How to unlock Black Ops ‘Icons’ characters in Blackout – Reznov, Mason, Woods, and Menendez

In addition to the host of other changes that came with the November 13 Black Ops 4 update, Blackout players now have new character missions to tackle.

Character missions task players with exploring Blackout’s map in search of special items that will eventually unlock exclusive character skins for the game mode.

The challenges for the Multiplayer Specialist were included with the game’s release, while the Zombies characters from both the Voyage of Despair and IX maps were included in the November 6 update.

The newest characters to unlock for Blackout are various ‘Icons’ who have played a major role in the Call of Duty franchise over the years.

All the requirements to unlock each of these four special characters can be found below.

The ‘Icons’ challenges are some of the hardest Black Ops 4 has offered so far.

Reznov

The road to unlocking Reznov begins with a trip to the Estates to locate the Russian’s trademark hat, called the “Ushanka Hat” in-game.

Once you pick up the hat, you must kill an enemy at “extreme range.” While no specific range was given in the challenge, many players have discovered that anything over 200 meters seems to do the trick.

After securing your kill, you must finish the match with the hat in your inventory while finishing in the Top 5 for Solos, Top 3 for Duos, and Top 2 for Quads.

Mason 

To start this challenge, you’ll need to first make your way to a Supply Drop in search for the “Stained White T-Shirt” item. 

The next part starts off as a bit of a mystery as players are asked to “Wake the Sleeper Agent.” You’ll have to head to Array and activate the Emergency Broadcast button located in the Radio Tower to complete this portion of the challenge.  

After waking the Sleeper Agent, you’ve got to hold onto the Stained White T-Shirt and then finish in the Top 3 for Solos, Top 2 for Duos, and secure a win in Quads to unlock the character.

Unlocking Woods will require tracking down a helicopter and going for a ride.

Woods

Woods’ character mission involves a bit of nostalgia as players will need to find the “Woods’ Bandana” item that’s located in the original Black Ops helicopter spawn to the north of the Firing Range.

Once you have the bandana, you’ll need to hop inside the helicopter and fly in it for at least 30 seconds to a minute to complete the second portion of the challenge.

After that’s complete, you have to win your match with the bandana in your inventory and Woods’ challenge will be complete.

Menendez

To unlock the main antagonist from Black Ops 2, you must first head to a Supply Drop to find the “Locket” item. 

With the locket in tow, you’ll then need to kill an enemy with both a shotgun and a melee attack, which could prove to be a bit tough. As with the Bruno challenge, we recommend finding the Brawler perk for the melee portion of this one.

At that point, you’ll simply need to finish the match with no specific placing while the locket is in your inventory and the final ‘Icons’ character will be yours.

For in-depth guides on everything in Black Ops 4’s Multiplayer and Blackout modes, visit our extensive guide hub here.