FAL

The FAL is a semi-automatic Assault Rifle featured both in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 and Call of Duty: Black Ops.

Campaign
The FAL is commonly used by the Brazilian Militia in Takedown. The FAL is also used by Russians in the early stages of the Invasion, but the AK-47 is more commonplace later in the conflict. It is mostly seen with a Red Dot Sight, ACOG Scope, or Shotgun. It can be found in many Spec Ops missions, abundantly in the missions in the Favela, including Bomb Squad and O Cristo Redentor. It is the only semi-automatic assault rifle in game. What it lacks slightly in rate of fire it makes up in power, accuracy, and range.

Multiplayer
In multiplayer, the FAL is unlocked at Level 28. While this rifle's semi-automatic nature reduces its effectiveness at close range, an experienced player with a fast trigger finger can easily unload a full magazine on an enemy in close range, like a fully-automatic weapon. This same semi-automatic firing allows the player to control how much ammo is used and increases the FAL's effectiveness at long range, even though the shooter must pause briefly between shots to let the recoil settle. Because of this long-range prowess, the FAL closes the gap between assault rifles and sniper rifles.

The FAL is the strongest assault rifle with a damage range of 55-35, and as such, Stopping Power has a minimal effect, opening up a second tier perk slot. Shots will always kill in two hits at close and medium range, but three are required for a long range kill, regardless of the use of Stopping Power. However, with Stopping Power, the FAL is able to achieve one hit kills with a headshot. Moreover, like the UMP45, the FAL is one of the few non-sniper weapons in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 that can kill in a maximum of three shots regardless of range, perks, or attachments.

The Red Dot Sight is not properly aligned on the FAL, as shots land below and to the right of the dot. The Holographic Sight can fix this problem and increases the FAL's minimum damage by 5, which makes it 40, and when using Stopping Power, gives two-hit-kills at all ranges. This includes Bling combinations, in which a Holographic sight would go well with a Suppressor or Grenade Launcher. A recommended tactic is to use the shotgun for close quarters along with stopping power, which allows a player to be more versatile in his/her engagement.

In Hardcore, due to the gun's minimum damage being 5 points higher than a player's normal health, when paired with a Thermal Scope it can become a viable sniper rifle. However, aside from having a magazine double the size, no sway and its earlier unlock level the gun is outperformed by the M14 EBR for easier penetration kills, higher zoom, higher movement speed, lower recoil, and a handy Ghillie suit.

Attachments

 * Grenade Launcher
 * Red Dot Sight
 * Suppressor
 * ACOG Scope
 * FMJ
 * Shotgun
 * Holographic
 * Heartbeat Sensor
 * Thermal Scope
 * Extended Mags

Call of Duty: Black Ops
The FN FAL returns in Call of Duty: Black Ops, and looks much different from the Modern Warfare 2 version, having its wooden stock and body, a shorter magazine, and lacking a rail system for attachments.

Campaign
In single player, the weapon is used heavily by the Tropas in &quot;Operation 40" and is also featured in the hands of the NVA in "The Defector."

Multiplayer
Unlocked at level 32, the FN FAL has medium recoil and high damage, killing in 2-3 shots in Core game modes and always with 1 shot in Hardcore game modes.

The FN FAL has some advantages over the other single-shot assault rifle in the game, the M14: the FN FAL has much more open, less obstructed iron sights, easily stays on target in close to long range gunfights and does not require a grip like the M14 to deter recoil. The FN FAL features moderate vertical and horizontal recoil that allows most players to stay on target easier than the M14, which has a more powerful linear vertical recoil. However, one can argue that the linear recoil allows for an easier time obtaining headshots and the fact that some prefer this type of recoil, but this choice is up to the player. Another notable fact is that the M14 has a tighter hipfire spread than the FN FAL, therefore increasing the performance of the latter in close quarter combat. The FN FAL also has a 0.1 second longer partial reload time and 0.35 second faster empty reload time. Finally, the FN FAL lacks the x1.5 damage multiplier to the neck and has lower damage multipliers to the head than the M14 has, meaning that the FN FAL needs two headshots to two-hit at long range, while the M14 only needs one of the two bullets to hit the head or neck in order to get a two-hit kill at range. Unlike the M14, the FN FAL can use the Dual Mag attachment, which reloads faster every other reload, and 2 extra starting magazines. The FN FAL is the only Assault rifle that has the hip-fire accuracy of an LMG.

Attachments

 * Grenade Launcher
 * Flamethrower
 * ACOG Scope
 * Red Dot Sight
 * Reflex Sight
 * Masterkey
 * Suppressor
 * Dual Mag
 * Infrared Scope
 * Extended Magazines

Zombies
The FN FAL appears in the Zombies maps Kino der Toten, Five, Ascension, Call Of The Dead, and in the updated Black Ops versions of Nacht der Untoten, Verruckt, Shi No Numa, and Der Reise. In Zombies mode, the FN FAL can be only obtained from the Mystery Box. It comes with a 20 round magazine, moderate power (one-hit-headshot until round 6) and high accuracy. Due to the larger mag size and double the power on headshots, the FN FAL is considered superior to the M14. The FN FAL is recommended as a fallback weapon if obtained, as the fire-rate is moderate but controllable, and head shots are quite easy to maintain. The Pack-a-Punched version is better, but both versions should be exchanged during the mid rounds. If aiming for headshots, the non-Pack-a-Punched version can still be effective up until the early 20s.

When Pack-a-Punched it turns into EPC WN, and gains a Reflex Sight with a random reticule and switches to a three-round burst firing mode, with a 1-hit-headshot capacity lasting until round 12. However, one will seldom see a player using the EPC WN, due to the ineffectiveness of the normal varient. However, It can be effective until round 30 if aiming for headshots.

EPC WN Firing Sound

Gallery
For Camouflage images, click here

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2

 * This is the only semi-automatic assault rifle in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, aside from the non-scoped M14 EBR in "Breach & Clear", a Special Ops mission.
 * The FAL is the only assault rifle that has coding to use the Akimbo attachment.
 * The FAL's rear sight sways unless equipped with the Shotgun attachment, however this has no effect on accuracy.
 * The FAL's hand guard in-game appears to have a discolor or stain on it.
 * Due to the overuse of rapid fire controllers, the FAL was programmed with a fire cap limiting its rate of fire before the games release.
 * On the right side of the gun, it says FN FAL and then some indiscernible text (possibly reading "205") but backwards. This backwards lettering is also present in the letters "R" and "S" on the fire selector.
 * The FAL has a unique way of reloading. The player flicks the magazine release with the new magazine and inserts it. Also, when the player reloads, the magazine appears to go through the trigger-guard to flick the old magazine out.
 * The FAL appears to have scratches and marks on the barrel.
 * In Multiplayer, when the FAL has a Red Dot Sight attached, the red dot is not completely centered, and the gun seems to have a slight tilt to the left whilst aiming down sights.
 * The pick-up icon for the FAL with a grenade launcher says "FAL grenade laucher".
 * When equipped with a Heartbeat Sensor, and reloaded with an empty magazine, the player's hand will clip through the monitor.
 * Attaching a Holographic Sight will increase the FAL's minimum damage output by 5%.
 * In Hardcore mode, the FAL is a 1 shot kill. Therefore, if players put a thermal attachment on it, it becomes a low-recoil sniper and can turn into a short-range weapon at any time.

Call of Duty: Black Ops

 * Emblems on the FN FAL appear "backwards" or as a mirror image of the emblem.
 * Like the M14, the FN FAL has a wooden stock and handguard, but when a camouflage pattern is applied, the stock and hand guard turn to plastic. This only occurs in multiplayer; in the single player missions where the FN FAL is used by enemy soldiers the hand guard and stock are always wooden; this also happens with the camouflage of the Pack-a-Punch.
 * On the Wii version of Black Ops, the camouflage does not change the coloring of the wooden stock even in Multiplayer.
 * With a Grenade Launcher; Flamethrower; or Masterkey attached, the player character releases the magazine slightly differently due to the trigger guard obstructing the magazine well.
 * When Pack-a-Punched, the name change, EPC WN, is a short variation of "Epic Win.", in contrast to FN FAL which in turn means Fucking Fail.
 * When the user rapidly fires the FN FAL there is no delay between multiple shots, unlike the M14.
 * The FN FAL's serial number is 723750402.
 * By viewing the FN FAL in third Person the player can see the word B3AN1ES, which translates to "beanies".
 * The rear sight is a rail mounted type, yet when sights like the ACOG are attached a new rail system is mounted on then gun.
 * The FAL magazines have red tape on them also with dual mags, which make the magazines have 2 types of tape on them.
 * The NVA in The Defector will occasionally shoot the FN FAL as if it was fully automatic.

Videos
Video:Call of Duty Black Ops: M14 vs FAL|The recoil of the FAL compared to the M14 in Black Ops'' Video:FN FAL Assault Rifle - All Attachments Weapon Guide Series (Call of Duty®: Black Ops)|Attachment Overview

FAL