[Csjarrat]

Hi guys, I tend to take pistols or machine pistols as the mainstay of all my characters but its getting a bit boring now, as its starting to get a bit mono-build.
I've got gun-haven 3 and thought i'd give some of the shotguns a try for my non-combat specialists.
I've got a dwarf hacker that is using the Krime Boss (accuracy 3 base, 15 round drum-fed SA shotty), with an internal smartgun (+vision mag), gas vent 3, flaslight and shock pad.
i figure it has a decent fire mode and with flechettes and a narrow/medium spread choke setting, your opponent is at -3 to-5 defense for a semi-auto burst, and you could potentially hit multiple targets, making it decent for close combats with choke points like hallways and doorways.
the -ve mods to defense offset the low accuracy limit, but you can always use a take aim action to raise your own dicepool and limit with the smartgun system, its vision mag helping to reduce range modifiers too.

I was interested in the falchion, as it has a higher damage, vastly higher accuracy, built in smartgun but more awkward re-load + lower ammo capacity.
SS does mean you don't need to worry about chewing through rounds that quickly and recoil isnt an issue however.
I can see this being handy on a techy character, as he can at least defend his own kit and not have it pwnd by an enemy decker and end up shooting his teammates in the back thanks to its "smartgun only" trigger mechanism.

The "shiawase rain" seems a bit pointless to me. lower accuracy, ammo capacity and damage kill it for me, but it is at least seriously cheap, making it a decent gun to give to mooks.
It is an almost identical carbon copy of the defiance T-250 {long barrel} though, which is a bit frustrating. I'd rather have the short barrel version of the T-250 and use it as a troll's side-arm (with metahuman adjustment and a smartgun/laser of course)

The enfield looks decent on paper, 24 round drum, SA/BF and high damage code. it needs a smartgun slapping on it to get to accuracy 6 though, and the 12F rating means it ain't exactly "portable".

There are quite a few break action shotguns in the new book and the PJSS-55 in the core book. They all have really good base accuracy, but only having two shots before a complex action reload seems a mite annoying really. Anyone use them on a PC or just for NPC's? anyone see something i'm missing on these?

so any success stories, tips or tricks or shotties would be much appreciated, ta!

[Lysanderz]

I still REALLY REALLY miss Big D shells. So I need to figure out how to stat out the rounds. >.> Damn good memories with Big D shells. Damn good.

[MadBear]

I have an Orc Decker I keep around for pick up games, uses an Ares Crusader for the most part, but also has a throwback sawn off PJSS slung across his back, and it's come in handy a couple of times.
Throwback means it can't be hacked, can't be jammed, sawn off makes it more concealable but fixes the choke at Medium. It's a last-ditch-dreck-hits-the-fan-oh-my-fragg-there's-a-ghoul-in-my-face kinda weapon, and it works perfectly for that. Very fun to use, too. It's got good accuracy at 6 so I don't worry about not having it Smartlinked, great damage with Flechette(13P), and the adjusted AP is only +4 which isn't too bad.. Heavy Pistol ranges and stuck on Medium Spread definitely means it's a short range weapon, but how often do Hackers need to take down goons at long range? That's what hacking is for(and why hackers make friends with Troll sammies). I've used it firing both barrels both times it's come out, and I won't ever do that again. According to the rules firing both barrels counts as a short burst, but invokes the Note Enough Bullets rule, so it only gives the target a -1 dice pool penalty. So not worth it. From now on, it's one barrel at a time, much more damage potential that way. I don't worry much about the long reload time, as he also has that machine pistol, and honestly, if he gets stuck in a protracted firefight, then he's doing something wrong. That's sammie work.
I love this gun, and am starting to look for reasons to take it out, it's so much more fun than using the Ares Crusader. And it's kinda unique. A lot of players look for the gun with the best stats, and end up with an Ares Predator, FN P93Praetor, and Ares Alpha. Cut and paste gear. I like guns with style.

[Reaver]

IMO shotguns are highly under rated for all the reasons you mention.

While it is true that with flichette ammo rules you are not generally going to kill the opposition,  you are going to deny them ground (area suppression) as well as reduce the defence pools of a number of targets (choke/spread) which is invaluable.

Remember, the object of most runs is to get in, get the mcgruffin, and get out... not to kill everything that moves... and at the end of the day, security and KE have more guns, bodies AND bullets then the runners do :p   Best to beat feet and lay down suppression fire then get into "kill counts"... and the shotgun is a great cheap, reliable means to suppression fire.

[Dinendae]

The enfield looks decent on paper, 24 round drum, SA/BF and high damage code. it needs a smartgun slapping on it to get to accuracy 6 though, and the 12F rating means it ain't exactly "portable".

There are quite a few break action shotguns in the new book and the PJSS-55 in the core book. They all have really good base accuracy, but only having two shots before a complex action reload seems a mite annoying really. Anyone use them on a PC or just for NPC's? anyone see something i'm missing on these?

so any success stories, tips or tricks or shotties would be much appreciated, ta!

I took Longarms for access to both sniper rifles and shotguns, thinking of focusing primarily on sniping,  but had to go with an Enfield due to low funds in my build. I love the thing; Acc 5 with laser sight or 6 with smartlink, semi-auto or burst fire, 24 rounds with the drum, and you can use slugs which have the standard ammo options (APDS and Stick-N-Shock being the two I use). So far, with the shotguns that have come out since, I haven't seen anything that I want to trade up for yet. I may just hang on to the Enfield, and upgrade it with additional options once the SR5 version of Arsenal comes out.

[Csjarrat]

Yeah, i like the look of the enfield, its just that its 12F compared to most of the others which are only R. I know it probably makes little difference if you get busted on a run, but at least you've got a chance of talking your way out of it if you get caught with it in the boot of your car or something

[Reaver]

Yeah, i like the look of the enfield, its just that its 12F compared to most of the others which are only R. I know it probably makes little difference if you get busted on a run, but at least you've got a chance of talking your way out of it if you get caught with it in the boot of your car or something

Very good point!

The legality of an item is the difference between "papers please" and <blam! Blam! Blam!> "Police! Freeze!!" <blam!>

[Csjarrat]

have to say, the more i look at the Krime Boss and Cavalier Falchion, the more i like them for a rigger/decker character. with a smartgun on there (not an issue as they'll be getting ware anyways they're high enough accuracy that they wont hit the limit very often and both pack quite a punch!

[Anarkitty]

They make good backup weapons for sniper characters because they both use Longarms, too.

Apparently being good at hitting targets a quarter mile away with a precision rifle also makes you good at hitting targets ten feet in front of you with a scatter-gun.   

[DeathEatsCurry]

Hey, more accuracy = smaller crosshair = less spread = more damage!

...Oh wait, I'm thinking Borderlands now.

[ProfessorCirno]

Something to consider - fletchette rounds are the only way to hit multiple baddies without splitting your dice pool.

Sure ,against the big bad Red Samurai, it won't do much, but when a gang of Halloweeners have you outnumbered and cornered, there's few better ways to even the playing field a bit.

[Kanly]

And in many situations, flechette doing more damage AND doing it in stun is actually an advantage. Tanks have significantly smaller Stun Tracks and Stun ignores platelet factories too (I think). So a lot of targets will faint before they die. Unless they have pain editors etc. That's bad.

[Quatar]

While it is true that with flichette ammo rules you are not generally going to kill the opposition,  you are going to deny them ground (area suppression) as well as reduce the defence pools of a number of targets (choke/spread) which is invaluable.

Remember, the object of most runs is to get in, get the mcgruffin, and get out... not to kill everything that moves... and at the end of the day, security and KE have more guns, bodies AND bullets then the runners do :p   Best to beat feet and lay down suppression fire then get into "kill counts"... and the shotgun is a great cheap, reliable means to suppression fire.

Hm, I was under the impression that Shotguns with shot/flechette ammo reduce the targets Defense by a certain amount, but ONLY for that one shot.
You make it sound like it works like Suppression Fire, where everyone else also gets the benefit. It would be nice indeed if I could shoot a shotgun and cause my sammy to hit better and harder. But does it really work that way?

[Michael Chandra]

Well they all avoid a ranged attack don't they, or at least try? So that's a -1. You don't add the choke dodge penalty to the next guy's shot, but that -1 adds up.

[The other Bandit]

Michael Chandra:   "...but that -1 adds up."

It sure does! It is really interesting to see how combat evolves in 5th edition, at the start everyone is dogding left and right. Shots, punches, kicks and knives miss, but then after a few rounds it spirals down because of small modifiers that add up. I must say its really fun and shotguns are now a mainstay in our groups arsenal.