I like it more cause it's medium pen. Hive guards, brood commanders, spewers, just blast them in the face or center mass, no worries. I just like doing damage, which stalwart is good at, but you have to choose targets more carefully with it.

The reload time is painful sometimes, gas grenades kinda work as a stun grenade to buy you a few seconds. If you want to play more solo with it, take a regular pistol instead of stim gun to fend off the occasional hunter. If you hate sitting still to reload all together, definitely pick stalwart as you can run and gun with it much easier.

Also, the weapon handling on the machine gun, I forgot to mention but I take viper commando armor. Makes it feel much nicer.