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The subject of this article appeared in Call of Duty: Black Ops. The subject of this article appeared in Call of Duty: Black Ops II. The subject of this article appeared in Call of Duty: Black Ops III. The subject of this article appears in Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 The subject of this article appears in Call of Duty: Mobile The subject of this article appears in Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War The subject of this article appeared in Zombies mode The subject of this article appears in Call of Duty: Vanguard This article was previously featured
For another variant, see Minigun.

The Death Machine is an obtainable machine gun in Call of Duty: Black Ops, Call of Duty: Black Ops II, Call of Duty: Black Ops III, Call of Duty: Black Ops 4, Call of Duty: Mobile, Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War and Call of Duty: Vanguard.

Call of Duty: Black Ops[]

Campaign[]

The Death Machine is obtainable in the mission "Vorkuta", where the player uses it to "Wield a Fist of Iron", "Raise Hell" and fight through the Soviet prison guards trying to prevent their escape. It is very effective at killing Riot Guards, requiring minimal body shots. The Death Machine has a maximum capacity of 999 rounds, so the player is unlikely to run out of ammo; however it can overheat, being able to fire a maximum of 134 rounds (6.7 seconds of fire) before overheating. Unlike its multiplayer counterpart, it occupies a normal weapon slot.

Multiplayer[]

The Death Machine, similarly to the Grim Reaper, can only be obtained in a Care Package and is kept in the player's inventory for as long as the match lasts. It will only become active upon firing the first shot. When the Death Machine is active, the announcer for both teams will announce the Death Machine's presence and show the playercard of the Death Machine user. Dying with the Death Machine while active will cause the Death Machine to be lost, as the Death Machine will not be carried over after the user respawns, even if there was ammo left in the Death Machine upon death. This is in stark contrast to how the Death Machine and War Machine work in Black Ops 2 Multiplayer. The Death Machine will also instantly be lost if the user switches to another weapon or killstreak while the Death Machine is active.

The Death Machine is an extremely high damage per bullet weapon. The Death Machine will deal eighty damage per bullet at all ranges, netting a two hit kill. A headshot will instantly kill an opponent at any range. This damage per bullet is incredible and one of the Death Machine's many strengths. The Death Machine also has high penetration power. In combination with the ludicrously high damage per bullet, the Death Machine can potentially get two hit kills through some walls. So long as the Death Machine deals over fifty damage per bullet through a surface, the Death Machine can get a two hit kill through some surfaces.

The Death Machine's rate of fire is extremely high, at 1200 RPM. Only certain SMGs using Rapid Fire can surpass this standalone rate of fire. The Death Machine combines excellent damage per bullet and infinite range with a fantastic rate of fire. The Death Machine is extremely quick to kill opponents as a result.

The Death Machine's accuracy is solid. There are no iron sights to speak of, as aiming the Death Machine will simply spool up the gun. The user has a unique aiming reticle that indicates the user's point of aim. This reticle is absent in Hardcore game types, so users will have to get a feel for where their exact point of aim is. The Death Machine's recoil per shot is very soft, with recoil values of 40 in all directions. Not only is the recoil per shot small, but the recoil profile is completely self-centering. Dampening the Death Machine's accuracy is a centerspeed of 1500. While not a horrible value on its own, it's not nearly large enough for a weapon firing at 1200 RPM. As such, the Death Machine can softly drift off of target at times, although the self-centering recoil profile means that this will not happen frequently. Despite not having a true aim down sight function, the Death Machine is perfectly capable of being used at long range, but the lack of magnification when spooled up makes it harder for users to identify distant targets and focus on them.

The Death Machine is unique in that it has a delay before it can fire a bullet, since it must be spooled up. It takes 250 milliseconds to spool up the Death Machine. There are two ways to spool up the Death Machine:

1. The user aims down the sight, like they would with other weapons. This will spool up the Death Machine, but will slow the user down to the Death Machine's strafing speed. The Death Machine will spool down when the user ceases to hold the aim down sight button and the Death Machine is not firing. This method allows the user to spool up the Death Machine without immediately firing it. When firing the Death Machine when spooled up in this manner, releasing the aim down sight button while firing will not spool down the Death Machine, although the Death Machine will spool down as soon as the user stops firing. Releasing the aim down sight button while firing removes the main downside of this spool up option, and as such, is the preferred method to spool up the Death Machine.

2. The user fires, like they would hip-fire with other weapons. This will spool up the Death Machine, and when the spool up process is complete, the Death Machine is immediately fired. When spooled up in this manner, the user can still move at the base movement speed instead of the much slower strafe speed that option 1 restricts users to. The downside to spooling up the Death Machine like this is that the Death Machine will spool down as soon as the user stops firing. This option is often used when the user is caught off-guard by an enemy and needs to fire immediately.

The Death Machine has odd handling characteristics. The Death Machine allows users to move at 100% of the base speed, but only strafe at 40% of the base speed. The Death Machine is extremely restrictive in terms of movement, as the Death Machine does not allow users to sprint, go into prone, or Dive to Prone. The Death Machine takes 250 milliseconds to spool up. The Death Machine has perfect hip-fire accuracy with no shot spread whatsoever. The Death Machine never has to reload.

The Death Machine has 499 rounds in it when the user first receives it. The Death Machine has no reserve ammunition, meaning users never have to reload. 499 rounds is a ton of ammunition, and it is almost a certainty that the player will die before all 499 rounds are used up. This ammo pool is huge, and it allows the Death Machine to put down tremendous amounts of suppressing fire. Users can make use of it to repel enemies from the user's position. As the player has so much ammo, users should not be concerned with ammo management when using the Death Machine, and should instead concerned with keeping themselves alive as much as possible. Even when firing at 1200 RPM, it takes an absurdly long amount of time to use up the 499 rounds the user has on tap.

Several perks will not be of help to the user when using the Death Machine. Hardline is useless since the Death Machine's kills do not contribute to the user's killstreak, and can only contribute to the user's killstreak indirectly, such as by causing a barrel, car, or enemy Claymore to explode. Steady Aim is almost completely useless since the Death Machine has perfect hip-fire accuracy, and the Pro version isn't much better since the Death Machine user can't sprint, thus nullifying the sprint-out advantage Steady Aim Provides. Sleight of Hand is useless, as the Death Machine cannot reload, and the Pro version will not speed up the Death Machine's spool up process. The base version of Warlord is useless as the Death Machine does not have access to any attachments. Marathon is completely useless, as the Death Machine user cannot sprint at all. Users should try to use a class that has none of these perks in use to get the most out of the Death Machine.

Despite it being obtained in Care Packages, along with the Grim Reaper, the chances of obtaining either killstreak are some of the lowest values in the game, being obtained very rarely.

Zombies[]

VoiceSymbolQuotation Death Machine Theme QuotationReverse

Powerup death machine

Death Machine Power Up (Zombies)

Death-Machine-zombies-icon

The Death Machine can be found in the Zombies maps "Five", Ascension, Dead Ops Arcade, Call of the Dead and Moon as a power-up. In power-up form, it appears as a three-dimensional model of the icon for the Rapid Fire attachment. It is easily identifiable, casting a blue glow instead of the usual green.

The Death Machine lasts for 30 seconds with unlimited ammo, and firing it constantly will not affect its duration. Only the player who picks it up gets to use it, with the exception of the completion of the Casimir Mechanism and Cryogenic Slumber Party Easter eggs.

Unlike in Multiplayer, using the ADS button to spin up the Death Machine does not decrease the user's movement speed. It does a great amount of damage to Zombies at early to medium rounds as well as the Pentagon Thief, who is able to steal it from the player. It cannot be Pack-a-Punched.

While equipped, the player cannot switch to other weapons, sprint, go prone, buy guns or Perk-a-Colas, or revive teammates, meaning the player should avoid picking it up if it is not needed. The player can still repair barriers, open doors/clear debris and use the knife. When the power-up is about to expire, a low ammo quote will be heard and the icon will start flashing.

The Death Machine also appears in Dead Ops Arcade as a pick-up. Once the player gets it, the player is able to use it for several seconds or until its ammo runs out. The player that is awarded with "The Fate of Firepower" will be granted a permanent Death Machine that replaces their default M60.

Additionally, on Ascension, the Death Machine can be obtained by all players at the same time, for a total of 90 seconds, when the Casimir Mechanism Easter egg is completed. Also, it can be wielded for 90 seconds on Moon if one complete the Cryogenic Slumber Party.

It also drops when George A. Romero is killed, unless the player has completed the Original Characters Trapped Easter egg, where the Wunderwaffe DG-2 will be dropped. Note that the Death Machine takes about three seconds to draw before being able to fire, and this leaves the player vulnerable. In all maps that have the Death Machine, it should be noted that it loses its effectiveness around round 40. Even in the upper 20's and 30's, it starts losing its power. In this instance, one should only get it as a last resort.

Gallery[]

Call of Duty: Black Ops II[]

The Death Machine in Call of Duty: Black Ops II is a new "future" model, while the Call of Duty: Black Ops Death Machine model appears as the Minigun. The Death Machine gun model is also used on the Call of Duty: Black Ops II Sentry Gun. Players also have the ability to sprint with this weapon.

Campaign[]

"High capacity, multi-barreled Gatling gun with an extremely high rate of fire."
— Description

The Death Machine is available in singleplayer for the loadout selection once the player has completed at least five challenges on "Judgment Day". It has 999 bullets, and does not overheat, unlike the campaign version of its Black Ops counterpart. However, the Death Machine's ammunition can only be replenished via ammo boxes.

Unlike the Minigun, the player can sprint while holding the Death Machine. Both versions lack sights, but the Death Machine has a small amount of zoom when the aim button is used and doing this also spins the barrels; however, as a downside, the movement speed is reduced when using the aim button, unlike the Minigun.

Multiplayer[]

"Your own personal handheld Minigun."
— Description

The Death Machine returns in Black Ops 2, but can be earned as a scorestreak instead of needing to be acquired through a Care Package. The Death Machine is still attainable from a Care Package.

The Death Machine has one significant difference in Black Ops 2 compared to Black Ops 1: the Death Machine does not expire until all ammo is consumed from its ammo loadout. This is in stark contrast to the Death Machine in Black Ops 1, which can be lost if the user discards it or dies while holding it well before the weapon is out of ammo. This means that the user can keep the Death Machine across multiple lives after having fired the first shot, making it a lot less punishing and less of a dedicated commitment to use.

The Death Machine's damage is decent. At any range short of fifteen meters, the Death Machine will deal 35 damage per bullet, needing three shots to kill. At ranges between fifteen and thirty meters, the Death Machine will decline to 30 damage per bullet, needing four shots to kill. Between thirty meters and 62.5 meters, the Death Machine's damage will decline from 30 damage per bullet to 20 damage per bullet, needing five shots to kill, or two shots in Hardcore. The Death Machine has a three shot kill range of eighteen meters, and a four shot kill range of 46 meters. The Death Machine deals 40% extra damage on shots to the head and neck of a target. The extra damage conferred from a headshot is rarely significant in terms of making the Death Machine kill more quickly at short or long range, but it can be significant at medium ranges. The Death Machine has high penetration power, allowing it to shoot through obstructions with ease. Unlike in Black Ops 1, the Death Machine in Black Ops 2 has difficulty with ranged combat, as its damage will lag behind most longer-ranged weaponry.

The Death Machine's rate of fire is extremely high. The Death Machine fires at a rate of 1666 RPM. This is faster than any unmodified primary or secondary weapon in the game. This incredibly fast rate of fire makes the Death Machine extremely fast to kill, especially at closer ranges where the Death Machine's damage is better. The fast fire rate also makes the Death Machine an extremely forgiving weapon to use, as poor aim can very quickly be compensated for.

The Death Machine's accuracy is unusual to gauge. The Death Machine has no iron sights to speak of, as aiming down the sight simply tightens the spread, a similar aiming mechanism to the Chain SAW. The user would use the hip-fire spread indicator to aim the gun, something that is absent in Hardcore game types, leaving the user without a true point of aim in said game modes. The Death Machine's recoil is fairly small. The Death Machine has recoil values of 50 to the left, 50 to the right, 40 upwards, and 20 downwards. The Death Machine's vertical recoil is very small, and instead the user will mostly be dealing with horizontal recoil. The Death Machine has an excellent centerspeed of 1700. Even though the Death Machine fires extremely quickly, recoil will not be a significant damper on accuracy most of the time. The far more concerning aspect of the Death Machine's accuracy is its hip-fire spread and shot spread while aiming. The Death Machine's hip-fire spread is very tight, but the spread when aiming down the sight of the Death Machine is not much tighter. When spun up aiming, the Death Machine will have a very tight spread, but an imprecise spread all the same. Even if the user's aim is true, the innate shot spread of the Death Machine means that the user can very easily miss at longer ranges through no fault of their own. The Death Machine also has a low zoom level when aiming, on par with the handguns. This retains a large amount of peripheral vision when aiming, but it can cause targets at range to be tougher to track, spot, and see.

Much like with the Death Machine in Black Ops 1, the Death Machine in Black Ops 2 needs to be spun up before it can be fired, and this is one of the weapon's most significant limitations. The spin up takes 100 milliseconds to perform. Much like in Black Ops 1, the Death Machine needs to be spun up manually via the aim down sight function to be spun up without firing. Attempting to fire will automatically spin up the gun if it is not currently spun up, and then it will fire. While firing, the user can loosen the aim down sight button and the Death Machine will resume firing. Unlike in Black Ops 1, there is a significant difference in shot spread between strafing while spun up and walking while spun up. As such, the user will more commonly make use of the manual spin up even when in the midst of firing.

The Death Machine's handling is abysmal, like in Black Ops 1. The user moves at 90% of the base movement speed, or strafe at just 48% of the base movement speed. Despite the fact that the user only moves 10% slower than normal, the Death Machine's sprint duration is 20% shorter than normal, causing the Death Machine holder to be incredibly slow when moving over long distances. Because the Death Machine can be holstered with no penalty, the user should try to only switch to the Death Machine when it is known that the user is close to the enemy. Rollouts should be avoided as much as possible with the Death Machine.

The Death Machine holds 200 rounds of ammo. Additional ammo cannot be acquired in any way, apart from simply acquiring a new Death Machine that has its own set of ammo later on.

Overall, the Death Machine in Black Ops 2 is a lot more user-friendly than it is in Black Ops 1, especially as it pertains to acquiring the scorestreak in the first place, dying while holding the weapon, and allowing the user to holster the Death Machine in moments where mobility is required. However, the increased user-friendly experience comes at the cost of upside. The Death Machine in Black Ops 2 is much less effective on a per-bullet basis compared to the Black Ops 1 Death Machine, having far worse damage (especially at range) and inferior accuracy to its older counterpart, while also having less than half the total bullets of the old Death Machine. The Death Machine's potential is still very grand in this game, as it kills extremely quickly up close, and its increased ease of acquisition, in addition to it being a far less punishing weapon in general, make the Death Machine a much more common sight than it was in Black Ops 1.

Zombies[]

The Death Machine makes an appearance in the Zombies map Mob of the Dead. It starts with a 150-round magazine and 300 in reserve. It is only available in the Mystery Box. It is very powerful due to its very high rate of fire and magazine size, but the player is incredibly slow while holding it. In addition, it has an extremely slow reload speed similar to that of light machine guns.

It is advised to use it when stationary and a relatively safe distance away from zombies, as the player can run only slightly faster than them. Double Tap II Root Beer can make the Death Machine even more powerful for this purpose due to the increased damage and rate of fire, although the player should be aware of the increased ammo consumption.

Speed Cola is highly recommended to shorten the reload, and Electric Cherry can help protect the player whilst doing it. As the player cannot aim down the sights whilst using it and it already has very high hipfire accuracy, Deadshot Daiquiri is effectively redundant.

When Pack-a-Punched via the Pack-a-Punch Machine, it becomes the Meat Grinder. It holds 550 rounds with 550 in reserve, and gains increased movement and reload speeds. The reloading time is shortened by three seconds. As only one belt is available in reserve, it is highly recommended to exhaust all rounds in the main belt, and finish reloading when picking up Max Ammos.

Death Machine vs Meat Grinder[]

Death Machine Meat Grinder
Death Machine BOII Meat Grinder MoTD BO2
Damage 220-150 350
Fire mode Automatic Automatic
Rate of fire 1200 RPM 1200 RPM
Magazine size 150 550
Max ammo 300+150 550+550
Extras More ammo, larger belt size, faster running speed and reload, higher damage, no damage dropoff


Gallery[]

Call of Duty: Black Ops III[]

Campaign[]

The Death Machine appears in the level "Lotus Towers", where it can be picked up and used to take down the Leviathan. A mounted turret version is also available for use in the mission "Rise & Fall".

Nightmares[]

The Death Machine can be obtained from the Magic Box as well as in the mission Lotus Towers, but it's very rare to obtain from the Magic Box.

Zombies[]

The Death Machine appears as a power-up in Dead Ops Arcade 2: Cyber's Avengening. Much like the original Dead Ops Arcade, the Death Machine is a very strong weapon and is able to clear large amounts of zombies easily.

As of February 1st, 2016, the Death Machine can be obtained via Death Machine power-up in all Zombies maps. The power-up appears with a blue glow, unlike most power-ups. Much like in the original Black Ops game, the player can use a Death Machine for 30 seconds with unlimited ammunition when acquiring the power-up, but without the ability to interact with most objects on the map or other players (such as repairing barricades or reviving downed players). It appears to have a percentage based damage number, as it is able to kill a zombie with two headshots or just a few bodyshots even on very high (70+) rounds. Much like the Black Ops II version, players can sprint while wielding the Death Machine, although at a very slow pace. Unlike previous games, pressing the aim down sight button does not spool up the Death Machine to ready up for firing, although the spin-up time is low. Additionally, when pressing the weapon switch button, the Death Machine will be stowed away, allowing players to use their normal weapons again. However, this will also cancel the power-up's remaining usage time.

Gallery[]

Call of Duty: Black Ops 4[]

"Adopted by Dempsey with love and affection from a Group 935 armory, the Overkill mini-gun can chop meat and cut daisies with the greatest of ease."
— Description

The Death Machine, now called the Overkill, is available in the Zombies mode of Black Ops 4 as a Specialist Weapon for the Aether story maps. It is the default Special Weapon for the Devil Dog class.

At level one, Overkill acts exactly the same as the Death Machine in previous games with the added ability to fire through walls and ignoring armor, while reducing movement speed. However, unlike in most other games, the weapon can overheat after prolonged firing, and will fire in short bursts if not stopped. Level two adds a Grenade Launcher attached to the rail with a large blast radius. Level three outfits the gun with the ability to change it into Tactical Nuke, allowing the player to throw the weapon to turn it into a makeshift Nuke, killing zombies instantly and leaving more powerful ones heavily damaged, at the cost of the remaining charge of the weapon.

Gallery[]

Call of Duty: Mobile[]

"A handheld minigun that slowly increases accuracy over time. Press and hold the fire button continuously to increase the firing speed."
— Description

The Death Machine returns in Call of Duty: Mobile as an Operator Skill.

Multiplayer[]

It resembles the version from Call of Duty: Black Ops II. It does very high damage to XS1 Goliath scorestreak, killing them in only a few shots. However, this version has a smaller belt size of 120 rounds. Previously, it also had a much slower fire rate, around 700 RPM; however since Season 13, its rate of fire increases gradually during firing.

Battle Royale[]

In Battle Royale, the Death Machine is only available as a mounted weapon on the Antelope A20 vehicle. It functions similarly to the Multiplayer version, but with lower accuracy and fire rate. It has unlimited ammunition, but can overheat.

Zombies Classic[]

The Death Machine is available in Zombies Classic as a power-up. It has unlimited ammunition, but only lasts for 15 seconds compared to previous iterations.

Undead Siege[]

The Death Machine appears in Undead Siege. It is one of the three special weapons available, the others being the War Machine and XS1 Goliath. Each player can buy it for a maximum of 3 times in the whole game. It deals heavy damage to the zombies, especially if the player aims for the head, but merely lasts for 15 seconds like its Zombies Classic counterpart.

Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War[]

"Deadly machine gun with high damage rounds that suppress enemies in the line of fire."
— In-game description

The Death Machine returns in Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War.

Campaign[]

The weapon is usable in the campaign mission "The Final Countdown" where it is named the M134 Minigun.

Multiplayer[]

The Death Machine was added to multiplayer as a Scorestreak, as part of the Season Two update. Caution should be taken while using the Death Machine as the limited ammo supply of 200 rounds is depleted extremely quickly. Even a single trigger pull lasting a full second can drain nearly half the ammo capacity of the weapon. This extremely high rapid ammo consumption is to balance out the raw damage compared to previous Death Machines, which is now much higher in the Cold War take on the weapon.

Zombies[]

The Death Machine appears in Dead Ops Arcade 3: Rise of the Mamaback as a power-up, reusing its Call of Duty: Black Ops III model.

The weapon would later be added to the roster of Support tools within the Mystery Box pool and the Crafting Table as part of the Season Three update, where it would retain its Multiplayer design and devastating firepower, being capable of killing normal zombies in a single shot. Crafting a Death Machine requires 100 High-End Salvage.

Gallery[]

Call of Duty: Vanguard[]

"Equips a machine gun with explosive rounds and a fixed number of bullets. Persists through death until ammo is depleted."
— In-game description

The Deathmachine returns in Call of Duty: Vanguard as a Killstreak. Unlike past games, this depiction takes the form of a non-rotary machine gun loaded with explosive rounds.

Zombies[]

The Deathmachine was added to Zombies during the Season One Reloaded update along with the Warmachine for purchase with Salvage in the Crafting Table.

Videos[]

Trivia[]

Call of Duty: Black Ops[]

  • In Call of the Dead, the player can still fire the Death Machine on the zipline, and unlike its multiplayer counterpart, it does not disappear after the player lands.
  • The Death Machine has the word "Sparky" written on its underside.
  • Just behind the front grip there is a plate with writing on it. It reads "AIRCRAFT MACHINE GUN 7.62MM GAU-2B/A", along with some other writing.
    • GAU-2B/A is the United States Air Force designation name for the M134 Minigun.
  • There is an unusable Death Machine located on some shelves in the weapons lab along with an unusable Ray GunThundergun, and Winter's Howl in the weapons lab on "Five".
  • Obtaining Double Tap Root Beer will increase the Death Machine's rate of fire.
  • In Zombies, while it does operate on a timer, it does not have unlimited ammo. It has 999 ammo, but this is hidden from the player normally. A low ammo quote will be said by the player if one shoots the minigun and does not stop at all for the entire duration of the power up's timer.
  • The player wielding the Death Machine can still knife in Zombies.
  • The Death Machine is incorrectly stated to have 1000 rounds in campaign in the official guidebook for Black Ops. It also classifies the weapon as a WMD.

Call of Duty: Black Ops II[]

  • The Scorestreak menu icon for the Death Machine is mirrored. 
  • On the left side of the Death Machine, it reads: Peacemaker V-32 Date: 04 02 013 Serial: 0877181212 Code: SFW. The numbers are difficult to see because of their size.
  • In Mob of the Dead, sprinting with the Death Machine is about as fast as the speed of a zombie past round 10. Upgrading the Death Machine will allow the player to move faster.
  • The spooling-up sound is different between the XBOX 360 and Playstation 3 versions of the game.
  • The Death Machine being unlocked in the level "Judgement Day" is a direct reference to Terminator 2: Judgement Day, in a scene where the T-800 fires upon a squadron of police officers at the Cyberdyne building from a window, using a M134 Minigun.
  • When using a Death Machine in multiplayer, the player can't pick up Scavenger bags to resupply other weapons or grenades.
  • If players use other manually-controlled scorestreaks like Hellstorm when holding a Death Machine, then get enough points for another Death Machine with that scorestreak, the original one's ammo will be refilled.
    • Because the new Death Machine has overwritten the old one players are using.
    • This won't happen if the first Death Machine is taken from a Care Package, as Care Package scorestreaks are placed at different slots.
  • There are rails mounted on the Death Machine to fit optical sights, although the weapon is hip-fire only.

Call of Duty: Ghosts[]

Call of Duty: Black Ops III[]

  • Similiarly to Black Ops 1's Death Machine, this one also has 999 rounds that are hidden from the player. However, the player no longer says a low ammo quote when firing, and the player can reveal the Death Machine's true ammo count on the PC version with the official modding tools.
  • In the Campaign and Nightmares mission "Lotus Towers", the pick-up text for the ones found during the fight with the Mothership refers to it as the "Minigun".

Call of Duty: Mobile[]

  • The Death Machine was called "Scythe" when announced. [2]

Call of Duty: Vanguard[]

  • During the Champion Hill Alpha, the Deathmachine was called Frankengun.

References[]

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