Are these weapons supposed to be this bad in CE campaign...?

[ManiacOverlord.ttv]

The assault rifle is absolutely worthless for damage unless you're right in enemies' faces, because the spread is just so absolutely awful... I feel like a stormtrooper trying to use this piece of junk. This thing's gotta be spitting BBs.

The needler is completely useless for me so far--Grunts and Elites alike just strafe the painfully slow bullets, and Jackals just bounce them away harmlessly. I can't intentionally score a kill with this thing to save my life.

Sniper rifle is amazing, does absurd damage with pinpoint accuracy, but the ammunition for it is low so I can't just use it all the time.

For the couple of minutes that I had a functioning pistol, I preferred it to the crappy assault rifle. It's actually pretty reliable if not great in the middle of a heated fight surrounded by enemies.

I feel like the only weapon I can reliably get and use repeatedly is the plasma pistol for its flexibility, nice aim assist and ability to do heavy staggering shots or rapid plinking. The plasma rifle is nice but not as common.

Is there some kind of strategic use to these weapons that I'm missing that isn't an incredibly niche "once in a blue moon" method? I'm sure SOMEBODY will come in saying "They're not useless, they have a niche thing they can do" but, is there a reasonable way I can use them consistently/regularly?

[Falleax]

The AR is good for mowing down small groups of Grunts and finishing off shieldless Elites at close range.
The Needler works best when leading your shots and when used somewhat far away from enemies so the needles have time and distance to home in properly but yeah it's still not great.
Classic Halo never had the best weapon balance but it gets better in later games. However I just know you're gonna love the Halo 1 shotgun once you get to levels that have it, you'll likely never want to replace it when you get it.

[Somua]

Originally posted by The Game Grump:

I remember the pistol being a powerful weapon did they nerf it?

No it's still the most OP weapon of the game.

[ManiacOverlord.ttv]

okay, so thank goodness, it's not just me. Sounds like I'm handling things about like how I should...
Very interested in getting the shotgun when the opportunity arises.

[Durandal]

try using weapons in burst if the spread seems ineffective. There seems to be minor bloom in my experience. Other than that, take the advice of others in this thread, as each weapon in the sandbox has its own purpose, and most can be fulfilled in the campaign.

Or just use shotgun and magnum the whole game. That works too.

[Bomjahed]

You can use plasma weapons to drain shields of enemies that have it, and use bullets to deplete their health. Pistol is one-shot headshot if shields are off, and assault rifle was so bad that they didn't put it into Halo 2 lol.

[Robert F.]

Also, if you found a sniper rifle on the mission Two Betrayals or Keyes. Don't bother to waste your ammo against the Flood since they're stupidly resilient against sniper rounds and melee damage.

[Good Luck Cairo]

tbh CE is the most balanced in the series at least imo

also this video gives a pretty good overview of CE weapons - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IwLKTMTNUdg

[ManiacOverlord.ttv]

Originally posted by Snow Fox:

tbh CE is the most balanced in the series at least imo

also this video gives a pretty good overview of CE weapons - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IwLKTMTNUdg

...I'm not watching a 35 minute video trying to tell me that the weapons that suck don't suck.

[Robert F.]

In short: .
Magnum - is a projectile weapon and require you to lead your shots, and has the shortest melee range.

Plasma pistol - they're everywhere and reliable.

AR - pretty much acts like SMG (even Halo 2 smg has the same fire rate), longer melee range, quickest melee time of all and deploys faster. This gun is only useful taking out weaker enemies and sweeping out flood forms on higher difficulties.

Needler - mostly outclassed, it's more effective use against flood and sentinels.

Sniper rifle - very limited and ineffective against flood.

You could try Ruby's Re-balanced mod that may suit your experience if you don't like the original gunplay https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2915693904&searchtext=ruby

[ModerNertum]

Originally posted by ManiacOverlord:

The assault rifle is absolutely worthless for damage unless you're right in enemies' faces, because the spread is just so absolutely awful... I feel like a stormtrooper trying to use this piece of junk. This thing's gotta be spitting BBs.

The needler is completely useless for me so far--Grunts and Elites alike just strafe the painfully slow bullets, and Jackals just bounce them away harmlessly. I can't intentionally score a kill with this thing to save my life.

Sniper rifle is amazing, does absurd damage with pinpoint accuracy, but the ammunition for it is low so I can't just use it all the time.

For the couple of minutes that I had a functioning pistol, I preferred it to the crappy assault rifle. It's actually pretty reliable if not great in the middle of a heated fight surrounded by enemies.

I feel like the only weapon I can reliably get and use repeatedly is the plasma pistol for its flexibility, nice aim assist and ability to do heavy staggering shots or rapid plinking. The plasma rifle is nice but not as common.

Is there some kind of strategic use to these weapons that I'm missing that isn't an incredibly niche "once in a blue moon" method? I'm sure SOMEBODY will come in saying "They're not useless, they have a niche thing they can do" but, is there a reasonable way I can use them consistently/regularly?

Well, the AR is mostly useful in lower difficulties as a clear type weapon for lower tiered enemies. It functions mostly like the SMG in functionality (close range bullet hose).

The needler is only useful in lower difficulties and only really effective with supercombine damage.

The sniper rifle has a little quirk where its useless against the Flood, the ammo is limited since its considered a power weapon in CE. It also has a stealth bonus in this game.

The pistol, well "reliable" is doing a diservice to that weapon since that is the BR of Halo CE. It is a God tier weapon, especially if you aim for the head. It requires good aim and to pace your shots and its useful from all ranges, against all enemy types. The sniper rifle and magum also have a quirk in this game where if you aim at an hunter belly or exposed back they will die in 1 shot.

The plasma pistol is reliable in this game, most useful at taking down shielded enemies (like elites and removing jackals shields) with the charged bolt. Paired with a headshot (precision weapon) is devastating as you can pretty much strip down shields of shielded enemies than fnish them with a headshot weapon.

I hope this helps.