Fortnite Combat Shotgun Guide: Rarity, DPS, Stats & Tips

All you need to know.

Fortnite Rox skin combat shotgun

Introduced at the start of Season 9, the Combat Shotgun in Fortnite superseded the Pump Shotgun, which has been vaulted. Owing to how powerful the Combat Shotgun is in the right hands, however, you may not even miss the Pump.

A semi-automatic shotgun, think of the Combat Shotgun as the big daddy variant of the Tactical Shotgun. Available in Rare, Epic, and Legendary variants, the Combat Shotgun has improved shell capacity, higher damage, and a significant general improvement on the Tactical. That being said, you do need to be more accurate with the Combat to get the most out of it, so the Tactical may be the best bet for beginners.

Epic said the following about the decision to vault the Pump and add the Combat:

We want the beginning of each Season to feel fresh and allow for a new gameplay experience along with all the new Seasonal content. Whether its new cross-map mobility, new weapons, or just new places to drop – you should feel like there is plenty to explore and experience. Specifically when it comes to Pump Shotguns, they stand out significantly: they currently account for over 26% of eliminations in default playlists, with the next weapon type not even coming close. Rather than nerfing the Pump Shotgun to a point where it no longer lives up to its fantasy, our preference is to return it to the vault, giving us an opportunity to revisit the general balance of the item, while introducing a new shotgun.

Our goal with the Combat Shotgun is to provide an item that fills a similar niche, but with a different risk and reward. We’re excited to see how you all use the new shotgun and look forward to your feedback on this shift.

Here’s what you need to know about the weapon.

 

Fortnite Combat Shotgun Guide

Fortnite Combat Shotgun

Rarity
Rare/Epic/Legendary

Availability
Floor, Chests, Supply Drops, Vending Machines

Pellets
10

Base Damage
73/77/81

Headshot multiplier
1.70x

DPS
136.5

Reload time
5.3/5/4.7 (loads two shells at a time)

Combat Shotgun Tips
– The Combat Shotgun is powerful, but it is not powerful enough to one-shot a fully healed and shielded enemy. Finish them off with quick shots, but do not allow yourself to get in a shotgun jumping battle if you can help it.
– As is the case with all shotguns, you get diminishing returns the further away you take aim. Get in close.
– You don’t need to run an SMG with this as the fire rate is significant enough so that you can just keep firing. This must have been part of Epic’s plans to change the Shotgun and SMG meta that’s been set for seasons now.
– The spread is pretty wide (but not as much as other shotguns), so make sure you ADS to cluster them up more.
– As the Combat Shotgun reloads two shells at a time, the reload speed doesn’t matter so much if you just need to get off a quick round into someone.

MORE FORTNITE SEASON 9:
Fortnite’s Season 9’s Cinematic Trailer Shows A Murderous Jonesy
Fortnite Season 9 Vaults Pump, Clingers, Poison Darts, Balloons & More
Fortnite Season 9 Patch Notes: New Tilted, Pump Shotgun Vaulted, Slipstreams & More

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