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The subject of this article appeared in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. The subject of this article appeared in Call of Duty: Black Ops. The subject of this article appeared in Zombies mode The subject of this article appeared in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3. The subject of this article appears in Call of Duty Online The subject of this article appears in Call of Duty: Ghosts The subject of this article appears in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Remastered The subject of this article appears in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare (2019) The subject of this article appears in Call of Duty: Warzone The subject of this article appears in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 Campaign Remastered The subject of this article appears in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II The subject of this article appears in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III
For the Gun Perk in Infinite Warfare, see Master Key (gun perk).

The Shotgun, in some cases called Masterkey, is a weapon attachment featured in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, Call of Duty: Black Ops, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, Call of Duty Online, Call of Duty: Ghosts, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 Campaign Remastered, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III. It is also cut from Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Remastered. It is an underbarrel shotgun compatible with most in-game assault rifles, and is attached in a similar manner to the Grenade Launcher.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2[]

Campaign[]

The Shotgun is available in the campaign mission "Wolverines!" on a SCAR-H with a Red Dot Sight. It is also seen as the attachment for many Ultranationalist and Brazilian Militia weapons, such as the FAL and the AK-47. It can also appear on some of the SCAR-Hs that the Rangers use. It has a capacity of seven shells.

In Modern Warfare 2 Campaign Remastered, the attachment is identified as "Masterkey" in the HUD, and holds four shells like the multiplayer version of the original MW2.

Multiplayer[]

In Multiplayer, the underbarrel shotgun is unlocked for assault rifles by getting 20 kills with the Grenade Launcher.

The underbarrel shotgun has relatively low damage and long range compared to other shotguns. The underbarrel shotgun only fires six pellets per shot, tying the Striker and Ranger for the lowest pellets per shot of all shotguns. At any range short of 12.5 meters, the underbarrel shotgun will deal 25 damage per pellet, needing four pellets to kill. Damage decreases linearly until 43.5 meters where it ceases to do damage, giving the underbarrel Shotgun a remarkable range for weapons in its class, with all other shotguns having an absolute maximum damage range of 17.5 meters, less than half of the underbarrel's. However, despite the long range, the underbarrel shotgun struggles to net one shot kills, as it needs at least four pellets to hit to secure a kill, which becomes increasingly difficult as distance to the target increases. The underbarrel shotgun's kill potential is greatly enhanced when using Stopping Power. At any range short of 12.5 meters, the Shotgun will deal 35 damage per pellet, needing three pellets to kill.

The underbarrel shotgun has a low rate rate of 78 RPM. With such a slow rate of fire, users may not live long enough to fire a second shot if the first shot does not finish the job. This problem is exacerbated due to the underbarrel's lackluster accuracy, with no iron sights to speak of. The underbarrel shotgun's accuracy disadvantage lies in its hip-fire spread, which is equal to the size of the single Ranger. While not terrible, this hip-fire spread is a definite step down from other shotguns in terms of hip-fire accuracy. The large hip-fire spread ultimately holds the underbarrel shotgun back in spite of its long damage range, as the spread makes landing pellets rather luck-based. Steady Aim is highly recommended to tighten the hip-fire spread and make the Shotgun more consistent.

The underbarrel shotgun allows users to move at the same pace as the assault rifle it is attached to, meaning users will move at 95% of the base speed. The underbarrel shotgun reloads on a shell-by-shell basis, meaning that reloads are somewhat long. Tube capacity is just four shells leading to a small starting ammo loadout of only 12 shells total.

Overall, the underbarrel shotgun provides the benefit of theoretically freeing up the secondary weapon slot, as well as being the only shotgun that can be used in conjunction with One Man Army. However, the low damage per pellet, combined with low accuracy and a small pellet count, limit its potential in the absence of Stopping Power and Steady Aim, even in spite of the unusually long damage range.

Gallery[]

Call of Duty: Black Ops[]

The Masterkey shotgun is an available underbarrel attachment for most assault rifles in Call of Duty: Black Ops.

Campaign[]

The Masterkey is a rare attachment found in the singleplayer campaign. It can be found on the level "S.O.G.", mounted to the player's starting M16. In the same level, the Marines will occasionally drop an M14 with this attachment when killed. Before entering the rat tunnels in "Victor Charlie", it can be found on an AK-47, where it comes with a unique eight-shell magazine instead. It is also found on the second part of "Rebirth," on Hudson's Enfield, along with an Infrared Scope, a combination impossible in multiplayer. If the player searches around in the submarine base on "Redemption", they may find a Galil with the attachment.

Multiplayer[]

The Masterkey shotgun can be purchased for CoD Points logo BO1000. It is compatible with most assault rifles, with the exception of the G11.

The Masterkey has low damage per pellet. The Masterkey fires eight pellets per shot. At any range short of 7.5 meters, the Masterkey will deal thirty damage per pellet, needing four pellets to kill. Damage decreases linearly until 12.5 meters. At 12.5 meters, the Masterkey will deal ten damage per pellet, needing ten pellets to kill. The Masterkey ceases to do damage past 12.5 meters. The Masterkey's damage per shot is extremely similar to the SPAS-12 and HS-10, but the Masterkey has 2.5 meters less overall range than either of said shotguns. The Masterkey has low penetration power, rendering it incapable of doing anything notable through cover, and like other shotguns, there is no headshot bonus. In Hardcore game types, up to three pellets can be needed to kill an opponent, and the Masterkey has a one pellet kill range of 7.5 meters.

The Masterkey is pump action, and as such, its rate of fire is terrible, at 79 RPM. This is a good bit better than the Stakeout, but terrible overall.

The Masterkey's biggest statistical advantage as a shotgun is in accuracy. The Masterkey has the same hip-fire spread as the Stakeout when standing still, and the hip-fire spread doesn't expand with movement or firing. It's much more accurate than the semi-automatic shotguns, although the Stakeout's spread is tighter when aiming down the sight. The Masterkey has no recoil problems. The recoil per shot is mild, the centerspeed is more than large enough at 1400, and the fire rate is so slow that the centerspeed perfectly recenters the Masterkey between shots. The Masterkey lacks the ability to aim down the sight.

The Masterkey has good handling characteristics. When the Masterkey is deployed, users will move faster than normal, moving at 100% of the base movement speed, 5% higher than when the Masterkey is not actively in use and the assault rifle is being used instead. The Masterkey reloads shell-by-shell, which can be somewhat time consuming, but considering that the Masterkey only needs at most four rounds to load into the tube, reloads should not be a problem.

The Masterkey has a small capacity, of just four rounds total. The Masterkey allows users to have a starting ammo loadout of sixteen rounds. This is tied with the Stakeout for the smallest capacity among all shotguns, and even worse, the Masterkey is incapable of receiving extra ammo through Scavenger Pro. The only way to receive extra ammo for the Masterkey at all is to collect ammo from a fallen assault rifle that also has the Masterkey, and has ammunition in it. Still, despite the ammunition limitation, sixteen rounds is a solid starting ammo loadout for an attachment that serves as an extension of the assault rifle instead of being a standalone weapon.

The Masterkey is best used on assault rifles with poor close-quarters capabilities, such as the M16 and FN FAL, as the Masterkey will prove to be a noticeable improvement in close-quarters over simply firing said weapons. The Masterkey also can be an attractive choice merely as a means to have another source of ammo before the player scrounges for another weapon, so that if the user's assault rifle runs dry on ammo, the user isn't completely helpless, especially in close quarters.

The strength of the Masterkey compared to other shotguns is that the Masterkey user has an assault rifle to compensate for the Masterkey's complete inability to hit targets past 12.5 meters. The Masterkey user is much more versatile than the average shotgun user, as the average shotgun user has to either switch to a secondary weapon or retreat from any medium-long range engagements. Even if said shotgun user has a secondary weapon that can be used beyond the shotgun's effective reach, unless said shotgun user picked up a medium-long range weapon, that shotgun user will usually be badly outgunned, whereas a Masterkey user can simply switch back to the assault rifle and have a weapon that is very competent at medium-long range combat.

The Masterkey has two huge differences when equipped on the Commando. The Masterkey on the Commando has a starting ammo loadout of just twelve rounds instead of the usual sixteen, and the hip-fire spread of the Masterkey expands with movement and firing. These differences make the Masterkey on the Commando far inferior compared to using the Masterkey on any other assault rifle that can equip it. If the user wants to use the Masterkey on the Commando, the user should use the AK-47 instead, as it is virtually identical to the Commando in terms of stats, but the Masterkey when equipped on the AK-47 lacks those unique weaknesses the Masterkey on the Commando has.

It also frees up the player's secondary slot for the player to have a Launcher or Special, and in most cases it is almost as quick as switching to a handgun. The Masterkey should not be used with Warlord because it is a waste of a perk, as when equipping the Masterkey, a second attachment cannot be added. Steady Aim and Sleight of Hand will both affect the Masterkey's performance positively, and the Masterkey plays best on a class with either one of those perks. The Masterkey's shot spread with Steady Aim becomes tighter than the Stakeout's default shot spread when aiming down the sight, making the Masterkey extremely precise and accurate as far as shotguns go.

Zombies[]

It is available on the Pack-a-Punch version of the AUG, and seems to do relatively high damage, even when compared to the Stakeout. It sports increased damage and reloads two shells at a time. However, it starts to lose its ability to kill in one hit at about round 17.

Gallery[]

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3[]

Campaign[]

It can be found in the campaign level "Stronghold", attached to an AK-47. It is located near the window that Yuri and Price jump out of onto the bridge during their escape, when Yuri detonates the C4. It has limited use, as there is little shooting to do before they get in the jeep and drive off. It is also found earlier in the level, in the security office on one of the shelves to the right.

Multiplayer[]

The Shotgun attachment returns in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 multiplayer as a weapon attachment available exclusively for every Assault Rifle, and is unlocked at weapon level 20. The shotgun attachment appears to have been buffed and is now affected by perks and proficiencies. It is slightly less effective than an actual shotgun in combat, but it has become much more useful than its previous version especially when used with the Specialist Strike Package.

Survival Mode[]

The Shotgun attachment is available in Survival Mode for all Assault Rifles, and is unlocked at level 45 costing $1500. This attachment is extremely effective in Survival Mode as it can one hit kill enemies from commando troops wielding ACRs and below until round 19. It can allow for extra firepower when engaging enemies without switching weapons or to finish off enemies without wasting bullets. It is attached to the starting ACR with an ACOG Scope on the map Off Shore in Survival Mode.

Gallery[]

Call of Duty Online[]

The Shotgun attachment returns in Call of Duty Online.

Gallery[]

Call of Duty: Ghosts[]

For the standalone variant, see Bulldog.

"Under Barrel mounted, semi-auto shotgun that can be fired instantly with the lethal control."
— In-game description

The Shotgun attachment (referred to as MAUL in the game files) reappears in Call of Duty: Ghosts with a new model, and it is only available in multiplayer. Unlike previous incarnations, the Shotgun attachment can be equipped not only on assault rifles, but on LMGs as well (except for the Chain SAW).

The Shotgun attachment has very low damage but good range compared to the other shotguns. The Shotgun attachment only fires six pellets per shot, significantly reducing its per shot lethality compared to standalone shotguns. At any range short of 6.4 meters, the Shotgun will deal 34 damage per pellet, needing three of the six pellets in a single shot to kill. Damage linearly reduces until 12.8 meters. At 12.8 meters, the Shotgun attachment will deal a measly five damage per pellet, demanding twenty pellets need to hit to score a kill. As the Shotgun attachment can only fire six pellets in a single shot and it has a four round magazine, this means that 20 of the 24 pellets fired across the four shots need to hit an enemy to secure a kill at the extent of the Shotgun attachment's range. Past 12.8 meters, the Shotgun attachment will not do any damage. The Shotgun attachment has a three pellet kill range of 6.4 meters, a four pellet kill range of 8.4 meters, a five pellet kill range of 9.5 meters, and a six pellet kill range of 10.2 meters. After 10.2 meters, the Shotgun attachment is guaranteed to need more than one shot to kill an enemy at full health.

The Shotgun attachment has very poor one shot kill capability, and even in ideal situations, the user will need at least half the pellets in a shot to strike in order to instantly kill an opponent. Killing enemies in a single shot is not reliable with the Shotgun attachment. Like all other shotguns, the Shotgun attachment has low penetration power, making it bad at shooting through walls. Although the Shotgun attachment technically has the longest range of all the shotguns, it is extremely ineffective at the edge of its effective range.

The Shotgun attachment's rate of fire is excellent for a shotgun, in stark contrast to previous shotgun attachments. The Shotgun attachment is semi-automatic and fires up to 300 RPM. This is the second best fire rate among all shotguns, and ensures that follow-up shots, which will be commonly needed, will be delivered quickly.

The Shotgun attachment has great accuracy. Unlike previous shotgun attachments, users can aim down the sights with the Shotgun attachment, simply using the iron sights of the weapon it is mounted on. The Shotgun attachment's recoil is not very consequential due to the short range nature of the shotgun. The Shotgun attachment has the greatest hip-fire accuracy in its class, although its accuracy while aiming down the sight is poor. Still, aiming down the sights with the Shotgun attachment is more accurate than firing it from the hip.

The Shotgun attachment's handling characteristics are unremarkable. By and large, it will use the same handling characteristics as the weapon it is mounted do, except for the hip-fire spread. The Shotgun attachment reloads in a single magazine, but its reload speed is very slow. The Shotgun attachment's reload animation is 3.7 seconds long on assault rifles and 4.1 seconds long on LMGs. In either case, the user can Reload Cancel after 2.53 seconds. This reload speed is slow, and users need to ensure their safety before deciding to reload the Shotgun attachment. Thankfully, the user can always fall back to their usual weapon when in a pinch, so the user should be able to ensure a degree of safety when reloading.

The Shotgun attachment has the smallest magazine capacity of any shotgun in the game, holding just four shells per magazine. This results in an equally small starting ammo loadout of just twelve shells total. The small ammo loadout leaves the Shotgun attachment quite inadequate as a standalone weapon, as it will run out of ammo very quickly, especially given its semi-automatic and very low damage nature. Twelve rounds is more than enough ammo given its nature as a weapon to be used when in a pinch.

Although the Shotgun attachment can be paired with other attachments, other attachments - apart from optical attachments that change the iron sights - will not have any performance change on the Shotgun attachment. As such, it is not very important what the second attachment happens to be as it pertains to the Shotgun attachment.

Apart from its performance shortcomings, by far the Shotgun attachment's biggest weakness is that it is considered a lethal item. Not only will it take up the lethal slot and leave the user with no lethal equipment to use, but more importantly, it will consume a perk point, even if the user did not intend on using lethal equipment anyway. On top of consuming an attachment slot, the Shotgun attachment highly constrains class building as a whole due to its high cost of usage. As it is considered lethal equipment, users will also need to shoot the Shotgun attachment by using the lethal equipment button instead of the usual fire button, something that users may find to be highly unintuitive. However, since it is accessed by the lethal equipment button and instantly fires as soon as the lethal equipment button is pressed, users do not need to make a deliberate action to switch to the Shotgun attachment like in previous games, allowing a player with good reflexes to fire the shotgun very quickly in a pinch, and no longer forcing the player into the dilemma of having to determine when to switch to or away from the Shotgun attachment.

Overall, the Shotgun attachment is among the least popular attachments in Multiplayer. Although it can be useful in certain situations - especially on LMGs with poor close-quarters capabilities - the Shotgun attachment simply forces users to pass up on too many other items to justify using it, on top of the fact that it is awkward to use for many, and that it has several performance deficiencies that make it decidedly worse than standalone shotguns. As a result, it is very rare to see players using the Shotgun attachment in Multiplayer. Oftentimes, any and all usage of the Shotgun attachment in a Multiplayer match will come as a result of a player picking up a weapon from an Ammo Crate that just so happens to have the Shotgun attachment equipped.

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Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Remastered[]

Throwing Knife menu icon MW3
The subject matter of this article was cut from the final version of a Call of Duty game. Since some information cannot be independently verified, the content on this page may be subject to change.

The Shotgun was a planned attachment for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Remastered, with an untextured model available via modding. It is able to be equipped on assault rifles, and takes the appearance of the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 variant.

Gallery[]

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare[]

The Shotgun attachment appears in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare and Call of Duty: Warzone as the 12-Gauge Deputy. It is semi-automatic, and starts with 6 loaded shells, but ammunition can be picked up to fill the magazine to its full 8-round capacity.

Two different visual models are used for the attachment: one for the assault rifles available at the game's launch, manufactured by Corvus Defense, and one for the rifles added in post-release updates, manufactured by FORGE TAC.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II[]

"Breach and clear tight spaces with this 12 gauge under-barrel shotgun."
— Corvus Masterkey description
"Exert close quarters dominance with this dragon's breath loaded under-barrel shotgun."
— Corvus Torch description

The underbarrel shotgun returns as the Corvus Masterkey.

Campaign[]

The Corvus Masterkey can be found in some missions such as Kill or Capture, Violence and Timing and Dark Water, where it is attached to the M16.

Multiplayer[]

The Corvus Masterkey is available to assault rifles (excluding the Kastov-74u, the Chimera and the four bullpup assault rifles), to battle rifles (excluding the Lachmann-762 and SO-14), to the KV Broadside shotgun, and to the Tempus Torrent marksman rifle.

A variation called the Corvus Torch was added post-release, firing dragon's breath rounds. It is available to the aforementioned weapons, except the Tempus Torrent.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III[]

The shotgun reappears in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III as the Corvus Masterkey.

Trivia[]

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2[]

  • When a player switches to the Shotgun from the weapon which it is attached to, they pump it. However, when the player switches to the Shotgun from their secondary, they do not pump it.
  • If this attachment is used in conjunction with FMJ via Bling, both the assault rifle and the Shotgun are affected. If this attachment is used in conjunction with a silencer, the shotgun will behave as if it were suppressed as well, keeping the player off the minimap when firing.
  • Shotgun kills are counted as kills for the weapon to which it is attached and add to both the Marksman and Expert challenges. This trait also applies with the Grenade Launcher.
  • When equipped on the FAL, the Shotgun attachment gains infinite range. However, the damage remains unaffected, and will do marginal damage at far ranges, requiring multiple shots to kill an enemy.

Call of Duty: Black Ops[]

  • When wielding a Masterkey, the player will grasp the pump with the left hand, but the trigger is not touched.
  • The shots come out of the barrel of the gun it is equipped to instead of the attachment itself.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3[]

  • Oddly, in Modern Warfare 3, there is no killfeed icon for the shotgun. Kills with it show up as the gun it is attached to. The same applies to the Grenade Launcher.

Call of Duty: Ghosts[]

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare[]

  • When resupplying with the Munitions Box field upgrade or the Scavenger perk, the 12 Gauge Deputy reloads, but does not have a reload animation.

Notes[]

  1. Assault Rifles available at launch
  2. Assault Rifles released post-launch
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