Deep Rock Galactic

Deep Rock Galactic

77 ratings
Deepcore 40mm PGL Maximum Kill Radius Optimization (u35)
By ISAAC ND5
In this guide, we take the Deepcore 40mm PGL and do too much math for a negligible reward.
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Overview
HEY! Watch this video by LazyMaybe. Its basically this guide but enjoyable.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sJJM9eg_kHw

The PGL is a grenade launcher. It blows stuff up. Here, we do some super complicated math to find the best way to do it! Everything in this guide is from my findings and the DRG wiki. And Google.

I will be covering all the PGL's overclocks in this guide. Some will require more math than others. I will do many variations of each OC as well.

Also, when considering a weapons setup, I will simplify to the build like this. Say the build is:
tier 1, mod 2
tier 2, mod 1
tier 3, mod 1
tier 4, mod 3
tier 5, mod 2
I will simply say 21132 instead. Simple.

Also, I will only be messing with tier 1, 2, and 3 for build variations. In tier 4 I will use + radius because this guide is about maximum radius. The stun doesn't do any additional damage, and the RNG only provides an average of +10% more dmg.
For tier 5, I will be using proximity trigger because it has a x1.1m
Breakpoints
This will simply outline some breakpoints that I'm using.



A Glyphid Grunt has 108 hp on Haz 5. That is the primary breakpoint for explosive builds. Also!!!! The Armor break mod is BROKEN as of 6/16/22. It basically doesn't work.




When we use fire builds, the most important numbers are 35, 60, and 100. The PGL will never do less than 37.5 fire damage which means it will always ignite glyphid grunts and all mactera as well as acid spitters. 60 will ignite glyphid guards and detonators, and 100 will ignite praetorians and oppressors.
Maths
Ok, so i found this nifty equation on the DRG wiki that calculates damage fall off from explosives. Here's the link to the page.

https://deeprockgalactic.gamepedia.com/Area_Damage

And here's the equation:

dmg(x) = (AreaDmg - MinAreaDmg) * (Radius - x) / (Radius - MaxAreaDmg) + MinAreaDmg

dmg(x) will be the damage output x meters from the center of the blast. We want dmg(x) to be 108, as that will kill regular glyphids on haz 5 at maximum radius.

Also from the wiki, we can get more info about the PGL.
Here's the link to the PGL's page:

https://deeprockgalactic.gamepedia.com/Deepcore_40mm_PGL

Here's what's on the wiki:



This is the PGL's base stats with some hidden stats not seen in game. What we need from here is the Maximum Damage Radius, and the Minimum Damage. Maximum Damage Radius is how far from the center of the blast the PGL does full dmg. Minimum Damage is the lowest amount of dmg the PGL will do at the edge of the blast.

I'll be doing all the math for you so don't worry.
(hopefully correctly XD)
Many of these numbers come out to be very similar, so I'll only be including the best builds. If the numbers don't meet a breakpoint, I won't include the build. Unless I do for some other reason. IDK.

Let's do an example with the base PGL. MaxDmgRad is 2m and MinDmg is 50%. Dmg is 110 and Radius is 3m. Let's see the equation again:

dmg(x) = (AreaDmg - MinAreaDmg) * (Radius - x) / (Radius - MaxAreaDmg) + MinAreaDmg

To calculate MinAreaDmg, we simply multiply Dmg x MinDmg and we get 55. This is how much damage the PGL does at the edge of it's blast radius. Now Let's plug in those numbers!

108 = (110 - 55) * (3 - x) / (3 - 2) + 55

Now we solve for X using Google yay! Google will graph our equation for us if we leave 108 as y.



I won't be putting graphs in for the rest of the guide, I'll just tell u the number. As we can see here, y=108 when x=2.036. So the Base PGL with no mods will kill a haz 5 glyphid at 2.036 meters.
No Overclock


No Overclock. So u can build your gun that way too. So that's cool. Oh also, these stats are identical to Pack Rat OC except for the 2 ammo. C/P op.




Armor Break Builds

(1)
  • 22221
  • 130 AreaDmg
  • 4.4m
  • 11 Ammo.
  • Kill Radius = 2.81
If you want a kill radius over 2m but also want some more ammo, this is your build.


(2)
  • 32221
  • 150 AreaDmg
  • 4.4m
  • 9 Ammo.
  • Kill Radius = 3.34
This is the maximum kill radius you will get without overclocks.




Fire Builds

For fire builds, we're not doing math. Fire has no damage fall off, and most of these builds can't kill glyphid grunts with explosive damage alone.

(1)
  • 11121
  • 110 AreaDmg(1/2 is Fire)
  • 5.5M
  • 11 Ammo.
  • Kill Radius = Null
This does 55 dmg at 2m. This will ignite most anything except glyphid guards, bulks, and praetorians in a 5.5m radius. If using tier 5 direct damage, this would ignite guards and bulks with a direct shot.


(2)
  • 21121
  • 110 AreaDmg(1/2 is Fire)
  • 4.4M
  • 13 Ammo.
  • Kill Radius = Null
This does 55 dmg at 2m. This will ignite most anything except glyphid guards, bulks, and praetorians in a 4.4m radius. If using tier 5 direct damage, this would ignite guards and bulks with a direct shot.


(3)
  • 12121
  • 130 AreaDmg(1/2 is Fire)
  • 5.5M
  • 9 Ammo.
  • Kill Radius = Null
This does 65 dmg at 2m. This will ignite most anything except praetorians in a 5.5m radius.


(4)
  • 22121
  • 130 AreaDmg(1/2 is Fire)
  • 4.4M
  • 11 Ammo.
  • Kill Radius = Null
This does 65 dmg at 2m. This will ignite most anything except praetorians in a 4.4m radius. Probably the best fire build without overclocks.


(5)
  • 32121
  • 150 AreaDmg(1/2 is Fire)
  • 4.4M
  • 9 Ammo.
  • Kill Radius = Null
This does 75 dmg at 2m. This will ignite most anything except praetorians in a 4.4m radius. If using tier 5 direct damage, this would ignite praetorians with a direct shot.
Clean Sweep OC


Clean Sweep is a clean OC. It gives +10 Area Damage and +0.5m Radius with no downsides. Ok let's build it!




Armor Break Builds

(1)
  • 12221
  • 140 AreaDmg
  • 6.1m
  • 9 Ammo
  • Kill Radius = 3.87m
Good radius right there. A reliable build.


(2)
  • 21221
  • 120 AreaDmg
  • 4.9m
  • 13 Ammo
  • Kill Radius = 2.59m
Gain 4 rounds at the cost of 1.28m. Yikes!


(3)
  • 31221
  • 140 AreaDmg
  • 4.9m
  • 11 Ammo
  • Kill Radius = 3.32m
Like build 1 but +2 ammo for -0.55m.


(4)
  • 32221
  • 160 AreaDmg
  • 4.9m
  • 9 Ammo
  • Kill Radius = 3.88m
Direct upgrade from build 1 with an increase of 0.01m. Build 1 has a larger overall blast radius though.


(5)
Thought I'd include this build for fun. This is the best build with randomized damage instead of +1 radius in tier 4.
  • 12211
  • ~154 AreaDmg
  • 4.9m
  • 9 Ammo
  • Kill Radius = ~3.73m
This build has an average of 3.73m kill radius, 0.15m less than the best. The smallest kill radius is 2.20m which isn't too shabby, and the largest kill radius is 4.60m. Not a bad build.




Fire Builds

For fire builds, we're not doing math. Fire has no damage fall off, and most of these builds can't kill glyphid grunts with explosive damage alone.

(1)
  • 11121
  • 120 AreaDmg(1/2 is Fire)
  • 6.1M
  • 11 Ammo.
  • Kill Radius = Null
This does 60 dmg at 2m. This will ignite most anything except praetorians in a 6.1m radius.


(2)
  • 21121
  • 120 AreaDmg(1/2 is Fire)
  • 4.9M
  • 13 Ammo.
  • Kill Radius = Null
Just like build 1, but trades +2 ammo for 1.2m.


(3)
  • 22121
  • 140 AreaDmg(1/2 is Fire)
  • 4.9M
  • 9 Ammo.
  • Kill Radius = Null
This does 70 dmg at 2m. This will ignite most anything except praetorians in a 4.9m radius. With direct damage instead of proxy, it will ignite praetorians with a direct shot.
Pack Rat OC


Pack rat offers +2 ammo with no downside. Identical to using no overclock in terms of damage per shot.




Armor Break Builds

(1)
  • 22221
  • 130 AreaDmg
  • 4.4m
  • 13 Ammo.
  • Kill Radius = 2.81
If you want a kill radius over 2m but also want some more ammo, this is your build.


(2)
  • 32221
  • 150 AreaDmg
  • 4.4m
  • 11 Ammo.
  • Kill Radius = 3.34
This is the maximum kill radius for this overclock.




Fire Builds

For fire builds, we're not doing math. Fire has no damage fall off, and most of these builds can't kill glyphid grunts with explosive damage alone.

(1)
  • 11121
  • 110 AreaDmg(1/2 is Fire)
  • 5.5M
  • 13 Ammo.
  • Kill Radius = Null
This does 55 dmg at 2m. This will ignite most anything except glyphid guards, bulks, and praetorians in a 5.5m radius. If using tier 5 direct damage, this would ignite guards and bulks with a direct shot.


(2)
  • 21121
  • 110 AreaDmg(1/2 is Fire)
  • 4.4M
  • 15 Ammo.
  • Kill Radius = Null
This does 55 dmg at 2m. This will ignite most anything except glyphid guards, bulks, and praetorians in a 4.4m radius. If using tier 5 direct damage, this would ignite guards and bulks with a direct shot.


(3)
  • 12121
  • 130 AreaDmg(1/2 is Fire)
  • 5.5M
  • 11 Ammo.
  • Kill Radius = Null
This does 65 dmg at 2m. This will ignite most anything except praetorians in a 5.5m radius.


(4)
  • 22121
  • 130 AreaDmg(1/2 is Fire)
  • 4.4M
  • 13 Ammo.
  • Kill Radius = Null
This does 65 dmg at 2m. This will ignite most anything except praetorians in a 4.4m radius. A balance between ammo and damage.


(5)
  • 32121
  • 150 AreaDmg(1/2 is Fire)
  • 4.4M
  • 11 Ammo.
  • Kill Radius = Null
This does 75 dmg at 2m. This will ignite most anything except praetorians in a 4.4m radius. If using tier 5 direct damage, this would ignite praetorians with a direct shot.
Compact Rounds OC


Compact Rounds is a balanced OC. It gives +5 ammo with -10 Area Damage and -0.5m Radius.




Armor Break Builds

(1)
  • 31221
  • 120 AreaDmg
  • 3.8m
  • 16 Ammo
  • Kill Radius = 2.36m
A decent build. 16 rounds is nothing to scoff at, but not very powerful.


(2)
  • 32221
  • 140 AreaDmg
  • 3.8m
  • 14 Ammo
  • Kill Radius = 2.82m
Like build 1 but trades -2 ammo for +0.46m. The best aoe explosive build for this OC.




Fire Builds

For fire builds, we're not doing math. Fire has no damage fall off, and most of these builds can't kill glyphid grunts with explosive damage alone.

(1)
  • 11121
  • 100 AreaDmg(1/2 is Fire)
  • 4.9M
  • 16 Ammo.
  • Kill Radius = Null
This does 50 dmg at 2m. This will ignite most anything except glyphid guards, bulks, and praetorians in a 4.9m radius. With direct damage instead of proxy, it will ignite bulks and guards with a direct shot.


(2)
  • 21121
  • 100 AreaDmg(1/2 is Fire)
  • 3.8M
  • 18 Ammo.
  • Kill Radius = Null
This does 50 dmg at 2m. This will ignite most anything except glyphid guards, bulks, and praetorians in a 3.8m radius. With direct damage instead of proxy, it will ignite guards and bulks with a direct shot.


(3)
  • 12121
  • 120 AreaDmg(1/2 is Fire)
  • 4.9M
  • 14 Ammo.
  • Kill Radius = Null
This does 60 dmg at 2m. This will ignite most anything except praetorians in a 4.9m radius.


(4)
  • 22121
  • 120 AreaDmg(1/2 is Fire)
  • 3.8M
  • 16 Ammo.
  • Kill Radius = Null
This does 60 dmg at 2m. This will ignite most anything except praetorians in a 3.8m radius.


(5)
  • 32121
  • 140 AreaDmg(1/2 is Fire)
  • 3.8M
  • 14 Ammo.
  • Kill Radius = Null
This does 70 dmg at 2m. This will ignite most anything except praetorians in a 3.8m radius. If using direct damage instead of proxy, it will ignite a praetorian with a direct shot.
RJ250 Compound


The RJ250 Compound is a balanced OC. It gives the ability to rocket jump with a -35 Area Damage and a 1.7x ammo multiplier. This OC is a utility, and does not have many options for killing. Also, proxy had a change which benefits us here. When the projectile comes to a stop, it explodes. This means that we can use proxy's x1.1m bonus and still rocket jump. Yay.




Armor Break Builds

(1)
  • 32221
  • 115 AreaDmg
  • 4.4m
  • 15 Ammo
  • Kill Radius = 2.29m
This is the only build that can kill grunts in 1 shot, and at 2.29m, it's kinda terrible.




Fire Builds

For fire builds, we're not doing math. Fire has no damage fall off, and none of these builds can kill glyphid grunts with explosive damage alone.

(1)
  • 11121
  • 75 AreaDmg(1/2 is Fire)
  • 5.5M
  • 18 Ammo.
  • Kill Radius = Null
This does 37.5 dmg at 2m. This will ignite most anything except guards, bulks, and praetorians in a 5.5m radius. If using direct damage instead of proxy, it will ignite bulks and guards with a direct hit.


(2)
  • 21122
  • 75 AreaDmg(1/2 is Fire)
  • 4.4M
  • 21 Ammo.
  • Kill Radius = Null
This does 37.5 dmg at 2m. This is the most ammo you can carry for any PGL build. This will ignite most anything except praetorians in a 4.4m radius. If using direct damage instead of proxy, it will ignite bulks and guards with a direct hit.
Fat Boy


Fat Boy is an unstable OC. It gives a x4 Area Damage and +1m Radius with the downsides of x0.3 Max ammo and x0.7 Projectile Velocity.

With this OC the math doesn't really matter. It will kill stuff way outside its kill radius because of the radiation.




Armor Break Builds

(1)
  • 11221
  • 440 AreaDmg
  • 6.6m
  • 4 Ammo
  • Kill Radius = 6.6m
This is the best AOE for the PGL. Some fun facts, the minimum explosive damage it will do is 220 which is more than enough to kill grunts and slashers, but not guards. Guards will be left with 104 hp, so they will quickly die to radiation anyways.


(2)
  • 21221
  • 440 AreaDmg
  • 5.5m
  • 5 Ammo
  • Kill Radius = 5.5m
This is what I use because when resupplying, you will get 3 shots back. Also minimum damage is 220. Again.


(3)
  • 32221
  • 580 AreaDmg
  • 5.5m
  • 3 Ammo.
  • Kill Radius = 5.5m
Most Dmg build. Low ammo. The minimum explosive Dmg it will do is 290, which will leave guards at only 34 hp. Pretty neat. Also, 580 is just under 1/2 a praetorians hp on haz 5.5, which is the elite deep dive stage 3.




Fire Builds

When doing fire with the Fat Boy, your trading raw Dmg for... less Dmg. Choosing fire simply makes the blast less damaging. The least amount of damage it will do is 110, which is still enough to kill grunts, so using fire only makes your weapon worse against stronger enemies. Then again, stacking explosive, fire, and radiation is kinda amazing.
Hyper Prop OC


Hyper Propellant is an unstable OC. It gives +385 Direct Damage and + 350% projectile velocity with the downsides of x0.3 Radius and -2 Max Ammo.

So the Hyper Prop doesn't really have a blast radius. No math required. Yay! Also, it's designed for direct damage, so we will not be using proxy.




Armor Break Builds

(1)
  • 11222
  • 110 AreaDmg
  • 445 DirDmg
  • 1.5m
  • 9 Ammo
  • Kill Radius = 1.5m
With this build, the maximum radius is less than the MaxDmgRadius of 2m, so it has no damage fall off. With this build, you can kill 4 or 5 grunts when they're grouped up. If you're lucky.


(2)
  • 21222
  • 110 AreaDmg
  • 445 DirDmg
  • 1.2m
  • 11 Ammo
  • Kill Radius = 1.2m
This is the most ammo build. You can still kill small groups of grunts, but it is harder.




Fire Builds

Ok so, like doing more damage, then doing half that with fire sounds pretty bad right? Well it's either broken or uh... balanced? The direct damage is uneffected, and continues to do full damage, but choosing fire means you have to shoot a praetorian in the flesh to do maximum damage.

(1)
  • 11122
  • 110 AreaDmg(1/2 Fire)
  • 445 DirDmg(1/2 Fire)
  • 1.5m
  • 9 Ammo
  • Kill Radius = Null
A direct shot does 500 damage, and does 55 FireDmg within 1.5m. This can ignite anything except guards, bulks, and praetorians within 1.5m, and it will ignite bulks and praetorians with a direct shot. It would ignite guards with a direct shot too, if it didn't just kill them.


(2)
  • 12122
  • 130 AreaDmg
  • 445 DirDmg
  • 1.5m
  • 7 Ammo
  • Kill Radius = Null
A direct shot does 510 damage, and also does 65 FireDmg within 1.5m. This can ignite anything except praetorians within 1.5m, and it can ignite praetorians with a direct shot.


(3)
  • 31122
  • 125 AreaDmg
  • 445 DirDmg
  • 1.2m
  • 9 Ammo
  • Kill Radius = Null
A direct shot does 507.5 damage, and also does 62.5 FireDmg within 1.2m. This can ignite anything except praetorians within 1.2m, and it can ignite praetorians with a direct shot.
Best Builds Highlights
Now that we've effectively mathed all the way, let's compare the numbers. These are the best builds in my opinion based on what I've found.





(2)
  • 32221
  • 150 AreaDmg
  • 4.4m
  • 9 Ammo.
  • Kill Radius = 3.34
This is the maximum kill radius you will get without overclocks.




(3)
  • 12121
  • 130 AreaDmg(1/2 is Fire)
  • 5.5M
  • 9 Ammo.
  • Kill Radius = Null
This does 65 dmg at 2m. This will ignite most anything except praetorians in a 5.5m radius.






(1)
  • 12221
  • 140 AreaDmg
  • 6.1m
  • 9 Ammo
  • Kill Radius = 3.87m
Besides the fatboy oc, the most aoe you can do is 3.88. This build has an additional 1m extra on the edge, and I think the -0.01m kill radius is worth it.




(1)
  • 11121
  • 120 AreaDmg(1/2 is Fire)
  • 6.1M
  • 11 Ammo.
  • Kill Radius = Null
This does 60 dmg at 2m. This will ignite most anything except praetorians in a 6.1m radius.






(2)
  • 32221
  • 150 AreaDmg
  • 4.4m
  • 11 Ammo.
  • Kill Radius = 3.34
This is the same build as if having no overclocks, but +2 ammo. Thanks packrat.




(3)
  • 12121
  • 130 AreaDmg(1/2 is Fire)
  • 5.5M
  • 11 Ammo.
  • Kill Radius = Null
This does 65 dmg at 2m. This will ignite most anything except praetorians in a 5.5m radius.






(2)
  • 32221
  • 140 AreaDmg
  • 3.8m
  • 14 Ammo
  • Kill Radius = 2.82m
Not very good, but its the best aoe for this oc.



(3)
  • 12121
  • 120 AreaDmg(1/2 is Fire)
  • 4.9M
  • 14 Ammo.
  • Kill Radius = Null
This does 60 dmg at 2m. This will ignite most anything except praetorians in a 4.9m radius.






(1)
  • 32222
  • 115 AreaDmg
  • 60 DirDmg
  • 4m
  • 15 Ammo
  • Kill Radius = 2.24m
This is the only build that can kill grunts in 1 shot, and at 2.24m, it's kinda terrible.




(1)
  • 11121
  • 75 AreaDmg(1/2 is Fire)
  • 5.5M
  • 18 Ammo.
  • Kill Radius = Null
This does 37.5 dmg at 2m. This will ignite most anything except guards, bulks, and praetorians in a 5.5m radius. If using direct damage instead of proxy, it will ignite bulks and guards with a direct hit.






(1)
  • 11221
  • 440 AreaDmg
  • 6.6m
  • 4 Ammo
  • Kill Radius = 6.6m
This is the best AOE for the PGL. Some fun facts, the minimum explosive damage it will do is 220 which is more than enough to kill grunts and slashers, but not guards. Guards will be left with 104 hp, but they will quickly die to radiation anyways.




LOL no fire builds for the Fatboy. Literally not worth it. Unless you think it's cool. That's fine.






(1)
  • 11222
  • 110 AreaDmg
  • 445 DirDmg
  • 1.5m
  • 9 Ammo
  • Kill Radius = 1.5m
The maximum radius is less than the maximum damage radius which is 2m, so it has no damage fall off. With this build, you can kill 4 or 5 grunts when they're grouped up. If you're lucky.



(1)
  • 11122
  • 110 AreaDmg(1/2 Fire)
  • 445 DirDmg(1/2 Fire)
  • 1.5m
  • 9 Ammo
  • Kill Radius = Null
A direct shot does 500 damage, and does 55 FireDmg within 1.5m. This can ignite anything except guards, bulks, and praetorians within 1.5m, and it will ignite bulks and praetorians with a direct shot. It would ignite guards with a direct shot too, if it didn't just kill them.
Conclusion
I had fun bringing this weapons' stats to light, and I hope you had a blast (LOL). So uh fire is basically the best way to go, but just going explosive has some options too. The best explosive aoe being 3.88m. Fire being like 5.5m. Much better. Rock and Stone!

Also, i mentioned this at the start, but watch it again!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sJJM9eg_kHw
28 Comments
LucentFive19 18 Dec, 2021 @ 2:49pm 
It is always good to have a update it guide for this weapon, it is true that Breach Cutter is overall better because... Breach Cutter, but PGL is a good weapon and it really does the job either clearing hordes or doing a lot of single target damage. Thank for this guide!3 <3
skamvi 4 Mar, 2021 @ 10:49pm 
nah it rounds up,Its why engies need to be less afraid of using the fat boi
Thorlian 25 Feb, 2021 @ 11:09am 
Wait you can get 3 ammo from a pod with the fat boy? I always though it rounded down :conwayheadscratch:
irontank 20 Feb, 2021 @ 9:02pm 
in the best builds for no OC fire build it lists having 11 ammo but I can only get mine to 9. Did I miss something or is that a typo in the loadout?
ISAAC ND5  [author] 9 Feb, 2021 @ 3:22pm 
uh... yes. 50% of the damage from both aoe and direct is converted to fire. so 110 with 60 direct will do 55 and 30 fire damage. the 30 from direct hit still only works with as a direct hit.
Drillboy Jenkins 9 Feb, 2021 @ 2:04pm 
Sooooo... does the fire mod give 50% heat from both damage components but only cuts AoE for HP??

Sounds rly interesting, thoug AP is still the musthave due to ability to cheese rollers and
preats from any position.
ARZIAC 9 Feb, 2021 @ 8:14am 
Nice. That's good to know you can add some lingering damage too.
ISAAC ND5  [author] 9 Feb, 2021 @ 6:09am 
So using fire hyper prop, i was able to set both a praetorian and oppressor on fire in 1 shot. both haf a burning temp of 100 degrees, and fire damage from the aoe is 55, so some has to come out of the direct shot
ARZIAC 8 Feb, 2021 @ 9:01pm 
I'm actually intrigued now. So does that mean it can apply full fire damage with hyper prop due to direct damage or is T3 fire only used by explosive?
ISAAC ND5  [author] 8 Feb, 2021 @ 6:32pm 
wow ye ur rite. it might be a miscalculation cuz the hyper prop doesnt do explosive damage on direct. its a different projectile so it can hit weakpoints