The ZM LR300 is an example of a assault rifle.
Assault rifles will likely be the mainstay of any competent Stalker and the vast majority of NPC's will be equipped with one of many types. Assault Rifles in the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. series can be divided into two groups; NATO and former Warsaw Pact weapons.
Warsaw Pact Rifles[]
These weapons are most likely the first assault rifles that the player will encouter in any S.T.A.L.K.E.R. game. They were designed with ruggedness, reliability, ease of use, and sheer power in mind (despite the fact that many NATO weapons eclipse these and other areas). Most are of the AK family, all have some resemblance to the AK family.
- AKS-74U - The worst assault rifle in all three games; low accuracy, low damage, low rate of fire, moderate to heavy recoil/muzzle climb.
- AKS-74 - Good starter weapon. Medium accuracy and damage, low rate of fire, moderate to heavy recoil/muzzle climb. Shadow of Chernobyl has the AKS-74N by default, meaning it has a side rail for a scope mount. In Clear Sky and Call of Pripyat, you must upgrade the gun to include a scope mount.
- AN-94 "Abakan" - Slightly better than the AKS-74N in all three games. Offers improved accuracy and damage, but still suffers from a low rate of fire.
- AS Val - High end silenced assault rifle. Very accurate and very powerful. Rate of fire is lacking.
- OTs-14 Groza - High end assault rifle. Good accuracy, very high damage. The rate of fire is better than any other Warsaw Pact rifle in all three games. Built in grenade launcher.
NATO Rifles[]
NATO weapons typically offer increased accuracy, better ergonomics and a higher rate of fire. All of the NATO weapons in the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. games are by default chambered for the 5.56x45mm round, which doesn't have any drawbacks compared to the 5.45x39mm rounds.
- Enfield L85A1 - Utterly unreliable, but offers decent accuracy and damage. Slow rate of fire.
- ZM LR-300 - Remarkably better than the L85-A2 overall. Accuracy and damage aren't that different, but the fire rate is greatly improved, and so is the reliability. High chance of jamming when damaged. Can mount a scope and grenade launcher.
- SIG SG-550 - High end assault rifle. Good accuracy and damage, with a mediocre rate of fire. More reliable than the previous NATO weapons.
- Heckler & Koch G36 - High end assault rifle. Great accuracy with medium damage. High rate of fire, low recoil, and good reliability. Built-in 1.8x scope.
- FN F2000 - High end assault rifle. Great accuracy and moderate damage. Very high rate of fire and good reliability. Built-in 1.6x scope and EGLM grenade launcher.