Best Rival-9 loadout and class build for Warzone and MW3
Tear through your enemies at close-range with this best Rival-9 build.
The Rival-9 is a SMG that’ll unleash close-range chaos in Warzone and Modern Warfare 3.
Competing with the likes of the Striker in Warzone and Modern Warfare 3’s Submachine Gun category is tough, but the Rival-9 does its level best at providing a weapon for those players who love to get up close and personal, barrage shots into enemies, and run off.
With such an aggressive playstyle, the Rival-9 can struggle with range and recoil control. So, in this guide, we’ll be taking a look at how we can balance out those weaknesses without giving up the solid mobility and close-quarter combat capabilities of the gun.
Below, we’ll first delve into how to unlock the Rival-9 before taking a look at the best attachments and perks for the ultimate Rival-9 class build.
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Warzone and MW3 Rival-9 best loadout and attachments
While we’ve opted for the Striker as our best SMG in Modern Warfare 3, with the right loadout and attachments on the Rival-9, there’s still a lot of potential for this rapid-fire SMG.
Before we run through each attachment individually, these are the five we would recommend equipping to your Rival-9:
- Barrel: Rival-38E Fire Starter Barrel
- Underbarrel: XRK Edge BW-4 Handstop
- Rear Grip: Rival Vice Assault Grip
- Muzzle: Monolithic Suppressor S
- Magazine: 40 Round Mag
First up, the Rival 38-E Fire Starter Barrel. For a SMG that excels in close-range gunfights, this short barrel supports an aggressive offensive strategy with buffs to ADS, movement, Sprint-to-Fire, and sprint speed. For the boost in mobility though, you’ll sacrifice some recoil control, aiming idle sway, and firing aim stability. We’ll make up for this with our third attachment.
Before we get there, we’ve got more to bolster the speed in this build and that comes with the XRK Edge BW-4 Handstop Underbarrel. Here, you’ll be provided once again with an improved mobility across a large spectrum of the MW3 speed stats.
As mentioned our third attachment will help improve the steadiness of the gun that we sacrificed previously. The Rival Vice Assault Grip is equipped in your Rear Grip slot to provide major improvements to the Rival-9’s gun kick control, and a slight rise in firing aim stability and recoil control. All three of which we lost out on with the Barrel.
We’ve also opted for the Monolithic Suppressor Muzzle to prop up your recoil control and, very importantly, take you off the enemies’ radar. The ability to sneak a little closer to your opponents before unleashing the barrage of bullets on offer with the Rival-9 can be a devastating move with this build.
This leads us nicely onto the fifth and final attachment in our Rival-9 build, the upgrade to a 40 Round Mag. With a 30 Round Mag as standard on this SMG, 10 extra bullets can make all the difference. With higher Time-To-Kill in Modern Warfare 3 paired with the rapid ability of the Rival-9’s fire-rate, believe us when we tell you you’ll need these extra bullets.
You can also opt for the 50 Round Drum here, but, fair warning, it does add a heaviness to the build that’ll work against the hard work your previous attachments have put into upping your mobility and speed. It’s a totally personal preference if you decide you’d like a little more.
To equip all the attachments in this build, you’ll need to head to the Gunsmith in your weapon loadout to see how each one of these is unlocked. Find the attachment you’re after from the list above and you’ll be able to view the requirements for each there.
Warzone and MW3 Rival-9 best class build, perks, and equipment
With the Rival-9 SMG, you’ve got a gun that is geared up for running into a room full throttle and working to clear it out. For such a speed-heavy, close-range gun, we’ve opted for perks and equipment that will support these aspects.
It may also be a smart idea, depending on your playstyle, to enable two primary weapons with the Vest slot so you can equip a gun that can handle any long-range situations you find yourself in. Or, if you just fancy switching up the pace now and again.
Before we go into specifics on each piece of kit, here’s the rundown of all the perks and equipment we recommend for the best Rival-9 build in Modern Warfare 3:
- Vest: Overkill Vest
- Perk 1 – Gloves: Quick-Grip Gloves
- Perk 2 – Gear: Bone Conduction Helmet
- Perk 3 - Boots: Lightweight Boots
- Secondary Weapon: KV Inhibitor
- Lethal: Frag Grenade
- Tactical: Battle Rage
As mentioned, we’re opting for the Overkill Vest to run with two primary weapons. More on the secondary we’ve chosen in a moment, but we must first also pay heed to the fact that this Vest will also boost your weapon swap speed and enable reloading while sprinting. All great perks to keep the pace high.
For the secondary, we’d recommend the KV Inhibitor Sniper Rifle that we voted best-in-class in the best guns in MW3. Most definitely down to personal preference and your choice of game mode as to whether you’ll want to run with a Sniper at all, but if you’re looking to switch up how impactful you are at long-range, this gun will help to wipe out enemies with one-shot kills.
With the Quick-Grip Gloves, you’ll enjoy an increased weapon swap speed, which is incredibly handy if someone sneaks up on you when you least expect it, or when you’re at the end of your ammo and need a quick change up. The Lightweight Boots also lean into this Rival-9 speed build by upping your movement across the map.
It’s all well and good having the speed to navigate gunfights, but a perk that’ll help you also play tactically before you unleash your barrage of bullets is the Bone Conduction Headset. By reducing the noise of combat, you’ll be able to hone into enemies’ footsteps and gunfire with more precision making locating them and surprising them that little bit easier.
Finally, when it comes to choosing your lethal and tactical equipment, we’ve mixed in the Battle Rage to regenerate health fast, continually refresh your Tac Sprint, and make you resistant to your opponent’s tactical equipment. Three excellent perks that work hard to keep you in contention.
We’ve paired this with the classic Frag Grenade to deal out some devastating damage in-between gunfire. Another great alternative would be the Semtex, but tweaking these items until you find a loadout you’re happy with to suit your playstyle is worth taking your time over.
How to unlock the Rival-9 in Modern Warfare 3
There’s a variety of different ways to unlock all the weapons in Modern Warfare 3 and they’re not just as simple as levelling up.
To be able to equip the Rival-9 in Modern Warfare 3, you’ll need to reach player level 25 to open the Armory Unlocks feature. Within the Armory, you can then 'Activate' a weapon to be the Unlock Challenge you want to complete. You must then complete three daily or bonus challenges to earn the Rival-9.
This new system means you’ll need to earn points to achieve the Armory challenge, but if you change your mind mid-unlocking to focus on another gun, equipment, perk, streak, or cosmetic, you can always pick up where you left off when you return.
If you’re on the lookout for more loadout recommendations, look no further on our plentiful MW3 guides for the Striker, SVA 545, MTZ-556, MCW, and more. Plus, for more on Multiplayer, check out the best guns in MW3 guide for informed intel on weapon selection.