Sniper rifle vs the Hunting Rifle, which is better to have? I can not see any difference between the two. And are they better then the Gobi Campaign Scout Rifle? I have not found the Gauss rifle, yet!

well, considering one round of .308 deals 63 damage with the sniper and only 45 damage with the hunting rifle... oh and that the RoF of the sniper rifle is a lot higher than the hunting rifle...

of course the sniper rifle breaks easier and is rarer, it's a tactical decision, I'd go for sniper.

Sniper Rifle, definitely. Just be sure to bring either a Weapon Repair Kit along or Raul. Preferably both.

Sniper does more damage than the hunting rifle and gobi campaign rifle, and also can be modded with a silencer/suppressor and lightweight parts so it doesn't weigh you down as much.

The hunting rifle fires slower and does less damage than the sniper rifle, but it doesn't degrade as rapidly so you wont spend as much time repairing it. It can also be modded with a custom action so it fires a bit quicker (though not as fast as the sniper rifle in my experience), a scope, and an extended magazine. In my opinion, I'd only use the hunting rifle over the sniper rifle if I wanted to use it's iron sights instead of a scope.

The Gobi Campaign rifle doesn't degrade as fast as the sniper rifle, but I don't know how that compares to the hunting rifle. It does slightly less damage than the sniper rifle, but has a better critical damage or a better critiical rate. I can't recall at the moment. It can't be modded though, and the lack of a silencer/suppressor is more than enough of a reason for me not to use it.

Haven't used the Gauss Rifle myself yet.

All in all, I'd say the sniper rifle is the best, but the gauss may out perform it, I have no idea.

Sniper definitely packs more punch but there is the downside of being rarer and therefore you rely on kits and merchants for repairs. The Gobi Campaign Scout Riffle is a unique variation of the sniper with increased damage and reduced wieght but it has the same drawback for repairs. All that said, go with the Sniper, or the Gobi if you have it. You'll be much happier.

Thank you.

-Hunting Rifle with JSP ammo can one-hit kill anything that's not a full grown deathclaw on a sneak attack. This is on 'Normal' difficulty.

-Sniper rifle offers +50% hitting power with the same ammo but degrades faster as a trade off.

It boils down to this. Hunting rifle untill you have the means to keep a fully modded sniper rifle in good repair. Be it perk, Repair Kit or NPC repair. Still, dragging out the old bolt action from time-to-time is a nice change of pace.

I prefer the Hunting Rifle because it has more character. I mean, it looks old and used... Like it a has history.

Hardly a good reason to choose it if you're going for maximum damage though.

Sniper rifle is a better weapon. Hunting rifle is a better roleplay experience. I actually prefer using it without a scope too. The irons are good enough that it's not a problem hitting targets at long range, and not having a scope lets you still use it effectively at short range.

hunting rifle is low tech sniper rifle, sniper is more specialized, hunting is more general use... Sniper rilfe can hold very few shots before breaking, unlike hunting rifle.

I like Hunting Rifle's look, but sniper rifle performs better.

Or you can just use This Machine.

I use the sniper most of the time, but since I modded the hunter rifle with a scope that's a beast too now.

if you have a lot of repair you can use jury rig and i think that you can repair snipers wit varment rifles.

Allot of good points made so far. I would say the Sniper rifle is pretty pracitcal, it deals the most damage, can be modded with a silencer & lighter carbon fibre parts, but it does look a bit ugly. While the the Hunting rifle does less damage, can be modded with a scope, extended clip & custom bolt action, but it does have a more rugged charming Wasteland look. Depends on what is most important to you & if your RP'ing a certain style etc..

"Have you seen what an anti-materiel rifle can do to a Deathclaw? That's not a firearm; it's a fu*king scoped hand cannon! ” —Mojave traveler


There's only one long range rifle I use - and mostly for Deathclaws. .50 cal incendiaries or AP's. Can't be modded because it doesn't have to be. I even use it as my binoculars.

Love it.

There is pretty much no reason to use the Hunting Rifle over the Sniper Rifle if you have both available. The Sniper has more damage, crit damage, crit multiplier, more durability and a smaller AP cost in VATS.



The Sniper does more damage per hit and more crit damage. They have the same multiplier. The Gobi and Sniper top each other in different ways. Its the only unique I can think of that isnt outright better than the normal versions in FNV.

Best post.

I carry the sniper rifle with just the lower weight mod for bigger stuff, I also carry the Ratslayer for everything else that out of range of the hunting shotgun or for when I want to be quiet

However I always attack at night from range ware I can take my time even though it takes more shots with the Ratslayer

. the Hunting Rifle looks great and when Im exploring the wastes its a good in hand rifle to pick off the average beasty/raider type looks great with iron sights
when I come into town or odd place that smells dangerous I pull out the service rifle for no reason other than RP just looks kool in my hand as I go door to door. When I happen to come across so unsuspecting target or dangerous foe I pull out the sniper
I imagine im walking the wastelands like a golfer picking the right driver for the right situation caddy shack (with ultra violence)

As strange as it may seem, I prefer neither the hunting or sniper rifle. I use a fully upgraded varment rifle with silencer, night scope and extended magazine. using 5.56 AP ammo makes it very lethal, (use 5.56 normal ammo for weaker creatures). And if you happen to have the companion combo of ED-E/Boone, with their perks you can sit up on a hilltop and wipe out 1/2 to 2/3 of an enemy camp at a quarter mile away. If by level 10, you've taken perks that increase your critical chance, sniper and rifle ability, you can pretty much one shot kill most human and several other creatures you find. The major advantages of this varment rifle setup are, it's easier to get early on, the ammo is found cheaply everywhere, and its easier to repair.

The Ratslayer is better than a fully modded Varmint rifle. Looks cooler too.

As for the OP, it doesn't hurt to carry both, a Hunting Rifle for "softer" and more frequent targets and the Sniper for the tougher kills. Keeping the hunting rifle unscoped will make it more practical for closer targets...