25. Do Not Sleep On his CAMRS
https://youtu.be/FPDhoaC0e0s?t=45
Sadly, a lot of players ignore Buck’s CAMRS and I get that his C8-SFW is much easier to use, and don’t get me wrong, the C8-SFW is a really powerful weapon. But if you’re great at using designated marksman rifles, and are used to strafing opponents with it even at close range, I highly recommend you to try this one out. Just like any designated marksman rifles, this weapon features heavy damage and high penetration per shot.
Not only that, this weapon is quite unique, because it has a tight hip fire spread compared to most designated marksman rifles, especially when you partner it up with a laser. So, not only will this weapon be extremely effective for medium to long-range, it will also be great for close quarters combat, because chances are, especially when your opponent is very close, you won’t need to go into aim-down-sights just to hit him.
24. Attack Border from Below
https://youtu.be/Ijxa-KxTbD8?t=94
When Attacking in Border, the first spot that Defenders would usually take is the second-floor armory and archives, and it’s almost a guarantee that someone will be anchoring half, lockers, and breach areas. So, when you’re a Buck player, the best you can do is attack those areas vertically from below with your under-barrel shotgun. With those areas exposed from below, the Defenders anchoring them would have no choice but to switch areas.
So, even if you don’t get kills while doing that, by simply forcing those Defenders out of those areas, you’d be contributing a lot to your team. Similarly, when the Defenders are on the vent and workshop areas, the best thing you could do as Buck is attack them vertically from the armory area. This will expose them from above, force them out of their entrenched positions, and make them very uncomfortable.
23. Vertical Angles on Kafe
https://youtu.be/Ijxa-KxTbD8?t=449
While the basement area of the Kafe map is usually the second-best choice for the Defenders, it is quite vulnerable from a vertical attack from above, especially with Buck who can destroy wooden floors really quickly, and his under-barrel shotgun is the most destructive shotgun in the game. But just because it’s very destructive and can destroy a lot of wooden floors doesn’t mean you should just go and destroy as much as you can.
That’s because you can also leave yourself exposed from a counter attack from below, especially from a nitro cell. So, like the video above shows, you should be more tactical with the spots that you’re going to destroy. That way, you’ll be able to expose enemies below on their usual strong angles while leaving yourself in a good position to avoid getting fragged.
22. Clubhouse Vertical Attacks
https://youtu.be/Ijxa-KxTbD8?t=600
In the Clubhouse maps, the first choice of Defenders for their objective spot is the CCTV room and cash room. The cash room, however, is very vulnerable to vertical attacks from below, and even though there are other attackers that have shotguns, and can technically perform a vertical attack from below, Buck is the most effective one, because of the rate of fire of his underbarrel shotgun and its destructive profile per shot.
The second choice for Defenders is usually the church and arsenal room and the arsenal room is ripe for a vertical attack from above through the kitchen, especially when your teammates are able to breach the hatch. You can kill or force opponents to move out from the arsenal room area while your teammates drop down from the hatch and plant the defuser. With this strat, you can cover them from above.
21. Coastline Is One of the Best Maps for Buck
https://youtu.be/Ijxa-KxTbD8?t=838
Even though it’s a small map, and has a lot of concrete parts, it’s actually one of the best maps for a vertical attack because of the abundance of wooden floors in many of its objective spots. When the Defenders are on pool and hookah, a Buck player can easily displace anyone anchoring right behind the bar in the hookah spot by destroying the wooden floor from below. It’s just right beside the bomb and near the hatch.
And when Defenders are defending the theater and penthouse, they would usually have Mira on the theater and on the VIP. Luckily for you as a Buck player, you can truly harass and render Mira useless by exposing her spots from below by destroying the wooden floors of the theater from the lobby, and the wooden floors of the VIP from the Kitchen. Without someone manning the Black Mirrors, it’ll be a lot easier for your team to push.
20. Buck Angles on Chalet
https://youtu.be/Ijxa-KxTbD8?t=982
Chalet is pretty crazy for Buck, especially because the destruction from his under-barrel shotgun can reach pretty good distances when you go into aim-down-sights. And because of that, you can actually destroy floors in the solarium area even when you’re shooting from the garage. So, even when you’re trying to strafe opponents from below, chances are, they won’t be able to counter effectively because there will be two layers or stories from you and your target.
Now the second objective spot that Defenders usually take on this map is the basement area, and when they do, they’ll be very vulnerable from a vertical attack from the lobby area. For Buck, he should destroy the parts near the hatch because the spot under it is usually a strong position for the Defenders as well as the south part of the middle sofa.
19. Use the Muzzle Brake for His CAMRS
https://youtu.be/FPDhoaC0e0s?t=67
The CAMRS is a very powerful marksman rifle, and just like any other designated marksman rifles in the game, the CAMRS features heavy damage and high penetration power. But this marksman rifle is one of only two in the game that possesses tight hip fire, making it effective at sudden close-range engagements as well. Of course, if you equip it with a laser, its hip fire will even be tighter, so the user won’t have to go into aim-down-sights when the enemy is very close.
And that is why it is best to attach a muzzle brake to it as its barrel attachment. This way, not only will its hip fire be tight, its recoil will be much more controllable as well. This will allow the player to maximize Buck’s effectiveness as an entry fragger which is his original role anyway since he can make entry holes with just one shot from his under-barrel shotgun.
18. Play Buck on Villa
Buck is very effective in Villa, especially during the first round as an Attacker because during this round, the Defenders will most likely pick aviator and games room. The Defenders would most likely want a Mira for this because a Mira is going to make it very hard for Attackers to push the study area all the way to the objective spots. But with Buck, you can render Mira useless very easily because you can attack her from below.
From the piano area, Buck can break the floors of the aviator room and expose Mira from below. This will enable the Buck player to either outright kill Mira or force her to go away from her Black Mirror, unable to perform her role. And because Buck’s under-barrel shotgun has a pretty long-range when it comes to destruction, he can also harass Defenders who are anchoring the desk in the astronomy room when Defenders are in trophy and statue.
17. He Now Has a Gonne-6. Use it.
https://youtu.be/H0_9vt4CVn0?t=167
For all the heavy fire power that his two unique primary weapons and under-barrel shotgun bring, Buck has always lacked the ability to destroy bulletproof gadgets ever since the removal of his frag grenades. But Buck players, especially those who have taken a break from the game, will be happy to hear that since Operation Brutal Swarm was released, Buck now has another means to destroy pesky bulletproof gadgets.
And that will be in the form of the gonne-6 hand cannon. With the gonne-6 hand cannon, Buck will be a much better Attacker than he was, especially since the user won’t really have a hard time choosing between his handgun and the gonne-6. The gonne-6 is just going to be more useful in most cases, and with Buck, he will be able to dedicate it solely for destroying pesky bulletproof enemy gadgets because he can already destroy unreinforced hatches with his under-barrel shotgun.
16. Use the Scope 2.0x On The CAMRS
For designated marksman rifles, I usually go with the 3.0x scope so that I can perform the role of long-range support and recon. But Buck is unique compared to the other Attackers that have designated marksman rifles in that he doesn't really have the luxury of staying behind to strafe enemies from long-range. Buck has the role of being one of the most effective soft breachers, so he has to be great at entry fragging.
And entry fragging means dealing with enemies at short to medium range most of the time. And that will be hard with a 3.0x scope which sacrifices a lot of peripheral view when you go into aim-down-sights position. So, to balance out the zoom levels and peripheral view, you should go with the 2.0x scope when you're using the CAMRS. That way you'd still be able to use your designated marksman rifle well even at close to medium range.
15. Don't Forget That Buck Is an Entry Fragger
https://youtu.be/zXJhl_A-T_U?t=545
This might be kind of easy to forget especially if you're on solo queue, not communicating with your teammates, and that Buck is mostly used for vertical plays nowadays. But as I mentioned above, Buck is one of the most effective soft breachers. He can make an entry hole on an unreinforced wall with just one shot from his under-barrel shotgun provided that the player is on the proper range. That means with just one shot, his whole team can enter and perform room clearing.
This is also very effective with rushing, because even though Buck's under-barrel shotgun is obviously not as silent as Sledge's Tactical Breaching Hammer, most attackers won't expect a rush coming from just one gunshot sound, especially when it's made on an unreinforced wall and not on a barricaded door which could make a lot of noise due to its falling debris. So, always remember that with Buck, you don't always have to go straight with the vertical play. He's also very effective when it comes to a more traditional horizontal attack.
14. Use the Under-barrel Shotgun for Cutting Off Roamers
Buck is one of the best operators to pair with Dokkaebi, Jackal, or other Attackers that are great for hunting roamers. That’s because he can easily flank on enemy roamers’ positions by using his under-barrel shotgun to open up holes on unreinforced walls. As mentioned above, Buck can open up a hole on soft walls big enough for an operator to get through with just one shot from his under-barrel shotgun.
That’s because among all shotguns in the game, Buck’s under-barrel shotgun is the most destructive. So, as long as the user is in the right distance, he can shoot a wall with it and get through fast. This is a great way to circle around a roamer, especially when it’s being detected by Jackal or Dokkaebi’s special gadget. Its destruction profile per shot also has long range as long as Buck is on aim-down-sights position, so he can use it to create murder holes towards the enemy’s position.
13. Don't Sleep on the Suppressor
https://youtu.be/H0_9vt4CVn0?t=212
Especially now that Ubisoft has removed the damage penalty from using it, people should consider equipping the suppressor more and more. It will provide a lot of advantages to Jackal, especially while he’s doing his vertical attacks. With a suppressor on either of his primary weapons, Buck can strafe opponents from below or above, and those opponents wouldn’t immediately know the exact location from where they’re being shot at.
That’s because aside from dampening the gunshot sounds and hiding the weapon’s muzzle flash, the suppressor will also hide the directional threat indicator that gunshots would normally have if the weapon doesn’t have a suppressor. This will really be a big advantage for Buck, especially since both of his primary weapons’ recoils are manageable even without a barrel attachment that provides recoil control benefits.
12. Stick with your Teammates
Buck is a loud Attacker, even if you follow the tip above and equip a suppressor to all of his guns, the suppressor won’t dampen the sound of his under-barrel shotgun, which is really loud. So, Buck can’t really play the role of a stealthy operator. That’s why performing his roles, especially being a vertical attacker, won’t be effective if he’s alone doing it because he could be countered and flanked by enemy roamers.
That’s why it’s important for Buck to at least have another one teammate with him when he’s doing a vertical play. As discussed above, Buck is an excellent roamer hunter as well because even if the roamer has a lot of modes of escape, the destruction that Buck’s under-barrel shotgun brings can also give him a lot of paths of Attack. But because of the noise from his under-barrel shotgun, a roamer can predict where he would be coming, so roamer clearing could really only be effective if Buck is working with his teammates.
11. Always Drone First
While Buck, especially when played by experienced players, is known for quick soft entries and aggressive plays. I would recommend players to always drone an area first before entering it, that’s because Buck can be fragged so easily after creating a soft breach, especially with his under-barrel shotgun being loud. So, while it might be tempting to just go inside a room by shooting a soft wall with the under-barrel shotgun and going in quickly. It’s always better to err on the side of caution.
That’s especially the case in Siege, which remains a tactical shooting game, despite its relatively fast pace and short amount of time per round. If you, as the Buck player, gets fragged early just because you weren’t careful enough, then the attacking team will lose a very valuable member that can perform the vertical play. So, while it’s good to play Buck aggressively and fast, balancing your aggression with discipline is the key.
10. Use the Muzzle Brake on the C8-SFW
https://youtu.be/zXJhl_A-T_U?t=211
While I did mention above that players shouldn’t sleep on the suppressor, especially now that Ubisoft has removed its damage penalty on weapons, players who still prefer the recoil benefits from other barrel attachments such as the flash hider, muzzle brake, or compensator, would still pick one of them. And for the C8-SFW, what I would recommend is the muzzle brake if your aim is to control its recoil much better.
That’s because the muzzle brake will greatly lower its first shot’s recoil, making the rest of the few shots’ recoil a lot more stable. This is great for short burst firing, which you will mostly do with Buck anyway, especially now that the devs changed the recoil progression of weapons across the board in favor of short burst firing. Buck, because of his role as an entry fragger and vertical attacker would rarely have to shoot enemies in long bursts, so stabilizing the first few shots of his weapon is the best way to go.
9. When to Use the Hard Breach Charges
I would advise players to use the stun grenades on Buck for most cases. They’re just very useful when pushing because they don’t just rob enemies of their vision, they’re very effective in removing their hearing capabilities as well. But there are also many cases where players should use Buck’s alternative secondary gadgets which are hard breach charges. They would be a lot better to use especially when the attacking team doesn’t have that many hard breaching capabilities.
With the ability to destroy reinforced hatches, Buck’s vertical play capabilities will become much stronger. That’s because with his under-barrel shotgun destroying portions of the wooden floor above the objective area, he can strafe opponents from above and lead them to a spot that is more exposed by the reinforced hatch that has just been destroyed. The hard breach charges will also allow Buck to go down to the objective spot much faster instead of previously having to go down the stairs for the final push.
8. Use The ADS
https://youtu.be/Ijxa-KxTbD8?t=1021
ADS or aim-down-sights can make the range of shotguns much longer. And even though Buck’s under-barrel shotgun suffers from a huge range damage drop off, it doesn’t matter when it comes to its destructive capabilities. As the video above shows, in certain maps like Villa, Buck can perform a vertical attack from two stories below because of the destruction per shot that his under-barrel shotgun causes, which is made longer in range by going into aim-down sights position.
This can also be applied on walls as well, especially when Buck is trying to make multiple holes from more than one layer of walls. And while I did mention that Buck’s under-barrel shotgun suffers from huge range damage drop-off, when having to engage enemies at close range, it would still be better if the Buck player uses the under-barrel shotgun, along with going into aim-down-sights position. This will tighten that pellet spread and increase the number of pellets going into your opponents’ body.
7. Initiate a Rush with Buck
Buck is one of the most effective rush initiators because he can bring down a barricaded door or window with just one shot of his under-barrel shotgun, provided the player is on the proper distance. Not only that, Buck now can also bring down Castle’s Armor Panel instantly because he now has the gonne-6 hand cannon in his arsenal. Of course, Buck and his teammates can also go down from an unreinforced hatch with just one shot from his skeleton key under-barrel shotgun.
If there are unreinforced walls near the objective spot, Buck and his teammates can also enter through an entry hole made by Buck, and he can make one where operators can fit with just one shot from his under-barrel shotgun. His skeleton key under-barrel shotgun is really versatile, and Buck himself was already a versatile operator, and the devs made him even more so now with the addition of the gonne-6 hand cannon in his arsenal.
6. Always Coordinate with Your Teammates
https://youtu.be/Ijxa-KxTbD8?t=905
Buck is just one of those operators that really needs to coordinate with his team, because he’s so useful when it comes to team play. If he gets fragged early in the round, then more likely than not, the attacking team would lose their vertical play capabilities. And coordinating with the team is very important when it comes to performing vertical plays, because while playing vertically, Buck can lead the enemies straight to his teammates.
But without proper coordination, Buck’s vertical play will just go to waste, as explained in the video above. Buck getting kills from a vertical attack is great for him, but most of the time, enemies are smart enough to go away, so the vertical play’s main purpose is to really force them to move out of their entrenched positions, and ideally right into the other attackers’ line of sight.
5. Know the Maps Really Well
https://youtu.be/Ijxa-KxTbD8?t=419
As mentioned again and again in the tips above, Buck’s main roles are to perform vertical plays, as well as being the soft breacher. The Buck player will not be able to perform either very effectively if he or she doesn’t know the maps well. And by well, I don’t mean just knowing the general layout of the maps. Buck players who want to be great at using him should know the ins and outs of the maps, especially the objective spots and the areas below or above it.
Believe me, I’ve seen so many experienced players who obviously have map familiarity, use Buck and what they do is just to destroy wooden floors above or below the objective spot without a precise goal in mind. They think that as long as they destroy wooden floors and expose the objective spot, they would have done their part. But as shown by the videos posted in this article, Buck’s vertical play can really be precise and target only the important angles.
4. Create Rotates
https://youtu.be/zXJhl_A-T_U?t=362
Now, with this tip, you’d have to apply the tips above. Because if you don’t know the maps very well, preparing rotation holes while performing vertical plays can just make a roamer’s job of killing you much easier. So, a Buck player must be really careful when creating rotation holes in preparation for an escape or flank. And when a Buck player creates a rotation hole before he really needs it, he should make it as small as he can.
That is so the player can lessen the chances of it being used against him by a roamer. With a smaller rotation hole, just big enough for an operator to fit, Buck won’t be exposing himself that much. And then, he can use his rotation holes to escape easier when he’s being hunted by more than one roamer, or he can use it to outflank an enemy roamer instead.
3. Don't Use Lasers When Playing Buck
https://youtu.be/zXJhl_A-T_U?t=231
As the captain of TSM, Achieved, said in the video above, the laser will tighten the pellet spread of your shotgun, and that could make the holes on unreinforced walls that it can create smaller when the player uses hip fire. Equipping a laser can also compromise your location when you’re doing vertical plays, because if Defenders see your laser, they can pretty much know where you’re aiming from, and they will avoid that spot.
While I do attach the laser to some of my guns, especially shotguns. It’s just generally not good for Buck. And Buck’s skeleton key under-barrel shotgun should really be used more as a utility tool and not for killing, because it suffers a lot from its range damage drop-off. So, it’s hard to rely on it even with close quarters combat, because the range between you and your enemy can change really fast in Siege.
2. Stick with the Stun Grenades
https://youtu.be/soz1BD1Nx3g?t=36
Now, like mentioned above, there are times where you should pick the hard breach charges instead, especially when the objective spot has hatches above them. But for the most part, the stun grenades are just the better of the two choices that Buck has in his arsenal. Stun grenades are very effective for pushing, especially when you know where the enemies’ entrenched positions are and when you’ve destroyed their anti-grenade gadgets during your vertical play.
That’s because you can just throw your stun grenades at their hiding spots and there’s a big chance that you’ll blind them. But even when they manage to avoid being blinded, as long as the stun grenade goes off near them, they wouldn’t be able to avoid its ear-ringing effects, or tinnitus. And that ear-ringing effect can reduce their capability to react to you and your teammates because they wouldn’t be able to hear the sound cues that you make.
1. Buck Is the Best Vertical Attacker
https://youtu.be/jo831fI4b9s?t=36
And that is because he’s the only one in the attacking team that can be effective at performing vertical plays below. Sure, there are also other attackers that have shotguns, but their shotguns aren’t as destructive as Buck’s skeleton key under-barrel shotgun, and their fire-rate isn’t that fast. So, attacking vertically from below, using Gridlock’s shotgun for example wouldn’t be as effective as attacking with Buck’s under-barrel shotgun.
This is the first thing that Buck players should keep in mind when playing him. While he has other roles as well, once inside the objective area, unless the attacking team plans on rushing, Buck’s main goal should be to perform a vertical play. That would be so he can harass the anchoring defenders, destroy their gadgets, and make them more vulnerable by forcing them out of their entrenched positions or hiding spots.
Attention operator, please be advised. There is a new directive from Six. Read up on these related articles, and prepare for deployment:
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