The AEK-973 in Call Of Duty: Black Ops 6 is a weapon with one of the best time-to-kills in the game, with easy one-burst potential to drop another player. But while the weapon can operate at a very high level, it can be difficult to squeeze everything you can out of it.
RelatedCall Of Duty: Black Ops 6 - Best AK-74 Loadouts
Learn all about the best AK-74 Lloadouts in Call Of Duty: Black Ops 6!
PostsWhat makes the AEK more difficult to use than anything else is the burst-fire nature of the weapon. It can make dropping enemies moving horizontally to you difficult to consistently hit, and is a very punishing weapon to miss a shot with, because the follow-up is going to take a bit longer to come.
Building Your AEK-973 In The Gunsmith
The AEK has a bit less flexibility than some other weapons when it comes to building it in the Gunsmith in functionally different ways. Likely, this is going to further drop off a bit as well, considering the Rapid Fire mod currently seems to be bugged, increasing the rate of fire considerably more than it does on other weapons.
That said, you still have options with the AEK. Primarily, you can lean into two different schools of thought with it: maximize the stability and embrace its longer mid-range potential, or increase the fire rate and maneuverability, and make it a bit less punishing to use in closer ranges.
The Super-Stable Longer-Range AEK-973
The Kick Reset Speed and First Shot Recoil Control are going to be paramount in this build, with the AEK being a burst weapon. It resets every burst, meaning you'll be back to default position quicker, and one-third of your shots are going to be first shots, making it much more useful on this than a full-auto weapon.
Attachment
Description
Muzzle Break
- First Shot Recoil Control
- Kick Reset Speed
Vertical Foregrip
- -3% Recoil Gun Kick
- -35% Horizontal Recoil Control
Recoil Springs
- -10% Recoil Gun Kick
- -10% Vertical Recoil Control
- -10% Horizontal Recoil Control
Quickdraw Grip
- -25% Aim Down Sight Speed
Optic of choice
- n/a
Horizontal Recoil is the priority to improve on most every weapon, but that's especially the case on a burst-fire weapon. This weapon can one-burst somebody on the chest if you hit all three shots, and it's easy enough to keep all three of those shots on somebody's chest when the weapon is kicking upwards.
It's when the weapon starts kicking side to side that it becomes more of an issue. You can't compensate nearly as easily for that, and the follow-up burst is likely not going to happen before the enemy has dropped you.
The Longer-Range AEK-973 Loadout
Primary Weapon
AEK-973
Secondary Weapon
SMG of choice OR Grekhova
Tactical
Concussion OR Flashbang
Lethal
Blast Trap
Field Upgrade
Scrambler
Perks
Ghost
Fast Hands OR Dispatcher
Bankroll
Wildcard
Overkill OR Danger Close
This particular AEK is not going to be versatile, and the SMG (if you're using Overkill) or Grekhova (if you aren't) is going to be used quite a bit. Anything inside medium range is going to present a problem for this AEK, where it's more punishing to miss.
The Blast Trap and possible Danger Close Wildcard combo is going to help you watch your own back and maintain your distance from enemies, and the Scrambler Field Upgrade combined with Ghost is going to make it tougher for them to pin down your location.
The Versatile AEK-973
The idea with this AEK build is to enable it to be effective in a wider variety of scenarios. You'll be able to use this one more consistently in the closer-medium fights, but it is still going to be usable further out, too. It's not going to be quite as stable, but the rate of fire increase is going to make it far less punishing to miss.
Keep in mind, the Rapid Fire fire mod may end up getting nerfed; even if it does, it's still going to make a big difference. In closer ranges, in particular, missing one bullet in your burst ensures that someone with an AR or an SMG is going to easily finish you. The Rapid Fire mod is going to get that second burst out quicker and save your life often.
Attachment
Description
Rapid Fire
- +78% Fire Rate
Short Barrel OR Optic of choice
- Jumping Aim Down Sight Speed
- Jumping Sprint To Fire Speed
Commando Grip
- -11% Aim Down Sight Speed
- -12% Sprint To Fire Speed
Light Stock
- +24 % Movement Speed
- +38% Crouched Movement Speed
- Strafing Movement Speed
Ranger Foregrip
- -1% Recoil Gun Kick
- -15% Horizontal Recoil Control
- +6% Sprinting Movement Speed
This build is going to improve your Aim Down Sight speed considerably and make you more maneuverable while you've got the AEK in your hands. The more acrobatic you can be, the more likely your enemy is to miss. And the more they miss, the less punishing it is for you to need that second burst to finish them.
The Versatile AEK-973 Loadout
Primary Weapon
AEK-973
Secondary Weapon
Shotgun OR Sniper Rifle
Tactical
Stim
Lethal
Any
Field Upgrade
Trophy System OR Spring Mine
Perks
Dexterity
Assassin
Bankroll
Wildcard
Overkill
The purpose of bringing either a Shotgun or a Sniper Rifle with the secondary weapon in this loadout is the high single-shot damage. This gives you a perfect option in the two extreme ranges when you need it, allowing you to get into the more comfortable close-medium that this AEK is built for.
NextCall Of Duty: Black Ops 6 - Best XM4 Loadouts
The XM4 excels in virtually every situation with these builds.
Posts
