How To Get Wasteland 3 Best SMG (PDW-01) Fast

You can find the best SMG, the PDW-01, in the southern parts of Wasteland 3. More specifically, in the Massacre Site. While you will definitely stumble upon this area while on your way to the final area of the game, Yuma County, you can get it way earlier than that. Here’s how:

Requirements:

Deal with the Valor Buchanan in “The Zealot” main story quest
Level 2 Radiation Resistance for the Kodiak
Morning Star AI Module for the Kodiak
Kick Ass 8 to get the Turbo Charger from Cannibal Jamboree
Someone with 8 Automatic Weapons

You can get the PDW-01 early in the game before you confront Victory Buchanan in Aspen. What you need are the above for you to traverse the radiated terrain to get it, and for you to also equip it afterwards. First off, you need to finish Valor Buchanan’s quest in Denver. After that, you go back to Ranger HQ to purchase the “Deliverer Chassis” to upgrade your Kodiak’s Radiation Resistance to 2. Also, you need to have the Morning Star AI Module in order for you to get the Turbo Charger. You can get it by going to Union Station and doing the quest “Call To Action”.

Once you get those a new chassis, head northwest and enter the Cannibal Jamboree. You need to get Kick Ass 8 to safely enter this area, otherwise, prepare for a bloody battle (you also lose a chance to get a set of Power Armor if you kill all of them immediately). Once you get the Turbo Charger, head south towards the Massacre Site.

Theoretically, it is possible to get to the Massacre Site even without the Turbo Charger. However, you may need to have a character with high Strength to endure the radiation damage.

Push Towards The Massacre Site

Here’s the tricky part. Once you enter the brown part of the map, make a safety save first so you can come back if you make any mistakes. Next, push forward and frequently quick save to keep your progress. Encounters here will be very tough and you’ll likely be squished by overpowered enemies, so avoid getting into rough fights. Once you enter the southern area, make a beeline towards the Massacre Site (like the route above). Enter it and pick up the best SMG, the PDW-01.

Other Things To Do In The Massacre Site

Aside from the PDW-01, you can also befriend the Honey Badger here. You need to have 10 Animal Whisperer though to get him as an ally. Why? The Honey Badger here is probably the strongest beast in the game, as evidenced by the scattered remains of humans in its immediate area.

You can also take advantage of the buried items and chests here. I was able to get the several Level 7 weapons which can help make the next story mission way easier. Note that the weapons that you can loot are random but are definitely of Level 7 skills.

When you leave, you can either heal your squad and move back towards the safe zone. Or you can teleport back to Ranger HQ by asking for a tow on the world map.

Wasteland 3 Best SMG PDW-01 Stats

The left one shows the stats with just 10 Automatic Weapons. The right one shows the stats with 10 Explosives + 10 Automatic Weapons.

The PDw-01 is without a doubt, the best SMG in the game. It has 99 Penetration and scales well if you have Explosive skills. It can also reduce enemy armor. So getting this early on in the game can make your squad nigh unbeatable down the line.

Explosives Make The PDW-01 Stronger

You can sometimes deal 100+ damage per bullet with the PDW-01

I compared the damage of both with stats being the same for both characters. Both have 10 Automatic Weapons, with one having 10 Explosive skills and the other without. With that said, having a specialized character with max Automatic Weapons and Explosives can make full use of the PDW-01. You can also add/max Luck and Intelligence for a few Crits and more damage.

Franklin Garcia

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