I’d say they are just about even when going for specials without Bloodshot being taken into account. Not sure how good the headshot bps are for the moonfire. The moonfire is somewhat faster if you do have Bloodshot ready to go.
To be another voice among others and to add onto what has already been said, there were and there are still reasons to use the Hagbane over Moonfire or the Longbow.
First of all, you are bog downed by the general master-of-all-trades feeling the Moonfire is giving off. Weapons in Vermintide, generally speaking have some sort of downside. To balance these downsides, weapons have their strengths/specialties. Some more apparent than others so let me clue you in.
I don’t like talking about weapons in a vacuum for games like Vermintide because this kind of discussion blinds you to all the little silver linings/synergies that are not highlighted when only damage numbers are being considered. Incan and DezZzO gave a good examples of what happens when you take the weapon out of your perceived vacuum and use it in actual gameplay.
Another thing is stagger. On Cata 1, a charged hagbane will stagger a SV enough so that it trips slightly and takes a step or two to the side without Enhanced Power or any properties. The moonfire requires 20% Armoured and 10% Skaven. To achieve same result in Cata 3, a charged hagbane require 3 stacks of barrage whilst the Moonfire is unable to do this even with Enhanced Power, 20% Armoured and Skaven and Hunter Procced.
This means that fighting a Skaven patrol, and basically any other patrol too, with the hagbane is far more lucrative than with the Moonfire. May Sigmar help the patrol in your sights, should there be a ledge nearby.
A charged hagbane(to give yourself an opening) followed by a heavy, or two, from your current melee weapon is a viable strategy. The Moonfire doesn’t need you to pull out the melee weapon and can just kill an elite in 1 charged shot. Do this a few times in quick succession however, and you’ll find yourself struggling( The GK and the Slayer may not be good special snipers) to contain those five specials cata 1 may throw at you. Six, if you happen to be on cata 3.
You’ll regret missing a charged arrow with the Moonfire. On the other hand, you have a few shots to spare with the Hagbane though. Let’s not be ignorant, not everybody’s a god-gamer whom hardly misses a shot. You can reach two shot body shot bps for nearly all specials(Wargor needs 3 headshots) with the hagbane without Enhanced Power on cata 1.
Now to pick your post apart.
Two, out of 3 of the Elf’s careers have access to some sort of ammo sustain and HM has Quiver of Plenty. Max ammo count is chosen based on all careers having access to the given weapon.
Moonfire suffers from the same. The only reason it can get away with is because of its DoT. Aim at the ground in front of it. The Hagbane has more ammo to spare and a 1 SBS bp for assassins so stagger it with the first show and kill it with the second.
Observation bias. In fact, you are factually wrong. The Hagbane chews through hordes just like Moonfire does with with either Barrage or Hunter.
First of all, weakening enemies is still very useful and as it has more ammo than the Moonfire, so this is something the weapon can get away with whilst still being useful. Second, this is the perfect example of what I meant by looking at a weapon in a vacuum.
The Hag’s AOE is not just the damage, but the stagger as well. Shoot this into the middle of any horde and you’ll have given yourself and your teammates valuable time to forgo any kind of dodging/pushing for just a moment to thin the herd.
A lot of players getting aim-punched because of the Hagbane would disagree.