Battlefield 2042 | Best M5A3 Loadout Attachments & Setup

One thing we've always loved about Battlefield 2042 has been the new attachment system. Basically, you build a loadout with three attachments in every slot and can swap between each attachment in-game. As cool as this is, though, it does mean loadouts are more complicated, and it also means you'll really fall behind the pack if you don't have well-built loadouts. Luckily, we're here to help, and today, we're going through the best loadout for Battlefield 2042's M5A3.

To see how well the M5A3 places against other weapons, just check out our complete tier rating of every weapon in Battlefield.

Best Battlefield 2042 M5A3 Loadout

Best Attachments for the M5A3

In the table beneath, we've provided the best conventional loadout for each weapon, but we've also provided short and long-ranged focused setups. We advise you to put the "best setup" attachments in the first slot for each weapon so that when you're switching between attachments in-game, it's only one flick and not two or three to select the best all-around build. The short-range build is particularly good for pushing objectives, while the long-range build is designed for making journeys across open land.

The M5A3 can be thought of as the "base AR" - the AR which we can compare to all others. It's easy to use, it's very balanced, and you have it immediately unlocked. For our best all-around setup, we didn't want to push the gun too far in any direction, we wanted to keep that strong versatility. The only exception to this was the extended mag, which hurts our handling. But going up to 50 round capacity is absolutely huge, especially when you're playing against 64 other players!

You can see the effects of these three attachment setups beneath.

Attachment Effects on the M5A3

The M5A3's long build can only get up to the AK's base range capability, so we suggest, if you're insistent on using the M5A3, that you use it as a shorter range AR. The short-range loadout above is great for getting in on the objective, while the all-around build is a really strong support weapon if you're going with a vehicle.

You can check out the recoil pattern on this weapon beneath:

Best Specialist, Secondary Weapon, Throwable & Gadget for the M5A3

Specialist: Ji-Soo Paik

Ji-Soo Paik was much maligned when we first saw her gameplay reveal trailer. And for good reason - she was broken. But the ability and trait are still very strong; they allow you to scan for the outline of nearby enemies and to recognize exactly where incoming fire is originating from. She's great for a mid-range fighter because you're going to want situational awareness above most else. That and...well, a lot of the other Specialists are quite bad, so she wins almost by default.

Secondary Weapon: MP28

Throwable: Frag

Battlefield's huge map sizes and grand fights don't lend themselves well to any type of grenade. In smaller, tactical firefights - as seen in other games - they can be absolutely clutch, but you will rarely get good use out of them in Battlefield. Especially not the new prox sensor, which needs a serious range buff to be useful... So we've taken frags as a simple alternative; everyone knows how to use them, and on the objective at least they stand a chance of making you a kill.

Gadget: IBA Armor Plate

IBA Armor Plates are the go-to choice for people who primarily want to get into gunfights and make kills. They won't open up your playstyle to do more things, and they won't help your team with this or that, but they offer a very strong flat buff that will make you more likely to win gunfights. With 20 additional health on a starting 100, we're expecting a lot of community complaints about the IBA Armor, but if you want the best gadget for pure combat - this is it.

Well, there you have it, folks, the complete rundown of how to build the best attachment setup and loadout for the M5A3.