Talk:Sniper Rifles/@comment-216.58.126.18-20121010215922/@comment-2017893-20130401163244

Well as long as we're going with "real life" the current distance kill record is (by a Canadian, I should mention) with a Tac-McMillan .50 Cal. This is a simi-automatic sniper rifle with (IIRC) a 10-round magazine. I believe the previous record was also with the same rifle. Now, distance is not the same as damage, but anything that can kill in excess of 2 miles instantly is powerful enough that "damage" is no longer an issue.

The truth is, modern .50cal and even some .308 weapons do beyond fatal damage regardless of semi or bolt fire, even with a gut shot that is usually survivable with an assault rifle or handgun. At least with sniper rifles, IRL, damage is rather moot because distance and accuracy are the name of the game.

And the precision of the bore, along with the inherent near-perfect stability of a .50 Calibur round, are infinitely more relevant in a discussion of accuracy than fire mode. Semi is only less accurate if the user is an idiot who doesn't wait and resteady the rifle between shots.

But that first bullet is killing the target anyway, if it hits.