Previously, Hand Cannons were accurate firearms that delivered large spikes of impact to a target. That's gone.
Scout Rifle impact was boosted in the patch, and their dramatically better fire rate very quickly out DPSs Hand Cannons. Not to mention range, stability, and reload- all of which a Scour Rifle dominates in comparison. And mag size... Hand Cannons have 1/3rd- 1/4th the mag size of Scout Rifles, yet each shot deals just marginally more damage. And Hand Cannons lose out in DPS- ESPECIALLY once that reload speed is taken into account.
This is why Hand Cannons are now obsolete in PvE- anything they do, a Scout Rifle does more reliably.
Cannons also have very low ammo now- this is mostly fine as it means you NEED to make your shots count- that said, if all your shots have to count, and Cannons are supposed to be precision weapons, they should be [b]accurate[/b]. They don't need a ton of range, but they need to hit the thing you're aiming at, especially if you can't afford to miss (and with Hand Cannons the way they are now, with such low ammo and rate of fire, you can't).
While that would help Hand Cannons a bit, it definitely wouldn't solve the problem.
Let's take a step back and look at one of the main ideas of a Hand Cannon-
it's going to hit hard enough to get you out of any situation. It's all about impact.
With Scout Rifles closing that impact gap in 2.0, Hand Cannons are looking for a new advantage. But they need to keep their hard-hitting identity.
Scouts have a 1.0x flinch multiplier- that determines how often a target staggers. The MIDA has 1.75x.
Cannons currently have a 1.75x flinch multiplier.
They should have this[b] flinch multiplier buffed[/b] to at least 2.0x, on par with LMGs. 2.25x would be more desirable due to the low fire rate, and 2.5x would be even better.
This offers a level of protection, almost defensive- when a big Knight is charging at you, pop a shot into his skull to stagger him Then get out of there. A Scout can't do that.
This also is in line with the Hand Cannon mentality about hitting hard, and would even indirectly boost reload performance by making your foe stagger for part of that reload, making you vulnerable for a shorter period of time as a staggering foe can't attack.
So I've suggested a couple of things.
1. Accuracy, possibly as a replacement for the popular idea of more ammo- as this would reward accuracy like a Cannon is meant to, whereas more ammo would just make the Cannon forgiving.
as well as
2. Increased Flinch multiplier in PvE, to reinforce the Cannon's essence, increase survivability, etc.
Would these be welcome fixes to those of you who have tried Hand Cannons in PvE? And what about the proposition for simply giving more reserve ammo?
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I used to use hand cannons for Pve and PvP, since ttk I haven't used them at all except for the chaperone quest. I agree 100% with the buffs you suggested. My idea for a buff would be to let flared magwell remain at its year 1 reload speed just for hand cannons, similar to how they adjusted final round just for snipers. Since they reduced magazine size so much I think having a really fast reload would at least bring some fluidity to hand cannon play.