Throwing Knife

The Throwing Knife is an available Equipment choice in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. When selecting the Throwing Knife in the equipment screen, players get only one knife; however the knife can be recovered after throwing it wherever it was thrown at. The Throwing Knife is a one-hit kill weapon regardless of where it hits or how far the target is (unless the player has the death streak Painkiller enabled).

When the player throws and misses their target, the throwing knife will most likely hit the ground or a wall; if it hits the ground, most of the time, it will ricochet and flip an extra several feet. The player will have to find and pick it up to use it again. If it hits the wall, the player can simply go up to it and pick it up. However, if a knife ricochets off a wall or the ground, it is still deadly and can kill. Players are also able to pick up knives that have been thrown by someone else.

Though sometimes considered something of a novelty, the Throwing Knife is particularly useful in several scenarios:
 * As a ranged, silent, one-hit kill for any class, useful either during infiltrations (in which using a "loud" weapon would give the player away) or when a standard knife attack would be difficult or impossible.
 * As a ranged option that does not consume ammunition for classes that do not have the Scavenger perk (Bling or Marathon classes, typically). For such classes, using the Throwing Knife liberally as an alternative to standard weapons allows the player to extend their useful lifespan well beyond what would be considered typical if they were using ammunition constantly.
 * As a counter for "witch" classes. (Marathon, Lightweight, and Commando) that can kill them in one hit outside their knife range (though this takes practice against such a maneuverable target)
 * As a ranged weapon for Riot Shield classes. (though this competes with Blast Shield, which is extraordinarily useful for Riot Shield classes when taking points in Domination, since Domination objectives tend to be showered with explosives)
 * As a method of quickly evening the odds in pitched gunfights: if a player is confronted suddenly with multiple opponents, a well-placed Throwing Knife can significantly reduce the odds against the player. This is not as difficult as it might seem: when opponents are bunched up and when the player is firing from the hip (particularly when using a shotgun) at close range, it becomes much easier to hit at least one opponent with a Throwing Knife, thus taking one opponent out of the fight instantly and giving the player excellent odds of finishing off their opponents.  Conversely, the Throwing Knife can be used instead of reloading to kill one last opponent, though this is a risky proposition: by delaying a reload thusly, the player runs the risk of missing the Throwing Knife and then being unable to reload in time to finish said opponent.
 * As a last-ditch weapon to use when all ammunition is exhausted.

The throwing knife is popular with stealth classes as it is silent, has no warning like grenades, and even if the player misses, there is a good chance the target doesn't notice (unless they see the knife whiz by or hear it ricochet off a wall). However, it has a very short range, as it rapidly descends towards the ground the farther it is thrown. Only at very close range will it throw perfectly straight. Thus, similar to the grenade launchers, at longer ranges it is necessary to aim above the target for the throw to be accurate.

In the single-player campaign, Soap throws a knife in a scripted event in Endgame. Players do not get to use Throwing Knives in any other mission.

Tips

 * The Throwing Knife can act as a usable ranged weapon when using the riot shield, throwing the knife exposes the player only for 1 second.
 * It is best to use the throwing knife with the Scavenger perk, as it takes a few seconds (which usually means life or death in a game) to pick it up. When you walk over a dead enemy the knife will be automatically picked up.
 * Even if a knife throw is a little bit too short, it can still bounce off a wall or object and kill. This is helpful in taking out enemies hiding behind Riot Shields, since flanking a shield user is difficult but knives to the feet kill.
 * The Throwing Knife has the same arc and range as the frag grenade. Players who have become accurate with grenades may be able to use the Throwing Knife more extensively.
 * Throwing knives will become stuck into a riot shield if the player manages to hit an enemy carrying one. It is possible to pick up your throwing knife when it is stuck into a riot shield.
 * Provided that the person using it is skilled enough it may be possible to kill a person using a riot shield with a throwing knife by ricocheting the knife off an object so it will bounce back at an angle so it will go behind the shield and kill the person using it.
 * If you are facing an enemy via hill, (you=top, them=bottom, or vice-versa) it is wise to use a Throwing Knife. If you are on top of the hill, the Throwing Knife with fly lower and closer towards your enemy. If you are on bottom they most likely won't see you throw it provided you aim at their legs.
 * If an enemy sniper is almost directly above you, one tactic would be to use the Throwing Knife, as it is quieter and faster than shooting. Shooting, if you miss, also gives away your position.
 * It is also the only thing you can use while climbing over an obstacle or up the ladder. This is very helpful if you, for example, climb up a ladder and there is an enemy facing you, so instead of finishing the climbing and getting your weapon out, you can throw the knife as soon as the enemy becomes visible. This actually also applies to all throwable equipment and special grenades.
 * The Throwing Knife can bounce off the ground and possibly kill enemies. This is wise on Riot Shield users and campers.

Trivia

 * The Throwing Knife can be blocked by knifing the Throwing Knife right before it hits you.
 * The Throwing Knife is modeled after the "Blackhawk Tatang." In fact, so are three knife modes in the game.(Tactical, Throwing and Standard)
 * The Infinity Ward logo can be seen on the side of the Throwing Knife. This is most easily seen with a sniper rifle.
 * On the Single-Player level Loose Ends three throwing knives are stuck into the wooden wall in the basement armory. They cannot be removed or used.
 * Sometimes, the Throwing Knife will not destroy a window it is thrown at but instead get stuck in the now damaged window. If you destroy the window, the Knife will be floating in the spot where it landed.
 * If it is thrown off a solid object it will leave a bullet hole.
 * On Infinity Ward's website the Throwing Knife was voted the favorite piece of equipment in Modern Warfare 2, likely for sheer novelty.
 * Interestingly enough, an EMP will stop a Throwing Knife dead in its tracks, which doesn't make much sense since EMPs only affect electronic devices.
 * Sometimes if a knife is thrown at an enemy's hands or feet while they are near a wall, they will be pinned and their body will dangle from the knife.
 * If online or on splitscreen and a player holds the throwing button it will put the player's hand behind their head in a comical position.
 * In real life, the maximum deadly range of a throwing knife is 50 feet in the hands of a professional. Beyond this range it will not kill.
 * You can also find a throwing knife in Team Player. However, you can't take it, mostly because it is blocked by tables and chairs.
 * Although it is possible to hit onesself with the throwing knife by bouncing it off of objects, it cannot kill the thrower.
 * If you throw a knife at someone using painkiller, and it doesn't kill them, you can see it sticking out of their body where you hit them.
 * Throwing a knife at a teammate will attach the knife to them, so you must go next to them to retrieve it.
 * The Throwing Knife will destroy a Sentry Gun with one throw, but throwing a grenade won't.
 * There is a glitch when using the throwing knife in 3rd person tactical. If your throwing knife hits a teammate their character will continue moving normally(on your screen), and they can still move their crosshairs and move, but on their screen their character will stay facing in the direction they were pointing when you hit them with the knife.