For anyone who has come to the Forums in search of a bit of help in deciding which weapons are worth spending your hard-earned Silver on, and which ones are better off being converted into said Silver, I will be making a Guide Topic for each weapon class, per Faction.
So, without further ado, BEHOLD! The gospel, according to Simp:
“Rifle” will be defined, for the purposes of this Guide, as any weapon classified by the game as a Rifle, Semi-Automatic Rifle, or Volkssturm Rifle, and generally used by the Rifleman, Engineer, AT Gunner, Rider, Flametrooper, Mortarman, and Radio Operator classes. BattlePass, Legacy Gold Order, Event Exclusive, and Premium Exclusive Rifles are not included in this Guide.
Gewehr 33/40 (Research Tier 1) [BR I]
- Germany actually has 2 Default Rifles, with the Gewehr 33/40 given to German ethnic soldiers and the Carcano M41 (D) given to Italian ethnic soldiers by default. Both are functionally Carbines, meaning they suffer from quicker loss of the 1 shot kill (outright kill, not down) potential on vitality perk users at range. Otherwise, the 33/40 has a good rate of fire and good sights so you would not be making some kind of “mistake” by using it throughout your time at BR I. It’s also quite cheap, so spending Silver on it and its upgrades would not be too expensive. I do recommend waiting for the next unlock, however, as the Kar98k is essentially the same rifle but with greater damage of range.
Kar98k (Research Tier 1) [BR I]
- As mentioned above, the Kar98k holds the same good rate of fire and sights as the 33/40, but with the added benefit of maintaining its damage over range. It also just feels right to use in the WW2 setting, as it was the standard issue Rifle for the Wehrmacht throughout the war. Well worth the meager Silver costs to buy and upgrade.
Kar98k Kriegsmodell (Research Tier 1) [BR I]
- Desperate times. A direct downgrade to the standard Kar98k, the Kriegsmodell makes absolutely no sense to spend any Silver on, unless you’re role-playing a very late-war German unit trying to defend their homeland with extremely limited resources.
Carcano M41 (Research Tier 1) [BR I]
- Priority trash. Between its Carbine range, questionable sights, and VERY slow rate of fire, the M41 is a real piece of trash. But it comes attached to the Engineer squad and class unlock, which means it should be any new player’s top priority. Rush to research it, use the squad, and sell the Rifle.
Carcano Mod. 38 (7.35mm) (Research Tier 1) [BR I]
- Mod. 38 is a good Rifle, with very similar functionality to the Kar98k, but lacks any reason to abandon said Kar98k to invest more Silver into this new Rifle. Only reason to do so would be if you’re building an Italian only BR I lineup.
Vz. 24 (Research Tier 1) [BR I]
- With the highest damage of any non-sniper Rifle on the tech-tree, a fully upgraded Vz is a 1 shot kill (not down) machine, even at range. Whether that actually makes a difference (most bolt actions already kill in 1 shot the vast majority of the time) is a matter of debate. The trade-off is a slightly slower rate of fire, so it’s entirely up to you to decide if the Vz is worth the Silver to swap from the Kar98k. I stick with the Kar98k and save my Silver for BR II gear later.
Pre-War Kar98k (Research Tier 2) [BR II]
- Germany starts off Tier 2 and BR II VERY strong with this. The Pre-War version of the Kar98k is better in every way, with the major points being a blistering rate of fire and the omission of the front sight post shroud, which allows for much better vision when aiming down the sights. Germany is NOT lacking for other options at BR II, however, so I recommend you take a look at all of them before blowing all your Silver on this one. The Mannlicher 1895 and VG.2, especially, have solid arguments for taking the place of the Pre-War Kar98k in your BR II lineup.
Carcano M1891 (Research Tier 2) [BR I]
- Out of place. A WW1 Rifle with WW1 Rifle characteristics, the Carcano M1891 feels well out of place unlocking at Tier 2. Its poor sights and slow rate of fire make it bad even compared to the BR I Rifles it should be next to… Let alone to the BR II Rifles it is currently with. Don’t waste your Silver on it.
MAS-36 (Research Tier 2) [BR II]
- Simply overshadowed. If not for the greatness of the Pre-War Kar98k, Mannlicher M1895, and VG.2 Rifles, the MAS might be seen as great itself. It has excellent sights, smooth operation, and a very good rate of fire. Its only weakness is that it has the Carbine damage/range model, and that’s weakness enough to drop it into the void, given its powerful compatriot Rifles. Roleplaying as the Vichy French isn’t really possible without the rest of the French arsenal of weapons, so there really is no reason to spend your Silver on it. A true shame, because it’s genuinely a great Rifle.
Mannlicher M1895 (Research Tier 2) [BR II]
- The fastest Rifle in the… Well, anywhere. The Man-licker features a straight-pull bolt system that grants it a Speed-Force level firing rate and allows you to stay aimed down its excellent sights while pulling said bolt. The only thing keeping it from being the best BR II Rifle in the entire game is its limited capacity of just 5 rounds, and its lack of a bayonet. This is another solid option for your BR II lineup, alongside the Pre-War Kar98k you already have, and the later unlocked VG.2. Definitely worth the Silver.
VG 1-5 (Research Tier 2) [BR III]
- A Rifle so weird (derogatory), it has its own class. The only member of the “Volkssturm Rifle” class, the 1-5 is good at nothing. It has twice the dispersion of other semi-automatics, is the only semi-auto to suffer from the “recoil control %” debuff of automatic weapons, and doesn’t hit hard enough to EVER generate one shot kills/downs. Its rival option at BR III (G41) is quite flawed itself, but the 1-5 is so bad that there is no argument to be had for it being used instead. Don’t waste your Silver.
Kar98k with Grenade Launcher (Research Tier 2) [BR III]
- Nope. A few launchable frag grenades are not worth bringing a BR I Rifle into BR III. Especially for a faction that has to fight Garands and SVT-38s at BR III. Don’t do it. Bad players use GLs.
Armaguerra Mod. 39 (Research Tier 2) [BR II]
- Good in theory, really bad in practice. A semi-auto Rifle at BR II SOUNDS great. But the Armaguerra’s inability to consistently 1 shot enemies turns it REALLY bad REALLY quickly. You’ll find yourself having to take 2nd shots at targets often enough to make you wish you had ANY bolt action Rifle instead. Don’t waste your Silver on this piece of junk.
VG.2 (Research Tier 3) [BR II]
- The last of the great BR II Rifle options. The VG is unique, in that in is a bolt-action Rifle that uses 10-round detachable magazines for both extra capacity and fast reloads. The downside is that it unlocks quite late, at Tier 3, it has not-so-great sights, and it has a slower rate of fire than the other options. The Germans are really stacked for BR II Rifles, and you can’t go wrong between this, the Pre-War Kar98k, and the Mannlicher M1895. Pick whichever one suits you, and your playstyle best, and throw Silver at it.
Gewehr 41 (Research Tier 3) [BR III]
- Deeply flawed, but what choice is there? The G41 has a real problem, with its insanely long reload time of nearly 5 whole seconds. It’s by far the longest reload of its kind (Garand, SVT-38, Johnson, Type 4), and it has a profound effect on how the Rifle functions in battle. But the only other option Germany gets at BR III (VG 1-5) is utter garbage, and the G41 at least hits hard enough to be effective until you have to reload. Spending Silver on this is unavoidable, if building a BR III lineup, but I recommend minimizing the number of Rifles in that lineup altogether. Assault squads, MG squads, etc.
Kar98k with GGP/40 (Research Tier 3) [BR III]
- Nope. As mentioned with the other GL, it is NOT worth it to bring a BR I Rifle to BR III. Not even with the AT grenades. At BR III, you should have the Panzerfaust 60 for AT Gunners, which is an infinitely better option for tackling enemy tanks. Do not waste your Silver on this. Bad players use GLs.
Gewehr 43 (Research Tier 4) [BR IV]
- Just like in the real world, the G43 is a direct improvement over the G41 in pretty much every way. Especially in that reload department, where the G43 is lightning-fast. This would be an easy choice for your BR IV lineup, if it wasn’t for what is coming up next. Hold your Silver just a moment.
ZH-29 (Research Tier 4) [BR IV]
- The best BR IV tech-tree Rifle in the game. Germany has the best BR IV lineup, overall, in Enlisted, and it starts right here with the ZH-29. It hits harder, has better sights, and reloads faster than any other BR IV Rifle, and even has a bayonet to boot. If you’re building a BR IV lineup, this is the Rifle to dump your Silver into.
FG 42 (Research Tier 5) [BR V]
- Almost. Don’t let the game’s classification of “Semi-Automatic Rifle” fool you. This is an Automatic Rifle, and its EXCESSIVE 900 rounds per minute rate of fire is proof enough of that. That excessive rate of fire, coming from a weapon that only holds 20 rounds, keeps the 1st production FG 42 model from being the heavy hitter that BR V Germany needs. Don’t throw your Silver just yet.
FG 42 II (Research Tier 5) [BR V]
- There it is. A more controllable rate of fire, less recoil across the board, and even slightly lower dispersion make the 2nd production model FG 42 everything you’ll ever need from a Rifle in your BR V lineup. Automatic Rifles are King in BR V battles, so having a 9-man Rifleman squad (or 3 or 4) full these is the min-max route to take. Let the Silver rain.
Hope this helps. If you’re an Enlisted vet, and have some differing opinions or helpful insights, reply with them!
