Weapons

The weapons of war are the most essential pieces of equipment for your mercs. Armor and other gear are necessities, but your gun will become your best friend.

The only problem is there are so many choices it is hard to fall in love any of these tools of the trade. For the most part, you should upgrade your gun whenever you can.

It may seem like a costly proposition, but as long as you take care of your old weapon it should fetch a decent trade in price, so you are only paying the difference. You need every possible advantage on the battlefield, so make sure you've got the best toys you can afford.

Getting Guns

The first sources of new guns should be fallen enemies and a search of every inch of each area, once you have cleared out the opposition. The weapons you find will range in type and quality, so it will be pretty hit or miss.

Don’t bother with anything that is worn and has red in the durability bar. Pick up any gun that is in decent shape and in you max out your squad’s weapon inventory start trading up. The objective of being a good scavenger is to get enough guns to equip the local militia.

Also, if you are running low on funds, you can always sell off your inventory. Of course, make sure keep the best weapons for yourself.

No matter how diligent you are about looting an area, some of the best guns will be available only by purchasing them. Many of the big towns have locals that are willing to sell you their wares, and it is often worth make a slight upgrade from the quick transaction.

However, only a few local inhabitants have really good guns for sale. The best stuff is only available online through Bobby Ray’s Guns and Things. Yet, there are a few problems with Bobby Ray’s site. First, it charges shipping, which adds to the overall cost. Next, it takes a while for the order to arrive and who knows where you will be or what you might have found by then. Lastly, you have to trek to the airport to pick up your order.

Still, with all these setbacks, his gear is constantly updated and is usually the best choice if you can afford it. Make any local purchases when you can, but if you place an order with Bobby Ray’s make sure it is worth it for the whole squad.

Weapon Choice

There are a ton of weapons to choose from, and picking the right one is not easy. It is possible to find or buy a really slick weapon that you want to hold onto for a long time, but your choice of guns should come down to how to get the most of each merc.

The first thing to consider is their stats. Mercs with higher health can take more damage and fire more aggressively, while those with high stealth might be a good candidate for a silenced pistol or sub-machine gun.

The next and possibly more important factors to consider are their traits. Many of the mercs have proficiency in a particular weapon category, and if they are an expert the bonus doubles from 10 to 20 percent.

This is a pretty good indication what type of weapon you should give your merc and how they should be used. Eventually, the choice really comes down to personal playing style.

If you want to use mercs at closer range, then shotguns and submachine guns fit that role. Likewise if you want more range then assault rifles will probably suit your style.

Even though any merc can use any gun, it is best to check their stats and traits to see what their natural inclination is and to have them play that role.

The best thing about choosing weapons is that there are plenty of mercs to equip and a well-balanced squad can have many different types of guns.

Weapon Types

There are eight main categories of weapons and the variation in each group can be pretty extensive. For the most part each type of weapon shares similar traits, but there is enough variety that you should be able to find a gun you like in every group.

For example, handguns might seem less exciting because of their lower range and clip size. However, they can be silenced for efficient assassinations, and the five-seven is a semi-automatic gun with decent damage and a 20-round clip.

Melee Weapons

It probably seems like a really bad move to use a knife, machete, or axe in a gun fight, but in the hands of a melee master it can be a great tool. For those with the stealth and melee traits to pull off a stealth kill, the melee weapons are very effective.

An edge weapon is great for a silent kill if you can sneak up on the enemy or catch them off guard. It’s not a good idea to charge at someone holding a gun on you, but if you can get in very close range with a skilled merc their melee ability will not give them a chance to do much with their firearms.

Keep in mind that this works both ways, and a crazed axe-toting villager running at you can be a problem if you are foolish enough to let them get into hand-to-hand combat range while you’re holding a large gun.

Handguns

They are not the most impressive weapons on the battlefield, but they get the job done. When you start out, expect to encounter and use a lot of handguns until you can find or afford some more substantial weaponry. Different models have some advantages, but generally speaking they have short range and carry a small amount of ammo.

The big advantage of the handgun is that it can use a silencer and give one of your mercs the ability to remove an enemy without detection. These are usually early game weapons that force you into closer range to be effective.

Be careful not to attract too much attention when using these because they tend to run out of ammo and could leave you trying to reload in the middle of combat.

Shotguns

A favorite weapon in FPS games, the shotgun is not quite as dominant in war. These fire single shots that disperse as they travel, so they are best for close-range attacks. They are great in close quarters, especially indoors.

The slower firing and limited range is slightly offset by the fact that you don’t have to take a lot of time to aim because of the large spread from the ammo. This means the shotgun is the best weapon to shoot while running because firing from the hip doesn’t have a significant impact on its accuracy.

Unfortunately, 12 gauge ammo doesn’t have great armor-piercing ability so it is not very effective against heavily armored foes.

Submachine Guns

These smaller brothers of full-size machine guns are made for their portability and high rate of fire. Their burst mode can spray a lot of ammo, but they are not accurate at long range.

However, because of their small size, they maintain good accuracy when shot from the hip. This makes them most effective in quick situations and short range. An important tactical advantage for this class is that they can also use a silencer.

Machine Guns

These are heavy weapons that have a very high rate of fire and burn through ammo quickly. Their weight and blowback make them somewhat hard to handle, and they are best used in a stationary position such as going prone.

They are effective at mid- to long range. Their best use is shooting from the ground to send a barrage of bullets at the enemies to pin them down or fortify your position.

Assault Rifles

The best all-round weapons in the game, assault rifles are the jack of all trades that can handle just about any situation. It not surprising these are the most popular guns used in the military.

They can fire single shots with great accuracy, and most have a burst mode that can fire lots of rounds to quickly do heavy damage. As you would expect from a rifle, many have excellent range, but they are actually most effective at mid-range.

Sniper Rifles

Sniper rifles are precision guns that rely on accuracy to delivery their package over great distances. You should always fire this type of weapon from the prone position and make every shot count.

t should go without saying, but they are best used at long range and are pretty much useless up close or trying to shoot from the hip.

The slow firing rate and small clip size means that a sniper will need support if enemies swarm them. Their slow and steady shots can be lethal if the user has the accuracy to make it count.

Rocket Launchers

When standard guns just won’t get the job done, it’s time to switch to rockets! All that power translates to very low ammo, but how many shots do you need from a rocket launcher?

Save the ammo for this gun for when you really need it--like dealing with a tank. However, if you get desperate, it can do wonders on small enemy groups because the rocket can explode on impact and cause splash damage over a wide area. Just make sure your squad is clear of the blast radius when using it.

Weapons Data

Image	Weapons	Price	Weight	Durability	Ammo	Clip Size	Range	Damage	Rate of Fire	Accuracy	Burst Mode
	38 W&S	$720	650 gr	40	.38cal	6	14 m	22	450 RPM	100%	-
	AK 47	$3,980	4.30 kg	120	5.45mm	30	33 m	30	600 RPM	100%	x 3
	AKM	$4,000	3.10 kg	115	7.62mm WP	30	30 m	31	600 RPM	100%	x 3
	AKSU-74	$3,900	2.71 kg	110	5.45mm	30	20 m	30	735 RPM	100%	x 4
	AutoMag	$2,400	1.62 kg	30	7.62mm NA	5	20 m	51	300 RPM	100%	-
	Automatic Rocket Launcher	$22,000	5.30 kg	20	rocket	5	30 m	100	120 RPM	100%	x 5
	Axe	$100	1.80 kg	100	none	0	1.50 m	15	600 RPM	100%	-
	Barracuda	$2,250	1.19 kg	67	.357cal	6	15 m	50	320 RPM	100%	-
	Beretta 92F	$1,910	950 gr	65	9mm	15	23 m	23	650 RPM	100%	-
	Beretta 93R	$1,720	1.17 kg	60	9mm	15	13 m	23	1100 RPM	100%	x 5
	CAWS	$4,050	3.70 kg	80	12 guage	10	16 m	75	600 RPM	88.89%	x 3
	Deagle	$2,120	1.80 kg	55	.357cal	7	13 m	49	360 RPM	100%	-
	Druganoff	$7,500	4.31 kg	120	7.62mm WP	20	80 m	36	80 RPM	100%	-
	Enfield L85	$4,890	3.60kg	70	5.56mm	30	37 m	28	610 RPM	100%	x 5
	Five-seveN	$2,800	590 gr	90	5.70mm	20	23 m	35	600 RPM	100%	-
	G11	$9,600	3.60 kg	60	4.73mm	50	46 m	33	2000 RPM	100%	x 3
	G3A3	$4,050	4.38 kg	110	7.62mm NA	20	31 m	34	500 RPM	100%	x 2
	G41	$4,030	4.10 kg	100	5.56mm	30	38 m	30	850 RPM	100%	x 3
	G82	$3,850	12.90 kg	60	.50cal	11	100 m	68	20 RPM	100%	x 3
	GIS Commando	$3,850	3.00 kg	90	5.56mm	30	25 m	29	780 RPM	100%	x 3
	Johnson M1A1	$2,300	4.90 kg	40	.45cal	30	20m	23	800 RPM	100%	x 4
	K&H 21	$11,000	9.30 kg	100	7.62mm NA	40	53 m	36	800 RPM	100%	x 8
	KH PSG 1	$7,900	8.10 kg	100	7.62mm NA	10	90 m	43	40 RPM	100%	-
	Klock 17	$1,950	620 gr	80	9mm	15	25m	21	650 RPM	100%	-
	Klock 18	$1,780	640 gr	75	9mm	15	15 m	21	900 RPM	100%	X3
	Knife	$300	600 gr	100	none	0	1.50 m	10	600 RPM	100%	-
	LAW	$3,450	3.70 kg	10	rocket	1	100 m	150	60 RPM	100%	-
	M-14	$5,600	5.10 kg	99	7.62mm NA	20	50 m	33	750 RPM	100%	x 2
	M16	$4,830	3.40 kg	45	5.56mm	30	40 m	29	750 RPM	100%	x 3
	M24 SWS	$9,800	5.49 kg	90	7.62mm NA	5	105 m	53	30 RPN	100%	-
	M4 Carbine	$4,100	4.00 kg	65	5.56mm	30	23 m	29	950 RPM	100%	x 4
	M79	$2,950	2.70 kg	20	rocket	1	50 m	150	60 RPM	100%	-
	M870	$2,700	3.20 kg	80	12 guage	7	19 m	85	240 RPM	82.22%	-
	MAC-10	$3,300	2.84 kg	30	.46cal	30	17 m	25	1200 RPM	100%	x 5
	Machete	$100	900 gr	100	none	0	1.50 m	12	600 RPM	100%	-
	Mini-14	$2,900	2.90 kg	50	5.56mm	30	25 m	30	605 RPM	100%	-
	Minimi	$7,000	7.10 kg	90	5.56mm	55	43 m	26	1000 RPM	100%	x 10
	MP53	$3,750	3.08 kg	100	5.56mm	30	24 m	27	800 RPM	100%	x 3
	MP5K	$3,380	2.78 kg	95	9mm	30	19 m	24	900 RPM	100%	x 5
	MP5SD	$3,050	2.80 kg	100	9mm	30	16 m	25	700 RPM	100%	x 5
	NF SCAR-H CQB	$4,510	3.50 kg	80	7.62mm NA	20	27 m	31	600 RPM	100%	x 4
	NF-FAL	$4,900	4.25 kg	85	7.62 mm NA	20	42 m	32	650 RPM	100%	x 3
	NF-Shotgun	$3,000	3.85 kg	75	12 guage	6	24 m	90	240RPM	84.44%	-
	P90	$4,400	2.54 kg	80	5.70mm	50	18 m	27	900 RPM	100%	x 5
	Rocket Launcher (rifle)	$14,300	4.50 kg	15	rocket	5	30 m	100	60 RPM	100%	-
	RPK-74	$9,800	5.49 kg	90	7.62mm NA	5	105 m	53	30 RPM	100%	-
	SAM-AF (FA-MAS)	$4,250	3.70 kg	75	5.56mm	30	23 m	29	1100 RPM	100%	x 3
	SKS	$2,790	3.85 kg	130	7.62mm WP	10	30 m	31	450 RPM	100%	-
	SPAS-15	$2,850	3.90 kg	50	12 guage	7	20 m	60	600 RPM	86.67%	-
	Steyr	$5,150	3.80 kg	70	5.56mm	30	45 m	29	650 RPM	100%	x 4
	TAR 21	$5,060	2.95 kg	65	5.56mm	30	36 m	29	900 RPM	100%	x 5
	Tec9	$2,500	1.23 kg	35	9mm	30	12 m	21	900 RPM	100%	x 6
	Type-85	$2,350	1.90 kg	80	7.62mm	30	15 m	23	800 RPM	100%	x 6
	USP .45	$1,840	785 gr	90	.45cal	7	18 m	33	630 RPM	100%	-
	VSS Vintorez	$4,800	2.60 kg	70	9mm	20	42 m	35	900 RPM	100%	x 2