Sniper rifle (DX)

"The military sniper rifle is the superior tool for the interdiction of long-range targets. When coupled with the proven 30.06 round, a marksman can achieve tight groupings at better than 1 MOA (minute of angle) depending on environmental conditions."

- description of Sniper Rifle

The sniper rifle is a rifle skill weapon appearing in Deus Ex.

Background
A semi-automatic sniper rifle with a telescopic sight. Compared to a bolt-action sniper rifle, these semi-auto types of rifles are generally less accurate. However, they make up for it by being able to engage multiple targets in quick succession.

This weapon utilizes the .30-06 Springfield cartridge (7.62x63mm in metric notation), which was once used for sniper rifles in the Vietnam War of the 1970s. By 2052, the sniper rifle cartridge has reverted back to the .30-06 from the year 2010's main sniper rifle ammunition: the 7.62x51mm (which is instead used by the ZHL-U1953 assault rifle).

By 2052 this sniper rifle was widely used.

By 2072, another sniper rifle was in widespread usage instead.

Game item
The sniper rifle is extremely powerful, no matter what skill level the player is at. At Advanced, it can take out Commandos and Women in Black. At Master level it can even take out Men in Black with a headshot, and common grunts with a torso shot.

Tactics

 * Boosting one's Rifle skill is essential for making the Sniper Rifle a great long-range weapon because of how much the gun wanders at low skill levels. Trained Rifle skill will reduce sway enough that it can be used, but Advanced and Master Rifle skills will reduce the point where the player can almost always land a headshot.


 * The Silencer mod makes the sniper rifle a very useful stealth weapon because the gun's firing sound will not alert any enemies in the area. However, the victim's death scream can alert any enemies near them, so sniper rifle users should be on alert for any enemies near the recently-deceased victim after firing.


 * Sniper rifle users should make sure to pack an effective sidearm for close-quarters combat, like a shotgun or the Assault rifle. The sniper rifle is strong, but not strong enough that it can quickly take down enemies very close to the player. Master-level Rifle skill players can take down common troops with one body shot, but it's still too risky and a waste of ammo.


 * Don't bother using Accuracy mods on the sniper rifle. At Master Rifle skill level, the gun will always have 100% accuracy, while Advanced Rifle skill users will be quite close to 100%.


 * Clip and Reload mods are very useful for the sniper rifle because they give the player a lot more ammo to use against foes, and when they have to reload, the gun will reload quite fast.


 * .30-06 ammo is somewhat uncommon, so the player should always be on the lookout for ammo crates that might have .30-06 ammo and merchants selling .30-06 rounds.


 * As Master Rifle skill, the sniper rifle can destroy Security cameras and Turrets in one shot. One good way to use this is when entering a new room, zoom in and scan for any cameras or turrets. When one is found, shoot it. Disabling them long before they can detect the player means the player is free to explore a room and doesn't have to look for a security panel.


 * A sniper rifle at Master Rifle skill can be used to destroy weak doors. This is useful for conserving other door-opening items, such as Lockpicks and the GEP gun, for stronger doors.

Locations
The first opportunity to obtain the sniper rifle is from Paul at the start of the game. If not obtained there, it can be scavenged from a patrolling NSF trooper near the front entrance to the Statue of Liberty. After Liberty island, NSF and MJ-12 troops are occasionally armed with them, specifically those stationed on rooftops.

Trivia

 * In multiplayer mode, the Sniper rifle reloads every single shot.