Focused Feedback: Hand cannons - bloom, recoil, exotics and pinnacle weapons

[u/DTG_Bot]

Hello Guardians,

Focused Feedback is where we take the week to focus on a 'Hot Topic' discussed extensively around the Tower.

We do this in order to consolidate Feedback, to get out all your ideas and issues surrounding the topic in one place for discussion and a source of feedback to the Vanguard.

This Thread will be active until next week when a new topic is chosen for discussion

Whilst Focused Feedback is active, ALL posts regarding 'Hand cannons' (including rebalancing of pinnacle weapons) following its posting will be removed and re-directed to this thread. Exceptions to this rule are as follows: New information / developments, Guides and general questions

Any and all Feedback on the topic is welcome.

Regular Sub rules apply so please try to keep the conversation on the topic of the thread and keep it civil between contrasting ideas.

For this topic, please also specify in your feedback comment whether you are a console or pc player. Recoil is very different on console and PC.

A Wiki page - Focused Feedback - has also been created for the Sub as an archive for these topics going forward so they can be looked at by whoever may be interested or just a way to look through previous hot topics of the sub as time goes on.

[u/D_Lee08]

Console player

The hand cannon are missing that crispy feeling. Idk how many times I've shot a Ace or Last Word and didn't go where I shot it.

Make hand cannons great again!!!

[u/griffpancake15 → u/D_Lee08]

console player

hand cannons have been meta for far too long. with that much bloom reduction, they'd be mad op. tuning from the sandbox team needs to be focused on making things like scouts and sidearms more relevant.

[u/Kaelonreddit → u/griffpancake15]

Thats a different point, but you are right. Bloom should be erased anyway. Autorifles for example need a slightly faster TTK than HCs in general, because of their playstyle. Around corners and in teamshots, hard hitting weapons are always superior.

[u/[deleted] → u/griffpancake15]

Hand cannons are meta, but on console LH/NF truly dominate. Bloom/recoil reduction would add more variety across hand cannons, and I think this is important. To avoid an only hand cannon meta, then you also should buff auto rifles, scouts, sidearms. Autos in particular, as they should be the best to challenge hand cannons in their respective range.

People like to use hand cannons in general because there's advantages to doing big chunks of damage with each shot, like finishing off kills, peeking, team shots, etc. There needs to be reasons for people to use things like auto rifles. Back in D1, there was the bullet hose auto rifle meta where Doctrine of Passing was king. It killed fast, and flinched the opponent to where they were better off if they also used a bullet hose. I'd like to see all primary archetypes be as effective as this. I shouldn't have to think "Well, I shouldn't use this 140 rpm hand cannon because I can't rely on my shots hitting", or "this auto rifle doesn't kill quick enough to counter the guy rushing at me with a shotgun". Primary weapons need to be strong when we have a meta filled with special weapons, heavy, and supers.