I've taken a shining lately to playing stalker infiltrator, unfortunately the repeater feels like the only worthwhile faction specific sidearm, but it's so overused i cant use it for too long without getting bored. I have trouble with the emperor due to oversampling the weapon in situations where i have the drop on an automatic weapon. The inquisitor feels just like the emperor but is kinder to oversampling, but lacks the damage to put people down fast like the Emperor. I really dislike using the T4 AMP as well, unless you're within intimate happy-time distance, you're not going to hit anything, and will die from immediate retaliation. As for play-style, i'm aware that stalkers shouldn't be attacking heavies unless they're weak or just plain oblivious, they're a death sentence on 2 legs. I try to stay out of my target's direct path and attack from a flank, but if they're coming straight at me, i risk being seen by side-stepping. i will usually try to chance letting them move through me before turning around and unloading into their back. I've seen Mustarde use the Emperor to great success, but most of his enemies dont turn around until they're just about dead, my targets react rather fast.... which makes successful hunts less of a challenge and more frustrating due to repeated deaths. Can some veteran stalkers give me some tips? [Sidenote: No, i will not use the Commissioner, black hand or Underboss, NS is just not my cup of tea.]
Sounds like you have a good handle on the weapons. Dare i say it comes down to your ability to read the targets intentions. If they are heavily focused or distracted by something its less likely they will be able to respond in time. I'll give the example of the HA with a rocket launcher who is lining up a galaxy shot. I know when he pulls out the rocket launcher i have a good window of time to open on him. However this can be troublesome if the target is hiding out of fear, they may react faster and have a heightened state of awareness. If more enemies are around your target this tends to make them more complacent. If they don't feel at risk they are more likely to respond slower. Edit: You could also try borrowing a page from Beamer 101, and use cover when you open to reduce the inevitable damage you will get in return. TLDR: Just keep working on ambushing, im positive you will get better with it.
I think one of the harder aspects of using pistols is learning when to ADS and when to hipfire. NS pistols excluded, their blooms per shot are so bad that you can't hit anything if you hipfire past a few meters, but you have to do some hipfire dancing to stay competitive in a very close-range firefight. With close-range pistols like the repeater and AMP, you can squeeze a little extra range out by pausing between bursts (or bursting in the first place, in the case of the AMP). These pistols have more manageable DPS than others, but it won't do much good if the bullets fly past the guy's head and you end up having to reload before the kill. Headshots are obviously good, but since ES pistols are stuck with generally crappy iron sights, I usually prefer to open with a headshot or two and then go for the body. It's just more reliable when you can't really see what you're shooting at, CoF bloom is starting to kick in, and the target is probably spazzing out after that first shot. Edit: This sounds a little more negative about non-NS pistols than I intended, but obviously you're going to be at a disadvantage vs. almost all primaries in a head-on firefight. Still, if you know what you're doing, you can beat most average players and sometimes good ones.
youre missing out by not using the blackhand good up close and at range the only useful input i can give at this point is try to not be level with your target. usually theyll turn around assuming youll be level and have a bead on your head relatively quickly. if youre like on a box or uneven terrain, theres that extra little bit of time to get another headshot before they can aim at you properly or they could just be mlg and know exactly where you are instantly and headshot you to death. internet.
Might I note that you're missing a very important part of a Stalker's arsenal? Buy the Ripper and learn to use her well, you can assassinate literally any infantry unit, including HA in insane time and can fade back into the shadows. Once you get used to the activate, decloak, stab, cloak, deactivate rhythm you'll make the enemy fear going anywhere alone. People tend to listen for the decloak sound, but a good 95% of the time they don't expect you to suddenly be on top of them and with an instant TTK damned if they won't be calling BS on you for quite some time.
With 5 pistols finished I give the TX2 Emperor my vote as best. Work on your timing but if you are fast enough while remaining acurate, the TX3 would most likely be your best bet. TX4 has the ability to take down HA as they are dead before they react. I nearly always ADS.
Oh i have the ripper, and i love using it. I'm a total jerk to my enemies with it, but I'm just talking straight side-arm performance though, how to maximize damage, and minimize returned consequence. I appreciate all your guys' tips, i'll give them each a try and see how well i do later on.
