In Apex Legends, assault rifles fill the gap between specialist weapons like the Triple Take and blunt tools like the Spitfire. They don’t excel at anything specific, but they’re reliable in most situations. This guide will introduce you to the basics of using an AR, focusing in particular on the Hemlok.
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Efficient and reliable
Apex Legends features four ARs, and each comes with its own personality. The Havoc is a close-to-mid range obliterator. It has the highest DPS in the class, offset by the strongest recoil. The Flatline similarly deals a ton of damage, but its horizontal recoil and inability to equip a barrel make it unreliable at long range. The R-301 Carbine suffers from none of these problems, flexing incredible accuracy at the cost of having a lower DPS than the other two.
Finally, we have the Hemlok, which is a bit of an acquired taste. This AR has an extremely manageable recoil and near-perfect hipfire accuracy. However, its primary fire mode is a three-round burst, which makes it feel less user-friendly at close range.
All ARs reduce player movement speed by 50 percent when aimed, and they cannot equip close range digital threat optics. For those reasons, they should almost always be hipfired when used up close. All ARs also have access to some form of single-fire mode, with the Hemlok in particular being very functional with it.
Regardless of what range you engage at, you should always aim to score headshots: ARs have a x2 headshot multiplier, which applies at up to 300 meters. In general, ARs trade the close range versatility of SMGs and shotguns for consistent high damage output at mid and long range. Yet they essentially remain just as “killy” in close range.
ARs scale well with attachments, but not as well as light machineguns or submachine guns, which they share most parts with. Typically your first priority should be finding a comfortable x2 optic. Three stacks of ammo are enough to last most engagements.
The Hemlok
The original Hemlok design used in Titanfall 1 somewhat resembles the pulse rifles used by the colonial marines in the film Aliens. In Apex Legends, the Hemlok is a great long rifle which fires in short, controlled bursts.
It has exceptional hipfire accuracy and high 2-shot knockdown potential. While it can equip a barrel attachment, the Hemlok doesn’t generally need one. It is ammo efficient and reloads infrequently, netting some serious damage output over extended fights. I personally recommend equipping the x2-x4 variable AOG optic on your Hemlok to turn it into an effective sniper.
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