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The Desert Eagle Jaws meta once reigned supreme during the Once Human beta tests. How does it fare now that the game is out in its 1.0 full release? Well, it’s still busted and isn’t just the most powerful pistol build in the game, but also among the most overpowered builds in general. If you want to relive those Wild West beta days, slinging hand cannons in Once Human‘s apocalypse, then our Jaws meta build is here to help you achieve it.
Best Weapon for the Once Human Jaws Meta Build
Of course, there is no other choice here. Your main weapon will be none other than DE.50 – Jaws. You can obtain it from the Wish Machine but it costs 8,000 Starchrom for each blueprint (or blueprint fragment).
However, you can always test out your luck, you might win it in a gacha gamble. You’ll mostly be using DE.50 Jaws, but it doesn’t hurt to have auxiliary weapons. So this is what I recommend for your primary and secondary along with the mods needed for the build.
| Weapon Name | Mods |
| DE.50 – Jaws | Reckless Bomber |
| Recurve Crossbow | Vulnerability Amplifier |
The Recurve Crossbow is naturally for targets who are further away or if you’re looking to conserve ammunition. The Bull’s Eye status effect grants a substantial damage buff, so you might want to open the combat with it.
Of course, it goes without saying, that both weapons should be:
- Fully Calibrated at Tier V (5)
- Fully Enhanced with all blueprint fragments (or close to it)
- Equipped with Accessories
That’s quite a long Starchrom grind for the Jaws pistol, but it will be worth it.
Best Armor for the Once Human Jaws Meta Build
Apart from the DE.50 – Jaws, you need another crucial piece of gear to make this build truly overpowered for just about any scenario. That would be none other than the Shaman Vulture Top, which is also expensive at 8,000 Starchrom in the Wish Machine.
So you might want to conserve your Starchrom for this top and the Jaws pistol. I’ll also be recommending several 2-piece set items below. In any case, you can further bolster the build’s power by slotting in these specific mods per armor piece.
| Armor Name | Mods |
| Helmet: Shelterer | Fateful Strike / Conditional Elemental DMG |
| Mask: Bastille | Point Detonation |
| Gloves: Savior | Crit Amplifier |
| Shoes: Savior | Covered Advance / Slow and Steady |
| Top: Shaman Vulture Top | Crit / Status / Elemental DMG mod |
| Pants: Shelterer | Deadshot |
As you can see, you’re going to be a bit of a glass cannon here, but the damage output is phenomenal enough that you don’t really need to worry about enemy attacks too much (unless you’re in PvP).
All you need to worry about is keeping your HP above 70 percent to get the bonuses from Bastille and Savior armor pieces. You can also replace the Shelterer, Savior, or even the Bastille set with the Falcon set gear or just about any damage-focused purple gear you have.
Just whatever you do, make sure you have the Shaman Vulture Top. That top and the mods are the more important components for our Jaws meta build in Once Human.
Deviation and Memetics Cradle Choices for the Jaws Meta Build
For the Deviation, it would be none other than Lonewolf’s Whisper once again. This one is great for boss fights as it will draw aggro for you and it also works well against mobs. More importantly, it pairs well with some of our mods like Covered Advance. You can also choose other Deviations if you prefer, but Lonewolf’s Whisper hits two birds with one stone.
You can find the Lonewolf’s Whisper Deviation in the Monolith of Thirst dungeon (Level 40). Just make sure to use Lonewolf’s Whisper as often as you can in fights for a huge damage boost (more on that later).
For the Memetics Cradle Override, pick the following. You can change them to your liking free of charge if you want to experiment around.
| Cradle Choices | Effect |
| Handgun Enhancement | DMG +20% when holding SMGs, rifles, or LMGs. Reload 10% of magazine capacity from reserve upon defeating an enemy. |
| Deviation Master / Agility (for PvP) | Having it fight alongside grants DMG + 50% against Deviants. |
| Sprint | Movement Speed +5%, Running Stamina Cost -15%. |
| Tactical Combo | Weapon DMG +25% for 4s after switching weapon or reloading. |
| First Round Blast | After reloading, Instant DMG (Power Surge and Unstable Bomber) +25% for 4s. |
| Rapid Aid | Reduces the cooldown of healing items by -30% and increases the healing effect by +15%. |
| Status Enhancement | After hitting a weakspot, Status DMG + 25% for 3s. |
| Master Tactician / Brawl Boost (for PvP) | After using a tactical item, DMG against the Great Ones (bosses) +25% for 15s. |
The setup varies depending on which server you belong to, but generally, you don’t really want Master Tactician for PvP servers as having Brawl Boost is better there for when other players try to grief you.
Even for PvE servers, you can still replace Master Tactician with something else if you don’t like using grenades or Molotov before shooting. With that said, here’s how this build plays.
Playstyle for the Once Human Jaws Meta Build
If you have everything recommended in this build, along with the Jaws pistol and the Shaman Vulture Top, it’s time to follow this specific rotation so you can maximize damage:
- Using the Recurve Crossbow, hit an enemy’s weakspot to trigger The Bull’s Eye buff.
- If you’re fighting a boss, throw a Molotov or a Grenade (no need to hit them). We just need to trigger Master Tactician. For regular mobs, skip this step.
- Bring your Lonewolf’s Whisper Deviation out.
- Shoot once or twice.
- Reload (to trigger all your reload buffs).
- Shoot continuously and unload your whole clip on the target.
- Avoid taking damage to keep Covered Advance’s buff active.
That’s a lot of steps before you start gunslinging, but the good news is that our Jaws meta build is so powerful that you don’t really need to religiously follow the rotation. Just open up the combat with your bullets and your fighting words. You might do less damage if you mess up the rotation, but no one will be laughing at you– no one alive, that is.
