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Cold War Season 6 update patch notes: Forsaken Zombies, weapon balancing, new maps

Andrew Highton
Black Ops Cold War season 6

Treyarch has released release the Season 6 Update, version 1.23, for Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War on October 5, which will bring a variety of new content across MP and Zombies modes, including the new Season 6 Battle Pass and more.

Season 6 of Black Ops Cold War includes the all new Season 6 Battle Pass, with 100 fresh tiers including Mason Operator, three new MP maps, three new weapons, and the final chapter of the Cold War Zombies saga, Forsaken.

Treyarch has now posted the patch notes for the new update. The new update goes live live on October 5 at 9PM PT on all platforms with the Season 6 content becoming available on October 6 at 9PM PT.

Warzone’s Season 6 update will go live October 6 at 9PM PT.

The patch notes and information below are only applicable to Black Ops Cold War MP & Zombies.

Black Ops Cold War Season 6 Content

READY UP FOR SEASON SIX

It’s all been leading up to this. Get ready for the final showdown in Multiplayer and Zombies, kicking off at 9PM PT Oct. 6th / 12AM ET Oct. 7th in Season Six! New content and features include:

  • Battle Pass:
    • 100 New Battle Pass Tiers
    • New Battle Pass Operator: Mason
    • Free Battle Pass weapons: .410 Ironhide Shotgun and Grav Assault Rifle
    • Three bonus Bulldozer Operator Skins included with the Battle Pass Bundle
    • New free Black Ops Mixtape War Tracks in the Battle Pass + more
  • Global:
    • Five total weapons throughout the season, including the Battle Axe, LAPA SMG, and Hammer & Sickle
    • New Weapon Unlock Challenges
    • Four new Prestige Levels
    • New Prestige Shop Weapon Blueprint and Legacy content
    • New weapon tuning for the EM2, TEC-9, Marshal, C58, LC10, and more
    • New Season Six lobby theming
    • + More in-season, including new “Fuze” Operator and “The Haunting” Event
  • Multiplayer:
    • New 6v6 Map: Deprogram
    • New 6v6 Map: Amerika
    • New 2v2/3v3/Face Off 6v6 Map: Gluboko
    • New Featured Playlists: Deprogram 24/7, Face Off Gluboko 24/7
    • New Multiplayer Operator Missions
    • 20 New Multiplayer Season Challenges
    • + More in-season, including new MP modes & more during “The Haunting” Event
  • Zombies:
    • New Round-Based Map: “Forsaken”
    • New Perk: PhD Slider (+5 Skill Tiers)
    • New Wonder Weapon: Chrysalax
    • New Support Weapons: ARC-XD and Hand Cannon
    • New “Forsaken” Challenges
    • New Dark Aether story Intel
    • New Zombies Operator Missions
    • 20 New Zombies Season Challenges
    • New Onslaught Map: Deprogram (PlayStation®)
    • New Onslaught Mode: Onslaught Elite (PlayStation)
    • New Onslaught Weapon Blueprint challenge (PlayStation)
    • + More in-season, including a new Outbreak LTM during “The Haunting” Event

100 NEW TIERS, FIVE FREE WEAPONS + MORE

Season Six starts this week with 100 new tiers of content in the Battle Pass, including the return of Alex Mason at Tier 0. Play all the way through to Tier 100 to earn two free weapons, new Weapon Blueprints, Operator Skins, Vehicle Skins, War Tracks from the Black Ops series, 2XP Tokens, and more. For a special added bonus, you’ll get instant access to three panda-themed Operator Skins for Bulldozer with the Battle Pass Bundle.

This season, we’re proud to bring the new .410 Ironhide Shotgun, Grav Assault Rifle, and Battle Axe Melee weapon to Black Ops Cold War and Call of Duty®: Warzone™ at launch. Starting on Oct. 19th, you’ll also be able to earn the LAPA SMG during “The Haunting” Event, as well as the Hammer & Sickle Melee weapon later in the season. For those who missed out on Season Five’s arsenal, we’re also adding new weapon unlock challenges to MP and Zombies for the EM2, TEC-9, and Sai.

Four new Prestige Levels will be available at launch, and more legacy content from previous Call of Duty games is coming to the Prestige Shop, as well as the new “Trench Crawler” Weapon Blueprint at the start of the season. Start saving those Prestige Keys!

MULTIPLAYER

Three new maps are coming to Multiplayer at the launch of Season Six, starting with Deprogram. This medium-sized map takes place entirely in Russell Adler’s fractured mind as he’s being stabilized by Mason and Hudson, including Adler’s memories of Vietnam and his fateful encounter with Stitch at The Pines in New Jersey.

It’s all connected by the mysterious Red Doors, which can transport players in and out of the action in an instant. Deprogram is by far one of our most unique MP experiences in Black Ops history, and we can’t wait for everyone to check it out later this week. 

In Amerika, players will take to the streets of a Soviet training facility built as a facsimile of Anytown, USA. Be sure to say hi to Bubby at the Burger Town! For some 2v2 and 3v3 action, we’re bringing you deep below a KGB headquarters vault in Gluboko. If you’re looking for a non-stop grind, this one is particularly crazy in Face Off 6v6.

We’re kicking off Season Six’s Featured Playlists with Deprogram 24/7 and Face Off Gluboko 24/7 this week, along with a new Gunfight Tournament and updated Face Off 6v6 and 12v12 Moshpit playlists including the newest maps in rotation. Keep an eye out for even more Multiplayer content in “The Haunting” Event starting Oct. 19th, including a spooky Halloween version of a classic map, as well as some additional modes to sink your teeth into…

As always, we’re delivering 20 new Multiplayer Season Challenges packed with exclusive Calling Cards and XP rewards to unlock, plus an Animated Master Calling Card for conquering the full set. Reach the rank of Prestige Master, and you’ll get access to all 20 challenges!

And now… the shocking finale of Black Ops Cold War Zombies is almost here.

ZOMBIES

It all comes down to this. Requiem and Omega Group face off in the ultimate showdown in “Forsaken,” our final round-based map in Black Ops Cold War Zombies and the conclusion to the opening chapter of the Dark Aether story.

As Omega attempts to lure The Forsaken into this dimension – believing they can capture its power to weaponize against the West – Requiem plans on extracting Kazimir Zykov from the Dark Aether to prevent The Forsaken from entering our world. Meanwhile, Requiem’s Director has approved Agent Maxis for “Operation First Domino,” tapping into her newfound Dark Aether powers to serve Requiem’s secretive objectives.

The stakes have never been higher for Samantha Maxis… and for reality as we know it.

Fortunately, as members of Requiem’s elite strike team, you’ll have access to plenty of new toys as you arrive at Omega’s secret test site in western Ukraine. This includes one of the most unique Wonder Weapons in the history of Zombies: The Chrysalax, forged in the pools of Aetheria within the Dark Aether itself. This new multi-function Wonder Weapon in “Forsaken” can be acquired through its own in-game quest, as a potential reward in Trials, or as a lucky roll at the Mystery Box.

As its ancient schematic suggests, this weapon can take two different forms. The first is the Chrysalax Savager, an Aetherial axe that can kill multiple zombies in a single swipe and launch a spinning energy blade into the air.

By shifting the hilt into a front grip, the Wonder Weapon transforms into the Chrysalax Storm, a rapid-fire Dark Aether energy weapon. In this form, shots have a chance to mutate normal zombies into explosive Aetherium Crystal bombs for some added crowd control.

We’re also bringing in the big guns (literally) with two new Support Weapons: the Hand Cannon and the ARC-XD, AKA the Aether Remote-Controlled Explosive Device.

Pick up the Hand Cannon at the Crafting Table when you want to deal massive damage to Special or Elite enemies at their weak points, or if you’re looking to clear an area with as few shots as possible. If you’ve got the need for speed, the ARC-XD takes out zombies as you drive past them with a pulse attack from its attached Aetherium Crystal, and its explosion on impact is more than enough to clear a room.

For our tenth and final Zombies Perk, we’re delivering the best of both worlds with the evolution of a series favorite. PhD Slider comes to “Forsaken” in its own dedicated Perk Machine and at Der Wunderfizz in all round-based maps and Outbreak, packed with game-changing abilities.

Long-time fans will be familiar with PhD’s base ability and some of its crucial upgrades, including immunity to explosive damage from your own weapons. However, its true potential is unlocked once all five Skill Tiers have been activated. Here’s what PhD Slider brings to the table:

  • Base ability – Sliding into enemies triggers an explosion. The size and damage increase the farther you slide before impact.
  • Skill Tier I – Immunity to environmental damage while sliding.
  • Skill Tier II – Increased slide duration.
  • Skill Tier III – Immunity to self-inflicted explosive damage.
  • Skill Tier IV – Increased slide speed.
  • Skill Tier V – Falling from a large height will trigger an explosion. The size and damage increase the higher you fall.

Because you can carry all ten Perks with no limits in Black Ops Cold War, players can combine a maxed-out PhD Slider with Perks like Speed Cola, Jugger-Nog, and Stamin-Up to sprint into a slide even faster, stay alive longer after slamming into hordes at high rounds, and survive massive blasts generated by dropping from huge heights.

Of course, a new Zombies map brings a new set of Zombies Challenges to take on for cosmetic items and XP rewards, as well as new Operator Missions a new Dark Ops Challenge to conquer in “Forsaken.” Twenty new Season Challenges are also coming to Zombies with unique Calling Cards and XP rewards to earn as you make your way to Prestige Master.

Ready to go hunting? Clear your calendar and assemble your squad… the Main Quest in “Forsaken” kicks off at 10AM PT / 1PM ET Thursday, Oct. 7th. You won’t want to miss this.

Also in Season Six, the D.I.E. Wonder Weapon can now be upgraded at the Pack-a-Punch machine in all round-based maps and Outbreak regions! We’re also enabling the Rampage Inducer for Local offline play, and Dead Ops Arcade 3 receives a new round of gameplay improvements and stability fixes this week – check out the patch notes below for details.

On PlayStation, Onslaught gets its newest map with Deprogram and the all-new Onslaught Elite limited-time mode, where you’ll face Elite enemies with each Surge. Survive 20 Surges in Onslaught Elite and you’ll add the exclusive “Rock Salt” Weapon Blueprint to your collection.

Watch for our Season Six Special Broadcast at YouTube.com/Treyarch this week for even more details on “Forsaken” straight from the dev team, and get ready for the upcoming reveal of Call of Duty: Vanguard Zombies! The next chapter of the Dark Aether story awaits.

NEW WEAPON TUNING

This season also brings new weapon tuning changes for the Marshal, EM2, and TEC-9 from Season Five, as well as adjustments for the C58 Assault Rifle, KSP 45 and LC10 SMGs, Hauer 77 and Streetsweeper Shotguns, the Nail Gun, and Ranger Barrel attachments on all Shotguns. Please note that any tuning changes to base damage or critical damage multipliers will not carry over in Zombies.

Check out the patch notes below for the full list of tuning details to expect in this week’s Black Ops Cold War game update before the official start of the season.

2XP + 2WXP WEEKEND STARTS OCT. 8

Let’s start the season off strong! This weekend, unlock the new .410 Ironhide, Grav, and Battle Axe, and start leveling them up twice as fast during three days of Double XP & Double Weapon XP! The party starts this Friday, Oct. 8th.

Read on below for everything coming to Black Ops Cold War when Season Six launches at 9PM PT Oct. 6th / 12AM ET Oct. 7th. For the latest Warzone updates, follow @RavenSoftware and @CallofDuty on Twitter, and track all the latest game updates at our official Trello page.

Black Ops Cold War Season 6 Patch Notes

Battle Pass

  • Season Six
    • New 100-Tier Battle Pass available.
  • Operators
    • Mason
      • New Mason Operator available at Tier 0 in the Season Six Battle Pass.
    • Fuze
      • New Fuze Operator arriving later in the season.
    • Bulldozer
      • Three bonus panda-themed Operator Skins for Bulldozer included with Season Six Battle Pass Bundle purchase.
  • Weapons
    • .410 Ironhide
      • New .410 Ironhide Shotgun available for free at Tier 15 of the Battle Pass System.
    • Grav
      • New Grav Assault Rifle available for free at Tier 31 of the Battle Pass System.

Weapon Unlock Challenges

  • Battle Axe
    • New Battle Axe melee weapon available via in-game challenge in Multiplayer or Zombies, or via unique Blueprint version in the Store at the start of Season Six.
  • Sai
    • Unlock Challenge available for the Sai Melee weapon in Multiplayer and Zombies. 
  • EM2
    • Unlock Challenge available for the EM2 assault rifle in Multiplayer and Zombies.
  • TEC-9
    • Unlock Challenge available for the TEC-9 SMG in Multiplayer and Zombies.

Weapon Tuning

  • Assault Rifles
    • EM2
      • Reduced maximum damage from 48 to 42.
      • Increased vertical recoil on first bullet fired.
      • Removed -7% fire rate penalty from 25.8” Task Force Barrel attachment.
      • Increased horizontal recoil control penalty on 25.8” Task Force Barrel attachment from 15% to 25%.
    • C58
      • Added 12% horizontal recoil reduction to STANAG 60 Rnd Drum attachment.
      • Added 8% vertical recoil reduction to STANAG 60 Rnd Drum attachment.
  • Submachine Guns
    • TEC-9
      • Reduced ADS speed from 0.233 to 0.266.
      • Reduced sprint to fire speed from 0.3 to 0.333.
      • Reduced weapon swap speed from 0.35 to 0.375.
      • Increased effective range penalty on Burst Fire Repeater Muzzle attachment from 15% to 33%.
    • KSP 45
      • Reduced headshot multiplier from 1.4x to 1.33x.
      • Increased damage increase on 10.5” Task Force Barrel attachment to 8%.
    • LC10
      • Reduced headshot multiplier from 1.4x to 1.33x.
  • Pistols
    • Marshal
      • Reduced max damage range from 5.08m to 3.81m.
      • Reduced firing speed from 0.35 to 0.366.
      • Increased range penalty on Dragon’s Breath attachment from 8% to 25%.
      • Bonus Damage from Dragon’s Breath is now reduced at ranges beyond 6.66m.  Maximum bonus damage has been reduced from 40 to a maximum of 24. The 12.1” Extended Barrel attachment increases this range before damage drop off.
  • Shotguns
    • All Shotguns
      • Increased effective damage range bonus on Ranger Barrel attachments from 30% to 33%.
    • Hauer 77
      • Added slightly longer visual shake after firing.
    • Streetsweeper
      • Added more dramatic visual and weapon movement when firing.
  • Specials
    • Nail Gun
      • Shots to the head and neck now do 2x damage.

Prestige Levels and Rewards

  • Added four new Prestige Levels (24-27) and Prestige Rewards:
    • Level 50: New Prestige, Emblem, Prestige Key, Weapon Blueprint, and Battle Pass Tier Skip 
    • Level 100: New Prestige, Emblem, Prestige Key, and Battle Pass Tier Skip 
    • Level 150: New Prestige, Emblem, Prestige Key, and Battle Pass Tier Skip 
    • Level 190: All Season Challenges Available 
    • Level 200: New Prestige, Emblem, Prestige Key, Battle Pass Tier Skip, Master Prestige Calling Card 
    • Levels 250 – 1,000: New Prestige Key every 50 levels 

Prestige Shop

  • New “Trench Crawler” Weapon Blueprint added to the Prestige Shop.
  • New Legacy Calling Cards added to the Prestige Shop.

Main Lobby

  • Updated main lobby theming for Season Six.

Maps

  • Deprogram (6v6)
    • New map added to Multiplayer rotation in 6v6 modes.
  • Amerika (6v6)
    • New map added to Multiplayer rotation in 6v6 modes.
  • Gluboko (2v2, 3v3)
    • New map added to Multiplayer rotation in Gunfight and Face Off modes.

Season Challenges

  • 20 new Multiplayer Season Challenges available to be revealed and unlocked with exclusive Calling Card and XP rewards.
  • Reveal a new Challenge every 10 Season Levels. Complete all 20 Season Challenges to unlock the Season Six Multiplayer Master Animated Calling Card.

Operator Missions

  • New Season Six Operator Missions available in Multiplayer.

Featured Playlists

  • Deprogram 24/7
  • Face Off Gluboko 24/7
  • NukeJacked 24/7
  • Gunfight Tournament
  • Face Off 6v6 (now featuring Gluboko)
  • 12v12 Moshpit (now featuring Deprogram and Amerika)
  • Party Games
  • Multi-Team

Round-Based Maps

  • “Forsaken”
    • New free round-based Zombies map available in Season Six.

Main Quest

  • Main Quest coming to “Forsaken” starting at 10AM PT October 7th.

Perks

  • PhD Slider
    • New upgradeable Perk now available from the PhD Slider machine in “Forsaken” and in the Der Wunderfizz machine in all round-based maps and Outbreak.
    • Skill Tiers
      • Base ability – Sliding into enemies triggers an explosion. The size and damage increase the farther you slide before impact.
      • Skill Tier I – Immunity to environmental damage while sliding.
      • Skill Tier II – Increased slide duration.
      • Skill Tier III – Immunity to self-inflicted explosive damage.
      • Skill Tier IV – Increased slide speed.
      • Skill Tier V – Falling from a large height will trigger an explosion. The size and damage increase the higher you fall.

Wonder Weapons

  • Chrysalax
    • New multi-function Chrysalax Wonder Weapon available in “Forsaken” via in-game quest, Trials, or the Mystery Box.
    • Chrysalax Savager mode takes the form of an Aetherial battle axe. Players can kill multiple zombies with a single swipe and throw a spinning energy blade in melee form.
    • Chrysalax Storm mode takes the form of a rapid-fire energy weapon by transforming the axe hilt into a front grip. Shots have the chance to turn normal zombies into Aetherium Crystal bombs.
  • D.I.E.
    • The D.I.E. Wonder Weapon can now be upgraded at the Pack-a-Punch machine.

Support Weapons

  • ARC-XD
    • New ARC-XD Support Weapon available in all round-based maps and Outbreak.
  • Hand Cannon
    • New Hand Cannon Support Weapon available in all round-based maps and Outbreak.

Enemies

  • New Elite enemy introduced in Season Six: The Abomination.
  • Adjusted Plaguehound pounce behavior to make their attacks easier to telegraph and dodge.
  • Adjusted Tempest teleport behavior so that it now teleports in bursts. After multiple teleports, it will be unable to teleport for a period of time.

Traps

  • Suspended Hind
    • New trap available in “Forsaken.”

Intel

  • New in-game Dark Aether story Intel available to discover in “Forsaken.”

Challenges

  • Added new Zombies Challenges for “Forsaken,” including a new Dark Ops Challenge.
  • 20 new Zombies Season Challenges available to be revealed and unlocked with exclusive Calling Card and XP rewards.
    • Reveal a new Challenge every 10 Season Levels. Complete all 20 Season Challenges to unlock the Season Six Zombies Master Animated Calling Card.

Operator Missions

  • New Season Six Operator Missions available in Zombies.

Features

  • Rampage Inducer now available in Local offline play.

Dead Ops Arcade 3

  • Gameplay
    • Addressed invisible collision on the “Barrelly Making It!” map.
    • Addressed a situation where the Geothermal pool could activate during fade to black and possibly kill player during Arena gameplay.
    • Improved loot spawn point on the Geothermal map to prevent items from spawning inside/close to objects.
  • Stability
    • Addressed an issue with “out of memory” scenarios in late-stage games.
    • Added general stability and exploit fixes.

Onslaught (PlayStation)

  • Maps
    • Deprogram added to Onslaught map rotation.
  • Intel
    • Added new Dark Aether story Intel to discover in Onslaught.
  • Modes
    • Onslaught Elite
      • Face Elite enemies with every Surge in this new Onslaught mode.
      • Survive 20 Surges to unlock the new “Rock Salt” Assault Rifle Weapon Blueprint.

Featured Playlists

  • Forsaken [NEW]
  • Outbreak (Endless and 3 Region)
  • Mauer der Toten
  • Firebase Z
  • Die Maschine
  • Dead Ops Arcade: First Person
  • Dead Ops Arcade
  • Onslaught (PlayStation)
  • Onslaught Deprogram (PlayStation) [NEW]
  • Onslaught Elite (PlayStation) [NEW]
  • Onslaught Containment (PlayStation)

SOURCE: Treyarch Blog

Image Credits: Activision / Treyarch

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