With Season 8 hitting Apex Legends in February, the gold-rarity weapon hop-up, Anvil Receiver, made its return. It massively improves the semi-automatic fire modes for the R-301 and Flatline assault rifles, making them extremely versatile weapons in the arena.

First introduced in Season 3 along with Crypto and World’s Edge, Anvil Receiver stayed in the game until the start of Season 5. Given that it is one of the rarest pieces of loot, finding an Anvil Receiver is difficult but always a welcome bonus that can massively enhance the effective range of a player’s assault rifle.

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The Anvil Receiver hop-up is only compatible with the light ammo R-301 and heavy ammo Flatline assault rifles. It can be found as ground loot throughout Apex Legends matches and in care packages. Its primary function is that it substantially boosts the damage of each bullet when these rifles are fired in their single-fire modes.

A regular body shot with the R-301 will deal 14 damage, but this increases by over double to 35 with Anvil Receiver toggled. Likewise, for the Flatline, the hop-up boosts body shot damage from 19 to 43. Since the R-301 and Flatline deal double the damage for headshots, a single well-placed bullet will deal 70 and 86 damage, respectively. Even if an enemy has a purple helmet and purple armor, a player can knock them down with four headshots using an Anvil Receiver on either weapon.

This high damage comes at the cost of a slower-than-usual rate of fire, as well as increased ammo consumption, however. While the normal single-fire modes for these weapons appear to have no fire rate cap and can be fired as fast as the player can pull the trigger, the Anvil Receiver places a hefty cap on the fire rates for both weapons. Furthermore, each Anvil Receiver shot consumes two ammo instead of one, so players will need to keep a close eye on their ammo inventory to ensure they are not caught short when it is time to switch to fully automatic.

Because of the natural versatility of the R-301 and Flatline, the Anvil Receiver is a great attachment to have when possible. The R-301 is great at close-medium range fights, but that extra damage from an Anvil Receiver makes it a much more reliable weapon through the medium to long ranges. As for the Flatline – an already solid medium range assault rifle – it becomes a great long-range weapon that rivals the new 30-30 Repeater due to its similar damage and a higher rate of fire.

If players find themselves with an Anvil Receiver equipped on their weapon, the correct optic is an important consideration. Overall, the 2x HCOG is an excellent choice for both the R-301 and Flatline. It offers a clear view and decent zoom that is not so high that it makes a weapon unusable at close range. Using this optic will ensure the R-301 and Flatline remain adaptable assault rifles and players should always switch between fully and semi-automatic fire modes to match the range of the battle.

If players want to lean into the enhanced long-range effectiveness of their assault rifles, then the 3x HCOG is also a good option. However, players need to bear in mind that the 3x HCOG is significantly harder to use at close range. Using a higher zoom optic like this one will also make the assault rifles more like marksman rifles which are good for poke damage at extended ranges. Players need to also be using a reliable close-range weapon to quickly switch to.

The R-99 SMG pairs well with both the R-301 and Flatline with Anvil Receiver for aggressive playstyles, but players need to bear in mind that the double ammo consumption of Anvil Receiver will make ammo management a more important concern if players are using an R-301 and an R-99.

Alternatively, the Volt SMG and Mastiff shotgun are all strong options for aggressive players that will nicely fill the close and very close-range fights that an assault rifle cannot. For more defensive players, an LMG, such as the Spitfire or Devotion, can help provide suppressing fire between carefully aimed shots using the Anvil Receiver assault rifle with a higher zoom optic.

Anvil Receiver is an excellent hop-up for the R-301 and Flatline, but its rarity means players should not build their entire loadout around finding one. Hopefully, it will not be removed from the loot pool after two seasons and sticks around for Season 9 of Apex Legends and beyond.

Apex Legends is available now on PC, PS4, and Xbox One, and will come to Nintendo Switch on March 9.

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