Using the Pack-a-punch machine to upgrade your guns is essential to staying alive in Black Ops 3 Zombies. With so many guns it can be hard to decide which ones you should be spending your hard-earned points on. Here’s our breakdown of the very best guns that you can Pack-a-Punch in Black Ops 3 Zombies.
M8A7 (The Unspeakable)
The M8A7 is the best Assault Rifle to Pack-Punch in any non-Zombies Chronicles map. One of the main reasons for this is ammo conservation. The M8A7 is available as a wall-buy gun on every Black Ops 3 original map, so you can always head back to the wall you bought it from for more ammo.
This is invaluable on higher rounds, as enemy numbers become higher and ammo becomes more scarce.
As well as an unlimited pool of ammo, the M8A7 brings a lot of power to the table. Its four-round burst makes taking out a line of Zombie heads incredibly easy. The M8A7’s Pack-a-Punch version, The Unspeakable, can one-burst a line of headshots up to Round 25.
The M8A7 is by far the most reliable all-around gun to Pack-a-Punch in the early and mid-game.
The GKZ-45 Mk3/Ray Gun Mark 3 (Maelstrom Of Eris)
The GKZ-45 Mk3 and Ray Gun Mark 3 are the best Pack-a-Punch compatible wonder weapons in the game. While they can only be found on Gorod Krovi, their power is too high to omit from this list.
The two parts of this wonder weapon combo play differently from each other.
The GKZ-45 is held in your left hand, and shoots yellow orbs that slow enemies down and deal damage over time. The Ray Gun Mark 3 is held in your right hand and shoots laser blasts with no splash damage, similar to the Ray Gun Mark 2.
Where these guns really shine, though, is when both pistols are fired together. Combining the yellow orb with the Ray Gun laser blast creates a massive black hole where the shots meet. This black hole captures all Zombies in its vicinity, sucking them in and destroying them.
Black hole attacks one-shot any Zombies they touch until round 30, even without Pack-a-Punching the gun.
Once upgraded, the Maelstrom of Eris will one-shot Zombies up to round 40 with ease. Combine that power with its huge amount of extra ammo and you have an easy carry to round 60.
48 Dredge (Trapezohedron Shard)
The 48 Dredge is by far the best machine gun to Pack-a-Punch in Black Ops 3 Zombies. While its 6-round burst and low ammo count make it a clunky gun to use before it’s upgraded, its Pack-a-Punched form is insanely powerful.
It’s upgraded form, the Trapezohedron Shard is also a 6-round burst, though its massively increased magazine size makes it much easier to use than its un-upgraded counterpart.
The clip size isn’t the only upgrade that the Trapezohedron Shard has over the 48 Dredge. As well as the standard Pack-a-Punch damage boost, it also gains faster handling, a higher headshot damage multiplier, and 300 extra shots in its ammo reserves.
Haymaker 12 (Shoeshining 100)
It may be a surprise to see a shotgun on this list, but make no mistake – the Haymaker 12 absolutely melts through Zombies.
While its small clip size and low amounts of reserve ammo hold the Haymaker back from being your main gun. But after upgrading it into the Shoeshining 100, it will become an essential part of your arsenal.
The huge damage and magazine size of the Shoeshining 100 turns it into a boss-killing machine, melting through special enemies like the Panzer Soldat with ease.
While the Shoeshining 100’s low reserve ammo will stop it from being your primary weapon, it’s the perfect secondary on boss-heavy maps like Der Eisendrache and Revelations. It also puts in a lot of work against the hardest easter egg boss in the game, Gorod Krovi’s Ultimis Nikolai.
Drakon (Bahamut)
The Drakon is many people’s favorite Pack-a-punched gun in Black Ops 3 Zombies. The main reason for this is its ability to one-shot headshot Zombies up to round 40 when upgraded.
As well as this ultra-high power, the Bahamut also fires faster than some LMGs. This raises the damage-per-second output to ridiculous heights when going for headshots.
This incredible fire rate, combined with its damage and almost complete lack of recoil, turns the Bahamut into a headshot machine that can only be bested by the strongest of wonder weapons.
The one downside to upgrading the Drakon is its huge scope and the long aim-down-sight animation that comes with it. Luckily, you can change the scope on the Drakon once you’ve hit player level 16. Check out our guide on leveling up fast in Black Ops 3 Zombies if you’re not there yet.
