Shotguns cannot take gas-vent systems, either accessory or mod. That's why the Auto-Assault 16 is so much less bad: it has gas-vent 2 that you can't get on any other shotgun.
The Barrett is the reason to take Longarms and the Auto-Assault 16 and T-250 fill in the other things you need. If you don't like those weapons, you should really be using Automatics because at anything other than silenced sniping at extremely long range, Automatics is way better than Longarms, and the AA-16 and T-250 are the only serious options for close-combat and concealability in the Longarms class. You probably shouldn't start with either the AA-16 or the Barrett, mind you, because RG isn't worth it on a relatively cheap item, but you should eventually want to use them.
I'm honestly not seeing the problem with taking a normal shotgun. When I think "Shotgun", I don't think of the words "sneaky" or "quiet", I think of the words "loud" and "deadly". If I honestly was concerned with keeping a shotgun out of sight, I wouldn't think of a shotgun. Hell, the Remington Roomsweeper would be a better choice for stealth. It's much more concealable, has a bigger magazine and better damage at 7P (compared to the shortbarrel T-250's 5P), and costs less. Also, yes I know that Arsenal's shotguns are 7P with -1 AP. I'm running off the core rulebook's "Slugs are 5P -1AP, Flechettes are 7P +5AP" rulings.
Shotguns mostly suck because they are banned from taking a lot of the modifications/accessories that they would need to compete with Automatics. Other than the AA-16, which does have a niche in which it's a solid gun, a properly modded shotgun is just less good than a properly modded AR or BR.
The Remington Roomsweeper is a Pistol that uses some shotgun rules - but it still uses the Pistols skill. It's not a small shotgun, it's a bad pistol. The T-250 still uses Longarms, which is why it's useful despite being kind of meh otherwise. (Also, note that the T-250's 5P is with normal ammo. It's 7P/+4 with shot or flechettes, although you usually want to just use SnS anyways).
I'm sorry for going off on a tangent on the shotgun thing, it's just that the T-250 seems... underwhelming. Even with a short barrel, a shotgun still is noticible. The bonus to hide that gun does not look all that satisfying, particularly when a heavy pistol gets no modifiers with no gun mods required. Plus if you're trying to suggest the sneaky route for the character, shotguns are terrible. I'm under the assumption that a shot fired from a shotgun makes a loud BLAM! noise. One shot and all subtlety goes out a window. You cannot modify a shotgun to take a silencer mod in the game, from what little books I have. Plus the Magazine capacity looks lousy. Reloading a magazine takes a complex action, replacing a Drum Clip is a complex action. The difference is about 19 rounds! And even if you don't use a drum clip, a standard clip uses a simple action, and on the AS-7 a clip is 10 shots! Plus the Agility=Rounds reloaded for magazines... Guh.
Again, sorry, it's just the T-250 just seems like it's
really not worth considering in a catagory people tell me that's not worth considering.
Also, I still have the pistols skill at 4. With my agility at 8, it's at 12 dice to roll.
The sawed-off T-250 is fine for when you need to visibly carry a piece. The Enfield AS-7 is cool as well, though the AA-16 is still the best shottie. There was that new shotgun from GH2, the one with a SS Grenade Launcher, and a Bipod for some reason. It was a law enforcement weapon, for storming in and such. Not meant for protracted battles but it's a good alternative when you get access to GH2.
Exactly! That's what I was aiming for! Kick the door down and cause as much damage as possible. I'll take a look at GH2 when I can afford it, but that'll take a while.
Sorta-related note: can you use Martial Arts?
Not yet. That's going to be something I want to learn IN GAME.
