M249

The FN Herstal M249, known simply as the M249 in-game (and initially known as the [REDACTED] when it was first released) is a very rare and powerful LMG in surviv.io that was added into the game on February 20th, 2018.

Info
The M249 is arguably the rarest drop in the game along with 15x Scopes. Due to its rarity, it sometimes doesn't spawn at all. It IS possible to find more than one M249 in a single game, however, the odds are astronomically low. Many claim the M249 is the best weapon in the game, but it has a horrendous reload time, movement penalty, and recoil.

Using this weapon

 * The M249 does 75% more damage to cover than other weapons, which can allow you to flush players out of houses and rocks easily.
 * The reload time of this weapon is annoyingly long, so ensure that you are not in a vulnerable position while reloading. Try to take cover in a house while doing this. Or you could force a reload by pressing  and if someone starts attacking you can cancel it by pressing.
 * Be extremely careful with this gun early-game, as you will likely not have high-tier armor and you will be vulnerable to shotgun assaults. People will also target you due to you having the rarest gun in the game.
 * When using this gun, be sure to have a regular pack or better to store lots of ammo. With 100 rounds per reload and a high fire rate, it's essential to have a pack to store ammo.
 * Find a safe place when you reload. You will be entirely vulnerable for 6.7 seconds, long enough for the opponent to use a medkit! Always reload (if you are safe), even if you have a large number of bullets left. 10 or 20 bullets could be the difference between life and death.
 * Or, you could reload on the go with, and if you encounter someone, cancel it with.
 * Keep a shotgun or SMG on hand if possible to prevent quick shotgun assaults from other players.
 * You could also carry another long ranged weapon in case you have to reload the M249 in a long ranged battle.
 * Use this weapon to switch out a lower-powered assault rifle you don't need anymore.
 * M249 will work at both long and close range thanks to its high DPS and high accuracy when standing still.
 * This weapon is best used for outlasting all other weapons at long range, because the M249's actual damage per second isn't that much different from other assault rifles, but at long range average assault rifles will exhaust their magazines once or twice while the M249 continues to pelt enemies, and the effectiveness of assault rifles is greatly reduced the father back their targets are. Also, keeping your distance can allow you some much needed lead time to reload this weapon should it be exhausted.
 * The gigantic 100 round magazine lets you endlessly barrage your opponents in the open and destroy all cover, so continually fire this weapon against all better judgement even if they hide behind environment. Only stop firing if they seek shelter inside or behind other indestructible forms of cover, and use Frag Grenades to flush them out. Also, the M249 is a powerful psychological weapon; if you were to get endlessly fired at by this weapons hailstorm, you would want to back as far away from the source as possible. Doesn't matter if you aren't hitting your mark very much, you got 100 shots, remember?
 * Always, always, ALWAYS immediately begin reloading the M249 after getting a kill (unless more enemies nearby or low health); you can move at normal pace, open doors, and even pick up loot from your kill while reloading. you can always cancel the action by firing, switching weapons, or pressing.

Against

 * Opponents using this weapon are actually quite vulnerable while firing it. They also can only rain down on one person at a time. Try to deal as much damage as possible while the opponent is shooting at another person. Alternatively, use a Sniper or the SCAR-H to deal concentrated damage at a distance if the opponent stands still. Still effective against moving targets as the M249 has a poor moving accuracy. Early game, try to sneak attack the user with fists because the M249 has a long barrel and will not be able to hit you.

Trivia

 * The M249's reload sound is very similar to that of the DP-28.
 * The M249's icon has a 200-round ammo drum, even though the M249 in-game only has a capacity of 100.
 * The M249, the DP-28 and the QBB-97 are the only guns that have visible magazines/ammunition boxes when holding them in game.

Links

 * http://surviv.io/img/loot/loot-weapon-m249.svg