Why Am I Unarmed in Warzone 2 DMZ? Loadouts Explained

There is nothing as confusing, and as scary, as launching into a Warzone 2 DMZ match completely unarmed. Since there is no initial explanation about practically anything in Warzone 2 DMZ including the contraband weapons, you might find yourself launching into Warzone 2 DMZ unarmed. Here is how to stop doing that.

Unarmed in Warzone 2 DMZ Explained

There is a perfectly normal reason for why you are entering Warzone 2 DMZ matches without any weapons. And that reason is because you didn’t select any weapons during the loadout phase.

Right before you get to matchmaking, you’ll have the opportunity to edit your loadout. This is the time to equip weapons, but it is a lot more complicated than it sounds.

The reason you are entering Warzone 2 DMZ matches unarmed is because you don’t have a weapon to equip. In DMZ, you start with one Insured Slot, which is your only surefire way to secure loading in with a weapon of your choice. However, each Insured Slot takes 120 real-time minutes to use again.

You can use a contraband weapon that you pulled out of any previous DMZ run, but if you don’t have any of those, it looks like you’ll be unarmed. But don’t lose hope; there is always an alternative. And no, I’m not talking about requesting to join an enemy’s squad.

Just before the matchmaking screen, you’ll be asked to edit your loadout. If you enter the loadout screen, you’ll see a “free weapons” toggle button. If you have the “free weapons” button on, you will never launch into Warzone 2 DMZ unarmed. So, even if you have weapons to start with, always keep “free weapons” on.

To recap, the only way to ensure never starting a DMZ match unarmed is to keep the “free weapons” switch on. Of course, you can still choose to pick your Insured Slot or a contraband weapon, but with “free weapons” on, you’ll get two random weapons to start a DMZ round.

The “free weapons” are never that great, but anything is better than unarmed. Now you can explore Al Mazrah and Storm the Stronghold at your leisure.

Call of Duty: Warzone 2 is available now for PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, and PC.