Black Widow/ME3MP

Description
The Alliance wanted to reduce the reload time of the original Widow rifle, without sacrificing its stopping power. The solution was to increase the number of shots the gun could fire before it needed a fresh thermal clip. Heavy for a sniper rifle, the Black Widow's firepower more than compensates for its encumbrance.

Acquisition
Weapons are randomly rewarded through purchases of item packs. The Black Widow is categorized as ultra-rare.

Player Notes

 * The main strength is that the Black Widow has much higher damage than any other semi-automatic rifle--it can kill weaker enemies outright in one shot to the body while stronger targets can be picked off with a single headshot. The high damage, combined with the semi-automatic firing means that this rifle can achieve much higher damage per second than most sniper rifles. Against armor it is virtually unparalleled.
 * The biggest problem, however, is that it weighs as much as the M-98 Widow, making it certain to increase power cooldown times. Because of this, it would be highly recommended to avoid using this weapon on classes that rely heavily on their powers, such as Adepts, Vanguards, or Engineers.


 * Multiplayer
 * The Black Widow does about 25% less damage per bullet than the standard Widow. However, it fires fast enough that it empties all 3 rounds in the time it takes a Widow to fire one and reload. Thus it effectively deals 125% more damage, if you ignore the reset time, accuracy penalty, animation cancellation, and quick-scoping. If this is not ignored, then the M-98 Widow does more damage per second (DPS) than the Black Widow.
 * Much like its earlier counterpart, the Black Widow can pierce through Guardian shields and other light cover. It has an innate 25cm of penetration, which is the lowest of the weapons with innate penetration. Thus, unlike the standard weapon, it is inadvisable to attempt firing at enemy behind cover as there's a high chance that the cover is too thick for it to pierce through. If you wish to focus on killing enemies hiding behind cover, using the Piercing mod will solve the problem.
 * However, the Black Widow is better utilized as a crowd controller and anti-armor weapon. A headshot is enough to kill any unprotected troops, and against armor units (especially Ravagers and Brutes), it'll far out-DPS anything in existence.
 * Spare ammunition is another major factor, as you cannot carry much more than with a basic Widow. Frequent trips to resupply are needed to keep using the Black Widow. This can be countered with the Spare Thermal Clip mod, giving you 50-90% extra ammunition on reserve. More experienced snipers will always make every shot count, so an Extended Barrel may be a better option for them.
 * Another weakness is its high reset time after firing a shot (the time it takes to recenter the crosshairs). This makes it difficult to place follow-up shots up quickly, further reducing the potential rate of fire. This can be lessened by releasing zoom between shots.
 * Compared to the N7 Valiant, the Black Widow has a lower rate of fire, much slower reload, less spare ammunition, and is also much heavier. However, it has natural piercing properties and more damage per shot compared to the Valiant. This makes the Black Widow more suitable for heavy duty work (e.g. Atlases, Banshees, Scions), but less flexible for classes that are not focused on weapons training.
 * Those with access to Gear can increase the damage of the Black Widow by up to 15%. The upgrade drastically increases its effectiveness against armored and shielded targets, allowing the Black Widow to eliminate tough enemies even quicker than before.