Hi guys, So I made a thread asking about VS HA's LMGs & it became clear that the Orion is a fantastic weapon & I'm going to stick with it until I'm floating in certs. My one issue with the Orion is I feel a pretty strong disadvantage at range. I'm wondering if this is because I've been running 1x reflex/HRNV. So I'm figuring I'll stick a x3.4 optic on there and see if that helps out, but first I wanted to verify this with the community. (In case the real issue is the gun, not the optic. Sticking a 6x scope on SMG for example isn't going to get you much.) And Holo vs. Chevron, what's the difference? Thanks!
I played around with the 4x scope on the orion before making my heavy into a pure CQC-to-close range fighter using the HS/NV scope. Personally i feel that the INF does a better job at medium-long range then the heavy with an orion. On the other hand a heavy with a flare is a better medium range fighter then an INF with a semi-auto sniper rifle. Ofc it does depend on playing style i just got sniped waaaay to often trying to medium-long range fight with my heavy.
Here's a post with pictures of several of them: I can't decide on vanu scopes I don't personally care for the chevron scopes much but probably the holo scope is worse, if they haven't fixed its dot. The point of the 3.4x Chevron looks like it's above the horizontal lines. I believe rounds actually land at the point of the chevron, so it's pretty misleading. The 4x Chevrons look better, but it's probably because they didn't try to do anything to them. There are three chevrons on it so you can use the lower ones for bullet drop (which Vanu weapons mostly don't have). I can't recall if the Orion gets it but I like the OG-4 scope on the SVA-88.
I don't care for any of the actual scopes really on any of the guns. I feel like it restricts your vision and aiming to much in closer quarters. I got that x4 just the other day and was instantly angry at myself for spending the certs. I just put my x2 holo back on top of it. The lack of screen restriction is a blessing and really it is prefect for the range of fight the gun is best at. Throwing any larger scope or sight on it will really only let you see the guy you are missing more This is all just my opinion and I tend to alway stick with the holo on most of the games I play.
If you want to have an Orion build for range then yes, a 3.4 or a 4x scope is good. For long I'd say Chevron on the 3.4x or either of the 4x options, for mid I'd say the 3.4 holo is an ok option, but at long the dot is a bit too much (it's abnormally large... and pink if I remember correctly, which is nice, but not the large part), any of the others will work for mid as well of course. There are pics and vids of how they look but beware, a lot of the scope guides are beta scopes, not post release and therefore not current (they changed quite a few) so keep an eye out for that.
Spend 100 certs and get the Pulsar LSW, you will love the low recoil on it and it is far better at range with a foregrip than the Orion.
Part of the issue with the Orion at range is that it's damage minimum point is at like 60 or 65m, so even if you're hitting your target you're not dealing much damage. That's mostly because the Orion is a short/mid-range weapon, utilizing high fire rate and fast reload to put 1-3 targets down at a time, interspersing reloads as needed. I haven't used any VS weapons for HA besides the SVA and Orion, but from what I've heard the Flare is pretty good at longer ranges, and that might be what you want to go for. The Orion does great in CQ, and due to the lack of bullet drop isn't terrible at long range, but you lose that hitting power and that's what really hurts the Orion. As for scopes, I would go with something that his little visual obstruction. The 3.4 Holo linked above is probably would I would opt for in a longer range scope, since bullet drop is a non-issue you won't need any pips to help gauge for drop over distance. Less clutter also means it's easier to keep your gun on target, and that's often enough to at least lay down some suppressive fire, if not outright kill someone, with the Orion. But again, a true longer range weapon would be the Flare, and that will also arguably be better at suppressive fire due to the larger magazine size.
The Orion is the worst Vanu LMG at range for a variety of reasons. You'd be better off getting anything else instead of trying to shoehorn the close-combat weapon into something it's not. The Flare or Ursa are the clear long-range picks (they're nearly identical), but even the mid-line variants will be an improvement.
Speaking only to the Orion, if your in the situation where you need that much magnification you need a different rifle. I highly recommend spending the 250 on the Flare, then a compensator, high velocity ammo, a fore grip, then the scope of your choice. If you are cert starved, you can play medic in situations where you are shooting at range. The stock pulsar is an excellent rifle at mid range.
