“The CT-exclusive Mag-7 delivers a devastating amount of damage at close range. Its rapid magazine-style reloads make it a great tactical choice.”
―Official description
The MAG-7 is a pump-action shotgun featured in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive and is exclusive to the Counter-Terrorists. The counterpart of this weapon is the Terrorist's Sawed-Off.
Overview
The MAG-7 is manufactured by Techno Arms PTY in South Africa. It fires 5 rounds of 12 gauge ammunition. The MAG-7 is designed to be used in close quarters. It combines features from 12 gauge shotguns and compact sub-machine guns, thus its unique shape.
It inflicts very high damage and is very deadly in close range. It is somewhat more accurate than the other shotguns, making it a better choice for combat at mid-close range; at a distance where a Nova would fail to kill on a body shot, the MAG-7 would. This weapon is one of the most used and most popular shotguns in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive due to its combination of cost and effectiveness. However, it has a low rate of fire and cannot be fired while reloading. To make up for that, it has a magazine. Therefore, each shot does not have to be reloaded individually, unlike the other shotguns.
Like other shotguns, it has a 3× kill award ($900) for neutralizing an enemy target and the player can carry 32 shells in reserve.
When held, the player's movement speed is 225 units per second, meaning a user will suffer moderate speed reduction.
Properties
| Hitbox | Primary Attack | |
|---|---|---|
| Unarmored | Armored | |
| Head | 120 | 90 |
| Chest & Arm | 30 | 22 |
| Stomach | 37 | 28 |
| Leg | 22 | 22 |
| Each shot contains 8 pellets. | ||
Advantages
- High damage at close range.
- Fast reload time (and has the fastest reload time when compared to emptied shotguns)
- Lightest shotgun in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive.
- Can be fired continuously when holding down the primary attack key.
- This shotgun is magazine-fed, so all five rounds can be reloaded at once, as opposed to all other shotguns that reload each shell individually.
- Unlike the other shotguns, the MAG-7 can fire underwater.
- More accurate than other shotguns, so it can be used at a slightly greater distance; it is even accurate while jumping and moving.
- Better armor penetration than the Nova or XM1014.
Disadvantages
- Very low magazine capacity.
- Low rate of fire; if you don't kill with the first shot, you will most likely be killed yourself.
- Cannot penetrate surfaces.
- High spread at longer ranges.
- The only magazine-fed shotgun, meaning it cannot be fired while reloading.
- Not helpful against numerous amounts of enemies; you may be able to tackle two, but any more is a death wish.
Gameplay
Tactics
- Use flashbangs to blind enemies and you should be able to get close enough to eliminate them with a few shots.
- Remember, shooting this shotgun at enemies who have turned their back towards you will give you the upper hand.
- Due to the fact that the MAG-7 must be reloaded like all the other weapons with magazines, it is very important to reload this shotgun in a safe spot when there are no enemies, and make sure you have enough rounds before entering a hot spot.
- Remember, engaging groups of enemy players is not a good idea, unless you can flank them from behind when they are occupied or are careless.
- If you can truly ambush opponents, be sure to aim at the area where they are very vulnerable and shoot quickly. Do not allow them to recover from the attack, otherwise they can counter your strategy.
- Avoid engaging large groups of enemies at open-spaced areas. Instead, try to ambush opponents in enclosed areas, such as hallways, and around corners. If you cannot retreat quickly in this situation, pull out your sidearm and leave as fast as you can.
- Do not be afraid in firing this shotgun at targets who are located at medium ranges. Firing two shots or more should be sufficient to eliminate them.
Counter-tactics
- No matter what, avoid close contact with users unless absolutely necessary!
- Try to strafe and use a submachine gun or a rifle against users. This should make it harder for them to aim.
- If you suspect an enemy player wielding this weapon and is attempting to intercept your location, it is recommended to either retreat and find a location far enough for you to fight back or throw a Molotov Cocktail/Incendiary Grenade to give you distance away from the user and decrease the chance of that enemy player from easily eliminating you.
- Try to surprise/flank a MAG-7 user if you are armed with shotgun of your own, because it has a longer lethal range. Hitting a target with the first shot hit is essential for survival.
- Whenever possible, try to incite panic within users and make them empty their current magazine (while of course, you avoid being killed). The low magazine capacity will ultimately spell their doom and will allow you to rush and eliminate them with ease.
Comparison to the Sawed-Off
Positive
- Lower spread
- Higher accurate range (4.6m vs 3.1m)
- Farther maximum range (1400 units vs 650 units)
- Lighter, therefore higher movement speed (225 vs 210)
- Faster total magazine reload speed (2.5 sec vs 3.2 sec)
Neutral
- Same ammo type (12 gauge)
- Same number of pellets per shot (8)
- Same kill award (3x)
- Same recoil control (1/26)
- Same armor penetration (75%)
- Same penetration power (100)
Negative
- Less magazine capacity (5 vs 7)
- More expensive ($1800 vs $1200)
- Cannot fire while reloading
- Slightly lower damage per pellet (30 vs 32)
- Slower individual shell reload speed
Achievement
- Weapon Specialist
|
MAG-7 Expert Kill 50 enemies with the MAG-7. |
Trivia
- The MAG-7 is the only weapon included in whole Counter-Strike series to be designed and manufactured in Africa (South Africa to be more specific).
- The magazine-fed style shotgun is probably an inspiration of the USAS-12 in Counter-Strike Online.
- Possibly, because the MAG-7 utilizes a magazine, this shotgun can fire underwater (at least, in gameplay terms).
- The MAG-7 is the only magazine-fed, pump-action shotgun in the entire Counter-Strike franchise.
- Despite its advantages portrayed in the game, the MAG-7 is not an effective weapon in real life; it is difficult to handle, users have to use both hands to turn the safety off, the trigger pressure on this weapon can be a staggering 7.7 kilograms (later reduced to 3.5 kilograms to make it easier to fire), the chamber was originally designed to fire the rare and specialized 60mm shells in which the standard 12 gauge, 2.75-inch (70mm) shells won't fit and have to be modified to make the MAG-7 work properly.
- However, newer models rectified all said issues, and it is possible to modify standard 70mm shells to the 60mm shells. In addition, some commercially-available ultra-short shotgun shells can be used with a lower degree of reliability.
- The MAG-7 is also commonly known by players as the "SWAG-7" due to its performance compared to other shotguns, especially the Sawed-Off.
External links
- MAG-7 at Wikipedia.
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