Let’s be honest, if you’ve played Borderlands 3 for any length of time, you know the pain of chasing that “perfect” weapon. You finally get the right gun with the stats you want… and then the anointment is completely useless for your build. That frustration looks set to be a thing of the past in Borderlands 4, with a new system that moves away from pure RNG and gives players real control over their gear. The big change? A more hands-on approach to weapon upgrades, and it all starts with the Borderlands 4 Items you’ll be collecting along the way.

The centrepiece of this revamp is the Weapon Workbench. Imagine the grinder from The Pre-Sequel, but smarter, and mixed with Wonderlands’ re-roll station. You’re not just tossing guns in and hoping for luck – you’re breaking them down for parts. Dismantling a weapon gives you materials tied to its manufacturer and rarity, plus a shot at salvaging specific components.

Got a Dahl rifle with a scope you love but a body that’s rubbish? Strip the scope and slap it on another Dahl gun. This means you can finally build the gun you want without praying for the exact drop to appear.

Scopes, barrels, stocks, magazines – all of these can be swapped between weapons of the same brand. It’s the kind of tweak that changes everything, because every drop now has potential value. Even if a gun’s not right for you, it might have the part you’ve been hunting for. It’s a far cry from the old “almost perfect” loot heartbreak.

Then there’s the anointment overhaul. Gone are the days of dumping Eridium into endless re-rolls. Now, dismantling a weapon with a specific anointment gives you “Anointment Essence” linked to that effect. Break down a gun with “Next 2 Magazines deal 100% bonus fire damage” and you’ll get Fire Essence. Collect enough, and you can apply that exact anointment to the weapon of your choice. This system even extends to passive bonuses on class mods and artifacts, so you can fine-tune damage boosts, cooldown reductions, and other key stats without relying on luck alone.

What this means is the grind becomes smarter, not shorter. You’ll still farm, but now you’re farming for parts, essences, and upgrades – not just a single mythical drop. Every legendary feels worth picking up, because it might contain exactly what you need to perfect your build.

And when you finally craft that dream gun with the right parts and the right anointment, you’ll know it was earned through smart play, not blind luck. It’s a shift that should make the game far more satisfying, and for those who want to speed things up, you can always buy Borderlands 4 Cash to get straight to the fun.