Weapon changes in Cold War Season 3: All buffs and nerfs

Black Ops Cold War Season 3 patch notes are here and asides from a whole lot of new content, the update also brings tuning and balancing for the existing weapons.

Black Ops Cold War Season 3 comes with two new maps, six new weapons in total throughout the season, new scorestreak Strafe Run, a new field upgrade called Toxic Growth for Zombies, and much more.

But players were hoping that the update will bring some balance changes as well, as it seems that the game is still not in a state as good as it should be.

Thankfully, Treyarch understands this and in Season 3 they bring a set of balance changes to the existing weapons across all classes, which should help the game to feel fresher and more balanced, at least we hope so.

(Picture: Activision)

Most notably, the patch features changes to the Light Machine Gun class, as Treyarch thinks that the LMG class was "particularly versatile compared to other classes".

The Streetsweeper is also nerfed, and you will not be able to 1-hit kill people with it anymore. The patch also brings some changes to attachments for the FFAR 1, and a few tweaks across the Assault Rifle, Submachine Gun, and Tactical Rifle classes.

Let's see what balance changes are coming in Cold War Season 3.

Light Machine Guns (LMG) changes in Season 3

(Picture: Activision)

The LMG class is getting the most nerfs with the Season 3 patch.

According to Treyarch, this class is simply too adaptable and all-around good compared to other weapon classes.

Light Machine Gun Alpha, commonly known as Stoner 63, is getting the most nerfs, including reduced ADS speed and an increase to vertical recoil.

The RPD and M60 are also on the list of nerfed weapons, although RPD got an increase to max damage.

• Stoner 63
  
  • Reduced max damage from 42 to 38.
  • Reduced max range from 38.1m to 21.59m.
  • Slight increase to vertical recoil.
  • Slightly reduced ADS speed.
  • Reduced range bonus on Match Grade Barrel attachment from +100 to +50%.
  • Reduced range penalty of Division Barrel attachment from -25% to -12%.
• RPD
  • Increased max damage from 38 to 42.
  • Reduced max range from 50.8m to 20.4m.
  • Reduced ammo capacity from 75 to 50.
  • Reduced range bonus on Match Grade Barrel attachment from +100% to +50%.
  • Reduced range penalty of Division Barrel attachment from -25% to -15%.
• M60
  • Reduced max range from 76.2m to 20.4m.
  • Reduced ADS speed by 13.8%.
  • Increased probability of horizontal view kick when hip-firing.
  • Reduced range bonus on Match Grade Barrel attachment from +100% to +50%.
  • Reduced range penalty of Division Barrel attachment from -25% to -15%.

Shotguns changes in Season 3

(Picture: Activision)

If you are a fan of the Streetsweeper, unfortunately, you will have to say goodbye to one-shot kills, which will not be possible anymore in Season 3.

The Streetsweeper's max damage has also been drastically reduced, from 138 to 88, as well as its mid-range pellet damage and damage bonus with Task Force Barrel attachment. 

On the other hand, the Hauer 77 and Gallo SA12 will overall perform better in Season 3, with slight buffs and a few smaller nerfs.

• Streetsweeper
  • Removed 1-shot kill potential.
  • Decreased max damage from 138 to 88.
  • Reduced mid-range pellet damage from 6 to 5.
  • Reduced damage bonus on Task Force Barrel attachment.
• Hauer 77
  • Increased max range from 5.08m to 5.72m.
  • Reduced range penalty on Task Force Barrel attachment from 12% to 7%.
  • Reduced damage bonus on Task Force Barrel attachment.
• Gallo SA12
  
  • Increased mid damage range from 9.14m to 10.16m.
  • Increased mid-range pellet damage from 2 to 3.
  • Reduced max damage from 118 to 108.

Assault Rifles changes in Season 3

(Picture: Activision)

The Assault Rifle class has received a lot of changes with the Season 2 Reloaded update, but this time around it wasn't Treyarch's main focus.

FFAR 1 has received buffs for 34 and 38 RND magazines, as well as reduced recoil penalties on Task Force Barrel.

Krig 6 will now deal more headshot damage with an increased headshot multiplier, while some Assault Rifles attachments will now grant an ADS move speed bonus.

• FFAR 1
  • Reduced recoil penalties on Task Force Barrel attachment by 10% total.
  • Increased bullets added to 34 RND magazine attachment from 34 to 38.
  • Reduced reload speed penalty on 34 RND magazine attachment from 10% to 5%.
  • Increased bullets added to 38 RND Speed Mag magazine attachment from 34 to 38.
  • Reduced ADS speed penalty on 38 RND Speed Mag magazine attachment from 20% to 10%.
• Krig 6
  • Increased headshot multiplier from 1.25 to 1.4.
  • Reduced max damage from 35 to 33.
• Attachments
  • Added an ADS move speed bonus to the following barrel attachments for assault rifles: Ultralight, Contour, Contour M2, CMV Mil-Spec.

Tactical Rifles and Submachine Guns changes in Season 3

(Picture: Activision)

Finally, there are changes to the AUG with several nerfs and buffs, as well as a reduction of sprinting speed of all SMGs.

• Tactical Rifles
  • AUG
    • Reduced max range from 30.48m to 19.05m.
    • Increased burst fire delay from 0.216 to 0.233.
    • Increased max damage from 51 to 52.
    • Increased headshot multiplier from 1.25 to 1.4.
    • Reduced range bonus on Task Force barrel attachment from +50% to +40%.
    • Reduced damage bonus on Task Force barrel from +15% to +12%.
• Submachine Guns
  • Sprint Speed
    • Reduced sprinting speed of all SMGs. Pistols are now the fastest guns to sprint with.
    • With specific attachments, an SMG may now allow sprinting as fast as a pistol.

Keep in mind that these changes are currently slated only for Black Ops Cold War, and all these weapons will remain the same in Warzone (for now). If Raven Software issues an update in regards to changes in Warzone, we will have you informed on time.

For more details on Black Ops Cold War Season 3, check out our article here.