Deep Rock Galactic – Gunner Tips and Tricks

Tips for Gunners

Basics

Gunner and Engineer have the most versatile build options for varying playstyle. You can build for defensive or offensive playstyles, where OCs and weapon choices might penalize movement, as well as build for single target vs. AoE.

Starting out, the Minigun is one of the best starter weapons without OCs, but it can use some help from the sidearm for dealing with pests like swarmers. The Buldog with explosive rounds can help here, and it’s a generally good bulldog build in its own right. Thorns can be a useful perk with the minigun as you’ll be spending some time moving slowly or being stationary while fighting.

Once you unlock the Autocannon, you get introduced to one of the best AoE weapons in the game. I recommend playing to it’s strengths, boosting it’s AoE performance and fire rate. Here you want to set up your secondary for maximum single-target damage. A Bulldog /w Hollowpoint and accuracy works wonders, or you can opt for the Brrt7 for stun.

The missile launcher is an interesting weapon, but I honestly don’t recommend it until you have a few overclocks. It’s basically a longer range, more accurate Autocannon, but honestly is at a disadvantage to the Autocannon at close range.

For Overclocks

On the minigun, honestly I pretty much only run the two clean overclocks to improve the base gun damage or ammo/sustain. Most of the other OCs have some novelty, but the base gun is dependable for what it does.

On the Autocannon things get a bit more interesting. The main OCs I find useful are:

• Combat Mobility – very good for a run & gun style gunner parkouring their way around a map. Great for mining runs, egg hunts, refinery, point extraction, etc.
• Splintering Shells – A light version of Carpet Bomber without sacrificing direct damage. Like with the minigun, a clean OC that just makes the AoE AC a bit better.
• Neurotoxin – The “Meta” OC when combined with Fear. Don’t take Fear on general AoE AC builds since it spreads out bugs, but it shines with the DoT of Neurotoxin. This gives you max ammo efficiency, just spray down groups to apply the poison, and let fear do the rest. It’s great, but honestly gets a wee bit boring. It does make the autocannon pretty useless against bots & dreads if you come across one in a mission so have a reliable single target secondary to fall back on.

The missile launcher has some really stronk OCs that make it a lot of fun to play:

• Missile Barrage – Basically turns the launcher into a chad AC which is tonnes of fun to run around with. On paper I don’t know how it stacks up to the AC, but on the fun-o-meter it’s off the dial. Especially fun on low gravity modifier or with Jetboots.
• Plasma Missiles – Very, very effective single-target option when you want bugs dead. Works well against groups as well.
• Minelayer – A fun choice for defensive missions, but also surprisingly good for run & gun play as well. The missiles are unguided but set up decent damage mines for a few seconds in the terrain. You can lay down perimiters in the path of enemies, or if getting chased, just plant them in your path and run over them while moving to objectives.

General Gameplay Tips

• Remember to use your shields. It’s better to use them while the team is alive and at risk of being overrun than saving it for when they get downed. For instance when about to resupply giving others a safe zone and breather to get ammo themselves.
• Shields block projectiles, but rely on a fear effect to keep bugs out, even ones immune to fear like Oppressors and Detonators. Bots like patrol bots, BetC, and then things like Rollers can enter shields.
• Shields block friendly fire originating outside of the shield, so place shields around teammates not between them and targets. The exception to this is using the shield to divert a Bulk Detonator. This can buy several seconds when one is bearing down on a defensive position.
• Avoid throwing grenades as a panic response, chances are you will do more damage to teammates than the big baddy that is making you jumpy, jeopardizing the mission.
• Don’t take cluster bombs on low gravity modifier missions. They are absolutely useless, and downright dangerous in that modifier.
• Avoid sitting on ziplines during swarms and defensive objectives unless you are running an AoE primary where the zipline provides a better field of fire around the rest of the team. Fliers and acid spitters will make short work of you on a zipline, so use it selectively and avoid getting knocked off and downed where you’re no help to anyone.
• Practice map parkour, using terrain, platforms, ziplines, etc. to move quickly around the map. Bugs don’t jump and on H5 they can move faster than you, so get good at jumping through terrain where bugs are forced to take the long way around.
• And for the love of Karl, Rock & Stone prolifically.