If you were there in early 2013, you remember the chaos. Treyarch dropped the Revolution DLC, and for the first time in Call of Duty history, a new gun wasn't just a reskin or a late-level unlock. It was a paid addition. The Peacekeeper in Black Ops 2 fundamentally changed how we thought about weapon classes. It wasn't just a submachine gun. It was a weird, beautiful, blue-and-white identity crisis.
Most people call it a hybrid. Honestly? It was an assault rifle that just happened to have the movement speed of an SMG. It bridged a gap that, until then, felt like a canyon. You had the high-recoil, high-damage shredders like the Skorpion EVO or the MSMC, and then you had the laser-accurate ARs like the M27 or the ICR. The Peacekeeper sat right in the middle, sipping tea and picking off headshots from across the map while everyone else was struggling with muzzle climb.
The Stats That Made the Peacekeeper a Legend
You can't talk about this gun without looking at the numbers. It’s a 750 RPM (rounds per minute) beast. That's the exact same fire rate as the PDW-57 and the MSMC. But where those guns would start bouncing around like a caffeinated toddler after the third shot, the Peacekeeper stayed dead flat.
It had a four-shot kill range that extended out to 35 meters. To put that in perspective, most SMGs in Black Ops 2 started losing their "punch" at about 10 or 15 meters. If you were using a Peacekeeper, you weren't just winning gunfights; you were winning gunfights you had no business being in. You were out-dueling ACR-style rifles with a weapon that let you strafe at 80% speed. That's a massive deal. It basically gave you the "Stalker" or "Stock" attachment for free, built right into the frame.
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Recoil and Handling
The recoil pattern was almost entirely vertical and very predictable. It had a centerspeed of 1500, which is just technical jargon for "this gun resets its aim really fast."
- ADS Time: 250ms (slower than other SMGs, faster than ARs).
- Movement Speed: 100% (the gold standard for mobility).
- Magazine Size: 30 rounds (40 with Extended Clip).
- The "Secret" Zoom: It actually had a higher innate zoom level than other SMGs. When you aimed down the iron sights, it felt more like an AR.
What Most People Get Wrong About the Peacekeeper
There’s this persistent myth that the Peacekeeper was "pay-to-win." I get why people said it. It was the first DLC gun ever. If you didn't buy the map pack, you couldn't use it. But if you actually look at the close-quarters data, the Peacekeeper was kinda... mediocre?
In a room-clearing situation, an MP7 or a Vector K10 would melt you before you could even finish your ADS animation. The Peacekeeper's four-shot kill was its maximum damage. It never had a three-shot kill potential unless you were playing Hardcore or hitting nothing but headshots.
It was a weapon for the "Tactical" player. Not the "I’m going to sprint into the middle of the map and pray" player. If you used it like a traditional SMG, you’d get frustrated. If you used it like a lightweight AR, you were a god.
The Best Peacekeeper Class Setups (Then and Now)
Even in 2026, if you're hopping into a legacy lobby or a fan-run server, the meta hasn't changed much. The Peacekeeper thrives on precision, not spray-and-pray.
The "Ghost" Stealth Build
This was the most popular setup for a reason. Because the Peacekeeper already had decent range, putting a Suppressor on it didn't hurt as much as it did on the Skorpion.
- Attachments: Suppressor + Quickdraw.
- Perks: Ghost, Toughness, Dexterity.
- Why it works: You stay off the radar, and since the gun has zero recoil, you don't need a Foregrip. Quickdraw is essential because that 250ms ADS time is the gun's biggest weakness.
The Long-Range Laser
If you wanted to annoy the snipers on Standoff or Raid, this was the way to go.
- Attachments: Long Barrel + Adjustable Stock.
- Perks: Lightweight, Toughness, Extreme Conditioning.
- The Strat: You move so fast while aiming that people can't track you. You're basically a dancing turret. Long Barrel extends that four-shot kill range even further, making it effectively a better version of the M27.
Why the Design Matters: "Arbiter" and the UN Connection
Look at the side of the gun next time you're in the Create-a-Class menu. You’ll see the word "ARBITER" and a bird logo. The lead artist at Treyarch, Murad Ainuddin, designed this thing as a weapon for counter-terrorism and VIP protection. It uses the 5.7x28mm round—the same stuff the P90 uses.
The blue-and-white default camo isn't just for aesthetics. It’s a nod to UN Peacekeeping forces. It was meant to look modern, clean, and high-tech compared to the gritty, weathered look of the AN-94 or the SCAR-H. It felt like a "future" weapon in a game that was trying very hard to predict what 2025 would look like. Ironically, here we are in 2026, and the Peacekeeper still looks more advanced than some of the stuff we see in modern titles.
How to Get It Now
If you’re playing the original Black Ops 2 on PC (via Plutonium or Steam) or on an old Xbox/PS3, the rules are still the same. You need the Revolution DLC.
- Purchase the DLC: It’s usually part of the Season Pass.
- Unlock Level: Once the DLC is active, the Peacekeeper is unlocked at Level 4.
- No Tokens Needed: Unlike other guns, you don't need an unlock token to use it once you hit Level 4. It’s just there, waiting.
Acknowledging the Limitations
Is it the best gun in the game? No. The MSMC is objectively more versatile for high-level competitive play. The AN-94 has a faster time-to-kill if you land those first two "hyper-burst" shots.
The Peacekeeper is a "comfort" gun. It’s for the days when your aim is a little shaky and you just want a weapon that goes exactly where you point it. It's the ultimate "consistency" tool. It won't give you the fastest kills, but it will give you the most predictable ones.
Actionable Insights for Modern Players
To truly master the Peacekeeper, you have to stop thinking of it as a Submachine Gun. It’s an "In-Betweener."
- Avoid the Grip: The Foregrip attachment in Black Ops 2 only reduces recoil by about 2%, which is negligible on a gun that's already this stable. Use that slot for Fast Mag or Long Barrel instead.
- Pre-Aim Everything: Because the ADS speed is slower than a typical SMG, you'll lose if you're caught sprinting. Use the Stock attachment to strafe around corners while already aiming.
- Hardcore Mode King: In Hardcore, the Peacekeeper is arguably the best weapon in the game. It’s a one or two-shot kill at almost any range with zero recoil and SMG handling.
If you’re looking to revisit the glory days of 2013, the Peacekeeper is the perfect bridge between the old-school Call of Duty feel and the high-mobility era that followed. It remains a masterclass in weapon balancing—powerful enough to be a favorite, but flawed enough to stay out of the "broken" category.
To get the most out of your next session, try running it with Toughness. In Black Ops 2, flinch is your worst enemy, and since the Peacekeeper relies on landing four consecutive shots, staying on target while being shot is the difference between a killstreak and a respawn screen.