M2 Flamethrower

The M2 flamethrower is a Call of Duty: World at War Tier 1 perk that allows a player to use an M2 Flamethrower. It is used in the same way between online and offline game modes. It doesn't use any ammo, but overheats, and requires you to wait for it to cool-down before firing again. It originates from Call of Duty: United Offensive, where it can be used throughout the Russian campaign. However, that was its only appearance and usage before Call of Duty: World at War, where its usage both in singleplayer and multiplayer was expanded. This perk is unlocked at level 65.

In Game
In the single-player campaign, the flamethrower can be used by the player in the Pacific Campaign, although German soldiers sometimes use flamethrowers in the Soviet Campaign. It is also possible to kill enemy soldiers by shooting the fuel tank, causing the flamethrower to explode during the missions Vendetta and Downfall.

The M2 Flamethrower, while near useless at long range, is very effective in close range, especially in Hardcore. It can be used to 'spray' an entire area in a very small amount of time. Particularly effective in Hardcore Team Deathmatch, Hardcore War, Hardcore Free-for-All, and Headquarters. The only flaws could be the one second charge it needs before projecting flames, limited range, and in multiplayer, it overheats much faster than its singleplayer counterpart. It is generally less effective than a submachine gun or a shotgun, but for players using long range weapons, such as rifles, it can be a good alternative to using Overkill.

Unlocked at level 65, the M2 is a potent close-quarters weapon. A player with a flamethrower will have a different appearance than what their primary weapon would provide, as well as a large fuel tank on their back. It does not do continuous damage, contrary to what one would expect from a flamethrower. It does 50 damage to the target every 0.2 seconds (it will do damage the first time it hits and is incapable of damaging the same target again for 0.2 seconds), requiring two hits to kill, five if the target is using the Fireproof perk. It can be used to clear rooms or tunnels. This weapon never runs out of fuel, it only overheats. The weapon cannot fire while it is cooling off and flashing yellow. It is very useful on smaller or maps with a lot of enclosed areas. However, a major downside is it creates lots of smoke and flame, effectively blocking vision. Taking out the Flamethrower will cause the player to move at the same speed as a submachine gun or shotgun user.

This can be very useful for a sniper, as they may sometimes need a close quarters weapon and will not want to lose their second perk such as stopping power in order to use overkill.

Tactics

 * It is extremely useful for killing dogs.


 * Switching to the M2 flamethrower the first time after a spawn/respawn will cause a short delay like most other weapons, prevent this by switching to the M2 flamethrower when you spawn then quickly switch back.


 * Can be used on Headquarters effectively because the majority of the HQs are inside buildings like Upheaval


 * Can be very useful on Nazi Zombies with insta kill. The flames wash over zombies and pass them unlike bullets. A short burst can clear an entire room.

Trivia



 * Strangely enough if an enemy is hit in the head with a flamethrower in single player, they will not burn to death as normal, but instead simply fall over.


 * On Nacht Der Untoten, if you fire at a Zombie, at around round 10, one short flame will kill them in 5 seconds (so don't just fire at it until it goes down it dies in 5 seconds anyway).


 * The flamethrower will remove the ghillie suit/leaves from players equipped with bolt action rifles.


 * A tip when using the M2 flamethrower in Nacht der Untoten is to use very short bursts so that it does not overheat. This also strangely does not reduce the damage you inflict by much, as the zombies lose health from being on fire, not from being attacked with the flames from the flamethrower itself.


 * It is possible to aim down the sights with this weapon, the result being a slight zoom, elimination of cross hair, and slower movement speed.


 * The screen shot is not of Pvt. Miller but Pvt. Glover, the Marine in Little Resistance that burns out the MG Nest.


 * Numerous types of vegetation can be burned with this weapon.


 * This weapon can be found whilst in "Nazi Zombies" in the random mystery box.


 * In Nacht der Untoten, the M2 Flamethrower is one of the rarest weapons to receive from the mystery box, but does not kill zombies in one burst as the player progresses throughout the levels.


 * In reality the M2 flamethrower can run out of fuel in about 10 seconds. Instead it over heats in 7 seconds in Single and 3.5 seconds in Multiplayer. Also, when the fuel tank in the back is shot it explodes, which is very unrealistic. This however, never happens when your player in World at War gets hit in the front or the back, more like real life.


 * In Nazi Zombies if the flamethrower is collected the fuel tank does not appear on the player.


 * The flamethrower in reality during WW2 was used by all Allied or Axis factions, however, they had different flamethrower designs.


 * The Marine Raiders used M2 flamethrower, the Imperial Japanese Army used Type 93 Flamethrower / Type 100 Flamethrower, the red Army used ROKS-2 Flamethrower/ ROKS-3 Flamethrower and the Wehrmacht used Flammenwerfer 35 Flamethrower.


 * Due to the graphical limitations of the Wii, the tube connecting the flamethrower to its fuel tanks will sometimes be disconnected from the tanks.


 * On the level "Blowtorch and Corkscrew" in the Single-player campaign, the flamethrower grip will be coated with rust.


 * In the new zombie map Shi No Numa, the weight of the flamethrower has been increased so players run slower with it.
 * It is curious that the flamethrower still causes damage to any Hellhounds encountered in Shi No Numa, considering that many of them are already on fire.