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All zombie types in MW3 – Strengths & weaknesses

Here's your personal zombie dictionary...

Zombies are the bread and butter of MWZ, with many different types featured in-game. Here are their strengths and weaknesses to help you survive your next match.

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Every type of zombie in MW3

Whether you're exploring low-threat areas for experience or braving high-threat ones, you're going to want to know what every type of zombie can do and the best ways to kill them. Some zombies only take a few shots to kill, while others can take several clips to bring down. So, let's start with the basics.

Standard Zombie

These weak zombies are fodder for most types of weapon fire. Their greatest strength is their ability to overwhelm your squad in large numbers. They are also rather tanky if shot in the torso.

If you want to kill standard zombies efficiently, use guns that have large clips, deal explosive damage, or have conal areas of effect. Shoot for the head to kill them in one or two shots.

Armored Zombie

These zombies function exactly the same as a standard zombie, the only difference being they have armor. Armor means they take more shots to kill, so having an upgraded weapon will help bring them down. Their strength is their sheer tankiness and their ability to blend in with the standard zombie hoard.

As for weaknesses, armored zombies are fewer in number and do not deal any more damage than their standard counterparts. Shoot them with high-damage bullets and they will crumble quickly.

Hellhound

These zombies aren't exactly your run-of-the-mill shambling corpses. They're dogs, and they run on four feet, making their greatest strength their high mobility. Additionally, they tend to come at you in packs, making engagements with these dogs dangerous if you're unprepared. Even after killing them, they explode and deal damage to you if you're too close.

Their greatest weakness is that they are extremely frail and have low health. They can be killed with just about anything in only one or two shots, even melee weapons.

Mimic

Mimics are elite zombies that don't normally appear out in the wild. Instead, you will almost always find a Mimic transformed into an Aether Chest, making their greatest strength the element of surprise. They typically won't take their true form unless you attempt to loot the chest. Be careful doing so, because these zombies will grab and hold your teammates if you're not careful.

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Their greatest weakness is their lack of any sort of ranged ability making them very easy to kite out, even if alone. They also aren't that tanky for an elite zombie.

Crawler

Crawlers are smaller than your average zombie because they crawl on the ground instead of lumber toward you. These can be numerous depending on the activity you're doing, but they can almost always be found inside of Infested buildings. Their greatest strength is their small stature, forcing you to aim a little lower than your average zombie. They also deal significant damage to you if they get close, because they explode when they do.

Their greatest weakness is their frailty. Crawlers only take a couple of shots to bring down, and they are easy to flee from if you get too far away from their infested location.

Mangler

Manglers are elite zombies that have energy cannons strapped to their left arm. They are one of the more dangerous types of zombies because they have access to a ranged attack that deals a lot of damage within a large area. However, their greatest strength is how bulky they are. They move fairly fast, are armored, have a large health pull, and are not easy to trap on terrain for kiting.

The one main weakness they have is also their range. They rely heavily on their cannon to deal damage to you, but you can out-range it easily if you have room to move. In the ideal scenario, you want the Mangler to be chasing one player at a time, preventing it from firing the cannon.

Disciple

Disciples are elite zombies that command the horde of zombies to do their bidding. Primarily they are buffers that empower one zombie in the area. They float around and, on occasion, attack you with a tether-like beam that deals damage. Their strength is their defenses. Zombies surround them constantly, making them hard to kill. On top of that, they will constantly stay away from you, making them hard to reach.

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Their greatest weakness is their lack of attack power. They deal decent damage to you if you can even get them to attack. However, they don't have many of the unique offensive abilities other elite zombies have. This means that if you can isolate them away from the horde, they become fodder.

Mega Abomination

These monstrous, towering zombies are total powerhouses that appear practically unstoppable. They only appear rarely within the High Threat zone, and they summon a horde of zombies with them. Their strengths are numerous. Firstly, they are by far the most durable zombies in MWZ, able to shrug off most fire with ease. They have a massive health pool, deal massive damage, are fairly fast, and are extremely aggressive.

The only real weakness these things have is that their large size makes them an easy target for every type of weapon in the game. I highly recommend your squad all have Wonder guns on hand before deciding to engage this beast; I also suggest luring it to an active Deadbolt Turret in the area if you can.

For more quality guides and useful information relating to everything Modern Warfare 3, check out How to play War Mode in MW3 right here on Pro Game Guides.


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Darrus Myles
Darrus is a creative-minded individual with a passion for all things gaming. As a seasoned Game Guide writer that has been writing for the past 10+ years, and an active Narrative Designer for 5, he charges headfirst into the line of fire, taking on anything the industry has to offer him. The RPG genre is his home base.