Buckshot|Pellets is the way to make Autocannons work better.

[Panzer Jager 10]

In current ArmA 2 and OA, Autocannons and Miniguns only fire at a maximum fixed rate of 1200 rounds per minute, even if the weapon's rate of fire vastly exceeds that. To compensate, the weapons use more ammuntion per shot fired, and deal extra damage on a hit.

However, with the newly-implemented Pellet system in the PMC DLC, I'd like to propose a more effective solution to the above-mentioned kludge.

Instead of using single, high damage bullets, use multiple "pellets" like the Shotguns: this way, each individual projectile can explode (in high-caliber HE) or hit for a normal value, and this will vastly help the performance of the weapons such as the M134, since 2 shots fired per "ammo" with some extra dispersion has much higher hit-chance than 1 shot fired with extra damage.

So what I'm saying is make Autocannons and Miniguns fire a form of "pellets" instead of high-damage individual bullets. It's more realistic since it allows the Gunner a higher hit probability, just like the weapons should have in real life.

[AnimalMother92 10]

Good thought

[Von_Lipwig 10]

Sounds like a good plan! Maybe then it won't be such a struggle to actually hit something from a heli... or maybe that's just my incompetence. :p

[CarlGustaffa 4]

No, it's a valid concern. Actually hitting something is ultra hard from a moving chopper, especially in MP if you're also fighting lag. I guess it's also quite hard also in real life (unless you have a working aim by tracer, such as for the M134), but real enemies will at least experience fear - something AI is not terrible good at showing.

BIS should put some extra work on the AIs feelings :D

[Big Dawg KS 6]

I'm not sure it will work so well. Looking at the configs, the new simulation type "shotSpread" seems to be completely unconfigurable; there's no apparent way to adjust the spread pattern. It might be based on muzzle velocity, but currently it spreads out way too quickly IMO to be of any use on aircraft mounted weapons.

Though there's still a lot of things that need to be tested/played around with before I figure out exactly what the limitations of using shotSpread are (for example, it mostly works for 40mm buckshot rounds).

I think a better solution to the problem is just to increase the dispersion on those weapons and add a bit of splash damage. In fact why they have so little dispersion (or none) in the first place is kind of puzzling.

[BigMorgan 11]

Giant automatic shotguns? I'm down.

[spork 10]

I love the venom, it would be great if the autocannons on it were more powerful / larger spread.