A damage multiplier is the number that the base damage of a weapon or attack is multiplied by to yield the actual damage. Although the values of the numbers have changed throughout the series, generally the head and neck increase damage, while hitting the limbs and hands will decrease damage.
Call of Duty and United Offensive
Call of Duty and its expansion pack United Offensive were unique in that its damage multipliers were shared by all weapons, while in later installments each damage multiplier was different for every weapon. The table below lists the damage multipliers from highest to lowest.
| Region | Multiplier |
|---|---|
| Helmet | 1.5 |
| Head | 1.5 |
| Neck | 1.5 |
| Upper torso | 0.9 |
| Lower torso | 0.8 |
| Upper arms/legs | 0.6 |
| Lower arms/legs | 0.5 |
| Hands/Feet | 0.4 |
| Gun | 0 |
Call of Duty 4, World at War, Modern Warfare 2, and Black Ops
In these games, multipliers were the same for all classes except for snipers and shotguns.
Assault Rifles, Submachine Guns, and Light Machine Guns
| Region | Multiplier |
|---|---|
| Head and Neck | 1.5x |
| Upper torso | 1.1x |
| Limbs | 1.0x |
| Lower torso | 1.0x |
| Gun | 0 |
Shotguns
Shotguns have no multipliers, so there will be no area on the body in which they will cause more damage.
Sniper Rifles
Snipers are unique as they have multipliers on the whole body rather than just the head/neck. In Modern Warfare 2 and Black Ops, all snipers have a base damage of 70 (unless silenced, in which it drops to 50).
Call of Duty 4
| Weapon | Region | Multiplier |
|---|---|---|
| M40A3 | Head and neck | 1.5x |
| M40A3 | Chest and abdomen | 1.1x |
| M40A3 | Limbs | 1.0x |
| M21 | Head and neck | 1.5x |
| M21 | Chest | 1.1x |
| M21 | Abdomen and limbs | 1.0x |
| Dragunov | Head, neck and chest | 1.5x |
| Dragunov | Abdomen and limbs | 1.0x |
| R700 | Head, neck and chest | 1.5x |
| R700 | Limbs and abdomen | 1.0x |
| Barrett .50cal | Head, neck, chest and abdomen | 1.5x |
| Barrett .50cal | Limbs | 1.0x |
Notes
- In the M40A3, the ACOG Scope will raise the base damage to 75. With Stopping Power, it can get a 1 Shot Kill to any part of the body.
- Stopping Power will not have any effect on the Dragunov, unless shooting through cover, in which case damage will be as high as if Deep Impact was selected.
- Any damage done to the limbs will have a 1.0x multiplier applied, as seen on the table above.
|}