Sniper Rifles are one of the strongest weapon class in most fps - PUBG is not an exception. Equipped with extreme range and power with a trade-off of low magazine size and rate of fire. Due to their crippling weaknesses, you must use sniper rifles very carefully. One missed shot would cost you a lot of time reloading - leave you vulnerable while enemies approach.
How to get your hand on a Sniper Rifle and scope:
To use sniper rifles, you have to be able to find them first. Due to their power, snipers are super rare in PUBG – and sometimes you might not find one in a whole match. Below are the spots most likely to spawn such a weapon:
The aforementioned spots are all military compounds – with a higher chance to spawn Kar98. It is not guaranteed, however. The gun can also spawn in other areas in the map, but far less likely.
Caution is advised when approaching those locations – they tend to be hotly contested zones filled with players who are doing the same thing as you.
Despite everything you have to go through to get the Kar98k, it is actually the least powerful sniper in-game. All the other sniper rifles do not spawn – you must get them via airdrop.
Airdrops will occasionally be dropped onto the map via plane – with a very loud engine. When an airdrop lands, there would be a short duration red flare marked its position – try to look for that, and be careful of other players on the way.
The gun inside the drop won’t always be a sniper – they have the lowest spawn chance among this list – there are 6 possible spawns: an M249, an MK14 DMR, an AUG AR, a Groza AR, and finally the two snipers, the M24 and the AWM.
How to make the most of your Sniper Rifle:
Get your hand on a sniper rifle is one thing, but to use them is a wholly different beast. Below are our strategy plus tips and tricks on how to make the most of the Sniper Rifle.
First, you need to take a bullet drop into consideration.
The sniper rifle has much more power behind its shots, so bullet drop affects it differently than other guns – you won’t notice the drop unless the shot is aimed at an extremely long range. When you shot a target, you must check the map to calculate the distance – then use the correct marking on the scope. Each small white tile on the map is 100 meters.
The damage of a sniper rifle would also get lowered the farther the shot. Sniper rifles have the falloff cap at 90%.
Second, you need to calculate the damage.
Sniper rifles come with the highest damage per bullet out of every other gun type in PUBG. The AWM is the strongest amongst them, with the M24 and Kar98k come second and third. We won’t even mention the Winchester here – it is a joke gun.
Now lets come down to the specifics: the AWM is pretty much the best gun in the game if you are able to use it. It can take down everything in one headshot and two body shots (one body shot if without armor). The M24 can do more or less the same, but it takes one more shot on level 3 armors and helmets. Kar98k is the worst of the bunch – with at least three shots needed for level 2+ armors. However, all three guns can kill everything in one headshot (with the exception of level 3 helmets, only the AWM works on that).
What to do when you miss your shot – or the enemy survive the shot.
The Sniper Rifles are perfect guns for opening combat – with the ability to one-shot-kill a player with a bullet to the head. Aim for the ones who are sitting still.
If you hit them with one bullet and they still survive, it is best to switch into the assault rifle – especially for distances under 200 meters. It is quicker that way since waiting to load another bullet would be too slow – giving up your advantage.
If you miss your shot, there are two things that can happen: the enemy would either run or shot back.
If they run, it is best to keep firing your sniper. After the enemy has heard the bullet passing their head, one-shotting them is probably not possible anymore. Your best choice would be to whittle down their health using body shots so that your teammates can finish off the kill.
If they stay and continues to approach you to exchange fire: keeps firing your sniper rifles if they are far enough – otherwise draw your secondary and prepare for close-quarter combat.
Lastly, about the troll Sniper Rifle, the Winchester. Despite being a part of the class, it comes nowhere near the level of the other rifles. The fact that it cannot be equipped with a scope forces players to use the iron sight, and without a scope, your ability to combat in long-range situations is severely impaired. The cherry on top is its low damage - it takes at least two shots to kill a player, sometimes even three. And how would you land those shots without a scope? Nobody knows.
The Winchester is pretty much the last gun you would want to take - just get an assault rifle if possible.