I've been using the SABR and when I'm firing at range I love this weapon so much! Enemies at shorter range however seem to consistently outgun me. Am I out of luck trying to use this weapon up close or is there something I can do to help turn the tables?
The 2x burst doesn't work great for close-quarters, especially if you're against high-RPM carbines or assault rifles. Lower magnification (I go for the 1x yellow dot) and headshot prioritization is the key, I think. Not that I can CQ-SABR very well, but I've seen more skilled players make it work quite well.
You're basically asking for advice on how to use a weapon outside of its role. It's similar to asking "How do I make a shotgun work at range" or "How can I hipfire this sniper rifle effectively." Sure, you'll get advice on how to optimise the weapon for that role... but you'll still lose to someone with a CQC weapon.
Aiming for the head is your best chance of winning those CQB fights, I would also activate the self heal because it might be a life saver.
The SABR is still more than capable of winning CQC engagements. This is one of my favourite weapons as its powerful and versatile. If you do get into a CQC engagement, your best bet is to get the crosshair on the upper chest area and fire as fast as you possibly can. Due to the weapons recoil and cone of fire, you'll land a good number of head shots easily with this weapon in CQC if you do it that way and that's often all it takes to give you the advantage. That said, I use this with the forward grip & compensator, if you are using the laser sight instead then its probably easier to aim directly at the head. If you still struggle with it then maybe try to find a pistol that suits you and rely on that instead. I find the T4 AMP perfectly compliments the SABR-13.
Hello Lyon, not sure which scope you're using, but i'm guessing 6X? The 6x is a bit much imo. If you haven't tried the 3.4xRed Dot yet, then I highly reccomend that one. 3.4,HVA,Comp, and AFG is what I run with. Getting good with a burst fire like the SABR will affect your entire game play positively since you will instinctively feather burst everything which helps alot. Also, try out the revamped T1Cycler Burst. It is even tighter than the SABR. Same set up basically...3.4 Red Dot,FG, and HVA. Doesn't come with a Comp attachment(which I thought was odd)...makes no seeminly effect on weapon performance without it using the HVA imo. SABR is still king due to the 167 dmg tier, but the T1B is pretty tight and nasty in its own right.
As most have said this gun isnt for CQC. Unless you get the jump and some lucky hits and misses from your oppenent your going to loose. I found the best way to deal with CQC with the sabr is just hip fire. Its surprisingly accurate and if the wind is blowing in the right direction that extra first burst from not ads'ing can win you the fight. tbh get to a sundy and grab the tar or trv if you are in cqc. imo if your using the sabr always make sure your behind a front line of friendlies. As long as nobody is going to close in on you and you alone, the sabr is lethal even as close as 20m if your taking the inititive. I really like the sabr for this very reason, unlike other TR medic guns where you just run in and kill things, you have to think about your position and targets with the sabr. Get it right and your boss, wrong and your fodder.
The SABR-13 is perfectly capable of dishing it out in CQC. Not its intended use, sure - but it's still lethal. Deck it out with a Laser Sight (drop the Compensator for this setup), go with 1X/2X scope and prioritize headshots (2 burst kill). Also - despite being a burst weapon it's full RPM of 600 can be reached rather easil with the proper timing and 167/600 is very powerful. Give it a whirl. Practice, practice, practice.
Partially agree with Lord Avatar here. I would still recommend using it with grip and compensator, as those attachments do A LOT for SABR. But as long as you use a scope you can conveniently aim in close quarters with, like 1x/2x, SABR should be somewhat viable for self defense in close quarters. It's all pretty much lies in your ability to spam click properly.
Headshot fairy. If you can't do that, then you're out of luck on cqb. SABR is intended as an "overwatch" weapon.
+1 Pulling the sabr and expecting to go win in cqc is a bit daft imo. Specially when all the other AR's vary between good and superb in cqc. The starter T1 will kill a sabr 90% of the time (as will almost any auto weapon). The sabr is about finding that 10% of situations and exploiting it. Overwatch is a good way of putting it and how to use it.
The SABR is a long ranged gun, and although it can CQC better than some other long range weapons, it will rarely beat a CQC gun. TR have a lot of insanely strong ARs, and we can cover every range well. Grab one of those CQC ARs and watch as you mow through multiple enemies. Always try to use the right gun for the right job. If using the SABR close up, scope even closer than you normally would, and save the hipfire for when you can land a large number of your shots. If really close, headshots are extremely effective with a high damage burst weapon, so hipfire into the head whne close enough. But still try to get the right gun for the right job, and if you can, force favourable engagements.
Hip-fire it and circle-strafe. Never better than a good player with a dedicated CQC weapon but you'll do fine against mediocre shots or people with similarly inappropriate weapons.
Planetside 2 is a gun warehouse run by dozens of different and non-competing manufacturers; waiting until they're caught out by commission standard governing bodies, where all sides of an ongoing war - oddly enough - all have the same injuries and complaints.
Asking how to make a shotgun work at range isn't a crazy question at all. A shotgun with slugs is a very formidable weapon at range. If you're good with bullet drop, you can do better with it than you can a battlerifle. And unlike most weapons, dedicating a shotgun to long range by using slugs doesn't seem to hamper you much in CQC... At least it has worked well for me in every instance I've tried it. An AF-57 piston with slugs is very VERY nasty.
I've found the 1x reflex the most versatile sight for the SABR. I've comfortably hit (and killed) targets out to 100 metres with that, the grip and the compensator. For indoor fights I just remove the compensator, so if you really get caught with your pants down you can hipfire with a marginally higher degree of accuracy. Trickiest part of using it in CQ for me is timing the mouse clicks to get the most RoF without oversampling. If you meet a heavy with monster aim and something like the Orion or Anchor be prepared to lose, though.
