Clever Vanguard trick brings back lethal Bouncing Betties

Liam Mackay
Bouncing betty in call of duty vanguard shipment

Call of Duty: Vanguard doesn’t feature any explosive mines such as lethal Bouncing Betties or Claymores, but some clever players have figured out how to make one.

Long-time Call of Duty fans will remember what it felt like to be hit in the face with World at War’s Bouncing Betties, and the early days of Modern Warfare (2019) were plagued Claymores guarding every door.

The S-Mine, or Bouncing Betty, has returned in Vanguard, but falls into the Tactical Equipment slot and is non-lethal, stunning your enemy and dealing around 20 damage.

However, a clever trick allows you to turn the Stun Mine into a lethal Bouncing Betty.

How to make lethal Bouncing Betties in Vanguard

C4 and S-Mine Bouncing Betty in Vanguard

Like a MacGyver of the battlefield, Reddit user Samsung_Castellanos figured out that placing a Demolition Charge (C4) next to your S-Mine 44 Tactical Equipment will create a Bouncing Betty that will “kill anyone, even with Fortified and they’re crouching.”

The S-Mine will trigger the C4, creating the perfect improvised explosive. Here’s exactly how to build a “Psuedo-Claymore” in CoD Vanguard:

  1. Equip both the Demolition Charge and S-Mine 44
  2. Find a spot enemies are likely to pass through
  3. Plant the S-Mine and Demolition Charge beside each other
  4. Wait for an enemy to approach and meet an explosive end

You can also use your own Supply Box and S-Mine together, but the OP advises players not to place the Supply Box directly on the mine as “you will explode.” But it needs to be your own C4 or Box, as the S-Mine won’t trigger an ally’s explosives.

Another user confirmed the pseudo-Claymore’s effectiveness, saying “I’ve been using this since I had those unlocked to make spawn rushers rage in Das Haus and other small maps.”

The only issue here is that you’ll be using both your Tactical and Lethal Equipment at once, but with the chaos of Das Haus, and especially Shipment, you’ll likely be able to take out several enemies at the same time.


For more clever Vanguard tricks, you can check out how to get around the broken Automaton Camo challenge.

Image Credit: Sledgehammer Games / Activision

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About The Author

Liam is CharlieIntel's Editor who focuses on Call of Duty but also plays lots of fantasy RPGs or anything else in his massive gaming backlog. After graduating in Journalism from Edinburgh Napier University, Liam freelanced in games journalism before joining CharlieIntel in November 2020. You can contact Liam at [email protected].