Planetside’s teaser trailer slogan states: “Size. Always. Matters.” So let’s see big weapons for big boys. Today, we’ll take a look at the Heavy Assault class's best weapons for various playstyles! And hopefully, we’ll help you decide which weapon to choose on the neverending battlefield of Auraxis!
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Available weapons for the class
First, we need to acknowledge what kind of weapons we’ll be using the most as a Heavy Assault class.
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According to this chart from https://planetside.fandom.com/wiki/Weapons, we can see that Heavy Assault is the only class that can carry Heavy Guns (special weapons with unique traits) and Rocket Launchers. Heavy Assault and Engineers are the only classes in the game that can carry LMG (Light Machine Guns). Also, Heavy Assault can use Battle Rifles, basically something in between Sniper Rifle and Scout rifle.
With this in mind, we’ll be reviewing each type of weaponry and point out the best representatives judging by their prowess and accessibility, as well as the payoff they give in exchange for your investments. Let’s open the arsenal!
Shotguns
We’ll start with the section that requires much fewer words than the following ones. Why is that? Well because regardless of the class you play, you, in fact, do not need to buy yourself a new shotgun. The game provides you with a stock one, which does its work just perfectly - cleans close quarters areas.
Believe it or not, buying other shotguns will be just a waste of certificates since a stock shotgun often requires no more than 2 precise shots to kill off a target in the 20 meters range. Twice as more, if you’re battling a Heavy Assault who utilized shield ability.
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Not to mention the fact that the stock shotguns are semi-automatic, which gives you room for a mistake to make now and then. Of course, you may think that a pump-action shotgun will be able to one-shot an enemy. In theory - it can, but it only will if you’re in a range of 5 meters, which is more than enough to quickly kill off an enemy with a stock shotgun with a headshot, and after 5 meters range, pump-action shotguns will require the same amount of shots to kill off the enemy as semi-automatic shotguns, so buying pump action is not really worth it.
Thus being said, your best choice is not to make any at all when it comes to shotguns, just stick to the stock ones and you’ll be doing great enough.
Stock shotguns are:
Mauler S6 (NC)
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FA1 Barrage (TR)
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Thanatos VE70 (VS)
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Battle Rifles
Do you want to be a heavily armored sniper? You like the idea of slow, hard-hitting rifles while being protected by Heavy Assault’s class shield ability? Well, then these fellas are for you to take and shoot! There are very few battle rifles, two per faction that are worthy of your attention, to be exact. So we’ll split it into 2 Tiers, the one that is cheap and light, and the other is expensive but heavy. It’s a good choice for Heavy Assault to fire on larger distances than LMG does, but personally, I wouldn't name it the best. But, to each its own.
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Tier 1
In Tier 1 we have the cheapest battle rifles one can afford. The following three battle rifles are statistically identical, with the only difference being Vanu having less muzzle velocity in return for a complete lack of bullet ballistics.
They cost only a small amount of 325 certificates | 250 DC, making them a good option to try out and see if that’s your thing since it doesn’t require any investments.
They aren’t really popular among the players because they do not possess much penetrating power, despite their familiarity with scout rifles. For the most part, it will take 4-5 shots to kill a target on the range after 75 meters, approximately -1 shot if the distance is before 75m. And that’s not really impressive, since it’s 1 shot more to make compared to Scouts rifles. But on the other hand, they have greater magazines, 20 ammo per magazine to be precise, thus it will give players room for mistakes. It’s best suited for mid-range to long-range, since its rate of fire is semi-automatic, and it will prove dreadful in close-range combat.
And better not to fire it from the hip, since it has terrible hip accuracy. Aim down the sights for better performance.
Tier 1 battle rifles:
Eidolon VE33 (VS)
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AMR-66 (TR)
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Warden (NC)
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Tier 2
Now Tier 2 is more interesting than what we’ve seen previously. First off, they have lesser magazine sizes and a rate of fire in exchange for more penetrating power than Tier 1 has. Also, unlike Tier 1 these weapons have the same damage regardless of the distance, so all you need to worry about is the bullet ballistics and precision. And although they are identical in damage and muzzle velocity, each faction has a special trait for their specific Battle Rifle. Let’s review them separately.
MGR-M1 Bishop (NC)
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MGR-M1 Bishop is a special battle rifle. How so? Well, it’s a prominent battle rifle, because its bullets do not stop. That’s right. Bishop’s bullet does not stop hitting a target. No, it continues to fly until it hits a solid object, and it can pierce through one additional target that stands right behind the initial one, and add to that - bullet does not lose its velocity and damage at all, so it will deal the same damage it did to the first, initial target.
MG-HBR1 Dragoon (TR)
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MG-HBR1 Dragoon has a special trait. In exchange for 2 bullets in its magazine compared to Bishop’s 10, it provides a greater rate of fire since it’s on automatic fire mode, which makes it easier for a shooter to react in situations when you’re suddenly approached by the enemy at close range. Other than its firing mode, it’s completely identical to others.
VE-LR Obelisk (VS)
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A great weapon for those who are tired of reloading speed penalty after shooting an entire magazine. This weapon provides you with infinite ammo, in exchange for making reloading speed the same amount of 3 seconds. Although the cooling process starts immediately after just a second of a shooter stopping firing, so you can shoot without reaching the overheating point, and come back into battle quicker. If you use this trait wisely, this weapon may often save your life, since it’s one of those weapons that doesn’t like to leave a shooter vulnerable while reloading.
And, as any other VS weapon - it lacks bullet ballistics but doesn’t sacrifice the muzzle velocity for that. With that being said, it might be just the most efficient out of three Tier 2 battle rifles.
Light Machine Guns
Just like with the Battle Rifles, we’ll need to separate Light Machine Guns, but not depending on their medium prowess, but the situation. The main difference between LMG’s - is the playstyle. Two primary playstyles with LMG’s are
Aggressive and agile close to mid-range firing with lesser magazines in exchange for greater damage and hip accuracy.
Positioned gameplay withholding/clearing essential chokepoints like door arc onto the control point, having a great rate of fire and large magazines, sacrificing hip accuracy as well as damage.
A mediocre mix between two.
Now let’s look at the best of available weapons separately, since Light Machine Guns have differences amidst their representatives.
Better for chokepoints
T9 Carv (TR)
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Many players love TR stock LMG, because of its enormous rate of fire combined with a really large magazine. It’s one of the best weapons out there for well-positioned gameplay since it has a good, controllable recoil. Of course, for better performance, you should aim down the sights because its hip accuracy leaves much to be desired.
Of course, its traits are compensated by decreased damage, but I assure you, its TTK (Time to kill) is well balanced by the weapon’s rate of fire. If you need to hold or clear a chokepoint, TR’s stock LMG is one of the best choices you got.
MG-H1 Watchman (TR)
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Its name speaks for itself. Its design is inspired by the famous Lewis gun. The watchman will be one, if not the best choice to hold a point. It's the rate of fire that literally shreds enemies to pieces, even if it sacrifices raw damage for it, it does compensate for it. It is extremely accurate, not as accurate as the T9 Carv, but at the same time, it shoots faster and has an additional 25 rounds in its magazine.
It also has quite a long reload, so be aware of your positioning when you’re out of ammo.
It also gives the shooter a better hip accuracy, making it a better option for panic situations than T9 Carv
MGR-L1 Promise (NC)
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Some NC players may not like it for the mere fact its damage is similar to T9 Carv, and its RPM isn’t even close to the mentioned LMG. But, what’s really great about this weapon is that it’s the weapon with one of the lowest recoils in the entire game. A bit absurd for an NC, but it exists, and it’s actually quite good for withholding crucial chokepoints because of the mentioned trait. You may even shoot on greater distances, it will have a damage dropoff, but you will surely be able to deliver a good portion of short bursts because of its small recoil.
Better for aggressive|agile gameplay
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Many love Orion because it’s a great weapon for more aggressive gameplay that is unlocked from the very start if you’re playing VS. It has the same rate of fire as T9 Carv, same damage, but has less ammo in exchange for twice as fast reload speed as well as greater hip accuracy, giving it a good fluency in close-range combat.
LA1 Anchor (NC) and GD-22S (NC)
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Now here we got 2 weapons at the same time, why so? Well, because they are officially considered as analog weapons, and have the same damage model, accuracy, and magazine sizes. Although they do have their advantages and drawbacks, and each of them has an advantage that compensates the drawback of another, and a drawback that compensates the advantage of another. Overall they are two sides of the same coin.
LA1 Anchor
advantages:
Better cone of fire (pattern of rounds forming upon being fired)
Higher rate of fire, and thus DPS
Disadvantages:
Cost: 1000 certificates | 699 DC (Compared to GD-22S 325 certificates | 250 DC)
Longer reload compared to GD-22S
Lower muzzle velocity compared to GD-22s
Harder to control recoil compared to GD-22s
GD-22S advantages and disadvantages are vice versa to LA1 Anchor.
Both of them have decent DPS and decently controllable recoil, making them a good choice for aggressive, mobile gameplay.
MSW-R (TR)
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MSW-R is quite similar to the previously mentioned Orion and LA1 Anchor. Although MSW-R is actually more similar to stock T9 Carv. They share the same damage and rate of fire, and even though MSW-R has slightly lower muzzle velocity and magazine size, it has twice as much faster reload speed and better hip accuracy. As well as noticeably easily controllable recoil.
A mix of both
T32 Bull (TR)
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Bull provides a good balance between T9 Carv and MSW-R LMG for TR. It has a reduced rate of fire, which lowers its damage output, in exchange for maintaining relatively fast reload speed as well as accuracy. It also has a wide variety of attachments, which can improve its advantages, such as good hip-fire accuracy. Overall, it’s a good balance between positioned and aggressive gameplay. A very adaptable weapon
Pulsar LSW (VS)
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Just like in the situation with T32 Bull - it’s a great mix of a weapon that is capable of shredding enemies in aggressive gameplay, due to having a 75 magazine size. 15 more rounds than Bull has! Although it does sacrifice its hip accuracy for it. Its rate of fire is quite decent, same with the damage which is similar to T9 Carv. Thus being said, this weapon is quite adaptive to the situation and can save the shooter in a variety of scenarios.
VE-H Maw (VS)
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Now, this is an interesting weapon. It’s definitely not your first choice when you are searching for a mix of chokepoint holding and aggressive gameplay, since it has less effective stats than other options, such as Pulsar LSW for instance. But! It does have its unique features. Weapon’s uniqueness lies within its special attachments
Its first unique attachment is Vented Power Core, which removes the speed penalty when reloading an empty magazine. What does it mean? That means it will reload with the same speed regardless of the magazine’s capacity when normally the player reloads longer when reloading an empty magazine. Although it makes recoil less stable, so be aware.
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The second attachment is Unstable Ammunition, which increases the size of projectiles fired, making it much easier to hit the target, especially on longer ranges, but it greatly decreases headshot damage, making its multiplier to do just 80% of bonus damage, which is a great drawback since it means it will require an additional bullet to the head to take down the target, and it’s not great. On the other hand, you’ll be able to hit more accurately since your bullets will be larger.
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To sum up, it’s not the best option, but it’s the attachments that can outbalance some of this weapon’s flaws, making it adaptable even more than it already is.
Rocket Launchers
Wieldable by Heavy Assault only, they are the main reason why armored or aircraft units should be aware of enemy infantry. They are the main defense of the infantry forces against armored and aircraft units. And let’s be honest, if you don’t care much for annoying ESF or lightning riding around, then you can relax and stick to the stock rocket launcher. It provides you with decent damage to vehicles if you can land a shot. Rocket drops down pretty quickly, after reaching a certain distance, so you wouldn’t want to fire it on long ranges since for that purpose you should buy a rocket launcher with a lock-on.
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If you want to be feared amidst vehicle pilots, then you should check these rocket launchers out. All of them are from NS, which means they are a cross-faction and anyone can use them.
NS Decimator (All factions)
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First, we’ll begin with the rocket launcher that doesn’t have a lock on but is a better variant of a stock rocket launcher. It has the greatest damage across all other rocket launchers, making it a great rocket launcher only if you can land shots, so better practice on stock first since it doesn’t have a lock on, and you’ll be paying 1000 certs or 699 DC for it. But the lack of lock-on is also its advantage since it can be used against infantry as well as armor.
NS-R3 Swarm (All factions)
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Swarm provides you 3 fast-flying projectile shots upon the quickest lock on the target, making it hard if not impossible to evade at the very least one of them, which will do a good portion of the damage. It’s not as much as Annihilator does, but Swarm is much harder to avoid because of its fast-moving projectiles that work like seeker missiles and will hunt down its prey for a long time until it will evade them successfully (doubtful), or, which is more likely until it will hit them.
NS Annihilator (All factions)
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Deemed as the best rocket launcher in the entire game. Why? Because it deals much more damage per rocket than Swarm does. It does have a great reload speed, which is a great benefit. It’s somewhat a perfect balance between Swarm and Decimator, when we speak of damage to vehicles only, of course, because Annihilator has a lock-on system, which locks on target just slightly slower than Swarm does. Overall, yes, that’s most favorite rocket launcher across the player base.
Heavy weapons
And here we got to the most interesting part of the arsenal’s guide. The heavy weapons. Each faction got only 1 type of those, they are unique, they are large, and they surely will attract the interest of every Heavy Assault player out there that seeks to mix fun and effectiveness. Each of the faction’s heavy weaponry is unique in its own way, so we’ll look at them separately.
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T7 Mini-Chaingun (TR)
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Remember how we reviewed LMG’s that are most suitable for holding a chokepoint? Forget all about that, because this particular gun is the very first thing that gets into your mind whenever you pronounce “Heavy weapon”. Much like Heavy from Team Fortress 2, this weapon is similar to its minigun, since it has a long reload (a bit quicker than T9 Carv, though), and bad accuracy. Even when you aim down the sights, you merely squeeze hip fire aim. It has the largest magazine capacity in the game.
The gun starts shooting at the rate of fire of 750 RPM, just like T9 Carv does, but, after just a second of firing, its RPM increases significantly to its maximum of 845, which is enormous. Very few if none at all weapons can compete with this rate of fire.
Although a weapon will leave you at disadvantage against an agile trooper when you face him in a 1v1 situation, this weapon is designed to shred through a large group of enemies.
Of course, it has good attachments. One of those worth mentioning is extended magazine attachment, which doesn’t give you any penalties, but doubles your magazine capacity! And the cost for such an attachment is just a small pile of 100 certificates.
To sum up, this is the weapon that speaks for itself. If you want to feel like Terminator or Rambo with a minigun - this is your choice!
NC05 Jackhammer (NC)
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Remember how we spoke of shotguns? Well, here’s the best one in the entire game. It is the only shotgun in the entire game that has 3x Burst firing mode and can switch to its primary Semi-Auto should the shooter decide so. It has no damage degradation over distance, thus being said, the only parameter that decides its effectiveness on the range is the bullet’s spread.
And not to mention that it doesn’t suffer any drawbacks in terms of damage for all its advantages, except for just slightly increased reload speed, which isn’t much different from stock shotguns.
And the best part about it is that it can be equipped as a secondary weapon, meaning you can combine it and an LMG or any other primary weapon in the Heavy Assault class.
Also, it has extended magazine attachment, given that this shotgun already has the largest magazine across all other of its kind - it’s indeed, the best of its kind, even though it’s considered a heavy weapon.
Lasher X2 (VS)
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Lasher is a dream of a Dragon Ball fan. Because it literally shoots exploding orbs instead of bullets. Yes, you heard it right - exploding orbs is its ammunition. They have one if not the slowest muzzle velocity in the entire game, but they deal AOE (Area Of Effect) damage, and it’s an absolute monster in close quarters because of it.
If you got the right angle, you may even kill off the enemy that is hiding behind a corner!
It is an extremely accurate weapon, accuracy, and its magazine size compensate for its muzzle velocity.
And like other heavy weapons, it has an extended magazine attachment, that will double its magazine capacity, thus providing you with more orbs to fire!
Overall, it is a very interesting and unique weapon, which is lotta fun to play with!
