Paste your Google Webmaster Tools verification code here

«

»

Feb 20

Secret Weapons Of The Campaign: Early Alternatives To The Starting Weapons

When you start your multiplayer career in Battlefield 4, you only have one choice of primary weapon for each kit, and a single secondary weapon.  These are perfectly good weapons to use, both when starting out and later, but there are secret weapons available to new players.

OK, maybe not totally secret.  The single player campaign has a bunch of assignments and unlocks available within it.  There are dogtags to collect during play — some will be easier to find than others.  The two knives and the M412 REX pistol are unlocked early in the campaign.  The last three guns sadly require you to reach the end of the campaign and win.  Doubly (or triply) sad, you must play the last chapter and do all three endings in order to get them all.  The chapter is mercifully short, but let’s just say that I’d rather have seen the ending only once.

The campaign takes about five or six hours to play through.  It is moderately enjoyable itself, isn’t a bad introduction to the game mechanics and gun handling in the game, so it can’t hurt to play it in any case.  But doing so opens up your weapon choices for the start of your multiplayer games.

Before I go over the merits of these available starting weapons, I’ll mention that there is another way to get weapons unlocked early:  Shortcut kits.  Pay money, get things unlocked immediately.  My advice on these is DON’T waste your money.  It doesn’t take that long to do either the kit or weapon unlocks during normal play.  None of the starting weapon choices are bad, and you can do well with any of them. And for weapons, a better option which only takes a little time is to get Premium and unlock the DLC weapons.  You must reach rank 10, but that doesn’t take long at all if you play much, and you get all the DLC maps and other bonuses, a much, much better deal for the money.   If you are just starting Battlefield 4 now, you will have a lot of easy assignments to complete with the DLC which will give you more than enough options in each weapon class.

The Secret Weapons Of The Campaign

So, back to the weapons you will have just starting out.

First, the Assault kit.

QZB-95-1 Assault Rifle – Chinese standard issue assault rifle, the Type 95 is an easy to use bullpup (magazine behind trigger, thus shorter and easier to manage), alternative for the Russian AK-12. The AK-12 is the latest incarnation of the Russian Kalashnikov assault rifle. At the time of BF4’s release, it was slated to be the replacement for the older AK-74, but it is on hold for budget reasons.  It remains open for the future as the new standard infantry rifle in Russia. (Update:  As of early 2015, it has been accepted for trials by the Russian Army).

Better at shooting on the move and from the hip than the AK-12, the QZB-95-1 has the same RPM as it (per symthic.com) at 650, higher bullet velocity, and lower vertical recoil.  The first Optic unlocked for it is the Chinese Coyote red dot sight, a broad, open-framed sight well suited for fire while moving.

Note:  There are three different national variants of each basic Optic type in the game — American, Chinese, and Russian.  Weapons are provided with only one nationality for its normal unlocks achieved by kills, with the others available in Battlepacks.

The AK-12 is more accurate when aiming down sights (ADS) while standing still, and reloads faster.  It also offers a hidden fire rate boost, when you fire in burst mode rather than full auto:  the RPM increases to 750.  In Battlefield 4, burst fire also negates the first shot recoil multiplier during the burst, making it easier to keep all the bullets in a burst on target.  Its carbine cousin, the AKU-12, also shares this feature. The first sight is the Russian Kobra red dot sight, which is well suited with its open inverted T reticle for precise longer range shots.

Support kit gets the M249 LMG, the US version of the Belgian FN minimi. A fine LMG, previously known (and still popularly called) the SAW (Squad Automatic Weapon) by the US army. Alternative for the U100 MK5 Ultimax, and a very different sort of weapon. 200 round magazine vs 45, higher fire rate (800 RPM vs 590), far worse moving and hip fire accuracy, more recoil, terribly long reload time (6.2 seconds vs 2.75 for the U100 with rounds remaining).  The M249 does have a nice advantage of no first shot recoil (shared with most open bolt LMGs), making tap fire great for increasing accuracy.  The first optic unlocked is the US 1x Holo sight, which has a clear red ring to highlight the target, good for medium range shooting.

The Ultimax 100 (U100 MK5) is a Singapore-made light support weapon, with the advantage of very low recoil for a weapon of this class.  Even better, the recoil is equal left and right, so in practice you only need to compensate for the vertical rise.  This makes it easy to keep on target at moderate ranges.  It comes from the start with the Chinese HD-33 holographic sight, which is a nice touch.

These two weapons are near the opposite scale of the LMG types.  The U100 MK5 favors aggressive action, acting much like a somewhat larger assault rifle.  The M249 is harder to use for accurate close range combat, but has so much ammo you can fire all day (almost) without running out.

The Engineer kit gets the P90 PDW, made by FN Herstal from Belgium.  It uses the same ammo as the FN57 (FN Five-Seven) pistol, a unique type of light but powerful ammunition.  It is the alternative for the MX4 Beretta Storm PDW. Bigger magazine (50 vs 30), faster fire rate (900 vs 830), lower damage per bullet (21 vs 24 up close, 11.2 vs 12.1 at range) and thus very slightly slower to kill up close, but better at medium and longer ranges. Has much better muzzle velocity.  It is very much better at hip fire accuracy, and is among the best PDWs to use fired from the hip, especially using the stop, stand and shoot method, where you stop moving briefly to fire but don’t aim down sights.  It is an unusual looking, compact boxy weapon. It is the weapon chosen by the Stargate SG-1 team and used throughout the series, and also the weapon of choice for Karrin Murphy in the Dresden Files.

The MX4 (Mx4 Beretta Storm) PDW is a more conventional compact PDW, and is slightly more accurate than the P90, kills a bit faster up close, and its recoil is a bit easier to manage, especially with burst or tap fire.  This makes it excellent for close range, run out and shoot engagements.  It starts with the US Reflex red dot sight for its optic, which is very nice.  If you can score head shots at short ranges, its higher bullet damage will reward you with even faster kills than the P90.  Like most PDWs, superior fire rate and good damage coupled with decent hip fire accuracy will let you defeat most other automatic weapons in close quarters combat.

For sidearms, you get M412 REX Pistol — a 6 shot .357 magnum revolver, built by Russia for the export (R-ex) market (as the MP412 REX) but was barred USA sales and thus few were made — as alternative for the Sig Sauer P226 pistol (15 bullets in magazine plus one in chamber, for 16 rounds available).  The high damage and potential for one hit kill headshots makes this a satisfyingly threatening sidearm, but if you miss you may not get a chance for a second shot.

The M412 Rex does 56 damage up close, and its ammunition gives it the damage multiplier of the bolt action sniper rifles.  That means that head shots are much more effective, and you can score one hit kills at up to 25 meters, and two hit kills with body hits up to 20 meters.  It can score a kill with two head shots at any range, making it (and the later unlocked 44 Magnum) a potentially alternative long range “sniping” weapon for any kit, if you are accurate enough.  The heavy ammo has another advantage:  it will more easily detonate explosives like C4 and mines, and can be used as an “Engineer’s Remote Trigger” to set off explosives for traps.  As a side bonus, the kill card will show the pistol as the killing weapon, not the explosive.  The M412 has a unique reload style, with the revolver breaking open to extract and insert the new cartridge.  It just looks cool.

Revolvers have a number of disadvantages over other pistols.  All currently in the game hold only 6 shots, and reloads are not faster if rounds remain so reloading is slower than with magazine fed weapons.  The fire rate is relatively slow, making followup shots especially hard in close combat.  Last, the open frame makes suppressors impossible, so you cannot operate on the map without the sound of the weapon making your presence known — as in, audio spotting will mark your position on the map when you fire.

The P226 Sig is a widely used 9mm semiautomatic pistol. It does 27 damage per bullet, and so takes four hits to kill up close — or two head shots if you can manage that — but damage drops off quickly with range.  It is fairly accurate with low recoil, and much easier to keep on target for successive shots than the M412 REX. You have enough ammo to take out three opponents with body hits, and may have some left over.  Its faster reload makes it a much safer sidearm to use in close engagements, where you may get 1.25 seconds of safety to pull that off.  It is used by Frank in the movie Red, and also Sarah’s personal weapon in Red 2.

My Thoughts

I played the campaign when BF4 was initially released, in part to unlock these weapons, and also to deal with the early release downtime issues which hit multiplayer.  As I’d played both the Alpha and Beta, I was also curious to try weapons I hadn’t used before in Battlefield 4.  So, of these weapon choices, I went with the AK-12 first, but still used and enjoyed the QZB-95-1 later.  The AK-12 was rebalanced from the Beta so I wanted to try it out again, and also I just jumped into play using it and wanted to continue.

I’d used the U100 MK5 in the Alpha and wanted to see how the M249 handled.  I really liked it in other games, as a large magazine, high fire rate, decently accurate LMG.  Both are fine weapons, but they play so differently that it isn’t a comparison between near equals but rather more like cousins.

With the P90, as an SG-1 and Dresden Files fan it is hard to resist in any case.  It is a fun gun to use in most games, and BF4 is included. Again, using the alternative in the Beta meant I had a chance to try something different.

The revolvers in BF4 were changed from BF3, and I wanted to see the changes.  I and many others didn’t like some of them, but fortunately, if you play now you don’t have to deal with that.  The handling is closer to BF3 and they still retain the sharp balance choice between high power and sustained fire.  I like the advantage that the M412 REX gives you with precision fire, and also like revolvers in general for sidearms for Engineer and Recon kits (to detonate explosives and supplement their primary weapons).

Just comparing two weapons at a time highlights the diversity and balance that BF4 gives us in our choices in the game.  As you continue your career you’ll find many more choices to make, and often it can be hard to appreciate the advantages of different weapons without trying them yourself.

 The Other Early Weapons

The Recon Kit has only one starting weapon option:  The CS-LR4 is a Chinese bolt action sniper rifle made by Norinco.  It comes with the 14x Variable Zoom accessory attachment and a Bipod, and the Chinese CL6X 6x Sniper Scope as its starting optic.  It has a moderately slow fire rate, but excellent bullet velocity.  Overall, this makes it a very good weapon for learning how to snipe in Battlefield 4.

The weapons available for early unlocks don’t offer you a clearly superior alternative.  The first one you unlock is the US M40A5.  It has a much lower bullet velocity (480m/s vs 630m/s), but can be fired quite a bit faster and is faster to reload.  This makes it a bit easier to use in close combat where the follow up shots are more critical.  It comes with the US 8x Rifle Scope. The higher magnification scope can be easier to use at long range, but as the CS-LR4 comes with the Variable Zoom, that isn’t an inherent advantage.  Plus, the Variable Zoom is the first attachment you unlock for the M40A5 (and many other Sniper rifles as well)

The next rifle unlocked is the Steyr Scout Elite, the first of two lighter scout snipers in the game (the other is the FY-JS).  It also comes with the 8x Rifle Scope.  The Scout Elite shoots faster, has much better hip fire accuracy.  It reloads faster but has a much smaller magazine (6 vs 11).  Most critically, while the bullet velocity is fast the damage drops over range much more quickly, and will not score a one hit kill headshot at long range. And the bullet itself is subject to more drop from gravity over distance.  The scout snipers are optimized for closer range action than other sniper rifles, and are a poor choice for long range engagements.

Note:  Sniper Rifles all come equipped with a Long Range optic at the start.  The Chinese CL6X 6X scope, the Russian PKS-07 7X scope, or the US 8x Rifle Scope.  Each has a different reticle (lines and crosshairs) design, and a different outward appearance, but most importantly, they have different magnifications.  The change in magnification can be the hardest thing to get used to when changing between optics.  All gain the same 14X magnification when used with the Variable Zoom attachment, but they retain their reticle designs.  There is also a 40X Ballistic Scope available as a later unlock for all Sniper Rifles, and a 20X Hunter Scope available from Battlepacks.  Either one also works with the Variable Zoom, but otherwise, the high magnification is very difficult to use at anything other than very long ranges.

Your other alternatives are the weapons unlockable from the DLCs.  The good news is that the CS-LR4 is a very good sniper rifle, and you may feel no compulsion to quickly change to another one right away.  But there are other options, in the form of the All Kit Primary Weapons.

The All Kit Weapons

The second kit unlock in Engineer, Support, and Recon kits is a new weapon class which any kit can equip.  You will reach this early in your playing career, and this can open options for your soldier when the standard weapon(s) for the kit are unsuited either for the map situation or your current play style or goal.

Carbines are unlocked by playing Engineer.  These are shorter versions of the assault rifles, and are suited for combat at all ranges.  They are better as a class at moving fire and hip fire than assault rifles, but are worse at longer range.  Their versatility makes them a good choice when you don’t know what range you will engage at.  For the Engineer, they offer a range advantage over PDWs, but are inferior in close quarters combat.

The Swedish AK 5C is the first Carbine you get, and it is an excellent weapon.  It is the Ak 5 or Automatkarbin 5 – not a variation of the Russian AK Kalashnikov rifles, but instead a development of the Belgian FNC.  It is the standard issue Swedish assault weapon.  It fires at 700 RPM and is accurate with easy to control recoil.  The first optic you unlock is the US Reflex red dot sight, which suits its precision well.  You may find this (and other) carbines to be a good choice to use for Support and Recon kits, whose weapons are not as well suited for close quarters combat.

Shotguns are unlocked by playing Support.  Shotguns work differently from other gun types in Battlefield 4.  They can use different types of ammunition, and both the amount of damage and how it is applied is greatly affected by the ammo type.  You start with Buckshot.  The shotgun fires a group of large pellets, which will spread in a cone (or a deformed cone if using the Duckbill attachment).  Up close, all may hit a single target, but over distance you will lose damage not just from the drop in projectile power, but because the pellets will outright miss the target you aim at.  They may hit targets standing in the area, and are thus good at doing some damage to a group of enemies at any range.  The number of pellets and damage done varies between different shotguns in Battlefield 4.

The QBS-09 is a semi-automatic combat shotgun made by Norinco, and is the Chinese standard issue combat shotgun.  It uses 11 pellets in its shells for Buckshot and Flechette (also known as DART) ammo.  If all pellets hit up close, it can do 169 damage, more than enough for an instant kill.  It only has 5+1 rounds in its magazine, and it fires at up to 230 RPM, but with reasonable aim you can clear a small room of enemies before you have to reload.

Shotgun Slug rounds shoot a single large bullet, which does considerable damage but not enough to kill in one shot unless you get a head shot.  They do greater damage (2.35x normal) on head shots.

Flechette rounds do less damage than Buckshot, but are more effective at longer range (both in damage and projectile speed).  The Defensive Armor upgrade reduces shotgun Buckshot damage greatly (0.85x multiplier) to chest and arms, while Flechette rounds are not affected at all by the Armor.

The last ammo type are Frag rounds.  These do a single hit for relatively small damage — only 20 for the QBS-09 up close — but also create an explosion which does up to 25 damage at any range, in a five meter diameter.  These will not score kills without multiple shots unless the target is already wounded, but are good for suppressing an area and damaging closely grouped enemies at range.

The QBS-09 is, like the AK 5C, an excellent weapon in its class and easy to use.  Support players will find it another fine choice for close range combat.  Buckshot is not easily lethal at longer ranges, but it can still do damage at up to 300 meters.  For any kit, shotguns offer a good close quarters battle weapon which is excellent at taking out enemies as you round corners or enter a room.

DMRs (Designated Marksman Rifles) are unlocked by playing Recon.  These offer very accurate semi-automatic fire, using Battle Rifle ammo (and often are classed as that type).  You can kill a target in three hits at any range, or two shots if one is a head shot.   While only the Sniper Rifles get to use the Long Range Optics, the 4x Medium Range Optics available (usually quite early) for these are more than good enough for the typical 50-200 meter ranges these weapons are designed for.

The Kel-Tec RFB is the starting DMR.  It offers good hip fire accuracy and bullet velocity, making it a decent choice at all ranges, especially for a new user of DMRs.  The US ACOG 4X sight is the first optic unlocked, and is a good choice for long range shooting.  Because DMRs all do similar damage over range, the differences between these weapons is subtler and comes down to preference and play style.

For the Recon player, this offers a weapon still suited for longer range fire but easier to use in closer combat situations.  The RFB can fire fast enough to kill with hip fire at close range, but will not beat full automatic weapons fire.  They offer all kits a precision medium range option if they wish to fight from a distance in combat.  Engineers, with the short ranged PDWs, benefit most from this alternative, but any soldier can get good use of this.

 

 Sticking To Your Guns

When you start using a new gun, it can often feel like it will take forever before you will get good at using it.  You may even blame the gun for your inability to get kills reliably with it.  Plus it takes a little time to unlock the attachments which best suit the weapon.  This tends to lead to two reactions.

First, you decide that the gun is bad and switch to a different one as soon as you unlock it.  Hey, maybe that is the best thing to do if you really are having a hard time learning to use it.

Second, you decide to keep using just one gun (of a class) even after you’ve scored over 100 kills and have received the nice reward (2000 XP for the service star (every 100 kills) plus a Gold Battlepack for the first star).  Why change a good thing?

Both of these choices are suboptimal if you are trying to rank up faster in the game and develop your skills.  It really can take a while to understand how to best use a gun, and the satisfaction of making an unruly gun work for you is pretty good.  Sticking with a gun until you get the first service star at 100 kills gives you a chance to improve your skill in gun handling, making it easier to pick up other new guns and do well with any weapon.  The reward for achieving that is also nice, especially the Gold Battlepack.  Earning those more quickly gives you more XP boosts, which makes it easier to advance in the game.

Going above 100 kills with a weapon does unlock other good things for a weapon, and that isn’t a bad thing.  You get more attachments, Weapon Battlepacks which will include XP boosts as well, and at 500 kills you get the Weapon Mastery Dog Tag for that weapon.  When I go for this, I try to also get the last Weapon Battlepack too (at 510 kills for many weapons) before changing guns.

Going for mastery — over 100 kills — means giving up the earlier access to more Gold Battlepacks, which give greater XP boosts than the Weapon Battlepacks.  I’d rather change weapons and rank up faster, but you won’t suffer too much from sticking with a weapon for 410 or so more kills in order to get the rest of its good items.  Plus there are some attachments which only come from Battlepacks, and if you really want access to them this is the best way to get them for your favorite gun.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

You may use these HTML tags and attributes: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <s> <strike> <strong>