I've recently returned to this game after a half-year break. I rarely speak on these forums, but I wanted to ask some questions to keep with the times since I missed out on a massive amount of changes. I main shotgun Heavy Assault so the questions revolve around that particular class and weapon type: The biggest change I've noticed upon returning is that the Nanoweave Armor was tweaked from a health boost to infantry damage reduction (that apparently doesn't stack with Resist Shield). Does this make Nanoweave Armor on-par in usefulness with the Flak Armor (which was a must-have in 2013 due to all the spam going on)? Is Nanoweave Armor or Flak Armor better / worse than the other in general gameplay or are they equal in usefulness and can be interchanged to fit the situation? In 2013, the NC's Jackhammer was commonly called the "Jokehammer" because it was sub-par for a shotgun weapon (especially during the pump-action shotgun fiasco). Today, after researching previous threads about the weapon and trying it in-game, I feel like the Jackhammer has become astoundingly better than what it was before. Has the playstyle of the Jackhammer changed at all (into something of its own kind), or is it still similar to playing with other shotguns? Speaking of pump-action shotguns, I remember a massive controversy in 2013 when people were loudly complaining about the one-hit-kill ability it had and how people wanted every shotgun in the game nerfed. From the summer of 2013 to present day, what changes did they do to shotguns, especially pump-action ones? Are all shotguns still viable? Were any shotguns nerfed into the ground? Sorry if this seems like a lot to answer, but I feel as if I've just woken up from cryo-sleep and entered the future without any knowledge of what happened. Thanks in advance if you can answer.
I'm surprised nobody has already answered to this. 1. Yeah the changes were intended to make other suit choices more viable. It's more up to what you feel you die the most to now. With Resist Shield I'd recommend ASC for faster shield. For Adrenaline Shield I'd go with nanoweave. If you love throwing concussions I'd go grenade bandolier and so on. They're all good choices. 2. Jackhammer is a beast, it is my favourite heavy weapon by far. It has the longest effective range and the most ammo. With burst fire it functions like a pump action and with semi auto you can use it like any other semi auto shotgun, but better. 3. I honestly don't know how they've nerfed the shotguns, but they're still viable choices. My main gripe with them is their pathetic effective range. Any shotgun other than the Jackhammer will get you killed if it's an equal engagement outside 10 meters(the Jackhammer has a little bit better range). Pump-actions can still oneshot, but you really need to make the shot count due to the long pump animation. People generally recommend the semi autos when people ask what shotgun to get, I'd say the same.
jackhammer is my only shotgun and I don't use nanoweave, so I will only answear to the Jackhammer Q. On paper, Jackhammer has less damage potential, but as other semi auto, it can still 2 shot an infantry. It's 2.5 spread (the lowest IG), makes it viable at ~15m range. So yeah, it's kind a niche : not as versatile as an SMG, but superior in CQC. The burst fire mode can be usefull in some situation, but it's also a waste of ammo. Plus, with a total of 12 shells in clip with extended mag, you can definitvely chain kill with this shotgun.
3) Pumps are still very viable. They are extremely situational and require you to stay very CQC. But its safe to say that 5-6+ kill streaks is a common trend when you understand how to lure your enemies.
