Diassapointed by firearms

[phadin]

I've been using the compound bow since I got it at level 34, and loved it. However, when I got to PIDF Tower I figured I needed an upgrade since it wasn't quite up to the task of seeing me through that fight. I had unlocked assault rifle, but was dissapointed to find that the ammo I spent half a day making was gone in less then 20 minutes with only 20% of the bosses' health down. I eventually managed to beat it with the semi-auto rifle, but it still took nearly a day to make all the ammo I needed.... and I ended up using all of it to just manage to win the fight. The guns burn through so much ammo and it takes so long to make more it feels kinda unfun. After the fight, I've switched back to my bow for normal exploration and combat because it feels more reliable and ammo is so much faster to make when I need it.

What has been the experience of others with firearms in this game? Do you feel they are worth the time and hassle it takes to keep them supplied with ammo?

[Suzaku]

The amount of ammo crafted per craft is really what kills it for me. 5 ammo for the same resources for rifle, shotgun, and assault rifle? Rifle and shotgun clearly hit much harder per bullet/shell, but cost the same.

And then energy weapons require electric organs, which we can't produce in a ranch like other organs, so you have to constantly be grinding electric pals or money to buy more. I don't like that I can basically count the gold cost of my firepower, knowing it costs me an electric organ with every shot from a laser rifle.

And then bows clearly are the most efficient with their very high damage per shot compared to resource costs. Gets even better once you upgrade from the compound bow to the advanced bow.

[White Rabbit Alice]

the patch rolled out when i unlocked the single shot rifle, the only other gun i had was the musket.

it seems being limited in a ROF (Rate of Fire) Will make you a better shot, and make you waste less ammo, my last game, by the time i needed rifle ammo,i had about 1000 Coarse Ammo for my musket. 200 Rifle Ammo for the single shot. but i had multiple bases producing too.

i also stockpiled whatever i scavenged from sydnicate npcs i killed.

[SpitfireMkVIII]

The schematic-only versions helped a lot for me. Their damage per round is a lot higher, so it's more bang for the buck in terms of ammo consumption. The only downside is a higher upfront cost for the weapon itself. If you're lucky, you'll find a schematic for a weapon you were set to unlock anyway, rather than one from a generation back (i.e. pistol vs makeshift pistol). YMMV.

[Silyon]

The AR is all-around terrible, maybe a third of the damage the Shotgun does for triple the ammo. The Rifle is ok, especially from a flying mount, but the reload is entirely too long and that makes it incredibly inconvenient to use in regular combat. Doing anything else will interrupt the reload so it's not like you're paralyzed, but it'll also leave the gun unloaded and make you redo the long animation anyway. Haven't even bothered with the Laser Rifle, it almost doesn't matter how good it is because of it's uniquely annoying ammo.

For normal use, stick to the assortment of bows. Vixy makes the ammo basically free, gives you money to simply buy organs, and the excessive amount of low-level spheres can eventually be mulched back into Paladium fragments, which are always in short supply. For bosses, consider the grenade or rocket launcher for bigger damage in a smaller timeframe plus knockdown. Any other gun, don't even bother unless it's coming from a tier 2 schematic or better.

[dandinks]

Ammo is no big deal in this game, I can freely spray with no problems because of how good assembly lines are, my gun breaks before I run out of bullets on normal mode consistently, make some assembly lines with better crafters if craft speed is the problem

[Tactical Drongo]

You certainly need to up your assembly game
till then use musket, it takes long to reload but has an incredible damage per ammo rate and comparatively cheap ammo - bring a backup weapon though

fun fact - palworld has the second most historically accurate musket reload i have seen in a game so far

[phadin]

Originally posted by SpitfireMkVIII:

The schematic-only versions helped a lot for me. Their damage per round is a lot higher, so it's more bang for the buck in terms of ammo consumption. The only downside is a higher upfront cost for the weapon itself. If you're lucky, you'll find a schematic for a weapon you were set to unlock anyway, rather than one from a generation back (i.e. pistol vs makeshift pistol). YMMV.

I had that happen, but for armor instead of weapon. I was still a bit past level 40 and got a schematic for Uncommon Cold Resistanct Pal Armor. I could make the Pal Ingots, but couldnt' even unlock regular Pal Armor yet. Very nice upgrade as I could craft the schematic immediately.

Originally posted by Tactical Drongo:

You certainly need to up your assembly game
till then use musket, it takes long to reload but has an incredible damage per ammo rate and comparatively cheap ammo - bring a backup weapon though

fun fact - palworld has the second most historically accurate musket reload i have seen in a game so far

I always carry a melee weapon as a backup, but in the fight against the PIDF Tower boss, that's useless since he's flying. I did end up going in with the semi-auto rifle and my compound bow as backup. Fortunately managed to finish him off just as I ran out of rifle ammo.

I do give credit to the gunplay and animation. Reading some of the dev comments about it, one of the core developers they recruited originally they did so mostly because of the gun animations he had posted online as a simple enthusiest. They have someone on the team that is really into this exact thing, so I'm not surprised by the quality or accuracy of the animation. It's a credit to Pocketpair's ability to scout talent.

[Porked!]

Buy ammo. Having 4+ berry plantations and a lvl 3 kindling can get your coffer to build up very quickly. Hell I didn't even bother unlocking any ammo recipe in my last couple of playthroughs.

[Rainy Skies]

I've always used makeshift assault, assault and then laser rifle and don't have any problems, of course I also have the rare or better versions.
assault rifle ammo can be a bit expensive but I've always thought it wasted more time making ammo than farming gold off black marketeers. If you aren't strong enough, just use the hanging trap at their feet and then campfire them to death once they are strung up.
By the time laser rifles comes around I have money to spare and a quick production line making legendary spheres for resale at 5960 a pop that buying the electric organs is a non issue.
(when buying and selling, bring a team of Noble pals. Get them with fine furs if you like for an extra 15% improved prices if you want)

[SharpWits]

I just installed a mod to make Vixi's not suck at end-game. They produce rifle, rocket, shotgun, and handgun depending on their star level. I end up with thousands of ammo just from normal play times.

[phadin]

Originally posted by Pokie!:

Buy ammo. Having 4+ berry plantations and a lvl 3 kindling can get your coffer to build up very quickly. Hell I didn't even bother unlocking any ammo recipe in my last couple of playthroughs.

Who do you buy ammo from? The merchant in the small settlement doesn't have any.

Originally posted by SharpWits:

I just installed a mod to make Vixi's not suck at end-game. They produce rifle, rocket, shotgun, and handgun depending on their star level. I end up with thousands of ammo just from normal play times.

I don't see a need for this. Vixi is an early game pal, and she was great supplying arrows and pal balls early on, but it wouldn't make sense for her to be able to supply late game items. It might be nice if there was a late game pal you could ranch for a similar effect though.

[BoxingBud]

capture merchants, first of all, and eventually some will sell an assortment of ammo, then you can summon them buy and sell (meat is good to sell and mats that you're one shotting with your good guns) to replenish your ammo. They can be base bound, cage bound or on your person (very convenient if you want to buy/sell on the fly) I have and use a legendary pistol but havent' run into anything that drops it, so I just buy it from selling crap to my pet merchants.

[Shrub]

The compound bow needs nerfing or something because its comparable to my legendary rifle.

I still use the rifle because hit-scan, but the INCREDIBLE ease to crease reinforced arrows was not lost on me, and there were many times I'd swap back and forth during my recent journey.

Considering I can make a plasma rifle right now but I'm still using the rifle and the bow is telling.

Originally posted by Suzaku:

I don't like that I can basically count the gold cost of my firepower, knowing it costs me an electric organ with every shot from a laser rifle.

Blasting through the plasma ammo personally filled me with a great sense of power knowing how much money my legendary sphere farm was generating. Those organs are basically free by this point if you set up paldium farms or the new coin assembly line.

[Suzaku]

Originally posted by Shrub:

Originally posted by Suzaku:

I don't like that I can basically count the gold cost of my firepower, knowing it costs me an electric organ with every shot from a laser rifle.

Blasting through the plasma ammo personally filled me with a great sense of power knowing how much money my legendary sphere farm was generating. Those organs are basically free by this point if you set up paldium farms or the new coin assembly line.

Crap, I completely forgot the money assembly line is a thing now.

[Suzaku]

Originally posted by phadin:

Originally posted by Pokie!:

Buy ammo. Having 4+ berry plantations and a lvl 3 kindling can get your coffer to build up very quickly. Hell I didn't even bother unlocking any ammo recipe in my last couple of playthroughs.

Who do you buy ammo from? The merchant in the small settlement doesn't have any.

There's a group of merchants in a town in the desert far to the north-east.