Sniper (Long War)

This article is accurate for LW version: Beta 9a

Sniper

Long War Sniper is akin to the vanilla Sniper. With Squad Sight as your first ability, the Sniper is able to inflict long range damage on enemy targets from a position of safety. Squad Sight no longer functions with Overwatch.

Primary Weapon: Sniper Rifles, Marksman Rifles, Assault Rifles

Secondary Weapon: Pistols, Machine Pistols

Abilities

Rank	Ability
Specialist	Squad Sight Allows firing at targets in any ally's sight radius, but at -30% critical chance; Does not extend overwatch outside visual range.
	No other bonuses.
Lance Corporal	Damn Good Ground +10 Aim and +10 Defense against enemies at lower elevation in addition to the usual elevation bonuses. (including while flying)	Gunslinger Confers 2 bonus damage with pistols.	Low Profile Makes partial cover count as full.
	No other bonuses.	No other bonuses.	No other bonuses.
Corporal	Executioner +10% Aim against targets with less than 50% Health.	Precision Shot With sniper/long rifles, fire a shot with +30% critical chance and +3 to +6 critical damage based on the tech level of the sniper rifle. With marksman/strike rifles, allows an unlimited range shot with no other bonuses. 2 turn cooldown.	Tactical Sense Confers +5 Defense per enemy in sight (max +20).
	Provide +2 Aim +2 Will +1 Mobility.	No other bonuses.	Provide +5 Aim +2 Will +1 Mobility.
Sergeant	Lone Wolf Bonus +10 aim and +10% critical chance if you are 7 tiles distant from allies	Ranger +1 damage with primary weapon	Bring 'Em On Adds 1 damage on critical hits for each enemy the squad can see (up to 5).
	Provide +1 Mobility.	Provide +1 Mobility.	Provide +2 Will +1 Mobility.
Tech Sergeant	Sharpshooter Bonus 10 aim against enemies in full cover, crit chance +10% against all targets.	Disabling Shot Allows the Sniper to fire a shot that causes the target's main weapon to malfunction. The target may use Reload to fix the weapon. The shot cannot inflict a critical hit. 2 turn cooldown. (-10 Aim, reduced Damage)	Lock N' Load +2 shots/bursts when taken as a perk tree perk; when conferred by Hi Cap Mags item, +1 shot/burst.
	Provide +2 Aim +1 Will	No other bonuses.	No other bonuses.
Gunnery Sergeant	Vital Point Targeting Additional 2 damage against any human target and any alien that has been autopsied.	Snap Shot Removes the sniper rifle's restriction on firing and Overwatch after moving. Any shots taken suffer a -10 Aim penalty.	Packmaster All limited-use items in your inventory receive one extra use.
	No other bonuses.	No other bonuses.	No other bonuses.
Master Sergeant	Double Tap Allows both actions to be used for Standard Shot, Headshot, or Disable Shot, provided no moves were made. 1 turn cooldown. (Can't be used with Snap Shot)	Mayhem Confers extra 2 damage to LMGs, Sniper Rifles, Rockets, Suppression, Grenades, and Mines.	Resilience Confers immunity to critical hits.
	No other bonuses.	No other bonuses.	Provide +5 Aim +5 Will +1 Mobility.

Stat Progression

Rank	HP at level	Total HP	Aim at level	Total Aim
Specialist	0	0	8	8
Lance Corporal	0	0	4	12
Corporal	1	1	4	16
Sergeant	0	1	4	20
Tech Sergeant	0	1	4	24
Gunnery Sergeant	0	1	4	28
Master Sergeant	1	2	4	32

Tactical Advice

Role: Long Range Offense

Long War Snipers are quite similar to vanilla squadsight snipers, but there are a few differences. Squadsight no longer works on overwatch, and snipers no longer have access to the Opportunist perk, making them considerably less good defensively - you'll find snipers can't demolish enemy packs on sight before they can even take cover like they can in vanilla. Squadsight is gained immediately and unconditionally, so there are no more "snap shot" skirmishing snipers (that role goes to the Scout). However, snipers can still have Snap Shot at Corporal rank, and it's not mutually exclusive with Squadsight, allowing snipers more mobility without greatly compromising their offensive ability.

Snipers can use sniper rifles, which act like vanilla sniper rifles, and only allow firing if the user hasn't moved unless they are Snap Shot trained, but they can also use Marksman Rifles, which are shorter range sniper rifles that can be fired after moving. Snipers can use assault rifles as well, but this isn't particularly useful in practice, since the Infantry class generally performs better with assault rifles. As in vanilla, Snipers gain the most aim per rank, ending with 7 more aim than any other class at Master Sergeant.