The Pistol:

A very underrated weapon, the pistol can be very deadly. Hitting the fire button quickly will fire off many shots in rapid succession.

Just around five direct hits to the head will give a headshot. Five to the body will down someone.

The Boltok Pistol:

A slower firing pistol, also sometimes called the "Magnum." It deals a much higher amount of damage than the regular pistol; however, since it fires slower it sometimes isn't as useful. A damage boost shot combined with a headshot can be quite effective.

The Shotgun:

This weapon is perhaps the most essential weapon in all of Gears of War. Nothing else beats the shotgun when in a close-range battle. The Shotgun can land a kill without having to get a headshot. When you land a kill, your opponent almost always gibs into many pieces.

Damage Boost: a damage boost with the shotgun will mean almost always instant death or down when you are near an enemy.

Shotgun Techniques: If you land a shotgun hit but your opponent does not go down or die and you are within melee striking range, go for a Melee hit and your opponent will instantly go down. This is generally known as a Shotgun-Melee combo that ensures the person you are attacking goes down if you land a shotgun hit.

The Longshot:

Using the Sniper Rifle can be tricky.

Landing a Kill: The only way to land a kill with the sniper is to land yourself a headshot. However, this is harder than it looks.

Damage Boost for Instant Down: This is perhaps the best use of the sniper and what makes it one of the best guns in the game. Scoring yourself a Perfect Reload with the sniper will boost the damage enough that if you land a shot anywhere on the body of an enemy, he will instantly go into the down position. This allows for less accuracy needed and quicker aiming, making the Sniper Rifle perhaps the best weapon in the game.

Sniper Melee: The Longshot has the longest melee reach in the game. Combine this with the fact that is very quick and it only takes two melee hits to down someone and you have a deadly combination.

Hammer of Dawn:

This weapon is not used in MLG's competition rules, and for good reasons.

If you've played the singleplayer, it's the same exact weapon casting a beam of light down upon the map and instantly killing anything in it's path.