The ability to one-shot kill an opponent has always been the main attraction for sniper rifle loadouts in Call of Duty: Warzone 2. The snipers in Warzone 2 are incredibly versatile, and most of them had a relatively high pick rate in Season 1.
With the arrival of Season 2, the new expansive maps should be a party for snipers. However, most players in battle royale come fully equipped with several plates of armor that you’d have to inflict enough damage on before you can break through their HP. With these changes, let’s see if it’s still possible to one-shot kill your enemies in Warzone 2 with the best One Shot sniper rifle loadouts.
Best sniper rifle loadouts in Warzone 2
The rule of thumb with sniper rifle loadouts in Warzone 2 is to know which one to rely on depending on the map you’re in the game mode, and your preferred playing style. Whether you want to prioritize having a better range or a loadout’s boost to the ADS time, we have something for you using two of the best sniper rifles in the class for Season 2.
The best sniper rifle loadout for effective range in Warzone 2
For massive maps like Al Mazrah, you’d want to go for one with a bigger effective range, like the Victus XMR. When equipped with the attachments below, this sniper rifle will be at its peak performance on bigger maps:
- Ammunition – .50 Cal Incendiary
- Muzzle – Nilsound 90 Silencer
- Barrel – Mack 8 33.5 Super
- Laser – VLK LZR 7mW
- Optics – Forge Tac Delta 4
Not only will this perform well in targeting enemies even those beyond 100 meters, but also the laser and optics in this loadout boost the ADS time of your Victus XMR. If you prefer mid-range shots or you have the Victus XMR equipped in a smaller map, you may want to swap out the Ammunition for a .50 Cal Explosive and further tweak the loadout like so:
- Ammunition – .50 Cal Explosive
- Barrel – Mack 8 33.5 Super
- Laser – VLK LZR 7mw
- Optic – SP-X 80 6.6X
- Stock – XRX Rise 50
With a perfectly aimed headshot or two, this Victus XMR loadout can easily break through even a three-plated armor. So if you’re really after dealing as much damage as you can in order to at least put down an enemy in just two shots even with the current HP and armor system, there’s not a better loadout for your Victus XMR than this.
The best sniper rifle loadout for faster ADS in Warzone 2
In cases where you need to prioritize your ADS time over the damage range, we recommend the SP-X 80 with the following attachments:
- Ammunition – .300 Incendiary
- Muzzle – Nilsound 90 Silencer
- Laser – FSS OLE-V Laser
- Optics – Forge Tac Delta 4
- Bolt – FSS ST87 Bolt
Although the damage range in this loadout is only half as good as the former, you’d want to stick with something similar to this for smaller maps like Ashika Island and faster-paced game modes like Resurgence. To further prioritize ADS over range, you can swap out the laser for a Schlager PEQ BOX IV and further add the following to your SPX-80 loadout:
- Barrel: 18.5″ Bryson LR Factory
- Rear Grip: Schlager Match Grip
- Stock: Max DMR Precision
- Laser: Schlager PEQ BOX IV
Is it possible to one-shot in Warzone 2 with snipers?
As with any update, the meta on Warzone 2 had a shift. In terms of snipers being able to one-shot in the game, there has been some sneaky nerfing in the weapons that wasn’t exactly detailed in the patch notes.
1 Shot Sniping back?
So I guess just like Year 1 of Warzone
Patch Notes will be a Little inaccurate & include Stealth Changes 😭😭😭
Not sure if its a bug or feature, so have fun before they fix it or confirm it is working as intended https://t.co/81mbSVJXAv
— James – JGOD (@JGODYT) February 17, 2023
In a nutshell, the sniper class can no longer reliably perform one-shot headshot kills, struggling to be at par with other long-range weapons. It wasn’t long until players discovered that using Incendiary Ammunition makes it possible for snipers to do one-shot kills again in the new Season 2 update.
By reducing damage range, bullet penetration, and velocity, the class stands a solid chance. Just like in Warzone 1, though, the snipers were only able to do one-shot kills within a particular range.
Does Incendiary Ammunition still work for one-shot kills in Warzone 2?
Just as fast as players figured out a way around the new update, developers went into stealth mode in nerfing Incendiary Ammunition. To date, even with the rounds equipped, players can no longer one-shot fully armored enemies. Even without an explicit declaration in the patch notes, it is clear that sniper rifles are no longer fit to one-shot enemies in Warzone 2.
Unless the current armor and HP system drastically go back to how it was before, players can only strive to build the best sniper rifle loadouts with no guarantees that it can one-shot an enemy that’s heavily armored.
Nevertheless, a lot can still change as new weapons and attachments get added to the game. For now, we can only recommend pairing the best sniper rifle loadouts with perfectly squared headshots to annihilate even the most fully-armed enemies.