Displayed damage question - two-shot vs instigating

[Altonu]

So, I'm on my third playthrough and I already know that the two-shot from the overseer's guardian does not actually double my damage due to how it works, but what I'm curious about is if the damage shown in my pip boy is actually the damage for comparing to damage resistance etc.

I recently looted an instigating hunting rifle which I've modded to a sniper rife, and I'd like to know if I'm correct in assuming the +100% damage on first shot is NOT reflected in the pit boy.

My guardian shows a damage of 66, and my instigating rifle shows a damage of 55 (both moded for sniping/crits, but no rifelman perks (will get those eventually, but doing a gunslinger/luck/crits build this time, so the sniper rifle is just my long range alternative for now (also better than deliverer vs high DR enemies)).

If I understand how things work, the instigating rifle is already a better choice for sniping, so I may be better off modding my guardian to give me a solid mid-range/high damage option.

[cszolee79]

Two shot adds a second bullet with the weapons unmodded base damage. It's better IMHO since it always applies.

[DouglasGrave]

As far as I'm aware, the doubled damage from Instigating is not included in the damage listed in the weapon's statistics, since it could apply differently for different enemies.

Originally posted by cszolee79:

Two shot adds a second bullet with the weapons unmodded base damage. It's better IMHO since it always applies.

Two shot is a better all-rounder, but Instigating is distinctly superior for sniping (where you want to hit accurately from a long distance with maximum damage in a single shot).

[casualsailor]

Originally posted by cszolee79:

Two shot adds a second bullet with the weapons unmodded base damage. It's better IMHO since it always applies.

This is the key. The damage of the second bullet is the base damage so it does not do "double" damage like Instigating.

Ultimately, I believe it is just a matter of style and preference as the actual differences in numbers don't really make that much of a difference.

I go back and forth with the Guardian. When I get Tinker Tom's special I mod up the Guardian to be a semi-auto mid range assault rifle. But when I get access to .50 cal mod I convert it back to a .50 cal sniper rifle.

[Karvik]

Silenced instigating sniper rifle + all the related perks is such a beast. I think two shot variant of it would actually be worse.

[DouglasGrave]

Originally posted by casualsailor:

I go back and forth with the Guardian. When I get Tinker Tom's special I mod up the Guardian to be a semi-auto mid range assault rifle. But when I get access to .50 cal mod I convert it back to a .50 cal sniper rifle.

Tempting as I find the idea of the extra damage from the .50 cal mod, I can never go past the calibrated powerful receiver for its bonus to critical hits.

Though I assume you mean it's Tinker Tom's special you're modding into .50 cal, since the Overseer's Guardian is a combat rifle (and thus its ammunition upgrade is .308).

[Relvor]

Don't forget about the +150% recoil penalty for two-shot weapons. Can be compensated pretty easy, but for (semi)automatics it does take a bit longer to reaquire your target for the second shot and beyond. Pretty noticable when you try to snipe multiple targets while under influence of jet.

I think that OG is one of the best allrounders if modded a bit.