I am thinking about getting the Guass SPR Semi-auto SR for my NC for the 5 SR directive to unlock the Moonshot. I know SASR have their issues, but I am wondering if they are just over-exaggerated. I can still get the LA80 bolt action to complete it, but I want something different.
If you want something different, the Impetus is a better choice than the Gauss SPR. Scope sway is far more irritating on a gun that takes a second or two to secure the kill, and the SPR isn't worth using much beyond the effective range of the Impetus, anyway. In general, the problem with semi-auto snipers is that they demand so much exposure time, and this makes them non-viable in many situations where a bolt action would be effective, particularly large fights. Though I've far from Auraxiumed either SASR (I went the 5-bolt-action route for my Moonshot), I found even the SPR to be decent and fun to use in small fights, where standing still for a second or two isn't an instant death sentence. The Impetus is more versatile, since you can do all the same stuff with it, but you can also take it into close quarters, where you can afford to spam the trigger a bit, and headshots are easier to land.
Ok. I can see that. Hmm. I know getting the 5k kills is going to be a pita either way. I wonder if I should just stick with the LA80.
That's certainly the faster and easier method. However, since it sounds like you've got a ways to go on your other BASRs, why not put off the decision until you need that 5th gun?
Ok I feel like I need to weigh in on the Semi vs BA question (I tend to ignore them as they mostly consist of incorrect rants about how TR and VS are being screwed since they don’t start with a BA like the NC do and they are mostly from uninformed people that don’t know better) I have Raxed every primary and secondary an Infil (NC) can use so I feel like I can speak to the issue. That being said, always use the right tool for the right job! Use a Semi like a BA and you will only be getting half the potential out of the rifle and you will be frustrated with the half you seem to be getting. Likewise if you use a BA like a Semi you’ll be seeing your death screen more than your opponent will. There are always outliers so just take it as a general rule. Now on to the maths! The fastest BA (NC SAS-R) has a rate of fire of approx. 55 rpm, so slightly less than a round a second. RoF only goes down from there for the other BA models. The Semi, both have a rate of fire of approx. 230 rpm so about 3.83 rounds a second. Slowing that down for recoil management we can do 3 rounds in one second while maintaining respectable levels of accuracy. That tells us that unless you hit a headshot you will kill faster with a Semi than a BA. So if you aren’t a top tier sniper you are going to kill faster with a Semi. Honestly I don’t know why Semi’s aren’t every Infil’s go to rifle for a general purpose loadout. I certainly do agree with the exposure time being longer with a Semi than a BA but if you are just standing back from the battle using the Semi like a BA that’s your error not a fault of the weapon! Plus if someone out sniped you or god forbid another class gunned you down past 100m while you were attempting to take out your target you were not relocating enough and you were definitely standing still way longer than you need to be even with a Semi! The Semi should be used aggressively! Hyper Aggressively! When assaulting and fighting against an enemy that maybe dodging while in closer quarters (75m or less) and thus presenting a hard headshot target, 3 bodyshots will be much easier than you attempting to line up that perfect shot. In this case your exposure time will be much less as you may never get a solid shot at your target’s head. And unless you think your target’s TTK on you is around 2 seconds or greater you are better off ditching the BA for a Semi. (Caveat if your target is more than 85m with the SPR you will need 4 Body shots to kill a max NW user) All that being said you should use what best fits your playstyle but I would take the extra time to learn the Semi even if it isn’t your playstyle as you may find that it opens up additional areas of play that you may not have experienced before. Plus there’s nothing quite like the rush of gunning down someone who thinks you don’t have the rate of fire to decimate them in quick order. I hope this helps and if you have any other questions or counterpoints feel free to post them and I will address them! -SideWinder
I already use the SAS-R every once in awhile, but my two primary styles are Sniping at 100 meters or more with my BA or going cqc with my cyclone. I find the mid-range fighting style to be a lot harder for me(I own all the scout rifles), so perhaps the semi-auto may not work.
If you're really planning on using the semi-autos just be aware that they really can wind up being super inaccurate if firing at anything near their maximum fire rate. They have extremely bad CoF bloom and extremely poor recovery time which can quickly lead to your CoF becoming large enough that no matter where your crosshair is you're going to miss a lot of shots. This can be mitigated in two ways. The first is firing super slowly so that you give the gun time to settle properly, of course this also means your damage output is going to be super low as well. With bodyshots the close range bolt-actions can kill in about the same amount of time a semi-auto can if you're waiting for the recoil to settle. As such I only recommend trying to be accurate at long ranges when you're going for the double tap headshot or headshot/bodyshot combo to bring down easy targets. The second way is to pay attention to the number of missed shots when you're going for maximum RoF. If I miss 2 of the first 3 or 4 shots I don't even try to go for more. After that 3rd shot your CoF is extremely large. After the 4th or 5th, you may as well be hipfiring for all the good it's going to do you. Instead of gambling just end the fight, or if they're close enough and not already shooting at you, use your sidearm. Of course this is primarily for close to mid range, if you're attempting to shoot quickly at long range then the CoF is likely to screw you as early as the second shot. Since it's already come up in the topic I will also say there's a decent difference between the Long range semi-auto and the close range ones. The Impetus/Phantom/KSR have a lower velocity as well as a massive recoil angle when compared to the Gauss SPR/Spectre/99SV. That wide recoil angle especially further compounds the close range semi-autos problems because it means there's really no effective way to compensate for the recoil. Added onto the bloom issues and I find the close range semi-autos to be one of the least accurate weapons in game. With the long range semi-autos you have better velocity and a much more manageable recoil angle, but you of course gain the slower scope in time and the scope sway. Choice really comes down to whether or not you want to gamble more with possible missed shots or whether you're willing to allow for a little more setup time before you take your shots.
The Lady, Longshot and Railjack should definitely be on the list. I would recommend Impetus over SPR. I would also recommend the SAS-R but in keeping with the theme of longer ranges, some people feel more comfortable going with the Bolt Driver.
Dude, the SAS-R is amazing, I Auraxiumed it in about 3-4 days. It is definitely one of my favorite guns. The problem people have, is they tend to use it wrong. Its not a long range weapon by any stretch. It should not even be thought of as a Sniper Rifle at all. Its more of a powerful Scout rifle. The trick is putting on Straight-pull Bolt, Suppressor and 2x, and being more aggressive with it. Like I said, think if it as a Close-range to Mid-Close BR or SR instead of a Sniper rifle.
