Gears of War 3

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Release Date: September 20, 2011

Quick Facts: Weapons

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Lancer - It's not all about shotguns, If you want to be a more effective Gears player, utilize this weapon for its ability to down enemies quickly with range and accuracy. It will stop a charging shot-gunner in their tracks and is a great tool for supporting fire . This weapon will nab you several assists per a round if you shoot anything that moves. The popular and deadly Chainsaw will dispatch an enemy quickly. However one should refrain from using it in large groups of people unless it's a last attempt at a cheap kill before the angry shotgunners hunt you down. Keep in mind that during a chainsaw animation you will be helpless.

Snub Pistol - A true underdog among Gears weaponry, the snub pistol is capable of downing enemies fast, with accuracy and distance to boot. If that's not enough this weapon is also capable of scoring headshots which is always a plus. I call this weapon an underdog because from my experience many players don't utilize its potential. If you're lacking a Hammerburst, the Snub pistol will be your best friend in long range battles and invaluable during those moments when you need precise accuracy to land shots on your enemies. If caught without rifle and shotgun ammo during a close quarters battle remember that the Snub can melee right after a shot and vice versa, use this to your advantage.

Hammerburst - Another classic assault rifle from the first two Gears, this weapon sports high accuracy and aiming down sights for extra precision. Aiming down sights is unique to this assault rifle, utilize it for accuracy at long range. This weapon is also Automatic/Semi-automatic. If you want to focus on aiming rather then shooting, just hold the trigger, but the semi-automatic shooting will allow for a faster fire rate which is the deadlier route. The active reload of this weapon is at the end of the active reload bar. Nailing it will reward you with a damage increase so it's to your advantage to wait the extra time for an active reload. With that said, during intense battles it's better to reload sooner than wait for the bar as every second counts toward victory.

Gnasher Shotgun -  Another Gears classic, The Gnasher practically defined Gears multiplayer. Capable of dispatching multiple enemies within seconds the Gnasher will devastate an entire team if used in the right hands. Capable of instant downs, one shots, and headshots, the Gnasher is one weapon worth mastering. It's a shotgun so you want your enemies close, players good at getting close to enemies unnoticed will love this weapon. During clustered shotgun battles, a good tip is learning to utilize this shotguns hip-fire. Enemies being so close to you can sometimes throw your aiming off and hinder your agility to keep your reticule on the enemy when they are ducking and diving everywhere, using your Gnasher in hip fire during these moments will give you optimum movement and your Gnasher will still be incredibly deadly.

Sawed-off Shotgun - Loved by some, despised by many, This is one weapon all Gears 3 players have fell prey to at one time or another. This is practically certain one shot kill. Get within 3-5 feet of your enemy, aim somewhere remotely in his direction, fire and watch the body parts fly. While great for killing people it's slow reload time will leave you highly vulnerable for a good 3-5 seconds, better not miss! A tactic I like to call the Charging Retreat is a good way to use the Sawed-off. To use this technique all you have to do is charge an opponent quickly enough so they can't react, fire upon them and quickly dive away. It will most likely kill the enemy and also allow you to get away and buy time to reload.

Boltok Pistol - I call this bad boy the Handheld Sniper. With precision shots, zoom abilities, and headshots, this is a great weapon to deal damage at a distance and only takes 2-3 shots to down an enemy and 1-2 shots to headshot them. This weapon often goes untouched on the battlefield so utilize it for long range battles. If you want this weapon to be truly effective, perform an active reload and its fire rate will double.

Retro Lancer - Another weapon that is loved by some, despised by many. When your standing still on the battlefield aiming and firing, its almost guaranteed that one of these are charging you down. Like the Chainsaw, if you Bayonet your opponent, you'll be left vulnerable for a few seconds so avoid during it in large groups if you hope to get out alive. Also you must charge a certain distance before your blade will impale and enemy, a short run will just result in a glorified melee attack. The accuracy on these things is terrible. While it has precision, the kickback after the first couple shots will throw that accuracy way off really fast. The only effective way to use this at long range is in a burst fire form. This weapon shines during close range. Enemies within 10 feet or so of you will fall to this weapon in a second as the shots are way more powerful then the Lancers. A very good tool for stopping angry shotgunners in their tracks.

Longshot - Your basic everyday high-powered sniper. If you like headshots, get a hold of this weapon. In the right hands this weapon can take out multiple opponents from afar with ease. Learn to fire this weapon without zoom. Taking out moving enemies and close to mid-range enemies is much easier down in the "no-scope" mode. However, this tip is more based on playing opinion, If you can scope and destroy enemies at any range, then do what works best for you.

Torque Bow - A crossbow with explosive arrows, what's not to love? This weapon is great for any range but probably works best as a mid-range weapon. Often in the heat of battle people will fire this weapon off too quick resulting in an arrow that fails to stick to the enemy. Patience will keep that from happening. Advanced ways to use this are to barely charge the shot so you can arc the arrow over cover and land it at the enemies feet, very difficult, but it can be done. Often when you know an enemy is around the corner, don't take a difficult shot and watch it whiz past him, shoot a bolt straight at the ground by his feet, it will most likely down him or even kill him.

Ink and Incendiary Grenades - Both of these grenades can damage multiple enemies for a set period of time. Planting them will keep your enemies out of a certain area for a period of time. One technique that makes these particularly effective is hip throwing them. They can be thrown much faster this way as opposed to aiming them, and if they make contact with an opponent it can result in instant death or if your using ink grenades, a very quick down... followed by a death.

Frag Grenades - Incredibly powerful, these grenades can dispatch multiple enemies with a single 'nade. Never pass these up if you see them on the field. Even if they aren't your thing, you really don't want you enemies to have them. Hip throwing them is a great way to get them out quickly if multiple enemies are near you. You can tag enemies with them by pressing the melee button, but this  isn't advisable as it can be hard to get away from your opponent in time before it blows up. Planting these in high traffic areas can be devastating to your opponents, just keep them hidden when you plant 'em or your enemies will destroy them.

Smoke Grenades- Are very useful when trying to make an escape or distract enemies. Smoke grenades are useful in combat because if landed close enough to an enemy, they will stunned for a moment, making it a good time to engage the enemy. Smoke grenades quite possibly have their best use in the Capture the Leader versus mode. When an enemy has taken the friendly leader, a smoke grenade is often the most efficient manner of saving the leader. By landing the grenade close enough, the leader will be set free, and the captor will be incapacitated for a brief second; allowing for enough time for an attack, if close enough. Smoke grenades are also effective as alarms, or tripwires. When hunkered down watching a position, tag the smoke grenade on the wall you are not watching. When an enemy gets close enough, it'll go off, alerting you of the enemy's presence. These grenades are also very handy at setting of planted enemy grenades such as frags that you can not shoot, thus opening a path for you or even snagging you a kill.

Digger Launcher - Also known as the anti-camper weapon, these weapon digs right under cover and will detonate when an enemy is near it similar to a frag explosion. This weapon works great as a hip-fire weapon, just look in the direction you want it to go and fire, it will find the enemies for you. If shot directly at an enemy it will result in an instant death. Avoid shooting them directly at an enemy face to face, these are pretty easy to dodge when you see them coming so look for unsuspecting enemies. If you want to truly embarrass your opponent, the Digger Launcher is capable of being shot at a ceiling, penetrating It under an enemies foot, it's a long shot, but at least it's one more trick in your arsenal.

One-Shot - Does what the name intends, kills in one shot. Though it seems like a straight forward weapon there is a correct way to use this weapon. First off all this weapon is strictly long range. Medium and close range will be a lot harder to connect shots with because you can't fire this weapon from the hip, you have to zoom to fire it which brings me to my next point. The One-shot will make a noise when you begin aiming it and a laser will alert players to where you are aiming. This is bad, you don't want players to know your searching for a target because they will take cover and stay away from you. Instead observe the battlefield and when you spot enemies in the open take the opportunity to quickly aim at them and charge the shot before they even see it coming. Aim for the chest, It will kill no matter where you hit and that's the biggest target. If your wielding this and you see an enemy closing on your position, your best chance is to drop the gun and fight him off yourself.

Boom Shield - This weapon is unique in the sense that it's not even a weapon at all, its your portable cover and all purpose defense device. For it to be effective you must use it while the enemy is in front of you, It will serve you no good if enemies are in back and in front. Paring your shield with a side arm that you are good with is advisable as that is all you will be able to use. It's important to note that your feet and parts of your upper torso will still be vulnerable to bullets, your far from invincible with this shield. Because that point, using this shield at medium range will benefit you more as your sweet spots will be harder to hit and you still be able to effective damage enemies.  Its one drawback is that it slows down the carrier a great deal.  

Boomshot- The boomshot is a priority weapon on the battlefield. It will either allow you to wreak havok above your enemies or allow your enemies to rain hell upon you. Clustered enemies are priority number one. Shooting at the feet of a group of enemies will likely result in a multikill. Boomshot can be a tough weapon to master at long ranges. Over time the Boomshot's rocket will arch and curve down so you must compensate the further you shoot and there is no real way to tell which distance is what. Because of this, the Boomshot is primarly a close to medium range weapon. Unless the target is in plain sight, its usually a better strategy to shoot the rocket at their feet. It will always kill them and it's an easier target to hit. If you are about to die at a close range and you have this weapon, don't hesitate to shoot. Taking an opponent with you to your grave is better then dying and losing your Boomshot to the enemy.

Gorgon SMG- This is basically a hand held Lancer. No you can't chainsaw an enemy and no it's not as accurate but it has a similar fire rate and damage. The SMG does best as a close range weapon. Due to its accuracy and it's reticle, medium and long range use can prove difficult with this weapon. At those ranges this weapon should definately be burst fired if you hope to land any shots on your enemies. The Gorgon SMG does best when paired with either a meatshield or a Boomshield. At close range, holding one of these with a shield with make your defense and your offense far superior to the enemies. The clips are pretty low at 32, but these weapons are highly capable of downing a enemy in just a couple seconds will being used in its effective zone.

Mulcher- Everyone whos picked this up in any game mode knows that it's capable of tearing the enemies to shreds in literally a second. As with using all heavy weapons, you are more vulnerable when using this weapon because of the limited movement. When  using this weapon you don't want to just sit in aim mode over cover, it will tell your enemies to get away. You obviously don't want that. Instead wait for them to get in the open then attack, if they are near cover the will likely get away before you can mulch them. If your not in cover when using this weapon it's important to know 2 things. 1 this gun can be fired from the hip, it will be really in accurate but up close it will still tear an enemy down in seconds. And 2, that it can be still put into aim mode when your not in cover and to top it off you can start spinning the gun before even aiming. That means that the second you start aiming you won't have to wait for the chain gun to spin before it fires. If enemies rush you while in cover, its usually a better idea to just drop the Mulcher and take them on with traditional weapons.

Mortar- This weapon is capable of taking out a lot of enemies really fast. It does have a slow fire rate though, but it can depend on how far you want to shoot. There is no real way to tell how far a Mortar will shoot based on it aimer. Instead you will have to learn they distance through trial and area. A good way to look at it is to judge wether the enemy is either close, medium, or long range. Close means fire right away or after like a second. Medium means about half way up the power guage you should let it rip. Long range obviously is either full power or near full power. It's important to note that the Mortars barrage will have a good 10-20 feet of effective range when the rockets land, so its ok if your alittle off with your judgement. NEVER fire this indoors or anywhere with a ceiling. Doing so will result in the mortar bouncing back down and likely killing you or damaging you severely. As a last chance method, you can fire the mortar from the hip. This will send a fire bomb bouncing around putting not only the enemies at risk, but you aswell. It's unlikely that it will kill anyone but it is possible and it nearly impossible to judge do to the unpredictive nature of the shot.

Scorcher Flamethrower- The Scorcher can quickly burn through a group of enemies. This weapon is strictly close range because of the flame. When burning your opponents try to keep a steady stream of flame on them instead of waving the Scorcher around like a flag. If you do this your enemies will drop as fast as any shotgunner could. Using the Scorcher to keep your enemies at bay is a good tactic. Enemies are less likely to charge you down when there is a stream of fire being shot at them. The Scorcher doesn't get used much on the battlefield so it makes a good weapon to use when trying to suprise your enemies. See enemies always expect Lancers and shotguns, but when your shooting fire at them it forces them to change their tactics giving you the upper hand.

Hammer of Dawn-  Easily one of the deadliest weapons Gears of War multiplayer has to offer. Using it only involves a small charge time and being outdoors. This weapon when fired will likely kill anything near it or damage it to near death. That being said, the hammer can be tricky to fire. Sometimes when you aim it at where you want to fire it, it won't start charging and deny you those precious seconds you need to land a blast on your enemies. Fret not, this is a normal occurance of the Hammer. With that fact in mind its usually better to fire on enemies that aren't moving quickly and are staying in a certain area. You don't need to pin the aimer directly on the enemy, like the Boomshot, its usually better to just aim at their feet. The Hammer of Dawn has a constant fire rate, but that doesn't mean you should use it that way all the time. Instead when you know the Hammer is about to blast an enemy away only let the intial blast kill the enemy and then stop firing right away. This will save you on precious Hammer of Dawn ammo (or seconds). Keep in mind the Hammer of Dawn will make a noise when its being aimed at the enemy and will alert them that there lives are in danger. Make sure you don't fire it when an enemy has a chance to get indoors before the blast goes off.

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