Mechanics

Black Ops multiplayer hands you three perk slots and three killstreak slots and asks you to fill them before every match. Our two mechanics pages cover both halves in depth: fifteen perks with their Pro upgrades, and fifteen killstreaks from the Spy Plane to the Gunship with kill requirements, COD Points prices, XP payouts, durations and health values. This guide reads them as a class builder: what each perk tier is for, which killstreak trio suits a given kill rate, and how the sample classes on our multiplayer strategy page put the pieces together.

Perks: one from each tier

The perks page counts fifteen, split into three slots so you carry one from each. They are bought with COD Points from Level 4, and every one has a Pro version unlocked by finishing its challenges. The tiers have jobs: the first is about survival and staying hidden, the second improves the gun in your hands, and the third covers movement, support and revenge. Slot one also decides how your character looks to other players.

Tier 1: survival

Perk	Effect	Pro effect
Lightweight	Faster movement; our page pairs it with SMGs	Fire sooner after sprinting and take no fall damage
Scavenger	Refill ammo from the blue bags dead enemies drop	Start with double ammo; Tactical Grenades refill too
Ghost	Invisible to Spy Planes until you fire an unsilenced weapon; IR scopes, motion sensors and air support still see you	No name or red crosshair for anyone aiming at you; hidden from air support, IR scopes and sentry guns
Flak Jacket	Survive indirect explosive damage from grenades and rockets	Resistance to Napalm and flamethrowers; a grenade you pick up has its fuse reset
Hardline	Every killstreak needs one kill fewer	Double tap to re-roll a Care Package, SAM Turret or Sentry Gun drop

Tier 2: the gun

Perk	Effect	Pro effect
Hardened	Deeper bullet penetration through walls	Steadier aim and more damage to air support
Scout	Hold your breath longer for a steady sniper aim	Faster switch to your sidearm
Steady Aim	Tighter hip fire	Aim faster out of a sprint and recover faster from a knife lunge
Sleight of Hand	Faster reloads	Faster aim down sights, except on sniper rifles
Warlord	Two attachments on your primary weapon	A second lethal or tactical grenade of the type you carry, frags and Semtex included

Tier 3: movement and support

Perk	Effect	Pro effect
Marathon	Longer sprint	Unlimited sprint
Ninja	Silent footsteps	Enemy footsteps sound louder to you
Second Chance	Ten seconds on the ground with your pistol after going down	Survive longer and revive teammates
Hacker	See enemy explosives, Tactical Insertions and equipment	Turn enemy killstreaks friendly, booby-trap enemy Care Packages, and hide from motion sensors
Tactical Mask	Immune to Nova Gas; available from the start	Reduced flashbang and concussion effects, and stunned enemies show on your map

Killstreaks: the ladder

A killstreak needs at least three kills in one life, dying resets the count, and kills made with a killstreak do not count toward the next one, so there is no chaining a Chopper Gunner off a Napalm Strike. Nothing sits above eleven kills. You choose three rewards before a match and buy the ones that are not free with COD Points earned from challenges and levelling. Our killstreaks page records the numbers behind each one, and Hardline from the table above knocks a kill off every row.

Killstreak	Kills	Price	XP	Duration, health and damage
Spy Plane	3	Free	100	Enemies on the minimap for 30 seconds; falls to 700 damage
RC-XD	3	1,200	100	Explosive car with 10 health, up to 300 damage, 30-second fuse
Counter-Spy Plane	4	1,600	100	Jams enemy minimaps for 30 seconds; falls to 700 damage
SAM Turret	4	1,600	100	Two missiles per aircraft for 90 seconds or until knifed at 900 health
Care Package	5	Free	150	A random streak, weapon or ammo; anyone can grab it
Napalm Strike	5	2,400	150	Fire along a straight line for 10 seconds
Sentry Gun	6	3,200	200	90 seconds; knifed at 800 health
Mortar Team	6	3,200	200	Three target points, up to 300 damage each
Attack Helicopter	7	Free	200	75 seconds airborne with 5,500 health
Valkyrie Rockets	7	4,000	200	Two guided rockets, up to 400 damage, 20-second fuse
Blackbird	8	4,500	250	Positions and facing for 50 seconds; cannot be shot down
Rolling Thunder	8	4,500	250	Carpet bombing along a line, 300 damage, reaches inside buildings
Chopper Gunner	9	5,000	300	A minute of infinite minigun at 120 explosive damage; 6,000 health
Attack Dogs	11	6,000	350	Four dogs for a minute, 100 health each, replaced when killed
Gunship	11	6,000	350	Miniguns and rockets at 150 damage across 3.5 meters; 8,000 health

The Care Package is a lottery with known weights. Our page puts ammunition, the Spy Plane and the Counter-Spy Plane at the top of the odds, then the RC-XD and the special weapons, the Valkyrie Rockets and the Grim Reaper, with the Chopper Gunner, Attack Dogs and Gunship as the rarest pulls. Hardline Pro lets you re-roll a package you do not want.

Choosing a killstreak trio

Our multiplayer strategy page gives the rule that matters most: set streaks you will actually reach. A player averaging five kills a life gets nothing from a Gunship slot. A low-cost trio of Spy Plane, Counter-Spy Plane and Care Package fires often and feeds the team; a mid trio of Napalm Strike, Sentry Gun and Attack Helicopter rewards a steadier hand; the top end of Blackbird, Chopper Gunner and Attack Dogs is for lobbies where you already run the map. Because streak kills do not stack, the page also warns against camping for streaks and against setting the bar too high early, when the free Spy Plane and Care Package are better than nothing.

Classes that put it together

The pairings on our pages are consistent. Lightweight and Marathon belong on SMG rushers, Scavenger or Sleight of Hand on anyone carrying an LMG with a 200-round belt to reload, Ghost with a silencer for the stealth player who wants off the radar, and Flak Jacket for objective modes where grenades pile up. The strategy page sketches four starting classes.

Class	Primary	Equipment	Perks
Assault	Assault rifle or LMG, pistol secondary	Frag or Semtex	Sleight of Hand or Scavenger; Hardened; Steady Aim or Ninja
Run-and-Gun	SMG, pistol secondary	Semtex, Tomahawk, Concussion or Flashbang	Marathon or Sleight of Hand; Lightweight or Hardline; Steady Aim, Ninja or Hacker
Sniping	Sniper rifle, or a rifle with ACOG or IR scope	Tactical Insertion, smoke, Claymore or C4	Marathon or Warlord; Scout; Lightweight, Ninja or Steady Aim Pro
Stealth	Silenced assault rifle or SMG	Semtex, C4, Claymore	Marathon; Ghost; Ninja Pro

For the weapon half of those classes, our weapons guide lists every gun with its unlock level and attachments. Two related systems live outside normal matches: Wager Matches hand out temporary perks by streak, with Sharpshooter granting Sleight of Hand Pro at one kill, Lightweight Pro at two, Steady Aim Pro at three and a double score multiplier at four, as our Gun Game page explains; and Prestige resets you to level 1 while keeping everything except weapons and attachments, which must be unlocked again.

Frequently asked questions

How many perks can I equip?

Three, one from each tier. Pro versions replace the base perk in the same slot once their challenges are done.

Which killstreak cannot be shot down?

The Blackbird. It costs 4,500 COD Points, needs eight kills and shows enemy positions and facing for 50 seconds.

Do kills from a killstreak count toward the next one?

No. Only kills you score yourself advance the streak, which is why a player on a Chopper Gunner still has to earn the Attack Dogs by hand.

Is any perk free from the start?

Tactical Mask is available at the start according to our perks page. The Spy Plane, Care Package and Attack Helicopter are the killstreaks that need no purchase.