Not sure what caliber gun you are getting, not sure what ranges you plan on shooting at, what you plan to use the gun for, so it's kind of hard to say, this is ball parkish what you should look for.
My ARs, one has a 3.5-10X Simons, that gun is a 5.56 carbine, so I consider it a general purpose gun. That scope has worked great for about 18 years on that gun, good light gathering, holds zero very well, just fogs up when the temps get in the low 30s or colder. I have used it for all types of hunting.
I have another AR with a Weaver Super Slam, I think it's a 6-18X, that gun is chambered for a wildcat round that is pretty powerful for a AR 15, that's my long range AR. The Weaver has done well, but most of the time, I only use around 12X with that gun, think that scope may come off of that rifle.
Then I have another AR in 458 SOCOM, that gun I consider a closer range gun, I would say the farthest I would fire at targets with it, is 150 yards, most of the time less than 100 yards. I have a 3-9X Sig Sauer on that gun, so far it's worked well, good light gathering, has held zero very well, but it's only been used for one season. My two carbines, have the lower power scopes on them. I like the scopes on them, I can turn them down to 3 or 3.5 power, depending on the scope, for use in low light or closer range, faster shots, heavy brush, ECT. I have wanted to get a red dot for one of my ARs, but then I have no magnification, unless I get a multiplier, and I don't know how well those red dots do at light gathering. I have had a few cheap red dots sights, they did not have good light gathering abilities. I don't know about the good red dot sights, I would assume they are not any better at light gathering.
I know with both my Sig and my Simmons, with the magnification turned down low, I have good light gathering up in heavy brush or low light conditions, I can make out things much better than with my naked eyes. A lot of times, I can see something moving up in the brush, as the sun is setting or after the sun has set, but can't make it out. I can look at it through one of my scopes and clearly make out whatever it is. None of the red dot sights I have had, do anything to improve how well I can see at night. I make it a point to look for scopes with large from objectives, and the best glass I can afford, so I get the best light gathering I can afford. Add a streamline light on the gun and you can see very clearly out to 200 yards easily at night, on dark nights.
As for mounts, the Leupold AR mounts work fine. I have a Leupold mount, it works great, I have a Burris PERP, they work very good, if you have a scope with a heavier wall tube, if not the rings will likely crush the scope tube. Basically don't use one with a Vortex scope. I have a old Colt AR mount, it looks cheap and flimsy, but it has been on my rifle for 18 years, never had a problem. The only AR mount I have had problems with was a DNZ AR Reaper mount, they are very nice, sturdy mounts, very rugged, I like that about them, but they are too low, or at least the one I got was. I could not get my head down low enough to properly see through the scope. I the mount was about 3/8" taller, that would be a great mount. I know DNZ makes three height mounts for other rifles, not sure if they do the same for ARs, or not, I only found one DNZ AR mount, so that's the one I bought. I plan on buying three DNZ mounts for three other rifles, but their AR mount is just too short. The Leupold, Burris and the Colt mounts are all very close to the same height, all are tall enough you can see through the scope properly.
You can get some type of red dot sight, then add a multiplier, that flips off to one side, when you don't need it. Guys that are mainly going to shoot at closer ranges and typically fast shots, those might be a better idea.
If I had more money, I would buy better scopes than what I have, but what I have works pretty good most of the time, the Simmons is the only one that gives me any form of a problem and that's only when it's low 30s or colder, which usually does not get that cold when I am hunting. After having problems with two Vortex scopes, I am plan on sticking with Burris, Leupold and Sig scopes, or hope I can buy only those brands, there are a lot of choices with those three brands.
My ARs, one has a 3.5-10X Simons, that gun is a 5.56 carbine, so I consider it a general purpose gun. That scope has worked great for about 18 years on that gun, good light gathering, holds zero very well, just fogs up when the temps get in the low 30s or colder. I have used it for all types of hunting.
I have another AR with a Weaver Super Slam, I think it's a 6-18X, that gun is chambered for a wildcat round that is pretty powerful for a AR 15, that's my long range AR. The Weaver has done well, but most of the time, I only use around 12X with that gun, think that scope may come off of that rifle.
Then I have another AR in 458 SOCOM, that gun I consider a closer range gun, I would say the farthest I would fire at targets with it, is 150 yards, most of the time less than 100 yards. I have a 3-9X Sig Sauer on that gun, so far it's worked well, good light gathering, has held zero very well, but it's only been used for one season. My two carbines, have the lower power scopes on them. I like the scopes on them, I can turn them down to 3 or 3.5 power, depending on the scope, for use in low light or closer range, faster shots, heavy brush, ECT. I have wanted to get a red dot for one of my ARs, but then I have no magnification, unless I get a multiplier, and I don't know how well those red dots do at light gathering. I have had a few cheap red dots sights, they did not have good light gathering abilities. I don't know about the good red dot sights, I would assume they are not any better at light gathering.
I know with both my Sig and my Simmons, with the magnification turned down low, I have good light gathering up in heavy brush or low light conditions, I can make out things much better than with my naked eyes. A lot of times, I can see something moving up in the brush, as the sun is setting or after the sun has set, but can't make it out. I can look at it through one of my scopes and clearly make out whatever it is. None of the red dot sights I have had, do anything to improve how well I can see at night. I make it a point to look for scopes with large from objectives, and the best glass I can afford, so I get the best light gathering I can afford. Add a streamline light on the gun and you can see very clearly out to 200 yards easily at night, on dark nights.
As for mounts, the Leupold AR mounts work fine. I have a Leupold mount, it works great, I have a Burris PERP, they work very good, if you have a scope with a heavier wall tube, if not the rings will likely crush the scope tube. Basically don't use one with a Vortex scope. I have a old Colt AR mount, it looks cheap and flimsy, but it has been on my rifle for 18 years, never had a problem. The only AR mount I have had problems with was a DNZ AR Reaper mount, they are very nice, sturdy mounts, very rugged, I like that about them, but they are too low, or at least the one I got was. I could not get my head down low enough to properly see through the scope. I the mount was about 3/8" taller, that would be a great mount. I know DNZ makes three height mounts for other rifles, not sure if they do the same for ARs, or not, I only found one DNZ AR mount, so that's the one I bought. I plan on buying three DNZ mounts for three other rifles, but their AR mount is just too short. The Leupold, Burris and the Colt mounts are all very close to the same height, all are tall enough you can see through the scope properly.
You can get some type of red dot sight, then add a multiplier, that flips off to one side, when you don't need it. Guys that are mainly going to shoot at closer ranges and typically fast shots, those might be a better idea.
If I had more money, I would buy better scopes than what I have, but what I have works pretty good most of the time, the Simmons is the only one that gives me any form of a problem and that's only when it's low 30s or colder, which usually does not get that cold when I am hunting. After having problems with two Vortex scopes, I am plan on sticking with Burris, Leupold and Sig scopes, or hope I can buy only those brands, there are a lot of choices with those three brands.
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