Well there are more options, how about taking San Mona to get some nice weapons?
(assuming you dont have anything substancially better than the mp5k)
The cheesiest way:
Equip as much rocks as you can find, and use them to slowly kill Darren, Kingpin Spike and Damon (& any other NPC in game)
after you initiated a boxing match (and used the marbles to your favour;)
Then use the bar entrance to farm as many as possible commandos from kingpins goons.
Btw Carmen also has a nice gun if you meet him early,
and a guy who wants you to chop off the heads of some freedom fighters truly deservers a stoning,
along with the other one who makes a living frim trading parts of endangered species. >;)


Another "exploity" (in terms of using knowledge from prvious play) move
would be an assault on H14 to get the SVD / NVG from 1 or even 2 guy on the roof
(although on novice there is probably only one) preferably at night as it allows to not cut the fence,
as the guy at the entrance is quite easy to take out silently.
(jump up the roof 1 turn after you heard a distinct/loud sound from above)
But i would not conquer Almy as 2nd city,
for a quite long time the slow loyalty increase limits mine revenue and militia traing,
i.e. Cambria will give you higher overall revenue for a long time, even though you must train more militia.