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The subject of this article appeared in Soap's Journal The subject of this article appeared in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. 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 Extinction mode The subject of this article appears in Call of Duty: Heroes The subject of this article appears in Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare The subject of this article appears in Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 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: Warzone 2 The subject of this article appears in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III The subject of this article appeared in Zombies mode The subject of this article appears in Call of Duty: Warzone Mobile
For other uses, see Shield.

The Riot Shield is a primary weapon available in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, Find Makarov, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, Call of Duty Online, Call of Duty: Ghosts, Call of Duty: Heroes, 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 also appears as a buildable in the Zombies mode of Call of Duty: Black Ops 4, and was cut from Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2[]

Usage[]

The shield will deflect all enemy bullets, but the impacts will leave large cracks across the front of the shield, until the game reloads the image (it could overload the game eventually if it does not do this). The shield also greatly reduces explosive damage if pointed in the right direction, enabling the player to survive grenades and Claymores with little trouble. In some ways, it makes Blast Shield unnecessary; however, any hostile Semtex that sticks to the user is lethal (therefore prompting the use of the equipment). In addition, it renders the user immune to the effect of Stun Grenades (in front), similar to Blast Shield, but not against Flashbangs. Players currently holding the Riot Shield cannot go prone, knife, or place a breaching charge.

Because of the way the shield is held, the player's right side tends to be more exposed than the left, and sprinting with the Riot Shield will shift it even more to the left. This vulnerability can be circumvented by running at an angle.

Campaign[]

The Riot Shield is used by various enemies in certain parts of the campaign. It's first appearance is in "No Russian" when the FSB arrive to counter Makarov's terrorist group. It is then featured in later missions with Russian heavy assault troops in "The Gulag" and Shadow Company soldiers in "Just Like Old Times".

Unlike players, all NPC enemies can wield a weapon (always a MP5K) and a Shield simultaneously. Enemies will either shoot the player or slowly creep their way towards him to melee the player with the Shield. If an enemy is killed while using a Riot Shield and firing a weapon simultaneously, the enemy will drop both the Riot Shield and the weapon.

Using flashbangs, as with all enemies, will cause Shield-wielding enemies to stumble, providing an opening to shoot or engage in melee combat. An interesting tactic is to equip a Riot Shield and melee just as the enemy attacks as it takes two hits to kill an enemy with the Shield. Fragmentation grenades or a Grenade Launcher are also effective weapons if aimed behind or next to the Shield. Another method, although not widely preferred, is continuously firing at an enemy's Shield until he wears down, he will then be open for a kill shot in the leg. Thermal sights are also effective, as forms a white rectangle with the areas exposed appearing around the edges. This tactic is particularly effective in "Just Like Old Times" as smoke grenades and conveniently placed weapons make it likely to already be equipped.

Multiplayer[]

Spawning with a Riot Shield as a primary weapon will slow down movement at all times. When looking at a player that has a Riot Shield equipped, they appear to have additional pads/armor on them as well as a helmet. The additional armor is purely cosmetic. This is likely the real reason behind the very slow movement of players using Riot Shields, as the effect does not disappear when the player drops the Riot Shield.

The Riot Shield does have a number of offensive capabilities, such as a melee attack, in which the player bashes an enemy with the shield, two of which (one in Hardcore) will kill an enemy. However, using this melee ability can expose the wielder to knife attacks. Bullets can also ricochet off the Riot Shield and kill enemies, which can be seen here. Deflecting enemy bullets with the shield will give a player bonus experience points, but the effect decreases over time to prevent abuse.

Unlike the enemies in the campaign, the player cannot use a weapon while wielding the shield. Switching to a secondary weapon places the shield on the wielder's back, which offers some limited protection. However, when engaging an enemy, switching from the Riot Shield to a secondary weapon takes a considerable amount of time and is one of the greatest risks of using Riot Shields.

It should also be noted that the Riot Shield can block gunfire from several killstreaks including the Harrier Strike, but the shield is useless against the Chopper Gunner and AC130 killstreaks. Although it protects against many things, it cannot protect the user against a falling Care Package. It can also protect a player from Predator Missile's direct impact. To do so, the player must switch to his or her secondary and lie down. The missile must hit exactly at the shield on the player's back, and the impact will still cause heavy damage.

Special Ops[]

The Riot Shield is prominently featured in Special Ops missions such as "Terminal" and "Breach & Clear".

Gallery[]

Achievement/Trophy[]

* Unnecessary Roughness (10 Gamerscore/ Bronze trophy Bronze Trophy PS3 icon) - Use a riot shield to beat down an enemy in single player or Spec Ops.

Find Makarov[]

A Riot Shield is used by John "Soap" MacTavish.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3[]

"The Riot Shield offers significant protection, deflecting attacks across a wide area."
Call of Duty ELITE

The Riot Shield was first seen in the Survival Mode trailer in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3.

Multiplayer[]

The Riot Shield appears in Multiplayer in a similar fashion to the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 variant in which it never breaks. It is unlocked from the start of Multiplayer. It can be equipped with either the Melee or Speed Proficiencies. Melee Proficiency is good if the player wants to kill enemy players faster, or when the first attack misses. When the Juggernaut Recon pointstreak is used, the player will be automatically granted a Riot Shield, a USP .45 and a Smoke Grenade. The shield also releases concussive like effect when striking an enemy, causing them to be temporarily stunned. In this stunned instant, they cannot use weapons, melee, or equipment, but can still be mobile at full speed. When in this state, it can be easily recognized that they are covering their eyes with their left forearm.

Survival Mode[]

The Riot Shield only breaks in Special Ops when it absorbs too much damage and can only be fixed by switching to another Riot Shield or buying a new one.[1] Bashing enemies with the Riot Shield is more effective than knifing them as it deals out more damage than the knife.

Juggernauts sometimes carry Riot Shields during later waves. There are two ways to make them drop it: when sufficient damage is inflicted, and when the player tosses a flashbang. When this happens, they will attack the player as a normal Juggernaut would. The dropped Riot Shield can be picked up, though it can take very low damage before it breaks.

Additionally, a group of friendly NPCs wielding Riot Shields can be called in to assist the player(s) for $5000.

Proficiencies[]

  • Melee - Unlocked at weapon level 5.
  • Speed - Unlocked at weapon level 10.

Soap's Tactics[]

Gallery[]

Call of Duty Online[]

The Riot Shield returns in Call of Duty Online.

Gallery[]

Call of Duty: Ghosts[]

The Riot Shield returns in Call of Duty: Ghosts.

Campaign[]

The Riot Shield is only available in the mission "End of the Line", where it is used by Federation soldiers.

Multiplayer[]

"Ballistic-Proof and explosive-resistant blunt shield weapon."
— In-game description

The Riot Shield can be selected as a primary weapon as with past Call of Duty games. It may now equip one attachment of the player's choice.

The Riot Shield differs from its predecessors in many ways.

  • The Shield is carried on the player's right side, not on the left as in earlier installments in the series. This means the right flank of the player is more easily exposed, unlike the left side like in the other games.
  • A player using the Shield no longer sticks their posterior out to either side of the shield when strafing, making them less vulnerable to head-on fully automatic fire.
  • It is easier to shoot a player using the Shield in the foot. It is possible to shoot a Shielder's toes even when they are crouching and angling their shield downwards. It is still difficult, however.

Prior to the February 20th patch, the Riot Shield behaved differently when throwing explosives. Rather than the third-person character briefly exposing themselves to throw something, as in previous games, it would be thrown around the side of the shield and the user would not be exposed to gunfire. The first person animation would show the shield being moved away, but bullets would continue to be blocked. This resulted in the 'Riot Shield-Danger Close-C4' class, where a player could crouch to block almost their entire body and throw C4 without worrying about being exposed to enemy fire while doing so. The update changed this mechanic back to the one used in previous games where the shield would be moved momentarily when throwing explosive equipment, allowing enemies to damage the player from the front. However, the throwing animation when using other equipment, such as the Throwing Knife, remains unchanged; in first person the shield will be moved as usual, but the third person model will only show the character's hand sticking out slightly to the side. As such, this tactic remains viable when using the Throwing Knife, albeit much more difficult and requiring a great deal more precision than with something like C4.

Attachments[]

Mod[]

Extinction[]

"Riot Shield with 10 shield health."
— In-game description

The Riot Shield appears in Extinction under the Equalizer category, labeled as Crowd Control. It costs $700, making it the cheapest Equalizer available. The Riot Shield has 10 health by default, and the current health of the Riot Shield will always be shown in the bottom left corner of the Heads-up display, just above the health and armor bars.

The Riot Shield is unique among Equalizers in that it has a passive effect, as the Riot Shield can block Crytpid attacks when stowed on the user's back. The Riot Shield is the only Equalizer that is active at all times as a result.

Because of the Riot Shield's passive effect and low cost, the Riot Shield is the best Equalizer option for those that do not wish to use Equalizers very much, as the Riot Shield will provide a passive benefit even if simply stowed on the user's back, something that other Equalizers do not provide. All other Equalizers must actively be committed to in their usage, and doing so with other Equalizers restricts the user's ability to access deployable items, and with the deployable turrets, even restricts movement. The Riot Shield also isn't terribly dependent on upgrades when used in this lesser role, as most of the upgrades for the Riot Shield simply improve the Riot Shield's standalone capabilities, which don't help when a user tends to keep the Riot Shield stowed on their back.

When held out, the Riot Shield can be used to bash the Cryptids. Successfully hitting a Cryptid decrements the health of the shield by one. Blocking a Cryptid attack will also decrement the Riot Shield's health by one point of health per attack blocked. The Riot Shield's health can be seen as the number of times the user can bash the Cryptids and/or the amount of times a Cryptid can attack the shield before the shield breaks.

When used as a standalone weapon, the Riot Shield is initially quite weak and unimpressive, as the user has a finite number of bashes before the Riot Shield breaks. On top of that, the Riot Shield is horrible as a standalone weapon when not upgraded, as it heavily slows down the user, the bash speed is very slow, and a successful bash locks the user in place until the shield recovers from its bash. A Riot Shield bash can successfully kill a Scout outright, even without upgrades.

Upgrading the Riot Shield not only improves its durability, but also improves the Riot Shield as a standalone weapon. The first two upgrades will both improve the Riot Shield's movement speed, with the first upgrade also upgrading the Riot Shield's total health. The third upgrade is extremely important for improving the Riot Shield's standalone practicality, as the melee speed of the Riot Shield is heavily increased and the health is increased to 20.

The final upgrade heavily improves the Riot Shield's standalone potential even more, as successful shield bashes will cast an incendiary effect on any Cryptids that survive a bash, and the shield health is increased even further to 25.

When fully upgraded, the Riot Shield is capable of adequately dealing with Scouts, Hunters, Scorpions, and even Rhinos. Hunters and Scorpions are brought down in two shield bashes. Rhinos struggle to do any damage to adept Riot Shield users, and the Riot Shield user can kill the Rhino outright with the Riot Shield, although it usually takes in excess of ten shield bashes to do so, meaning that the user will likely need upgrades to fully take on a Rhino.

As an Equalizer, the Riot Shield's biggest selling points are its very low cost, the passive effect of blocking hits from the rear when stowed, and the non-reliance on upgrades. These combine to make the Riot Shield a very lucrative and common option for those that don't want to use Equalizers, as the Riot Shield will still be able to do something without devoting a lot of time nor practice into its usage.

The Riot Shield has one Armory upgrade: Flaming stowed Riot Shield, costing 20 Teeth. This upgrade allows the Riot Shield to ignite Cryptids that hit the Riot Shield when stowed on the user's back, essentially replicating the level 4 upgrade to a degree. This upgrade is quite useful when the user mostly just stows the Riot Shield instead of actively using it.

Upgrades[]

  • Level 1 = Riot Shield with medium speed and 15 shield health.
  • Level 2 = Riot Shield with fast sprint and 15 shield health.
  • Level 3 = Fast Riot Shield melee with 20 shield health.
  • Level 4 = Fire melee with 25 shield health.

Gallery[]

Call of Duty: Heroes[]

It also appears in Call of Duty: Heroes, used by the Riot Shield Juggernaut.

Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare[]

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 Riot Shield was cut from Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare, with evidence of its existence found in the game files. It is possible that the Riot Shield was replaced by Merc's Bull charge ability.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 4[]

For a similar looking shield in Black Ops 4, see Ballistic Shield.

The Riot Shield appears as a buildable in the Zombies maps ClassifiedAlpha Omega, and Tag der Toten where it is crafted with 3 parts. Like the Ballistic Shield, it includes an automatic machine pistol that is very powerful against regular/enhanced zombies, hellhounds and crawlers, it's ammunition can be refilled by repairing the shield manually or getting a Max Ammo power-up.

Gallery[]

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare[]

"Ballistic-proof and explosive-resistant shield with increased melee damage."
— In-game description

The Riot Shield returns in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare.

Unlike previous iterations, the bulletproof glass will not have shattered cracks after blocking and ricocheting bullets. This change allows players to not be obstructed, but the glass itself appears more faded and less clear than before.

Blueprints[]

Blueprint Image Rarity How to Obtain
Backdraft Legendary Nikto: Firestarter Bundle
Bulwark Epic Multiplayer Mission Tag Team Tied Delights
Carapace Epic Dragon Turtle Bundle
Cheater’s Bane Epic Tracer Pack: Freedom Bundle
Deredere Epic Tracer Pack: Anime Super Bundle
Shogun Legendary Eternal Samurai Bundle

Gallery[]

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II & Modern Warfare III[]

"Ballistic-proof and explosive-resistant shield with increased melee damage."
— In-game description

The Riot Shield returns in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II.

The Riot Shield is also available in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III as part of the Modern Warfare II content carryover.

Overview[]

Campaign[]

The rogue Mexican Army uses riot shields in the mission Cartel Protection and Shadow Company soldiers use them in the mission Prison Break where they attempt to stop Task Force 141 from escaping.

Blueprints (Modern Warfare III)[]

Blueprint Image How to Obtain
Aegis Imperialis Aegis Imperialis Riot Shield Blueprint MWIII Tracer Pack: Warhammer 40,000 Space Marines Bundle

Trivia[]

Main article: Riot Shield/Trivia

References[]

  1. 402 on twitter: No sir. Once a riot shield is messed up, its messed up for good.
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