So with the DLC coming out and me already hammering it into dust with a character i'd built up over months, i wanted to start a new build.


This is because someone suggested the reason it was so quick to get through automatron is because my character was well built and never really had to face a real "challenge" so the new additions werent really helpful to begin with considering the DLC opens at level 15.


So im going for a scav (that dabbles in all crafting early game and utilised perception) which ive never really done. What gun would you say is "endgame" for that class, barring plasma?

Gauss rifle.

Yep, Gauss. Nothing compares...unless you just enjoy nerfing yourself. There is no ballistic weapon even close. The .50 is not a FIFTY!

I love overseers guardian

I still vote for the overseers guardian.

on other weapons i tested, the second shot from the "two shot" effect is way off on longer range.. for the overseers it's strangely not.

you do'nt even need a sidearm.

it works for vats/non vats builds.

Gauss/Plasma are nice in numbers damagewise... but i still preferred the overseers.

If you like mods, the M82a3 is a nice gun. just don't try to mod it to "two shot"... it doesn't work well (second shot is REALLY far off).

But with the damage it provides, it doesn't need a legendary effect... or +25% DMG will do.

With this one you WILL need a sidearm though

Yeah, Overseer's Guardian and Instigating 50 cal sniper.

I'm a full time sniper, and despite not being "practical" I use a silenced explosive 50 cal with a night scope, and occasionally use power armor with the targeting system that marks enemies when you aim at them.


I really want an instigating sniper though.

Why not just use a recon scope then?

Hilariously (and pathetically) I ditched a bunch of instigating legendaries in earlier playthroughs because I just didn't catch what they did haha would be excellent for a 50 cal

Gauss is hands down the best weapon for a sniper build, but in the end you can make do with a legendary 50cal or a modified combat rifle if you like ballistic weapons more.

I only carry one weapon with me. And it's this.

For me, it's just so aesthetically pleasing once fully modded. Easily my most used weapon in the game by far

Does the recon scope mark them? I thought it just followed my target.

used it on my first two runs, loved it.

on my third i started using mods to keep it more interesting.

went for an unsilenced M82 (*bang*) for the distance stuff since it wasn't a snak build anyway.

was fun... but in the end i ditched it because of the weight as soon as i had the two shotguns i wanted

Edit: and for aethetics... the M82 actually looked like a (AM) sniper rifle

My personal preference is a modded (in game weapons mods) version of Overseer's Guardian. A Gauss Rifle, if you like them, may be objectively the better choice, but I don't enjoy using one as much as I like using OG.

I prefer the Combat rifle for my Sniper build.
It has a better magazine capacity and faster rate of fire than the bolt-action frame.
And I find it far more reliable against multiple targets for rapid takedowns than the Gauss.

That said a big part of the sniper build is getting all the perks that feed off the weapon mods, so scope and silencer are essential.

I think the best part about knowing mods are coming to consoles is the almost assurance that I have from modders that new weapons will be easy to bring over. My most exciting thing about mods is more weapons hahaha my NV mods were hundreds of firearms. Can't wait to see what modders do after the CK drops and how they'll be modable via the weapons bench. Heaven <3

The only plasma weapon i've ever found to be worth using over my other guns is the plamsa flamer, and for snipers in particular the lack of a silencer and the slow moving projectile are pretty painful.

If you are set on a traditional, rifleman focused sniper character and simply want the best gun for that, then its hard to argue against a good gauss, especially if you can to take down big game. But I like to be different,

http://images.akamai.steamusercontent.com/ugc/477752885623133515/4070DEB866A92485DFA432CF30A6C7027E89A8B6/

Teagan sells an instigating plasma rifle on the Prydwen.

You can't silence plasma rifles though if you were going for ninja/sandman build.

Just to be different.

Railway Rifle.

Smoking!

I tried the Railway and found it annoying.. it has like the lag between firing and hitting the target.. like its a sub-sonic projectile.. takes forever to hit the target and if the target's moving it's soo annoying.

Combat Rifle: .308 with medium scope and supressor. No fancy name but gets the job done. Low recoil, fast semi-auto fire rate, damage stat is only slightly below the slow fire rate, high recoil, noisy .50 caliber. High fire rate and large mag offers good hip fire use. The medium scope allows faster target aiming than with a longer scope.


Instigating Assault Rifle: Semi-auto, supressor, medium scope. Power, fast fire rate, huge mag, very quiet, and very low recoil. Good hip fire use. With a low power scope i have a great short sniper that offers fast target aiming on medium distant targets while also usefull for shorter targets.

Endgame would definitely be the Gauss, but early on, I go with "Old Faithful", the legendary laser sold by Arturo in Diamond City.

Not exactly cheap, but attainable very early in the game. It's instigating, so double damage at full health, so 4x sneak damage (yeah, yeah... insert additive dmg vs. multiplicative damage "IT'S ONLY 3.7865x !!! " argument here- LOL) and easily modded to sniper rifle specs with very little perk investment- just Science 1 will get you a range on that of something like 260+. Can't be silenced, but at extreme range the only thing they hear is the sound of the guy's head hitting the ground anyways. Start stacking the appropriate sniper perks and it's better still. Nice piece for new snipers 'til the Gauss becomes available.

Six-Crank Laser Musket is underrated, but it's still less ideal than the Gauss Rifle for lacking a silencer... but the ammo is more common, and a Six-Cranked shot from that thing can be pretty devastating. In the early game before you can get a Gauss Rifle, I'd absolutely suggest rolling with a Laser Musket and a .50 Sniper Rifle, and the Combat Rifle.

Instigating does more damage than Two-shot if the target is at full health.

The notes section here explains - http://fallout.wikia.com/wiki/Legendary_weapon_effects

With that in mind, an Instigating Gauss Rifle is the highest damage sniper rifle in the game.