The Kastov LSW, introduced in Modern Warfare 3 Season 6 (alongside the DTIR 30-06), has a “best-in-class fire rate and Tac Stance accuracy” amongst the other LMGs (light machine guns) in the game.
However, to make the most of this LMG that can “tear through enemies at short to medium range”, you need to use the right attachments.
It can’t quite compete with guns such as the TAQ Evolvere or Bruen Mk9 at distance, but when you want to blast enemies away up close, this is the gun for the job. Alongside the high fire rate and impressive accuracy, it also has decent damage and a 100 round magazine, so you can lay down a heck of a lot of suppressive fire.
Here’s the best Kastov LSW loadout in Modern Warfare 3, how to unlock the gun in Season 6, and the best class to use with it.
How to unlock the Kastov LSW in Modern Warfare 3
To unlock the Kastov LSW in Modern Warfare 3 Season 6, you must complete cell nine on the battle pass map. The quickest route is through cells 1-3-5-9, completing each one in turn (or you can tick off cell eight instead of five if you prefer the rewards as they both get you to the same place).
As always, new weapons in the battle pass are free, so you don’t need to spend any money provided you have enough tokens.
Best Kastov LSW loadout in Modern Warfare 3
Image: Sledgehammer Games/Activision via Polygon
Here is the best Kastov LSW loadout in Modern Warfare 3:
- Muzzle: ZEHMN35 Compensated Flash Hider
- Barrel: Bombast T54 Short Barrel
- Underbarrel: Bruen Pivot Vertical Grip
- Rear Grip: Demo VIP-09 Grip
- Optic: SZ Lonewolf Optic
Due to the Kastov LSW being geared towards close quarters combat, we actually don’t need to enhance that aspect of the gun any more with our attachments. If we lean too heavily toward that aspect, the recoil becomes too much even up close.
So we need to balance that out while retaining its handling and mobility, which the ZEHMN35 Compensated Flash Hider is great for. It buffs both the horizontal and vertical recoil, firing aim stability, and has the added benefit of shortening radar pings. The only downside is a slight nerf to the aim down sight speed and bullet velocity, the latter of which is largely irrelevant at such short ranges.
However, the Bombast T54 Short Barrel brings back that ADS (aim down sight) speed lost, alongside buffing the movement and sprint to fire speeds, and the hipfire and tac stance spread, which the gun already excels at. Tactical stance is very situational, but this is a great gun to rely on it often for. Then, the Bruen Pivot Vertical Grip once again helps with the vertical recoil, which is far worse on this gun than the horizontal recoil is.
Because you’ll still be very mobile, despite this being an LMG, the Demo VIP-09 Grip again buffs the ADS and sprint to fire speed, while choosing an optical sight is recommended because the iron sight on this gun isn’t great. We’ve gone for the SZ Lonewolf Optic because it will help a touch at medium range, but if you want an even quicker ADS time, go for a shorter range red dot sight.
Best Kastov LSW class in Modern Warfare 3
Image: Sledgehammer Games/Activision via Polygon
Here is the best class to use alongside the Kastov LSW in Modern Warfare 3:
- Vest: Gunner Vest
- Secondary: Kar98k
- Tactical: Flash Grenade
- Lethal: Sticky Grenade
- Field Upgrade: Trophy System
- Gloves: Quick-Grip Gloves
- Boots: All-Terrain Boots
- Gear: EOD Padding
The Kasotv LSW struggles at long range, so when you’re in a gunfight you don’t quite have the capabilities for with your primary, you’ll want the Gunner Vest equipped so you can swap to the Kar98k and pick them off with a quick headshot. The Gunner Vest also has the added benefit of improving your reload speed — handy when using an LMG — and it makes you spawn with max ammo.
For your throwables, the Flash Grenade is always an ol’ reliable, and since you can detonate a Sticky Grenade quicker than a Frag in hectic situations, we’ve opted for that in the Lethal slot. The Trophy System is always a good shout too as it destroys any incoming throwables, best placed on an objective.
A lot of the gloves are viable here, but we’ve opted for the Quick-Grip Gloves because it improves the weapon swap speed by 40% minimum, which is a huge help when swapping from an unwieldy LMG to a marksman rifle. That’s followed up with the All-Terrain Boots which improve your movement speed, although the Tactical Pads, Stalker Boots, Covert Sneakers, and Lightweight Boots are all viable options depending on your preference.
Finally, the EOD Padding protects you from explosives, but the Tac Mask is an option too if you’d rather protect yourself from stuns, flashes, and the like.
For more Modern Warfare 3 guides, see how to switch to Tactical Stance, and check our guides on the best Superi 46 loadout, best TAQ Evolvere loadout, best Striker loadout, best SVS 545 loadout, best XRK Stalker loadout, best MCW loadout, and best AMR9 loadout.
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