Warhammer 40,000 Darktide: Lucius Helbore Lasgun Guide and MK Differences

The Lucius comes in 3 variations, conveniently names MK.1, MK.2 and MK.3. The differences between these is not only appearance but also the possible maximum and minimum rolls for various stats. Before going into the differences I want to lay out the consistant stats. The ranges for these are consistant across all models, and are as following: Damage modifier per enemy, no mk is better or worse than another at a distinct enemy unless they drop with a trait that specifies it. Rate of Fire, all models fire at 1.5 shots per second. Ammo pool, all have a max magazine size of 100 and max reserve ammo of 600. Recoil, all models have the same recoil ranges.

Now that is out of the way I would like to point out something unique i noticed in its damage model. in the damage and Stagger stat, the damage against various armored enemies is shown, both damage up close vs far away. The lucius has the inverse of my guns which is it does more damage the farther away you are. Example if you had a max damage roll lucius of any mark, the most you can do to an unarmored enemy at close range is 94% of a shots damage, but at long range this goes up to 116% damage. the percent ranges are identical across all lucius models meaning that you have a 20% damage bonus against far away enemies, reinforcing its marksman rifle model. Now we can get into the actual differences between Models. Note: in discussing the stats of the various models i will be using the maximum value or perfect roll as that shows the differences better.

The Mk.1 is the “medium” lucius model, its stat ranges and purpose fall in between the other two models. Lets go over the stats and why that is.
Note these are all the max rolls a MK.1 can get

Power, aka Full charge damage: 437
The power of a weapon can be seen by hovering over the damage bar, and is shown as the full charge damage in the weapons page. the max a mk1 can roll with is 437 but note that is only on full charge, the uncharge, 1/4, 1/2, 3/4 charges will all do less damage but in turn consume less ammo

NO Charge damage: 131
The max uncharged damage of an mk.1 is 131 at highest roll, and is always 30% of your full charge damage. this pushes the MK.1 towards a semi charge or full charge playstyle, focusing more on picking off elites than anything else.

Ammo Consumption: 3 at no charge, 9 at full charge. quarter, half or 3/4 charge will consume the appropriate number between these

Reload time: 3 seconds

Charge Time: 0.5 seconds

Spread: 392

Sway: 48

Stagger: 24

The Mk.2 is the “Battle Rifle” lucius model, its stat ranges and purpose lean towards a faster playstyle with less time charging and more time shooting. Lets go over the stats and why that is.
Note these are all the max rolls a MK.2 can get

Power, aka Full charge damage: 350
The power of a weapon can be seen by hovering over the damage bar, and is shown as the full charge damage in the weapons page. the max a mk2 can roll with is 350 but note that is only on full charge, the uncharge, 1/4, 1/2, 3/4 charges will all do less damage but in turn consume less ammo. Also do not let the lower potential damage dissuade you, this is my favorite model and next stat you’ll see why

NO Charge damage: 175
The max uncharged damage of an mk.2 is 175 at highest roll, and is always 50% of your full charge damage. this pushes the MK.2 towards an uncharged playstyle, focusing more on rapid firing into hoards and only charging for elites. The MK.2 is the only model to sport a 50% uncharged modifier in stead of the 30% seen on the other two models, meaning it is the highest damage uncharged lucius even though it has the lowest potential max charge damage.

Ammo Consumption: 2 at no charge, 6 at full charge. quarter, half or 3/4 charge will consume the appropriate number between these. this is the best ammo economy for dealing with lighter enemies as you can fire high damage uncharged shots for the same ammo cost as a kantrael.

Reload time: 2.75 seconds
fastest reload for lucius models

Charge Time: 0.35 seconds
fastest charge timefor lucius models

Spread: 392
worst spread for lucius models

Sway: 48
best sway for lucius models

Stagger: 24
worst stagger for lucius models

The Mk.3 is the “Sniper Rifle” lucius model, its stat ranges and purpose lean towards a slower playstyle with more time charging but massive single shot damage output. Lets go over the stats and why that is.
Note these are all the max rolls a MK.3 can get
Unique traits: The MK.3 has different, and much better, iron sights than the other 2 rifles, making it better for long range engagements.
It also has a different bayonet animation and damage model. I need to test this more but all the MK.3’s iv seen do much more damage, and WAY more headshot damage. The other models offer a pitiful 5% damage bonus on headshot, vs the MK.3 which does 45% bonus damage on headshot. Combined with its unique animation, which does an overhead chop with the bayonet, this means it is the most capable as a melee weapon out of any lucius model. I believe this is to make up for the ammo economy and waste from shooting standard enemies.

Power, aka Full charge damage: 525
The power of a weapon can be seen by hovering over the damage bar, and is shown as the full charge damage in the weapons page. the max a mk3 can roll with is 525 but note that is only on full charge, the uncharge, 1/4, 1/2, 3/4 charges will all do less damage but in turn consume less ammo. As you can see a max roll full charge shot from a lucius does incredible damage, also remember that at long ranges a lucius does more than its max damage, meaning this, paired with sharpshooter volley fire makes this hit like an absolute truck.

NO Charge damage: 157
The max uncharged damage of an mk.3 is 157 at highest roll, and is always 30% of your full charge damage. this pushes the MK.3 towards a diverse playstyle, doing more damage than an MK.1 uncharged, but also using much more ammo to do it. So while it can be fired uncharged, its not as good ammo economy wise to do so.

Ammo Consumption: 5 at no charge, 12 at full charge. quarter, half or 3/4 charge will consume the appropriate number between these. this is the worst ammo economy for dealing with lighter enemies as you will almost always be using more ammo then needed to kill them.

Reload time: 3.3 seconds
slowest reload for lucius models

Charge Time: 0.65 seconds
slowest charge time for lucius models

Spread: 375
best spread for lucius models

Sway: 48

Stagger: 35
Best stagger for lucius models

Personally I love the MK.2 for most content. its behaves like a normal lasgun, you shoot uncharged, and the high uncharged modifier means you can kill most standard enemies in a head or even torso shot depending on difficulty. the ammo economy of the gun means you can fire at most enemies you see without worry of running low on ammo. the charge is there for if you need to bring down an elite, and the quick charge time means youre not left vulnerable. overall its a safe reliable gun that still asks for a bit of skill from the user, which keeps me engaged after running missions over and over.

After that the MK.3 offers a fun model, the superior iron sights make using it much more pleasant at range and the ability to just delete thing is very fun. The ammo economy of this rifle demands a competent melee user, but the superiour bayonet damage and headshot multiplier gives you a tool to deal with the occaisonal standard enemy. however this has little to no horde utility as this is no longer a primary weapon but a tool for removing elites.

The MK.1 comes last for me as its playstyle feels odd. it has the worst uncharged shot but only a moderate full charge. the medium charge time means its asks the player to take a kind of marksman rifle role, asking you to slow down and charge your shots but not always killing what your shooting at.