Tell me about the Unforgiven

Borderlands 2 Loot and Weapons
#1

So, I’ve been and will be farming OMGWTH over the summer and I have a questions about the Unforgiven.

Is it absolute crap or can it be a decent weapon if it scores crits on slag with the right skills? I know it has a capped firing speed which leads in to the next question(s)…

If I use it as Sal, how will it fair? Will fire rate bonuses help at all or will it still be capped? What if I were to use it as Axton, with a lot of bonuses to gun damage?

I have 2 variants, one with increased stability and a two-fer. I know it has massive recoil, so the stability should be useful. The two-fer though, is that going to be counter productive due to the need to aim and the increased bullet spread?

What about if it has the critical hit accessory too? Between stability, two fer, and crits, which would be better?

#2

The Unforgiven is easily outmatched by pretty much any good purple Jakobs pistol. Or you could use a gun that’s actually good. The damage number is high but trust me, flat damage is not the most important thing.

#3

I fell into that line of thinking when I first started playing this game- sold both the Sand Hawk and Pimpernel as soon as I found weapons with higher flat damage… :disappointed:

#4

I use a Dastardly Unforgiven all the time on Maya as my mainstay weapon and only switching from it when I get bloodthirsty or actually need to use something else.

When used right the only two revolvers can outdo the Unforgiven: the Maggie and the Rex. Treating it like any other fast firing revolver is just going to net disappointment. Like the Hawkeye sniper rifle it relies more on accuracy and well placed shots than brute force to get the job done.

The three best prefixes for an Unforgiven are Dastardly, Gunstock and Straight Shootin’ as they boost its rather high stats as is with Gunstock being useful if you do not have a Jakobs Allegiance relic. Two-fer is junk as it does not really help it and although it is a massive damage boost it requires you to get really close and at that point you may as well use something else like a shotgun. Trick Shot only allows the bullets to bounce off inanimate surfaces which is not really helpful. Considering how slow the Unforgiven fires Loaded is not exactly useful either as there is no chance of fanning the hammer on it.

Jakobs grip is the overall best for the Unforgiven with the other grips not exactly helping it to awful much. As for sights I personally prefer Jakobs as well as it does give me tunnel vision like the Hyperion scope does.

As for damage…well look below.

Without slag:

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XdEDzBt.jpg1280×800

and Phaselocked with all the goods:

VyaFCmy.jpg1024×768

Due to Phaselock, Magic Missiles, and the Antagonist shield I am almost always hitting slagged enemies for maximum damage.

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#5

As long as it isn’t used on the Op levels it can be decent. Wish it packed more crit damage.

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#6

The Unforgiven is an expert’s weapon. It’s slow, powerful and precise. It should be used as a sniper, not a pistol. For most people’s playstyle, it’s outmatched by normal purple Jakobs pistols. What sets it apart is it’s great crit bonus (25%type B, 75% type A) and it’s huge base damage. It shines in Maya’s hands ( because of ruin and Reaper) and Zero’s (Two fangs, deception, OSOK)

It’s a harder playstyle, but a rewarding one. :slight_smile:

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#7

Chuck pretty much sums it up with how to treat the Unforgiven. It shines in the hands of Maya and Zer0 due to their abilities while everyone else does decent but not overly spectacular with it.

It is a weapon you have to build yourself around and use on a daily basis to get good with. It is not a weapon you slap on and expect it to work with whatever you have.

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#8

Thanks guys. So using it on Sal is going to be a no no, and I will likely hand the two-fer off to someone else. I think I actually have the Gunstock but I will need to double check that.

Good on Maya and Zer0? But I already finished playing as Maya! And Zer0 is last on the list.

Unrelated, goodness man, you’ve got no health! I’m used to looking at 2.6 million or 1.4 million on Sal and Krieg.

#9

Woah! what does that even mean ? :stuck_out_tongue:

I think I played the game at least 5 times with each of my character at UVHM (and more than that with Sal) . Just reset and play again :smiley:

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#10

I got Maya to OP 8 and I’m trying to do the same for Krieg, Axton, Gaige and Zer0.
And I already have two other sirens played to 72 and 71.

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#11

'nuff said.

#12

Zer0 is the only character I haven’t gotten to 72 and I have a lot of time in Maya. The only character I have more time on than him is Axton and that is before I got the Jakobs fever I have now.

I don’t play OP levels and I have never really cared about health except on Krieg and Axton. Lower health is actually better if you are taking on raid bosses as it is easier to get above the health gate threshold. You can have all the health in the world (has been proven too) and a raid boss or a rocket will still knock you down to within an inch of your life.

#13

So you finally did huh?

I remember you playing all Jakobs builds on Axton and Maya and I kept telling you to give Zero a try as he has the best synergy with Jakobs guns IMO.
:smile:

Was I right?

#14

Heh heh heh, I don’t purposefully use the health gate mechanic. It’s either full HP or no HP.

#15

Actually that was a typo. I have not touched Zer0 in ages. I just do not like him as a character. I am not into the sneaky type of characters.

It helps out sometimes when you have a much lower threshold to cross when you are in a fight. It used to be a more pressing issue before the Grog Nozzle was introduced but now so long as you have one on you can generally swap it out if you have a Stormfront or some other effect working over the raid boss or enemy. Only takes a second or two and you are at full health.

#16

Damn! I thought you finally cracked and liked him enough to take him to 72. :stuck_out_tongue:
what a shame.

I still think that as an “execution” character he just meshes so well with the Jakobs playstyle.
Just like them, he requires precision, patience, timing… plus he has a crapload of crit boosts, a way to boost each bullet, and the only way to make Jakobs guns faster.

Let it be a word of advice for new players reading this though: If you feel like going all-Jakobs, Zero is probably the best character to do so, synergy-wise. (Maya would be a close second, and Sal has a few combos worth looking at with Jakobs shotguns too)

#17

I had an easier time using Maya with all Jakobs than Zer0. Hitting UVHM on Maya was more or less just a speed bump with her abilities. Zer0…eh maybe I just suck with him but it felt like I ran right into an wall made up of reinforced concrete.

The problem with Zer0 is if you go all out Jakobs on him he is completely screwed on healing as the only skill he has for healing if you focus on guns is Innervate which is something I wouldn’t write home about. This forces you to use exotic shields like the Evolution and forcing you to rely on Maliwan grenades when things go south.

Zer0 has really good offense but little to no defensive abilities that heal him and get his shields back up quickly for a gun build. When I made my Jakobs build for Axton I ignored the more offensive oriented legendary COMs for the Legendary Pointman so I could use the Rough RIder along with the Jakobs weaponry for a pure build. An overwhelming offense is not always the best thing for a Jakobs build.

#18

That’s just how Zero rolls in any case: he’s squishy, and a Glass canon. His defense abilities come from movement, deception, quick kills… in short: he doesn’t have much to heal because if you need healing, you’ve screwed up… he’s an execution character, and demands perfection from his player… which he rewards tenfold.

Going Jakobs on him in no different than going with any other setup, except for Moxxi weapons, but I would hardly say that Zero NEEDS Moxxi weapons to work. He just plays that way. Most gun zero builds don’t use Moxxi weapons (so they don’t have any more healing) and they do just fine :slight_smile:

Or simply put: If you can play Zero, you can play Jakobs Zero all the same.

#19

Too be perfectly honest I am drawing a blank on playing Zer0 without Jakobs. He is probably the one I tried the most in getting to level up before giving up and sticking with Maya before working on Axton.

I just really do not care for him.

#20

Different playstyle, different mindset. I love playing Zero, but he’s a far cry from Sal. I go there for different reasons.

I like Sal because he makes me feel like the god of gunpowder, and hords of supplicants bow before my glory.
I like Zero because he makes me feel like a badass with a controler: When everything clicks: Deception - dodge bullets - Kunai - reload - grenade - execute to get close - ADS - headshot - Jump out… when it chains right ANYTHING is dead before it hits the floor… and I can’t help but grin :grin:

…but screw up ONE step and you’re dead… or running for cover.

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