Best Holger 556 loadout and class build for Warzone and MW3
How build another blast from the past with the 2023 rendition of the classic G36C in MW3.
The Holger 556 in Warzone and Modern Warfare 3 is one of the new assault rifles that can be earned by levelling up.
As many players will no doubt call out, the Holger 556 is essentially the G36C, first seen in Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, and here in Modern Warfare 3 it has many similarities, most prominently in its design, but also functionally with its similar iron sights and overall feel.
Out of the MW3 full-auto assault rifles on offer, it has the lowest rate of fire – making it easier to control – and it also has the highest damage of the bunch too, a likely reason why it has become a gun slowly making the rounds in the current meta.
In this guide, we'll be running through how to unlock the Holger 556 in Warzone and Modern Warfare 3, as well as the best attachments to unlock and equip, as well as the best class build and perks to complement the gun.
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Warzone and MW3 Holger 556 best loadout and attachments
Honouring its past as the G36C – a relatively iconic weapon in the original Modern Warfare games – we'll be picking attachments that liken back to a popular setup in those older games.
Unlike those older titles however, there are of course more attachment slots to use in Modern Warfare 3, so on top of the red dot sight and suppressor combo we'll be going with, there are a couple of extra additions that'll give this weapon a boost in various ways.
On the whole, it's a build that's likely to be quite the popular pick, especially this time around where – just like in older COD games – suppressed weapon fire doesn't show up on the minimap, returning suppressors as a rather meta option in player's loadouts.
Before diving into all the specifics for what each attachment brings, here's a high-level look at the five attachments we're recommending you pick for the Holger 556:
- Optic: Slimline Pro, Cronen Mini Dot, or Cronen Mini Pro
- Muzzle: Shadowstrike Suppressor or Sonic Suppressor
- Underbarrel: SL Skeletal Vertical Grip
- Stock: RB Addle Assault Stock
- Ammunition: 5.56 NATO High Grain Rounds or 5.56 Overpressured +P
Generally, the attachments above primarily provide benefits with very few negatives what with the Holger 556 already being a strong gun as is – before I got to customising it, I was surprised by how the gun felt pretty accurate and powerful, particularly at close-medium range.
The build is essentially just trying to make the gun more accessible and give it a bit of a boost for some increased stats and reliability.
When it comes to optics, we recommended three different options purely for your preference – they all have the same stats, but each one is a different colour. So whilst the red-dot Slimline Pro is the most traditional, there's also the Cronen Mini Dot if you'd prefer a green dot, or the Cronen Mini Pro if you'd prefer blue.
The other half of the core equation here is the suppressor in the muzzle slot – we're going with the Shadowstrike Suppressor which will net you that coveted 'Undetectable by Radar' buff, all without any tradeoffs.
That said, it is also the only positive about this suppressor, and so if you'd like something a bit more powerful – and don't mind a couple of tradeoffs – the Sonic Suppressor is a good alternate choice, adding some extra bullet velocity and damage range, with only a few dropoffs to aim-walking steadiness, recoil control, and sprint-to-fire speed.
For the third attachment, to provide some extra stability when in gunfights and trying to land hits on enemies that are further away, the SL Skeletal Vertical Grip in the underbarrel slot is a great choice.
There's some drawbacks to hipfire and Tac Stance attacks, as well as slightly increase horizontal recoil, but to offset that, you're getting a quicker ADS and sprint-to-fire time, with less vertical recoil and greater gun kick control. It's a nice combo that'll give you faster reactions and better accuracy, which should help when trying to keep a low profile.
As for the fourth attachment, we're recommending the RB Addle Assault Stock which, simply put, is pretty much entirely focused on delivering greater recoil control thanks to its direct buffs to that stat, along with gun kick control.
It does create a slightly extended ADS speed, but looking at the detailed stats screen, we can see that ADS speed is going from 244ms to 256ms, a 4.9% increase that'll more than likely barely be noticeable to most, all whilst you're getting some solid buffs to the recoil control stats.
Finally, with the last attachment, there are once again a couple of options depending on what you prefer.
Acting as the cherry on top for this build, picking either 5.56 NATO High Grain Rounds, or 5.56 Overpressured +P is a solid last attachment recommendation.
The former of the two focuses primarily on providing extra damage in the form of increased bullet velocity and damage range – specifically, it's a 15% boost to all three of the range stats, with a few decreases to overall recoil control, primarily leading to more vetical recoil that generally should be offset somewhat by the other attachments mentioned.
If that's not to your liking, the latter of the two comes with no negatives and only an 80% boost to enemy target flinch, a stat increase that - statistically speaking in terms of flinch - nearly puts it on the level of weapons like shotguns and snipers, making it a good competitive weapon that should help you win more one-on-one gunfights.
Overall, we've not been too risky with the attachments we've recommended purely for the fact that the Holger 556 is a solid weapon by itself without any attachments. Of course, you're still free to mix and match and swap different components out if you'd rather take a slightly different approach.
Warzone and MW3 Holger 556 best class build, vest, perks, gear, and equipment
With going for a stealthy approach to the gun build in terms of attachments, we're carrying that thinking over to the perks and gear we'll be recommending to complement this weapon.
There are a couple of methods we can use to create an enhanced class build with this gun in mind however, and so we're listing two alternate approaches, both with stealth play in mind, but one focused more on reconnaissance with some support elements, whilst the other is more about mobility.
First, we'll start with the reconnaissance build we're suggesting for use with the Holger 556, led by the CCT Comms Vest:
CCT Comms Vest Loadout
- Vest: CCT Comms Vest
- Perk 1 - Gloves: Scavenger Gloves or Commando Gloves
- Perk 2 - Boots: Covert Sneakers
- Perk 3 - Gear: Ghost T/V Camo
- Perk 4 - Gear: Mission Control Comlink
- Secondary: Renetti or WSP Stinger
- Field Upgrade: Portable Radar
By picking the CCT Comms Vest, you'll unlock an additional 'Gear' perk slot, with some reconnaissance bonuses at the cost of losing your Tactical and Lethal equipment slots.
The vest in particular increases the duration of which enemies will stay on the radar, zooms out the radar for you and any nearby allies, and you get the benefits of a slightly-modified version of the Data Jacker perk – this means you'll generate a radar ping when collecting a intel pack that enemies drop when killed.
For your first perk choice, it's down to your preference - you could take either the Scavenger Gloves (replenish ammo from defeated enemies) or Commando Gloves (reload whilst sprinting), as well as the Covert Sneakers in the second perk slot that'll eliminate your footstep sounds.
In the now-doubled-up Gear perk slots, you can take Ghost T/V Camo to hide yourself from enemy UAV and radar scans whilst moving, as well as Mission Control Comlink so you'll be able to earn your kill/scorestreaks 1 kill/125 score earlier.
As for your secondary, taking a silenced Renetti or WSP Stinger isn't a bad shout, and can act as a strong backup for more stealth takedowns. Including the Portable Radar as your Field Upgrade is a good shout too, since you'll be able to have a persistent radar ping separate from that of the CCT Comms Vest's ability, furthering the recon/support-based role this class will provide.
Moving on, let's discuss another approach you could opt for use with the Holger 556, picking the Infantry Vest instead of the CCT Comms Vest to unlock more of a mobile and traditional COD-style loadout – that is as follows:
Infantry Vest Loadout
- Vest: Infantry Vest
- Perk 1 - Gloves: Scavenger Gloves or Commando Gloves
- Perk 2 - Boots: Lightweight Boots
- Perk 3 - Gear: Data Jacker or Mission Control Comlink
- Secondary: Renetti or WSP Stinger
- Field Upgrade: Dead Silence
- Lethal: Throwing Knife or Player Preference
- Tactical: Stun or Flash Grenade
The setup here is fairly similar to that of the CCT Comms Vest, but with some alternate methods to find a middle ground where you can retain some benefits of the previous loadout, whilst making the most of what the Infantry Vest approach has to offer.
First up, the Infantry Vest itself will provide an increased duration to your Tactical Sprint, as well as a faster recharge time, and give you all the bells and whistles you've come to expect from a tradtional Call of Duty loadout.
As outlined above, Scavenger or Commando Gloves are good shouts here for perk 1, whilst Lightweight Boots will complement the existing mobility buff provided by the vest by granting you a increased base movement and swim speed.
Since you're not getting the same radar pings that the CCT Comms Vest provided, Data Jacker makes sense to include in the Gear perk slot, since it functions essentially the same way – eliminate an enemy, collect a smartphone they drop, get a radar ping. It's a solid perk for awareness of potential nearby enemies. Alternatively, you could stick to getting your killstreaks earlier with Mission Control Comlink.
In terms of Field Upgrade, whilst you could take the Portable Radar, if the general playstyle is more mobility-focused, unless you're moving round an area or holding down an objective, you might not find it has as much use. If you choose against picking it, Dead Silence will be handy here, particularly without the Covert Sneakers being equipped.
With this Field Upgrade, you'll temporarily gain the effects of the Ghost T/V Camo and Covert Sneaker boots, giving you a window of true stealth with this approach. It's also worth noting that whilst its only temporary, any gun, melee, or throwing knife kill refreshes the timer's duration.
For the secondary weapon, the choice is yours, though we're sticking with the Renetti or WSP Stinger as mentioned in the first class build.
For Lethal and Tactical, generally you can pick whatever suits your playstyle best, but with the Dead Silence Field Upgrade in mind, taking a Throwing Knife in your Lethal slot is worth it just for the potential refresh of the ability's timer, and for Tactical, we're sticking with the usual Stun or Flash Grenade.
How you play and build your weapon and class is ultimately up to you, but above are two classes outlined for very specific playstyles that should give you some general pointers on how you could employ particular tactics and approaches in your own gameplay.
How to unlock the Holger 556 in Modern Warfare 3
To unlock the Holger 556 in Modern Warfare 3, all you need to do is play Multiplayer and reach player level 37.
You can earn XP through a variety of means, whether it's playing Multiplayer matches, completing challenges, or more, you'll eventually work your way through the ranks after enough playtime.
If you want to know how to reach this level quicker, be sure to check out our guide on how to level up fast.
Once you've reached level 37, you'll then be able to equip the Holger 556 into a custom loadout of your choosing, and then be able to level it up to start equipping it with attachments.
If you're on the hunt for more on Modern Warfare 3 and its Multiplayer, be sure to check out our other loadout guides for weapons such as Rival-9, AMR9, SVA 545, and many more including guns from MW2. Additionally, if you're curious to know what the current meta is, head on over to our best guns guide to learn more.