Other weapons
This section covers weapons that are not distinctively defined by the above categories, including machine guns and stationary weapons.
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M1897 Trench Gun
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Name: Winchester M1897 Shotgun
Country of origin: USA
Available for: All
Calibre: 12 gauge
Magazine capacity: 6 rounds (including one in chamber)
Firing mechanism: Pump-action
Weight: 3.15kg
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Historical Background
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Another design by the famed John M. Browning, the Winchester M1897 was developed to dominate the conditions found in the First World War. During the American Civil War, shotguns were used to some success, and were employed sporadically throughout military history. The Americans in the First World War realised the suitable combat environment for shotguns in the narrow trenches of the Western Front, and by designing a rapid-fire shotgun and issuing it to frontline troops, devastating impacts were made.
The M97 Winchester shotgun was lighter than the contemporary Springfield M1903 rifle and had a much shorter barrel, allowing it to be easily carried and swung around. The 12 gauge shotgun shells, at such close ranges, tore through enemy soldiers. There are reports of Germans attacking American lines, running into a torrent of shotgun pellets and quickly being turned into a pile of carcasses. Because of how devastating the Winchester shotgun was, the Germans demanded that such a weapon be banned under the rules of war.
A special heat shield grip was used in trenches to prevent the weapon from being damaged during and between shots. Five rounds were stored in the tubular magazine under the barrel, with one round in the chamber itself. Some shotguns had a special bayonet adapter, which could attach a standard-issue bayonet.
The M97 was used by all military arms at some point or another, and was employed in smaller numbers in the Second World War. As newer and better shotguns were developed, the Winchester began to be phased out, but still saw use in Korea and Vietnam.
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Call of Duty 2 notes
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A new addition to Call of Duty, the shotgun developed a notorious reputation from the moment of the game`s release. Prior to COD2, the same shotgun was featured in Allied Assault, where it was strongly disliked by the community as being too strong, too fast and too accurate. Not surprisingly, COD2`s shotgun has met with the same dislike.
The shotgun`s iron sight consists of nothing more than a steel pin above the muzzle. Being a shotgun, the weapon sprays a burst of pellets at a target rather than a single bullet. While having a large damage area, the pellets do little damage individually. The weapon is best used at close range, where practically all pellets hit, resulting in overkill. At longer ranges it requires more shots to bring an enemy down, and at long range it is impossible to hit a target. The Shotgun requires a pump action between shots, reducing its rate of fire, and reloads with individual shells. The reload can be cut off at anytime to resume firing when needed.
Interestingly, the Shotgun is the only weapon that doesn`t lose its crosshairs while moving. This makes it far easier for the shotgun to run around and pump people full of lead without much accuracy penalty.
While the damage of the Shotgun is realistic enough (any less damaging and it wouldn`t be a shotgun), the free availability of it from the menu for all teams makes it a cookie cutter of a weapon in close quarter maps. The main concern that many players have with the Shotgun is that it is too easy to use and impossible to defend against, making it a popular weapon with new players and hated by other players. Veteran players argue that while it is possible to kill several enemies in a row with several rifle shots, it takes skill to use a rifle, while a Shotgun can kill 5-6 players in a row by pointing the weapon in the general direction of the target. In maps like El Alamein, which is essentially a big trench system, the Shotgun simply cannot be stopped unless by another Shotgun or by a long range rifle shot.
Because of its controversial power and availability, some servers remove the weapon from the menu. Arguably, the weapon would be better left as something that can only be picked up, like the FG-42 in COD1, but it is most likely that competitive circles will bar the weapon entirely. There is a good chance that Infinity Ward will nerf the weapon in some form in a future patch.
The Shotgun has the same grenade loadout as the submachine guns, with one frag grenade and one smoke grenade.
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MG-42
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Name: Maschinengewehr 1942
Country of origin: Germany
Available for: Stationary weapon in Single and Multi-Player
Calibre: 7.92 x 57mm Mauser
Magazine capacity: 250-round linkable belts
Firing mechanism: Full-automatic, recoil-operated
Rate of fire: 1200 rounds per minute
Weight: 11.5kg on bipod
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Historical Background
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In the 1930`s, the German Army required a machine gun to rearm its forces. After a few unsatisfactory adoptions, the Mauser company came up with a revolutionary design: the MG34. It incorporated several new features: the "straight-line" principle, where the butt is part of the barrel line, reducing the tendency to rise when firing on full-automatic, the use of 50-round belts that could be linked to form longer belts, and even the use of a double-drum magazine. A fast, accurate weapon, the MG-34 was a good weapon.
Too good, perhaps. It used the same manufacturing techniques as traditionally-made weapons, being very time- and labor-consuming. To rectify this problem, changes were made to the MG34, using as much metal stampings and pressings as possible, making it easier to produce the weapon while maintaining reliability. This was achieved and designated the MG42, as well as notching the rate of fire over 1200 rounds per minute. At this level, it is impossible for the human ear to pick out individual rounds being fired, only hearing a "brrp" sound that was feared by anyone on the receiving end. This extremely high rate of fire tended to overheat the barrel, which could easily be changed in a few seconds.
The MG42 was a General Purpose Machine Gun, being used as a light machine gun as well as a heavy machine gun mounted on a tripod. Interestingly, many infantry tactics were centered around the MG42. This was fair, since the MG42 provided more firepower than an entire squad. The MG squad was handpicked and consisted of seasoned veterans. The most decorated soldier carried and fired the MG42, while the second best soldier fed the MG42 and replaced the
barrel. The two least experienced soldiers, usually new conscripts, did nothing but carry ammunition. The rest of the crew covered all possible approaches to the MG42. The MG42 itself was exempt from a `stand fast` order, relocating to a better, pre-planned position to resume firing. This order of battle was extremely effective. The squad may be crippled, but as long as the MG42 was still operational, the remainder could put up more firepower than any Allied squad.
Although the original MG42 has been phased out, many of its features are used in modern machine guns like the M60. As a testament to its revolutionary design though, the MG42 is still in use by the German Army as the MG3, rechambered for the 7.62mm NATO round.
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Call of Duty 2 notes
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The MG-42 returns with its awesome sound effects and tons of lead spewing out. The MG-42 is only seen as a stationary weapon, and mainly in single player. Germans generally pre-deploy MG-42s at key positions throughout the levels, while some levels feature Germans carrying MG-42s, which you can take out before they can deploy them. In multiplayer, most stages have an MG-42 located in some places, typically on the German side of the map for team-based maps.
The MG-42 uses a white crosshair similar to the black crosshair in COD1. The intersection of the crosshairs designates the approximate point of impact, as the weapon will vibrate violently when fired. The MG-42 does not overheat, unlike CODUO, so it can be fired indefinitely without any penalty. An easy way to determine hit probability is to fire the weapon only when the crosshairs go red, which they do when pointing directly at an enemy. Some players see this method is cheap, but that`s how the game mechanics are coded.
The weapon can kill targets in 1-2 hits, and anyone caught in its spray is practically shredded instantaneously. The catch is that the weapon is stationary, which means that the firer is a sitting duck for as long as they are using the MG-42. While enemies from the front will have trouble taking out the gunner, flanking enemies will have no problem in neutralising the threat. Therefore, try to minimise the amount of time spent on the MG and only use it when there are targets of opportunity.
The MG-42 cannot be moved around by the player. However, in a couple of missions the MG-42 is carried by German troops and deployed at certain locations. Players can take out the machine gunner before they deploy the MG-42, removing a potential threat.
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.30 cal
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Name: Browning M1919A4 .30cal Light Machine Gun
Country of origin: USA
Available for: Stationary weapon in Single and Multi-Player
Calibre: .30-06 (7.62 x 63mm)
Magazine capacity: 250-round belts
Firing mechanism: Full-automatic, recoil-operated, air-cooled
Rate of fire: 400-550 rounds per minute
Weight: 14.5kg
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Historical Background
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Developed by famed weapons design John M. Browning, the M1919 was a rather late-issue infantry machine gun. Prior to the M1919, the Americans used the M1917A1 water-cooled machine gun in the First World War. However, experience showed that the water-cooling made the weapon excessively heavy, so it was redesigned with an air-cooled perforated barrel jacket and, after several refinements to infantry needs, became the M1919A4 light machine gun.
The M1919A4 was the dominant version of the M1919 series, and was issued as a support weapon for infantry mounted on a tripod, as well as mounted on tanks and jeeps.
However, further combat experience brought complaints that the M1919A4, using a tripod, was too unwieldy and took too long to set up in combat. The M1919A4 was improved by reducing the weight, replacing the tripod with an integral bipod and added a shoulder-stock to the weapon, making it much easier to set up and fire. This model was designated the M1919A6.
As with all air-cooled machine guns, the M1919A6 was less efficient and could not output the same amount of sustained fire as the older M1917. Consequently, the M1917 saw a resurgence in use in the Korean War, when heavy sustained fire was required and the M1919 machine guns failed to deliver.
Despite the improvements of the M1919A6, only 43,500 were produced in WWII, compared to the 390,000 M1919A4 models.
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Call of Duty 2 notes
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The .30 cal, present in CODUO as the M1919A6 deployable machine gun, is now the stationary M1919A4 machine gun. The weapon is practically identical to the German MG-42, except that it has a different firing sound and is usually found in the American side of multiplayer maps.
The .30 cal uses the same white static crosshair as the MG-42, which goes red when pointing at targets, almost guaranteeing a kill if fired at this stage. Like the MG-42, the .30 cal does not overheat, and also renders the gunner vulnerable to flanking attacks.
In a certain American mission in Single Player, the M1919A4 .30 cal is mounted on the DUKW, which the player uses while it is advancing across the river onto the bank.
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