Modern Warfare 2 Multiplayer Strategy Guide Part 4 Perks Described

IV. Perks Described

A. Each Perk in Detail

1. Tier 1 Perks

a. Marathon(Pro)

This perk allows you to sprint continuously without running out of energy. It is a favorite of stealth and melee players as well as snipers. Once you complete the challenges you unlock the Pro version of this perk.

Marathon Pro adds the ability to climb obstacles faster. The way to unlock the Pro version is by sprinting for a total of 26 miles while using the Marathon perk.

b. Sleight of Hand(Pro)

Provides you with a faster reload. This is especially useful if you have the reload times of Light Machine Guns. It seems to be a favorite for run-and-gun and stealth and melee players. The reload times of small Submachine Guns with this perk are just insane. After you kill 120 enemies with this perk equipped, you unlock Sleight of Hand Pro.

Sleight of Hand Pro allows for a faster aiming time. I can’t stress how important this perk can be if you come face-to-face with an enemy. Sometimes the only difference is how fast you can pull up your weapon and shoot.

c. Scavenger(Pro)

Scavenger is a pretty interesting perk. It is really useful for Submachine Guns with Akimbo and Rapid Fire attachments. With those attachments your weapons can empty a clip in no time. When this perk is equipped you’ll notice small bags next to all the dead bodies. Pick them up and your ammo will be replenished. Resupply 100 times to unlock Scavenger Pro.

Scavenger Pro allows you to hold extra magazines for your weapons. More ammo = more kills. Good perk for run-and-gunners with Submachine Guns equipped.

d. Bling(Pro)

You’ll likely use this perk more than any others once you have it. It allows you to have 2 weapon attachments on your primary weapon. Just remember that you don’t need this equipped unless you have 2 attachments to put on your weapon. If the only attachment you have is a grenade launcher it would be a wasted perk.

Once you get 200 kills using a weapon that has 2 attachments you will unlock Bling Pro. This allows you to have 2 attachments on your secondary weapon as well. Yeah, it’s that awesome. Like I said, use it.

e. One Man Army(Pro)

One Man Army allows you to switch classes without waiting to respawn. The switch takes 5 seconds and replaces your secondary weapon. Although it replaces your secondary, if you are about to run out of ammo you can simply change your class and restock. Get 120 kills using this perk for Pro.

One Man Army Pro just allows for a faster class swapping. I wasn’t impressed with this perk. If I run out of ammo in a firefight, I sometimes need my secondary for back up. You won’t have it with this perk. The rest of the perks are just so much better that I never use this one. If anyone has some success with it, let me know. I’d be interested in learning how.

2. Tier 2 Perks

a. Stopping Power(Pro)

This is one of the most important perks that a beginner can use. Using this perk gives your weapons extra damage to your enemies, which is good if you’re a beginner struggling to make the kill. You’ll likely use this one perk more than any of the others for a good, long while.

After 120 kills using Stopping Power you will unlock Stopping Power Pro. This adds more power to your weapons when shooting vehicles as well. What does that mean? That means less shots to take down that pesky harrier that has been scalping you every time you look out the window.

b. Lightweight(Pro)

This is a pretty interesting perk. Simply put, Lightweight makes you a faster runner. Combine Marathon and Lightweight while using a small weapon such as the Mini-Uzi for close quarters godliness. If you’ve always wanted to be an Uzi touting ninja face-slicer than this is a perk for you.

Pro level is t3h awesome. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been sprinting through a level to get back to the other team and I’ve run right into an enemy. At that point it is a matter of who will be the first to get their shot off. With Lightweight Pro you can pull your weapon up faster after sprinting. Oh yeah. No more watching yourself die on killcam even though you heard your weapon fire.

c. Hardline(Pro)

This is another perk that will appeal to beginners. Unfortunately for you, it also applies to veteran players. With Hardline equipped your killstreak rewards require one less kill than before. So for you to get your Care Package you only need to kill 3 people without dying. Sounds great, right? It also means that more experienced players only need 4 kills to start their body count killstreak in motion. 4 kills and they have a Sentry Gun or Predator Missile. Crap.

Fortunately, Hardline Pro was tailor made for beginner players. After 40 killstreaks are called in using Hardline, you unlock this and now are required to die one less time for your Deathstreak reward. So you won’t have to wait nearly as long for that Painkiller, Copycat, Martyrdom, or Final Stand. Thank you baby Jesus.

There are a few recommendations I will make for using this one. First, only use it if you don’t have problems killing other players regularly. It doesn’t make sense to replace Stopping Power with this if you are still getting under 10 kills per match. Second, try and use this one with weapons that have a high damage output. Guns such as the FAMAS, FAL, and M16 don’t typically need more damage. Lastly, if you are playing in Hardcore mode, Stopping Power isn’t really needed. That means you can substitute Hardline for Stopping Power if you are a Hardcore match player.

d. Cold-Blooded(Pro)

Cold-Blooded is fantastic for snipers, close quarters, and campers. You won’t be picked up by enemy UAV, helicopters, AC-130’s, or Chopper Gunners. That’s great news for everyone, but especially for those not wanting to be seen.

Cold-Blooded Pro is another matter, however. Have you ever been shot in the face because you were afraid to kill a teammate when someone’s name didn’t pop up in time? I have. I feel like a big noob when I accidentally team kill. Especially if they were about to call in an AC-130 or something. With this neat little perk you can cause that same chaos on your enemies.

Pro version prevents your name from popping up on your enemy’s screen. Cool? Well it also keeps their crosshairs from showing up on you. This one is going to be the bane on beginners for a while. Mostly on maps where teams look similar.

e. Danger Close(Pro)

I’ll admit I haven’t used this much. This one gives you higher explosive weapon damage. The only reason I can see using this are if you are attempting to complete challenges for your grenade launchers, grenades, C4, Claymores, etc. Expect to get called a noob when using this in conjunction with your launchers. Actually, that does sound kind of fun. I might set up a few launcher classes just piss off other players.

Danger Close Pro is the same, except that you get more explosive damage from your killstreak rewards, i.e. AC-130 and Predator Missiles. Unlock this by getting 100 kills using Danger Close.

3. Tier 3 Perks

a. Commando(Pro)

Commando is a pretty straight forward perk. Equip this if you find yourself knifing people a lot. You’ll increase the distance of knife melee range a bit, making the “Oh shit I’m right next to my enemy!” dance end sooner.

Commando Pro will get unlocked after 20 kills with Commando. You’ll be able to fall from buildings without taking any damage. This is a surprisingly useful perk if you are a close quarters or run-and-gunner player since it allows you to chase someone quite easily without them knowing. Works wonders in the Favela stage.

b. Steady Aim(Pro)

If you’re a total noob, chances are that you will be using Light Machine Guns a lot. You’ll quickly realize that LMGs take forever to pull up for aiming. Lucky for you that Steady Aim gives you more accuracy when shooting from the hip (shooting your weapon without aiming. AKA “spraying”). Equip this until you learn how to strafe and aim for kills.

Steady Aim Pro was actually made for people that like to snipe. You’ll be able to hold your breath longer for aiming with a scope. This one seems kind of odd at first, until you realize that Steady Aim is ridiculous for experienced snipers who can hip-fire a Barrett .50 and headshot you. Friendly scrotum-punch inbound. Unlocked by getting 80 kills using Steady Aim.

c. Scrambler(Pro)

Scrambler interferes with your enemy’s radar when you are in a specified proximity of them. This sounds like an excellent thing to have at first. The problem with this perk is that it interferes gradually, meaning that their radar slowly gets harder to read as you get closer. When this happens it alerts the other player of your presence because a Counter-UAV is activated immediately. So when using this one you are affectively giving away your presence. Not cool.

Scrambler Pro is fairly useful though. After 50 close range kills with regular, you’ll be able to pass an enemy Claymore without it detonating immediately. As soon as you realize you’ve set the Claymore’s trigger, you should have enough time to get out of the blast radius. Much more useful than regular. Unless there happens to be an enemy near that Claymore. Then you’ll probably get shot anyway.

d. Ninja(Pro)

Ninja makes you invisible to Heartbeat Monitors. I haven’t encountered many people using Heartbeat Monitors outside of Hardcore Team Deathmatch, but I’m sure it does happen. The real point in using this perk is to unlock the Pro version anyway.

Ninja Pro gives you silent footsteps. It is awesome for every class and play style. This one probably gets used a lot. Use it frequently.

e. SitRep(Pro)

This will give you a heads up when enemy explosives and Tactical Insertions are near. I’m not a fan of this perk since I rarely die by Claymores and Tactical Insertions are bright red flares. They’re kind of hard to miss already. You’ll have to destroy 120 enemy explosives using SitRep for Pro.

Pro isn’t much better, unfortunately. You’ll be able to hear enemy footsteps easier, but this isn’t as useful as you would think. If someone is using Ninja Pro you still won’t be able to hear them. Use at your own risk.

f. Last Stand(Pro)

Last Stand gives a chance to shoot your enemies before you die. This is exactly the same as the original Last Stand from Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, except that you can now crawl too. Crawling hasn’t helped me at all, yet. I have heard of a glitch that will let you swap your weapon for dead enemy’s weapon, though… Get 20 kills with this to unlock Pro.

In Last Stand Pro you can use your equipment too. That means you can throw a grenade or flash too. To be honest, I’d rather just die and respawn for another go. Or just wait until I get the Final Stand Deathstreak reward.

B. Mistakes when Using Perks

#1: Application. It is hilarious to see people using perks like Cold-Blooded on a map like Scrapyard while using a Light Machine Gun. Whatever perks you are using, make sure they all work together and with your weapons, equipment and play style. If you want to focus on just knifing people the entire round you need to equip a small SMG, some Flash or Stun Grenades, Marathon, Lightweight, and either Commando(recommended) or Ninja. You don’t want Bling and Stopping Power.

#2: Attributes. Read each one carefully and then pay attention to how you are going to use it. For example, you don’t really need Stopping Power equipped if you’re using the M16. It already puts out a lot of damage. It would make much more sense to use Hardline or Lightweight.

#3: Matches. The perks you use are going to vary depending on what type of match you are playing. If you’re playing a Hardcore match you should NEVER had Stopping Power equipped. Ever. The ACR can kill an enemy very easily without it if you’re playing Hardcore and it is a very weak weapon.

#4: Scrambler. Don’t use this. Ever. It is crap and only tells your enemy that you are close to their position. In effect, it gives away your position instead of hiding it.

C. Proper Perk Usage

Just do what makes the most sense. Think about what you are trying to accomplish and build your entire class off of that one goal.

If you’re in Hardcore try the Steady Aim perk. You’ll be able to spray your bullets more accurately than before and that is important when it only takes a single bullet to kill.

Weapon Familiarization II (Equipment and Killstreaks) | Class Creation

For questions, suggestions, and corrections you can send me an email at jcavin00@gmail.com. Thanks. Have fun and beat some heads for me.