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Halo 2 sniping eh?? Wrong Forum, but what the heck.
All suggestions for Legendary Play
For the most part, sniping is a very overlooked art. Most people just let loose with rounds and keep hammering away at anything they see (a leftover habit from Halo CE I would wager as there were no effective long distance enemy to combat your sniper ability). The introduction of the Jackal Sniper has made that a very dangerous proposition because now the enemy has a way to reach out and say hello to the insides of your helmet from just as far as you can.
1-RECON-know what targets your landscape is offering you, and just as importantly what threats as well. Look for targets with the lower power scope first....It is easier to find most targets on the lower power, then switch to the higher power for shot taking. If you haven't played on Legendary much, take your time looking around the outside maps, wherever you have alot of terrain, you WILL HAVE ALOT OF JACKAL SNIPERS.
2-PRIORITIZE-use the power of your weapon and distance (safety) to take down the most powerful enemies first. Do not waste sniper ammo on grunts, normal jackals, blue and red Elites. Save it for the bigger/badder enemies. In order, i take out: Jackal Snipers, Cloaked Elites, Brutes, Flying Elites, White/Silver/Spec Op Elites. Save the smaller targets for your secondary weapon and up close and personal killing.
You will want to take note of what weapons your enemies have. If they have or Beam Rifles, Carbines or Brute Shots (distance weapons) they are more of a threat. Take those enemies out first.
3-CHECK YOUR AMMO LEVEL BEFORE YOU TAKE A SHOT......Elites take more than one headshot to bring down, reload to a full clip before firing on Elites. Brutes will fall from one well placed Beam Rifle shot.
4-PATIENCE... All AI enemies walk in determined patterns, it is fine to let an elite walk his patrol route and get him on the walk back to you. You do not have to kill it when you see it. Prioritize your kills especially if you do not have any sniper ammo within an easy walk to do an entire re-load.
5-SHOOT AT THE RIGHT TIME...If an enemy is walking, wait till he is walking towards you, the headshot will offer you a larger target. If the enemy is a Jackal Sniper, they tend to move in a more erratic and herky-jerky manner (but both are repetitive). Wait till it is still (wait even longer if you have to to time the movements), and always go for the biggest part of the head (one shot kills on JS's will make life alot easier, and last longer!)
6-MOVE IF YOU HAVE TO...Cover is your best friend as a sniper. Sometimes you have to move and repeat the whole process to get the better shots and remain safe.
There is a difference in the two weapons.
Beam Rifle-offers you limited shots due to the battery (max of 20), once it is depleted its trash. There are more of them throughout the game on the middle and later maps. It is better than the Marine rifle in one crucial way: if you space your shots, you can shoot the entire battery without ever having to wait for a "reload" (or in this case, a cool down). Where this is most important is if you are having a hard time taking out an enemy with a shield you can take a fifth or sixth shot without too much delay. Sometimes that extra single shot is enough and comes quick enough that an elites shields have not recharged.
Marine Sniper Rifle- offers you limited shots with the added inconvenience of having to physically re-load every 4 shots. The advantage is that on the earth maps there is alot more ammo for it laying around. Be careful when grabbing ammo. There are 12 cartridges in each ammo box. I creep slowly up to the ammo boxes when there are more than one laying around. You make it last alot longer when you do not take a full one and then the second one gives you 1 or 2 shells of the whole box of 12. Manage your resources!
On many of the maps there is the opportunity to use both, as they are both available. Typically I will use up a Beam Rifle first then use the Marine Sniper Rifle. I like the Marine rifle better, so I save it. I think it has cooler look, sound and reload noise.