Just to let everyone know, go assault suit when sniping in this manner. Scout suit only has a 5 point difference when it comes to their scanning and their signature so they really aren't stealthier. Assaults also have vastly superior hp, cpu, and more slot options for versatility and making up for any possible advantage the scout suit has.

I snipe exclusively on logistics and heavy.
1) set up camp with log because it can carry all the camping gear
2) if killed spawn as heavy in uplink and lol at feeble tickling from other snipers

Ability to shrug off most sniper shots is the best thing for a sniper. It keeps you killing stuff instead of spawning. Log can tank well, too. At proto level its all about logistics with 4 damage mods or thale +2

Logi actually works very well also if you can deal without a sidearm.

close range snipers: snipers on the frontlines or hidden a few yards away from an objective saving objectives from an enemy hack used to the heat of battle showing no hesitation to kill on sight does not waste bullets and master close range snipers are extremely rare like ghosts they kill and kill and kill without error

I really like having a sniper who runs around with his team. He can be a great counter sniper, but the best part is that he can cover his team exactly where they are at. Many sniper positions may have to cover a larger part of the field, may not be able to hit a certain area, and most likely cannot provide optimal protection for his squad. If the sniper is with his squad, then he can protect them better than another sniper who is stationary, or has limited mobility.

The other benefit to using an assault suit and moving with his squad is that he can have a CQC weapon like a SMG or pistol. He'll also be able to quickly switch to an assault-type with an AR or other light weapon if a sniper another assault class benefits the squad more than a sniper. That's not to say that sniping from close range is bad, but it's all situational.

Sniping from a fixed location is not always bad too. There are some advantages to having the high ground, or an optimal position.

The important point is that people who adapt always lose. They are always one step behind their opponents. Don't be the one who has to find a way to work in the environment your opponents have created, be the one who controls the situation and forces your opponents to counter your moves.

Hmmm... nice tactic. I'm suprised that you don't take more hits/deaths on the ground when clearing the path for objectives. I am challenged when sniping targets at closer range twofold:

1.) scoping is more difficult due to their higher movement speed relative to my scope field of view
2.) It seems those pesky AR guys always come after me in droves if they are clustered around an objective (or being more in the open I'll get sniped from an enemy sniper)

Kudos to you for being able to make it work so effectively. Any tips? I would imagine the key is just getting to good cover, and taking them out as quickly as possible. Do you use the TAC SR?

If you come up against an organised squad my tactic can become difficult to maintain, but in those circumstances I fall back to a blaster installation and highlight the enemy to my team mates / lay down covering fire whenever they pop their heads out.

As for traversing the maps, I stick close to walls and scope up before I turn a corner, and make sure I'm already crouched.

I also pay close attention to my radar display, this has saved me a heap of times.

As for close combat, I just mellee, it's amazing how many people are like WTF when a scout runs at them with the butt of his rifle :P!

I also find that if you're going to hack an enemy held objective, waiting a few seconds to see if they hack one is a good indicator of whether the bulk of the enemy force is near by.

Also yeah I use the Tactical sniper rifle, complex profile dampeners and an enhanced light weapon damage module.

Your role:
- You are the eyes for your team. You can see more of the battlefield than they can. Tell them what is happening. Warn them what they are up against. Tell them if they are being flanked.

I disagree with using drop uplinks as a sniper. If you get killed, then it's safe to say your perch is compromised. And truth be told, I love when snipers repeatedly spawn in and get insta-sniped as I sit there with my lined up shot.


I switched to the charged sniper rifle a week ago, and i haven't looked back. It uses a lot less CPU/PG than the other sniper rifles with a base 266 damage. The lack of a follow up shot is more than made up for tanking that one shot with complex dam mods. I one shot assaults lots of the time and if i don't kill them outright you can almost see the hershey squirts as they are brought down to their underwear left scrambling for any cover they can find. It is also the counter sniping weapon of choice because you can line up head shots on opposing snipers to great effect.

With practice, I've gotten good enough to hit a running target twice. Another issue it solves is firing into crowds. With a tactical you need two shots. Hitting the same person twice in a crowd further jumbled by their full names and health telemetry is pretty impossible. With the charged you can just fire into the crowd and usually any hit will net you a +50.

Also, I like to carry compact nanos. 10CPU/2PG is very light weight, plus it will heal armor which is good in a pinch.


FWIW, a logi sniper can make up for the lack of a sidearm with the right nades (if he's good at throwing them)... because they can also hole up on their nanohive and spam nades at the enemy if it came down to it.

I'm relatively new to Dust, and hate most other FPS games.
That said, I love Dust and really enjoy playing as a sniper.

I have tested different methods of play and have come up with one that while may not give the best KDR, helps my team and nets me big points in the process.

I spawn at match start, and head for a rail gun installation, hack it.
Enter rail gun installation and take out enemy installations.

I then load the map and locate the enemy supply depot and choose an angle of approach.
I then use my sniper rifle to clear enemies at the depot, then hack it.

If I can't hack it, I use a rail gun installation to destroy it, 50 points to me, 1 less spawn point to the enemy.

I continue to bunny hop round the map hacking clone reanimation units and installations, clearing the path with my sniper rifle before hand.

If the enemy deploys a vehicle, I run to an installation and rail gun it to death.

Like I said, this method gets me quite a few deaths, but on average about 1000-1200 points a match, which is not amazing but for a newb is pretty good imo.

It also makes me feel as though I am contributing, if even in a small way to the match, instead of just sitting on a hill.

I disagree with using drop uplinks as a sniper. If you get killed, then it's safe to say your perch is compromised. And truth be told, I love when snipers repeatedly spawn in and get insta-sniped as I sit there with my lined up shot.


I switched to the charged sniper rifle a week ago, and i haven't looked back. It uses a lot less CPU/PG than the other sniper rifles with a base 266 damage. The lack of a follow up shot is more than made up for tanking that one shot with complex dam mods. I one shot assaults lots of the time and if i don't kill them outright you can almost see the hershey squirts as they are brought down to their underwear left scrambling for any cover they can find. It is also the counter sniping weapon of choice because you can line up head shots on opposing snipers to great effect.

With practice, I've gotten good enough to hit a running target twice. Another issue it solves is firing into crowds. With a tactical you need two shots. Hitting the same person twice in a crowd further jumbled by their full names and health telemetry is pretty impossible. With the charged you can just fire into the crowd and usually any hit will net you a +50.

Also, I like to carry compact nanos. 10CPU/2PG is very light weight, plus it will heal armor which is good in a pinch.


FWIW, a logi sniper can make up for the lack of a sidearm with the right nades (if he's good at throwing them)... because they can also hole up on their nanohive and spam nades at the enemy if it came down to it.

You have gone beyond just being a Sniper. If you wore an Assault suit you would be a Marksman. I am still trying to come up with a good name for the Scout Suit version that you run. Any suggestions?

Either way, I normally recommend people train their sidearm skills for when they go in close to hack. (I like SMG, but if you are quick and accurate you may prefer the Scrambler Pistil.) Since you are good at melee this might not be as important for you.

Read my Marksman Guide

3. Kills. Kills are great, but it is of common concesus that sniper is a support role and not front line. So while you are lining up that head shot the enemy is doing something, he might be calling LAV, orbital, engaging a friendly, staring into space, whatever he is doing YOU are letting him get away with it while you line up that headshot. Help friendlies by weakening the enemy, not by getting kills. I use this prace as forge gunner and it has served my team well, I use splash to weaken entire groups of enemies before my team engages. The enemy is forced to face a fully equipped squad with 1/2 armor and no shields. Sux to be them.

Question:1
Is it worth beefing up on demolitions for a sniper build?
The reason I ask, is that sometime I feel a few Prox mines might help you from the guys who like to sneak up.

Q.2:
For a secondary weapon, what do you think is the best?
Currently I run with just a scrambler pistol, which I can usually kill or hurt the average player with.

1. Yes, but not how you're thinking. Proxy mines only explode on vehicles. However, if you're a sniper who likes to cover objectives, REs are a perfect way to cover the parts of an installation your fire can't reach.

2. I prefer the SMG, but that's simply because I roll a scout. When people get too close (or I move too close to people), I turn into a strafing, hopping, SMG spammer.

Question:1
Is it worth beefing up on demolitions for a sniper build?
The reason I ask, is that sometime I feel a few Prox mines might help you from the guys who like to sneak up.

Q.2:
For a secondary weapon, what do you think is the best?
Currently I run with just a scrambler pistol, which I can usually kill or hurt the average player with.

always change locations whenever your sniping.
i'd say 4 kills then move on to another hide. if by any reason your position is compromised, it would be best to have a backup nest from which you can snipe from. it might take some to travel, but you be able to make effective counterattacks towards your enemy.

charged is beaten in DPS terms easily by proto TSR so yea go for it if you don't die much, if cost is an issue, charged it up. thales is the best and rare so use if you want/can.

Quoted techniques from other Snipers:

I prefer regular to tactical. Clip size makes all the difference.

then why not the charged? it has 5 rounds per mag

then why not the charged? it has 5 rounds per mag

Cause people hate the charge part. For it to do it's full damage, a regular sniper can pop off two shots and a tactical can empty it's clip.

size makes all the difference.

The tac sniper rifle is fine if you know how to use it. Confidence helps too.

Harder to quickscope with charged ;D

Totally agree. Charge is very useful in rare situations, for example when you don't want to do a massacre just to kill some important enemy player (laser rifle from above with high shield and armor...etc).
In any other case I prefer Tactical because thats a beast when you can aim rapidly (specially on ambush maps). I use 2 high damage modifier and usually 1 headshot/kill. My usual stat is 14/1 when I fight against normal enemy with some heavy SP load (above 8mill). When I fight against my lvl (3mill SP) than my stat is around 25-30/1 or 0.

Tactic rifle is the best when you want score some frag (top3) and not just counter snipe.

Actually easier if you keep it charged

i agree zan. can't wait for the proto charged rifle, that's going to do a lot of damage.

Not as easy as the standard sniper and the second shot is a lot harder to pull off unfortunately but i get what your saying

Start with the Militia Sniper rifle in the Assault Sniper Starter suit. The suit is free and has what you need to get started. Once you have increased your fitting skills (Electronics & Engineering) enough, fit a Nano Hive to it so you can replenish your ammo.

Using the free starter fit will allow you to use all your ISK on buying skill books as you get started, and will allow you to start sniping right away. For a while you will want to just crouch (triangle) to reduce sway, and put your skill points into core skills.

Once you have purchased most of the skill books you need, you can start spending your ISK on some basic equipment. Once you start levelling Sniper Riffle Operation you will be able to buy the Basic Sniper Rifle which gives you 5 rounds per clip instead of only 3 for the starter militia Sniper Rifle.

As to the other variations on the Sniper Riffle, the Tactical Sniper Rifle does not do as much damage, but has a higher rate of fire. If you are good at tracking your target and can hit consistently even after they start running for cover, then you might like the Tactical Sniper Rifle. The Charged Sniper Rifle does more damage if you charge it by holding the button down. People who use the Charged Sniper Rifle stack damage mods and try to one shot people. If the first shot does not kill them, hopefully their health will be low enough that a low damage quick shot without charge will be enough to finish them off. The Charged Sniper Rifle is a Prototype level weapon though, so you canGÇÖt get it until you level Sniper Rifle Operation to 5.

I've recently been having fun with another build for a great sniper alt role.

I call it my REAL Commando fit as opposed to CCPs definition of a commando.

I skilled up in scout suit and I love it regardless. But then you equip two SMG and go to town with CQC. I equip one regular SMG and one Breach.

Skill up the SMG skills and it rocks! It is fun as hell!


Watch as your enemies reload their AR and you simply swap SMG and continue.

Keep jumping and you will keep the enemy from keeping up with you as they turn so you can shoot them down before they can get enough shots on you.

Otherwise, skilling up the SMG allows you to not only run the sniper rifle and still be closer to an assault guy for damage with the SMG but you can also be a vehicle sniper and run a swarm launcher too for heavy vehicle traffic matches.

What's good about a tactical sniper rifle compared to a regular sniper rifle? I only have a couple of skill points IIRC in it, so just the basic versions?

I can't tell what advantage tactical is supposed to give?

What's good about a tactical sniper rifle compared to a regular sniper rifle? I only have a couple of skill points IIRC in it, so just the basic versions?

I can't tell what advantage tactical is supposed to give?

- You are backup on high.
...

Positioning:
Find a place with a field of fire which includes several objectives or strategic targets. Make sure you have cover that you can easily duck into. Crouch down to avoid rifle sway, and try to expose no more of your body than you have to in order to see the area you are covering. Be mindful of enemy snipers. Frequently scan other potential sniper spots. Drop the scope and look around you once in a while to make sure no one is sneaking up on you.

Some snipers-in-training seem to think that this sort of general advice makes the top of those uber-tall towers,
"B3st Spot 3vaR!"

After all:
- it's high
- people can't sneak up on you, since it takes a dropship to get up there

And the observation mentioned elsewhere, that people never look up.

Except for the small problem that apparently, other snipers, are not "people"

Really silly examples I've seen of this, are people getting dropped off up there, then putting down a respawn and/or nanohive... on the incline. Which makes for a REALLY NICE glowey "hi, I'm up here!" beacon. You just have to have a little elevation to see it, rather than be up on their level.

Plus, they start sniping on the edge of the incline, then "back up" for cover. That makes them safe, right, 'cause after all they cant see who they''ve just been shooting at....

Lulz.

In summary: the ubertall towers can be a fun game if you're going up against a team of complete newbs. However, it's a deathtrap if there's even a marginally competant sniper on the other team.

In one match, there was a group of snipers up there. One guy obviously knew what's what, and did a para-bail off the tower after my first shot. The others just stayed up there.. and kept giving me WP...

Yeah, the GÇ£tree cancerGÇ¥ bit farther on about how easy it is to see the bump of a head on a straight edge, covers roof tops fairly well.

When I am running on the front line and I see tower campers I switch to my Marksman fit and defend/assault objectives with my SMG and then switch to my Sniper Rifle every once in a while to get a few free kills off the roof. It is amazingly easy to get head-shots on snipers peaking over the edge of tall towers. I can one shot them even with a standard Sniper Rifle.

I would really only recommend roof top sniping for people in Heavy suits. They have enough health to tank a few shots while they back up to safety. Not that I have not taken out my fair share of roof top heavies, but they are definitely harder to take down.

The guide has been updated to cover profile dampening and destroying equipment. I had to rearrange it to make enough space. I really should have reserved more posts, but this was my first guide. Lessons learnt.

One of these days, I'm going to go run around with a tac using hipfire....

Oh hey you missed a spot, on your cleanup :)

in post #3,

"or allowing you to paint enemies onto your teamGÇÖs tacnet radar using your scope. "

needs to be removed as no longer applicable.

Also, I suggest you move the bits about hipfire, into their own paragraph, rather than hiding in the logi section.

One of these days, I'm going to go run around with a tac using hipfire....

Hip fire is covered in my Marksman guide. It is more advanced. I only cover it in the Logi section because most LogiGÇÖs donGÇÖt have a sidearm to defend themselves with.

Sniping alone does not win the battle:
Skirmish matches are won by frontline troops taking objectives. Sometimes, particularly on Manus Peak (the open 3 objective map), there are too many snipers and not enough frontline troops. Sometimes for the good of the team, you need to swap your sniper rifle for a submachine gun and head in to hack an objective.

Sometimes there is an enemy sniper in the prime sniping position you want to use. Time to swap to your submachine gun and take them out.

Sometimes a frontline solder or a shotgun scout will sneak up on your position. Time to swap out to your submachine gun and start dancing and shooting.

I think you can see by this point why I have dumped skill points into Submachine Gun skills. With Submachine Gun Operation 5 and a couple levels of Proficiency you will win in a 1v1 with an equally skilled Assault Riffle at close range. This will allow you to be a Marksman and run with your squad on the front line using your SMG in close quarters and your Sniper Rifle as opportunities present themselves. At this point you become deadly at any range, and versatile without having to change fittings.


Redline Snipers (Why Snipers have a bad name):
The true Redline Sniper is the guy who snipes from near the initial spawn point. They are hated by the Enemy because only another sniper or a rail gun can reach them. They are hated by their own team because their poor positioning means they do not contribute much to the teamGÇÖs success. Their field of fire does not cover many of the strategic objectives and at that distance they are only going to get the occasional kill when a Red stops to tie their shoe half way between objectives.

If I spawn behind the Redline I may stop and take a shot if I see one on my way out, but I will not linger there. If the other team has taken all the objectives and has redlined us, then I have no qualms about sniping from the Redline. In that situation I may be able to thin the line enough for some of our Frontline troops to slip through.

I donGÇÖt have a problem with people sniping from just inside the Redline when they have a good field of fire. If you are close enough for a Red to take you out with an assault riffle, then there is nothing cowardly about your position. If you have a field of fire that covers several objectives and gives you a view of much of the battlefield, then your team has nothing to complain about either. One example of such a position on the Manus Peak map is a saddle dip in the ridge line below one of the MCCGÇÖs. It and the road behind it are in the Red Zone, but by doing a little rock climbing I was able to take out a sniper from that spot by getting close with an assault riffle. Another example from Manus Peak is on the opposite side of the map, one of the rocky spikes is on a low angle and you can climb to the top for a good vantage point. I think it is just in the Red Zone, but I have had Reds show up and take me out with assault riffles, so I feel there is nothing unsporting about using that spot. (I think these two spots mostly survived the landscaping that came with Uprising.)

I am really hoping that CCP is carful not to create any really prime sniper positions deep in the Red Zone when doing their map layouts. They seem to be so far. I donGÇÖt want to be forced to choose between my sense of fair play and using a prime tactical position.

Larry:

When I comment about squad mates I am referring to the people you run with on a regular bases. They should get an idea of how good you are after a few days, sooner if they know what to look for.

Your opponents will come to respect you, or hate you, much faster. It only took me 6 minutes to reclassify you from my default sniper risk assessment of GÇ£minor annoyanceGÇ¥ up to GÇ£major problemGÇ¥ the first time I faced you in battle. Having a memorable name helps.

Random Blueberries on your team however base their assessment of you on their past experience with Snipers, and lets face it, the average Sniper has no business being deep in the Red Line. So, yeah, you have to face the blowback from the frustration they experience over constantly dealing with armature Snipers. Much of my advice in this guide is geared toward encouraging inexperienced Snipers to chose a vantage point a bit closer to the action where they can be more effective, and engender less Sniper hate among their teammates.

By the time you are good enough to be effective from deep in the Red line, you are good enough not to need my guidance. As with most things you start by learning the rules, then you come to understand the rules, and with that understanding comes an ability to see when and how it is appropriate to break the rules. That can equate to the Apprentice, Journeyman, Master progression.

I am interested to here feedback on what Sniping is like in 1.8. Are people getting kills with Standard and Militia Sniper rifles? Is anyone using the Tactical Sniper Rifle? Or is everyone using the Charged and Officer variant?