Morningstar

Morningstar
"...would smell as sweet."
Manufacturer:	Hyperion
Type:	Sniper Rifle
Rarity:	Unique
Element:	Shock, Incendiary, Corrosive, Slag, or Normal
Game:	Borderlands 2
Mission Reward:	Hyperion Contract 873
Special Part(s): GD_Weap_SniperRifles.A_Weapons_Unique. Sniper_Hyperion_3_Morningstar GD_Weap_SniperRifles.Barrel. SR_Barrel_Maliwan_Morningstar GD_Weap_SniperRifles.ManufacturerMaterials. Material_Hyperion_3_Morningstar

The Morningstar is a unique aftermarket talking Hyperion sniper rifle. Morningstar is obtained from the mission Hyperion Contract 873 located in The Highlands.

Special Weapon Effect

"A Rose by any other name..." – Increased damage. Adds a short-lived 20% critical hit damage bonus for each critical hit. Berates the user in a nagging, whiny voice any time they reload, kill an enemy, swap weapons, or score a critical hit.

Usage & Description

The Morningstar has slightly boosted damage for a Hyperion sniper rifle, greater than any blue rarity Hyperion rifle but less than those of purple rarity. This makes it a solid performing weapon by itself, but the Morningstar also has a second, hidden characteristic which makes it an attractive sniper weapon.

Each consecutive critical hit performed with the Morningstar will add an extra 20% damage to any subsequent critical hits for a short time, similar to Critical Ascensi0n. Like Critical Ascensi0n each multiplier can stack, though unlike that skill each multiplier wears off independently. This effectively limits the maximum number of stacked multipliers to 3. Though it functions similarly to the skill, the multipliers operate separately from Critical Ascensi0n and will stack with that ability.

Though its special effect is outperformed by a small number of unique weapons, the Morningstar is still a "better-than-blue" weapon, making it an especially attractive option for players looking for an excellent level-appropriate sniper weapon.

Although it is not tactically relevant, the inherent comedic value of the weapon may also offer some incentive toward use, especially in multiplayer environments.

Quotes

Main article: Morningstar/Quotes

Notes

• If the Morningstar is put away during a quote-generating event, typically reloading, its voice may remain active even when using other weapons. Currently this is the only way to hear the "weapon switch" quotes.
• The critical hit bonus stacking property can be transferred to other weapons by reloading the Morningstar and then cancelling the reload by switching to another weapon and back to the Morningstar before the other weapon is drawn. If done correctly, every weapon will gain the ability to generate these stacks. This can be repeated multiple times to create multiple instances of this property. Each instance will generate stacks independently on critical hits making it possible to generate an indefinite amount of stacks and consequently an indefinitely high critical hit bonus. This effect resets when the game is quit.
• The subtitles don't give the entire quote from the weapon.
• This weapon was dropped by Saturn on day 20 of the Borderlands 2 Loot Hunt. A hotfix on that day increased the duration of the short-lived 20% critical damage bonus.
• If sold while equipped, weapon switch and reloading quotes will play when swapping between any weapon equip spot or when any weapon is reloaded. Kill-shot quotes happen rarely. This effect does not go away after travelling, gaining a second wind or respawning. Quitting and restarting the game fixes this effect.

Trivia

• The red text is a reference to Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. The full quote is "A rose by any other name would smell as sweet" and is said by Juliet, who argues that the names of things don't matter, only what things are.
• The name of the weapon is similar in theme to what the red text is referring to. "Morning Star" is the name given to Venus in ancient times. It is also observed as "Evening Star" by the ancients. Due to the orbit of Venus being shorter than Earth, it appears in the morning only during certain time of the year, and eventually switches appearance to the evenings.
• The weapon and the mission that grants it as a reward are a reference to an XKCD web comic, specifically, FPS Mod (notably XKCD comic #873, referenced in the mission number), in which an individual laments the fact that nobody likes his mod that gives a short guilt-inducing factoid about each enemy killed by the player. When completing the mission, the weapon is referred to as "the Hyperion ex-K seedy," a homophone for XKCD.
• The weapon is voiced by Monica Rial.