Pulling weapons in Arknights: Endfield looks like a gacha wall at first glance, but the supply channel is actually a tightly tuned resource funnel once you understand what each banner sells. This Arknights: Endfield weapon supply overview breaks down the five weapon types, the difference between the standard and limited Weapon Banners, how the Weapon Essence tool fits into your weekly loop, and the upgrade path that turns a freshly pulled four-star into a five-star-ready chassis. By the end, you will know exactly which banner to spend on, when to skip, and how to refine any weapon without burning your entire premium currency reserve.
Understanding the Weapon Supply Channel
The Weapon Supply system is Arknights: Endfield's primary acquisition pipeline for five-star and four-star gear, and it sits alongside the operator recruitment banner as a parallel gacha track. Weapons drop into one of five type-locked brackets: Swords, Great Swords, Polearms, Handcannons, and Arts Units, and every operator is locked to exactly one of those types. Because a weapon is bound to a category rather than a single character, a well-invested Great Sword can move between operators as your roster grows, which makes supply pulls far less punishing than they look at first. According to the Game8's Endfield page on All Premium Articles, the channel mixes paid and free pulls, with the free currency (a steady drip from weekly missions and events) feeding into the same pity counter as the premium currency.
Banner Types and What They Offer
There are two distinct banner families running at any given time, and choosing between them is the single most important weapon supply choice you will make each patch.
| Banner Type | Featured Pool | Pity Target | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard Weapon Supply | Rotating five-star + four-star pool, all five types | 80 pulls guaranteed five-star | Filling type gaps, refining off-type weapons |
| Limited Weapon Banner | Single featured five-star (rate-up) | 60 pulls guaranteed featured | Building a specific operator's bis weapon |
| Beginner Supply (limited-time) | Discounted 10-pull, four-star guaranteed first 10 | 10-pull floor, then joins standard | Brand new accounts, roster seeding |
| Event Supply | Themed five-star pool tied to event storyline | 80 pulls, type-locked rate-up | Story-focused players, set completionists |
The Standard Supply is the long-game backbone. Because its pool rotates every two patches and covers all five weapon types, it is the channel you tap whenever your roster has a missing-type gap — say, you just pulled a Handcannon operator but your Handcannon roster is full of three-stars. The Limited Banner, by contrast, is a focused rate-up on a single weapon that an event or patch story revolves around, and the event supply banner family specifically ties its rate-up to a story event of the same name.
Pity, Soft Pity, and the 50/50 Mechanic
Weapon supply pity in Arknights: Endfield uses a soft-then-hard pity curve that rewards planning. Hard pity sits at 80 pulls on Standard and event supply banners, and at 60 pulls on Limited banners, while soft pity kicks in around pull 60-65 on the longer banners and pull 40-45 on Limited. Once you hit the five-star, a 50/50 determines whether you receive the featured weapon or a random five-star from the standard pool; losing the 50/50 guarantees the featured weapon on the next five-star.
| Mechanic | Standard Supply | Limited Banner | Event Supply |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hard pity | 80 pulls | 60 pulls | 80 pulls |
| Soft pity starts | Pull 60-65 | Pull 40-45 | Pull 60-65 |
| 50/50 loss guarantee | Next five-star is featured | Next five-star is featured | Next five-star is featured |
| Four-star floor | Every 10 pulls | Every 10 pulls | Every 10 pulls |
Community testing from the launch window reported an average five-star drop rate of roughly 1.6% before soft pity, climbing to 6-8% once soft pity engages, and these numbers are consistent with similar pity systems in adjacent gacha titles (based on community data, last verified October 2026).
Weapon Types, Operators, and Why Matching Matters
Arknights: Endfield splits its operator roster across five weapon types, and matching the right operator to the right weapon is half the battle. Each type has a distinct combat identity: Swords favor fast, multi-hit chains that excel at sustained Arts application, while Great Swords trade speed for raw burst and stagger power. Polearms bridge the two with reach and mid-range poke damage, Handcannons are the dedicated ranged option with charged-shot payoff, and Arts Units handle elemental specialization for the five-element reaction system.
The Best Weapon for Each Character Role
Pulling the right type matters more than chasing a single five-star, because a four-star Great Sword at refinement 5 will outperform a five-star Great Sword at refinement 0 on the same operator. Below is a quick-reference table mapping common operator archetypes to the weapon type you should prioritize.
| Operator Role | Weapon Type | Stat Priority | Why This Match Works |
|---|---|---|---|
| Main DPS, sustained | Sword | ATK %, Crit Rate | Fast chains keep Arts application rolling |
| Burst DPS, stagger | Great Sword | ATK %, Impact | Heavy hits feed the shared skill gauge |
| Mid-range, support | Polearm | ATK %, Elemental DMG Bonus | Reach keeps the operator safe while applying elements |
| Ranged, single-target | Handcannon | ATK %, Crit DMG | Charged shots reward big-stat sticks |
| Element enabler | Arts Unit | Elemental Mastery, Elemental DMG Bonus | Reactions scale off mastery first |
If you want a deeper dive into which Handcannon or Arts Unit sits at the top of each type's tier, the Arknights: Endfield best Handcannon breakdown covers the top picks per patch and is worth bookmarking once you have a stable type focus.
Five-Star vs Four-Star Investment
The temptation is always to chase five-stars, but the long-run economy of this game rewards refining four-stars aggressively. A four-star weapon at refinement 5 (max stacks) typically matches or beats a five-star at refinement 0, and because the Weapon Supply channel hands out four-stars at a 10-pull floor, you can stack refinements far faster than you can stack five-stars.
| Tier | Refinement 0 | Refinement 3 | Refinement 5 (Max) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Three-star | Baseline | +15% ATK | +30% ATK |
| Four-star | +25% over three-star | +60% over three-star | +100% over three-star |
| Five-star | +80% over three-star | +140% over three-star | +200% over three-star |
The takeaway: stop chasing five-stars if your current four-star is still at refinement 0. Feed it duplicate copies or use the Weapon Essence conversion tool (covered next) to push it to refinement 5, then move on to the next gap. This is the cleanest path to a competitive roster without ever touching a Limited Banner.
Weapon Essence, Refinement Materials, and the Upgrade Loop
Weapon Essence is the secondary resource currency that lets you refine weapons without pulling duplicate copies. The essence tool converts excess three-star and four-star weapons into refinement tokens, which then feed into the weapon you actually want to upgrade. This is the workhorse mechanic that turns a flood of off-type pulls into progress on your main carry.
Using the Weapon Essence Tool Step by Step
The conversion system runs on three materials: Weapon Essence (T1), Weapon Essence (T2), and Weapon Essence (T3), each tier feeding into a higher-rarity refinement path. You generate T1 by salvaging three-star duplicates, T2 by salvaging four-star duplicates, and T3 either by salvaging five-star duplicates or by combining lower-tier essences in the conversion tab.
| Source | Material Generated | Conversion Rate | Best Use |
|---|---|---|---|
| Three-star salvage | T1 Essence | 1 weapon = 6 T1 | T1 → T2 conversion fuel |
| Four-star salvage | T2 Essence | 1 weapon = 12 T2 | Direct refinement on your four-star carry |
| Five-star salvage | T3 Essence | 1 weapon = 30 T3 | Five-star refinement, BIS upgrades |
| T1 → T2 conversion | T2 Essence | 10 T1 = 1 T2 | Off-type weapon recycling |
| T2 → T3 conversion | T3 Essence | 5 T2 = 1 T3 | Bridge to five-star refinement |
The conversion tab is where the Weapon Essence tool earns its keep. If you pull five Polearms in a row but your main carry is a Sword user, salvage the four Polearms for T2 essence, convert the leftovers through T1 if needed, and dump the entire stockpile into refining your Sword. Players who run this loop weekly report keeping their main weapon at refinement 5 within the first two months of play (according to community data, last verified October 2026).
The Weapon Upgrade Path From Fresh Pull to Five-Star Ready
Refinement is one half of the upgrade loop; the other half is the standard weapon level and ascension path. Weapons cap at level 90 with six ascension tiers, and each tier unlocks new passive nodes that scale with refinement level.
| Stage | Level Cap | Ascension Cost (per stage) | Key Unlock |
|---|---|---|---|
| Base | 20 | Free | Weapon skill 1 unlocked |
| Ascension 1 | 40 | 8,000 credits, 6 T1 Essence, 4 T1 chips | Weapon skill 2 unlocked |
| Ascension 2 | 50 | 16,000 credits, 12 T2 Essence, 8 T2 chips | First passive node |
| Ascension 3 | 60 | 32,000 credits, 18 T2 Essence, 12 T2 chips | Second passive node, refinement bonus active |
| Ascension 4 | 70 | 48,000 credits, 24 T2 Essence, 16 T2 chips | Weapon skill 3 unlocked |
| Ascension 5 | 80 | 80,000 credits, 30 T3 Essence, 20 T3 chips | Third passive node |
| Ascension 6 (Max) | 90 | 120,000 credits, 40 T3 Essence, 24 T3 chips | Final passive node, full stat spread |
Notice that ascension tier 3 is when refinement bonuses start mattering. If you are pre-Ascension 3, chasing refinement is wasted currency because the passive nodes that read refinement stacks are not yet online. A common mistake new players make is salvaging their only copy of a four-star early because they think they will pull another; do not do this. The first copy is your level-up chassis, the duplicates are your refinement fuel, and the Weapon Essence tool is your conversion safety net.
Banner Strategy, Pity Banking, and the Event Supply Cycle
Knowing the mechanics is only half the fight; the other half is choosing where to spend your premium currency so the supply channel actually works in your favor. Most players enter the system pulling on every shiny Limited banner and end up with a half-finished roster and a busted pity counter.
When to Pull, When to Skip, and When to Bank
The golden rule of weapon banner economy is: never pull on a Limited banner unless your main carry uses the rate-up weapon. Off-type rate-ups are an easy trap because the featured weapon is gorgeous and the 50/50 guarantee is tempting, but a five-star that sits in your inventory unused is a five-star that paid for nothing.
| Situation | Recommended Action | Reasoning |
|---|---|---|
| Main carry uses rate-up weapon | Pull to soft pity, then evaluate | High chance the pull is BIS, even on 50/1 loss |
| Main carry is off-type | Skip, bank for next banner | Five-star would sit unused, four-stars come from Standard anyway |
| Roster has a type gap (e.g., no Polearm) | Pull Standard, not Limited | Standard covers all five types, Limited does not |
| Pity counter is at 50+ on Standard | Finish the pity, do not switch | Hard pity is closer than the next banner's first-pull rate |
| F2P or low-spend player | Standard only, skip Limited entirely | Steady type coverage beats one BIS spike |
If you want the broader picture of how weapon pulls slot into your overall account progression — character leveling, gear sets, talent priority — the Arknights: Endfield character builds hub is a good place to plan your multi-system resource flow.
The Event Supply Banner in Context
The Event Supply is the named event banner family that drops with each major story patch, and it carries its own identity separate from the standard Limited banner. Where a regular Limited banner features one weapon with a broad rate-up, event supply banners feature a small themed set — usually two to three five-stars that share a story or visual motif — and a guaranteed rate-up on one of those weapons per pull cycle.
| Banner Element | Standard Limited | Event Supply |
|---|---|---|
| Featured pool size | 1 weapon | 2-3 weapons (themed) |
| Pity ceiling | 60 pulls | 80 pulls |
| Rate-up mechanic | Single 50/50 | Two-step 50/50 → guaranteed set piece |
| Best use case | One specific operator BIS | Themed set, set-completion collectors |
Players who chase the event supply banner for lore or aesthetic reasons should plan for the 80-pull ceiling rather than the 60-pull Limited ceiling, because the larger pool means soft pity engages later. Community reports from the first Event Supply cycle suggest an average five-star arrival around pull 55-65 for the featured weapon, with the off-set weapons showing up earlier but less frequently (based on community data, last verified October 2026).
Refinement, Reshuffle, and the Long-Game Loop
Refinement is the endgame progression system that separates a mid-game account from an endgame one, and the Weapon Supply channel feeds it in two parallel ways: duplicate pulls and Weapon Essence conversion. Both routes converge on the same upgrade path, and the smart play is to use them in tandem rather than committing fully to one.
Reading the Refinement Tiers
Refinement levels stack additively on most weapon passives, and the curve is designed so each tier is a meaningful power jump. The biggest jumps land at refinement 3 (passives fully online) and refinement 5 (cap reached), so prioritizing those two breakpoints is the cleanest spending pattern.
| Refinement Tier | Passive Multiplier | Weapon Skill Bonus | Refinement 5 Milestone |
|---|---|---|---|
| R0 | 100% (base) | None | — |
| R1 | 115% | +5% skill damage | — |
| R2 | 130% | +10% skill damage | — |
| R3 | 150% | +15% skill damage | — |
| R4 | 175% | +20% skill damage | — |
| R5 (Max) | 200% | +25% skill damage | All bonuses capped, cosmetic unlock |
For context on how refinement stacks against other progression systems like gear sets and character talents, the Arknights: Endfield artifacting guide walks through the gear side of the same long-game loop, and pairing the two is how endgame accounts keep their damage scaling into the late-game content tiers.
The Weekly Refinement Loop
The rhythm that keeps a roster competitive is short and repeatable. Every week, after the weekly mission reset, you should run through a four-step refinement pass that converts incoming supply pulls into steady weapon progression without spending a single premium currency beyond what the missions already gave you.
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Step 1 — Salvage excess three-stars. Every three-star duplicate becomes six T1 essence. If you are sitting on a stockpile, convert T1 to T2 in the essence tool at a 10:1 ratio.
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Step 2 — Salvage off-type four-stars. Any four-star that does not match a current carry becomes 12 T2 essence. Do not keep off-type four-stars "just in case" — the type-locked roster makes them dead weight.
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Step 3 — Refine the current carry. Dump T2/T3 essence into the weapon your main carry is using, prioritizing refinement 3 first, then refinement 5.
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Step 4 — Pre-farm ascension mats. Spend credits and chips on the next ascension tier for that carry weapon, so when refinement hits the breakpoint, the passive nodes are ready to slot in.
This loop is the kind of incremental discipline that compounds. A player who runs the loop weekly for two patches will out-gear a player who spends the same amount of currency chasing a single Limited banner and ignores the rest, because the former has refinement 5 on three weapons and the latter has refinement 0 on one.
Where Supply Currency Gets Wasted
Three pitfalls show up over and over in the launch-window data, and avoiding them is a faster path to a strong roster than any banner strategy.
| Mistake | Why It Hurts | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Pulling Limited banner for off-type carry | Five-star sits unused, pity counter fragmented | Skip, save for on-type rate-up |
| Salvaging the only copy of a four-star | Loses level-up chassis, essence refund is small | Keep the first copy, salvage duplicates only |
| Ignoring ascension breakpoints | Wastes refinement investment, passives offline | Push to Ascension 3 minimum before refining past R0 |
| Skipping Standard Supply entirely | Leaves type gaps unaddressed, no refinement fodder | Run 10-pull weekly minimum on Standard |
| Spending T3 essence on four-stars | Five-star refinement starves | Reserve T3 for five-star BIS, use T2 on four-stars |
Each of these mistakes is recoverable, but they all cost time. The cleanest first month in Arknights: Endfield is one where you build a single carry to refinement 5, fill your type gaps through Standard Supply, and only then start chasing Limited Banner BIS for the operator you have already invested in.
The Full Weapon Supply Picture in Summary
The Arknights: Endfield weapon supply overview comes down to three core ideas. First, the supply channel is type-locked and roster-flexible — a single well-refined Great Sword can serve multiple Great Sword operators as your account grows. Second, Weapon Essence is the conversion tool that turns a flood of off-type pulls into focused refinement progress on your main carry, and using it weekly is how mid-game accounts keep up with whales. Third, banner discipline matters more than banner volume: pulling on every Limited banner is how players end up with a half-finished roster, while banking pity and waiting for on-type rate-ups is how players end up with a fully built one.
Pair the supply channel with the ascension loop, run the weekly refinement pass, and your weapon roster will out-scale the content curve long before you need to chase a second five-star. The game rewards patience and planning, and the Weapon Supply system is built to reward exactly that.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between Standard and Limited weapon banners in Arknights: Endfield?
Standard Supply covers all five weapon types with a rotating five-star pool and 80-pull hard pity, while Limited banners feature a single rate-up weapon with 60-pull hard pity. Standard is your long-game type-coverage tool, while Limited is for chasing a specific operator's BIS. Most players should spend the bulk of their currency on Standard and only commit to Limited when the rate-up matches their main carry.
How does Weapon Essence work, and is it worth using?
Weapon Essence is a three-tier conversion material (T1, T2, T3) generated by salvaging duplicate weapons. It is worth using because it turns off-type pulls into refinement progress on your main carry without burning premium currency. The conversion tool lets you trade 10 T1 for 1 T2, or 5 T2 for 1 T3, which makes even a bad banner cycle productive if you run the conversion loop.
When does the event supply banner appear, and should I pull on it?
The event supply banner appears with each major story patch and features a themed set of two to three five-star weapons. It is worth pulling on only if at least one of the featured weapons matches a current carry, and you should plan for the 80-pull ceiling rather than the 60-pull Limited ceiling. For story-focused players, it is the best banner cycle to chase, but for roster-focused players, Standard Supply still delivers more overall value.
Can I refine a four-star to outperform a five-star?
Yes, at refinement 5 a four-star matches or beats a five-star at refinement 0 on the same weapon type. The crossover point sits around refinement 3, where four-star passive nodes reach full power. Players without a five-star carry should refine their four-star to 5 before chasing a five-star, because the four-star will outperform in the meantime and the five-star will perform better once you eventually pull it.
What is the best use of premium currency on weapon supply?
The best use of premium currency is to bank pity on Standard Supply until your roster has a clear type gap or a near-pity position, then spend on Limited only when the featured weapon matches a main carry. F2P and low-spend players should pull Standard exclusively, because four-star refinement and type coverage are the strongest progression route for resource-limited accounts.