The Russian Dinner Plate - A Guide to the DP-28

The DP-28 is often treated as a second class weapon, especially when compared to its Axis counterparts the MG34 and MG42. While experienced players will have no trouble using the DP-28, I see many new to intermediate players complain about its apparent lack of effectiveness. I wish to dispel these myths and bring to light the unique attributes of the weapon as well as provide some gameplay tips to new players.

Brief History

An improvement on Vasily Degtyaryov's earlier design, the DP-28 was introduced in, surprise surprise, 1928 and was used by the Soviets as their primary light machine gun in World War II. Using the standard 7.62x54R rifle round, the DP-28 proved to be a reliable support weapon. It however had several prominent problems, including a flimsy bipod and a low capacity magazine. The RPD started fazing it out of service in the the 1950s, with the DP-28 being retired completely by the Red Army in the 1960s with the introduction of the PK series of machine guns.

In-Game Statistics and Comparisons

Here are some basic stats to compare the DP-28 to the two Axis machine guns.
Please note that all information below is taken from the ROWeap files which can be found in
" \Steam Games\steamapps\common\Red Orchestra 2\Development\Src\ROGame\Classes" after installing the Red Orchestra 2 SDK.
All weapon weights are measured when the magazines are empty of each machine gun. Weight will obviously increase with full magazines and later unlocks for the German MGs.

DP-28
Weight: 9.2 kilograms
Rate of fire: 600 RPM
Magazine capacity: 47 (no unlocks)
Initial Sight Range: 50 meters

MG34
Weight: 12.1 kilograms
Rate of fire: 800 RPM
Magazine capacity: 50 (level 1), 75 (level 25) 250 (level 50)
Initial Sight Range: 200 meters

MG42
Weight: 11.6 kilograms
Rate of fire: 1200 RPM
Magazine capacity: 50 (level 1), 100 (level 25), 250 (level 50)
Initial Sight Range: 200 meters

Using the DP-28

Now looking at those stats, the DP has some tough competition. It cannot go toe-to-toe with the German MGs (especially the MG42) in a match of raw fire power. The problem many people have is they try and use the DP just as they would a German MG, and receive less than stellar results. Rather, they should be slightly adjusting their usual Machine Gunner strategy to accommodate the DP-28.

The DP-28 has three main strengths that must be taken advantage of: RPM, Hip Fire, and the Pan Magazine

RPM
At first glance many will scoff at the DP's humble 600 rounds per minute compared to the suppressing power of the MG34 and 42. It is both a blessing and a curse, but you can use it to your advantage. The low rate of fire makes conserving ammunition a breeze as well as making semi-auto fire feasible (a feature that is the MG34's alternate fire and completely absent on the MG42). The ability to effortlessly use semi-automatic fire makes quick long range shots very easy to make, and can turn your light machine gun into a makeshift battle rifle. Note that the DP's sights are initially set to 50 meters every fresh respawn. Make sure to raise the sights accordingly for long range engagements.



Additionally, the 600 RPM grants the DP-28 near immunity to the barrel overheating, which is good because Papa Stalin couldn't spare any addition machine gun barrels. It takes approximately 5 (which is more than you'll usually carry) magazines of non-stop fire (bar reload times) to completely overheat the DP-28. If you start to see smoke coming from your barrel, just switch to a more conservative single or burst firing and it'll cool down.


Hip Fire
There's a reason MG42 gunners are called Rambo, due to their tendency to run and gun with their behemoth. While firing your weapon from the hip is not the best idea in Red Orchestra, doubly true for machine gunners, sometimes you are forced into close quarters situations and a machine gun will produce better results than your pistol. While every machine gun is more or less just as deadly in close range, the DP has a a couple of under looked quirks that can turn any conscript into a Hero of the Soviet Union. Firstly, the weight of the DP-28. The DP is a whole 2 kilos lighter than the MG42 and 3 kilos lighter than the MG34, meaning your speed (so long as you haven't pick up any additional equipment) is going to be quite high for a machine gunner and the enemy may not be expecting such a rush from you.

The DP-28, unlike the German MGs, uses green tracers in place of a muzzle flash (thanks to its handy dandy flash hider). While these tracers are great for giving your position away and getting shot in the face, they do provide a benefit to hip firing. Simply follow the tracers and adjust accordingly to place your shots on a hapless enemy.





Pan Magazine
The most distinctive feature of the DP-28 is its circular 47 round magazine, which is the butt of many jokes.



You'll notice at about the 6 o'clock position near the rear sight there's a ring. This is the DP's fabled ammo counter, and is accurately modeled in-game. As you fire your DP-28, you'll notice the ring will move clockwise. This means the spring within the magazine is loading new rounds into the weapon and informs you of approximately how many rounds you have left. This is extremely useful as it allows a player to know their ammo count at a quick glance without having to hold the R key and perform a mag check. I believe this is the biggest saving grace of the DP-28.

Conclusion

Due to the nature of RO's asymmetrical gameplay, Axis get a definite edge when it comes to the Machine Gunner class. Unfortunately I have found that this leaves many players outright ignoring the DP-28 even in full servers in favor of other classes. While not as popular as the MG34 or as terrifying as the MG42, the DP-28 is a solid support weapon that is devastating when used to its strengths.

Now get out there and serve some Soviet-style pan pizza to those hungry Germans!

[Germanic Beast]

Soviet not Russian.

[L1mP_B1zkiT_F4N_2004]

cool now i can drive the invader off of our homeland like a true loyalist

[HSTS Femcel]

Lord Tachanka

[GabenPlzNerf]

And after the MG hipfire nerf the DP-28 remains the only consistant mg to hipfire

[GabenPlzNerf]

http://images.akamai.steamusercontent.com/ugc/578988753169587333/9E04D40B157E0A259F97A638F644C19041EB39BF/
True point of aim under 100 meters

[Sikorsky]

Maybe. I don't really have much experience with the MG class in RS.

[The Asian Driver]

Can you do guide for Japanese and American machine guns?

[Wiking]

If you actually adjust for the range with the DP you can get such easy kills with it from far away.

[Killroy]

Just got this gun to level 50.
Fun gun.

[JolyJew СлаваУкраине]

great guide, i vote+

also, im pretty sure the Degtereyv's weight is 9.2 killos WITH the ammo. as in real life its empty weight is about 8.0 killos.

and considering that the german MG's have belt magazines they are heavier by a lot more than just 3 killos