.44 Magnum

The .44 Magnum is a revolver featured in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3.

Campaign
The .44 Magnum is almost always carried and used by General Shepherd throughout the campaign. Shepherd is seen using the .44 Magnum at the beginning of the mission "Team Player", the end of "Loose Ends" to kill Ghost and Roach, and in "Endgame" when he attempts to kill Soap and Captain Price.

This weapon is not available in the campaign; however, while in the mission "Museum", the player can pick up this weapon either from the display shelf or by killing General Shepherd.

Multiplayer
The .44 Magnum is available for Create-A-Class at level 26, being the second Handgun unlocked. The weapon always kills in three or fewer hits, regardless of the use of Stopping Power - the perk only increases the range at which a two-hit kill is attainable. In Hardcore gamemodes, the .44 Magnum requires just one hit to kill regardless of range or perks, unless used against a player using Painkiller, Final Stand or Last Stand, or if shooting through cover thick enough. This gun is mostly effective for close to medium ranges, but it can also kill at long range.

The .44 Magnum has high recoil, but with a fast recovery between shots, and can have all six rounds fired quickly with little loss of accuracy up to medium range. Its main drawbacks are its small six-round capacity and moderately slow reload animation - however, it does have a quick Reload Cancel, which reduces the reload time by roughly half.

The .44 is often compared to the Desert Eagle, as both have close to the same stats, with high damage and low ammo capacity. However, the .44 Magnum has more damage and better accuracy, while the Desert Eagle has a larger magazine capacity. Overall, the .44 Magnum is better than the Desert Eagle, with less recoil, correctly aligned iron sights, and ability to kill over a longer range without the need of Stopping Power.

This weapon is most commonly found in Multiplayer with the Tactical Knife Attachment, and used with the combination of rushing perks Marathon, Lightweight, and Commando. The knife attack is very effective with a Tactical Knife, especially with the increased melee lunge range due to Commando.

Attachments

 * FMJ
 * Akimbo
 * Tactical Knife

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3
The .44 Magnum appears in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3. It has a wooden grip instead of a black synthetic one that the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 version had. The hammer also appears to have been either cut or filed down to a shorter length. It features the same reload animation as the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 version.

Campaign
It only appears once in the campaign, in "Bag and Drag", as Tueur or the random soldier who assists the player may draw it when out of ammo. It can be picked up if either of them are killed. It holds a total of 18 rounds carried, six loaded.

Multiplayer
The .44 Magnum is unlocked at Level 46 in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3's multiplayer. It has slightly less maximum damage than its Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 counterpart, much less minimum damage, but has the same amount of recoil. Though the gun works well in close quarters combat, it suffers in mid-long ranges due to its low damage and high recoil at range, where at maximum range, it can take five-six shots to kill an enemy depending on where the bullets hit.

Survival Mode
The .44 Magnum is available in Survival Mode at level 20 and costs $250.

Attachments

 * Akimbo - Unlocked at weapon level 5.
 * Tactical Knife - Unlocked at weapon level 7.

General

 * When equipped with the Tactical Knife, the .44 Magnum's reload changes slightly; the character will flick his wrist to close the cylinder after inserting the speedloader, rather than close it with his other hand.
 * The .44 Magnum is one of six revolvers to appear in the Call of Duty series, the others being the Webley Mk IV, the .357 Magnum, the Python, the MP412 and The Executioner.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2

 * On the left side of the barrel, there is writing that reads: "BRAD ALLENCONDA .44MAGNUM," a reference to Brad Allen, Infinity Ward's lead artist, and the Colt Anaconda.
 * When equipped with the Tactical Knife, the .44 Magnum's reload changes slightly; the character will flick his wrist to close the cylinder after inserting the speedloader, rather than close it with his other hand.
 * In the campaign level "Museum", if the player picks up the .44 Magnum from the display case and then kills Shepherd, the player can pick up his .44 Magnum too without picking up ammo or dropping the Magnum they already have.
 * The .44 Magnum has the smallest hipfire spread of any weapon in the game, tied with the Desert Eagle.
 * When using the Tactical Knife, visual recoil is reduced.
 * .44 Magnum is the only weapon used in pre-made classes that is not unlocked as soon as Create-A-Class is unlocked.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3

 * The .44 Magnum is the only handgun that is not available in the Special Ops mission Stay Sharp.
 * The new .44 Magnum somewhat resembles the Python from Call of Duty: Black Ops, being less shiny and with wooden grips.
 * The .44 Magnum recycles the Desert Eagle's firing sound from Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, albeit in a slightly lower pitch.
 * Though having the same damage as the MP412, the Create-A-Class stats shows the .44 Magnum having lower damage.
 * This weapon, as well as the MP412, receives five reserve magazines instead of the usual two.

.44 Magnum