Call of Duty Modern Warfare 3: All MW3 Lethal and Tactical Equipment Listed and Detailed

They might not be as important or powerful as they once were, but the lethal and tactical equipment options in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 are still helpful in gaining an advantage. One of them, Battle Rage, was so effective it received a massive nerf during the first parts of the beta. I expect others to get minor tweaking should the community identify them as causing issues. Here are all the lethal and tactical equipment you can use in MW3.

All Lethal and Tactical Equipment in Modern Warfare 3

All Lethal Equipment in MW3

Lethal equipment has always been a balance issue for Call of Duty, with one option far outranking all the others. In CoD4, it was frags being small nuclear devices. In MW2 (2009), Semtex grenades were so much better than frags there was no reason not to use them. Black Ops 2‘s C4 was the bane of many players’ existence. This year’s Modern Warfare 3 has one lethal that might be a problem, but it’s too early to tell.

Frag Grenade

Frags are as balanced as they’ve ever been. You can cook them for airburst on a five-second fuse, throw them randomly at an objective for a possible free kill, and have them out while you die for impromptu Martyrdom. You can also throw frags a fair distance, both vertically and horizontally, allowing for some sick placement grenades if you know the maps. I’ve learned a couple on Favela that I’ll definitely be using in objective modes.

Breacher Drone

This lethal is the one I’m worried about. Rather than moving in an arc and exploding on a timer, the Breacher Drone flies in a straight line and detonates when it’s near enemies or when it hits something. It’s got a pretty long flight time, too. If you toss it down a long hallway or toward a popular traffic lane, a kill is almost guaranteed. If they tone down the proximity and lethal radius just a touch, I think it’d be in a better spot.

Semtex

Like frags, Semtex grenades are in a really good spot. They don’t travel as far, but their explosive radius and lethality are right where they need to be. I think frag grenades are probably better overall, but using Semtex gives you a great option against vehicles in Ground War and more control over where something blows up in 6v6.

Thermobaric Grenade

I haven’t seen hardly anyone using Thermobaric Grenades in any of the games I’ve played, but I can see them being a menace in a coordinated squad. They’re a stun/Molotov combo that also increases the lethality of grenades within fires, so filling an objective with them and then raining it with frags sounds stupidly effective.

All Tactical Equipment in MW3

Tacticals have also historically had balance issues. Whether being too effective, or not effective enough. In the case of Modern Warfare 3 (2011), being too cumbersome to throw without the right perk. They’re not bad in the new Modern Warfare 3, though I don’t think they’re effective enough to cause too much of a stir. Not as long as stuff like beta Battle Rage doesn’t happen again.

Flash Grenade

Flashes are some of the strongest they’ve ever been in MW3. Full flashing lasts almost five seconds and sends your screen entirely white. The Tac Mask equipment perk doesn’t do as much to negate flashes as it has in the past, so tossing one of these into a room before entering is always advised.

Battle Rage

I’m not sure what they were thinking with Battle Rage. It instantly regenerates your health, continually refreshing your Tactical Sprint, and lets you resist other tactical equipment. It got all of its effects nerfed hard, but it still does the work of like three different items and part of a perk for the cost of a single use.

EMD Grenade

A new addition to MW3, the EMD grenade is like the Scanner made from MW2, marking a target on the minimap even if they have Ghost or a UAV is up. This time, the enemy player can shake off the tracker the grenades plants; though on console, doing so takes priority over reloading.

Smoke Grenade

If you like Thermal Scopes and/or blocking off sightlines, I really can’t recommend smokes enough. The refreshed maps in MW3 are mostly big enough that a smoke isn’t super useful, but you might get some use in the tight spaces of Favela, Karachi, and Invasion.

Scatter Mine

A semi-lethal choice in the tactical slot, the Scatter Mine sends out a field of smaller mines in a large area that explodes when enemies get close. I would imagine using these in an enclosed space essentially gives you two lethal options, though you do give up a flash, Battle Rage, or other useful tactical to do so.

Those are all the lethal and tactical equipment in the Modern Warfare 3 beta. We’ll cover all the rest of them on release, so stick with us for options currently available in the Modern Warfare 3 beta. There is bound to be a lot more coming with the full launch of MW3 on November 10 for PlayStation, Xbox, and PC. Look for more MW3 guides through the beta and well after release here on GameSkinny.