How to effectively engage enemies at medium to long range?

Question

I have a level 10 character with high small arms and energy weapons skills, which is very effective in dealing with enemies in close to medium range - with assault rifles, laser rifle, combat shotgun or machine pistol.

However, I find myself having trouble with enemies in longer ranges. The weapons I have which are supposedly appropriate for these ranges - hunting rifle, sniper rifle and scoped magnum - are just not accurate enough, either with or without VATS, and I end up wasting a lot of ammo and sacrificing a lot of health in those situations.

Right now my tactic is to try and close the distance as quickly as possible, but it's not always easy. How else can I effectively deal with enemies at these ranges?

Answer 1

VATS considers distance in its hit chance and will frequently miss. Long range combat should be done without VATS.

Each weapon has a Spread rating. Spread is a measure of how far the bullets will deviate from the cross hairs. 0 Spread means that it shoots exactly where you point when shooting outside of VATS. Firearms skill affects damage done on hit, but does not affect spread.

Spread - Weapon
0.0 Named hunting rifles (best choice if you find one)
0.0 Sniper rifle
0.0 Laser rifle
0.0 Laser pistol
0.3 Hunting rifle
0.3 Scoped Magnum
0.2 Plasma rifle (slow projectiles = bad for long range)
1.5 Assault rifle
2.0 Minigun

Laser rifle is the goto weapon for accurate long range combat. Its main problem is low damage (slightly lower than a hunting rifle). Named hunting rifles are completely accurate and high damage. If you want to engage at long range, go get one!

Answer 2

It's my experience that shooting at long range is ineffective even when you have quite high firearms related skills.

As you say, the solution therefore is to close range. There are several tactics for doing this, including increasing your Stealth skill and crouching to approach (i.e. sneaking up on the enemies), Stealth Boys (expensive but effective), and use of terrain to remain in cover while advancing.

The "Gunslinger" (1 handed) and "Commando" (2 handed) perks will improve your VATS accuracy. "Sniper" (at level 12) will improve your accuracy with VATS headshots. These will push up your chances of hitting at long range.