Black Ops II: Sticks and Stones Game Guide

I've been playing Call of Duty Black Ops 2 Sticks and Stones for the last couple of days.  Here is what I have learned, and hopefully it can make you a better player at this cool game type.

1. Understand the scoring;

Crossbow kill - 10 points
Ballistic Knife kill - 10 points
Combat Knife/ballistic knife melee - 5 points
Combat Axe hit 5 points (bankrupt / humiliation)
Kills due to car explosions - 10 points

2. Know the Rules:

Kills are scored as above.

Combat axe kills cause the killed player to lose all their points (called bankrupt / humiliation).

Suicide also causes you to be bankrupt.

After you use all your crossbow ammo, you will only have your ballistic knife and combat axe.

There is a constant radar sweep that lets you know the positions of the other players.  Be aware there is some lag and this display is not in real time, but for the most part you will know the general location of other players.

You do not get any of the attachments for the crossbow during Sticks and Stones.


3. Know that you can have more than one combat axe, when you kill a player with the axe run over him so you can retrieve your axe.  When you kill a player that has thrown an axe at you, you can pick it up then you will have two axes.

4. A bit of tactics about car explosions.  Be aware of the maps that have cars, and when players try to use them as cover or are near them shoot them with to crossbow and blow them up.  Easy points.

5. Because melee and combat axe kills count for less, go for crossbow kills to build up your points.  And when you see someone who is away from their keyboard (AFK, free kill) then kill them with your crossbow to get more points.  Some people love getting humiliations but for AFKs go for the higher points.  There will be many games when that extra 5 points means the difference between winning and loosing.

5. Use "Sticks and Stones" to get all the challenges for your crossbow and ballistic knife.  You can get the Crossbow and Ballistic Knife Marksman achievements done.  Wait until you get all those challenges done then you can start going for more combat axe kills. To have the challenges count, you have to have unlocked the crossbow and the combat knife.  The crossbow is unlocked at level 25 and the ballistic knife is unlocked at level 49.  You can also use "Sticks and Stones" to get the combat axe challenges done also.

6. Once you get your crossbow and ballistic knife achievements, then focus on using the combat axe.  When using the combat axe don't run around with the axe ready to throw.  This slows your movement down.  If you can switch between the knife and crossbow quickly, it is better to run around with the knife at the ready.  This will help you to move faster. And moving faster is a good thing see number 8 below.

7. Often times in this game you will get two, three, or even four players all trying to kill each other at the same time.  All running around shooting the crossbow and ballistic knife at each other.  Try to stay back and shoot into the crowd.  Even throw your axe if you want, but probably it is best to stay back and get the easy kills. Also be prepared when doing this for other players to try to sneak up on you and kill you while you are shooting into the crowd.

8. Stay as mobile as possible.  It is harder to shoot a player who is moving, and if you are moving you will come up on other players who are not moving as much and they will be easy kills.  Look for other players passing through choke points or other narrow parts of the map because they will be easier to kill.

9.  When you are ahead in the game, try to limit the engagements that you get into.  You can be humiliated bankrupted in the last moment of the game.  It can be heartbreaking to build up a comfortable lead and then have it taken a way with the last kill of the game.

10. Have fun.  Many players really get vocal and start berating each other and the game because they are losing.  My advice, is don't play mad bro. It is just a game.

Black Ops II Tips and Tricks Arms Race League Play

I have been playing so much Black Ops II lately, it is pretty much all I have been doing. And there have been a couple of new developments recently that I want to put the word out about. 1. The game just got patched and there is a new game mode. It is called Arms Race. And right from the Playlists page it says; "For a limited time. the Arms Race Team Deathmatch variant awards players 150 score per kill. Let the Scorestreak wars begin." I've played it a few times and it seems like a cool game, but because of my next tip I have not had a lot of time to play it. 2. Tip number two is a very cool one I think. It is about League Play, which I have been playing a lot lately also. The new season is about to start and it is in preseason. I have been playing the Team Deathmatch Series which is fun, but there is something else that makes it special. It gives you a lot of XP when you play, if you are on the losing team, you get 7500 points of XP and if you are on the winning team you get 10000. Try it and see how it works out for you. There are a few drawbacks to playing League Play, it takes forever to get matched up, and if you are a player that averages more then 10000 points of XP per game (some slayers might) then this might not worth it to you. I hope these tips and tricks help you out, and feel free to leave me a comment to let me know what you think about the new game mode "Arms Race" and if you are getting lots of XP from playing League Play.

Latest Black Ops II News 10/24

In an atricle tilted Call of Duty"'s First Ever Female Character, Erin Cahill Talks About Her Role in "Black Ops 2" ComplexGaming.com/ interviews the actress who plays the first ever female character in the COD series of games.

It is an interesting read, not because a lot of plot info is given, but because it is good to hear how Erin Cahill feels about playing this cool new role.

In other COD Black Ops II News, GameGuide.com is reporting that the map Favela has ben returned to the game, read about at in the article Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 Controversial Favela Map Returns on PlayStation 3.

Personally I think it is a good thing to show respect for all players and that the developers did the right thing by taking the map down and making changes.  I just wish that we could all just play the games and not have so much real hate going on.  The whole idea behind video games is to have fun.

Peace out players!

NBC.com reviews Black Ops II

I'm hoping the Black Ops lives up to Todd Kenreck's review. I agree with him that Black Ops was a better thought through game then some of the other games in the Call Of Duty franchise, and I am hoping the Black Ops II lives up to his kind words.

Visit NBCNews.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Treyarch is Back In Black.

Can't stop watching the clip below.

Love the song selection, and I am anticipating this even more now.


 

News About Call Of Duty: Black Ops II

Here are a couple of cool things that just recently hit my in box about Call Of Duty: Black Ops II that I'd like to share with my readers.

First up is the Call of Duty Elite news. Watch the video below for and update on that.



Notes from YouTube: Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 Elite is Free Trailer [HD] by machinimarespawn

Call of Duty: Black Ops II catapults players forward into an epic near-future warzone rooted in today's headlines. The title represents an unprecedented leap for the franchise, delivering a groundbreaking single-player campaign with branching storylines, advanced weaponry, new graphics technology, a deep multiplayer experience featuring a greater emphasis on eSports and match customization, and the most expansive Zombies action yet, now running on the multiplayer engine.

Developer: Treyarch
Release: 11/13/2012
Genre: FPS
Platform: PS3/X360
Publisher: Activision

And the second is a new book that give the back story of the villian in the Call of Duty: Black Ops Campaign mode. Hit the link below and check it out at Amazon.com.

According to Amazon.com "Rightful King," the Kindle villain backstory about Raul Menendez was just announced.   Customers who pre-order "Call of Duty: Black Ops II" will receive the Kindle Backstory for free when the item is released.                           


 

New Black Ops II Zombies Trailer

The new Zombies trailer is out for Call Of Duty Blacks Ops II and it is looking good. I can't even begin to tell you how much I been waiting on this one.

Check it out below.



Notes from YouTube:

The carnage is back. Welcome to Black Ops 2 Zombies.

Pre-order the Hardened Edition or Care Package now and get the exclusive Nuketown Zombies map! http://www.callofduty.com/blackops2/preorder

Keep up with the latest Black Ops 2 news by following us on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/codblackops) and Twitter (@CallofDuty and @Treyarch).

Published on Sep 26, 2012 by http://www.youtube.com/user/CALLOFDUTY

Treyarch Zombie Related photos

Treyarch just added a couple of new pics to their FaceBook account. You can check them out here    https://www.facebook.com/Treyarch They look zombie related.

I can not wait until the release of Black Ops 2, and the chance to play the new zombies mode.

The caption for the picture at the bottom below reads, "It might be Friday, but rest assured that we're not board at work...".

Treyarch's New Black Ops 2 Zombie Pic

The above picture is the new profile picture of the Treyarch Twitter account.  Looks like a zombie to me, I guess we will be getting some new news about Black Ops 2 zombies from them soon.  Go and check it out at https://twitter.com/Treyarch

Maybe this is a prestige ranking emblem?  What do you think?

Best Place To Preorder Black Ops 2?

I have been putting it off and have not preordered Black Ops 2, the release date of Nov. 13 is right around the corner.  I have been thinking that I should get it done, so I did a little search online to see what kind of resources there were out there to help me answer the question.

"Where is the best place to preorder Black Ops 2?"

First thing I checked out was the video below. Which makes the case for preordering from GameStop.




This article titled "Retailers reveal pre-order incentives for Call of Duty: Black Ops 2" by Natalie Shoemaker  describes for the most part the perks that the big retailers are offering, but is kind of dated as it does not mention the Nuke Town 2012 Multiplayer Map.

The article gives a better overview of all the Major retailers and what the are giving as incentives.

You can Preorder from Amazon.com here.

GamesThirst.com has a very comprehensive post that covers retailers in North America as well as Europe.  You can read their article "Black Ops 2 Pre-Order Bonuses" here.

There are many other resources that can also answer this question, if you do a google search you will come up with many hits for it.  I just wanted to provide a quick way that someone like me who wants to preorder but realizes that there is not that much time left.

Black Ops 2 Score Streaks

As I mentioned in an earlier post I can not wait for Black Ops 2 to come out.  One of the features that I am really interested in seeing is the new Score Streaks feature.  You can check them out in the COD Black Ops 2 Blog where they are listed and a picture of each one is provided.

Score Streaks potentially are going to do something that I have wanted since I started playing the first person shooter.  They are going to make players play the objective and not try to turn every game mode into a game of TDM (team death match).

By killing other players, capturing flags, defending flags, maintaining hard points and performing other scoring events you will earn points which fill up your Score Streak Meter. The meter is located on the lower right hand side of the HUD.  Filling the meter lets you use one of the 22 Score Streaks listed below.

Here is the list of Black Ops 2 Score Streak Rewards you have to choose three from:

• RC-XD — A remote-controlled car packed with explosives (325 points)
• UAV — Shows enemies on the mini-map (375 points)
• Hunter Killer — Airborne drone that seeks out and destroys a nearby target (400 points)
• Care Package — Air drop a random Score Streak (450 points)
• Counter-UAV — Temporarily disables enemy radar (475 points)
• Guardian — Projects microwave field which stuns and impairs enemies (500 points)
• Hellstorm Missile — An air-to-surface missile which can be scattered into a cluster bomb while falling (525 points)
• Lightning Strike — Launch a coordinated lightning strike on three locations (550 points)
• Death Machine — Your own personal handheld mini-gun (600 points)
• Sentry Gun — An automatic sentry gun which can be remote-controlled (650 points)
• War Machine — Grenade launcher with rapid, semi-automatic firing (700 points)
• Dragonfire — Remote-controlled quad-rotor with lightweight machine gun (725 points)
• AGR — Air drop an autonomous ground robot that searches for and destroys enemies and can be remote controlled (800 points)
• Stealth Chopper — Call in a stealth helicopter which does not appear on the enemy’s mini-map (850 points)
• Orbital VSAT — Shows both enemy position and direction on the mini-map, cannot be shot down (900 points)
• Escort Drone — Get personal air support from an escort drone (1000 points)
• Warthog — Jet aircraft that provides close air support with several strafe runs (1025 points)
• EMP Systems — Temporarily disables enemy electronics (1050 points)
• Lodestar — Lase missile targets remotely from the Lodestar (1150 points)
• VTOL Warship — Be the gunner of a powerful VTOL Warship (1200 points)
• Canine Unit — Attack dogs that hunt down the enemy (1275 points)
• Swarm — Call in a swarm of lethal Hunter Killer drones that search and destroy enemies (1400 points)

Questions and Answers about Black Ops 2 Score Streaks:

1. Do Score Streaks stack or build towrads your next Score Streak?

Yes, the points that you get from preforming actions that give you score, add towards acheaving all your Score Streaks.  For example if you have selected to get the three lowest Score Streaks (see above point totals) the RC-XD, the UAV and the Hunter Killer (which is worth 400 points) if you preform an action that gets you 400 points, you will earn all three of your kill streaks.

The amount of points that you get per scoring action also depends on the game mode that you are playing.

2. Do Score Streaks span lives?

No, each time you die you lose all your points on your Score Streak Meter gets reset.

3. So how many Score Streaks are there? How many do you get per life?

There are 22 Score Streaks (see the list above).  You have a load out of three, just like all other COD games.

Check out the YouTube Videos that overview Black Ops 2 Score Streaks

Black Ops 2 COD Casting

I just watched the Gamescon Day 2 Multiplayer Live Stream Video on YouTube, and man has it got me worked up for some of the new features that will be in Black Ops 2.  I can't wait until this game comes out. 

Check out the video below which focuses on the new COD Casting feature of the game.  David Vonderharr (Treyarch's Game Designer Director) and Mike "Hastro" Rufail (Professional Shout Caster) explain the Black Ops 2 COD Casting feature.

It looks like regular players will really be able to get a great veiwing experience from the game.  I really enjoyed the theater feature that was in Black Ops and think this one will also be very enjoyable.

Black Ops 2 Multiplayer Multi Team Modes

There is so much new information coming out about Black Ops 2 that it is hard to keep up.  One of the places that I check out is the Call of Duty Blog, check out this post that details Black Ops 2 Multiplayer Multi-team Modes.

Call of Duty Black Ops 2 E3 2012 Video

Here are two YouTube videos of the Call of Duty Black Ops 2 E3 2012 videos. The first is the one posted by Machinima and the second one has a breakdown of the weapons and other items in the video that you might have missed, posted by the YouTube commentator Ali-A.

Plastation YouTube Channel Black Ops 2 Reveal Trailer

Our good friends over at PlayStation's YouTube Channel have posted the New Call Of Duty:Black Ops 2 Reveal Trailer. Looks like it will be an interesting game, with the return of SGT Frank Woods (I thought he had died in Black Ops). And it also seems that Black Ops 2 will be set sometime in the future.



Notes from YouTube: Black Ops is back. Experience near-future black operations with the next evolution of the legendary Call of Duty: Black Ops. Out 11.13.12.