Studies and Observation Group


 * For the campaign mission in Black Ops, see "S.O.G.".

"Back in '64, the CIA gave up control of covert operations in South-east Asia, handed it over to the US Military. And with that, the MACV-SOG's born."

- Frank Woods

Military Assistance Command, Vietnam - Studies and Observation Group (also known as MACV-SOG or SOG) was a highly classified, multi-service United States special operations unit which conducted covert unconventional warfare operations prior to and during the Vietnam War. It is one of the main playable factions in Call of Duty: Black Ops.

Call of Duty: Black Ops


S.O.G. makes their first appearance in the self-titled mission. According to Alex Mason's interrogator, Mason was picked to join the S.O.G. team lead by Frank Woods prior to the mission. During the mission, Woods briefs Mason (accompanied by Special Agent Hudson) on MACV-SOG's creation and purpose, when their base comes under attack by the NVA. The team decides to stay behind and aid the Marines in defending the base, which they do successfully.

The team travels to Hue City where they are given the objective of extracting a Soviet defector from the MACV compound. Mason and Woods are joined by fellow operative Joseph Bowman. Although the defector was killed, Mason acquires his dossier, and the team fight through the city to extraction via boat.

Later, Mason's and Woods' helicopter is shot down by Viet Cong. After escaping the crash and fighting Viet Cong on the river, Woods and Mason sneak into an enemy village where they stealthily kill guards and meet up with Bowman and other operatives. The two split up, with Woods working above water while Mason sets explosives underwater. After meeting up with Bowman and many other SOG operatives, the team detonates the explosives and proceeds to clear the village. The team encounters a "rat tunnel" and Mason and Swift enter to clear it out. Swift is killed, but Mason continued to clear the tunnel and escaped for extraction.

The SOG work with the US Army to attack Viet Cong villages, supporting from boats. Afterwards, they search for a downed Soviet plane which they believe carries Nova-6. Discovering the gas may have dissipated after the crash, they defend the plane from a Soviet attack, during which the team is captured.

The team is taken to a hidden cave in Laos and forced to play Russian Roulette. Bowman refuses, resulting in his death. Mason and Woods conceive an escape plan and escape the cave. They steal an enemy helicopter, and use it to wreak havoc on various Viet Cong settlements. After landing, Woods and Mason rescue POWs from Kravchenko's compound. The group fights their way to Kravchenko himself, which culminates in the death of Kravchenko. Woods dies with Kravchenko. Mason is apparently the only surviving member of SOG.

Known Operatives

 * Alex Mason
 * Frank Woods (MIA)
 * Joseph Bowman (KIA)
 * Swift (KIA)
 * Johnson (Black Ops) (KIA)
 * Cpt. Patterson (DS)
 * Michael Shaw (DS)
 * Ruiz (DS)

Multiplayer
In multiplayer, the SOG announcer is Bowman. The MACV-SOG combat the North Vietnamese Army in Cracked, Hanoi, and Jungle. They always fight the North Vietnamese Army.

Weapons used

 * Commando
 * M16
 * M1911
 * M202 Rocket Launcher
 * SPAS-12
 * Python
 * M60
 * M14
 * China Lake
 * Stakeout
 * KS-23

Trivia

 * A document, signed by former president John F. Kennedy, involving the SOG was found through transmissions of a Call of Duty: Black Ops teaser site, GKNOVA6.
 * For multiplayer maps that feature the SOG as a playable faction, Bowman, voiced by Ice Cube, is their announcer. This marks the fourth time a celebrity is a multiplayer announcer in the Call of Duty Franchise (the other three being Gary Oldman and Kiefer Sutherland in World at War and Black Ops, and 50 Cent in Modern Warfare 2).
 * In the early beta mode, there was a different SOG announcer, with a deeper voice, but is currently unknown
 * If one selects Zombies in the Black Ops main menu, you can sometimes see what looks like SOG-Zombies eating on a normal SOG-operative. This may mean that the next zombie map includes american zombies.

Quotes
"Execute the mission."

- When the team starts a Team Deathmatch

"Suck it up, the war's not over!"

- When the SOG is defeated

"Get that son of a bitch out of here before I kill him myself!"

- SOG Faction Announcer in Hardcore modes, after a team killer is booted from the match

Video
300px|left|thumb|SOG full theme