Inner Circle

"С нами Бог. (God is with us.)"

- Makarov at the beginning of "No Russian" and any multiplayer matches in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 with the player playing in Inner Circle faction.

The Inner Circle is a faction in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, serving as an antagonist faction of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 and the primary antagonist faction of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 and also being a playable group in multiplayer in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3. It is the official name for the Ultranationalist terrorist cell that sides with Makarov following the split of the Ultranationalist Party. They are playable in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 multiplayer on the maps Seatown and Piazza, opposing the S.A.S. The multiplayer announcer for the Inner Circle is Makarov.

Background
The ideals of the Inner Circle are never discussed, though they are shown to have an intensely fierce loyalty to Makarov as their visionary leader and figure. Judging from background information on Makarov being a student of Russian history who seeks to see a return to an autocratic rule like that of pre-communist Russia, as well as the presence of a royal crown in the Inner Circle's logo, it is likely the group have the overall intention to one day appoint Makarov as supreme ruler over the Russian nation and establish an empire under him that expands across all of Europe, the foundation of which they attempt to establish in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3. In essence, their goal would be to recreate the Russian Empire and appoint Vladimir Makarov as its ruling Tsar.

The exact details behind the origins of the Inner Circle is left ambiguous, but they are believed to have been formed immediately after the Ultranationalist Party fell into pieces following the death of the party founder, Imran Zakhaev. While the newly appointed President Boris Vorshevsky came into power over the mainstream party, extremists of the cause fell under a charismatic Ultranationalist named Vladimir Makarov who took charge over them and founded the Inner Circle. The faction was used to commit various acts of terrorism against not only the new Russia under Vorshevsky, but also against the various countries of Europe to inspire fear throughout all of Eurasia. Following the massacre at Zakhaev International Airport executed by the Inner Circle themselves, the group took a backseat role to watch the chaos unfold as Russia went to war with the United States of America. However the western special operations unit known as Task Force 141 made it their mission to eliminate Makarov and his followers, attacking the prime safehouses of the faction at the end of Modern Warfare 2 and inflicting a large number of casualties on the organization. They managed to stay standing however, and continued their zealous campaign two months later when President Vorshevsky planned to make peace with the countries of NATO.

The group long since gained more power and support from the mainstream party due to Makarov corrupting a good deal of Russia's nationalistic politicians and top military generals into siding with him against Vorshevsky, whose move to seek peace with the west was met unpopular by the Russian population who still saw the war as a justified cause for vengeance. Effectively taking complete control of Russia and launching a coup, the Inner Circle hijacked the personal plane of President Vorshevsky while he was en route to a peace summit with NATO in Hamburg, and forced it to crash land. The faction lost several men in the fight against FSO forces protecting the President and his daughter, but ultimately captured Vorshevsky with the intent to force him into giving Makarov the launch codes to Russia's nuclear warheads.

Makarov's plan for invasion proved to be a success, his chemical weapons devastating capitals across Europe, crippling government organizations and military command structures severely, permitting Russia to take the majority of Europe in the early moments of the invasion before meeting strong NATO resistance with United States backing. Makarov permitted his generals to handle the war while he focused on acquiring the nuclear launch codes from Vorshevsky in order to destroy the United States and end their involvement in the war, finalizing Russia's control over Europe. Ultimately however, the factions plans failed when the remnants of Task Force 141 operated in conjunction with American Delta Force operatives to rescue President Vorshevsky and his daughter from Makarov's men in Siberia. The operation was a success and thus the Inner Circle never gained the launch codes, the President openly pursuing peace with the west once again and ending the conflict and Makarov's coup over Russia. With his plan a failure, Makarov went into hiding with his men in the Middle East to regain their assets and plot anew. However the score wasn't settled and the remnants of Task Force 141 pursued him, Makarov's former friend and ally Yuri, and his long time enemy Captain Price assaulting the Hotel Oasis the group was hiding in to finish them off once and for all. The following conflict resulted in the deaths of the Inner Circle members present in the hotel, and while Yuri was killed by Makarov, Captain Price managed to overpower Makarov and kill him by hanging him in the atrium of the hotel from the shattered glass rooftop. It can be assumed that with the death of their charismatic leader, the Inner Circle fell into shambles and what members still survived quickly fell apart, and the Vorshevsky´s Ultranationalists remained in power. The Loyalists also returned to Russia after Vorshevsky started reconciliation with them and offered them some key positions in the newly established Ultranationalist-Loyalist coalition government.

The Inner Circle first appears in the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 campaign, then unnamed and only appearing in later missions of the game. They are first met as enemies in the mission "Loose Ends" as the main opposition as they try to defend their safehouse on the Georgian-Russian border. Their last appearance in Modern Warfare 2 is in "The Enemy of My Enemy" where they openly combat the forces of Shadow Company in an aircraft boneyard in Afghanistan. They also appear in the singleplayer campaign for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, first within the mission "Persona Non Grata", attacking the Loyalist safehouse in India, and soon after in "Turbulence", wherein they hijack President Boris Vorshevsky's plane and kidnap him. They also feature in "Mind the Gap" where they work to deploy Makarov's chemical weapon in London, "Stronghold" where they attempt to defend their fortress from Price and Yuri, and lastly in "Dust to Dust" where they defend their leader Vladimir Makarov from his assassins.

Known members

 * Vladimir Makarov, K.I.A: Founder and leader of the Inner Circle. Killed by John Price
 * Volk, Captured: CEO of Fregata and the 'bomb maker' of the group. Captured by Delta Force Team Metal.
 * Alexi, Presumed K.I.A: One of Makarov's sub-leaders and commander of the faction's base in Prague.
 * Waraabe, K.I.A: An associate of the Inner Circle through Volk and not technically a full member.
 * Viktor, K.I.A: Terrorist who assisted in the "No Russian" massacre. Was killed in Arcadia.
 * Lev, K.I.A: Terrorist who assisted in the "No Russian" massacre. Killed by the FSB.
 * Kiril, K.I.A: Terrorist who assisted in the "No Russian" massacre. Killed by the FSB.
 * Anatoly, Alive: Part of the getaway crew for the ambulance in "No Russian".
 * Makarov's Driver, Alive: Getaway driver in "No Russian".
 * Yuri, Defected, K.I.A: Formerly right hand of Makarov. Double crossed by Makarov, who assist Russian Loyalists. Killed by Makarov during his last stand.

Equipment
Compared to their Vorshevsky-allied counterparts, Makarov's Inner Circle terrorists during Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 looked more like the roguish mercenary types depicted in the previous Modern Warfare installment, with their men donning a mixture of personal and tactical gear, but were just as capable as their counterparts in terms of vehicle support and firepower.

In Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 their appearance differs, but throughout the majority of the game, Inner Circle terrorists look more like highly paid professional PMCs, wearing basic clothing (tactical long-sleeve turtle neck, olive colored BDU pants), upgraded armor, earpieces, and in some cases sunglasses. Beyond that, it is very difficult to distinguish them from one another, though in multiplayer some will wear protective masks of an almost hockey mask-like design. In "Mind the Gap", they wear the uniforms of dock and ship workers, mostly consisting of navy and orange-colored jumpsuits underneath their tactical vests.

Assault Rifles

 * AK-47
 * G36C
 * SCAR-L
 * TAR-21
 * FAMAS
 * F2000
 * M4A1

Submachine Guns

 * P90
 * PP90M1
 * AK-74U
 * PM-9
 * UMP45
 * MP7
 * Mini-Uzi
 * MP5K
 * Vector

Light Machine Guns

 * MK46
 * L86 LSW
 * MG36
 * PKP Pecheneg
 * MG4
 * M240 (Makarov's assault team)
 * RPD

Shotguns

 * AA-12
 * SPAS-12
 * Striker
 * USAS 12
 * Model 1887

Sniper Rifles

 * RSASS
 * Dragunov
 * MSR
 * Barrett .50cal
 * WA2000
 * AS50

Machine Pistols

 * FMG9
 * MP9
 * Skorpion
 * G18
 * PP2000
 * TMP
 * M93 Raffica

Pistols

 * USP .45
 * Desert Eagle
 * Five Seven
 * MP412
 * .44 Magnum

Launchers

 * M320 (seen attached under G36Cs during "Down the Rabbit Hole")
 * GP-25
 * RPG-7
 * Stinger
 * M203
 * Thumper

Vehicles

 * BTR-80
 * Mi-8
 * Mi-24 Hind
 * Mi-28
 * GAZ-2975
 * Humvee

Trivia

 * In early stages of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, Inner Circle was going to be originally in Underground and Bootleg multiplayer maps but were cut out for unknown reasons. The icons for the Inner Circle in the aforementioned maps are present on ELITE.
 * In the Tango Down Multiplayer Trailer, where the Inner Circle and Delta Force are fighting in Underground, they had a different faction icon, as seen on the SAM Turret.
 * In Multiplayer, some of the character models for the Inner Circle wear masks, even though none are shown wearing masks in Campaign mode.
 * In Multiplayer, their battle dialogue is the same as the Spetsnaz's.
 * "С нами Бог" ("S nami Bog "God is with us"), which is heard at the beginning of any match when playing as the Inner Circle, is also said by Makarov at the beginning of "No Russian".
 * Prior to the release of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, the Inner Circle used the OpFor logo on Seatown.
 * Their spawn, victory, and defeat theme can be heard in "Black Tuesday", "Persona non Grata", and "Goalpost" respectively.
 * In the Wii version of the game, the Inner Circle don't wear any kind of headgear.
 * In "Dust to Dust" some of Inner Circle members have FSO agents character models from "Turbulence".

Videos
Video:Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 Inner Circle Spawn Theme

Inner Circle's spawn theme

Video:Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 Inner Circle Victory Theme

Inner Circle's victory theme

Video:Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 Inner Circle Defeat Theme

Inner Circle's defeat theme

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