Call of Duty: Warzone 2.0 is live, and the sequel includes the brand-new Stronghold locations for battle royale and the DMZ extraction mode. Here we break down everything you need to know about Warzone’s new high-tier looting grounds, so you can get loaded up with some of the game’s best gear.
New Strongholds feature explained
Strongholds are buildings filled with high-tier loot and cash, but they’re well protected by AI enemies. There are 77 possible Stronghold locations on Al Mazrah, but only a few locations activate per match. These buildings exist in both battle royale and DMZ, but they operate differently for both modes, so it’s important to know the differences between the two.
Warzone Strongholds
At the end of the first battle royale circle collapse, Strongholds are activated on the map and do not require any keys to access. There will only ever be three active Strongholds on the map at any given time. Strongholds become marked on the map as a large castle icon. The first team to reach one must defuse a bomb there before a timer expires. Afterwards, the objective for all other Strongholds is simply to clear out a specific amount of AI enemies, but any human players you encounter will also count towards the total needed.
Warzone Black Sites
Black Sites are exclusive to battle royale. The first player or squad to clear a Warzone Stronghold will be granted a key to access a Black Site location, which is basically an even more dangerous form of Strongholds. Black Sites are located on the map as a skull icon. These locations contain considerably tougher AI enemies, including a minigun wielding Juggernaut boss.
Completing a Black Site for the first time will also reward you with a permanent weapon blueprint for use in all modes. It also gives you plenty of gear for use in the match itself, which can include a minigun, durable gas mask, a loadout drop, as well as a permanent UAV to ping enemies in the area surrounding the Black Site until the area becomes lost to the circle collapse.
It’s worth noting that clearing Strongholds after the first one is completed will grant you with sweet rewards, but you won’t earn a Black Site key for your efforts. If you’re not the first person to clear a Stronghold, you still have the option to potentially loot the key from the enemy who earned it.
DMZ Strongholds
In DMZ, Strongholds are marked as a castle icon on the map just like they are in battle royale, but they’re available right away instead of activating mid-match. This version of the Stronghold is also a locked building, and it will only be accessible with a keycard. The keys are found at random by looting, or they can be purchased from Buy Stations for $5,000. You’ll want to save your cash though, because the keycards drop pretty frequently, especially if you’re killing the AI in the general vicinity of a Stronghold. Keycards are tiny, but you’ll easily spot them on the ground as they have a blue glow around them.
Once you have access to a Stronghold, complete the building’s objective to claim your rewards. A majority of the Strongholds will simply require you to clear out all the AI enemies, but some have objectives like cracking a safe open with a drill, and you’ll need to defend the location against AI reinforcements trying to storm the Stronghold during this process.
Completing these DMZ Strongholds will reward similar loot as battle royale with items, such as killstreaks, three-plate armor, self-revives, and more.
Regardless of which mode you’re playing, I definitely recommend making sure you have extra armor plates. You’ll also want to carry the munitions field upgrade, so you always have enough ammo to fight your way through all the AI enemies. Some Strongholds have more AI than others, and those in a congested area of buildings might have many more bots to shoot.
Season 1 has a new weapon that can be unlocked for use across Modern Warfare 2 and Warzone 2.0, and here’s the guide to unlocking the M13B assault rifle in DMZ mode. Weapon loadouts also work differently in DMZ than battle royale, so make sure to check out our guide on weapon types for DMZ.
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