Well, for me... I have 1 shotgun, my browning bps... no scope. I feel more confident taking a 40-50 yard shot with buckshot than a slug only because at 40+ yards that big old bead, is tough to put it right on the vitals. At that range the bead covers a pretty big area... my gun patterns pretty well with buckshot and i've never had a problem with it at 40-50 yards. I can see how you might argue argue about damaging a bit more meat with buckshot, but thats the only arguement i can see against using buckshot under 50 yards. Pattern your gun with a few different loads and chokes and i think you'll agree. I hunt some pretty dense woods here in michigan, therefore i rarely get a shot past 40 yards. I guess if i was taking shots out to 100 yards with a shotgun, i'd have to invest in a scope and try out some slugs... until then, I'll stick with my OO buck. Make sure you match Your weapon and ammo to Your hunting conditions... not these guys that think your going to take 200 yard shots on a regular basis. It's nice to have that kind of range, but it may not be needed for Your type of hunting.

Good Luck