The early game is all about establishing your presence. This involves efficient looting, completing contracts, and preparing for your first engagements.
Looting Phase:
- Prioritize Essentials: Focus on finding a reliable weapon (even a common one), armor plates, and cash. Don't get bogged down searching for the perfect weapon immediately.
- Backpack Management: Warzone has limited inventory space. Prioritize armor plates (always carry a full stack of 5), self-revive kits, and useful killstreaks. Drop less useful items like redundant tactical/lethal equipment if you need space.
- Weapon Tiers: Weapons come in different rarities (Common, Uncommon, Rare, Epic, Legendary). Higher rarity weapons have more attachments and better stats.
Contracts:
Contracts are mini-objectives that provide cash, XP, and often reveal future gas circles. They are crucial for earning enough money for a Loadout Drop or Buy Station purchases.
- Bounty: Marks an enemy player on your map. Eliminating them grants a large cash reward. Be cautious, as the target is also notified.
- Recon: Requires you to secure a specific area for a short time. Reveals the next gas circle location, providing a significant tactical advantage.
- Scavenger: Marks three loot boxes on your map. Opening all three grants cash and often a rare item.
- Supply Run: Requires you to reach a specific Buy Station within a time limit. Grants a discount on all items at that Buy Station for a short period.
- Most Wanted: Marks you as a target for all enemies on the map. Surviving for a set duration grants a massive cash reward and redeploys all your dead teammates. High risk, high reward.
Objective: Accumulate enough cash for a Loadout Drop (typically $10,000) and secure a strong initial weapon setup.