Operation: Rank Up Report #0034

Day 238 – 20:02:00 PST

Somewhere in California

AGB – Lead Writer

Are you ready to Rank Up?

Jump into Season Four Reloaded right now for a Triple Feed of Double XP! That’s a double earn rate for player XP, Weapon XP, and Battle Pass Tiers live now until July 6 at 10AM PT.

With that in mind, there is no time to waste in this intro – let’s get to Ranking Up:

Operator of the Week

Nikto got himself a shiny… erm… drab and inky new outfit this week thanks to the ‘Take No Prisoners’ bundle.

Along with two weapon blueprints – both of which come with red tracer rounds – a new vehicle skin, and an awesome looking finishing move involving Nikto’s faithful hyena companion. The ‘Take No Prisoners’ bundle includes the Bloodletter skin, which is what he’s wearing as our featured Operator of the Week.

If you want to learn more about Nikto and his bundle, check out this article here.

As for the weapon he’s holding, that’s our Gunsmith Custom Creation of the Week, a configuration of Assault Rifle India that we’ll talk about after our Top Rank Up Tip.

Top Rank Up Tip

This week covered plenty of ground for Season Four Reloaded, including the release of the new Sniper Rifle that I called a BEAST: the Rytec AMR.

Wait, it’s Platinum already? But… But…

Yes, I was so excited about this weapon that I got Platinum Camo on all Sniper Rifles while working to bring you this Rank Up Report (and the other articles for this week), and now am going to spend this weekend raking in that sweet Triple Double XP Boost on whatever (non-sniper rifle) weapons I want.

Here are the challenges you need to complete for it:

Now, I’ve already given five tips on the Rytec AMR – and quickscoping with sniper and marksman rifles –in my post that details how to unlock this new weapon through its challenge. 

Furthermore, for the camo challenges on sniper rifles, the standard rule of camo challenges apply: be sure to mount up and go for longshots on larger maps with clean sightlines, be prepared to use the weapon with zero attachments again, etc.

But sniper rifles are usually synonymous with one thing in the Call of Duty community: montages. Whether you are searching for clips – or looking to avoid some hot spots – here’s my top ten personal favorite areas that I’ve seen too many snipers hit their shots from.

Some of them are legendary places for well over the past decade, while others are based on new maps that I’ve identified as some fresh quickscoping spots.

10. Northern Lane of Cheshire Park. I recently broke down this map in our Tactical Map Intel here. The jury is still out on the “best spot,” but this wide-open lane has serious potential.

9. Junkyard on Shoot House. Forget the middle lane, which is notorious for those going for mounting longshots; from either team’s starting Gate, check down this lane for a potential long-to-mid range engagement as you circle around to catch those pesky wall-sitters.

8. North Lane of Khandor Hideout. Third (and final) new Multiplayer map spot. Especially in Domination where one flag calls this its home, there are a few bottleneck lanes and the opportunity to snipe over into others to go for an impressive clip.

7. The Passage and Pharmacy on Crash. Near an enemy spawn, this locale can be a bottleneck that enemy players rush through to get to mid-map quickly.

6. Outside South Spawn on Vacant. Two options here: either check the South Corridor or the small rooms within the Storage area. Also, remember you can shoot through the grated archway within the South Corridor.

5. East and Main Streets on Talsik Backlot. Long streets that ultimately lead to both squad’s initial spawns with plenty of buildings to clear. Alternatively, the Construction Site can lead to some impressive shots after bouncing off the ladder.

4. Pipes on Hardhat. Whether it is a collateral chance through the main pipe, or a stroll through the mid-map, the Pipes area loves to attract players looking for a dangerous shortcut through Hardhat’s center.

3. The Red and Green Warehouses of Scrapyard. Squads will either rush out of here to enter any of the lanes, or hole up to try and scout or snipe ahead for their team. Go for the flank towards either building, and you may be rewarded with an awesome feed.

2. Tower on Rust. For now, this is where you hit your game-ending trickshot. Plenty of air-time to pull off however many spins/weapon swaps/equipment cancels before nailing an epic killcam.

1. Anywhere in Verdansk with a Longshot / inside or out of a vehicle / in mid-air. Warzone™ clips can be just as incredible as feeds from Multiplayer. Given that even the most powerful rifle is only zero’d in to about 100 meters, the level of in-game knowledge and execution needed to calculate an extreme-longshot against in-game physics within a split second is incredible.

Especially if you are on the move or airborne, Warzone can be a literal playground for some true displays of pure skill, and could ultimately define your legacy as a true Call of Duty sniping savant.

Oh, and 200-player Quads are live, so now you have even more engagement opportunities to get those awesome clips.

Gunsmith Custom Creation of the Week

In celebration of 200-player Quads, my Gunsmith Custom Creation of the Week is based on a weapon that is oft-overlooked for the Grau 5.56, M13, and other assault rifles: the RAM-7.

The very first post-launch weapon to be introduced in Call of Duty®: Modern Warfare®, this fast-firing assault rifle may have an odd recoil pattern, but with enough practice, can be a force to be reckoned with in Warzone.

This week, the ‘Devilish’ bundle came out in the Store and introduced the Hellspawn, a Rare blueprint that provides an awesome canvas for our Gunsmith Custom Creation.

We’ll keep the 50 Round Mags on this weapon – the more bullets per clip, the better in Warzone – and keep that Muzzle Brake on, but we still have two more attachments to work with and will swap out the Barrel for something that suits the playstyle we’re going for.

What we’re aiming for with this creation is a weapon that has a generous ideal engagement range – just over three dozen meters – while still being able to control its odd recoil pattern

Ergo, the Fallen Angel:

The “angelic” part of this weapon is the front. I’ve enlisted the help of another Season Four blueprint – the White Mountains blueprint found in the ‘Wolf at the Gates’ bundle – to bring in the FSS Ranger Barrel for a massive range buff, the Commando Foregrip for better aiming and recoil stabilization, and a fresh coat of paint to that Muzzle Brake.

Then, I kept the 50 Round Mags from the Hellspawn, and rounded it out with the jet-black XRK Close Quarters Stock out of the ‘Snap Dragon’ blueprint (Season Two – ‘Tracer Pack: Green’ bundle) to remedy the aim down sight penalties that the “angelic” part of the weapon gives.

Oh, and if you want Green Tracer Rounds on this weapon, begin your Gunsmith Creation with the ‘Snap Dragon’ to keep that cool effect.

The only other attachment that might be swapped is the muzzle for stealthier and still ranged weapon. Ultimately the FSS Ranger offers greater range buffs compared to the FTAC Eclipse + Monolithic Suppressor combo, and the Muzzle Brake further helps control this weapon’s odd recoil pattern better.

However, if you want to truly maximize the range of this weapon, and you can handle a less predictable recoil pattern, then by all means, make the muzzle swap and exchange the Monolithic Suppressor for the Brake. After all, these Gunsmith Custom Creations are idea-starters.

With that in mind, I hope you rise – not fall – in your next 200-player Quads experience, and I’ll be seeing you online.

Stay frosty.

For more information and the latest intel on Warzone, visit www.callofduty.com/warzone and follow @CallofDuty on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. 

For more information and the latest intel on Call of Duty®: Modern Warfare®, check out: www.callofduty.com, www.youtube.com/callofduty and follow @InfinityWard and @CallofDuty on Twitter and Instagram and Facebook.

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