Snipers and Marksman Rifles

Snipers and marksman rifles share a weapon class in BO7 Endgame. They deal the highest per-shot damage in the game. Sniper rifles have access to Sharpshooter, which converts all upper torso hits into headshot-level damage. Marksman rifles do not have Sharpshooter but support Explosive Bullets and Recoil Delete. The KRS-7.62, added in Season 4, follows this marksman pattern with Explosive Bullets, Recoil Delete, and Ammo Recharger. Both sub-classes are among the most consistent DPS options against bosses.

Weapons

Strider 300

Hawker HX

VS Recon

Shadow SK

XR-3 Ion

M8A1

Swordfish A1

Warden 308

M34 Novaline

KRS-7.62

Tip

The XR-3 Ion (also written ION XR3) is the most discussed weapon in this class. See the dedicated ION XR3 page for a full breakdown of builds, utility bonus choices, and skill track pairings.

Utility Bonus Availability

All five sniper rifles (Strider 300, Hawker HX, VS Recon, Shadow SK, and XR-3 Ion) share the same four traits: Sharpshooter, Explosive Bullets, Combat Ready, and Zero Waste. Marksman rifles are more varied. Every marksman rifle has Explosive Bullets and Recoil Delete, but the remaining slots differ. The M8A1 pairs those with Ammo Recharger and Free Fire, while the M34 Novaline gets Ultra-light and Free Fire. The Warden 308 takes Lifestyle and Ultra-light instead. The KRS-7.62, added in Season 4, carries Explosive Bullets, Recoil Delete, and Ammo Recharger. The Swordfish A1 has the widest pool overall, with Reload Swap and Ammo Recharger at the Fabricator plus three Exotic Cache-only traits (Lifestyle, Longburst, and Ammo Drain) unlocked through the Pulsebreach.

Rerollable at Fabricator Exotic Cache only

Sniper Rifles

	Sharp- shooter	Explosive Bullets	Combat Ready	Zero Waste
Strider 300	✓	✓	✓	✓
Hawker HX	✓	✓	✓	✓
VS Recon	✓	✓	✓	✓
Shadow SK	✓	✓	✓	✓
XR-3 Ion	✓	✓	✓	✓

Marksman Rifles

	Explosive Bullets	Reload Swap	Recoil Delete	Ammo Recharger	Life- style	Ultra- light	Free Fire	Long- burst	Ammo Drain
Swordfish A1	✓	✓	✓	✓	◆			◆	◆
M8A1	✓		✓	✓			✓
Warden 308	✓		✓		✓	✓
M34 Novaline	✓		✓			✓	✓
KRS-7.62	✓		✓	✓

Named Exotics

Ghostmind (VS Recon) - Neuro-Disruption Affinity

The Ghostmind is the named exotic version of the VS Recon, carrying the Neuro-Disruption affinity. It is obtainable from Exotic Caches.

Attachment loadout:

• VS-762 Brake
• 17” RistRauch Nimbus Barrel
• MFS R-Stop Handguard
• Wyvern Extend Z-Mag
• R-1 Shelf Grip
• Stabil Heavy Pad
• 5mW Lockstep Laser
• 7.62 NATO Overpressured

Continuum (Hawker HX) - Graviton Affinity

The Continuum is the named exotic version of the Hawker HX, carrying the Graviton affinity. No fixed attachment loadout has been confirmed from available data.

Flashburst (M8A1) - Frost Affinity

The Flashburst is the named exotic version of the M8A1, carrying the Frost affinity. The M8A1 is a burst-fire marksman rifle that also supports the Free Fire and Ammo Recharger bonuses.

Attachment loadout:

• Kepler Ultra 4x
• Titan-R 5.56 Compensator
• 21” Frontline Barrel
• Quickstep Foregrip
• Sentinel Extended Mag
• K&S Raze Grip
• Swiftline Stock
• 1mW Instinct Laser Array

Pulsebreach (Swordfish A1) - Shrapnel Affinity

The Pulsebreach is the named exotic version of the Swordfish A1, carrying the Shrapnel affinity. The Swordfish A1 is a marksman rifle that also supports Ammo Recharger, Reload Swap, Longburst, and Lifestyle bonuses. No fixed attachment loadout has been confirmed from available data.

Note

Named exotics come with a fixed affinity and cannot be reconfigured at the Exotic Fabricator. See Named Exotics for acquisition and cache sources.

Related pages

ION XR3 The ION XR3 sniper rifle with utility bonus and attachment details.

Utility Bonuses Full list of all utility bonuses including Sharpshooter and Explosives.

Named Exotics How to obtain named exotic weapons including the Ghostmind and Continuum.

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Data sourced from community research and in-game documentation. Information may change with game updates.