Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 Season 04 Patch Notes

The Story So Far

After David Mason is captured by The Guild and Specter Two goes on the offense with their own man on the inside, Karma's Guild-killing virus is finally ready to deploy... but Dorne has one last card to play. A collision of forces at JSOC's secret jungle hideout will determine the shape of the future. 

Liminal (6v6, 2v2)

• Descend into a live Guild procedure mid-test, where the patient’s response to the experiment actively rewrites the center of the map. When the subject is calm, a red pillar stands intact on a raised platform; when agitation spikes, it fractures and slams into a crater, throwing up fresh cover and new angles around the impact zone.

Primetime (6v6)

• Let no obstacle stand in your way on Primetime, a new 6v6 Multiplayer map themed around a Japanese game show obstacle course. Battle over speed tracks, Wall Jump across bound pads, and rack up points on the board as Operators weave between supersized crates.

Vertigo (6v6)

• First introduced in Call of Duty: Black Ops 2, Vertigo returns fully remastered and ready for action in Black Ops 7. The map features a new Japanese setting, though the layout will be familiar to veterans of the original.

New Weapons

KRS-7.62 (Marksman Rifle, Battle Pass)

• Semi-auto marksman rifle. High damage and great mobility, limited by significant first shot recoil.
• Strong and steady, the KRS-7.62 offers a reliable two-hit elimination against unarmored enemies up to 25 meters out, an easy double tap when fighting up close, with a third shot required for more distant targets.

CBRS-3 (SMG, Battle Pass)

• Full-auto submachine gun with a high-capacity, rechambering magazine. Well-rounded with excellent range and recoil.
• With 60 rounds in the base model, the CBRS-3 features the largest magazine in its weapon class, capable of reaching 75 rounds with the Redwell Sprocket Mag.

Grimhawk (Special, Weekly Challenge Reward)

• Full-auto specialized rifle. Fires low-velocity homing rounds that lock onto targets.
• Make the enemy pay for opening fire on your position with this Special Weapon that fires rounds with light homing capabilities against targets shooting their weapons.

VX Compact (Assault Rifle, Event Reward)

• Full-auto assault rifle. Best-in-class rate of fire and excellent handling, offset by lower range and ammo capacity.
• What the VX Compact lacks in damage per shot, it makes up for with a blistering fire rate. At 25 rounds in the base magazine, this weapon chews through its supply fast, though its manageable recoil and minimal muzzle flare make tracking targets seamless.

New Attachments

LTI Stentorian Brake (Most Weapons, Battle Pass)

• Heavy muzzle device to improve Horizontal Recoil and Bullet Deviation with a slight fire rate improvement. Firing with this attachment reveals your position and direction on the mini-map in real time.

M10 Breacher Argus Lever (M10 Breacher, Weekly Challenge Reward)

• Lever-action conversion for the M10 Breacher. Faster fire rate with an improved starting pellet spread that becomes deadly accurate while ADS. Removes weapon charging.

New Scorestreak

Each season comes with its own seasonal rewards that can only be earned throughout the duration of that season, including the following Weapon Blueprint, Large Decal, Calling Cards, and Weapon Camos:

• Get 10 Wins: Pro Issue MPC-25 SMG Blueprint
• Get 100 Wins: “Ranked Season 04 – 100 Wins” Large Decal
• Reach Silver Rank: “Ranked Season 04 – Silver” Calling Card
• Reach Gold Rank: “Ranked Season 04 – Gold” Calling Card and Weapon Camo
• Reach Platinum Rank: “Ranked Season 04 – Platinum” Calling Card and Weapon Camo
• Reach Diamond Rank: “Ranked Season 04 — Diamond” Calling Card and Weapon Camo
• Reach Crimson Rank: “Ranked Season 04 — Crimson” Calling Card and Weapon Camo
• Reach Iridescent Rank: “Ranked Season 04 — Iridescent” Animated Calling Card and Weapon Camo
• Finish Season 04 at the Top 250 Rank: “Ranked Season 04 — Top 250” Animated Calling Card and Animated Weapon Camo
• Finish Season 04 at the Top 250 #1 Overall: “Ranked Season 04 — Top 250 Champion” Animated Calling Card

New Permanent Zombies Mode: Rogue Run

Drop into a whole new Zombies experience with Rogue Run! This fast-moving roguelite twist on Round-Based Zombies features randomized reward paths, permanent in-mode upgrades, and increasing levels of challenge through five different playlist selections, each with its own rewards.

At the start, begin with a randomly selected Common Rarity Pistol and infinite ammo. The zombies come fast and hard in this mode, so be prepared for a fight. Make it to the end of the round and choose your reward.

Build Your Loadout: After clearing each round, teleport to an area with three different rewards, each presented on a pedestal. Each pedestal draws from a different pool — utility upgrades, weapons, Perks, Field Upgrades, Ammo Mods, and more. Primary Weapons have infinite ammo, but Wonder Weapons and Underbarrels do not. 

Claim your reward within the allotted time or it will be chosen for you, then off to the next arena.

Earn Permanent Upgrades: Complete playlist challenges to gain permanent in-match benefits and stronger pedestal reward choices to aid you in future runs. These challenges often require hunting down powerful HVTs.

Included in the possible rewards are permanent Rogue Run upgrades, such as starting with a higher-rarity Pistol, or getting access to Wonder Weapons. These upgrades affect subsequent matches in every playlist within Rogue Run, making it worthwhile to progress in each one.

The Rogue Run playlists are as follows:

• Target: Luci
  • Summons volatile attackers that disrupt the fight. Stay mobile or get overwhelmed.
  • Rewards:
    • “Who’s Keeping Score?” GobbleGum and 1,000 XP (complete Round 5)
    • Wonder Weapons Rogue Run Reward Feature and 2,500 XP (complete Round 15)
    • Aether Tools Rogue Run Reward Feature and 5,000 XP (defeat Luci)
• Target: Mal
  • Drains nearby zombies and resists standard damage. Use elemental damage to turn the horde against it.
  • Rewards:
    • “Arsenal Accelerator” GobbleGum and 1,000 XP (complete Round 5)
    • Permanent 4th Rogue Run Reward Feature and 2,500 XP (complete Round 15)
    • “Hidden Power” GobbleGum and 5,000 XP (defeat Mal)
• Target: Mo
  • Adapts to your weapons over time. Scavenge new ones to stay effective.
  • Rewards:
    • “Profit Sharing” GobbleGum and 1,000 XP (complete Round 5)
    • Pack-a-Punch Crystals Rogue Run Feature and 2,500 XP (complete Round 15)
    • Augments Rogue Run Reward Feature and 5,000 XP (defeat Mo)
• Target: All Targets
  • Luci, Mal, and Mo. One run. Good luck. They appear in rounds 20, 30, and 40.
  • Rewards:
    • “Modified Chaos” GobbleGum and 10,000 XP (defeat 1 HVT in a single run)
    • “Perkaholic” GobbleGum and 20,000 XP (defeat 2 HVTs in a single run)
    • “Ray to Play” Calling Card and 30,000 XP (defeat all HVTs in a single run)
• Target: Endurance
  • Push as far as you can. Every round gets harder, so build smart and survive for as long as possible.
  • Rewards:
    • Uncommon Starting Pistol Rogue Run Reward Feature and 1,000 XP (complete Round 10)
    • Armor Upgrades Rogue Run Reward Feature and 2,500 XP (complete Round 20)
    • Rare Starting Pistol Rogue Run Reward Feature and 5,000 XP (complete Round 30)

Adapt on the fly, chase the best rewards, and see how long your squad can outlast the undead.

Zombies Survival Map: Nuked

Equipment  

Needle Drone

Needle Drone has a low overall pick rate compared to our other Lethals. We’ve increased its agility in manual pilot mode to make it more appealing, and have also increased the boost speed of its boost Overclock.

• Manual pilot mode duration increased from 6 to 7 seconds
• Manual pilot mode pitch speed increased 50 to 60 degrees/sec
• Manual pilot mode yaw speed increased 50 to 60 degrees/sec
• Boost Overclock boost speed increased from 23 to 27 mph

Field Upgrades  

Black Hat

Black Hat's pick rate is low despite the frequency of Scorestreaks in our matches. To help incentivize its use as a go-to Scorestreak counter, we've made some targeted improvements to its charge and use time requirements.

• Number of charges to destroy UAV reduced from 2 to 1
• Number of charges to destroy CUAV reduced from 2 to 1
• Black Hat use time to steal Sentry Turret reduced from 1.5 to 0.75 seconds
• Black Hat use time to steal SAM Turret reduced from 1.5 to 0.75 seconds

Scrambler

While Scrambler is intended as an intel-masking device, it is currently also very strong at Score generation. To address this, we've reduced its area of effect radius to be on par with Squad Link and have also reduced its Score bonuses.

• Assist Score event decreased from +15 to +5 score
• Scrambled score event decreased from +15 to +5 score
• Scrambler radius reduced from 650 to 500 inches

Scorestreaks 

• Iron Rain (New Scorestreak)
  • Take to the skies with Iron Rain, a versatile mid-cost drone that gives you a bird’s-eye view of the battlefield while you drop ordnance onto your enemies. Overclocks conceal the drone with active camo tech or add a sonar pulse to help out your team, depending on which you choose. Get in the remote pilot seat at 825 Score.

Ranks + Prestige 

• Players can now see their active 2XP Tokens as well as activate 2XP Tokens on the loading screen while loading into a match.

Stability 

• Addressed various stability issues. 

ZOMBIES

Maps 

• Totenreich
  • Gameplay
    • Closed an exploit that allowed players to access unintended areas in the Lighthouse.
    • Closed an exploit that prevented zombies from attacking players in the Dry Docks area near the Speed Cola machine.
    • Added a hidden Random Perk Power-Up.
    • Addressed an issue that allowed players to melee with Melee Macchiato while holding the Glocke Drop remote.
    • Addressed an issue that allowed multiple players to interact with the medal and simultaneously start the Richtofen quest.
    • Addressed an issue where the Flammenfalle trap had extended bullet and equipment collision.
    • Addressed an issue where the Dark Flare Field Upgrade could not damage the ice on frozen machines.
    • Addressed multiple collision issues.
  • Main Quest
    • Players will now be removed from the Richtofen Quest if a holdout event is started during the Main Quest.
    • Addressed an issue that prevented players from completing the Pack‑a‑Punch Quest if a save was created during the Glocke Drop step.
    • Addressed an issue where weapons could clip into the Claw Machine during the Main Quest.
    • Addressed an issue where the Siren and NX Ravager could not open the vent for the ARC‑XD during the Main Quest.
    • Addressed an issue where the Siren did not display damage numbers when hitting Gjallarfrost.
    • Addressed an issue where one of Dravakar’s weak points would not take critical damage.
    • Addressed an issue where one of Dravakar’s weak points could appear during the player’s death scene.
    • Addressed an issue where High Contrast Mode remained active during the end cutscene after defeating Dravakar.
    • Addressed an issue where players could hear the Out‑of‑Bounds warning after selecting Continue following the boss fight.
  • Wonder Weapon
    • Addressed an issue where using the Jotunn Star to break the ice on the Pack‑a‑Punch machine would disable Pack‑a‑Punch camo.
    • Addressed an issue where the Jotunn Star Wonder Weapon would sometimes swing at normal speed when using Melee Macchiato with the Expresso Major Augment equipped.
    • Addressed an issue where the Jotunn Star’s flame effects became mistimed with its attack when using Melee Macchiato alongside the Expresso Major Augment.
    • Addressed an issue that allowed players to use the Jotunn Star Wonder Weapon while in Gnome form.
    • Addressed an issue where Jotunn Star Wonder Weapon effects could be applied to other weapons after exiting Tyr.
    • Addressed an issue where the Jotunn Star Wonder Weapon control UI would not appear correctly after reloading a save.
    • Addressed an issue where Stamin‑Up equipped with Guns Up prevented players from completing the Jotunn Star Chain Blast attack.
  • UI
    • Added a mini‑map icon for the Atomkraft Core when dropped on the ground.
    • Added a HUD icon to indicate when the player is carrying the Atomkraft Core.
  • General
    • Addressed an issue where players could become stuck on a white screen when being teleported to Richtofen’s quest after triggering Dark Flare Field Upgrade immediately beforehand.
    • Addressed an issue where the boot zombie spawned from fishing would not properly clean up if players used a zipline to a new zone.
    • Addressed numerous minor visual issues.
• Paradox Junction
  • Addressed an issue that caused the shells to appear floating while crafting the Sundergat Wonder Weapon.
  • Addressed multiple collision issues.
  • Addressed numerous minor visual issues.
• Astra Malorum
  • Addressed a rare issue where O.S.C.A.R. could become stuck inside the environment in Stargazer’s Courtyard.
  • Addressed multiple collision issues.
  • Addressed numerous minor visual issues.
• Ashes of the Damned
  • Addressed an issue where the Zursa could sometimes get stuck when descending a staircase in Ashwood Bridge.
  • Addressed an issue where Ol’ Tessie was not removed from the course track if left there when triggering the ARC‑XD Race remote.
  • Addressed a rare issue where one of Klaus’s lines appeared in the subtitles at the start of the match.
  • Addressed multiple collision issues.
  • Addressed numerous minor visual issues.

Modes 

• Survival
  • Ashwood
    • Closed an exploit spot where zombies could not target the player in Ashwood Bridge.
    • Closed an exploit spot near the ascender in Market Square when using Toxic Growth.
• Directed
  • Paradox Junction
    • Addressed an issue where the objective marked the incorrect zombie if the Piano Teacher was killed before traveling to the past during the Obtain the Sheet Music step.
    • Addressed an issue that caused the prompt to fill the flask to appear even when the flask was already full of acid.
• Cursed
  • Updated Relic‑selection logic to prioritize the largest party in the lobby when loading into a level.
  • Updated the pause‑screen UI to correctly display the Relics selected during matchmaking for all players.
  • Addressed an issue where weapons obtained from Mister Peeks’s Egg Item did not spawn with full ammo.

Weapons 

• Addressed an issue where the Siren was not appearing as the Deadliest Weapon in the After Action Report.
• Addressed an issue where the Shadow SK with the 12‑Gauge Masterkey Comb Attachment did not receive the correct ammo from a Wall Buy.
• Addressed an issue where the Sokol 545 LMG with the Samarskiy Overdrive Belt Magazine lost its overheat functionality after Pack‑A‑Punching.
• Addressed an issue where Akimbo weapons did not appear correctly after using a zipline while holding a Support Item.

Perk-a-Colas 

• Melee Macchiato
  • Addressed an issue where the Barista Brawl Minor Augment did not function correctly in Cursed. 
• Stamin-Up
  • Addressed an issue where the Hard Target Minor Augment did not function correctly against the Necropincer’s Trident throw. 
• Speed Cola
  • Increased the speed boost gained from Ammo Surge Major Augment.
  • Addressed an issue where the Prestidigitation Minor Augment could trigger on each round loaded into single‑round‑reload weapons.

Support

• War Machine
  • Addressed an issue that caused the War Machine to have reserve ammo. 
• Ion Core
  • Increased direct and max‑health‑based damage and updated radiation blast timing to improve sustained DPS. 
• Disciple Injection
  • Added a cap to damage dealt by Normal Zombies to ensure consistent duration at higher rounds. 
• D.A.W.G.
  • Addressed an issue where the resupply prompt appeared at the destroyed D.A.W.G.’s location.

Power-Ups  

• Addressed an issue where Power‑Ups sometimes failed to spawn correctly. 

Enemies 

• Addressed an issue that allowed certain enemy types to shove players too far.
• Addressed an issue where Karkinos’ death displayed incorrect color effects when killed with Surtr’s Ember.
• Addressed an issue where HVT AIs did not display the correct Elite icon.

Challenges 

• Addressed an issue where Elite enemy trap kills did not progress challenges.
• Addressed an issue where more Peek Performance Medals could be earned than intended.
• Addressed an issue where certain challenges were not progressing in Cursed.
• Added the Heat Wave Medal: Kill 10+ Zombies rapidly with Wild Fire.

UI 

• Addressed an issue where the health bar showed remaining health after the enemy was eliminated.
• Addressed a rare issue where players would see the Robot Controller UI after dying.

Audio 

• Addressed issues with various voiceover lines not playing.
• Addressed various subtitle issues.

Stability 

• Addressed various stability issues. 

ENDGAME

Operations

• Operation Wallbreaker and the Command Killer Glitch Fracture added to Endgame.
  • Complete Operation Wallbreaker to unlock the Command Killer Glitch Fracture. Prepare to bear what comes at you.

Gameplay Features

• Operator Prestige: Starting with Season 04, Endgame Operators with a maxed-out Combat Rating will gain the option to enter Operator Prestige 1. Entering Prestige discards all equipped Skills, resets the Operator’s CR, discards equipped Field Acquisitions, and resets Loadout weapons to their base rarity. You can Prestige your Operator a total of 3 times, and each Prestige will let your Operator earn access to more skill slots.
  • Prestige 1 : Extra Exotic Skill Slot
  • Prestige 2 : Extra Nightmare Skill Slot
  • Prestige 3 : Equip a 4th Skill Track. 
• Restore Tokens: Starting in Season 04, Restore tokens might appear in loot when playing Endgame.
• Possessed Convoy: A new activity has been added to Endgame. Destroy the Possessed Guild Convoy and eliminate the Zursa. 

Skills and Abilities 

• Death Machine 
  • Get your hands on a powerful minigun with high damage, fast fire rate, and a large ammo pool.
• Ability Tuning
  • Crash Cart
    • Feedback added for allies that receive a buff
  • Black Hat
    • Some targets will now explode after a successful hack
  • Blood Burner
    • Slight increase to the active time for the ability
  • Supply Link
    • Now adds extra ammo to weapon abilities when activated
• Skill Tuning
  • Nova Strike
    • Enemies struck will be shocked at the base level of the skill. 
  • Dive Bomber
    • Increased area of effect, increased damage, and increased stun duration at all levels.
  • Shocking Reload
    • Improved radius and increased minimum damage. Maximum damage lowered slightly. 
  • Shattered Shield
    • Cooldown added to how often invincibility is triggered. 

New Exotic Weapons

• Kilonova: Full-auto submachine gun enhanced for mobility and close-quarters power. Affinity for Graviton Rounds.
• Infraradiance: Semi-auto shotgun altered for non-stop assault and aggression. Affinity for Photon Rounds.

Weapon Tuning

With the launch of Season 04 we are making several adjustments to weapons in Endgame. Among the changes are buffs to some of the more specialized and challenging weapons to use, a partial rework to snipers and some of their Exotic Mods, and some launcher class rebalancing.

We have generally avoided nerfing weapon content in Endgame, and we will continue to follow that philosophy. That said, there are a few “meta” weapon strategies that have emerged over the past months and are negatively impacting our ability to introduce new challenges to the mode. While we could tune new content to these outlier weapons, that quickly hurts the viability of dozens of other weapons and builds. And buffing everything else to match the meta would be a monumental task that risks disrupting the rest of the Endgame experience.

For those reasons, the AAROW 109 and XR-3 Ion have been targeted for tuning with this update. More details can be found below. While it wasn’t an easy decision, we feel that they have had ample time to shine and look forward to seeing what new builds take their place. As always, we will be monitoring your feedback and making follow-up adjustments to these and other weapons as needed.

Shotguns

• Dragon’s Breath Ammo
  • Addressed an issue that prevented Dragon’s Breath from doing burn damage over time.

Marksman Rifles

SNIPER RIFLES

A few discoveries came up as we investigated adjustments to the XR-3 Ion. The first was that the Sharpshooter Exotic Mod was unintentionally boosting headshot damage in addition to its intended function. The second was that the Explosive Bullet Exotic Mod was disproportionately increasing damage for the XR-3 Ion, given that it fires a three-round burst. We decided to take a more holistic look at snipers as we addressed the XR-3 Ion.

For the Sharpshooter issue, we opted to remove the extra headshot bonus and just bake it into the base power for the three bolt-action rifles. The Shadow SK, with its faster rate of fire, received a partial refund.

We think the Explosive Bullet Mod is fair in its current tuning for the bolt-action snipers, so those weren’t touched. The Shadow SK received a damage cut but remained mostly the same. The XR-3 Ion, of course, took a large damage reduction.

Finally, we made further adjustments to hit location modifiers on the Shadow SK and XR-3 Ion to make them more effective at body shots.

All

• Sharpshooter Mod
  • Removed an unintended headshot damage modifier that resulted in an additional 33% damage.

LAUNCHERS

The AAROW 109 is the O.G. meta weapon in Endgame. For now, we are only going to hit its damage, with the impact damage taking most of the reduction. This should preserve the playstyle that players have come to love, but limit its power.

We decided to improve the damage on the A.R.C. M1 at the same time, so that the two launchers have more distinct roles as AOE vs. direct damage weapons. A small Charge Time improvement will help the A.R.C. M1 feel more responsive, while still preventing it from becoming the same menace that the AAROW 109 was.

SPECIAL WEAPONS

We’ve taken a first pass at beefing up damage on some of the Special weapons. This is a category that we will continue to keep an eye on for further improvements to power or quality of life.