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In this episode we're covering FMJ.

In Black Ops 2, FMJ acts to improve the penetration ability of your weapon - although this can be considered a major malfunction, as it's some distance removed from the real-life nature of FMJ.

FMJ is an initialism for 'Full Metal Jacket', referring to soft-core bullets encapsulated in a harder metal: usually lead with a cupro-nickel surround.

This is as a contrast to traditional bullets that were of an entirely lead construction, or modern variants such as soft-point or hollow-point, which have an exposed lead tip.

FMJ permits faster muzzle velocity without excessive lead fouling, and will protect against rifling damage with the use of armour-piercing rounds.

Most modern military ammunition is FMJ - so its depiction as a dedicated means of cutting through cover is inaccurate.

Armour-piercing rounds do exist, and this effect is normally achieved through the addition of a hardened penetrator - made of steel, tungsten or similarly tough material.

The majority of rounds fired are basic lead-core FMJ, however - Armour Piercing rounds are more likely to be used in larger calibres.

It's only with rounds such as the .50 BMG where penetration effects begin to prove particularly useful, and moreso with vehicle-mounted automatic cannons and tank main guns.

The A-10 Warthog, for instance, has a mighty 30mm cannon in the GAU-8 Avenger Autocannon.

Capable of firing up to 4,200 rounds per minute, with a depleted uranium penetrating core capable of shredding tank armour - such vehicle-mounted armaments are a far cry from your basic FMJ round.

In-game, FMJ is an attachment available for the assault rifles, SMGs, LMGs, sniper rifles, and the pistols.

It is absent for the special weapons, shotguns, and the launchers.

FMJ's effects are often misunderstood, thanks in part to the in-game statistics which indicate an increase in weapon damage.




FMJ does not, in fact, increase damage inflicted upon your enemy at all - your basic damage will remain the same.

What FMJ will do, however, is increase the effectiveness of your weapon when engaging targets behind cover.

In addition, it will boost your damage versus most scorestreaks - with the exception of turrets, you'll be able to take out enemy streaks with roughly half the number of shots than without the attachment.



Normally, you will see greatly reduced damage when shooting through surfaces: an enemy lurking behind such cover will be protected to some degree.

FMJ reduces this damage penalty, allowing your shots to more effectively cut through surfaces so they'll deal more damage to targets behind.

Given that, on occasion, your shots will strike a surface before your intended mark - FMJ will elevate the average damage you inflict upon your enemy, on a larger statistical scale.

In cases where you shoot your enemy directly, however, FMJ will grant no benefit.

In most gunfights you should aim to target the exposed portion of an enemy, instead of shooting through any cover in front of them - but should they flee into total cover, FMJ will assist in finishing off your injured quarry with penetrating blindfire.

FMJ is an attachment that suits automatic weapons with the capability to liberally spray through walls - high capacity and high rates of fire excel here.

LMGs are truly the paradigm class for the attachment - their output, combined with a high level of damage, will tear through most cover: pick 'em up and set 'em down.

The attachment is similarly useful on assault rifles - their mid-range ability and rifle-grade penetration born to kill through walls.

It's far less useful on lower damage weapons, or those with a slower rate of fire - it would be a waste of an attachment for most of the pistols, for instance.

Still, it is a universally beneficial attachment, and even on those weapons that benefit the least, there's a chance the elevated piercing power might secure a critical kill.

So show the enemy your war face, get some FMJ, and turn your enemy's cover...

...into mere concealment.