What does Purgewater do in Horizon Forbidden West?

There are a few new elemental effects for players to use in Horizon Forbidden West and one of them includes Purgewater. Elemental damage works the same for every type when it comes to build-up, but each one has its own status effects that follow.

Elemental types such as fire are more obvious and will simply burn the target once the full build-up is reached. Purgewater, on the other hand, can be more subtle at first, especially because players won't get the element until they progress further in the West. Considering some of the new machines are susceptible to Purgewater, it's important to know the full extent of the effect.

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Purgewater makes the machines in Horizon Forbidden West more vulnerable to damage

This element can help with shock or frost (Image via PlayStation)

Purgewater is represented by the water symbol in Horizon Forbidden West and it appears like steam when machines are hurt by the effect. As soon as players get a full Purgewater build-up, the effect is known as the Drenched state. Each element has a name and state to go along with it. Fire, for example, will have a burning state when the full effect is built.

When machines enter the Drenched state and steam falls off of them, Aloy will have the option for some new effects. Purgewater effects are more subtle than others and are all about secondary sources of damage. Machines will become more susceptible to Frost and Shock build-up. That means machines that aren't usually weak to Frost and Shock will suddenly take a ton of damage from those sources for a full Brittle or Shocked State.

On top of the change in elemental weaknesses, Purgewater will also remove any elemental damage from the affected machine. An example would be the shock attack from the Ravager enemies. It's a great way to defend Aloy while dishing out more elemental damage in Horizon Forbidden West.

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How to use elemental ammo in Horizon Forbidden West

Elemental ammo can be found for nearly any weapon type in Horizon Forbidden West and that includes the Purge type. One of the earliest ways to get this specific type is on a hunter bow or a Tripcaster. Which ones are available will depend on the merchant that the player approaches.

The earliest elemental types will usually consist of Explosive, Acid, and Shock. Of course, that lineup will expand into far more, especially with a new list of machines. Players will need to adapt along with Aloy for the best chance in combat.