Leveling Aiming and reload

[Seelander]

Hi Survivors,

I am currently in a playthrough where i try to max out as fast as i possible can in all areas and time has come to aiming and reload skill and could use a little advice for someone with more knowledge of guns as i am pure melee killing machine :-)

Have a few questions, hoping for objective advice, notice goal is to level up as fast as possible :-)

1. Does reload skill up faster during fights or do i keep reloading in my spare time (got reload mod on). currently at lvl 6

2. I assume that shotguns are the fastest way to lvl up Ai, but which one is the smartest to use, the 2 barrel or the "2000" shotgun, also should i make it oversawn or not.

3. Which guns are the best in terms of pistols (magnum, DE and so on, currently been collecting all guns during my loot, but seeems like the DE gun is quite good once i have level up to 5 or so (after shot gunning my way up).

4. Should i stay with shotguns purely to max out the fastest, my assumtion would be yes.

5. should i attach something to my guns such as scope, laser sight etc.?

Thanks in advance, you guys are survivors :-)

[Pawtastic]

Yeah, you should stay with shotguns

[Pawtastic]

shotguns*

[Seelander]

Originally posted by Pawtastic:

Yeah, you should stay with shotguns

should i attach something or just go with the shotgun as is? maybe oversawn to increase damage? 2 barrel or the "2000"?

[Quill]

1. Reloading period levels it up. You can spend a whole day just loading and unloading your shotgun at base to power level the skill before going out to fight zombies

2. Yes. The shotgun is the best. You gain XP by damage done and due to the fact you can hit 4 targets with a single blast it's the best way to level Aiming. While the double barrel offers slightly more damage the utility of 6+1 shots of the JS-2000 lets you fight zombies for longer before having to back off to reload

3. The M9. Once you get your aim skill up the higher mag size and abundance of 9mm makes it a much better option. The magnum caliber pistols have the same sound range as a rifle without the benefits of one so are more... there... As for the 1911 the 7 round magazine really limits it. The M32 Revolver is VERY niche. Low damage but the quietest gun in the game

4. Yes. Shotgun to power level. Once you get into the higher aiming skills Rifles become really effective for horde clear but due to how you gain XP the best way to get to max level in Aiming is the Shotgun

5. Scopes only for long range engagement weapons. You can hit targets much further away but cannot hit targets close to you. The effect gets much worse the bigger the magnification. Attachments like the Sling or Fiberglass stock should be put on regardless as they reduce weapon weight with no penalties. Just read the attachment info. If it's solely an upgrade put it on. If it has a downside put it on to match your needs

[Animalman]

I got 0 to 5 on the double barrel from a single horde that was breaking away from a Siren Ambulance by WP river. on 54 shells. This weekend. On a run. That is highly similar to your Epic goal here. That is the game.

For reload. I am afraid you are going to have to get yourself an Assault Rifle :) or m14.

More on that Base loot was Rare for all fields as is the standard on Apocalypse Mode.
The spawn house contained 2 Shotguns. To accumulate roughly 54 shells. And it had 3 hand guns.

So when the house spawns with Guns. It now adays really
Its like

Chance for a gun here. Yes. Chance every room here has a gun yes.

I'd say Best Bet is to actually play the Vet for the reloading boost.
I had been considering but requires dropping some stuff from the mega all skills build. And because i don't reduce population and i won't drop Eagle Eye. Is difficult for me to make a selection. I can go without Dex i can go without Cats eyes that is already a huge nerf. but just yeah not looked at it for a vet properly yet. But its the best way. 100% reloading. it really would be.

[Seelander]

Originally posted by Quill:

1. Reloading period levels it up. You can spend a whole day just loading and unloading your shotgun at base to power level the skill before going out to fight zombies

2. Yes. The shotgun is the best. You gain XP by damage done and due to the fact you can hit 4 targets with a single blast it's the best way to level Aiming. While the double barrel offers slightly more damage the utility of 6+1 shots of the JS-2000 lets you fight zombies for longer before having to back off to reload

3. The M9. Once you get your aim skill up the higher mag size and abundance of 9mm makes it a much better option. The magnum caliber pistols have the same sound range as a rifle without the benefits of one so are more... there... As for the 1911 the 7 round magazine really limits it. The M32 Revolver is VERY niche. Low damage but the quietest gun in the game

4. Yes. Shotgun to power level. Once you get into the higher aiming skills Rifles become really effective for horde clear but due to how you gain XP the best way to get to max level in Aiming is the Shotgun

5. Scopes only for long range engagement weapons. You can hit targets much further away but cannot hit targets close to you. The effect gets much worse the bigger the magnification. Attachments like the Sling or Fiberglass stock should be put on regardless as they reduce weapon weight with no penalties. Just read the attachment info. If it's solely an upgrade put it on. If it has a downside put it on to match your needs

Thx quill, especially the point of js-2000 vs double barrell, regarding reloading time is helpfull, comes down to damage vs time and was wondering about that do you use less time reloading during a fight but deal less damage pr shell or go with js-2000 and save the time on reloading. good advice :-)

[AbsynthMinded]

For best results get a big magazine for a assault rifle if able. You get more xp in one action with fewer clicks.

[DivineEvil]

Originally posted by tommy_b_schmidt:

--

1. Being in a fight makes no difference, though it seem more efficient since you actually doing something useful between reloads. Unloading doesn't give any exp IIRC.

2. Yes. Initially it is best to use the double-barrel, because you won't have time to take more than two shots, and you will often end up with a uncocked shell in a JS-2000, since you need a moment to ♥♥♥♥ the gun after each shot. DBs don't need that and reload quickly, so training is more streamlined. JS-2000 is something you use deliberately to clear the areas once you have already got some skill points.

3. Revolvers are good alternative to shotguns for training Aim after 4-5 points, since you can carry one into raids, they don't occupy as much space and leave the back weapon slot free for primary melee weapons, and they generally much quieter than shotguns, so you won't collect massive hordes unless you're already looking at one. M9 is generally the best pistol, since all other magazine pistols are intended for PvP, and their stronger damage is simply wasted on zombies, and apart from that, they're worse in one or several aspects. M9 also allows for more upgrades than other pistols.

4. With some skill points in place, JS-2000 is the best for leveling up. It overtakes the DBS in damage output against zombie groups in that case, and all other weapons are only better in precision or range. Again, most pistols and rifles are primarily PvP weapons, while revolvers are something you use to cull a screen of zombies without having to sneak around and look for them yourself.

5. Some upgrades have negatives associated with them, but other than that, add everything that suits your weapon. Just pay attention to the description given for the module in question - to my knowledge, they all pretty clear about what they offer.

[Torpex]

After level 5 you get 1/3 of XP for both aiming and reloading. To kneecap the non-firearms related origins.

IMO Veteran is by far the best origin for going out guns blazing, as panic debuff is crippling for accuracy.

BTW there is a mod which gives you books for both skills.

[Liro Raériyo]

reloading takes an asinine amount of bullets to master, without fast learner and starting at 0 it takes around 1.25 million bullets being loaded to max out aiming at 10, starting with aiming 1 and having fast learner brings it down to around 250K, once you start working on level 5+ all reload actions have a ~37% reduction to gained EXP.


the best shotgun to use at 0 aim is a sawed off JS-2000, it has 100 accuracy compared to the double barrel (both regular and sawed off) at 80 and the regular JS-2000 at 70.

all shotguns gain +5 accuracy per aim level so double barrels are 100% accurate at 4 and the JS-2000 is 100% at 6

remember to hit the maximum amount of targets per shot from a shotgun every time, the EXP is nearly 20X more potent then hitting a single target, all shotguns have the same maximum target count of 4.

[Seelander]

Originally posted by Liro Raériyo:

reloading takes an asinine amount of bullets to master, without fast learner and starting at 0 it takes around 1.25 million bullets being loaded to max out aiming at 10, starting with aiming 1 and having fast learner brings it down to around 250K, once you start working on level 5+ all reload actions have a ~37% reduction to gained EXP.


the best shotgun to use at 0 aim is a sawed off JS-2000, it has 100 accuracy compared to the double barrel (both regular and sawed off) at 80 and the regular JS-2000 at 70.

all shotguns gain +5 accuracy per aim level so double barrels are 100% accurate at 4 and the JS-2000 is 100% at 6

remember to hit the maximum amount of targets per shot from a shotgun every time, the EXP is nearly 20X more potent then hitting a single target, all shotguns have the same maximum target count of 4.

Thx for this, super info aswell, gives me a better feeling of what i need in terms of bullets etc. i got +1 aiming 0 reload in my build but with fast learner and no pacifist, reload climbing slowly but smoothly, always staying ahead of my nimble skill and pretty much reload training non stop when doing my cooking and inventory not really loosing time, its currently at 6 but i gain a solid amount each day (got auto reload on, not gonna do that manually constantly for 20 days :-)

[8Squirrels]

Haha, I don't know if it'll destroy the efficacy of your self-challenge, but there is a 'load all magazines' mod. You could use that plus a huge pile of large capacity mags to level pretty quickly

[Seelander]

Originally posted by 8Squirrels:

Haha, I don't know if it'll destroy the efficacy of your self-challenge, but there is a 'load all magazines' mod. You could use that plus a huge pile of large capacity mags to level pretty quickly

It has to cost the same time in game, no time discounts, well auto reload kinda does that, but in a fair way, i am not spending some 20 irl hours reloading :-) Got auto tailoring, mechanics and reload active and proximity inventory for faster look at bodies for watches and weapons. I guess you can say that the mods does what the perfect timing of reloading, tailoring and mechanics would do if done manually. Reloading mod is problably the largest time saver though might gain a little time on that one, but other than that i feel its fair. In fact i do think that those mods should be integrated in the game.

[Kryzx]

Originally posted by tommy_b_schmidt:

Originally posted by 8Squirrels:

Haha, I don't know if it'll destroy the efficacy of your self-challenge, but there is a 'load all magazines' mod. You could use that plus a huge pile of large capacity mags to level pretty quickly

It has to cost the same time in game, no time discounts, well auto reload kinda does that, but in a fair way, i am not spending some 20 irl hours reloading :-) Got auto tailoring, mechanics and reload active and proximity inventory for faster look at bodies for watches and weapons. I guess you can say that the mods does what the perfect timing of reloading, tailoring and mechanics would do if done manually. Reloading mod is problably the largest time saver though might gain a little time on that one, but other than that i feel its fair. In fact i do think that those mods should be integrated in the game.

That mod doesn't actually change anything you couldn't do in the vanilla game, so I'd go ahead and use it to save some time.

Aiming & Reloading is going to be a grind past level 5, so I normally wouldn't grind past that in a normal playthrough.

As far as Aiming, everyone else has already said to use Shotguns, specifically the sawn-off double barrel. Doing this compared to non-sawn-off is that it reduces the weight significantly & widens the attack cone.

Reason why: If you manage to hit all targets while aiming with it, the EXP gain basically acts like a multiplier (1x for 1 zombie, 4x for 2 zombies, 9x for 3 zombies, 16x for 4 zombies). Not to mention it's just more ammo efficient too.

Personally speaking, I would actually use a sawn-off JS-2000 until you reach the next 2 levels of Aiming. DB at level 0 is 80% chance to hit (but increases by 5% each level up to level 3) whereas a sawn-off JS-2000 is going to be 100% at level 0. Yes, you miss out on the 4-hit (16x) multiplier using a sawn-off JS-2000, but you'll always hit what the attack cone shows you. Do you want a guaranteed 3-hit (9x) with a sawn-off JS-2000? Or take a 80% chance on a 4-hit turning into a 3-hit, 2-hit, or even 1-hit with the sawn-off DB?

I would just stick purely to the sawn-off DB for gaining experience though. Save all other firearms for actually clearing out zombies you want to get rid of once you get enough skill to be effective with them.

If you find any M16s, just stash them at your base and never use them until you max out Aiming lol.

EDIT: Misconception I had with max # of targets with the JS2000. Thought it only could hit max of 3 unlike DB.

[Animalman]

Did anyone mention the m14 is a great weapon. And i can't remember the ins and outs but the speed that it can kill 20 enemies is very.
very impressive.

but it is heavy on 308s i remember. Why using the 308 rifle you can get ya Penetration shots. Pierce shots. But its so inefficient. For that the 223. So i guess yeah its okay to spend 308 on the m14 instead of the rifle

Because truth be told. Its not always about what is best its about what you have.
Eventually you are out of shells and just gotta play it from what you got.
You might have a character that is carrying a shotgun and revolver. and then you might run out of shells but still have 308 so whats the options here.

U play the field how you get it. Nobody can guarantee that it will go the perfect way. But m14 has a decent and fast killing capacity vs the alternative way to spend the 308s which is slow and cumbersome with mag changes. Thats why 223 is no mag changing. :)
So

anyways

U should just play play and come tell us how its done how u did it how u played it