The player equipping the Moonlight sword in the assembly menu of Armored Core 6.

Armored Core 6: How to Get the Moonlight Sword

FromSoftware just can't help inserting this weapon into their games.

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Reyadh is a writer of fantasy, horror, and science fiction who loves to play video games full of monsters and magic. When he's not scribing unique and unrelenting speculative fiction or slaying demons in virtual worlds, he is writing strategy guides to help others reach their gaming goals.

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Key Takeaway

You can get the Moonlight sword in Chapter 4 of Armored Core 6 during the “Reach the Coral Convergence” mission.

The location of the chest containing the “IA-C01W2: Moonlight” is below the far end of the broken bridge within the shallow lake of Institute City.

To get rid of the grinder wheels guarding the chest, use explosive weapons, as these enemies are weak to this damage type.

Ah, yes, the legendary sword made of blue-green energy returns once more. To get the Moonlight sword in Armored Core 6, you’ll need to open a chest found in the Institute City’s shallow lake. However, it’s guarded by some aggressive enemies. Thankfully, these foes are incredibly weak to explosive damage.

Table Of Contents

    Where to Find the Moonlight Sword

    You can get the Moonlight sword in Chapter 4 of Armored Core 6 during the “Reach the Coral Convergence” mission. The location of the chest containing the “IA-C01W2: Moonlight” is below the far end of the broken bridge within the shallow lake of Institute City.

    A red circle showing the location of the chest containing the Moonlight sword just beyond a broken bridge.

    However, you shouldn’t hop down into the shallows and approach it by land. There are a lot of powerful autonomous grinder wheel enemies down there. Instead, approach the chest by using the broken bridge. The far end of said bridge allows you to look down at the chest.

    A red circle outlining the chest containing the Moonlight sword—which is surrounded by grinder wheel enemies.
    Warning
    One autonomous grinder wheel will attack you as you cross the bridge.

    How to Deal With the Grinder Wheels

    The autonomous grinder wheels guarding the chest are very weak to explosive damage. To destroy them, use weapons that have a decent range and deal high amounts of explosive damage. When we got the Moonlight sword, we used the SONGBIRDS back weapon. With that said, any grenade launcher or explosive missile pod can be effective here.

    From the end of the bridge, use the element of surprise to blast some of the four grinder wheels with your explosive weapons of choice.

    The player using an explosive weapon to attack grinder wheel enemies from above.

    Afterward, you’ll have to hop down and finish them off the old-fashioned way: face-to…gear?

    The player attacking a grinder wheel enemy with explosive weapons head-on.

    When all nearby enemies have been defeated, access the chest to get the IA-C01W2: Moonlight.

    The player looting the IA-C01W2: Moonlight from a chest in Armored Core 6.

    About the Moonlight Sword

    Although the IA-C01W2: Moonlight is a melee weapon, it launches crescent-shaped energy waves that have about the same effective range as a machine gun.

    The Assembly menu in Armored Core 6 showing the effects of using the IA-C01W2: Moonlight.

    We’ll break down the pros of equipping this weapon:

    • Useful for both melee attacks and ranged attacks
    • Decent Attack Power and Impact stats
    • Can be used for single attacks and double attacks (tap the corresponding button or key once for single attacks and twice for a two-attack combo)
    • High Charged Attack Power
      • The charged attack unleashes a long, horizontal wave of energy
    • High direct hit damage—which is useful against staggered foes
    • Low weight means it can be equipped to any build
    • Relatively short cooldown for a melee weapon

    For the IA-C01W2: Moonlight’s exact stats, check out the image below.

    The stats of the IA-C01W2: Moonlight in Armored Core 6.

    The IA-C01W2: Moonlight is a versatile weapon that can help you get S-Rank on a lot of missions. It’s offensively suitable for many occasions and doesn’t consume ammunition. On top of that, unlike other melee weapons, it doesn’t suffer from short-range. If you’re a longtime fan of FromSoftware games, you’ll also respect this weapon for the legacy it carries. Bask in glorious moonlight, fellow mercenaries.

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