Assault Rifles are not in a good place. Unless you're planning to use crits you're usually ♥♥♥♥ out of luck on high difficulty. However, i have devised a way to both make these peashooters true pig slayers and to make you feel like a bad mother-♥♥♥♥♥♥ while shooting them. Let's get into the build..!

In Mastermind we take the normal selection of perks to get to Inspire as fast as we can, it being a useful skill to have on Deathwish, but you can forego this and opt for ammo bags instead if that's more your style. Nothing unusual or fun happening here, so we move along.


We take enough shotgun skills to get to the most important skill in making this work, Overkill. This skill is easily one of the most slept on skills in the game, as i never hear any talk about it or see it utilized. Essentially, as soon as you get a shotgun kill you can mow down cops with your AR, the damage bonus being drastic enough to let you rip into pigs like no tomorrow. One can even take hostages near objectives, just to kill them and activate Overkill at any desired point. This alone makes the build lethal against dozers and an excellent tank / mobbing hybrid.

Other than that we take Iron man basic for more armor, Bullseye to both armorgate and to help our perkdeck along, Shock and Awe aced to be able to deal with shields and Die Hard to fix drills and getting more armor.

And before you ask, resilience aced is not bad at all, in fact i use it in 90% of my builds, but with an automatic weapon you should have no problem either shooting the flashbangs or just running away from them.


Another boring one, more stability and accuracy is good!


Just the essential movement skills. No Second wind as we won't see much use from it.


Here's more important skills. We don't take nine lives aced as this is not a DS build, but you could feasibly exchange some skills in to get it. We also take Bloodthirst, Berserker and Frenzy to give our melee weapon a way to get out of sticky situations and to make our weapons permanently stronger, along with a hefty 25% less damage taken.

Anarchist is a very strong perk deck, converting almost all of our health into armor allows us to pull off a lot of risky plays, since our armor passively regens constantly and is replenished by 30 every 1.5 seconds granted we're laying waste to pigs at a consistent rate.

You can substitute this perk deck for Stoic instead, but then i would recommend getting FAK's instead. The strongest part of this deck is just how low-maintenance it is, you don't need to worry about anything but ending pigs as fast as you can. This makes it ideal for mobbing and tanking, letting your friends with Optical Illusions be safer. Additionally, with Bullseye aced you can get even more armor per hit, granted it was a headshot.

Medic Bags

No explanation needed, help your friends out by placing these strategically in houldout areas or keep one handy in case of an emergency.





LWB

The reason why we go for the LWB is because it gives us a short time between armor regen and it let's us maintain a dodge-level movement speed. The difference in armor amount is negligible when compared to the ICTV, which is not a good pairing with this perk deck.



Concussion Grenades

Rarely used properly in pubs, these things get you out of all sorts of sticky situations, with six of these you can stun an entire crowd of people six times per heist, which is invaluable when someone needs a revive or when fixing a drill for example.




Buzzer

It's a toss up between this and the Electrical Brass Knuckles, but i just think this one looks cooler and my brain has already convinced itself that it has a faster activation time.

The beauty of this build is that as long as you have at least one shotgun equipped you can essentially use any automatic weapon you prefer. These are just my selections and my preferences when i play with this build.


This puppy not only looks legit, it's highly customizable and is my main choice of weapon when i use this build. This would be the absolute best all-rounder gun as it's got no real downside, only lacking in the extreme ranges.

MODS

• Long barrel
  
• Tactical Compensator
  
• Accuracy Boost
  
• Auto Fire
  
• OVAL Foregrip (or E.M.O, but it's far uglier..)
  
• None, or a Magnifier
  
• Speed Pull Mag
  
• Any scope you think looks neat
  
• War-torn Stock
  
• LW Upper Reciever

I'll be totally honest, this one is just for the looks. I adore the look of it, despite the low reload speed and the bad ammo economy, since we didn't pick any ammo skills. Still, it is effective against dozers.

MODS

• Modern barrel
  
• Tactical Compensator
  
• Stability Boost
  
• Auto Fire
  
• Railed Wooden Grip (Keymod is slightly better, Aesthetic choice again.)
  
• Any laser, or none
  
• AK Plastic Grip
  
• Low Drag Mag
  
• None, or yours of choice, then go for a Accuracy Boost instead
  
• Classic Stock

Another one just for the cool factor, this one includes nice white wodden furnishing. This one is far better at dozer killing, can snipe depending on your scope but faces huge ammo problems. Pair with a shotgun that can mitigate this problem like the Loco.

MODS

• Modern barrel
  
• Tactical Compensator
  
• Accuracy Boost
  
• Auto Fire
  
• Scope Mount
  
• Railed Wooden Grip (Keymod is slightly better, Aesthetic choice again.)
  
• Any laser, or none
  
• AK Wood Grip
  
• Speed Pull Mag
  
• Any sight, i use the See More Sight
  
• Classic Stock

The AK 17 is interesting, since it's probably the strongest AR without Overkill. It's very accurate and stable, but its achilles heel is that the ammo economy is horrible. This makes it very strong in groups with a Gambler or someone bringing ammo, or when paired with an independent shotgun. The Loco and the Goliath come to mind.

MODS

• Tactical Compensator
  
• Accuracy Boost
  
• Auto Fire
  
• LED Combo
  
• AK Wood Grip
  
• Speed Pull Mag
  
• I use the Professional's choice, but any -1 sight will do.
  
• Speed Pull Mag
  
• War-torn Stock

Yes, even the AMCAR can be used on DW with this setup. It's honestly quite strong in it's niche, since it has great ammo pickup you can even pair it with a Judge, which i don't recommend elsewhere in this guide. Plus, it's always fun to use in pubs. I just tried to make it look like the PD1 AMCAR as much as i could.

MODS

• Tactical Compensator
  
• Accuracy Boost
  
• Auto Fire
  
• None, or any of your choosing.
  
• Rubber Grip
  
• Speed Pull Mag
  
• Compact Holosight, for the PD1 Look.
  
• War-torn Stock

The Lion's Roar offers similar stats to the CAR-4, but is far more suited for long distance engagements. The drawback for the added range is the ammo economy. This makes it ideal on heists like Birth of Sky for example.

MODS

• Precision Barrel
  
• Tactical Compensator
  
• Stability Boost
  
• Auto Fire
  
• LED Combo
  
• Any sight, i like the Speculator Sight.

The JP36 is low damage, high fire rate gun, which makes it great for our purposes. Not to mention the ammo economy is so good that you'll have a hard time running out of ammo with this thing.

MODS

• Tactical Compensator
  
• Accuracy Boost
  
• Auto Fire
  
• JP36 Long Foregrip
  
• None, or any you like.
  
• Any you think looks cool, Speculator Sights fills that role for me.
  
• Sniper Stock

==============================[ SECONDARIES ]==============================



What was once the king of cop-clearing is now just a great pick for a secondary shotgun. Granted you're regularly picking up ammo and being aggressive you could be content just using this gun throughout an entire heist.

MODS

• 000 Buckshot
  
• Shark Teeth Nozzle
  
• Minus Accuracy
  
• Contractor Grip
  
• Extended Mag
  
• Any you think looks cool, or none.
  
• Police Shorty Stock
  
• Shell rack, but you lose style points.

This very underused gun can hold it's own when it comes to it, with a high magazine and a capacity to dish out plenty of buckshot.

MODS

• 000 Buckshot
  
• Short Barrel
  
• Shark Tooth Nozzle
  
• Minus Accuracy
  
• LED Combo, or none.
  
• Any you think looks cool, or none.

My preferred choice, a strong secondary that can one-shot headshot almost every unit on DW difficulty. Plus, just look at it. Very stylish.

MODS

• 000 Buckshot
  
• Riot Barrel
  
• Minus Accuracy
  
• Shark Tooth Nozzle
  
• LED Combo, or none.
  
• None

Of course, there are shotguns in the primary slot which we will not be leaving out. This also opens up the ability to use submachine guns as part of this build, if that interests you more.



The big brother of the Locomotive, this shotgun is a devastating primary with both great stats, and style factor. Heists like FWB are a dream for this gun, or any close quarters maps for that matter.


MODS

• 000 Buckshot
  
• Shark Tooth Nozzle
  
• Minus Accuracy
  
• Zombie Hunter Pump
  
• No Gadget
  
• Contractor Grip
  
• Extended Mag
  
• Any scope you think looks neat
  
• No stock, or Gov. Issue Tactical Stock
  
• Shell rack, but you lose style points.

Boasting high damage and horrible ammo pickup, this gun is only good when paired with a high total ammo weapon, like the MP5. But hey, look at it. It's too cool to not use.

MODS

• 000 Buckshot
  
• Long Barrel
  
• Shark Tooth Nozzle
  
• Minus Accuracy
  
• No Gadget
  
• Treated Body
  
• Long Stock

The Joceline faces a similar problem to the breaker, but it's somewhat stronger ammo economy makes it far more viable by itself. Not to mention you never see anyone use this thing, might as well bring it just for that.

MODS

• 000 Buckshot
  
• None
  
• Minus Accuracy
  
• Luxurious Ammo Pouch

This and the Joceline are pretty much just the same weapon, i have no idea why they're so similar..

MODS

• 000 Buckshot
  
• None
  
• Minus Accuracy
  
• None

==============================[ SECONDARIES ]==============================


Joy's Signature Submachine Gun makes for an excellent bullet hose, and damn if it doesn't look great while doing it. This SMG is quite weak and only really chosen for the cool factor, we'll get to the better ones further down.

MODS

• Competitors Compensator
  
• Stability Boost
  
• Auto Fire
  
• None
  
• LED Combo, or none.
  
• Extended Mag
  
• None, or any you like.
  
• Wide Stock

Here's a real beauty. Not only is this most likely the best in class SMG for this build, but with the buff it received a while ago it honestly does not need Overkill to work wonders. The skill however does allow us to spray and pray far better.

MODS

• Tactical Compensator
  
• Accuracy Boost
  
• Auto Fire
  
• Polizei Tactical Barrel
  
• LED Combo, or none.
  
• None
  
• Compact Holosight, or any you like.
  
• Spartan Stock

The Vector serves the same purpose as the Compact-5, with less ammo total but better stats to make up for it. it's a toss up between which you prefer.

MODS

• Tactical Compensator
  
• Accuracy Boost
  
• Auto Fire
  
• LED Combo, or none.
  
• Compact Holosight, or any you like.
  
• War-torn Stock

This thing chews through ammo and does not like getting it back, making it a poor choice for spraying, but it makes up for that in dozer killing effectiveness. Pair this with a Reinfeld for example.

MODS

• Competitors Compensator
  
• Accuracy Boost
  
• Auto Fire
  
• LED Combo, or none.
  
• AK Wood Grip
  
• None, or any you like.

Probably the strongest all-rounder on offer here. Be sure to equip this when someone reminds you just how bad the Jacket's Piece is and try to fight through the tears, convincing yourself the gun is good even when you miss almost every shot.

MODS

• Slotted Barrel Extension
  
• Accuracy Boost
  
• Auto Fire
  
• None
  
• None, or any you prefer.
  
• War-torn Stock, but you lose style points.
  
• 80's Calling

Similar to the Tatonka in that it can dispatch a dozer in a second flat, but comes with the ability to hold it's own with a great ammo economy. Plus, it's another PD1 callback.

MODS

• Slotted Barrel Extension
  
• Stability Boost
  
• Auto Fire
  
• Railed Handguard, if you like it better.
  
• LED Combo
  
• Custom Built Frame
  
• Speed Pull Mag
  
• None
  
• Skeletal stock, but the non mod version is cooler.

The Para is just a mini CAR-4 and i love it for that. It's a great secondary in it's own right, but with this damage boost we can use it very effectively as a main tool.

MODS

• Medium Barrel
  
• Tactical Compensator
  
• Accuracy Booster
  
• Auto Fire
  
• Railed Handguard
  
• LED Combo, or Military
  
• Rubber Grip
  
• Thrust Lower Receiver
  
• Speed Pull Mag
  
• None, or any you like.
  
• War-torn Stock
  
• LW Upper Reciever

I know this thing is far better as a dodge weapon, but the high mag and good ammo pickup make it a fierce contender for our purposes. And it's quite cool, very modern.

MODS

• Long Barrel
  
• Tactical Compensator
  
• Accuracy Booster
  
• Auto Fire
  
• Military Laser Module
  
• Custom Assault Frame
  
• Speed Pull Mag
  
• Maelstrom Sight

The build is rather easy to use. Just get a kill with a shotgun, then swap to your automatic weapon and lay waste. Rinse, repeat until the heist is over. The simplicity of the build makes it easy to experiment with different non-meta weapons on a high difficulty and to carry lower level players through hard heists with ease.

Thanks a bunch for reading my guide, let me know what you think in the comments.

(..as long as it isn't "why not use stoic?")