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Campaign Progression & Cyber Cores

While Call of Duty: Black Ops III is primarily a first-person shooter, its single-player campaign integrates robust progression and customization systems that allow players to tailor their combat experience. Unlike traditional RPGs with complex skill trees or resource management, Black Ops III focuses on earning experience, unlocking powerful Cyber Core abilities, and extensively customizing weapon loadouts through gameplay. This guide will delve into these systems, providing actionable advice to maximize your effectiveness in the futuristic battlefields of 2065.

1. Cyber Cores: Augmenting Your Abilities

Cyber Cores are the cornerstone of character enhancement in the Black Ops III campaign. These advanced cybernetic implants grant your protagonist, You Character (PC), access to a wide array of tactical and combat-oriented abilities. As you progress through the narrative and earn Experience Points (XP), you'll accumulate Fabrication Kits, the primary currency for unlocking and upgrading these crucial enhancements. There are three distinct Cyber Core trees, each catering to a different playstyle:

1.1. Control Cyber Core: Master of the Battlefield

The Control Cyber Core focuses on manipulating enemy technology and the environment, turning the tide of battle through strategic disruption and infiltration. This core is ideal for players who prefer a tactical approach, stealth, or disarming threats from a distance.

• Remote Hijack:
  • Description: Allows you to remotely take control of enemy robots (e.g., P.A.W.N.S, R.A.P.S. units, G.I.U.s) and automated turrets. Once hijacked, these units fight alongside you for a limited duration or until destroyed.
  • Upgrades: Increase duration of control, reduce cooldown, allow hijacking of heavier units (e.g., Cerberus tanks).
  • Strategy: Essential for bypassing heavily fortified areas without direct engagement. Hijack a G.I.U. to draw fire and clear a path, or turn an enemy turret against its former allies. Particularly useful in missions like "Provocation" against numerous robotic defenders.
  • Common Pitfall: Don't hijack units in plain sight if you're trying to maintain stealth; the act of hijacking itself can alert nearby enemies.
• Protocol Override:
  • Description: Overloads the cybernetics of humanoid robotic enemies and augmented soldiers, causing them to malfunction, explode, or become temporarily stunned and vulnerable.
  • Upgrades: Increase damage radius, extend stun duration, allow chain reactions between affected enemies.
  • Strategy: Highly effective against groups of robotic enemies, especially in tight corridors. Use it to clear out rooms quickly or to disable powerful augmented soldiers like the Warlords in "Demon Within."
  • Recommended Loadout: Pairs well with precision weapons like sniper rifles or pistols to quickly dispatch stunned targets.
• Adaptive Invisibility:
  • Description: Renders your character temporarily invisible to most enemies, allowing for stealthy approaches, flanking maneuvers, or repositioning during intense firefights.
  • Upgrades: Increase invisibility duration, reduce energy cost, allow for silent takedowns while invisible.
  • Strategy: Crucial for stealth-focused missions or sections where you need to bypass heavy enemy patrols without detection. Also excellent for escaping overwhelming odds or getting behind entrenched enemies. Combine with melee takedowns for silent eliminations.
  • Location Highlight: In "Rise and Fall," Adaptive Invisibility can help you navigate the flooded sections without alerting the numerous enemy patrols.
• Chaos:
  • Description: Overloads the sensory systems of organic enemies, causing them to become disoriented and attack each other indiscriminately for a short period.
  • Upgrades: Increase duration, expand radius, cause affected enemies to explode upon death.
  • Strategy: A powerful crowd-control ability. Use it when facing large groups of human or augmented enemies to create diversions and thin their numbers without expending your own ammunition. Particularly effective in open areas where enemies are spread out.
  • Boss Weakness: While not a direct boss weakness, using Chaos on surrounding fodder enemies can distract them, allowing you to focus fire on more dangerous targets.

1.2. Martial Cyber Core: Unleash Your Inner Warrior

The Martial Cyber Core enhances your physical capabilities and combat prowess, making you a formidable force in direct engagements. This core is designed for aggressive players who prefer to get up close and personal, or who need to quickly traverse the battlefield.

• Unstoppable Force:
  • Description: Dash forward with immense speed and force, knocking down and damaging enemies in your path. Can be used to close distances rapidly or escape danger.
  • Upgrades: Increase dash distance, enhance damage, allow for multiple charges.
  • Strategy: Excellent for breaching enemy lines, quickly moving between cover, or executing a devastating melee attack after a dash. Can also be used to interrupt enemy attacks or clear out light infantry.
  • Actionable Advice: Use it to quickly close the gap on snipers or heavy weapon specialists who are dug in.
• Overdrive:
  • Description: Temporarily increases your movement speed, weapon handling (aim down sight speed, reload speed), and melee attack speed.
  • Upgrades: Extend duration, further boost speed and handling, reduce cooldown.
  • Strategy: Ideal for aggressive pushes, flanking maneuvers, or quickly repositioning during intense firefights. Combine with SMGs or shotguns for devastating close-quarters engagements.
  • Recommended Loadout: SMGs like the Vesper or Kuda, or shotguns like the KRM-262, benefit greatly from the increased handling.
• Electro-Crawl:
  • Description: Send out a localized electrical pulse that stuns and damages nearby enemies, particularly effective against robotic units and enemies in close proximity.
  • Upgrades: Increase damage, expand radius, add a temporary EMP effect to affected enemies.
  • Strategy: A strong defensive and offensive ability for close quarters. Use it to clear out rooms, stun enemies before a melee attack, or disable enemy robots that get too close.
  • Location Highlight: In "Vengeance," when fighting in the tight corridors of the research facility, Electro-Crawl can be a lifesaver against swarms of P.A.W.N.S.
• Firefly Swarm:
  • Description: Deploy a swarm of nanobots that seek out and immolate enemies within a certain radius, dealing continuous fire damage.
  • Upgrades: Increase swarm duration, expand search radius, add a blinding effect to affected enemies.
  • Strategy: Excellent for area denial, flushing enemies out of cover, or dealing with multiple targets simultaneously. Can be used to cover your flanks or to soften up heavily armored foes before engaging directly.
  • Common Pitfall: The swarm has a travel time; lead your targets slightly if they are moving.

1.3. Chaos Cyber Core: Disrupt and Dominate

The Chaos Cyber Core focuses on disrupting enemy formations, creating diversions, and gaining tactical advantages through unconventional means. This core is perfect for players who enjoy controlling the flow of battle and exploiting enemy weaknesses.

• Tactical Rig:
  • Description: Deploy a holographic decoy that draws enemy fire and attention. The decoy can be manually detonated or will explode after a short duration.
  • Upgrades: Increase decoy durability, add an EMP burst upon detonation, allow for multiple decoys.
  • Strategy: Invaluable for flanking, escaping overwhelming situations, or drawing fire away from an objective. Deploy it to create a distraction while you reposition or engage enemies from a different angle.
  • Actionable Advice: Use it to bait heavy enemies like G.I.U.s into exposing their weak points.
• Immolation:
  • Description: Ignite enemies with a burst of thermal energy, causing them to burn and take continuous damage. Can spread to nearby enemies.
  • Upgrades: Increase initial burst damage, extend burn duration, expand spread radius.
  • Strategy: Good for dealing with clustered foes or clearing out rooms. The continuous damage can be useful for finishing off weakened enemies or forcing them out of cover.
  • Boss Weakness: While not a primary weakness, continuous damage from Immolation can chip away at boss health, especially during phases where they are stationary or heavily armored.
• Enhanced Vision:
  • Description: Activates a temporary vision mode that allows you to see enemies through walls, highlight their weak points, and track their movement.
  • Upgrades: Increase duration, expand detection range, highlight environmental hazards or interactive objects.
  • Strategy: Crucial for tactical planning and target prioritization. Use it before entering a new area to identify enemy positions, anticipate ambushes, and plan your attack. Helps in locating hidden snipers or flanking routes.
  • Location Highlight: In "A Darker Future," Enhanced Vision is incredibly useful for navigating the dense jungle and identifying hidden enemy snipers and patrols.
• Blast Wave:
  • Description: Emit a powerful concussive blast that knocks back and damages enemies in a wide frontal arc. Can interrupt enemy attacks and provide breathing room.
  • Upgrades: Increase damage, expand knockback distance, add a temporary stun effect.
  • Strategy: A strong defensive and offensive ability for close quarters. Use it to repel charging enemies, clear space around yourself, or knock enemies off ledges for environmental kills.
  • Common Pitfall: Has a short wind-up; ensure you time it correctly to avoid taking damage before the blast.

1.4. Unlocking and Upgrading Cyber Cores:

To unlock a Cyber Core ability, navigate to the "Cyber Core" tab in your Safehouse (accessible between missions) or during mission intermissions. Each ability requires a certain number of Fabrication Kits. Upgrading an ability (e.g., increasing its duration, damage, or reducing cooldown) also costs Fabrication Kits and often requires you to have unlocked preceding abilities within the same branch.

Strategy Tip: Early in the campaign, focus on unlocking a few core abilities that complement your preferred playstyle. For example, if you prefer stealth and manipulation, prioritize Adaptive Invisibility and Remote Hijack from the Control Core. If you're more aggressive, Unstoppable Force and Overdrive from the Martial Core are excellent choices. Avoid spreading your Fabrication Kits too thin initially; specialize first to gain powerful early advantages, then diversify as more Kits become available.

2. Weapon Customization and Fabrication Kits

Beyond Cyber Cores, the campaign allows for extensive weapon customization, providing a significant RPG-like layer to your loadout. As you use weapons and complete challenges, you earn Weapon XP, which unlocks various attachments and cosmetic camos. Fabrication Kits are also instrumental here, used to unlock specific weapon types and attachments that aren't unlocked through Weapon XP alone.

2.1. Weapon Unlocks and Attachments:

Every weapon in the campaign has its own progression track, separate from your character's overall progression. Using a weapon in combat earns it Weapon XP, which in turn unlocks attachments and camos.

• Primary Weapons:
  • Assault Rifles: ARK-7, KN-44, HVK-30, ICR-1, Man-O-War, Sheiva. Versatile for mid-range engagements.
  • SMGs: Kuda, Vesper, VMP, Weevil, Pharo, Razorback. Excellent for close-quarters combat and high mobility.
  • LMGs: Gorgon, Dingo, BRM. Provide sustained fire and suppressive capabilities.
  • Sniper Rifles: Locus, Drakon, SVG-100. High-damage, long-range precision weapons.
  • Shotguns: KRM-262, Argus, Haymaker 12, Brecci 205. Devastating in extreme close range.
• Secondary Weapons:
  • Pistols: RK5, L-CAR 9, MR6. Reliable sidearms for emergencies.
  • Launchers: XM-53. Effective against robotic enemies and scorestreaks.
• Attachments:
  • Optics: Red Dot Sight, ELO, Reflex, Thermal, Varix 3, Recon. Improve aiming and target acquisition.
  • Muzzles: Suppressor (reduces sound, hides on mini-map), Compensator (reduces vertical recoil), Flash Hider (reduces muzzle flash).
  • Barrels: Long Barrel (increases range), Fast Mags (faster reload), Extended Mags (increased magazine capacity).
  • Stocks: Stock (improves aim down sight movement speed).
  • Grips: Foregrip (reduces recoil).
  • Lasers: Laser Sight (improves hip-fire accuracy).
  • Other: Quickdraw (faster aim down sight), High Caliber (headshot damage increase), Rapid Fire (increased fire rate).

Each attachment modifies specific weapon stats, allowing you to fine-tune your weapons for accuracy, range, damage, handling, or fire rate. Experiment with different combinations to find what works best for your playstyle and the mission at hand.

2.2. Acquiring Fabrication Kits:

Fabrication Kits are the lifeblood of both Cyber Core and weapon unlocks. They are primarily earned through:

• Mission Completion: Successfully completing campaign missions awards a significant number of Fabrication Kits. Higher difficulties often yield more.
• In-Mission Challenges: Many missions feature optional challenges (e.g., "Kill X enemies with Y weapon," "Achieve Z headshots," "Complete mission without dying"). Completing these often grants bonus Kits. Always check the mission brief for these challenges.
• Collectibles: Finding hidden collectibles, such as Data Vaults or specific intel pieces scattered throughout missions, can also award Fabrication Kits. These often require careful exploration.
• High Score: Achieving high scores in missions, especially on higher difficulties, can yield more Kits. Focus on headshots, multi-kills, and efficient enemy elimination.

Common Pitfall: check your mission challenges! Many players overlook these, missing out on valuable Fabrication Kits. Always review the challenges before starting a mission to maximize your earnings and unlock potential rewards. Some challenges might even encourage you to try different weapons or playstyles, adding replayability.

Multiplayer Progression: Leveling, Specialists, and The Black Market

Multiplayer progression in Black Ops III is distinct from the campaign, focusing on player level, Specialist unlocks, and the Black Market for cosmetic items. This system is designed to provide a continuous sense of reward and customization as you compete online.

1. Player Level and Create-a-Class

As you play multiplayer matches, you earn XP for kills, assists, objective play, and match completion. This XP contributes to your overall player level. Each level unlock grants access to new weapons, perks, scorestreaks, and equipment for your Create-a-Class slots, allowing for increasingly diverse loadouts.

• Weapons: New primary and secondary weapons become available as you level up, expanding your arsenal.
• Perks: Passive abilities that enhance your soldier, categorized into three tiers (Perk 1, Perk 2, Perk 3). Examples include Ghost (undetectable by UAVs while moving), Hardwired (immune to Counter-UAVs and EMPs), Blast Suppressor (silent thruster jumps), and Tactical Mask (reduces flashbang/concussion effects).
• Scorestreaks: Powerful in-game rewards earned by achieving a certain score without dying. These range from reconnaissance tools like the UAV to devastating offensive assets like the Hellstorm missile or R.A.P.S. (Robotic Anti-Personnel Sentry).
• Equipment: Tactical grenades (e.g., Flashbang, Concussion, Smoke) and lethal grenades (e.g., Frag, Semtex, Combat Axe), as well as specialist equipment like the Trip Mine or Shock Charge.

Unlocking Items with Unlock Tokens:

When you level up, you receive an "Unlock Token." These tokens are used to permanently unlock specific weapons, perks, scorestreaks, or equipment for use in your custom classes. Choose wisely, as tokens are finite per prestige cycle. Once you prestige, you reset your level and unlocks, but gain a permanent unlock token to keep one item unlocked forever.

Strategy Tip: Prioritize unlocking items that synergize with your preferred playstyle. If you're an objective player, unlock perks like Engineer (see enemy equipment) or Tactical Mask. If you're a slayer, focus on powerful weapons and offensive scorestreaks like the Wraith or H.A.T.R. Consider unlocking a versatile assault rifle early, as they are effective in most situations.

2. Specialists: Unique Abilities and Weapons

Black Ops III introduces nine unique Specialists, each with a distinct "Weapon" and "Ability." You unlock Specialists as you level up, and you choose one to deploy with at the start of each match. Mastering a Specialist's unique tools can dramatically impact your performance.

Actionable Advice: Experiment with each Specialist as you unlock them to find one that complements your preferred weapons and maps. Learning when to activate their abilities and weapons is key to maximizing their impact in a match. For instance, using Vision Pulse on a Hardpoint can reveal all enemies defending it, allowing your team to push effectively.

3. The Black Market: Supply Drops and Cosmetic Customization

The Black Market is where You can acquire cosmetic items and sometimes new weapons through Supply Drops. These drops contain several customization options for your weapons and Specialists, allowing you to personalize your appearance in multiplayer.

• How to Obtain Supply Drops:
  • Cryptokeys: Earned by playing multiplayer matches. The better you perform (higher score, more kills, objective play), the more Cryptokeys you receive at the end of a match. You can then spend these Cryptokeys on Supply Drops (e.g., 10 Cryptokeys for a Rare Supply Drop, 30 for a Legendary).
  • CoD Points: Purchased with real-world money. These can be used to buy Supply Drops directly, bypassing the Cryptokey grind.
• What's Inside Supply Drops:
  • Weapon Camos: Unique skins and patterns to customize the look of your weapons. These range from common to legendary rarity.
  • Calling Cards: Customizable banners displayed during killcams, in lobbies, and on your player profile.
  • Emblems: Customizable icons for your player profile, often themed after in-game events or factions.
  • Specialist Gear: Headgear, body armor, and taunts for your Specialists. These allow you to change the appearance of your chosen Specialist.
  • Melee Weapons: Unique melee weapons with different animations (e.g., Brass Knuckles, Butterfly Knife, Wrench). These are purely cosmetic and function identically to the standard combat knife.
  • Ranged Weapons: Occasionally, new ranged weapons (e.g., new SMGs, assault rifles, or pistols) are added to the Black Market pool. These are typically of Legendary or Epic rarity and can significantly expand your weapon choices.

Important Note: While the Black Market primarily offers cosmetic items, the inclusion of new ranged weapons means that dedicated players might need to engage with the system to acquire the full arsenal. However, all base game weapons are unlocked through standard progression, ensuring competitive balance. The Black Market items do not provide any statistical advantage in gameplay.