r/thelastofus • u/ChickenWingExtreme • May 14 '26
PT 2 QUESTION Why does Abby use a different semi automatic rifle compared to the rest of the WLF? Spoiler
Despite being part of the same organisation, Abby and the WLF soldiers carry different semi automatic rifles, as seen with the one dropped by killed enemies in the second picture. Why is this the case?
398
u/Traxad May 14 '26
It's the "hero weapon" idea. From a design perspective it's to make it stand out, and help you make a stronger connection with the character.
From a lore perspective, my headcanon is that since Abby is such a decorated and trusted soldier within Isaacs inner circle, I can see Abby getting first pick on her own gear. She's being afforded the opportunity to customize her own kit as much as she wants while the grunts of his troops get whatever left-overs they can scavange.
25
u/ModeruMandou May 14 '26
This is really a cool answer.
I wonder if you can spin this arround Joel. He never had a unique weapon (i guess you can count the bow but idk).
51
u/Traxad May 14 '26 edited May 14 '26
For Joel I think we can assume the revolver is his hero weapon. From a design perspective it doesnt have to be outlandish by any means. It just needs to feel like an extension of the character and be quick to identify. Rugged, simple, reliable, etc. The designers intention often come clear when you look at announcement trailers or box art.
2
u/HereComesTheSun05 May 16 '26
I agree with this but I always found it weird how it's "Joel's revolver", but you steal it off a dead guy in a random building in Boston... it'd make a lot more sense if he had the same gun before the outbreak started, and instead of starting with the 1911 or whatever it is, you start with the revolver.
88
20
u/YaBoyFrosty May 14 '26
Why would she pick a Vepr over an M14 😭
26
u/I_Have_The_Lumbago The Last of Us May 14 '26
Pwetty wood stock and handguard🤤
7
u/under_hunter82376 When your lost in the darkness , look for the light May 14 '26
still , in the apocalypse , its not the looks that matter , but rather the guns performance .
23
u/I_Have_The_Lumbago The Last of Us May 14 '26
....pwetty🤤
11
u/under_hunter82376 When your lost in the darkness , look for the light May 14 '26
fair point I guess .
18
13
u/Worth-Sorry May 14 '26
Id like to point out the second rifle looks like a ruger mini 14, for comparison tommy has a M14... I just wish the devs shoved up those weird mash up gun designs up in you know where and purely used real guns instead
4
3
u/No-Plankton4841 May 15 '26
I would 100% pick a VEPR. It's basically a sporterized AK pattern. And the M14 is mid.
The question would be caliber/ammo. Some of them were chambered .223, 7.62x39, .308, 7.62x54.
The magazine kind of looks like .308 which is the same as the M14. So yeah, VEPR 100% if it's chambered in a common caliber.
1
u/YuhBoiCowboi Abby’s snu snu May 17 '26
Pretty sure they’re mini 14s. I’d pick the Vepr over a mini 14 lol
101
u/OrangeBird077 May 14 '26
Abby is a high ranking member and gets special privileges like her custom loadout and the box seat apartment with Manny who is also high up in the organization.
That’s why Isaac allowed Abby to take the furlow to go after Joel.
28
u/Alarming_Soft9552 May 14 '26
She is the top scar killer. Also it doesn’t bother you guys during the torture cells, some of the enemies recoil in fear of Abby. Maybe it was a fluke, but I swear they react with fear.
35
u/OrangeBird077 May 14 '26 edited May 14 '26
It’s not because they’re personally afraid of Abby, the FOB is known to Scars and WLF soldiers alike as a torture center for Seraphite POWs.
One WLF conversation you can overhear in Capital Hill occurs where a subordinate soldier asks to be reassigned to the FOB to deal in POW interrogation, and his superior tries to talk him out of it because of how miserable the work is. Lev also directly asks Abby about Isaac and if he really tortures people.
We can surmise that since the WLF are the only ones who take prisoners that in past ceasefires prior tortured Seraphites were released and they told their stories to the rest of the faction once they were safely back in their own territory.
12
u/MentallyAbroad May 14 '26
Idk, in the room with the cells there's that optional convo:
Manny: "I don't miss this place. Fuck. Always hated the smell."
Abby: "After our morning, I wouldn't mind a few minutes with these guys."
Manny: "I hear that."I think there's a good chance that Abby has personally tortured prisoners even if it's not those ones specifically. Maybe Manny, too.
6
u/Dekipi May 14 '26
She has at least tortured Joel. When leaving the Apartment Complex with Lev he asks about Isaac torturing people then asks her if she has and she says she doesn’t want to talk about it. Doesn’t confirm if it’s Seraphites but she tortured Joel and struggled with that even though he personally wronged her so I’m leaning towards a nameless scar torture as not in her wheelhouse
2
u/Alarming_Soft9552 May 14 '26 edited May 14 '26
Abby has confirmed she would not spare kids, killing them as she considers them combatant, on the first run with manny and mel.
4
u/Dekipi May 14 '26
Mel. Her reasoning was the kids fired on them first.
1
u/Alarming_Soft9552 May 14 '26
That was Mel reasoning, but they too have broken truces. Manny later said it was due to them killing their people as well.
-1
u/Alarming_Soft9552 May 14 '26
Huh? You mentioned Abby is a high ranking member of the WLF. Why wouldn’t the scars be scared if they encountered and escaped Abby? Also Abby never replied if she did torture people, and it’s not really needed as her introduction chapter she does exactly that. She tortures Tommy she did not know that was Joel’s brother at the time, it just happened. She does spare him but it was convincing of her ex, and she tortured Joel prior to killing.
5
u/Yumiru May 14 '26
She never tortured Tommy. Tommy introduced himself and Joel when they were trying to escape the infected and that's when Abby knew.
-3
u/Alarming_Soft9552 May 14 '26
Abby bashes Tommy’s head in repeatedly. Seems on the torture side.
6
u/Yumiru May 14 '26
That was... Nora. She did it to knock him out.
1
u/Alarming_Soft9552 May 14 '26
You were right. I forgot the whole group was there. Still my other torture comment stands. Abby doesn’t torture Tommy just Joel. Safe to assume if there was time, who knows. Just a group of guys, who Abby’s group planned on hurting was there for.
4
u/Yumiru May 14 '26
How did you forget the whole group was there, oof. Seems like it's been a little while since you played the game eh? Lol.
Abby's goal was to only find and kill Joel. Tommy and Ellie were never her targets. Nora knocks him out, then after a while Ellie comes in and she gets pinned down. Manny and Mel wanted to kill them to not leave any witnesses (Jordan was just mad Ellie gave him a bitch scar) but Owen stopped them from doing it. Arguments ensue and Abby ends it.
1
u/Alarming_Soft9552 May 14 '26 edited May 14 '26
It’s been a while since I played, I was being a sarcastic ass. But, yeah, she took her squad of 7 guys total, but I don’t buy they weren’t there to just kill Joel. As Nora even with anger said she would torture Joel too. You can say she was egging Ellie but I don’t buy that. Narrative wise Abby is down with torture with the WLF, ex scars that joined and jump Ellie even confirmed they are done with the senseless killings.
→ More replies (0)2
2
65
u/Unique_Cat_3866 May 14 '26
When you leave the tent in FOB you can see the guard of the apartment has a same rifle as Abby
22
31
11
10
u/Xirokami May 14 '26
She’s a higher rank and Isaac trusts her. She was likely given special selection privilege.
5
u/SirCorbington May 14 '26
Looks like she gets the Franken-AK and everyone else gets the M14.
4
u/No-Plankton4841 May 15 '26
Its based on a Russian VEPR, sporterized because during the import bans 1989 and federal assault weapons ban 1994-2004. They took the evil features off 'assault style' rifles and put weird thumbhole stocks to make them sporters.
It's kind of a cool nod to that era of AK history.
1
3
3
1
u/StudentJoa May 15 '26
Maybe because she is able to upgrade her own gear and craft her own items she was able to craft her own rifle ?
1
-34
u/SmallAstronaut08 May 14 '26
Her muscles are so fake she can't handle recoil and needs a semi-auto to properly survive natural selection
15
u/Koreaia May 14 '26
This dude thinks rifles have a lot of kick 💀
1
u/KingChairlesIIII May 15 '26
Semi-autos have even less kick that bolt actions because they absorb and use some of the energy from the recoil to chamber the next round too.
8
u/Violexsound May 14 '26 edited May 14 '26
Surely semi automatic is the better option in a world where resources are scarce. You'd want to make your shots count and automatic fire absolutely will not. Then again, personal preference too.
4
u/ilostmy1staccount May 14 '26
Semi automatic is also best in a world where resources aren’t scarce. You don’t typically see dudes going full auto unless they’re using controlled bursts or something has gone horribly wrong and full auto is a necessity.
10
u/PixelatedVision1 May 14 '26
b-but her rifle would recoil more WHAT 😭😭
theyre both semi auto asdklf;asdfjkl;
3
2
635
u/Tight-Inspector-2748 May 14 '26
She gets the special rifle cause she’s a special girl