User blog comment:WanderingSkull/Heists 101: Los Santos Heist Crew vs. MacRay Gang/@comment-4661256-20150701044935

El Alamein's Edges:

 Small Melee: Combat Knife vs. Police Baton:  The police baton is longer than the combat knife, but that's about the only advantage it has over its competition here. It will take repeated blows (primarily to the head) to kill someone with the police baton, which is a weapon designed to subdue rather than outright murder. The combat knife, with its capacity to slash and stab, and therefore kill more quickly, gets the edge.

Edge: Los Santos Heist Crew

 Big Melee: Baseball Bat vs. Sledgehammer:  The sledgehammer, once again, has the greater reach thanks to the big hammer head stuck atop the three-foot handle, but it's much, much heavier than the baseball bat, which will make it significantly slower in a slugfest. The baseball bat brings a lot of killing power in a much more compact body, which gives it an edge that can't be underestimated in a no-holds-barred brawl. Yeah, the sledgehammer might be more physically imposing as far as size goes, but it's too cumbersome.

Edge: Los Santos Heist Crew

 Handguns: 1911 vs. Glock:  The 1911's .45 ACP round is deadlier than the Glock's dinky 9mm, and with 3 extra rounds per magazine (18 vs. 15) and a precision sight for accuracy, it's simply the more versatile weapon, giving it the edge.

Edge: Los Santos Heist Crew

 Revolver / Magnum:   Desert Eagle vs. S&W Model 38: The Desert Eagle's .50 caliber bullet blows away the revolver's .38 special, and with a larger magazine capacity and a faster reload, it more than makes up for the (quite noticeable) recoil that accompanies its big bullet.

Edge: Los Santos Heist Crew

 SMGs: MP5A3 & Magpul PDR-C vs. H&K UMP & H&K MP6SD3:  The two 9mm SMGs (the MP5 and the MP6) both have 30-round magazines and nearly equivalent rates of fire (800 rds/min vs. 700 rds/min is pretty close), so to me, what it comes down to here is the other two weapons in this category. The Magpul is very interesting because its 5.56 round brings a significant amount of stopping power to a light and portable weapon like an SMG (and the 5.56 maintains excellent aerodynamics, making its accuracy impeccable if used properly), which overpowers even the UMP's impressive .45 ACP. Also, the Magpul has a slightly larger magazine capacity (30 rounds vs. 25).

Edge: Los Santos Heist Crew

 Machine Pistols: AP vs. TEC-9:  The AP's larger magazine size is basically negligible, as it only amounts to a four-round difference (36 rounds vs. 32), which isn't much considering both weapons fire fully automatic. However, the AP's silencer grants the user an operational advantage, depending on how stealthy they're trying to be, and that's an invaluable edge in any given situation.

Edge: Los Santos Heist Crew

 Assault Rifles: G36C vs. M4A1:  Well, both weapons fire the 5.56 round and have a standard magazine size of 30 rounds. Both weapons are extremely specific variants of their respective rifle groups, though. The G36C has a shorter barrel for greater maneuverability, with a flash hider and two separate rail-mounted iron sights that can be switched (depending on the range at which the user is firing). The M4A1 has a select fire feature that switches from safe to semi to fully automatic (although perhaps in this fight it's being set strictly to fully automatic - I'm not entirely certain). If the M4A1 is only set to fully automatic, that limits its operational capacity. Also, the G36 has an effective firing range of up to 800 m, whereas the M4A1's effective firing range maxes out at 600 m. It's a very, very close contest, but the G36C narrowly wins out here.

Edge: Los Santos Heist Crew

 Carbines: CTAR-21 vs. H&K 416:  Once again, both weapons here fire the 5.56 NATO round out of 30-round magazines. The TAR-21 has a longer effective firing range (at 550 m, whereas the H&K 416 has an effective range of only 300 m and maxes out at 400), meaning that the Los Santos Heist Crew members can open fire on the MacRay gangsters long before their opponents can return fire. That significant range advantage gives the TAR-21 a comfortable edge.

Edge: Los Santos Heist Crew

WINNER: LOS SANTOS HEIST CREW

Not only did the Los Santos Heist Crew completely dominate the MacRay Gang in every weapons category present, but they also dominate in all the important X-Factors. With greater combat experience and superior intelligence, they'll be able to utilize their advantages with weapons more effectively in the battle space, making sure that the MacRay Gang will be hard-pressed just to pop off a few retaliatory shots in defense. With a huge lead in both firearms and X-Factors (losing out only in teamwork, and even then only by a very small margin), the Los Santos Heist Crew takes victory from the MacRay Gang.