Pistols

__NOWYSIWYG__
== Cowboy's Guide to Pistols ==
Pistols, alongside Rifles, form the 2 categories of ranged looting weapons in Dead Frontier. These are your go-to when you want to cost efficiently and quietly eliminate enemies from afar. Just like Rifles, Pistol do not increase aggro but still draw the attention of the zombies on your screen, who will hear the shots and attack you.
Pistols are usually grouped into two categories: Revolvers and Semi-Automatics. Both category has Very High critical chance and High accuracy:
*Semi-Automatics are characterized by a moderate ammo capacity ranging from 7 to 35 rounds, faster firing and reloading speed. These have low stat requirements and offer a balance of ammo efficiency, crowd control and killing speed. Thus, Semi-Automatics form a good benchmark to judge other looting weapons by.
*Revolvers are characterized by a small ammo capacity ranging from 5 to 24 rounds, slower firing and reloading speeds. Overall, Revolvers are more stat intensive, but compensate with superior DPS and ammo efficiency.
The balance between Pistols and Rifles changes as you progress through the game: Early on, Rifles deal much more damage than Pistols, at the cost of rarer/more expensive ammunition, and greater Critical stat requirement. At 110+ proficiency, these differences cease to exist; the choice then comes largely down to personal preferences, with Rifles being better at 1HKOing tough zombies with low damage boost, and Pistols being better at quickly killing low HP enemies and controlling crowds.
=== Requirements ===
Every survivor begins with 5 Pistol proficiency, which is enough to use the first two pistols: Beta Tomcat (starting weapon for all survivors), and Williams PPK.
All pistols have High Accuracy, meaning 59 accuracy is needed for Reliable Aim On-screen, 69 accuracy for Perfect Aim On-screen/Reliable Aim Off-screen, and 79 accuracy Perfect Aim Off-screen. All pistols require 79 Critical to reach their maximum critical hit chance of 80%.
=== Looting/Scouting ===
In the Inner City, pistols are a common sight on looting runs due to their easily replaceable ammo and decent damage output. Some general tips:
* Pistols with average firing speed are rather versatile and can be used well in a number of different situations. Coupled with the fact that they are quiet, looting with pistols is a good idea as it will keep aggro down.
*Just like Melee or any other weapon, circling is also an effective tactic with Pistols.
* As with all guns, take the opportunity to reload if no zombies are around. It doesn’t take very long, and having a full magazine when you are mobbed by multiple zombies can make all the difference. One trick is to hit "R" just before you transition to another screen, as this results in having your gun reloaded once you reach the next block.
=== Aggro Combat/Boss Fighting ===
While not ideal for fighting aggro, Pistols and Rifles can buy you time by sniping/staggering enemies from afar while backpedalling. They are excellent weapons for tackling bosses, thanks to their high single target DPS for low ammo cost, and their high accuracy allowing for flexibility in positioning against boss attacks.
* The standard method to boss fighting with Pistol/Rifle is to run laps around the entire block without stopping. Eventually, the aggro will be left behind, leaving only the boss to be focus fired on.
* Alternatively, find a length of wall/fence to trap the horde behind. As long as no trapped zombie is killed, the game will not attempt to spawn more and allow you to solo the boss in relative peace.
== Advantages and Disadvantages==
Advantages
* Uses handgun ammo, which usually have a higher stack capacity (1600 vs 1200) compared to rifle ammo. Handgun ammo is also used by Sub-Machine Guns.
* Early on, Pistols have Very High (79 Critical required) instead of Rifle's High (112 Critical required) Critical Chance. Additionally, earlygame handgun ammos are much more common and cheaper than rifle rounds. Thus, Pistols make for a cheap, non stat demanding ranged choice for lower level players.
* Better crowd control capability and killing speed against weaker zombies compared to Rifles.
** Scales better with damage boost from Drugs/Implants: boosted Pistols are capable of killing multiple medium to high HP zombies in a few seconds, while Rifles are limited by their fire rate.
Disadvantages
* Lower damage than Rifles in early game.
* Most revolvers have a low magazine capacity and slow reload speeds
* Higher firing rate leads to greater chance of making noise and attracting horde.
* Requires more ammunition than Rifles to take on high HP threats. If you want to 1HKO them instead, it takes much less damage boost to do so with a Rifle than with a Pistol.
==List of Pistols ==
The Damage values in brackets indicate the averaged damage that can be achieved with the maximum critical hit chance. The Scrap values in brackets indicate the scrap price with Master Crafted (MC) items.
===Lootable/Craftable===
===Limited Edition/CS Only===
===Dusk/Dawn===
===Event===
Category:Weapons