How to unlock the Machete in Warzone: requirements and best loadout
And a Machete-unlocking loadout.
The latest season of Cold War and Warzone allows players to unlock the Machete, a brutal melee weapon. You'll need to fulfil a certain requirement to unlock it though, so here's both how to unlock the Machete and the best loadout to do so with.
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How to unlock the Machete in Warzone and Cold War
In order to unlock the Machete, you have to earn a ‘Back Stabber’ medal in 15 different matches. This means you’re required to get a melee kill from behind. It’s a bit of a pain to do, but when you’ve got the hang of running around and shanking foes you won’t struggle too much. It’s far easier to complete this mission in Cold War, but if you only have Warzone and really want the Machete you can complete the same requirements during a game of Warzone. Maybe it’ll be easier when playing a game mode like Resurgence Extreme, because it’s basically like a huge, terrifying free-for-all deathmatch anyway.
Which loadout to use to unlock the Machete
The Machete’s unlock conditions mean you’ll need to be light on your feet, and even lighter with your shanking hand. Deck yourself out with this loadout to maximise your chances of getting those melee kills from behind.
- Primary Weapon: MP5
- Secondary Weapon: Knife
- Tactical: Stun Grenade
- Lethal: Tomahawk
- Field Upgrade: Field Mic
- Perk 1: Tactical Mask, Forward Intel
- Perk 2: Quartermaster, Tracker
- Perk 3: Gung-Ho, Ninja
- Wildcard: Perk Greed
Even though your knife is a secondary, use it as often as possible, at least until you get your backstab in a given match. Your MP5 is only for emergencies, but you can grab it and spray enemies down in a pinch. Stun grenades are your main source of day-ruining and backstabbing here - stunning an enemy can give you the chance to approach them or even run around behind them to get that kill.
Gung-Ho means you can chuck your stunner while sprinting as well, and Tracker allows you to follow enemy footsteps if they’re trying to run away from your twitchy knife fingers. Basically, all of this is geared towards you getting that single backstab kill in a game. Forward Intel shows you where enemies are spawning on your minimap, letting you plan ahead nicely, and Tactical Mask negates enemy stuns and flashbangs that might cause issues for your poor little noggin. Ninja is there to make your footsteps nice and silent, meaning enemies don’t hear your loud stompy boots charging up behind them.
It takes a bit of dedication, but with this loadout you should unlock the Machete fairly swiftly.
Is the Machete worth using?
I personally like the Machete for what it is. You lunge forward pretty far when you go for the melee, and it’s got a super-satisfying kill animation. However, I’ve found it pretty slow in a one-on-one scenario, meaning if you like to get your knife out and stab people right in the face, the machete will probably feel a bit sluggish in your hands. It’s most useful when you’re in a side room with a tango and want to silently murder them with a bit of range to spare.
Now you’ve unlocked the Machete, why not drop into Veransk and see how it works? If it isn’t for you though, we have all kinds of other loadout guides, including the SP-R 208 and the M16.