Warzone 2 meta: Best loadouts and tuning (August 2023) (2024)

We are into August 2023 and Season 5 of Call of Duty: Warzone 2.0 is well underway. Players are flooding into Al Mazrah to discover what changes the new mid-season update has brought. With such a large number of players comes a high level of competition. And every single player wants to gain an edge over their opponents. That’s where the Warzone 2 meta (most effective tactics available) comes in.

Meta guns in Warzone 2.0 are the ones that give you the biggest advantage thanks to a combination of superior damage output and accuracy.

The meta constantly changes due to regular weapon balancing updates that are released to level the playing field. However, one (or a few) weapons always come out on top and become player favourites.

With the release of Warzone 2 Season 5, fans are asking “what is the Warzone 2 meta?”. So, let’s take a look at the Warzone 2 meta for August 2023.

Call of Duty Warzone 2 Meta Explained

Before we take a look at the current Warzone 2.0 meta, it’s important to mention that what works best for the average player won’t necessarily work best for you.

It’s dependent on a number of factors including your play style, experience with different weapon classes, and unlocked attachments.

Often, if you don’t have everything unlocked for the “meta” gun and simply don’t have time to grind the attachments, you’re best going for something that you do have everything unlocked for.

With that said, it is always worth levelling weapons up to unlock all the necessary meta attachments if you’re serious about winning in Warzone 2.0. If you don’t, you’re putting yourself at a serious disadvantage.

Weapon and Attachment Tuning

Modern Warfare II and Warzone 2.0 saw the introduction of optional weapon and attachment tuning. This feature allows players to tailor attachments to accentuate certain attributes such as damage range, recoil stability, and ADS speed. Each attachment has an up/down slider and a left/right slider.

This article will denote the suggested tuning for each attachment by using the “↑,↓,→,←” arrows and a “+/-“ numerical value. Feel free to customise the tuning to your liking if you disagree with our suggestion.

What is the Warzone 2 meta right now (Season 5)?

As of August 2023 and Season 5, the current Warzone 2 metas are the TAQ-V and ISO 45.

Note: The ISO 45 is listed here under Secondary weapons; however, they also make for fantastic primary choices.

Warzone 2.0 Meta Guns – Primary

Best Assault Rifle/Battle Rifle/LMG

Best TAQ-V Loadout

The meta loadout for the TAQ-V in Warzone 2 features the following attachments:

Muzzle – ZLR Talon 5 – ↑+1.00 ←-0.80

Optic – Aim OP-V4 – ↓-1.30 ←+1.80

Ammunition – 7.62 High Velocity – ↓-0.30 ←-6.30

Underbarrel – FTAC Ripper 56 – ↑+0.72 →+0.28

Magazine – 50 Round Drum

Best Cronen Squall Loadout

The meta loadout for the Cronen Squall in Warzone 2 features the following attachments:

Muzzle – Sakin Tread-40 – ↑+0.40, →+0.25

Barrel – HR6.8 Barrel – ↑+0.35 →+0.10

Optic – Aim OP-V4 – ↑+1.00 →-1.50

Underbarrel – FTAC Ripper 56 – ↑+0.80 →+0.40

Magazine – 50 Round Drum

Best Kastov 762 Loadout

The meta loadout for the Kastov 762 in Warzone 2 features the following attachments:

Muzzle – ZLR Talon 5 – ↑+1.40, →+1.00

Barrel – KAS-10 584mm Barrel- ↑+0.50, →+0.35

Optic – Cronen Mini Pro – ↓-3.00, →-2.25

Magazine – 40 Round Mag

Underbarrel – FTAC Ripper 56 – ↑+0.80 →+0.40

Warzone 2.0 Meta Guns – Secondary

Effective secondary weapons that compliment the meta gun are integral to any good loadout. However, these guns are also great primary picks in their own right, especially the Vaznev-9K which is currently the meta SMG.

With the ISO Hemlock meta build (detailed above) focused on mid-long range engagements, having an SMG secondary to take care of close-quarters battles is a logical choice. These are the best secondary guns in Warzone 2 right now:

Best SMG

Best ISO 45 Loadout

The ISO 45 is a top choice SMG in Season 5. It is one of the best SMG choices in Warzone.

This is the best ISO 45 loadout in Warzone 2:

Barrel – 16″ XLB-S – ↓-0.30 →+0.40

Laser – 1 mW Quick Fire Laser ↓-0.35 ←-35.00

Optic – Cronen Mini Pro – ↓-1.70 →+2.25

Stock – Demo Face Tac – ↓-2.00 ←1.35

Magazine – 45 Round Drum

Best Lachmann Sub Loadout

This is the best Lachmann Sub loadout in Warzone 2:

Muzzle – Lacerta Compensator – ↑+0.72 →+0.18

Stock – LM Stockless Mod

Underbarrel – Phase-3 Grip – ↑+0.62 →+0.15

Rear Grip – Lachmann TCG-10 – ↑↓0.00 →+0.32

Magazine – 50 Round Drum

Best Vaznev-9K Loadout

This is the best Vaznev-9K loadout in Warzone 2:

Muzzle – Lacerta Compensator – ↑+0.46 →+0.08

Barrel – KAS-1 381mm – ↑+0.31 →+0.21

Laser – Schlager PEQ Box IV – ↓-0.50 ←-34.55

Stock – Otrezat Stock – ↓-2.97 ←-1.94

Magazine – 45 Round Mag

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N.B. To run these SMGs alongside an assault rifle or sniper rifle, you will need to run the Overkill perk or get two loadouts in a single game.

Best Handgun

Best FTAC Siege Loadout

If you do not plan to run Overkill to enable you to have another primary weapon as your secondary, you’re limited to handgun, melee weapons or launchers.

The best secondary weapon to run without Overkill and best pistol meta is the FTAC Siege with the following build:

Barrel –STF-U – ↑+0.50 →+0.40

Laser – FJX DIOD-70 – ↓-0.50 ←-51.00

Stock –Siege Wire Stock – ↓-4.00 ←-2.40

Magazine –50 Round Drum

Rear Grip – SUR-160 – ↓-1.00 ←-0.45

Best Sniper

A sniper is another great secondary choice as it offers the ability to engage enemies over incredibly long distances.

Having at least one player in a squad running a sniper to compliment their squad mates’ closer range builds is a solid tactical choice for those who favour effective team play.

The sniper meta in Warzone 2 Season 5 is the MCPR-300; however, the Signal 50 is also a great choice.

Best MCPR-300 Loadout

Muzzle – Nilsound 90 – ↓-0.45 ←-0.65

Laser – FSS OLE-V Laser – ↑+0.42 ←-26.32

Optic – Forge Tac Delta 4 – ↓-1.65 →+0.75

Ammunition – .300 Mag Explosive – ↓-0.45 →+6.97

Magazine – 5 Round Mag

Best Signal 50 Loadout

Muzzle – Nilsound 90 – ↓-1.00 →+0.40

Barrel – 29″ TV Kilo-50 – ↑+0.50 ←-0.30

Optic – Forge Tac Delta 4 – ↑+1.45 →-0.75

Laser – FSS OLE-V Laser – ↑+0.25 ←-39.50

Stock – SO Inline Stock – ↓-3.50 ←-1.50

Ammunition – .50 Cal High Velocity – ↓-0.60 →+9.00

Best Shotgun

Best KV Broadside Loadout

Barrel – Range Twelve – ↓-0.27 →+0.25

Stock – VLK Stockless

Rear Grip – True-TAC Grip – ↓-0.56 ←-0.23

Magazine – 25 Shell Drum

Ammunition – 12 Gauge Dragon’s Breath ↑+0.43 →+5.81

Best Perks and Best Perk Package

The Warzone meta isn’t limited to guns and equipment. It also includes perks.

Warzone 2.0 perks originally worked differently to the original game. However, Season 5 has removed the limitation of having to choose between preset perk packs. Now players can use their own custom perks!

In Warzone 2.0, the best perks are: Tracker, Scavenger, Fast Hands, and High Alert.

Overkill, Double Time, Resupply, and Quick Fix.

However, there are some good alternatives. If you want to start with second primary weapon, go with Overkill in slot 1.

Slot 4 also contains Ghost, which is invaluable when it comes to staying hidden. Ghost is a great alternative to High Alert if you’d rather keep yourself off of enemy radars.

Best Loadouts for Warzone 2 Season 5

To summarise, below are a list of different Warzone 2 meta loadout options that we’d recommend for August 2023…

The Warzone 2 Season 5 Meta Loadout:

1. TAQ-V + ISO 45 + Semtex + Smoke Grenade + Overkill + Scavenger + Fast Hands + High Alert

Other top choices:

2. ISO 45 + MCPR-300 + Semtex + Smoke Grenade + Overkill + Bomb Squad + Fast Hands + High Alert

3. Kastov-762 + Lachmann Sub + Thermite + Smoke Grenade + Overkill + Bomb Squad + Fast Hands + High Alert

4. TAQ-V + FTAC Siege + Semtex + Smoke Grenade + Tracker + Scavenger + Fast Hands + High Alert

Best Resurgence Loadout Warzone 2

Of course, Resurgence is still in Warzone 2.0 Season 5 on the Ashika Island map. That means you need to consider its own unique brand of fast-paced battle royale action.

With the pace of Resurgence differing so greatly from the classic battle royale mode, players need to equip themselves with a Resurgence specific loadout.

However, because of the current metas, the best loadout in standard Warzone should also work perfectly well in Resurgence.

The best Resurgence loadout in Warzone 2: TAQ-V + FTAC Siege + Throwing Knife + Smoke Grenade + Tracker + Scavenger + Fast Hands + High Alert

What do you think of the Warzone 2 meta for August 2023? Let us know in the comment section below and don’t forget to check out our othergamingarticles…