Contributing Author: Alex R.
Incoming Shipments
#3 – Kumakatok HC4
- Mulligan | Snapshot/braced frame | Triple tap/Danger Close
- Mulligan | Snapshot/Injection mold | Rescue Mag/uUnderdog
- Grenadier | Extended mag/braced frame | Icarus/Danger Close
Bringing grenade recharge, extra ammo (on top of this week’s ammo buff from Bungie), and your choice of accuracy in mid air or (much better) extra Range and Handling when 2 or more enemies are nearby – not as strong in PVP, but very easy to trigger in story missions and strikes.
Any – Zarinaea-D
- Danger Close | Glass Half Full | High Caliber Rounds/Hand Loaded/Smallbore
- Partial Refund | Rangefinder | High Caliber Rounds/Speed Reload/Smallbore
- Danger Close | Feeding Frenzy | Snapshot/Speed Reload/Rifled Barrel
Roll 1 is tempting for the Smallbore + SC Holo combination. Danger Close is all right, too, but GHF is hurt by Smallbore – still okay and even better in PVE. For PVP though, I’d go with roll 2. Rangefinder + Smallbore will give you solid range, accuracy, and stability, and you’ll get a lot of action out of Partial Refund no doubt.
This Auto Rifle, being a mid-impact tier, was unaffected by the recent changes to PvP balancing. #3’s Danger Close, Feeding Frenzy and Speed Reload all speak to small bonuses to your gunplay in PvE, especially while dealing with enemies in close quarters. Join the fray and fire away!
#1 or 2 – SUROS PDX-41
- Hammer Forged/Casket Mag | Unflinching | Snapshot/Rifled Barrel
- Fitted Stock/Oiled Frame | Rangefinder | Speed Reload/Reinforced Barrel
- Perfect Balance/Feather Mag | Take a Knee | Snapshot/Reinforced Barrel
Roll 1 is my first pick – a long ranged sniper killer, you’ll want Hammer Forged, Unflinching and probably Snapshot for PVP, but I would switch out to Casket Mag instead of Hammer Forged in PVE – a fantastic roll over all.
The PDX-41 already comes with decent range, but with #2, you’ll have no problem hitting targets from any distance! Rangefinder and Reinforced Barrel will do their job in giving you as much range and accuracy as possible, while Fitted Stock’s slight stability bonus can’t hurt on this mid-impact pulse rifle. Overall, this is a solid roll that just stops short of perfect. If you’re a perfectionist, you’ll want to wait until we get Counterbalance in the middle perk slot for that perfect vertical recoil pattern.
Any – Tamar-D
- Take a Knee – Who’s Next? – High Caliber Rounds | Snapshot | Appended Magazine
- Unflinching – Spray and Play – High Caliber Rounds | Snapshot | Appended Magazine
- Counterbalance – Who’s Next? – Perfect Balance | Armor Piercing Rounds | Injection Mold
Roll 3 is just silly stable, which will make follow up shots a breeze, and also makes this a good roll for people still learning to snipe. Who’s Next is a surprisingly good reload perk, too, and we’ve got Scout scopes all around! Roll 1 is actually great too though… a very strong accuracy buff plus Snapshot make that the roll for closer quarters combat snipers.
Spray and Play is the perk of note here, offering you an amazing reload boost at the end of every clip. This will help you do faster damage to bosses and major enemies in PvE. However, with the new changes to special ammo, you may be interested in saving this package until Surplus appears. Surplus increased the amount of ammo you get out of each brick in PvE, which could help solve future ammo capacity problems brought about by the new balancing update.
#2? – SUROS JLB-42
- Single Point Sling/Flared Magwell | Cluster Bombs | Perfect Balance/Lightweight
- Heavy Payload/Speed Reload | Tripod | Javelin/Snapshot
- Single Point Sling/Speed Reload | Reactive Reload | Perfect Balance/Quickdraw
This is a PVE pick only, but Roll 2 will have a lot of really fast, hard-hitting rockets – especially if you throw on your Rocket Ammo chestpiece and boots (sorry Hunters)! If you’re looking for a PVP version of this gun, you ought to know the drill by now: this gun only counts with Grenades & Horseshoes.
At this point, it’s simple: No proximity detonation or tracking? Meh. Could just hold on to this package until Grenades and Horseshoes or Tracking.
[divider]
Next Week’s Orders
SUROS DIS-43
Easy to use, with great perk tables for PVP especially, The DIS-43 is a solid scout rifle. It lacks some of the more interesting PVE perk options, but makes up for that with simple effectiveness.
This Scout Rifle falls in a Vision of Confluence archetype, and with a magazine size of 19, it should be great for PvE despite its stability issues (base 48). With a range of 77, you’ll be hard-pressed to find a situation where this Scout Rifle isn’t hitting for full damage.
Zarinaea-D
Banshee must have overstocked on this gun, because he won’t stop selling it. That said, it’s not a bad weapon, but competition in the auto rifle arena is fierce and I don’t think this one is as strong as it used to be.
This gun fires as fast as the Zhalo Supercell and sports some balanced stats. With stability of 60, reload speed of 65 and aim assistance of 60, this gun can work if you enjoy the impact archetype. We’ll want some more range next week, but reload speed could also make this gun fun in PvE.
TUONELA SR4
Very similar to the DIS-43 (and nearly identical to Dead Orbit’s Hung Jury), the Tuonela is a great pick with strong potential rolls for all game modes. I’d definitely take it over the DIS-43 for PVE and possibly for PVP as well.
Lyudmila-D
With the new buffs to high-impact Pulse Rifles, this is a great order to place. With a solid roll, this gun can still do some work in PvP as a legendary primary. It has base range of 63 and stability of 54, so we’ll want to preserve the range while increasing stability to laser-like levels, and a reload perk like Feeding Frenzy would be icing on the cake. Counterbalance is going to be the key, as Hakke Pulse Rifles have an awkward recoil pattern that needs to be corrected for maximum accuracy.
Aoife Rua-D
The Aoife Rua-D, like the Tamar-D, has equivalent Impact to the Low-Grade Humility and Patience and Time. However, with a base stability of 34, you’ll best be aiming for headshots and not double-taps. If you like sniping in PvE, order one of these! Hakke snipers can roll with Surplus, which really helps with ammo scarcity in PvE.
I think a better inventory score puts it ahead of its sibling, the Tamar-D as ammo management will be the name of the game for special weapons. Look for Performance Bonus, Take a Knee, and Quickdraw if you want to take it into the Crucible next week.