You've just racked up a perfect streak using the ballistic crossbow and knife, feeling totally in control. And then, suddenly, you get tapped by a tomahawk. Your score has been wiped. What happened to all the points you've earned in the last few moments? Gone. You can enjoy tomahawks and crossbows here, as well as buy bo7 bot lobby.

 I. Update context: Events and Double XP bo7 codes.

 Let's take a moment to set the scene before we get into the tactics so you can understand where Sticks and Stones sits within the Black Ops 7 eco-system.

 \ 1. Rally Point Event - Personal + Community Progress

 Rally Point has two levels:

 Personal missions

 You can progress up the classic ladder of missions:

 - Mission #1 - Win multi-player matches, exfiltrate in Zombies etc.

 - Mission 2 - Get eliminations

 - Mission 4 - Killstreaks (tricky for knife-only gamers)

 Mission 4: Unlocks following a delay of 23 hours

 - Mission 4 - Unlocks 1 day, 23 hours later (likely related to the Crossbow unlock).

 Community missions

 Example: The entire player base has to reach 500,000,000 score in order to unlock the calling card.

 This means that even if your only intention is to have fun, you can still make a contribution to global progress.

 Why this design is smart?

 Sticks and Stones is a great way to have fun without having to play Ranked every day. Sticks and Stones allows you to play around with the game whenever you want.

 - Still push your personal event track

 You can still unlock rewards by helping the community.

 Enjoy being casual while also being useful.

 \ 2. Double XP... Once More: Third weekend before month one

 It's only been a month since the game was released and already we are on our third double XP weekends. It's an aggressive pace for progression support.

 If you are trying to level out:

 Ballistic knife

 Future crossbow

 Just your overall level

 Sticks and Stones has a good XP farming system:

 Everyone is forced to the same weapons sandbox

 The mid-range heavyweights are always in the fight

 Your ego and progression are both fed by every skewer and blade kill

 You can also practice more freely because the party mode is less intense than Ranked.

 \ II. How Sticks and Stones Actually Work: Simple Rules and Complicated Mind Games

 The modes are simple: crossbows and ballistic knives. Tomahawks or melee knives may also be included. That's it.

 In reality the humiliation mechanism and scoring model creates a different meta than normal modes. If you don’t understand the meta, you’ll wonder why you keep losing games even when you have more kills.

 1. Weapons and Roles - It's More Than Just Damage

 What are the roles of each tool?

 You need to be able to recognize two things:

 1. Knife kills are usually less expensive than clean skewers. However, they are also safer

 2. Tomahawk isn't a weapon that can cause damage. It's an offensive weapon.

 You don't just get a kill by hitting someone with the gun.

 You are erasing your investment in their match

 It's not just about getting kills, but:

 You can build a safe scoring lead using a crossbow + ballistic knives, while minimizing the risk of getting a tomahawk in your face.

 \ 2. Humiliation Mechanism: Why Everyone Plays a Different Game in the Last 30 Secs

 Sticks and Stones' soul is humiliation.

 When you are hit by a tomahawk:

 - You die

 - You score is reset at zero (the classic feeling of being bankrupt, even though the word is not used anymore on screen)

 This mechanic changes the way players behave in a match, particularly towards the end.

 You'll see a distinct flow:

 Early game: everyone rushes to the field, rushing around and taking wild fights.

 Mid-game - Players who've found a rhythm and their aim start building meaningful lead

 Late game (particularly last 30-60 seconds of the game)

 Top players suddenly show caution

 Players in the middle get desperate and hunt tomahawk hits

 If you find yourself getting tomahawked last-minute, there are several reasons why:

 1. You're still racing like the game is just beginning - you're sprinting, checking your face at tight corners and navigating narrow lanes.

 2. You still haven't internalized the fact that everyone in front of you is now motivated to play like an axe-wielding lunatic.

 This isn't a test of pure aim. It's an online risk management game with a party mode.

 \ III. Playing Smart: Get More Resets and Score High

 Now let's get to the practical side of things. This section is for anyone who feels like they're a magnet for tomahawks.

 \ 1. Score Strategy: Use Knives & Crossbows as Your Income

 You can think of your loadout as an investment.

 Your scoring priorities will look like this:

 1. Early Game - Build your base using a ballistic blade + crossbow

 Use a ballistic blade as your primary weapon:

 - Easy to use, fast and reliable chain kills

 Use crossbow to:

 - Long/medium lanes with pre-aim

 Chokepoints are places where enemies come into your viewline.

 2. Tomahawk- treat it like a button for a crash in the stock market

 - Do NOT throw it away randomly when you first spawn

 Save it for :

 Clear shots on players that you know to be high up on the leaderboard

 - Moves predictable: Windows, doorways, obvious peeks

 3. Melee Knife - Your Insurance Policy

 Use it when:

 You miss the ballistic shot when you are in close quarters

 Both of you are dancing around one another in panic mode

 Do not rely on the score engine as your main scoring tool. It is there to stabilize and not carry.

 A useful mental check:

 If your aim with the knife or crossbow is not steady, and you find yourself leaning too much on tomahawks to compensate, you are gambling rather than playing to win.

 First, fix the basics (positioning and ballistic aim), then add tomahawks over top as a finishing weapon.

 \ 2. Movement and Tempo: When to Slowdown

 Sticks and Stones are usually lost by players for one reason.

 The gameplan is the same whether they win or lose.

 Mentally divide your match into 3 phases.

 If you're in the lead near the end

 Avoid cramped interiors, stairwells and corridors that are crowded.

 Choose mid-range models where:

 - Ballistic Knife still works

 Tomahawks are harder to hit with a good clean blow

 If you are late:

 Then, being safe means losing.

 You are better off:

 - Tomahawks are used to humiliate and kill people.

 - Farming random low-score players is not as effective as targeting top players.

 There's an interesting psychological trick at play here.

 Restraint can win you games when you're leading.

 Restraint will only make you lose out on time when you're in a hurry.

 \ 3. Mental Game Accept that This Mode Isn't Fair

 You will be miserable if Sticks and Stones is treated like a ranked Search & Destroy.

 This mode was designed to:

 High variance

 Emotionally volatile

 It is sometimes unfair

 You will have the opportunity to experience:

 Tomahawks that look like they curve around corners

 The shots that should have hit, but somehow don't.

 Multiple humiliations by the same player, who appears to have a radar on your existence

 You will lose quickly if you are expecting fairness.

 The same event can be made funny instead of frightening if you are expecting stupid swings or deaths.

 Imagine this:

 Sticks and Stones does not aim to protect your ego. It's all about finding out what happens if you combine fragile pride with dangerous toys into a small, tightly-closed box.

 When you accept this, you will:

 When you humiliate yourself, laugh more

 Take your own lucky Tomahawk Hits and enjoy them infinitely more

 Playing more loosely can make you perform better

 \ IV. Design Review: Fun as Hell, But Missing Long-Term Hooks

 Is it fun to play? Sticks and Stones, Black Ops 7’s Sticks and Stones, is an excellent game. It’s fast, intense, and great for highlight reels.

 However, from the perspective of systems and long-term sustainability, there is room for improvement.

 \ 1. What It Does Well

 A few things stand out in particular as being strong points.

 Low entry bar

 - Rules are easy to understand for new players in less than a minute

 Emotional spikes are easily removed

 - Long-range skewers

 - Tomahawk surprise humiliations

 - Near miss projectiles fly past your heads

 Content goldmine

 - Voice Chat reactions

 Comeback stories

 Bank shots are not likely to occur

 This mode will feed your hard disk if it's a creator of content or if someone likes to save clips.

 \ 2. Where It Feels Slim

 It is true that there are some shortcomings, but they can be seen as part of a larger product and not just a single-off minigame.

 1. Short-term rewards that are specific to a particular mode

 Sticks and Stones is the most popular game played today.

 To mess around

 Warming up is the goal

 To laugh at yourself

 There are no:

 - Camos specific to a particular mode

 - Unique calling cards or emblems

 - Finishing movements themed around humiliation and bankruptcy

 2. Not viewed as a stable, featured environment

 It isn't always in the featured playlist rotation

 Lobbies don't always persist, so:

 - Building rivalries is more difficult

 There are fewer opportunities to have multi-game voicechat drama

 3. Presentation is inferior to the classics

 Some older titles, like BO1/BO2, had the iconic bankrupt sound.

 But you'll still receive a tag that says "Humiliation"

 - The audiovisual punch has a softer impact

 It's not the same.

 Feedback should be more like a gut punch, in a positive way.

 \ 3. How I Would Improve it As A Long-Term Mode

 Sticks and Stones can be viewed as much more than a party gimmick.

 From a player-with-some-design-brain perspective, this mode is too emotionally rich to remain just an occasional side dish. It should have a reward system for those who are persistent.

 FAQ

 Q1: Can you practice your ballistic knife using sticks and stones?

 I would like to thank you for your time.

 Because:

 1. This mode forces you to engage in close-range and mid-range combat, which is ideal for using a ballistic knife.

 2. Standard mode gives you fewer ballistic reps than the standard version.

 3. All of us use similar tools.

 - You'll be able see whether your difficulties are due to movement, mechanics or positioning.

 - Meta ARs will not delete you while trying to use a knife.

 When you switch to regular mode, you will immediately feel the difference.

 Q2: Tomahawks keep humiliating me. How do I stop walking resets?

 Three steps will help you troubleshoot the problem:

 1. Map routes: Are you avoiding narrow hallways, stairs, and door frames on the map? Tomahawk hot spots are those areas.

 2. Game phase awareness. Do you continue to challenge yourself in the final minutes when you're at the top of your scoreboard? Leading players must be more cautious than reckless.

 3. Players awareness - Are you aware who the axe demon in each room is?

 - Identify the early signs

 Respect the line of sight

 When you have a high score, don't show them your clean angles

 Your humiliation rate will drop dramatically if you just fix these three items.

 Q3: Can KD and stat-focused players benefit from this mode?

 It's not that bad.

 Sticks and Stones (also known as:

 Volatile

 Messy

 Fills the game with deaths that aren't available in normal modes

 You'll die to:

 Weird ricochets

 Panic knife duels

 Random explosions

 Tomahawks that you haven't seen

 If KD mode is sacred to you then treat this mode like:

 - A mechanical playground (for ballistic blade and crossbow).

 Exercises to improve tilt-resistance

 You should not use it as your primary stat-padding platform.

 Q4 Should I play only tomahawk? Can I win with that style?

 You can choose to play only tomahawk but you must be honest with your goals.

 If you aim to win as much as possible, it is important that:

 - Tomahawks are inconsistent when played in pure form

 - Axes can be powerful, but they are also limited by

 - Travel time

 - Opportunities

 - Map geometry

 If you're looking to tilt people or create funny clips, this is the place for you.

 Tomahawk can only be incredible

 You'll be able to create some of saltiest death communications throughout the game

 My recommendation

 Tomahawk can be used as a high-impact tool for investment.

 Q5 How does the Sticks and Stones game compare to the BO1/BO2 version?

 What I see:

 The tension remains:

 You could be doing well and lose it all in one throw

 - Gunplay and movement is now smoother:

 Better Hit Registration

 - Fluid animations

 What's missing:

 The old-school drama surrounding COD Points

 - The unforgettable bankrupt screen and sound effects

 This Black Ops 7 edition feels like:

 This version is cleaner and more modern than the original, but it has less psychological and economic weight to it.

 Your wallet will thank you, but your pride will not.

 \ Wrap-Up

 For players who love knives, crossbows, and heart-attack-inducing finishes, Sticks and Stones in Black Ops 7 hits a very specific, very entertaining nerve.

 When the odds are in your favor, it's easy to chain beautiful skewers. You can humiliate greedy axe-pushers with axes and feel like a surgeon at the end of a match. When it fails, you end up eating three tomahawks, watching your score disappear multiple times and sitting in the killcam, thinking "No way, that hit me".

 This is the real appeal of fashion:

 The game tests not only your aim but also your risk management skills, timing and ability to laugh when your legs are kicked out from underneath you.

 Design-wise, it is already enjoyable and video-worthy. If it gets better long-term reward, a stronger humiliation display, and more consistent love for playlists, this crazy side mode could transform into the core of Black Ops 7 identity for melee- and party-game lovers.

 It's still the same as it was at its best.

 A high-pressure environment where a perfectly placed tomahawk could turn an entire lobby on its head.