Do you need to deal a lot of damage? Use a sniper rifle. You can be further away and deal even more damage. Do you need to fight in close quarters? Use a sword. You get some damage resistance to protect you. Do you need a way to respond to an enemy that got too close? By the time you can slowly pull out your shotgun, you could've jumped away. Also, that's what a sidearm should be meant for. Are you stuck in a small room with a bunch of majors and no heavy ammo? I'd still prefer a fusion rifle so I can strafe better, keep some more distance, have more ammo, reload more quickly, etc. So tell me, why is it that there doesn't seem to be a situation in PvE when a shotgun would be the most useful choice? Edit: In case anyone wanted to know, here are some damage numbers I calculated a few months ago. I used an old HoW damage chart and had to factor in changes to weapon damage, perk effects, etc. so it's not incredibly accurate. Both are assuming all shots were precision hits against ultras and there are 17 rounds total in the mag and reserve. 31110 for Her Benevolence at 331 attack with clown cartridge (if it procs each time) 29767 for Felwinter's Lie at 365 attack with aggressive ballistics and final round Notice how Her Benevolence deals a bit more damage per inventory than Felwinter's Lie, even though Felwinter's Lie has a higher attack. If clown cartridge didn't consistently activate and their attacks were equal, it would probably still be pretty close.