Planetside 2 NS-15 Gallows

Right after acquiring the Shuriken, I started looking into other directives that I could complete. After some investigation, the Bounties directive appeared to be the next candidate for completion. And so, the adventure begins.

Bounties

When a player makes a 10-kill streak without being killed, a bounty is placed on them. The bounty remains in effect until 3 deaths after the bounty was placed. When a player kills an opponent with a bounty, they are awarded a point towards the Bounty directive for the weapon type used.

To complete this directive, one needs to use 5 weapon types, claiming 50 bounties each. Weapon types include knives, submachine guns (SMGs), light machine guns (LMGs), shotguns, assault rifles, explosives, sniper rifles, carbines, and rocket launchers.

At the end of this directive line is the title of "Bounty Hunter" and the NS-15 Gallows LMG. Not a lot is known about this weapon prior to acquiring it. You can't compare it against other LMGs in-game as you're not in the weapons browser UI. There isn't a wikia page for it. There aren't many reviews for it either.

Acquisition

Moving on to acquisition, completing this directive is very challenging. You'd have to face off with the game's most clever, most deadly, most experienced players. After all, one does not simply get a kill streak. You also have to play weapons and classes you've probably never played with.

My playstyle mostly revolves around quick and deadly encounters. SMGs, knives, and shotguns were a no-brainer. I'm no stranger to LMGs either since I used to main a Heavy Assault. Assault Rifles were a bit of a challenge as I've never mained a Medic, and Medics don't have offense-boosting tricks.

Explosives, Launchers, and Carbines were out of the question as their time-to-kill (TTK) were too high for me. Sniper rifles were also a no-go. Most bountied players can be found in indoor battles, and CQB sniping isn't a fun exercise over long periods of time.

The NS-15 Gallows

As for the NS-15 Gallows, it's... (drum roll please).

It's really just a reskin of the NS-15M2.

It's the NS-15M2 with a slightly different model and skin. However, stats, handling, audio, available attachments, all the same. It's not like other directive weapons which are pre-configured, slightly-buffed variants of their regular counterparts. For this one, it's really just a reskinned version of its regular counterpart.

But it's a free weapon, so who am I to complain? 🤷‍♂️

Closing thoughts

If your the type of person who collects directive rewards regardless of actual performance, or if you're just in it for the bragging rights and cool skin, the NS-15 Gallows will make a nice addition to your collection. The title of "Bounty Hunter" and an LMG with a skull sticker will make you look scarier than usual.

But, if you're after its performance, you'll be disappointed. There is nothing special about the NS-15 Gallows. If you don't have the time and/or patience, and have about 1000 certs (or equivalent cash) to burn, you can just get the NS-15M2. Buying with cash, you also have the option to buy the gold, black, and heatwave versions.

The NS-15 Gallows is a decent gun, it's the NS-15M2 after all. But I feel like it's more for the completionists among us, and not the ones after a harder/better/faster/stronger weapon.

PS: Completion timestamps were erased from the directive screenshot. I don't like exposing my gaming habits. 😝