is it me or does the minigun just suck stuff
even with maxed heavy gunner i feel like i do more damage with my single-shot laser rifle than a minigun
Yeah, the damage is really low on the basegun, at just 8 damage. And while it's got a high fire-rate, it has awful accuracy, so most of your attacks just don't hit at a mid-long range.
If you have top Heavy Gunner you still only do 16 damage per hit, which is less than some assault rifles, and less accurate.
ANd if you upgrade it to Tri-Barrel, it gains +3 damage, giving you 11 (or 22 with top Heavy Gunner), but the fire-rate actually drops (with a slight increase in accuracy). Possibly making it a less effective gun than before.
Whereas the Gatling Laser can do a base damage of 14 (doubled to 28), and has a fire-rate of 272.
It can then be upgraded twice to get a bonus of 52 damage, giving you 66 total (or 132 doubled).
The Minigun was basically nerfed in order for it to feature early on in the game.
It made for a great moment to fight the Deathclaw in Concord with Power Armor and a Minigun, but you get that weapon so so early that it would be overpowered if its damage was realistic.