Call of Duty: Warzone 2 takes the franchise into new territory with DMZ – an immersive extraction mode centered around high risk missions in Al Mazrah‘s dangerous zones. With Warzone 2 Season 2 underway, DMZ gets a major refresh with map changes, a new faction called Crown, and additional story developments.
Most excitingly, a whole new island location called Ashika joins the fray. This guide will provide an expert walkthrough to tracking down and securing three key pieces of intel introduced on Ashika and across Al Mazrah in the Season 2 update.
DMZ Provides a New COD Experience
DMZ distinguishes itself from traditional Warzone and other shooters by having no loadouts. Instead, operators scavenge for weapons, gear, and loot during each match. The goal is to complete mission objectives, engage in firefights, and successfully extract via helicopter or vehicle to keep everything you secured.
This creates high tension extraction gameplay similar to titles like Escape from Tarkov. Careful resource management, map knowledge, and combat tactics are musts. DMZ also continues Warzone‘s focus on immersive narrative through the intel missions.
DMZ has become a major hit among Warzone players thanks to this unique blend. The mode gives veterans a new way to battle across familiar locales like Al Mazrah. For newcomers, it provides an entry point completely apart from Warzone‘s battle royale.
Ashika Island Arrives in Season 2
The Season 2 update adds Ashika Island off Al Mazrah‘s coast as a brand new playable space. This mysterious locale features sights like a beach club, observatory, caves, and industrial shipping areas. Shadow Company, a faction of hostile AI soldiers, lurks around the island within a foreboding fog.
Beyond Ashika, the update resets all intel, missions, caches, and progress in Al Mazrah zones. This gives veterans reasons to re-explore the massive map. A new AI faction called Crown also arrives, aggressively defending points of interest against infiltrating Operators.
These changes set the stage for a wealth of new content, challenges, and story developments over the course of Season 2. It‘s the perfect time to drop in for both DMZ newcomers and grizzled veterans. Let‘s break down the intel that needs hunting.
How to Find and Extract the Ashika Island Intel
There are three key pieces of intel scattered across Al Mazrah and the new Ashika Island for operators to locate and secure:
- Shadow Company USB Stick
- Ashika Island Intel
- Crown Intel
Extracting each grants XP rewards and unlocks new activities and narrative details. Here are step-by-step walkthroughs on retrieving each.
1. Shadow Company USB Stick
The Shadow Company USB awaits recovering just offshore of Ashika Island‘s beach areas. Specifically, you‘ll want to approach the southeast beach around coordinate F8 on the map.
Shadow Company USB visible underwater [via CharlieIntel]
Dive underwater in this area and head beneath the rocky outcropping with an observatory deck built overhead. Down here, you‘ll spot a toolbox containing the USB stick. Interact with it to claim the first intel item.
With the USB in hand, focus on carefully exiting Ashika Island via an extraction point to complete the objective. Having a water vehicle nearby is extremely useful for a quick getaway.
A rebreather equipment piece prevents oxygen drain while swimming around the island. Traversing underwater can also help avoid combat until you secure the goods.
2. Ashika Island Intel
For the second piece, you‘ll be delving into a cave system along Ashika Island‘s northeast cliffs around coordinate F6.
Cave entrance housing Ashika Island intel [via CharlieIntel]
Head inside the cave and you‘ll need to descend deeper through an underwater portion by riding a zipline down. This leads to an underground waterway.
Near a dead drop point in a shipping container, you‘ll find the Ashika Island intel waiting to be picked up. Grab it and look to safely extract once more.
Having a weapon with a flashlight attachment helps navigate the dark cave. Be ready for CQC engagements with enemies in the tight spaces within.
3. Crown Intel
For the final piece of intel, you‘ll be infiltrating the power plant in northwest Al Mazrah, northeast of the Town Center at coordinate F4.
Crown intel visible on floor [via CharlieIntel]
Head into the power plant interior and enter the control room. On the floor lies the Crown intel, free for the taking. Snag it and look to successfully extract from Al Mazrah to complete the trifecta.
Be extremely cautious around the power plant, as Crown forces actively defend the location. Stealthy infiltration and quick, quiet elimination of any hostiles is key.
With all three pieces of Ashika Island intel in hand, you‘ll unlock access to various new content and story developments in DMZ missions this season.
Unlocking New Missions
Extracting each piece of intel doesn‘t just grant XP. It also enables new activities and areas to explore:
- Shadow Company USB unlocks their new Strongholds
- Ashika Intel provides access to fresh DMZ missions
- Crown Intel allows raiding Crown bases
This intel opens up new ways to put your operator skills to the test against lethal AI foes. Take them on to also reveal more of the tapestry of factions, alliances, and feuds within DMZ‘s complex narrative web.
Gearing Up for Intel Extraction
Taking on elite AI enemies in restricted areas to secure rare intel is no easy task. Making sure your loadout and strategy is dialed in is key.
Weapons: Pack a suppressed sniper or DMR for ranged threat removal and an SMG or shotgun for close engagements. The Victus XMR and Lachmann Sub are ideal.
Equipment: Flashbangs, stuns, and thermite slow enemies while you grab objectives. Insertion helicopters provide rapid map traversal.
Perks: Double Time, Spotter, Cold-Blooded, and Tracker help evasion and reconnaissance.
Approach: Use cover and crouch walk rather than sprinting across open ground. Flank and ambush when possible rather than full frontals.
Securing a vehicle for quick extractions is highly recommended. Having teammates watch your back helps tremendously as well.
The risks are great, but the rewards make braving the deadliest zones worth it. Get in there and get your hands on that intel, Operators.
DMZ Continues to Evolve Warzone 2
DMZ provides pulse-pounding gameplay against lethal AI enemies in a way no other Warzone 2 mode can offer. The new additions in Season 2 give veterans and newcomers alike plenty of reasons to drop in.
Learning to track down exclusive intel unlocks gameplay opportunities beyond just earning XP. The narrative implications of your discoveries help motivate operators through each match.
This guide just scratches the surface of everything DMZ has to offer. We‘ll be sure to keep readers updated on the latest intel missions, loot upgrades, meta tactics, and more here as Warzone 2 continues to evolve. See you in the dead zone!
