Compared to any steel pellet, a HeviShot pellet of the same size is a wrecking ball, carrying twice as much energy downrange as the steel pellet. In steel shot, a 12-gauge, 1 ¼-ounce load of 2 or 3 shot for big ducks like mallards or 4 shot for wood ducks and teal is usually best and also most cost-effective. Loads with 1-ounce to 1 ¼-ounces of bismuth or tungsten-iron shot are a good weight range, and in TSS, you can go down to 7/8 ounce or even 1/2 -ounce because those very dense pellets allow you to choose small shot sizes so you get plenty of pellets plus plenty of energy.