RedStarRocket91

I'd have to go with the Magnum, because it''s the most versatile. Sure, the Boltshot's overcharge is horrifyingly powerful at close range and the Plasma Pistol can be more useful than a primary in certain situations, but the Magnum is the most effective in general: it's powerful, it's accurate at range and has a high rate of fire at close range, plus a fairly generous ammunition capacity, especially compared to the other two pistols.

I actually found it wasn't a great deal worse than normal SWAT - did you ever get a chance to play it without any lag? How much melee damage would you suggest? I proposed getting rid of it as SWAT has always been more about the guns than the melees, and ShWATguns especially so.

I always enjoyed reading these, hope to have you back and posting again soon!

I have a plate! This is clearly going to end well.

Perhaps he's here and just isn't using his name

Doc, you're Communications! Can't you add a playdate to the Events bar?

I was thinking earlier about how much I used to love playing ShWATguns back in Halo 3, and I had an idea of how it could be revived in Halo 4. For anyone who never had a chance to play it, ShWATguns was a variant of SWAT where instead of tense headshot-based gameplay based on precision weapons, people were instead handed Shotguns, though there was still no motion tracker or shields. The resulting gameplay was fast-paced, chaotic, and crazy, and there's provided some of the most fun games I've ever played. The problem was that beyond a certain range the Shotgun was essentially useless, so they experimented a little with bringing in other weapons. The Magnum was popular for a while, until it was realised that in reality most players would just run around with the Magnum, ignoring the Shotgun altogether. While they'd still usually lose at close ranges, most of the time it was better to use the Magnum as it was rare to run into someone at close range without seeing them first, and the time it took to swap from Shotgun to Magnum would usually get the player killed - while it was still possible, if unlikely, for a Magnum to win at close range. This style eventually became so popular that SWAT Magnums became its own gametype, and ShWATguns went back to just having one weapon, becoming less and less common in Matchmaking until it disappeared altogether in Reach. What was really needed to help the situation was a weapon the could not only score headshots at a distance, but double as a powerful close-quarters weapon that didn't require a headshot to kill. This would solve the problem of having to swap between weapons for different fights and put the emphasis back on shooting skill rather than the luck of having the right weapon drawn at the right time. Fortunately, Halo 4 has such a weapon in the form of the Boltshot. My suggestion for the new gametype - which I'd tentatively name 'BoltSWAT' - is therefore, pretty simple: All players spawn with a Boltshot, with no secondary weapon or grenades No shields No motion sensors Increased damage resistance (to reduce the kill range on an overcharged Boltshot) Increased movement speed and jump height, and unlimited Sprint No armour abilities No melee damage (or so low as to be negligible whilst allowing for Assassinations) No ordnance drops 600 points to win So, would anyone else like to see something like this?

Are you sure it was possible to jump Warthogs in Halo 3? I'm pretty sure you would get splattered unless you started on higher ground. And it's definitely still possible to jump over Ghosts, all that's changed is that now there are more ways to dodge it. And if you want a different armour ability, try taking a Plasma Pistol as a secondary. Most people either don't use their secondaries or just swap them out altogether, so unless you're using Firepower or have a particular love for the Boltshot or Magnum you probably won't even notice the difference that often - except now you have a big advantage against vehicles!

It's very difficult until you've gotten used to it, and even then you have to predict exactly when your opponent will be in firing range. And the Magnum is easy to use, too, plus that can get kill at MUCH longer ranges, and nobody wants to ban that. Same thing for headshots, except again the Magnum can do that at mid-range instead of just point-blank where the target is likely to be killed anyway. As for the maps, what does that have to do with anything? Well done on them for picking an appropriate loadout. Some maps have very long, open sightlines, isn't it unfair that people can have a Magnum on those? Or a Plasma Pistol on maps with lots of vehicles? The Thruster Pack actually DOES give enough distance to dodge a Boltshot, if you strafe straight left or right. It's especially easy if you jump. Jet Pack is just used to attack them from above, and Jet Packing backwards and upwards increases the rate at which you're getting out of distance, even if it were the same on its own. And if we're going to argue situational, then what if the situation is out in the open? Unless you're really unlucky, they can't do a thing to you. Forcing a fight at close quarters is just good tactics, the same way you'd have to be a bad strategist to run up to someone with an Assault Rifle while holding a Battle Rifle. You're giving them the advantage and expecting to win! As for the last, that's exactly my point. Even if they do have a DMR or whatever, they're being forced not to use their Boltshot. It becomes just another fight instead of one against a weapon you have problems countering.

I actually find the Lightrifle to be better at short range, so maybe I've just been lucky so far? Plus, those are just ways people can use the armour abilities they have to get around it - without armour abilities at all, there's the option of staying out of close-range altogether, jumping around (this is REALLY effective at close quarters where the turning speed is comparitively slow) or using grenades. Plus, it's such a high risk/reward weapon (if you miss the first shot, you're basically dead due to the slow firing rate and maximum of two shots per reload) and with such specific applications that it kind of deserves to get one-shot kills.

Just press 'quote' once, it might take a few seconds to appear but it WILL come up eventually! As for tracking a target with the Boltshot, there really are any number of things that could go wrong even before we consider timing and range. They could use a Hologram and the charged shot would be wasted firing on that, it could be absorbed by a Hardlight Shield, jumped over with Jet Pack or just dodged outright with Thruster Pack - and one miss is pretty much the end of the fight, considering the slow firing rate and the fact that they will be hitting you at point black range. The DMR does lose to the Carbine at shorter ranges (it has a much longer kill time) and it doesn't have the versatility of the Lightrifle (which be both a short-range and long-range weapon), so I think it works as it is.

I totally agree with this, I'd love to see Relay in Matchmaking - its a perfect map for competitive gameplay!

I'm going to have to disagree here: I think it works perfectly fine as it is. It's a skill-based thing (unlike Armor Lock, where you just held the button down and let lag do the rest) as it has to be aimed, charged, and timed perfectly to get a kill. And it really does have to be charged: have you seen how pathetic the regular shots are? That''s two shots per clip, with a very slow firing rate as well. As for spawn weapons that can counter it, think of it like this; what does a Boltshot user do against a Magnum at range? Fire his incredibly slow, weak individual shots back and hope for the best? It's the short-range secondary, the Magnum is the mid-range secondary, and the Plasma Pistol is the utility secondary. Plus, it can actually be countered pretty easily. Staying out of range is the obvious solution, but you can also try other things to throw their aim off: jumping around corners will help decrease the chances of their shot landing, throwing a grenade at the base of the corner will force them backwards and give you extra room, Holograms a half second in front of you can take the shot in your place, the Jet Pack can give you safe height if you don't think a jump is sufficient, a well-timed Hardlight Shield will negate the shot entirely, and the Thruster Pack is astonishingly effective due to the Boltshot's low firing speed, as you just have to dodge the first attack to pretty much guarantee a win. If you're still having trouble, the other alternative is to switch to a longer-range fighting style. Pick up a Carbine or Lightrifle and see how quickly they fall apart in the open. And if they refuse to come into the open, that's time that they aren't getting kills for their team. Use a little patience and they'll either switch out for their primary to try and take you on out in the open or spend the whole game hiding in a corner not doing anything. Either way, you're negating their advantage without actually having to take any risks!

If you want a comment directly from 343i, you'll need to ask over at the Waypoint forums, as this one doesn't have any direct affiliation with them. That said, they've promised that there'll be a matchmaking update every week, based on playlist populations and map popularity, and that all nine DLC maps were planned in advance to try and cater to different gamemodes and playstyles. They've also said that there will definitely be a classical ranking system introduced at a later date, and initial rankings may or may not be based upon existing stats, depending on what they feel works best. There'll also be multiple seasons of Spartan Ops, to try and keep players who aren't into competitive multiplayer interested. So on the whole, it does seem to me like they're genuinely trying to keep involved with the game, rather than just selling it and then abandoning it.

No problem, there's nothing wrong with getting excited, but the mods have to be strict, you know?

It's good for dodging oncoming vehicles and Energy Swords, if timed right. Also, try using it to boost yourself backwards when you're about to be assassinated!

Once you get used to the charge time, it's a real threat. If your aim is good, you can finish most fights before your shields have even dropped. And it works absolute wonders when combined with Promethean Vision or careful use of the motion tracker, as you can get it charging before a target is even in a position to shoot you. It's also got a nice punch against vehicles: not wildly destructive, but certainly enough to make the lighter ones like the Ghost think twice before taking you on.

It's actually the Carbine which is the short-range 'pro' precision weapon, not the Battle Rifle: and yes, it IS harder to use. It has the lowest damage per shot of all the precision weapons, so users have to not only be fast on the trigger but accurate as well, and it's very difficult to spam the trigger that fast while still keeping a shot lined up. So to say that the Carbine is the newbie gun and the Battle Rifle wasn't designed for that, but was instead the short-range precision weapon is literally completely wrong. If you're having problems with the Carbine, maybe the problem is just that you aren't good with it? It has the absolute fastest kill time of all the precision loadout weapons, after all. It really isn't an easy gun to use, especially while scoped in. And I don't agree that newbies should be restricted to just Assault Rifles for weapons that are comfortable to use. If they want to try a precision weapon, there should be one available for them: otherwise they won't get better at using them, and eventually move on to more 'pro' weapons. Plus, as it stands the DMR actually does beat the Battle Rifle at any range if both players are skilled in their use. EDIT: While it's great to see someone has actually put the time into testing this, I've seen it posted a few times now. I know you want people to come and see what you've learned after putting all that work in, but posting it multiple times might end up getting you banned for spam - it's probably a better idea to put a link in your status to the topic you made for it if you want more views, as that's less likely to get any trouble from the mods.

It's not an easy weapon to use because of its weak aim assist and lack of bullet magnetism. Assuming you have a good aim you're very likely to hit something, if your aim isn't so good you're not likely to. There's a very big difference between good players and bad players using the DMR, there isn't such a big gap between good and bad players using the Battle Rifle. It's a question of personal accuracy, not weapon accuracy: think of the Sniper Rifle and the Magnum. Anybody - and I really mean anybody - can hit someone with a Magnum. It's much, much harder to hit someone with a Sniper Rifle, even though that's more accurate. As for headshots, when shields are down, a single bullet from a precision weapon will score a kill: while anywhere else on the body, or anywhere at all on a shielded target, a Battle Rifle needs to land all three shots to do equal damage to a DMR user, when the shields pop they just need one: this is why in SWAT it's possible (though very rare) to get multiple kills per trigger pull with the Battle Rifle. I don't agree at all. I think it's great that newbie players finally have a precision weapon specially for them. There's nothing wrong with making a game more user-friendly, and it certainly doesn't hurt to give them a chance to actually fight back against the better players. If you think you're a good enough player, switch it out for a Carbine or a DMR of your own.

I did. Next argument?

It is overpowered against the Battle Rifle. But it's supposed to be. The Battle Rifle is very user-friendly. It has larger crosshair and more bullet magnetism than the DMR, and it also has more aim assist: this means it's much easier to hit other players than it is with the DMR, meaning even if you don't have such a great aim, you can still get kills at mid range. And the burst fire makes headshots easier to get: if the DMR's bullet misses the head that's it, better luck with your next shot. If the Battle Rifle misses, you still have two more chances in a bigger crosshair to score the kill. Plus, the Battle Rifle gets a LOT less recoil when you're hit while scoped in: the DMR jumps perhaps three times as high as the Battle Rifle does, so when you're in a fight you don't have to worry as much about being shot back. So don't think of it as conventional balance, where both weapons should be equally effective if used at maximum efficiency. The Battle Rifle is a weaker gun that allows less-skilled players to compete: the DMR deserves to be better overall because it's not as easy to use.

I don't really agree with your assessment of the Boltshot: it IS very powerful, but requires perfect usage to get a kill: plus its regular shots are pretty much useless, so you HAVE to fire charged shots. And its range makes up for its power, as unless the user is willing to take a huge risk getting close to the target and taking the time to charge and fire, they won't be able to use it anyway. As for the automatic weapons versus precision weapon arguments, I think they work great as is. Automatics are supposed to only work at close ranges, and lose beyond that, as if they worked at longer ranges they'd be incredibly difficult to fight against as they have so much ammunition and aim assist. It would be like having a mid-range shotgun. And as far as the DMR goes, it's balanced fine, the problem is your play style. I'm amazed at the arguments against it: stop fighting it at its range! Get up close with an automatic weapon, or a Carbine or Battle Rifle: yes, you'll lose at long range, but you're supposed to lose at long range. It wouldn't be a very good long range weapon if it didn't reliably get kills at long range, would it? All you have to do is know what your own weapon's best range is (close range for automatics, mid-range for precisions) and you'll beat it every time. The Plasma Pistol is just more like it used to be back in the older Halos, where it was basically a situational weapon. It's basically designed so that in Campaign there can be a lot of fire coming at you without actually killing you: in Multiplayer you're expected to use the overcharge to attack other players and vehicles. Plus, it's balanced against the Magnum, which is scoped for use at long range: seriously, while the Plasma Pistol takes forever to actually get a kill, have you seen how quickly it drops player shields? Fire off a few rounds and go for a melee, and you'll see just how effective it can be!

Because it would look odd if the Prometheans were running around with Fuel Rod Guns or Rocket Launchers, weapons which hadn't been developed until 100,000 years after they'd been created. It would also look weird. Like Brutes with Shotguns.

In that case, I think it might be worth changing. Thanks!