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The subject of this article appeared in Call of Duty: Black Ops II. The subject of this article appears in Call of Duty: Heroes The subject of this article appeared in Call of Duty: Black Ops III. The subject of this article appears in Call of Duty: Mobile The subject of this article appears in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III The subject of this article appears in Call of Duty: Warzone 2
For other uses, see Guardian (disambiguation).

The Guardian is a Scorestreak featured in Call of Duty: Black Ops II , Call of Duty: Black Ops III and Call of Duty: Mobile and a Killstreak and Scorestreak in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III.

Call of Duty: Black Ops II[]

"A placeable dish that projects a cone of microwave radiation that stuns and impairs enemies."
— Scorestreak description

It deals 10 damage to any players caught within its cone of radiation every 0.5 seconds (half a second), taking five seconds to completely kill an enemy in Core game modes at full health. The Guardian will slow enemies and impair their vision, and is easily distinguished by the particles emitted by its silver dish. The player gets 10 points every second for suppressing an enemy.

The Guardian is best placed at choke points, long and linear sightlines and to defend objectives while teammates are absent from the area. Hostile Guardians are highlighted in red when using the Engineer perk, making a combination of Engineer and Black Hat excellent when countering Guardians, as they can be easily hacked from behind cover where the player is safe from the wave it produces. However, the player should take care of their surroundings, as unexpected enemies can easily kill the player when hacking the Guardian, which takes approximately five seconds.

Guardians are extremely effective in Hardcore game modes, being caught in the guardian's microwaves results in almost instant kills. Unless your enemy has EMP Grenades or Black Hats, players can effectively block off tight corridors and limit their overall mobility across the map. It should be noted, however, that as of a recent patch, the Guardian's damage in Hardcore game modes has been reduced. Up to three Guardians can be placed by one player, or a combination of two Guardians and two Sentry Guns. A very effective tactic is to place two Guardians in a small corridor facing the same direction, while one or two Sentry Gun(s) also faces down the same path of the microwave beams. This will render any incoming enemies unable to do anything while the Sentry Gun mows them down. However, this can be tricky on some maps, as not all maps have good spots for these two killstreaks. When used correctly, Sentry Guns and Guardians can work hand-in-hand to hold down a flag, bomb site or similar objective. Since up to four can be placed per player, if a team is coordinated, a building can be completely locked down with Guardians and Sentry Guns, rendering it almost impossible to enter without the proper tools to destroy said killstreaks, like EMP Grenades or Black Hats. 

If one suspects there is an enemy Guardian nearby, but it is not in a clear line of sight, listen for the deep humming sound of the Guardian, or the visible distortion of the air in front of the Guardian. FMJ can aid the player in dispatching enemy Guardians through walls if the location of one is known.

Gallery[]

Call of Duty: Black Ops III[]

"A placeable dish that projects a cone of microwave radiation that stuns and impairs enemies."
— In-game description


The Guardian returns in Call of Duty: Black Ops III. It functions the same as its previous version.

Call of Duty: Mobile[]

"A deployable device that projects a cone of microwave radiation that slows enemies and deals a small amount of damage."
— In-game description


The Guardian returns in Call of Duty: Mobile. It was added in May 2023 as part of the Season 5: Get Wrecked! update.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III[]

"A beam shaped, non-lethal, area denial weapon. Enemies entering the beam have similar effects to a stun grenade, reduced movement speed, blurred vision, and removed UI."
— In-game description


The Guardian returns in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III as both Killstreak and Scorestreak under the name Guardian-SC. Unlike previous games, now it will just slow down the enemy without killing them.

Trivia[]

Call of Duty: Black Ops II[]

  • When carrying the Guardian, a label on the back can be read "1.21 GW". This is a reference to the movie Back to the Future, where 1.21 Gigawatts are required to activate the Delorean time machine.
  • When placed, a sticker on the rear can be seen that warns: "extended exposure may cause minor discomfort".
  • The Guardian can kill dogs from the K9 Unit Scorestreak. When a dog is caught in the microwave beam, it will quickly topple over to the ground, only to keep trying to get up and chase the player, but it will keep falling over until it dies.
  • The Guardian cannot destroy an RC-XD.
  • The Guardian is referred to in the game files as the HPM.
  • A player can place three Guardians, two Sentry Guns, or a combination of two Guardians and two Sentry Guns. However, attempting to place any more will result in the first Guardian or Sentry Gun placed self-destructing.
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