Renegades ยท Season 28: Lawless
Disclaimer: I am a slightly above average crucible player, take my words with a grain of bright dust.
Consider this some high level thoughts from a decent PVP player but by no means a pro-level player. I feel pro-level players can make almost any weapon or loadout work. For us casuals, we need to compensate our limits in reaction times with knowledge checks and more forgiving play styles.
- Look for loadouts that stay stable under pressure. When things get tough, can you still land your shots?
- Prefer pairings that work across multiple maps and playlists. Consider your ranges and work with weapons that let you operate in close quarters combat, and mid to long ranges.
- Separate safe, repeatable choices from gimmicks that only spike in short bursts. No shame in abilities and gimmicks! We play the game we are given.
Where to start
Most strong load outs still revolve around one clear question:
What primary weapon do I feel comfortable with for most encounters?
That usually means:
- a primary that you can land shots with or you want to improve with
- a special or close-range answer for forced pushes
- choosing a subclass that gives you survivability (via heals, evasion, map control), ability supplementary kills/damage, or opponent control (suspension, slow, freeze)
What tends to age well
Stable primaries
Primaries that hold value over long samples tend to share three traits:
- steady aim assist feel
- forgiving engagement ranges
- enough consistency to keep your weekly rhythm intact
And most of all, it needs to be a weapon you ENJOY playing.
Complementary cleanup
A good secondary pick should not fight your primary for the same space. It should:
- protect your weak range band
- punish reckless pushes, or allow you to push
- help convert chipped opponents into clean finishes
These tend to fall into the categories of Shotgun (special ammo), side-arms (primary ammo), SMG's (primary ammo), or Fusion rifles (special ammo)
Building a loadout
As a new player, let's say I really enjoy using the gun Ace of Spades {{exotic-weapon:ace-of-spades}}.
This gun has been incredibly resilient in many metas, and has the following
- Strong neutral game (great stats, always visible radar)
- Strong kill chaining (Memento Mori rounds give a 2 crit, 1 body. Or even can be built into radiant hunter for a 2 crit with high weapon stat!)
Next, choose a second weapon. A 140 Rate of fire handcannon such as Ace of Spades {{exotic-weapon:ace-of-spades}}, is good for mid ranges, but now your close range is vulnerable. In this case, let's add a shotgun to the mix. A very strong obtainable shotgun is Precipial {{weapon:367772693}}.
Shotguns will allow you to stop opponents who rush you, or let you 1 shot enemies if you push. Just be sure to build into special ammo generation to make sure you keep on obtaining special ammo.
For the heavy weapon, grenade launchers or machine guns do well.
Finally, choosing a subclass. For hand-cannons, hunters do fairly well. Mainly for several reasons:
- Hunters can ADS and land shots while jumping
- Hunters have very strong neutral kits
One recommended build could be a Void invis hunter running a meta exotic leg armor St0mp-EE5 {{exotic-armor:st0mp-ee5}} which help movement. This class combination will allow a player to land first shot while also covering their ranges and having radar visibility (Thanks to Ace of Spades {{exotic-weapon:ace-of-spades}}).