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AA12 shotgun needs buffing

I would never say the support specialist is a bad class but I would say that he has very few perks that make him desirable over other classes.

Despite the improved damage/penetration/ammo capacity for shotguns, I still find myself running low on shells compared to the other classes and hunting shotgun ammo is far too expensive to waste money on.

While the improved carrying capacity sounds good on paper, in practice it's not so much an advantage as a necessity to function. A support specialist's equipment is so heavy that you have to gain perk levels just so you can carry more than 1 weapon at a time! You can't carry a shotgun/AA12 combination until perk level 3 and that takes up all 19 slots.

Considering the hefty price tag compared to other tier 3 weapons, I do feel the AA12 is lacking, particularly in ammo capacity. If the AA12 got a boost in ammo I'd be a happy bunny.
 
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It just needs a small damage buff (10-15% I'd say) and a price reduction (on par with m14, scar, etc), but it's otherwise pretty much fine.

As with the other half of the classes in the game, support is simply overshadowed by sharpshooters with their asinine weaponry. By itself it's actually a pretty good class with good balance. Ammo is sometimes an issue but not if you're smart about taking your shots - you can't use shotguns the same way you use pistols and rifles. Shooting bloats with their heads cut off or lone crawlers will obviously deplete your ammo quickly for no reason. If you line up your targets and use the penetration to your advantage, shotguns are quite fine overall.
 
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The AA12 is a fine weapon and doesn't need a buff. Not badly anyway. I think a weight+cost reduction would be more effective balance-wise. As great as it is, it still isn't worth the cost until the higher level perks. And even a level 6 support specialist can't carry an AA12 and a L.A.W. at the same time. Hell, they can't even carry two shotguns until level 3 or 4.
 
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Hell, they can't even carry two shotguns until level 3 or 4.

This is one of my personal peeves about the class. It has taken me until level 3 to carry the pump and the hunting shotgun together, plus I can't combine the AA12 with the hunting shotgun yet. If I carry the AA12 and the pump, I can't equip pipe bombs which would be nice to take advantage of the explosive damage bonus.
 
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