Far Far West Quad Cylinder After the Homing Burst Nerf — Is It Still Worth Running?
Deep analysis of the Quad Cylinder Homing Burst rework in Far Far West. The fire-reload build is dead — only 16% DPS increase for 5 Joker slots. Comparing alternatives like Consumer and Aiming Burst, plus fix suggestions.
The Quad Cylinder just got changed again in Far Far West. If you saw my recent Homing Burst build video — the one where you fire one shot, reload, and get infinite value — well, the devs saw it too. And they reworked the perk. Again.
Rule number one of finding a really good build: don't talk about the build, otherwise the devs will hear. Rule number two: the devs will hear.
That's my bad. I forgot to mention that. So not only will I claim all the credit for finding the build in the first place, but I'll also take personal responsibility if the Quad Cylinder sucks now. A year from now, if the Quad still sucks — it's on me.
But let's not dwell. Let's talk about what the Quad Cylinder actually got.
The Base Weapon Buffs (The Good News)
| Change | Details |
|---|---|
| Accuracy | +90% (hip fire AND ADS) |
| Recoil | -50% while ADS |
| Ammo | +24 rounds (still the most ammo hungry primary by far) |
| Damage | Supposedly +1, but my old build went from 10/15 body/head to 13/20 |
| New upgrade | Accuracy available as weapon upgrade slot |
These are all genuinely needed buffs, and the gun does feel better. But the unique Jokers? That's where things get complicated.
Homing Burst — The Third Rework (The Bad News)
Homing Burst has changed three times now. It's definitely a problem child to balance — a perk revolving around auto-aimed bonus bullets can easily be over or underpowered.
The Three Versions
| Version | Mechanic | Effective DPS Increase |
|---|---|---|
| V1 | 5 homing bullets every 20 shots | ~25% more bullets |
| V2 (patched) | 5 homing on first + last bullet of magazine | ~42% more bullets (fire-reload was OP) |
| V3 (current) | 1 homing bullet every 6 shots | ~16% more bullets |
The current version is a massive downgrade. 16% increase for five Joker slots is abysmal.
How It Actually Works (It's Weird)
The description says "every six bullets fired," but that's misleading. The homing bullets are tied to specific slot numbers in your magazine, not a running counter.
With a default 24-round magazine, homing procs happen when you have 19, 13, 7, and 1 bullets remaining. This means:
- You can't fire-reload-fire anymore — the counter doesn't carry between magazines
- You must mag dump to get all 4 procs
- Weak Spot Refund can give repeated procs if it refunds bullets at those exact slot numbers
Why It's Underwhelming — The Math
| Joker | Slots | DPS Increase |
|---|---|---|
| Homing Burst (current) | 5 | ~16% |
| Consumer | 4 | 20% (can't reload early) |
| Headbanger | — | 20% (no downside) |
| Aiming Burst | 5 | 30% weak spot + piercing |
Consumer literally outperforms Homing Burst with one less Joker slot. That's the state of things.
My Suggestions for Fixing It
If the current mag-dump design stays:
- Bump proc rate to every 4 bullets → ~25% DPS increase (matches V1)
- Fire 2-3 homing shots every 6 bullets → 33-50% increase, restores crowd control identity
- Reduce cost from 5 slots to 3-4 → proportionally better for the investment
- Make homing bullets have increased on-hit effect chance → like Yondu's arrow bouncing through a crowd proccing elemental explosions
The Yondu's arrow idea is what I'd love to see most — a bouncing homing bullet with 2-4 ricochets through a crowd, producing explosive procs along the way. That sounds awesome and unique.
Aiming Burst — Decent But Weird
Aiming Burst changed from perfect accuracy to:
- +30% weak spot damage (more than Headbanger's 20% — good, since it costs more slots)
- Piercing bullets while ADS — can pierce 2 enemies to hit 3 total
The piercing is more niche than you'd think. Enemies clump but don't line up, and the bullets aren't exactly wide. You'll get some value shooting into crowds, but it's "sort of just there" — you won't complain about the occasional skeleton behind a skeleton dying, but it's an afterthought.
You're taking Aiming Burst for the damage, not the pierce.
The Ricochet Problem
Both unique Jokers are now effectively "some damage + some wave clear" perks. This creates a weird relationship with Ricochet Rounds:
| Combo | Verdict |
|---|---|
| Aiming Burst + Ricochet | Kind of helpful, kind of redundant — doubling up on wave clear feels weird but doesn't hurt |
| Homing Burst + Ricochet | Never do this — waste of slots. Take Consumer instead for more damage OR just take Aiming Burst |
The Honest Question
What build do I actually want to take Homing Burst over any other option now?
Honestly? I don't know.
- If you want damage → Consumer or Aiming Burst beat it
- If you want wave clear → Ricochet beats it
- If you want both → Aiming Burst + Ricochet beats it
Homing Burst is in no-man's land. It's not bad enough to be useless, but it's not good enough to justify five Joker slots over alternatives that do the same things better for cheaper.
The Quad Cylinder's base buffs are great. It feels better than ever as a weapon. But Homing Burst specifically went from "broken OP" to "why would I run this?" in one patch.
We had a glimpse of perfection and now it's gone.
I'll leave you to ponder on that question. For the full breakdown with firing range testing and math comparisons, check out the original video.
