How to get a Nuke (Easy Version)

Are you hankering after that 25-hit wonder, the Tactical Nuke? Want to see your enemies being vaporized in the atomic fire? Is it proving too difficult to get all the way to ten, let alone to twenty-five? Well friends, help is here. With this guide, you stand an excellent chance of getting the Nuke after all!

First, pick your game-mode. You're not going to get the Nuke in Search and Destroy, are you? It makes the most sense to pick Ground War, because then you've got a lot more targets to kill. You have the chance to get triple kills, camp the spawn, or deploy a perfect grenade. So, open up that Ground War playlist!

In Ground War, there are two modes though, right? There’s Team Deathmatch and Domination. I tend to find Domination makes it much easier to get the Nuke. Players tend to cluster together going for objectives, making them easier to kill, and you don't run the risk of killing too many people and the match ending before you've got the Nuke.

So wait until you're on Domination to really go for it. Now, what maps are best? Well, anything with a bit of space to hide. That means Invasion, Karachi, Skidrow, Rundown and Underpass are your best bets. It's certainly possible on other maps, but it's probably easiest on these.

Now, what sort of kit are you going to use? Well, obviously you'll have to play to your strengths. If you're a great sniper, then a sniper rifle and a handgun seem good bets, otherwise a long range assault rifle like the M16 or ACR will do. Generally, you'll want to construct quite a stealthy kit, as this strategy relies on hiding for a fair amount.

That means silencers on your primary and secondary weapons, probably Cold Blooded Pro and Ninja Pro as perks. You may find yourself running out of ammo, so it may be worthwhile to select Scavenger Pro as your last perk. Otherwise, Sleight of Hand Pro is always useful, particularly for long-range engagements.

So you've got your weapons and perks set up? Good, now the most important part: Setting up your killstreak rewards. You're not going to get twenty-five kills by yourself, so choosing the right help is essential. The third reward is going to be the Nuke, obviously, which leaves you with two others. Working backwards, what's the streak that gives you the most kills?

That's right. Chopper Gunner. On a good day, you'll find you can get the fourteen kills you need to get to the Nuke quite easily, depending on the map and whether your enemies are sheltering indoors or not. But how do you get the Chopper Gunner?

Well, you've a few choices. Seven kills is right on the edge of being achievable without killstreak rewards, so Harrier and the Chopper are the two obvious choices. Both are viable and can yield 4+ kills, but generally the Chopper stays alive a little longer. Another choice is the Sentry Gun, but that'll require pin-point placement and a few more kills with your weapons to get you to eleven.

A more daring option is the Pave-Low. If you can reach it unassisted, then it’s very likely to get two kills for you and get you to Chopper Gunner. And it's likely to get a whole lot more than that, so you may find you'll need less Chopper Gunner kills as well.

So now that you've picked a decent set of kill streak rewards, you can actually play the game. Generally, you'll want to play normally (take risks, go for the flank, etc.) until you reach a good amount of kills - say, four or five. Then, get careful. Get campy.

Pick off stragglers, move slowly, and hide in the grass. Don't try risky maneuvers, instead just focus on remaining undetected and alive. When you hit that magical number for your first killstreak, get into some cover. Call in your Harrier, Chopper, or Pave Low, and lay low while it gets you the kills you need. Don't move unnecessarily, and keep a look-out. If you're playing with friends, ask them to fight elsewhere so they don't bring the fight to your doorstep.

With luck, your killstreak reward will get you to eleven kills. Now it's time to hide - generally you'll want to be hiding somewhere open and covered in vegetation, lying prone on the ground. If you're physically hidden from sight, and you've got Cold Blooded Pro, you'll only be killed if you're unlucky enough to have a grenade thrown next to you.

If you've got the time, wait until all your enemies are alive (you can check using the scoreboard), then call in the Chopper Gunner. This is something you'll have to practice at, but be as efficient as you can be with the time that you've got. Your priorities should be, roughly:
1.Players shooting at your chopper
2.Players that have just spawned in the open
3.Players in the open
4.Players in cover or in buildings
With some luck and skill, you'll get your twenty-five kill streak, or close to it. If you've got a few left, again move out and carefully pick off stragglers. Only move fast if the match is about to end. If you get the nuke, use it immediately - you don't want to pick it up and then not have a chance to use it. Ten seconds after you call it in, it will detonate, killing all players and ending the game with victory for your team. You can use those ten seconds to taunt the opposition or make sure you've got your recording software ready.

That's all. These techniques may take some practice to get right, but once you do you should find getting the Nuke a very achievable task. You won’t call one in every match, but there will be enough chances to make it a worthwhile strategy to pursue.

In the end, once you've made the right kit selections, it really comes down to getting the balance right between staying undetected and getting enough kills to call in air support. If you get it right, respect of the server’s players and a sense of accomplishment are your just rewards.

Good luck players. Go out there and call in some nukes!