Time To Kill - Underslung

http://xboxahoy.com/time-to-kill-underslung
Sixth episode of 'Time To Kill', a series devoted to the inner workings and mechanics of Call of Duty's multiplayer.

Sometimes, the best addition to your weapon - is another weapon.
In this episode, we're covering the underslung attachments.

For much of Call of Duty's history, the underslung grenade launcher has been a... popular attachment choice - much to the chagrin of some.
This explosive option was first introduced in COD4, and quickly cemented its place as a popular attachment choice.
Modern Warfare 2 also introduced an underbarrel shotgun, to serve as a close-range backup for close quarters combat, enhancing the versatility of some of the assault rifles.
Black Ops saw a similar complement, with the addition of a flamethrower for roasting close-range enemies for those fond of fire.
In Modern Warfare 3, only the grenade launcher and shotgun make an appearance.
Their return is marked with a significant decrease in overall effectiveness - especially in the case of the grenade launcher - but each can still fulfil a supplementary role within your loadout.
The underslung grenade launcher extends your reach with a little explosive ordnance - and although the days of deadly Danger Close-level damage have passed, employing a weapon with a blast radius can still be useful in certain cases.
There are a number of different variants of the attachment - the specific variant depends on the weapon to which you attach it.
The 'classic' grenade launcher is the M203 - this was the default underslung launcher of choice in both Modern Warfare 1 and 2, and makes a return in MW3.
However, it is no longer the default launcher - and only makes an appearance on the 2 American assault rifles: the M16A4 and M4A1.
The new default is the M320 - a more modern launcher designed by Heckler and Koch, intended to replace the M203.
The M320 also makes an appearance as a standalone secondary weapon, in the M320 GLM.
It behaves in exactly the same way as the attachment, but lacks the overbarrel assault rifle - and requires that you aim down the sights before you fire.
The AK-47 also has its own unique launcher, labelled the GP-25 - but is modelled after the later GP-30.
This Russian launcher fires caseless 40mm rounds, and is designed to affix to the Kalashnikov series of weapons.
Note that all variants of the grenade launcher behave in an identical way in-game: damage and the projectile behaviour are unaltered by your weapon choice.
The only difference is a visual and timing one - the appearance of the launcher, and duration of the switch time and reload animations.
Getting a kill outright with the launcher demands a high degree of accuracy in your grenade placement - with a 1.4 metre lethal radius on an uninjured opponent, it's important to land your shot close.
In previous Modern Warfare games the grenade launcher's lethal radius was around 3 metres - so in MW3 the grenade launcher's lethal area is approximately one fifth of its predecessors.
Enemies protected by the blast shield perk will prove even more troublesome - with only a direct impact proving lethal.
The grenade you fire does take some time to arm, so within a range of 5 metres or so a direct impact is your only option anyway, even against an enemy without blast shield.
Should you strike an opponent at close range, you will likely kill them - with such an impact dealing 135 damage, sufficient to kill all but a Juggernaut or an uninjured opponent with a ballistic vest equipped.
When employing the grenade launcher, it's wise to use the environment to your advantage - unexploded cars, barrels and enemy equipment can be set off as a chain reaction of explosives, enhancing lethality and reducing the odds of an enemy surviving within your blast radius.
Things change when dealing with injured opponents, however - as the grenade launcher will despatch sufficiently weak opponents at a range of up to about 7 and a half metres.
This makes the attachment uniquely useful for finishing off opponents that you've wounded, but subsequently escape to cover - with a well-placed grenade you can hit opponents round corners, or within buildings, potentially securing the kill.
Even wounding an opponent with a grenade can be useful - softening up entrenched defenders guarding an objective will tilt any consequent gunfight in your favour.
In addition, the presence of a hitmarker will confirm any doubts you may have had over an enemy presence.
This technique is doubly effective when paired with Recon in your first perk slot, as any enemy caught in your blast radius will be marked on your minimap in addition to sustaining explosive injury.
Pair your assault rifle with the impact proficiency, and with their exact position marked you can finish off your helpless target with the sixth sense that Recon provides.
The only major limitation to this strategy is your limited supply of grenades - with the grenade launcher you will receive only 2 40mm rounds.

Prochain épisode

S01E79 - Weapons of Modern Warfare - Type 95