Weapons, weapons, and more weapons. They remain the most important and reliable tool to win in every old shooter. In the case of PUBG, it's certainly no different with fights unfolding at close and long-range.

In this guide, we're going to explore every weapon type with the exception of sidearms and shotguns with Team Dignitas PUBG player Peter "Wookiebookie" Lassen. This is due to the fact that they're obsolete in the higher levels of PUBG gameplay and are rarely used in normal queues as well.

This guide has completely been constructed with Wookiebookie's expertise, one of PUBG's most famous fraggers. Let's get into the guide!

Practice Using Weapons

How do you learn to control your weapons? It's an age-old question that has been asked for almost every Battle Royale game.

Wookiebookie: "The best way to improve your aim and get to know spray patterns is to just queue up normal games. Sometimes I will even avoid using attachments on my weapons like grips and muzzle attachments so that I handicap myself in order to improve."

An alternative method that has gained popularity is playing the WAR mode to improve your reflexes and weapon-skill. You have multiple lives and will need to conserve ammunition, which doesn't happen often in normal games.

Weapon Setup

Wookiebookie: "My personal weapon setup usually consists of a full-automatic AR (M416 > AKM > SCAR-L) and a Bolt-Action Sniper (M24 > Kar98k)."

The reason why Wookie uses Bolt-Action Sniper rifles (SRs) instead of DMRs is because he told us that he's confident in hitting the first bullet in the head when he gets into a duel with an opponent. As for the AR, in his opinion the M416 is the best weapon overall, arguing that it's great at both short-range because of its high fire rate and also great at long-range because it has a faster bullet travel time than the AKM. The AKM is his second priority due to it being the best at short-range and if he gets his hands on an SR, Wookie uses it exclusively for mid to long-range fights and keeps the AKM for close quarters.

He also recommends to always look for versatile weapons. In other words, choose weapons for your setup that help you deal with enemies at a short to a long distance and make sure that you're a constant threat at every distance.





LMGs

The M249 uses 5.56 ammo and it is one of the strongest spray weapons in the game. It has a very low recoil when crouched/prone and a very fast fire rate. On top of it being very high DPS, it also has 100 bullets in the magazine, so there's definitely a chance that you are able to take out a whole squad without reloading. The M249 is easily as good as any fully geared 5.56 AR.

The DP-28 uses 7.62 ammo and is the highest damage non-sniper weapon in PUBG. However, it has a very high recoil if you are not prone. Because of the high recoil, most people in competitive PUBG would use an AKM instead of it since the AKM is a lot more versatile.

As of writing this guide, there are only 2 LMGs in the game. Keep in mind that the DP-28 is an exclusive Erangel world-drop and the M249 can only be found in airdrops.





SMGs

The UMP-9 is the most versatile out of all the SMGs. It works great at both close and mid-range, making it the most used SMG in competitive PUBG. This most likely is due to it and its ammunition (9mm) are very common. The UMP-9 is not very attachment dependent, unlike the Vector and Micro-UZI.



The Vector is the SMG with the highest DPS. However, it's very attachment dependent. You a least need a vertical grip and an extended magazine in order for it to be viable. When fully equipped, the Vector's high DPS and low recoil make it the strongest close-range weapon in PUBG. Unfortunately, it isn't nearly as good at medium-range, which is why the UMP is used more commonly.

Both the Micro UZI and the Tommy Gun are almost completely worthless in competitive PUBG. Neither of these two weapons can have a sight attached and are therefore pretty much useless outside of building fighting. The Micro-UZI does have really high DPS but can only be used for building fights and because of this lack of versatility, both the UMP and Vector are the better choice by far.





ARs

Wookiebookie: "Every AR that's currently in PUBG is viable and some of the weapons that fall into this category are currently the most used weapons in the competitive scene."

The M416, SCAR-L and AUG A3 are all very similar and fulfill the same purpose. They are the most commonly used weapons because they can be used for almost every distance, ranging from point-blank up to about 500m. It's completely up to personal preference which ones are used, the AUG is the most popular because of its exclusivity, as it is limited to crates only.

The M16A4 is the only AR in PUBG that doesn't have the full auto firing mode, therefore it is primarily used for long-range since it also has the fastest bullet travel time of the ARs. Burst-fire mode is viable but this weapon almost never sees play in close-quarter combat in higher level gameplay.



Next up we have the two 7.62 ARs: the Groza and the AKM, These have significantly higher damage than the other ARs.

The Groza is limited to crates and also lacks the ability to fit a flash hider or compensator on it to reduce recoil. Despite that, it is very good at close-range due to its high damage and high fire rate.

The AKM is very strong in the current meta of the game. Its high damage and somewhat controllable spray make it really strong for both close and mid-range fights. Its higher damage also makes it a lot stronger against vehicles than the other automatic ARs, which is very important to have if you are camping certain rotation paths. Another thing that makes the AKM a great choice in the current meta is the fact that it doesn't need a grip like the other automatic ARs, meaning you don't have to worry about finding all the right attachments when you pick it up. That being said, a compensator on the AKM is a huge plus for both recoil and the AKMs spray pattern.





DMRs

Wookiebookie: "All the DMRs are used in the current competitive PUBG meta, however, the clear favorite at the moment is the SLR."

The Mk-14 is the strongest out of all the DMRs that is currently in the game, but it's very rare due to it being a weapon that you can only find in crates.

The 2nd best is the more recently added SLR. Its damage is only slightly lower than the Mk-14 and its recoil is very easy to control. It is easily one of the strongest weapons in competitive PUBG, as it can kill in only three body shots.

The SKS and Mini-14 are the most common DMRs and are both great options for mid to long-range. The Mini-14 has the lower damage of the two but it also needs fewer attachments to fully equip and has a larger magazine size. Both do their job but are clearly outshined by the SLR.





Bolt-Action Sniper Rifles (SRs)



When it comes to Bolt-Action Sniper rifles, Wookiebookie told us that it's pretty easy to rank them next to each other. The rarer they are, the better.

#1: AWM. The rarest and best Bolt-Action SR in PUBG which is able to one-shot level 3 helmets. The only downside to this weapon is the unique .300 Magnum ammunition that can only be found in the crate, but if you have seasoned aim you can absolutely get kills with the 20 initial bullets that you find.



#2: M24. It has recently been changed from a crate-only weapon to a world spawn but remains significantly rarer than the Kar98k. The amount of damage per bullet between the M24 and Kar98k is very similar but the M24's bullet travel time is significantly faster giving it the advantage over the Kar98k.

#3: Kar98k. It isn't a bad weapon by any means, but the only feature that stands out is how commonly it spawns. It can still take down level 2 helmets in one-shot but keep in mind that, due to the slower bullet travel time, it'll be harder to even land a shot.

Wookiebookie: "SRs are not used as much as DMRs or ARs for long-range in competitive PUBG, because it's very rare that players stand still and therefore better to be able to put out more shots in a shorter amount of time with DMRs/ARs. However, bolt action snipers allow you to get entry frags in one bullet which can prove to be really crucial in certain scenarios, such as pushing a building."



Different Scenarios

Distance, buildings, objects and the number of players can influence your weapon choice. Wookiebookie personally doesn't let his setup get influenced by the zone but he did tell us this about playing on maps other than Erangel.

Wookiebookie: "If I was to play on Sanhok, I would be more prone to pick a Vector, since it's a lot more compact and allows for more close quarter combat. Miramar, on the other hand, I would always go for long-range weapons since the map is noticeably larger with open areas."

If the enemy is located at a 200m distance or 500m, Wookiebookie has almost never increased or decreased zeroing in his professional career.

Wookiebookie told us this when we asked him about zeroing distance: "I very rarely use zeroing because it takes too long to calculate and then hit the zeroing key. You have to be able to take the shots as fast as possible if you see them stand still or move between cover, and the time it takes to adjust the zeroing can be what makes the difference."

We want to thank Wookiebookie for his essential input while making this guide. If you'd like to see more from Wookiebookie, drop him a follow on Twitter!