Apex Legends rarity guide for attachments, shield and more

David Purcell

Apex Legends has a tonne of equipment and attachments scattered across its huge map, so we thought we’d put together a guide to help you understand which color rarities are much more effective than others in battle. 

Much like other popular battle royale games, Apex Legends has brought in its own color-coding system for many different items and getting used to all of the free-to-play game’s new features can take some time. 

Knowing just how powerful the equipment you’re holding or attachment you’re using is going will help you out a lot in combat and this guide will put you on the right path to picking up some victories and dominating your opponents. 

Respawn Entertainment’s next big project is already competing with Fortnite and PUBG.


Getting to know the rarities 

The four main brackets of rarity are: Common, Rare, Epic and Legendary – with Common items found all over the King’s Canyon map, while the other rarer items can be picked up in Apex Packs as you level up – or if you decide to purchase them with Apex Coins, the in-game currency. 

Common items are gray, Rare are blue, Epic are purple and Legendary are gold – and that’s in rank order, with the latter being the most powerful. For those that have played Fortnite, this will be slightly easier to get to grips with than beginners, who may need more guidance. 


Main attachments

What do you get from the main attachments in the game, when they’re Common, Rare and Epic? Well, let’s take a look at the differences. 

Attachment Common Rare Epic
Backpack +2 Inventory Slots +4 Inventory Slots +6 Inventory Slots
Magazine + Ammo Capacity ++ Ammo Capacity
+ Faster Reloads
+++ Ammo Capacity
+ Faster Reloads
Shotgun Magazine  + Fire Rate ++ Fire Rate +++ Fire Rate
Barrel + Reduced Recoil ++ Reduced Recoil +++ Reduced Recoil
Stock + Reduces Aim Drift
+ Handling
++ Reduced Aim Drift
++ Handling
+++ Reduced Aim Drift
+++ Handling


Do Legendary give you the upper hand?

If you’re still unsure about the difference between different rarities and colors, one of Respawn Entertainment’s designers Chad Armstrong recently posted an explanation to Twitter. 

“Gold equipment has the same stats as Purple equipment, but with a bonus perk” he explained. 


Impact of Optic attachments

While Armstrong describes the differences between the rarity of equipment in the game, getting to know which attachments work best for your weapons will give you a big boost. 

Below you can find a list of the Optic attachments that can be found in Apex Legends, as well as the impact they can have on your weapon. 

  • 1x Holo – All
  • 1x-2x Variable Holo – All
  • 1x HCOG (Classic) – All
  • 2x HCOG (Bruiser) – All
  • 2x-4x Variable AOG – Snipers, LMGs, AR, SMGs
  • 3x HCOG (Ranger) – All
  • 4x-8x Variable Sniper – Sniper Rifle
  • 4x-10x Digital Sniper Threat – Sniper
  • 6x Sniper – Sniper

However, that’s not all. There is also a number of ‘Hop-Up’ attachments which can be used to have a pretty useful effect on your weapon, too. 

  • Devotion – Reduces your spin-up time
  • Digital Threat – Shotgun, SMGs, Pistol
  • Longbow – Increases headshot damage
  • Peacekeeper – Reduces projectile spread
  • Prowler – Switch between fire modes
  • Triple Take – Reduces projectile spread
  • Wingman – Increases headshot damage

With speculation building about a $50,000 tournament potentially just around the corner for Apex Legends, both competitive and casual players will be looking to get up to speed with all of the game’s features in order to be ready to compete – if the opportunity arises. 


Which other items are rarer than others?

These rarities span across a much wider span than just weapons, however, and below you can also see which of the other obtainable items can be found in other colors: 

  • Banner Frames – Common, Rare, Legendary
  • Banner Poses – Rare, Epic
  • Banner Stat Trackers – Common, Rare
  • Crafting Metal – Common, Rare, Epic, Legendary
  • Intro Quips – Common, Rare
  • Kill Quips – Common
  • Legend Skins – Common, Rare, Epic, Legendary
  • Legend Finishers – Legendary
  • Weapon Skins – Common, Rare, Epic, Legendary

These cosmetics can also fall under the special ‘heirloom’ category of item that you have a one in 500 chance of finding in an Apex Crate. However, if you have the cash, buying 500 crates will guarantee you a character’s heirloom set once you hit open on crate number 500.

Having a clear understanding of in-game rarity, the best equipment and attachments will give you a better chance of picking up a win and becoming an Apex Champion!