Call of Duty 4: Perks Guide

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Alright, I’m sorry I didn’t post yesterday but I had a good reason. Call of Duty 4 smacked me in the face. You may be aware that I had rented this game when it first came out and finished the single-player campaign in a couple days (and then again in another). I loved it. Then I stepped into multi-player and found myself getting my butt handed to me as I had to use iron sights while people had red dots scopes (or more) a very lousy experience.

It took a bit, but I ended up buying the game (I knew I would eventually) and trying again. Once again I was getting pasted. I stuck with it though and it’s been very rewarding and fun.

A quick note here: some of you multi-players are @#$%heads. That’s right. I had some dude berating me via voice chat for only getting 2 kills in a match and I’d been only on for all of 2.5 hours and playing against high-level guys with much better weapons. The whole CoD4 community should encourage new players and not screw with them.

Cut to 9+ hours of game time later when I was calling in UAVs, Airstrikes, and Choppers after killing 14 people and only dying once. The trick is not only with the weapons, but also the Perks that you unlock as you level up. There are some very cool combinations you can use. I’ll admit the game does have ups and downs. I was doing very well overall for many, many games only to then hit a slump as 6-7 Level 55 guys dominated myself and some other lower classes for about 10 games straight. I probably got 20 kills in those 10 games and died about 100 times. It sucked, but they did it with superior weapons and Perks (not to mention serious run & gun tactics constantly). Give me a P90 and Bandolier and I’ll be doing the same thing some day. Heh…

Anyway, here’s a complete guide of Perks for you. Read on!

Perk 1 Slot:

C4 x2 ( Rank 1 )
The C4 Explosives perk gives you two C4 explosives that you can detonate remotely using the fire button, or if you are using your primary weapon you can detonate them by double tapping the square button (PS3). I’ve found it takes too much time and people generally move too fast to really use this effectively. You’re better off with something like Special Grenade x3 in the early days.

Special Grenades x3 ( Rank 1 )
This is my favorite among this group so far. I usually use Stun grenades, but it really depends on which Custom Class I’m using. Using three Flash grenades is really a good tactic for constantly blinding your enemies over and over.

RPG-7 x2 ( Rank 2 )
The RPG-7 x2 perk gives you two dumb rockets that are handy for shooting down enemy Choppers. I generally have one or two Custom Classes with this one too, but not so much in the early stages.

Claymore x2 ( Rank 23 )
Claymores are mine that you can plant to blow people up when they’re in range. They are short range and the explosion is very directional so they’re best used in doorways and places of limited visibility. It takes some practice to get good at placing them, but they’re an excellent addition to the arsenal on some maps.

Frag x 3 ( Rank 41 )
The Frag x3 perk gives you three frag grenades instead of one. I haven’t got this one yet, but I’ve felt the pain from people that have. I’m certainly looking forward to it.

Bandolier ( Rank 32 )
The Bandolier perk gives you more ammo for your guns and hopefully I’ll have this one tonight. It’s the one I’ve been waiting for, since running dry has been my biggest downfall. I’ve gotten pretty good at scavenging addition weapons (or ammo) when needed though. This will probably become my #1 of all the Perk #1 offerings.

Bomb Squad ( Rank 14 )
The Bomb Squad perk allows you to detect explosives planted in the map. I’ve used it a couple times and it saved my skin. It’s handy, but it’s not a big favorite though. I usually would recommend taking the extra grenades instead.

Perk 2 Slot:

Stopping Power ( Rank 1 )
Stopping Power gives your weapon some power and is a great thing to have. I overlooked this one a lot in the early stages and then later discovered how great it is. I recommend it highly. I use this in a couple Custom Classes.

Juggernaut ( Rank 1 )
The Juggernaut perk, lets you take more damages than usual. It’s very handy for some maps and I used this many times in the early days to try and stay alive long enough to learn the maps and not die so easily.

Sleight of Hand ( Rank 20 )
Sleight of Hand helps you to reload weapons so fast it’s amazing! I’ve used it with a M4 Carbine for one of my classes for a bit and it’s definitely a favorite in the Perk 2 set. Using it for a heavy weapons gunner makes reloading blazingly fast and is pretty much a must-have.

Double Tap ( Rank 29 )
Double Tap increases the rate of fire for your weapon. I got this one last night, but haven’t used it in conjunction with the right weapon just yet. I can see how it would be a big help with a shotgun or other very slow firing weapon though.

Overkill ( Rank 38 )
Overkill allows you to carry a second primary weapon instead of a pistol. It’s my #1 in this category and I’m dying (literally) to get it. It will open up many opportunities on all maps. I see this perk all the time when viewing the animation through my killers eyes (you see their perks and weapons).

UAV Jammer ( Rank 11)
The UAV Jammer perk helps to keep you off the enemy radar. I misunderstood this one when I first used it and eventually got some info that cleared things up. When you fire a weapon, you show a temporary blip on the enemies radar. When they get a UAV up, you show up all the time. Having this perk prevents you from showing up when they get their UAV going (one player getting 3 kills straight without dying), but when you fire…you’ll still show as a temporary blip. Having a silencer on your weapon AND this perk is the only way to be totally off their radar.

Sonic Boom ( Rank 1 )
The Sonic Boom perk gives your explosions some added blast radius, and is great when using frags, grenade launchers, or the Martyrdom perk. i didn’t use this in the early days as much as I should have, but it’s very effective.

Perk 3 Slot:

Extreme Conditioning ( Rank 1 )
The Extreme Conditioning perk allows you to sprint for a much longer time and I’ve used it a lot. It’s one of my favorites to help getting around quickly on some maps.

Steady Aim ( Rank 1 )
The Steady Aim perk give you better aim when not sighting on with your weapon. It’s handy and I’ve used it plenty, but I end up sighting in too much for this to be that effective. Again, I’m just not using it with the right weapon combo just yet.

Last Stand ( Rank 8  )
Last stand let’s you get shot and then while you’re on the ground, you’ll pull a pistol for a final chance at finishing the person that killed you. It’s fun to try, but I don’t use it that much.

Deep Impact ( Rank 1 )
Another perk that I completely underestimated. Many weapons in CoD4 can shoot through corrugated steel, boxes, concrete bricks and thin walls. I’ve had very good results adding this to various weapons like the M16 and the SAW to hit people behind cover. It’s one of the top favorites in this group.

Iron Lungs ( Rank 26 )
The Iron Lungs perk lets you hold your breath in a sniper scope longer, which has always been my biggest problem. I haven’t really been sniping much anyway in these early levels, but I finally decided to try it tonight.

Dead Silence ( Rank 44 )
The Dead Silence perk makes you quiet, so that people don’t hear you walk up behind them. I don’t remember hearing footsteps that much in CoD4, but it will be fun to try it once I get this perk.

Eavesdrop ( Rank 35 )
Eavesdrop let’s you listen in to the other teams voice communication during a battle. I don’t really think this will help me as most of my own team is just trash talking or calling each other racist names or singing crappy music or blabbing incoherent junk. I’ve actually found very little teamwork in CoD4 as compared to Team Fortress 2. The green light hits and 99% of the games, everyone just rushes off and runs around blasting. The few teamwork situations I’ve had were excellent though and we won every time.

In the end, I’m not the best player, but I’ve managed to rise from being the bottom player in every game to being the middle of the pack using the right perks alone. Happy hunting!

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2. Call of Duty 4: Custom Classes
3. Call of Duty 4: Perk Combinations
4. Call of Duty 4: Custom Classes Update 2
5. Call of Duty 4: Custom Classes Update