How to get all the evolved weapons in Vampire Survivors

vampire survivors evolve weapons
(Image credit: poncle)

Vampire Survivors' evolve weapons are your only sure-fire way to deal with the ever-growing hordes of horrific creatures that try to swarm you in each run. But it isn't like the game guides you towards them. Instead, you'll have to know what to upgrade and how to upgrade it to get one of these powerful weapons.

If you've not heard of poncle's horror roguelite, here's how it works: each time you level—by beating enemies and taking their XP gems—you get a choice of weapons and upgrade items. Choosing a new weapon will let you swap, but if you choose the same again, you can replace your current weapon with something even more powerful. Once you upgrade it enough, you'll be well on your way to  getting an evolved weapon.

In this Vampire Survivors evolve weapons guide, I'll break down the gear you can evolve, and the items you need to combine to make it happen. I'll also explain what each powerful weapon can do.

Vampire Survivors evolve weapons: How to get a top-tier arsenal

To get an evolved weapon, you need to upgrade a base weapon to level 8, in most cases. Once you've chosen to upgrade it a sufficient number of times, you'll need to combine it with a certain item. More on those below. 

Next, you need to survive a run for at least 10 minutes. Then you'll need to defeat a special enemy that, once destroyed, will drop a chest that contains the evolved weapon. The exception is the Vandalier: For that you'll need to unlock the Peachone and Ebony Wings (survive for ten minutes and upgrade Peachone to level 7, respectively), upgrade them both to level 8, and defeat a boss after ten minutes. Phew.

For the other item and weapon combinations, check out the table below.

Vampire Survivors weapon evolutions list

Swipe to scroll horizontally
Evolved weaponBase weaponItemAbility
Bloody TearWhip Hollow HeartDeals critical damage and absorbs XP
Soul EaterGarlicPummarolaSteals hearts, restores HP
Holy WandMagic WandEmpty TomeNo delay on firing
HellfireFire WandSpinachPasses through enemies
Thousand EdgeKnifeBracerNo delay on firing
Unholy VespersKing BibleSpellbinderContinuous projectiles
Death SpiralAxeCandelabradorPasses through enemies
Heaven SwordCrossCloverDeals critical damage
La BorraSanta WaterAttractorbGrowing damage zones appear when you move
No FutureRunetracerArmorExplodes on bounce and when retaliating
Thunder LoopLightning RingDuplicatorProjectiles hit twice
Gorgeous MoonPentagramCrownGenerates extra gems and gathers them
MannajjaSong of ManaSkull O'ManiacCan slow down enemies
Valkyrie TurnerShadow PinionWingsBigger, longer, faster, and stronger
Vicious HungerGatti AmariStone MaskCan turn objects into collectable gold
Sean Martin
Guides Writer

Sean's first PC games were Full Throttle and Total Annihilation and his taste has stayed much the same since. When not scouring games for secrets or bashing his head against puzzles, you'll find him revisiting old Total War campaigns, agonizing over his Destiny 2 fit, or still trying to finish the Horus Heresy. Sean has also written for EDGE, Eurogamer, PCGamesN, Wireframe, EGMNOW, and Inverse.