What Weapons & Items Are GA’d in Modern Warfare 2?

In every Call of Duty League season, there’s a list of banned weapons that significantly change the loadouts used by pros use in MW2.

However, there are weapons that are not restricted by CDL. Players make Gentlemen’s Agreements to ban additional weapons and items from use in competitive play.

Gentlemen’s Agreements (GAs) are rules put forward by leading players that all 12 franchises must agree to before they are actioned.

This article will discuss what weapons and items are GA’d in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 while highlighting potential future GAs to look out for.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 Gentlemen’s Agreements

Gentlemen’s Agreements have been part of the CDL for many years now, as experienced professionals in the league aim to balance the game and ensure the competition has competitive integrity and fairness. It also helps to make sure that there is a fun product for the viewers to enjoy.

In previous years, we have seen snipers banned due to their unbalanced nature, and this year is no different, as weapons, attachments, and equipment have already been banned. This is due to them being overpowered for elite-level players.

This list is sure to change as the season goes on and players discover new weapons and attachment combos that are too powerful.

As we saw in the CDL Vanguard season, some weapons were GA’d as late as after the third major of the year.

Weapons

First, let’s focus on the weapons that the pros have already removed. This is what is listed in the Gentlemen’s Agreement 2.5v:

• Assault Rifles: Kastov-74u, STB 556 and M4
• Submachine Gun: Fennec 45
• Sniper Rifles: Snipers are banned in Control and Hardpoint. Although teams can use them in Search and Destroy, each team is only allowed to have a single sniper in this mode.

It is no surprise that the Kastov-74u and the STB 556 have already been banned from competitive play, as these weapons kill incredibly quickly, with minimal to no recoil with the correct attachments.

The Fennec 45 has also been banned, which is the only submachine gun on this list.

Sniper rifles are still allowed, but with many restrictions. You can’t use them in Control and Hardpoint. Players also agreed on allowing only one sniper per team in Search and Destroy.

As for battle rifles, shotguns, light machine guns, marksman rifles, and launchers, these weapons are all banned from competitive play by the CDL. Concerning the melee category, players can run a loadout, including the combat knife, but riot shields are not permissible.

The M4 assault rifle was also included and in the GA as expected as there are instances where every single player on the map is using this weapon.

Attachments

This is what you can find in the currect version of the GA regarding attachments

• Weapon Tuning: Banned.
• Underbarrels: All attachments that increase hip-fire accuracy are banned.
• Pistol Attachments: All Trigger Action attachments are banned.

As for attachments, it is no surprise that weapon tuning ended up being banned.

On top of all those bans in the Gentlemen’s Agreement, you have the CDL bans that prevents players from using lasers, silencers, and Armor Piercing attachments.

The community agrees that these weapon attachments will offer too much power to players and make gunfights too fast.

Armor-piercing makes a lot of sense, as the time to kill in MW2 is incredibly fast already without this additional bullet damage.

A silencer would undoubtedly be less effective in this Call of Duty game, as there is no red dot on the mini-map. However, the gunshots still provide elite players with information on player location, which is why there has been a ban.

Equipment

As for equipment, several items are not allowed in certain game modes, while others are under a total ban. These rules are to ensure the game continues to move quickly, and a team cannot overpower the opposition with extremely powerful grenades and equipment.

• Flash Grenade: banned in all game modes.
• Smoke Grenade: banned in all modes.
• Trophy System: you can have at most two players per team in all game modes.

For example, flash grenades are banned in all game modes this year because the flash itself is so incredibly bright and lasts so long that it is deemed overpowered. Given how quickly professional players can move around the map, the flash time is too long and will leave players looking like sitting ducks.

Smoke grenades are also restricted in Control and Hardpoint game modes. While the smoke grenades work much better in this Call of Duty than in Cold War, for example, they are still extremely powerful. 

Some professionals wanted smokes removed completely, and it eventually happened. Some players argued that sniping is almost impossible without at least one Smoke Grenade. They managed to delay the restriction but didn’t prevent it from happening.

As for trophy systems, which were a welcome late addition to this game, teams can only run two per team in all game modes. Trophy systems are especially useful in Hardpoint and Control game modes, as grenades can quickly kill players, even when they explode quite far away.

With regard to all of the other tactical and lethal equipment in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, that is all GA’d. Here is a breakdown of the relevant items.

Tacticals

There are no restrictions on Tacticals under the current GA, but there are plenty of Tacticals banned by the official ruleset of the CDL:

• Tear Gas
• Decoy Grenade
• Shock Stick
• Heartbeat Sensor
• Spotter Scope
• Stim
• Snapshot Grenade

Lethals

There are no restrictions on Lethals by the GA, but the CDL banned the following:

• Molotov Cocktail
• C4
• Proximity Mine
• Thermite
• Throwing Knife
• Drill Charge
• Claymore

Streaks

• The SAE is banned in all modes by the Gentlemen’s Agreement V2.5

When it comes to selecting streaks as a professional player, there is a long list of streaks that are automatically banned by the CDL.

On top of that, the players have also decided to GA the SAE in every game mode. While other similar streaks have been allowed in previous titles, the players feel the SAE bomb is too powerful and, therefore, must receive a ban.

Here is a list of all of the streaks that are not allowed by the CDL:

• Wheelson-HS
• Chopper Gunner
• Mortar Strike
• Bomb Drone
• Cluster Mine
• Juggernaut
• Counter UAV
• Sentry Gun
• VTOL
• Overwatch Helo
• Stealth Bomber
• Emergency Airdrop
• Gunship
• UAV
• Advanced UAV
• Care Package

Challengers-only GA’s

The challenger’s Call of Duty level is equivalent to the minor leagues in baseball or the Championship in football.

Currently, they have one additional GA in place, which only allows the X12 pistol and bans all other pistols.

It is important to note that with any Gentlemen’s Agreement, the league does not enforce these rules, which means players could break them without official consequence.

However, this has not occurred before and would likely lead to some significant arguments between the franchises if it did. This is why it’s important to know what weapons and items are GA’d in Modern Warfare 2.

Maps and Game Modes

While maps are not GA’d in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, it is crucial to mention which maps the professionals will play this season, given how many issues and discussions there have been surrounding this aspect of the game.

For starters, MW2 does not have very many maps to begin with. Where Vanguard potentially suffered from too many maps, MW2 has the opposite issue.

There are some maps that do not suit competitive play, which is always the case, but the CDL has faced significant additional issues this season surrounding two maps in particular.

The Crown Race Plaza map, which has already been renamed after the beta launch, is not in this season’s CDL. This removal is due to ongoing issues with the Singapore Grand Prix, who claim this map looks far too similar to their race track, and they are not happy with it getting used as a location for gunfights.

Another map with similar issues is the Breenbergh Hotel, which resembles a real hotel lobby in Amsterdam. At the time of writing this article, this map is currently allowed in the game, but this may change if the hotel decides to take action against Activision.

On top of this, the CDL’s original list of maps immediately changed after posting them, as the professional players complained.

All in all, these maps are likely to change as the year goes on, and hopefully, the imminent launch of old classics like Terminal or Highrise can plug some of the gaps.

Here is the breakdown of each map that will be playable for each game mode.

Hardpoint

• Zarqwa Hydroelectric
• Embassy
• Breenbergh Hotel
• Al Bagra Fortress
• Mercado Las Almas

Control

• Al Bagra Fortress
• El Asilo
• Breenbergh Hotel

Search and Destroy

• El Asilo
• Embassy
• Al Bagra Fortress
• Breenbergh Hotel
• Mercado Las Almas 

The Best Unrestricted Weapons in MW2

Pro gameplay is affected by a plethora of bans and restrictions. Aspiring professionals and curious players want to know which weapons are still viable despite the limitations imposed by the CDL and GA.

The Kastov 74U, STB, and M4 all ranked in the B tier of our Assault Rifle tier list, however, it’s important to note that our tier list doesn’t take into account all other restrictions that can greatly impact gameplay.

Without certain attachments or tacticals, some weapons may become much harder to use. As previously mentioned, some professionals believe that having the best Sniper Rifle alone is not enough without a smoke bomb.

These bans may not always be well-received by players or fans, but it is undeniable that watching professionals come up with new loadouts and strategies to overcome the restrictions is quite exciting.