firing in bursts, the gun kicks hard and makes it easy to lose track of your target after the first shots. The AKM works best when fired carefully, in single shots or short bursts.

The MP5 with 9x19 mm ammo is especially strong in close quarters: underground bunkers, corridors, abandoned clinics, and other places where enemies show up at short range. It has almost no noticeable recoil, so you can keep up a steady stream of fire on moving targets and adjust your aim quickly.

The main limitation of the MP5 is its caliber. Against military armor, 9x19 mm rounds are weak, so in late-game fights you’ll need to aim for the head or unarmored body parts. But in its niche—close combat and room clearing—the MP5 is still one of the most comfortable options.

The Mosin-Nagant chambered in 7.62x54 mm R is an affordable alternative to a full sniper rifle in the early game. With accurate shots, it is extremely dangerous. A well-placed headshot can drop even a well-armored enemy, and ammo is fairly easy to find. It is also cheap to maintain, making it a solid long-range option for players who have not yet found an M24.

Most players begin with these weapons, and that's perfectly fine. They help you survive your first raids, gather loot, and get used to the combat system. But you should not stick with them for too long: as soon as you get the chance, swap these out for more reliable options from the A- or S-tiers.

The SKS, using 7.62x39 mm rounds, is a precise carbine with decent damage and similar ballistics to the AKM. At medium range, it works well as a careful semi-auto rifle, especially if you have a good position.

The main drawback of the SKS is its slow reload and small 10-round magazine. Against a single enemy this is manageable, but in a fight with several opponents, any reload becomes a risky move.

The Remington 870 is a 12-gauge pump-action shotgun that works best at very close range, especially with powerful buckshot. Beyond 30 meters, its effectiveness drops sharply: the spread becomes too wide and the damage is unpredictable. That’s why the Remington 870 is best reserved for clearing small rooms.

The Glock 17 chambered in 9x19 mm is worth keeping in your holster even after you find a solid primary weapon. Its job is to save you in critical moments, when there’s no time to reload or fix a jam.

If your main gun jams, runs dry, and the enemy is already close, drawing your pistol is often faster than trying to get your primary back in action. That’s why the Glock 17 remains one of the best backup options in the game: it’s light, reliable, and always useful as a last-resort weapon.

If you are stuck using C-tier weapons, your raid has already gone off track. You should only use these as a temporary solution, not as your go-to gear.

The Makarov pistol chambered in 9x18 mm is almost a "better than nothing" option. It has a tiny 8-round magazine, low damage, and clunky iron sights—especially hard to use in dark areas. Against armored enemies, it is almost never worth counting on.

Double-barrel shotguns might look intimidating up close, but the problem is obvious: you only get two shots before a long manual reload.

Rifles chambered in .22 LR are really only good for hunting small game or for those very early situations when you have no other weapon at all. They are almost useless against armor: penetration is basically zero, and the damage is too low to reliably stop dangerous enemies.

Finding an S-tier gun is only half the battle. In Road to Vostok, attachments can seriously change how a weapon feels—turning a weak gun into something much more comfortable, or ruining a good one with a bad setup. That’s why you shouldn’t just slap on every attachment you find, but instead understand what each module actually does.

A suppressor is one of the most useful upgrades in the game. Firing without one quickly draws attention from nearby enemies, and a regular gunfight can turn into a drawn-out hunt for you. With a suppressor, it’s much easier to play stealthy—take out a target, change position, and keep fighting before enemies figure out where you’re shooting from.

If you have a choice, always look for a suppressor for your main weapon first. For high-risk raids, it’s one of the best attachments you can have.

Iron sights can be a pain at night, in heavy rain, or against a busy background. Good optics make it much easier to spot enemies quickly and land the first hit.

Your choice of sight depends on the engagement distance:

Red dot sights (Kobra, EOTech): Fast target acquisition at close and medium range, with minimal view obstruction.

LPVO scopes (1-4x or 1-6x): The meta pick for assault rifles. You can switch between 1x for indoor fights and 4x for scanning forest edges.

Don’t expect to find an M4A1 or any other S-tier gun in the kitchen of a regular village house. The higher the weapon’s class, the more dangerous the place where it spawns. The best guns are usually found at military checkpoints, in locked armories, or in isolated underground bunkers.

In the current version of Road to Vostok, the best loadouts are built around a reliable primary weapon and a solid supply of consumables. For most raids, it’s best to take an M4A1 or AK-74M with a suppressor and an LPVO scope, a Glock 17 as your backup pistol, and enough meds to survive at least one serious injury.

If your route takes you through open maps with long sightlines, you can swap your assault rifle for the M24. But in that case, make sure to bring a backup pistol or a compact close-quarters weapon—a sniper rifle is great at range, but gets awkward if an enemy gets too close.

Ammo is just as important as your gun. For the M4A1, bring M855A1 rounds if you expect to face armored enemies, and for the AK-74M, use the right 5.45x39 mm ammo. Hollow-point rounds are almost useless against armored targets: you’ll just waste your magazine and time without getting any real penetration.