If you’ve come this far, you’re past level 40. You’ve used our Newbie Guide and our Advanced guide to power level your way past level 40. You’re becoming an expert. Welcome to the road to your first Prestige. From here on out, you will be more lethal than you have ever been. You’ll have options on top of options. Perks on top of perks. The question is, now that you have so much to choose from, where do you go from here and how can you maximize your xp, map awareness and lethality to be the baddest mofo in the field?
Read on to become an expert at Modern Warfare 2.
In this guide I’m going to touch on notable weapons and perks and give advice as to how to best use these tools to stack XP and increase your lethality, so you can take your Multiplayer game to the next level.
Assault Rifles – Assault Rifles should be your default weapon in any MW2 match. An Assault Rifle’s all around usefulness is second to none. Once you’ve hit level 40, the game changes quite a bit. You’ll unlock the M16, then the ACR, the F2000 and finally, the AK-47. These are arguably the best assault rifles in the game. First up, the M16. If you’ve played CoD4 at all, you’ll immediately feel comfortable with this weapon and it’s lethal three shot burst. If you haven’t played CoD4, the M16 is a short, medium and long range beast. Couple it with scavenger, stopping power and your Perk 3 of choice and you’ll be a killing beast on the field. It has long range accuracy, giant killing stopping power and is an all around beast on the field.
Next up is the ACR. If you enjoyed the accuracy and rapid fire of the M16, but disliked the burst fire, then the ACR is for you. The ACR is the most accurate Assault Rifle in the game. You can basically put your sight on a bad guy and pull the trigger until he/she dies. There is little to no muzzle drift, or kick from the gun at all. What you sacrifice is stopping power, which means that you’ll likely have to use Stopping Power as your default Perk 2 with this weapon. This weapon is fantastic for counter sniping and if you’re the type of player that struggles with weapon accuracy, then this gun will help you quite a bit.
The second to last Assault Rifle you’ll unlock is the F2000. This gun is basically a short range beast. Unfortunately there are a myriad of other weapons that are far better than this weapon at short range, including any of the shot guns, machine pistols or SMG’s in the game. This weapon has a wicked fire rate, one of the highest in the game, but has no accuracy at either medium or long range. The default weapon’s iron sights are one of the worst in the game as well, but if you can get your 25 kills and unlock the red dot sight, the weapon’s usefulness increases exponentially. If you’re a run and gun type player, this weapon will serve you well with it’s combination of fast fire rate and high stopping power.
Finally, at level 70, you’ll unlock the AK-47. The gun itself has been nerfed a little bit from CoD4, in that the iron sights are not as accurate and the gun’s stopping power is a bit less, but fans of the weapon will find this to have a great combination of stopping power, clip size and accuracy at medium range. The biggest problem you’ll face is that at level 70, you’ll likely be very close to finishing up challenges associated with other Assault Rifles and obtaining the huge XP bonuses that go along with them, which makes the decision to use the AK-47 a difficult one. In my personal experience, the usefulness of the AK-47 is not so great that it trumps finishing up weapon challenges with any of the other rifles. Unless you’re an AK-47 fanboy, skip it until you prestige.
Machine Guns – The only Light Machine Gun, or LMG you’ll unlock is the M240. This weapon has a great fire rate, but lacks the stopping power of the AUG HBAR, which is the best LMG in the game. The M240 makes up for this with an increased ammo capacity. Not a bad LMG, and if you’re locking down a point or playing defense, this weapon’s accuracy and ammo capacity can be an asset for experienced players. Generally speaking, none of the LMG’s in the game are better than an Assault Rifle, which is a shortcoming of MW2 when compared to CoD4’s kick ass LMG’s.
Sub Machine Guns – The Uzi is the only sub machine gun you unlock after level 40 (level 44) and is easily the best sub machine gun in the game. This weapon has very little muzzle drift when firing extended bursts and is the only sub machine gun that really gets better when using Rapid Fire. Fire in bursts at medium range with Rapid fire or full auto at close range to mop up anyone left standing. This is best used with marathon and lightweight for maximum efficiency.
Secondary Weapons – As you level up, your secondary weapons be come so much more valuable. Whether you’re unlocking the Stinger at level 30 to shoot down aircraft, or the Model 1887 at level 67, your secondary weapon becomes as useful as your primary weapon. That said, the most important thing to remember when picking your secondary weapon is to pick a weapon that compliments your primary weapon. For this section, I’m going to give secondary weapon recommendations based on how they compliment their primary weapon counterparts.
1) Shotguns – For the most part, shotguns are the preferred weapon for close up kills. The AA-12, or the M1014 are great short range killers for a player that likes to use sniper rifles or play a counter sniper. The AA-12 fires faster, but the M1014 is more accurate and lethal. Use your long range primary when outside and your AA-12or M1014 when inside. The AA-12 is best used with scavenger, as you only get two 8 round magazines and those go quick.
The other shotguns that you’ll unlock after level 40 are the Ranger and the infamous Model 1887. Both are best when used akimbo, with marathon,lightweight and ninja. The akimbo Ranger gets the nod at short range and the Model 1887 is great at short and medium range. In fact, it was so good at medium range that Infinity Ward actually made a patch to nerf it, however, it is still an effective weapon. These weapons compliment a sub machine gun primary and are best used when running around at full speed indoors.
2) Machine Pistols – The Machine Pistols are great weapons in MW2. The Glock and PP2000 are both great secondary weapons for players that want a complimentary weapon for their Primary, but don’t want to sacrifice range. The M93 Raffica is basically a modified M9 that can fire three round bursts like the FAMAS or M16. It has great medium range power, but sacrifices short range lethality. Great for a player that plays a conservative game, or a sniper that is looking for a good medium to short range sub machine gun type weapon. Finally the TMP is one of the last secondary weapons you unlock and it is a great upgrade over the Glock and PP2000. The TMP has the longest range and is the most accurate Machine Pistol in the game. Unfortunately, you unlock it so late, but while you have it, make use of it with any class, as it is as good as any of the sub machine guns in the game.
3) Pistols – Pistols in this game only become useful once you’ve unlocked the tactical knife, which makes your knife strikes much faster and when paired with marathon, lightweight and commando, is one of the most fun load outs in the game. For more information on power leveling pistols, click here.
4) Launchers – After level 40, you’ll unlock the Javelin at level 50 and the RPG-7 at level 65. Combine these launchers with a noob tube and Danger Close to maximize your lethality.
The Javelin works just like the Stinger, but is also able to lock on other players as well. It’s cumbersome to use and leaves you exposed when using against ground targets. Not a recommended secondary weapon.
The RPG – 7 is a serviceable secondary weapon, comparable to the Thumper in terms of lethality. The RPG-7 is best used with Danger Close and from an elevated position, while firing at enemies from medium range. On Sub Base, get to the second floor and you can dominate the open ground in Domination. Unfortunately, the RPG – 7 is incredibly inaccurate at long range and is not recommended to be used against air targets.
Perks – You’ll only unlock a few perks after level 40. Fortunately, these new perks will increase what you can do in the field by quite a bit. I’ll discuss them below and show you how to maximize their effectiveness.
At level 41 you’ll unlock last stand. Last stand is just as you remembered from CoD 4 and WaW, with a few notable exceptions. First, you can crawl around on the ground in Last Stand in MW2. Second, you’ll only be in Last Stand for about 10 seconds and you cannot be revived. Last Stand Pro allows you to use equipment in Last Stand, such as grenades and secondary grenades, to increase your lethality. If you play Headquarters Pro, Domination or Demolition, Last Stand should be your perk of choice as your enemy will have to basically kill you twice to get you out of the competition and off of an objective. If you’re quick on the trigger, you won’t give your enemy a second chance to finish you off. Of note, you can knife bad guys which is useful for when you run out of ammo and don’t have time to reload. You’ll be surprised at how many dumb asses try to run up and knife you while you’re down. If you’re quick, you can turn the tables on that player’s poor choice.
At level 45, you’ll unlock One Man Army. This perk is new to the series and offers a smart player a wide potential of uses on the battlefield. With One Man Army, you’ll be able to switch classes on the fly, which means that if an enemy unsuspectingly launches a Harrier or AC-130 strike, you can quickly and effectively switch to your anti-air class and take that threat down without dying. Where One Man Army shines though is when you want to go noob tubing. When using a noob tube with your favorite Assault Rifle, once you’ve expended two grenades, use One Man Army, pick the same kit, and come back fully loaded. Great for defense and general harassment of your enemy.
The final perk you’ll unlock is Danger Close. Great for noob tubing. Use it with One Man Army above and rack up the kills. Danger Close Pro also makes your air strike killstreaks much more deadly. Use Danger Close with your noob tube, explosive equipment of your choice and Martyrdom for maximum lethality.
Sniper Rifles – The last sniper rifle you’ll unlock after Level 40 is the M14 EBR. While the EBR was a great weapon in the single player game, it’s usefulness in Multiplayer is far less. Stick to any one of the other three sniper rifles and stay far away from this useless piece of crap.
General tips – For expert players, finding a combination of the best perks and weapons is something that is a personal choice. Generally, with your five custom classes, you should try and have five different load outs that are useful in a variety of situations, to combat anything thrown in your way. Recommended custom load outs are:
1 – Anti air class – use your launcher of choice with cold blooded to take out aircraft killstreaks.
2 – Fast mover class – whether your using a tactical knife with a USP or akimbo Rangers or Model 1887’s with the marathon and lightweight perks, a fast mover class is great for taking flags in CTF, moving from point to point in Domination or Demolition, or harassing an enemy in Team Deathmatch.
3 – Noob tuber – One Man Army, Danger Close and noob tube of choice is great for maps like Terminal, Wasteland, Invasion and other maps that require you to stay put to win.Change this up with a Thumper and Scavenger if you want to run and gun.
4 – Assault class – Pick your assault rifle of choice and go with Bling, Scavenger or Slight of Hand, a shot gun of choice and Stopping Power for when you need to take it to an enemy in any situation and will likely be your default class on any map.
5 – Silent class – Silenced weapon, cold blooded and ninja, combined with scavenger will keep you alive for a long time. Great for sneaking around in Team Deathmatch or in hardcore matches.
If you use these five groups together, you’ll be an expert capable of taking on anything MW2 throws at you. With these load outs you’ll maximize your XP until you Prestige and gain another slot for a custom load out along with the Prestige perks that give you bonus XP when you reach certain kill counts with the various weapons at your disposal and additional titles and emblems to play with.
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