Does sniping need a nerf?

[hoorah (DayZ) 36]

Though I have not researched this myself I heard a possible theory before that the choice of the smaller round is to incapacitate the enemy and possibly pacify other enemies by busying them with the medical, recovery work.

Not sure of the truth but something to ponder regardless

I've heard that one as well. I have no idea if that was the original intent or not but I've heard it does seem to correlate from people in the field.

[s4pphire 45]

People seem to love to use the realism card when it comes to .50 cals. While Arma doesn't simulate the outcome accurately, the result is about the same. No, it won't rip your arm off and no, it will not trigger a nuclear explosion either, but you will be on the ground in excruciating pain as you die.

Getting hit by a .50 cal in the leg, arm or body will either damage vital organs, cause severe bleeding or rip through bones. Does it really matter if you are on the ground unable to move for a few minutes as you die or receiving the 'you are dead' screen as you get hit? A blood bag, painkillers or bandage won't save you, there are no medevacs so what exactly are you hoping to achieve after getting hit? Alt f4 is the only thing that comes to mind.

As for all these shot in the foot/hand arguments, the torso is what people aim for and it's the easiest part of the body to hit, what are the odds of getting hit in the foot or hand? Yes, there are situations in which a hit will barely harm you, but this applies to all weapons in Arma and you have most likely felt the advantage of this yourself by doing full damage to someone who shouldn't have lost more than 200-300 blood, instead of 4000 if the mechanics were indeed 100% realistic.

The only thing that needs to be changed in the future is classifying hits more accurately; getting shot in the chest with an assault rifle will not allow you to keep running with 75% health and losing 25% health after being grazed in the leg is extremely excessive.