I’m not very far into the game (trying to avoid spoilers) but I’m wondering whether at some point we’ll get the option to build melee weapons and make use of shields?
Melee, an axe or a spear seems like it would be a very good way to combat crabmen.
And shields, given the number of them being dropped by those crabmen, seem like an obvious thing for a PP soldier to look at and think ‘hmm, that look like a good way to not get shot.’
There are already melee weapons. And you have ‘Bash’ ability from the beginning where you can use any weapon or even bare hand to punch enemy.
I know nothing about shields, except there was some rumor about them.
Anu-s Berserker ist a close combat fighter. Uses a hammer(2 AP and 150 dmg) and pistol(2AP and 100 dmg)…
Yeah, I remember it being said that PP will be able to develop and use their own shields.
The hammer really should do more than 150, 250 if you ask me. A sniper can do 150 from a safe space miles away, with much better action economy and being able to aim for specific locations. Another option would be to make it cost 1 AP. A shotgun will do a lot more than 150 if you are adjacent to your target and is also 2 AP to use, plus you can shoot ranged…
Melee attacks hit a random location it seems, or maybe always chest, not sure.
I have a Berserker/Assault level 4 now, but it isn’t really that good. Berserk has no charge action or anything, pretty weak.
I was surprised to see this in the game. In a world where rail guns, laser weapons, power armor with jet pack, few hundred people large settlements powered by nuclear reactors, automatic turrets and god knows how powered airplanes… someone comes up with an idea to employ middle ages tactics to fight mutants, most of which are armed with guns, with a sledge hammer. Do you do that because the armor is so advanced that ballistic weapons are ineffective like in Chronicle of Riddick? No, it’s just those cultists guys are weird like that.
You will actually find that if something has armor 40, all your rifles and shotguns will do 0 damage, while the hammer will do 90 
So melee weapons are in general better against higher armor targets (just like the sniper rifles). The Berserker also has an ability to shred armor.
True, but that just means that something like a battle rifle and slugs would be a viable option. Range is a great advantage, it’s only if you can’t get or negate such advantage, like you or enemy is using very efficient optical camouflage or can travel underground or can drop anywhere from the sky, then melee weapons as primary would make sense. Even a simple low rate of fire due to necessety to use high caliber weapons, like in WH 40k, could lead to such development. Here I see more like just a thing to add variety to the game, while it looks a bit out of place.
In games there tends to be a romanticization of melee combat (40K for example)… actually it’s not even just games, it’s our culture in general, probably comes from the Knights/Samurai tales. I personally prefer to play melee characters in most games, shooting someone never feels quite as rewarding as bashing their brains in.
I think they gave the melee weapons to the faction that makes the most sense. The Disciples of Anu focus more on religion than science, seem to lack resources and have plenty of overcrowding. Even their maps seem more desirable for close quarters fighting.
That said 90% of the weapons in the game are ranged, so…