How to resolve automatic fire vs single target?

[Natan Linggod 327]

from what I understand, an automatic burst from targets every creature in a line once.

what happens if you just have one target? can you focus every shot from the automatic burst onto that target, the way a real life gun can? or are all the extra shots wasted?

[Spook205]

There aren't really any extra shots. Think of it like a line attack that requires you to make a to-hit roll against every target under the line (some of whom may be against touch AC depending on their range).

[Natan Linggod 327]

Hmm seems a bit of a misnomer to call it an automatic fire weapon if it doesnt work like automatic weapons.

[TheBulletKnight]

Well, the first sentence of Automatic states...

Automatic wrote:

An automatic weapon can act as a semi-automatic weapon (see below) or it can fire a burst of shots with a pull of the trigger to attack all creatues in a line...

Semi-automatic wrote:

A semi-automatic weapon normally fires one shot as an attack. However, the user can take a full-action to fire twice, as if using the rapid shot feat(including taking a -2 on all attacks). If the wielder has the rapid shot feat, she can use the additional shot from that as well, but the penalty for all shots fired in that round increases to -6.

So yeah, you get penalties to hit, but you're not wasting your 10 charges to attack one creature.