Frostrail weapons: primitive club, metal hammer, crowbar and zip gun, ammo economy, reload discipline and why no demo damage numbers exist.
Frostrail Weapons: Club, Hammer, Crowbar and Zip Gun
Quick answer: The Frostrail demo gives you three melee tools and one firearm. The primitive club is your first weapon, the metal hammer hits hardest of the melee options, the crowbar is a utility tool that doubles as a weapon, and the zip gun is a single-shot scrap firearm with a punishing reload. Ammunition is scarce by design, so the gun is for emergencies, not for clearing rooms.
Damage numbers are not displayed anywhere in the demo build — no damage stat, no DPS readout, no armour values on enemies. Any site publishing exact Frostrail weapon damage right now is either datamining or guessing. We list behaviour we could observe instead.
The demo arsenal at a glance
| Weapon | Type | How you get it | Role |
|---|---|---|---|
| Primitive club | Melee | First tutorial craft | Starter weapon, cheap, surprisingly serviceable |
| Wooden mallet | Tool / melee | Tutorial craft | Builds walls and furniture; weak as a weapon |
| Metal hammer | Melee | Loot or craft (seen equipped in the cab) | Heaviest melee hit in the demo |
| Makeshift crowbar | Tool / melee | Crafted from metal scraps | Opens boarded bunkers, decent swing |
| Zip gun | Firearm | Crafted at the toolmaker's workbench | Ranged answer to charging Revenants |
| Scrap ammunition | Ammo | Crafted at the workbench, 6 per craft | The only ammo type in the demo |
What is not in the demo
The store page mentions weapon workstations and scarce ammunition as core systems, and teaser material has hinted at firearms beyond the zip gun. But this build contains exactly one gun. No shotgun, no rifle, no grenades, no weapon mods, no durability numbers on the weapon panel. Treat every "best weapon tier list" for Frostrail you see today as speculation.
The primitive club: better than it looks
The club is the tutorial's answer to "you have nothing". It is a length of wood with weight on the end, and it does the one thing a starter weapon must: it staggers a Revenant long enough for you to back off and swing again.
- Use it for the first fight and the first village sweep. Save your metal for the wrench.
- Aim for the head. Melee in Frostrail is hitbox-based; high swings connect with the head and drop Revenants noticeably faster.
- Never fight two at once with it. The swing is slow enough that a second Revenant will land a hit between yours.
The metal hammer: the damage option
The metal hammer appears in the cab early and hits harder than the club at a similar speed. It is also visually the game's signature tool — the October demo patch added idle animations for holding melee weapons, which is why the hammer reads so well in first person.
Where it wins: single Revenants in tight interiors where you cannot backpedal, and finishing a wounded enemy after a zip gun shot.
Where it loses: anything involving stamina management. Heavy swings drain the bar, and if you are Overcumbered your stamina never regenerates. A hammer plus 40 kg of loot is a death sentence.
The makeshift crowbar: tool first, weapon second
The crowbar's job in the demo is opening the boarded bunker entrance. It also swings well enough to save ammunition in the dark.
- Craft it before the bunker run — the boards will not come off without it.
- Keep it equipped while exploring; it is light and does not eat a weapon slot you do not have.
- Do not rely on it against a group. Its reach is short.
The zip gun: one shot, one decision
The zip gun is the demo's only firearm and it behaves like a homemade weapon should:
- Slow reload. Long enough that reloading in the open is fatal.
- Single shot per cycle. No spray, no follow-up.
- Scrap ammunition, crafted six at a time at the toolmaker's workbench from metal scraps.
- Enemies charge when shot. The noise pulls Revenants toward you; the first hit rarely kills.
The correct pattern is: shoot, step behind a doorframe or wall, reload, step out, shoot. In the open, backpedal while reloading and let the Revenant come to you.
Every round costs metal scraps that could have been a heater or a wall. In our run we finished the demo with roughly a dozen rounds spent and no metal left. If you are choosing between ammunition and a wall, build the wall and use the club.
Ammunition economy: where metal goes
Metal scraps come from recycling pans, knives, tools, metal boxes and broken fixtures. They are also the material for the wrench, heaters, ammunition and several stations. A working split from our run:
| Spend | Metal scraps |
|---|---|
| Makeshift wrench (repairs) | 2-4 |
| Zip gun | 8-12 |
| Ammunition (one craft = 6 rounds) | 3-5 |
| Two small heaters | ~10 |
| Repairs over a full run | 5-10 |
You cannot afford all of it. Prioritise wrench, then heaters, then gun, then ammo — unless you are heading into the bunker, in which case gun and ammo move up. More on the conversion loop in resources and recycling.
Fighting Revenants with each weapon
| Situation | Best tool | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Single Revenant, open snow | Zip gun, then hammer | Ranged first hit, finish in melee |
| Two or three in a doorway | Club or hammer, hit and retreat | Choke point beats damage |
| Dark bunker corridor | Crowbar | No muzzle noise, no ammo cost |
| Revenant already charging | Hammer | Stagger beats a slow reload |
| Low stamina, heavy load | Zip gun from cover | Melee drains the bar you do not have |
Enemy behaviour and spawn logic are covered in Frostrail enemies. If you have not crafted the workbench yet, the crafting guide has the exact recipe order.
Early Access outlook
FakeFish has said ammunition scarcity is a design pillar, with weapon workstations and train-based defence fights in the roadmap. Expect more firearms, but expect them to be expensive. When Early Access launches in Q4 2026 we will replace this page's behaviour notes with tested damage values as soon as the game exposes them.
FAQ
What is the best weapon in the demo? The zip gun is the only firearm you can build without finding one, and it is effective at close range against a single Revenant. Melee is not a backup: the primitive club and the metal hammer you start with are how you finish wounded enemies without wasting scrap ammunition.
How do I get ammunition? Craft scrap ammunition at a workbench from metal scraps, then load the zip gun. Recycling metal objects at the sorting table is the main source of those scraps, so ammo competes directly with repairs and station building.
Are there damage numbers in Frostrail? No. The demo does not expose weapon damage, and the status screen only shows armor and damage resistance for your character. Any damage table for Frostrail at this stage would be guesswork, so this wiki lists weapon behavior instead of invented numbers.
Sources
Official reference: Frostrail on Steam for the store page, system requirements and supported languages, and the Frostrail Demo page for the build tested here.
More Frostrail Guides
Frostrail Eden Engine guide: hatch, fuel, ignition, pressure and consumption gauges, heat valve settings and how to avoid stalling the locomotive.
Frostrail enemies: Revenant aggro, the charge when shot, group sizes, melee and zip gun counters, and which enemy types are still unconfirmed.
Frostrail FAQ: release date, price, co-op player count, crossplay, platforms, demo length, saving, languages and the Barotrauma comparison.
Frostrail release date: Early Access lands in Q4 2026 with no exact day or price. Confirmed timeline, launch features and what is still unknown.
Frostrail resources: metal, wood and textile scraps, sorting table conversions, the best fuel and farming routes that respect the 40 weight cap.
Frostrail survival: warmth versus health, sealing a heated room, fuel choices, food, bandages, cold damage and the 40 weight Overcumbered cap.
Frostrail system requirements from Steam: Windows 10 64-bit, 16 GB RAM and RTX 3060 minimum, 32 GB and RTX 4060 recommended, 25 GB storage.
Frostrail train upgrades: every station and structure you can install in the demo, three carriage layouts and announced Early Access upgrades.