Not to be confused with Recoil.
Accuracy describes the set path projectiles will travel when fired from a weapon. The lower the accuracy number, the less accurate the weapon is and the bigger the chance is for bullets to spread or skew off the target reticle. Recoil plays a role in Accuracy, but is a separate mechanic, but go hand-in-hand with some weapons.
The majority of single-shot weapons are very accurate, the first shot landing exactly where you aim most of the time. Other weapons however, have low accuracy and tend to be used for close or medium range combat situations, like the Gorgon at full spool.
While recoil can be improved through modding, weapon accuracy generally cannot be improved beyond its base amount, excluding shotguns that can use the Tainted Shell mod, which reduces spread. Otherwise, accuracy can only decrease through mods. For example, Heavy Caliber increases the damage of rifles, but reduces accuracy, along with the pistol version Magnum Force.
Some weapons have perfect accuracy, meaning the projectile will travel exactly where it is aimed, every time. These weapons do not have recoil either, making them perfect for precision shooting. The Flux Rifle is an example of a weapon with perfect accuracy. Accuracy between 50-100 does not occur naturally in the game, and a weapon with even 40 accuracy is still very accurate in terms of bullet path. As such, when using Heavy Caliber or Magnum force on these weapons, their base accuracy is set to a new number (less than 35) when the mod is applied. This counters the fact that weapons with 40 or more accuracy are generally still pin point accurate, thus still acting as pure damage boosts.
Notes
- No mods currently exist to increase weapon accuracy, however mods that decrease recoil do.