TAR-21

The TAR-21 is an assault rifle featured in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2.

Singleplayer
In the campaign, it is used heavily by the Russian military. It is available in all missions involving Russian Ultranationalists. In the Singleplayer Campaign and Special Ops, this weapon is always seen with optics attached. It can be fitted with a regular Red Dot Sight, unlike in the Multiplayer (where the TAR-21 uses rail modular sights), the MARS Sight, Holographic Sight, and the ACOG and Thermal Scope.

Multiplayer
The TAR-21 is unlocked at Level 20 in Multiplayer. It equips 30 round magazines, dealing 40 damage at close and medium range, and 30 at long range (unsuppressed). Suppressed, the 40 damage only applies at close range. Therefore, without Stopping Power, it kills in 3-4 shots, unless shooting through cover or at enemies using Last Stand, Final Stand or Painkiller. Stopping Power reduces this to a 2-3 shot kill.

The TAR therefore is a very powerful weapon, as it also features a high rate of fire, of 750 rounds per minute. The high damage and rate of fire however is mitigated by its moderately high recoil while firing fully automatically. Therefore, the weapon is seen less used than powerful weapons such as the SCAR-H which has little recoil while firing full-auto.

The TAR-21's ironsights are very precise, but can be cluttered for many players, as the sights block a moderate portion of left-right viewing. The Red Dot Sight in multiplayer instead is a MARS Sight, which gives a slightly smaller, circular view instead of the regular RDS. It is often only used to unlock the Holographic Sight as it reflects light, which can sometimes make aiming difficult. However, using a MARS sight along with a Heartbeat Sensor is useful as while aiming down the sights, the full sensor is still viewable.

In Hardcore mode, the TAR-21 is capable of a one shot kill without Stopping Power, unless firing through cover or at a player using Last Stand, Final Stand or Painkiller. This makes it very useful when engaging several enemies at once, due to its high rate of fire. It does, however, lose ammunition quickly, therefore most players tend to use the SCAR-H or AK-47 for their slower RoFs help prevent wasted ammo.

Weapon Attachments

 * Grenade Launcher
 * Red Dot Sight (Only available in campaign)
 * MARS Sight (More common version of RDS, standard on multiplayer)
 * Silencer
 * ACOG Scope
 * FMJ
 * Shotgun
 * Holographic Sight
 * Heartbeat Sensor
 * Thermal Scope
 * Extended Magazines

Trivia

 * Despite its bullpup configuration, the TAR-21 (like the FAMAS, AUG HBAR, and WA2000) still uses the same third person reload animation as all other weapons.
 * The TAR-21 has a MARS Sight, however in Singleplayer and Spec Ops it can be found with the normal Red Dot Sight.
 * The empty reload animation is slightly different if the heartbeat sensor is attached.
 * The iron sights have the writings "Intensity Fire". This can be seen best when a grenade launcher is used while prone.
 * A TAR-21 with a regular Red Dot Sight can be found in the single player level "Museum".
 * When using the TAR-21 Holographic sight the camo choose is a different shade on the holographic than on the gun.
 * When viewed in third person with any attachment other than optics, the TAR-21 has no iron sights.
 * The pickup icon shows it with a MARS sight, regardless of whether it has one attached or not.
 * When spinning to the right on ten sensitivity, it is possible to see a gap in the render on the right side, similar to the M16A4.
 * When the MARS sight is used, the built-in rear sight is shown.

Video
400px

Video showing the effectiveness of the TAR-21

without the need for Stopping Power