How to Attack Enemies on Water: Weapons, Pals, and Mounts

Wading in after something that is already shooting at you is the worst possible way to open a fight — the moment you are swimming your weapons are gone, your stamina bar starts draining, and the target keeps hitting you for free. This guide covers everything that reaches a target out on the water instead: the ranged weapons and the technology levels that unlock them, the Pals with the longest-reaching attacks in the game, the launchers that capture something you can't throw a sphere at, and the flying and swimming mounts that delete the distance entirely.

Three Ways to Reach a Target on the Water

Which approach you pick comes down to one question: is the water between you and the target, or is the target actively swimming away? A gun handles the first case from dry land and costs you nothing but ammo. A Pal handles it without ammo at all, and a mount handles the second case by taking the chase to them. Most players default to the gun and never unlock the other two, which is why fights against anything out past the shoreline drag on.

Use a Ranged Weapon From Shore

This is the answer for the vast majority of water fights, and Palworld hands you a ranged option at technology level 3 — long before anything else on this page is available. The table below is the full craftable ranged ladder, sorted by unlock level, with the technology point cost and the ammo each one eats. One warning before you read the Attack column: those numbers are only comparable inside a class. The Mechanical Bow at 20,000 Attack is not fourteen times better than the Heavy Assault Rifle at 1,615 — a bow fires one heavy arrow while a rifle empties a 30-round magazine, so compare bows to bows and rifles to rifles.

Weapon	Class	Attack	Tech Lv. (Cost)	Ammo
Old Bow	Bow	65	3 (1 pt)	Arrow
Crossbow	Crossbow	280	13 (2 pts)	Arrow
Musket	Assault Rifle	1,000	21 (3 pts)	Coarse Ammo
Makeshift Handgun	Handgun	320	24 (3 pts)	Handgun Ammo
Handgun	Handgun	250	28 (3 pts)	Handgun Ammo
Old Revolver	Handgun	600	33 (3 pts)	Handgun Ammo
Single-Shot Rifle	Assault Rifle	1,100	36 (3 pts)	Rifle Ammo
Semi-Auto Rifle	Assault Rifle	1,150	41 (3 pts)	Rifle Ammo
Compound Bow	Bow	1,100	42 (3 pts)	Reinforced Arrow
Laser Rifle	Assault Rifle	1,250	51 (5 pts)	Energy Cartridge
Guided Missile Launcher	Rocket Launcher	5,900	56 (5 pts)	Missile Ammo
Advanced Bow	Bow	5,800	57 (3 pts)	Advanced Arrow
Laser Gatling Gun	Gatling Gun	530	59 (5 pts)	Laser Gatling Cartridge
Charge Rifle	Assault Rifle	12,500	65 (5 pts)	Charge Rifle Ammo
Rocket Launcher	Rocket Launcher	10,000	65 (5 pts)	Rocket Ammo
Mechanical Bow	Bow	20,000	67 (4 pts)	Mechanical Bow Ammo
Prototype Shotgun	Shotgun	1,167	69 (4 pts)	Prototype Shotgun Ammo
Heavy Assault Rifle	Assault Rifle	1,615	70 (5 pts)	Heavy Assault Rifle Ammo
Plasma Rifle	Assault Rifle	1,860	78 (5 pts)	Plasma Rifle Ammo
Beam Launcher	Rocket Launcher	14,000	80 (5 pts)	Beam Launcher Ammo

The Earliest Options

Nobody needs to wait for a gun to fight across water. The Old Bow costs a single technology point at level 3 and Arrows unlock at the same level for another point, so you can be plinking things in a lake within the first hour. The Crossbow at level 13 is more than four times the Old Bow's Attack for 2 points and uses the same Arrows, which makes it the real early-game water weapon. If you would rather skip both, the Musket at level 21 is the first proper firearm and the full route to it is broken down in our How to Get a Gun Fast and Early guide.

Which Class Holds Up at Water Range

Bows and rifles are what you want here. Both fire a tight single projectile, so hitting a Pal bobbing 40 metres offshore is a matter of leading the shot rather than praying. Shotguns are the opposite — the Prototype Shotgun is a monster at 1,167 Attack and 12 shells a magazine, but pellet spread means most of that damage lands in the water rather than the target. Launchers are the wildcard: the Guided Missile Launcher tracks what you aim at, which makes it the most forgiving thing on the list against a swimmer that keeps changing direction, and the Beam Launcher at level 80 has enough splash that near-misses still hurt. Every unlock level on the ladder is mapped out in our Best Weapons at Every Tech Level guide.

Capture Pals You Can't Reach

Killing a water Pal is easy. Catching one that is floating well past your throwing arc is the actual problem, and the answer is a sphere launcher — a weapon that fires Pal Spheres instead of ammo. Three exist, and the cheapest one arrives at level 26. The single-shot version is the accurate pick for one target, the scatter version is for a cluster of Pals sitting together on the surface, and the homing version removes aiming from the equation entirely, which is the one you want when the target is drifting. All three fire the spheres you already carry, so weaken the Pal first exactly as you would on land — the odds work the same way, and our How to Catch Pals guide has the full capture rate breakdown.

Launcher	Tech Lv. (Cost)	What It Does
Single-Shot Sphere Launcher	26 (4 pts)	Fires one sphere far past normal throwing distance
Scatter Sphere Launcher	38 (5 pts)	Fires a spread of spheres, built for catching a group at once
Homing Sphere Launcher	55 (5 pts)	Fired spheres track the Pal, so a moving swimmer still gets hit

Bring Pals With Long-Range Attacks

Your Pal keeps fighting while you reload, reposition, or run out of ammo, and it does not care that the target is standing in water. What matters is the reach of its skills, and almost every long-range skill shares the same 5,000 cap. Only three things break it. The outright record is Astralym and Paldium Rain at 9,999 range; after that, Hartalis reaches 7,500 with Sacred Rain at 800 power, and Panthalus reaches 6,000 with four separate Water skills. Everything below those is tied on range, so pick on Shot Attack instead — Neptilius and Necromus lead the rest of the table at 145.

Pal	Shot Attack	Longest-Reaching Skill	Power	Range
Astralym	200	Paldium Rain (Lv. 3)	500	9,999
Hartalis	130	Sacred Rain (Lv. 40)	800	7,500
Panthalus	120	Aqua Tornado (Lv. 60)	800	6,000
Neptilius	145	Thalassonic Laser (Lv. 60)	700	5,000
Necromus	145	Rock Lance (Lv. 30)	400	5,000
Frostallion	140	Holy Burst (Lv. 55)	700	5,000
Jetragon	140	Beam Comet (Lv. 30)	700	5,000
Shaolong	135	Meteorain (Lv. 70)	700	5,000
Blazamut Ryu	130	Meteorain (Lv. 70)	700	5,000
Bastigor	130	Double Blizzard Spike (Lv. 70)	700	5,000

Electric Pals Punish Anything in the Water

Most of what you end up fighting on open water is Water-element, and Water is weak to exactly two things: Electric and Grass. Electric is the one that comes with long-range skills. Thunderstorm is the pick of the bunch at 600 power and 5,000 range, and five of the Pals below learn it. Orserk is the standout — 130 Shot Attack, and its signature Polykeraunos matches Thunderstorm on both power and range while landing in its kit at level 55. If you are still levelling, Relaxaurus Lux is the cheat pick: Spark Blast is only 50 power, but it is available from level 1, reaches the full 5,000, and fires fast enough to lead the whole list on sustained damage.

Pal	Shot Attack	Best Electric Skill	Power	Range
Neptilius	145	Thunderstorm (Lv. 70)	600	5,000
Orserk	130	Polykeraunos (Lv. 55)	600	5,000
Helzephyr Lux	125	Thunderstorm (Lv. 50)	600	5,000
Relaxaurus Lux	120	Spark Blast (Lv. 1)	50	5,000
Azurmane	120	Thunderstorm (Lv. 70)	600	5,000
Beakon	115	Thunderstorm (Lv. 70)	600	5,000
Fenglope Lux	115	Thunderstorm (Lv. 50)	600	5,000
Grizzbolt	105	Lethal Laser (Lv. 70)	600	5,000

Pal Gear That Shoots for You

This is the module almost nobody unlocks, and it is the cheapest ranged damage in the game. Pal gear turns a team Pal into a weapon you fire with the partner skill button — no ammo, no durability loss on your own gun. Lifmunk's Submachine Gun costs a single technology point at level 11, a full ten levels before the Musket, and Lifmunk is a starting-area catch. At the other end, Jetragon's Missile Launcher is both the saddle and the weapon: mount up and Jetragon fires missiles at whatever you are looking at. The four rideable entries — Mossanda, Grizzbolt, Relaxaurus, and Jetragon — are the strongest picks for water because they solve the range problem and the positioning problem in one unlock.

Pal Gear	Pal	Tech Lv. (Cost)	What It Does
Lifmunk's Submachine Gun	Lifmunk	11 (1 pt)	Lifmunk lays down automatic fire on your target
Tanzee's Assault Rifle	Tanzee	12 (1 pt)	Rifle fire from your partner, no ammo cost
Tanzee Ignis's Assault Rifle	Tanzee Ignis	13 (2 pts)	Fire-element version of the same trick
Pengullet Rocket Launcher	Pengullet	17 (2 pts)	Launches Pengullet itself as the projectile
Pengullet Lux's Rocket Launcher	Pengullet Lux	18 (2 pts)	Electric version — the element water enemies hate
Tocotoco's Gloves	Tocotoco	18 (2 pts)	Hold and throw Tocotoco as a grenade
Mossanda's Grenade Launcher	Mossanda	32 (2 pts)	Ride and fire grenades — Grass also beats Water
Mossanda Lux's Grenade Launcher	Mossanda Lux	34 (2 pts)	Electric grenades from the same mount
Grizzbolt's Minigun	Grizzbolt	40 (4 pts)	Sustained Electric minigun fire while mounted
Relaxaurus' Missile Launcher	Relaxaurus	45 (4 pts)	Missiles from a mount, ideal against distant swimmers
Relaxaurus Lux's Missile Launcher	Relaxaurus Lux	48 (4 pts)	Electric missiles, the best anti-water mount weapon
Nyafia's Shotgun	Nyafia	52 (3 pts)	Nyafia unleashes a shotgun barrage on command
Jetragon's Missile Launcher	Jetragon	79 (5 pts)	The fastest mount in the game, firing missiles

Use a Flying Mount

A flying mount turns a water fight into a shooting gallery: hover above the target, out of reach of anything that can't fly, and fire down with whatever you are holding. The cost is stamina, and it is a hard timer — when the bar empties you drop, and dropping into deep water is exactly the situation you were avoiding. That is why the stamina column below matters as much as the speed one. Jetragon is the fastest at 3,300 sprint, but it carries only 110 stamina; Frostallion and Selyne fly at roughly half that speed with 300 stamina, which is nearly three times the hover time. For a long fight over open water, the slower bird is the smarter one. Full rankings live on our Palworld mount speed rankings and the Best Flying Mounts guide.

Pal	Sprint Speed	Stamina	Saddle Tech Lv.	Why Bring It
Jetragon	3,300	110	79	Fastest in the game, and the saddle is a missile launcher
Shaolong	2,800	100	77	Second-fastest flier, 135 Shot Attack of its own
Eidrolon	2,750	130	68	Nearly Shaolong's speed with more air time
Frostallion	1,800	300	62	300 stamina — the hover-and-shoot pick
Selyne	1,600	300	53	Same 300 stamina, unlocks nine levels earlier
Faleris	1,400	230	60	230 stamina at a mid-tier saddle cost
Ragnahawk	1,300	150	33	Fastest flier available before level 40
Beakon	1,200	160	29	Electric flier, strong against water targets
Helzephyr	1,100	170	25	Most stamina you can get in the twenties
Nitewing	750	100	15	Earliest flying saddle in the game

Or Follow Them In on a Water Mount

Sometimes the target simply swims away and no amount of range fixes it. Mounting a water Pal solves that: you swim at mount speed instead of player speed, and you keep your weapons instead of losing them the way you do while swimming unmounted. Surfent is the one to aim for early — its saddle unlocks at technology level 16, which is before most players own a gun, and 1,440 sprint is fast enough to run down anything you'll meet in the starting seas. Neptilius is the endgame answer at 2,000 sprint and a huge 410 stamina, though its saddle sits at level 64. Note that eight of the nine below carry the Water element themselves — Azurobe Cryst is the Ice and Dragon exception — so your swimming mount eats the same Electric damage you are using on everything else. Don't park it inside your own Thunderstorm.

Pal	Swim Sprint	Stamina	Saddle Tech Lv.	Notes
Neptilius	2,000	410	64	Fastest swimmer, 145 Shot Attack, 410 stamina
Jormuntide	1,800	150	40	Second-fastest, and the saddle is only 2 points
Surfent	1,440	100	16	Earliest water saddle — the early-game pick
Ghangler	1,350	320	31	320 stamina at a level-31 saddle
Ghangler Ignis	1,350	320	42	Same speed and stamina, Fire element instead
Solmora	1,300	220	65	Late saddle, comfortable 220 stamina
Solmora Lux	1,300	220	66	Electric variant of Solmora
Azurobe	1,000	160	24	Slower, but the saddle costs just 2 points
Azurobe Cryst	1,000	160	27	Ice variant with identical swim numbers

The Short Answer

Stay on land and shoot. Before level 21 that means the Crossbow plus a Pal that already knows a 5,000-range skill; after level 36 it means a rifle, and after level 56 a Guided Missile Launcher that tracks a moving swimmer for you. Bring Electric damage against Water-element enemies, use a sphere launcher instead of your arm if you actually want to catch the thing, and only mount up if the target is running — a flier for hovering above the fight, a swimmer for the chase.

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