CoD: Black Ops 7 Top Up

CoD Black Ops 7 Season 5 officially launched on July 23. To tackle the newly added maps, modes, and other content, reliable gear is essential, and the items included in Season 5 Battle Pass are an excellent choice.

So, what exactly is in this Battle Pass? Should you unlock everything or just pick and choose specific pieces of gear? We're here to break it down to help you decide.

Season 5 Battle Pass overview

Like previous seasons, Season 5 Battle Pass is divided into free tiers, premium tiers, and additional rewards unlocked via BlackCell.

All free Battle Pass gear is unlocked by playing the game and progressing through the tiers, whereas the premium pass requires an investment of 1,100 CoD Points to obtain everything.

Unlocking BlackCell bundle needs 2,400 CoD Points but grants immediate access to 20 rewards from the reward path, allowing you to start earning high-tier gear ahead of the competition.

Free and Premium Passes

Season 5 Battle Pass offers a wealth of content, even in the free tiers, spanning over a dozen in-game pages and including items like CoD Points, weapon charms, GobbleGums, and more.

For instance, on the first page, you can earn 100 CoD Points, a 45-minute Double XP token,Ground Ripper weapon charm, and more.

Beyond these smaller items, a highlight of the free pass is the ability to unlock bonus rewards after completing specific pages, such as the high-tier FG42 Assault Rifle available for free on Page 3.

As a primary weapon, FG42 boasts a fire rate of 770 rounds per minute and requires between 4 and 6 shots to eliminate an enemy, depending on the engagement range. This translates to TTK)of just 234 milliseconds at close range.

It is currently the fastest-killing fully automatic assault rifle in the game (second only to AN 94) and is even slightly faster than MPC 25, the game's dominant SMG.

Furthermore, even in long-range engagements, it maintains TTK of 390 milliseconds, a performance that surpasses most other assault rifles at that range.

While its headshot performance isn't particularly remarkable in its default configuration, equipping a damage-boosting barrel allows it to secure a kill at close range with just two headshots and one body shot.

Regarding damage ranges, FG42 boasts an impressive 4-shot kill range of approximately 22 meters, while its 5-shot kill range extends to 38 meters.

Although FG42 might not stand out significantly in terms of damage drop-off distances, its TTK within these ranges is excellent. Additionally, it features a solid muzzle velocity of 40 meters per second.

Another new primary weapon, Gremlin, serves as the ultimate reward on Page 6 of free Battle Pass. It comes with Akimbo (dual-wield) mode unlocked by default, eliminating the need to max out the weapon level, as is required for most pistols or SMGs in Black Ops 7, to access the dual-wield attachment.

Akimbo means carrying two weapons simultaneously for double the firepower, though this comes at the cost of increased recoil and reduced effective range. Nevertheless, Gremlin feels great to use in close-quarters combat, even in its base configuration.

Aside from these, the remaining free content consists primarily of various cosmetic items or tokens; unless you have a specific desire to collect everything, you can simply unlock what appeals to you. Regarding weapons, you can also complete in-game challenges to unlock additional camos.

It is worth noting that understanding a weapon's stats is one thing, but actually using it is another. Therefore, after acquiring FG42, Gremlin, or other Battle Pass firearms, it is best to buy Black Ops 7 Bot Lobbies on IGGM.

Playing against bots reduces unpredictability, allowing you to safely get a feel for your new weapons and discover the playstyle that suits you best.

Completing all pages of Season 5 Battle Pass also grants you the following ultimate rewards:

• Viscera Ultra Skin for Spectre plus (And potential BlackCell variant)
• Fission Core Legendary Carbon 57 SMG Blueprint
• 200 CoD Points
• Thousand Cuts Animated Calling Card
• Strive Animated Emblem
• Gift Card Ultra GobbleGum

BlackCell exclusive content

Upon unlocking BlackCell, you gain immediate access to all base content of Season 5 Battle Pass, meaning you instantly acquire all the items mentioned above. In addition, a portion of BlackCell rewards will unlock immediately:

• Cipher BlackCell Operator Skin and three additional alternate skins
• Vindex Mastercraft Blueprint
• Riddlefang Knife Melee Blueprint and three alternate versions
• 1,100 CoD Points
• Meat Grinder Finishing Move
• Phobia Weapon Charm
• BlackCell No. 5 HUD Theme
• BlackCell Clan Tag
• 10% XP Loyalty Boost

Of course, the remaining exclusive BlackCell rewards require you to continue farming as you play Black Ops 6; some of these are even enhanced versions of the instant rewards mentioned above.

It is worth noting that the 10% XP Loyalty Boost included in the instant rewards applies to both standard XP and Weapon XP, and these bonuses stack.

This means that if you unlocked the XP Loyalty Boost in the previous four seasons, you can enjoy a 50% boost in Season 5 and beyond!

Beyond item rewards, BlackCell grants you access to extra challenges that let you earn more camos and XP: complete additional in-game weapon challenges to unlock exclusive animated weapon camos, and take on extra daily challenges that span all game modes.

New operator Cipher and his teammates

Season 5 BlackCell immediately grants you access to the new operator, Cipher. You can then unlock his three teammates, DoxBit, Trace, and Hex, by completing subsequent challenges.

Is Season 5 Battle Pass worth it?

Season 5 is likely the final major seasonal update for Call of Duty Black Ops before the series moves on to the next mainline installment, so most items in the battle pass offer both fun and practical value in combat.

However, given the sheer volume of content, and the fact that some items are purely cosmetic, you don't necessarily need to unlock everything; feel free to pick and choose based on your preferences. That said, you definitely shouldn't miss out on powerful free weapons like FG 42!

Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 Season 5 launches on all platforms on July 23rd at 9 AM PST. As one of the last major seasonal updates in BO7 lifecycle, Season 5 brings four brand-new weapons and a range of new weapon attachments. This article will provide a summary of the core content of all weapon-related updates in Season 5, helping you adapt to the new season's combat more quickly.

Four New Weapons Explained

S5 adds four new weapons, two of which are unlocked for free through Battle Pass, while the other two will be released gradually as rewards from in-season events and weekly challenges.

FG42 Assault Rifle

FG42 is a modern interpretation of a classic WWII rifle, unlocked for free as a HVT reward on the third page of BO7 Battle Pass. This is a fully automatic assault rifle with excellent damage output and a considerable rate of fire, but it is balanced by a relatively slow handling speed and a short bolt delay.

FG42 features a side-mounted magazine, and its front and rear sights provide a clear aiming field of view, making it reliable in various combat scenarios. Low recoil and a fast reticle return mean that even at longer ranges, burst fire is almost unnecessary. In official terms, you simply lock onto the target, pull the trigger, and keep firing until you win.

As always, this weapon will come with a new prestige attachment - ambilateral stock. This attachment significantly increases the rate of fire and almost completely eliminates horizontal recoil. Its vertical recoil is quite significant, affecting aiming speed and mobility. Whether sacrificing handling for increased firepower is worthwhile is a matter of personal preference and judgment.

Gremlin SMG

Gremlin is also unlocked for free on page six of Battle Pass as a HVT reward. It's a dual-wielding, fully automatic submachine gun, one in each hand, offering excellent mobility and powerful close-range firepower, but its range is limited - due to the inability to aim down sights.

Gremlin's single-shot damage isn't high, but this is compensated for by its best-in-class hip-fire accuracy. It reliably tracks targets at mid-range using controlled bursts to suppress recoil.

Its prestige attachment is the cestus barrel, a lightweight barrel with a deadly spike at the front for high close-range damage, while also providing a better movement speed bonus. The practical value of this attachment is particularly noteworthy - whether it's a competitive, practical choice or purely for fun remains to be seen.

Mammoth LMG

Mammoth is unlocked as a reward from Machine of War in-season event. It's a fully automatic light machine gun with a twin-reciprocating barrel design, offering high damage output and controllable recoil, but at the cost of low rate of fire, slow mobility, and slow handling.

Mammoth's strength lies in its low recoil and low rate of fire, which keeps it stable even during sustained fire, making it ideal for providing suppressive fire for teammates. Therefore, it's recommended to use it with attachments that improve mobility and handling, such as Fast Mag and Ranger Foregrip.

Its prestige attachment is the cascade barrel, which removes the pre-fire delay. This feature has strategic value in certain fast-paced gunfight scenarios. It also improves movement speed, spread control, and recoil performance when aiming down sights, but the aiming speed will be slower.

Mace

Mace, unlocked as a weekly challenge reward in BO7 S5, is a melee weapon - a heavy mace - characterized by high damage, long attack range, and a slow rate of fire. Unlike the previous three weapons, Mace doesn't have its own prestige attachment, but it does have Weapon Camos that can be unlocked through upgrades.

The release of new weapons always sparks a wave of experimentation, but mastering them takes time. To test the practical performance of these four weapons and the specific effects of attachments, you can buy CoD Black Ops 7 Bot Lobbies from IGGM.com to create a more flexible training environment.

New Weapon Attachments

BO7 S5 will introduce several new attachments through weekly challenge rewards. Here's all that's been announced so far:

Jäger 45 Grid-Breaker Kit

This kit transforms Jäger 45 pistol into a rechargeable EMP device, increasing movement speed, firing a localized shockwave that deals minor damage and disrupts enemy electronics. Therefore, this kit is better suited for tactical jamming than direct kills.

M34 Novaline Garand Conversion

This converts Novaline into a top-mounted semi-automatic rifle, boasting devastating firepower and accuracy while maintaining a decent rate of fire. Simply put, it turns Novaline into an M1 Garand-style weapon.

EAM IRVIZ Thermal Reflex

A lightweight thermal imaging sight suitable for most primary weapons. However, sight attachments are highly subjective; some appreciate the field of view advantage of thermal imaging, while others find its display unpleasant.

M15 MOD 0 AMR .50 Cal Kit

This mod converts M15 MOD 0 to fire .50 caliber ammunition, increasing its long-range lethality. For pure firepower, rate of fire and recoil control are sacrificed.

Most of these attachments are unlocked gradually through weekly challenges during the season. Jäger 45 Grid-Breaker Kit is available at launch, while the remaining attachments require players to regularly check and complete the weekly challenges to obtain them for free.

In short, CoD Black Ops 7 Season 5 injects new tactical variables into the battlefield with four distinct weapons and a range of modifications for various purposes. Whether you prefer the precise firepower of traditional firearms or enjoy experimenting with EMP jamming, Mace close-quarters combat, and other unconventional playstyles, this update gives you ample reason to return to the fight.