Update 2.0 dropped and many of the changes were well liked. Thorn is less ridiculous and The Last Word is locked in it's optimal range. But of all the good in the handcannon nerf, reducing accuracy, especially for aim down sights, was a horrible idea. However many people don't understand what accuracy is.
Accuracy is an invisible stat applied to guns in destiny. Imagine that the center of your crosshair had a straight line from you to whatever you're aiming at, and whatever is on that crosshair will get hit if you pull the trigger. That is what most people think is how shooting works in the game, but that is not true. It is actually a cone that gets wider the farther away you are from you're opponent. The shot fired lands randomly anywhere within that cone. Accuracy is the stat that determines how big that cone is. Generally Auto Rifles have the lowest Accuracy stat, while Scout Rifles have the highest.
In the case of Handcannons many people who had the Hawkmoon before the first Handcannon nerf would remember that it was capable of hitting targets in sniper range. Naturally they reduced initial accuracy to compensate. After that many people noticed it was very hard to hit the first shot of Hawkmoon at longer ranges. That was because the cone for the first shot was larger than following shots.
After update 2.0, damage dropoff and the sight change along with this initial accuracy nerf made it so Hawkmoon could hardly work at long ranges, but the next accuracy nerf is where the problem is. The final accuracy nerf with patch 2.0 made the bullet cone so big that at the mid to mid-long range, there is a reasonable chance that a shot fired while in the center of the opponents head will miss the head and either hit the body or miss repeatedly. The Last Word (at the tail end of its own optimal range) and Hawkmoon feel this accuracy nerf the most, as they don't have the aim assistance to compensate.
Bungie needs to either remove or reevaluae the accuracy nerf to handcannons so it doesn't encroach on [b] Mid Range Plays [/b]. As it stands whether or not a bullet hits depends on how lucky you are that the shot lands in the center of the bullet cone. Overall the balance was well needed and actually helpful in some cases, but Bungie's statement that handcannons reward a skilled hand is a currently a lie, now it only rewards a lucky shot.
[b][/b]
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Bump.