When I first unlocked my first ultimate weapon on Bunny a few months back, I thought I’d immediately be wiping entire lobbies of Void enemies and topping damage charts in every raid. That illusion shattered 10 minutes later when I took on a Hard difficulty Void Rift boss and barely chipped 10% of its health bar before my entire team wiped. That’s when I realized mastering how to level up ultimate weapons in The First Descendant is the real difference between breezing through endgame content and getting stuck in endless respawn loops. I’ve spent over 40 hours testing every upgrade path, wasting hundreds of rare materials on bad choices, and refining the process to work for both casual and grind-focused players. This guide skips all the confusing in-game jargon and only shares steps that actually work.
How to Level Up Ultimate Weapons in The First Descendant: Pre-Requisites First
You can’t jump straight into upgrading the second you pull an ultimate weapon, and skipping these pre-requisites will just make you waste rare resources you can’t get back easily. First, make sure you’ve unlocked the permanent endgame version of the ultimate weapon. Temporary ultimate weapons you get from event drops or quest rewards can’t be upgraded past level 10, so don’t waste any materials on them. The permanent version unlocks only after you complete your chosen Descendant’s 3-part loyalty quest line, which becomes available once you hit character level 25.
Next, you’ll need to stock up on three core materials before you start upgrading. The first is basic Weapon Enhancement Crystals, which drop from almost all open-world activities, weekly bounties, and low-difficulty Void Rifts. The second is Void Essence that matches your ultimate weapon’s elemental alignment. Fire-aligned weapons only use Fire Void Essence, frost weapons only use Frost Void Essence, and so on. Generic Void Essence works for upgrades, but it gives 30% less weapon XP per unit, so it’s never worth using unless you’re desperate to push a level for a specific raid.
The third material you’ll need for higher levels is Stabilizer Modules, which drop from elite open-world enemies and weekly raid rewards. You don’t need these for levels 1 through 14, but you’ll thank yourself for saving them for later upgrades. Finally, make sure your character is at least level 30 before you start serious upgrading. Any upgrades you apply before level 30 only apply to the lower-level version of the weapon, and they won’t carry over once you unlock the endgame variant.
Step-by-Step Upgrade Path for Maximum Power Gains
Upgrading your ultimate weapon follows a linear path, but there are small optimizations you can make to cut down on grind and avoid costly mistakes. For levels 1 through 10, you only need basic Weapon Enhancement Crystals, no rare materials, so you can safely upgrade to level 10 immediately after you unlock the permanent weapon. These levels give you a flat 5% damage boost per level, so you’ll notice an immediate difference in regular open-world fights.
For levels 11 through 20, you’ll need 2 units of matching Void Essence per level, plus Weapon Enhancement Crystals. Upgrade success rates sit at 100% for levels 11 through 14, so you don’t need to use Stabilizer Modules here. Starting at level 15, upgrade success rates drop to 70%, and a failed upgrade will make you drop one full weapon level. Use one Stabilizer Module per upgrade for levels 15 and above to avoid this penalty. I skipped this tip once when upgrading Viessa’s frost ultimate, and I lost 12 Void Essence and 3 levels in a row, so don’t make that same mistake.
Once you hit level 20, you’ll hit level gates every 5 levels that require you to complete a short awakening quest before you can keep upgrading. You can complete these quests ahead of time to avoid pausing your grind, and the requirements for the final 10 levels are:
Levels 21 through 30 give you the biggest power boosts, including perk unlocks and 10% damage increases per level, so it’s worth pushing to max level as soon as you can complete the awakening quests. I usually block off 2 hours of playtime to finish all three awakening quests in one go, so I don’t have to switch between farming materials and questing later.
Common Mistakes That Waste Rare Upgrade Resources
Most new players end up wasting weeks worth of materials on avoidable mistakes, and these are the three I see most often. First, don’t upgrade multiple ultimate weapons at the same time if you’re a casual player. Void Essence and Stabilizer Modules are extremely scarce, and focusing on one max-level weapon first will let you clear higher-difficulty content faster, so you can farm more materials for other weapons later. I tried upgrading three ultimate weapons at once when I first started playing, and it took me twice as long to get a single max-level weapon as it did for my friends who focused on one.
Second, don’t ignore the free perk re-rolls you get at levels 10, 20, and 30. Each of these level milestones gives you a random perk for your ultimate weapon, and you get three free re-rolls per milestone using only basic Enhancement Crystals. You can get perks that match your playstyle, like increased critical damage for sniper builds or ammo regeneration for close-quarters spray builds, and these perks make a way bigger difference in damage than small level upgrades. You can re-roll perks later, but it costs rare Awakening Shards that are better saved for max-level adjustments.
Third, don’t waste high-tier materials on perks that don’t match your build. If you main a solo playstyle, a perk that boosts party damage is completely useless for you, and it’s worth using your free re-rolls to get something that benefits your playstyle. A lot of players just take the first perk they get, and they end up with a max-level weapon that underperforms because it’s built for a completely different way to play.
Max-Level Ultimate Weapon Perks You Should Prioritize
Once you hit level 30, you get one final perk slot that lets you customize your weapon even further, and these are the perks that will give you the biggest damage boost no matter your playstyle. First, elemental damage amplification is non-negotiable for all builds. Even if you run a mostly physical build, the 15% extra damage to enemies weak to your weapon’s element adds up to way more overall damage than generic attack boost perks. I swapped a generic 10% attack perk for a 15% fire amplification perk on my Bunny’s ultimate, and my overall raid damage jumped by almost 20% immediately.
If you mostly play with teams or join random raid lobbies, look for the “Shared Damage Boost” perk that gives all nearby teammates a 10% attack boost whenever you use your Descendant’s ultimate ability. This perk is super sought after for endgame raid runs, and you’ll get invited to way more exclusive lobbies if you have it on your max-level weapon. For solo players, the “Self Heal on Kill” perk lets you stay in fights way longer without wasting healing items, and it’s a game-changer for solo Hard and Extreme difficulty content.
You can also look for niche perks that match specific Descendant abilities, like increased ultimate charge speed for Freyna, or extra explosive radius for Gley. These perks don’t work for every character, but if you find one that matches your main, it can give you an even bigger boost than the universal damage perks. Just don’t waste rare Awakening Shards re-rolling perks until you’re 100% sure you’re going to main that character and weapon long term.
At the end of the day, learning how to level up ultimate weapons in The First Descendant doesn’t have to be a confusing grind if you follow the right steps. Focus on one weapon at a time, don’t skip pre-requisite quests, and save your rare materials for higher-level upgrades where they make the biggest difference. I’ve used these exact steps to max out 4 different ultimate weapons so far, and I’m consistently top damage in every raid I join. If you have your own favorite tips for upgrading ultimate weapons, drop them in the comments below so other players can skip the same mistakes I made when I first started.