Apprentice build

+2 Melee Damage when you level up
+1 Ranged Damage when you level up
+1 Elemental Damage when you level up
+1 Engineering when you level up
-2 Max HP when you level up

Unlock and starting weapons Open Combat Shotgun in the calculator

How players win with Apprentice Community consensus

Level-ups give every damage stat, so hybrid weapons pay off: Plank, Lightning Shiv and Cacti Club, or SMG/Double Barrel Shotgun and Slingshot for ranged. Take Luck to reach the higher Max HP level-ups.

Stats: Luck, Max HP, Ranged Damage, Melee Damage, Elemental Damage, XP Gain.

Brotato + DLC!! - Danger 5 Runs and Tips (All Characters) +UPDATES (B the No-Self) (posted 2023-08-12; last updated 2026-11-05): Character sections are undated and many were written before Update 1.2 (2 Nov 2026); Danger 5 wins.
ArosRising's Brotato Character Guide (undated; written before Primal Dread): Danger 5 oriented Google Doc; the author says it has not been updated for Primal Dread or Update 1.2.
Beginners/Achievement Guide - How To Win As Every Character (+D5 Tips) - Brotato (AdamsIdeas) (last updated 2026-02-12): Predates Update 1.2 and Primal Dread.

Summarised in our own words on 13 November 2026; check the patch date of each source against PC 1.2.

Weapons Apprentice boosts most Computed from rules

Apprentice: ordered by how much Apprentice's modifiers raise each weapon's damage compared with a character without modifiers, then by damage per second; weapons Apprentice doesn't boost fall back to raw DPS. Reference profile: Apprentice's own stats plus 20 points bought in the weapon's main scaling stat, both multiplied by Apprentice's modifiers; one weapon, its highest tier, no items, single target, every projectile hits. 89 of 95 equippable weapons scale with a stat Apprentice can raise.

#	Weapon	Boost	DPS	Main stat	Hit	Cooldown
1	Combat Shotgun IV	×1	350.6	Ranged Damage	32 ×8	0.75 s
2	Machine Gun IV	×1	250.7	Ranged Damage	22	0.09 s
3	Minigun IV	×1	228.9	Ranged Damage	20	0.09 s
4	Obliterator IV	×1	223.2	Ranged Damage	700	3.23 s
5	Flaming Brass Knuckles IV	×1	170.3+ burn 7×18	Melee Damage	100	0.59 s
6	Power Fist IV	×1	170.3	Melee Damage	100	0.59 s
7	SMG IVStarting option	×1	160.8	Ranged Damage	24	0.15 s
8	Double Barrel Shotgun IVStarting option	×1	149.4	Ranged Damage	29 ×6	1.20 s
9	Fist IVStarting option	×1	143.1	Melee Damage	84	0.59 s
10	Revolver IV	×1	138.5	Ranged Damage	80	0.59 s

Starting weapons by the same measure

Legendary-only weapons

These exist only at tier IV, cost a Legendary shop slot and carry the Legendary set penalty of −20 Max HP per weapon of the class. At the same profile: Chain Gun 722.9 DPS; Gatling Laser 493.2 DPS; Excalibur 418.2 DPS; Scythe 243.2 DPS.

Items for the stats this build buys Computed from item data

Ranked by points per base material after Apprentice's multiplier; prices rise each wave. Downsides are listed because they hit other stats.

Melee Damage Apprentice gains it per level

Ranged Damage Apprentice gains it per level

Elemental Damage Apprentice gains it per level

Engineering Apprentice gains it per level

Items that turn Apprentice's stats into more

Items that use Apprentice's effects

+2 Melee Damage when you level up

What the modifiers change Computed from rules

Apprentice has no stat multiplier, so the weapon decides the stat. At the reference profile the highest single-target damage comes from Combat Shotgun IV (350.6 DPS).

Melee Damage +2 per level: At level 20 that is +40 Melee Damage without buying anything.
Ranged Damage +1 per level: At level 20 that is +20 Ranged Damage without buying anything.
Elemental Damage +1 per level: At level 20 that is +20 Elemental Damage without buying anything.
Engineering +1 per level: At level 20 that is +20 Engineering without buying anything.
Max HP -2 per level: At level 20 that is -40 Max HP without buying anything.

Assumptions and method

Damage per hit = round(trunc(base + Σ stat × scaling) × (1 + %Damage/100 + class %Damage/100)); crits average in as chance × round(hit × multiplier). Formulas are datamined from the game code; weapon numbers come from the game-file tables.
Cooldown is the tooltip value, which includes the attack animation. Reload weapons average the long cooldown over its shot count. Attack Speed divides the tooltip, an approximation: the game divides only the cooldown frames.
Not modelled: pierce, bounce, explosion splash, knockback, on-hit and kill-count effects, structures, and how often the weapon actually reaches enemies. Multi-projectile weapons assume every projectile hits the same target, which favours shotguns.
Version: Brotato PC 1.2 with the 12 November 2026 patch. Reviewed 12 November 2026.