Band Of Brilliance

Call Of Duty : Modern Warfare 2

Estate is influenced by Loose Ends and Estate Takedownfrom single-player and Spec-Ops. The house, set atop the hill, is a very influential point during games, as it offers views over most of the map, as well as containing several objectives.

At the bottom of the hill, there are several other buildings, often only used in Domination or Headquarters Pro games as players tend to gravitate towards the house and surrounding high ground. One of these buildings has a roof which can be accessed, as well as the top of the power lines at the far corner. The roof of the boathouse can be accessed as well, which is often used to defend the B objective in S&D/Demolition.

During the start of the game, players who spawn on top of the hill can shoot others coming up the steep hill, giving an advantage early on. Depending on what game mode is being played, the lodge is the main area of battle. Most players/teams will try to secure and hold this mansion for as long as possible, offering great tactical battles and long range rifle or sniping team play. The mansion offers the high ground and a great overview of most of the map; however there are multiple entrance points leaving the defenders open to attack. This map is similar to Afghan in which the map is structured to reward the player(s) that take patient advantage of the best over-watch positions and wait for their opponent to dart from their cover.

The use of the claymore becomes apparent early on in matches, as those who have decided to take refuge in the lodge will litter the entrances with mines. These obviously can be countered with SitRep and can be taken out by many different means, but in doing so this will alert the opponent.

Most buildings in the map are made of wood, this weapons having FMJ attached can make easy work of players taking cover in their buildings that they are camping in, and can assist in gaining extended magazines for the desired weapon. Due to the size of the map, running around aimlessly can make easy targets for snipers or over-watch classes, it is worth noting the amount of cover scattered around the map, including brick walls, when running from one side of the map to the other.

Sniping is extremely popular on this map and can prove to be the winning formula, if the snipers are protected by their team mates. Classes set up for the map usually include the perks Scavenger or One Man Army to replenish their claymore mines. A commonly used spot for sniping is inside the lodge, at the top of the stairs stood to the right, on the banister looking out to the north of the map. This is a better spot than just standing by the windows and looking out onto the ground below as players who stand their can be picked off by enemy snipers or recon units below. Players sniping on this spot may be using a Claymore situated just outside the toilet leading outside to the back of the lodge. This spot can be seen in the attic section of the snowmobile garage in the middle of the map. Another popular sniping spot inside the lodge is in the main bedroom overlooking the boathouse to the south east, snipers can stand well inside the room without being spotted.

Another popular position is on the hill opposite the mansion to the east of the map overlooking the drive way. When prone lying in the shrubs, a sniper combined with a ghillie suit and Cold-Blooded can be almost invisible, however this position is extremely vulnerable to any opponents advancing from the south east next from the boat house or from the north east, coming up the hill. The boathouse is a good place to snipe people in the house or on the decking overlooking the main road, however this leaves the sniper exposed.

Due to the large size of the map it is easy to be out flanked when staying in one area, so it is advised if sniping, to re-locate after gaining one or two kills or to use claymores. One spot which snipers can forget about is a small window above the lobby area in the lodge. If opponents run around the house opposite the greenhouse, they can climb up onto a set of logs and have a clear view of the lobby, however this spot leaves the attacker vulnerable.

Trivia

The house is almost exactly the same as in Loose Ends except that there is a kitchen, the basement is a 'mancave,' and the entire house is generally cleared of the tables and plants, and the second floor's layout is changed slightly.
Another fake movie poster has the emblem for completing the "Slasher" challenge with the heading "Evil Cow".
An American flag is flying at the top of the Estate, which is strange as the campaign mission takes place in Russia.
In the basement of the main house, amidst the movie posters and other things, there is a dutch wife stuffed in the little area above the couch along with a teddy bear.
The estate is full of pictures of William Henry Harrison, the 9th President of the United States (1841). He is known for little other than being the first US president to die in office and having the shortest term of any US president ever. A picture of George Washington can also be found upstairs.

The cars license plates are 2009IW4, A reference to Infinity Ward and the year Modern Warfare 2 was released. The 4 may stand for the fact that Modern Warfare 2 was the fourth game in the Call of Duty series that Infinity Ward developed.
There is a Zodiac near the boat house.
Outside the mansion there is a white truck, and the license plate is in Cyrillic. Infinity Ward most likely reused the trucks from Loose Ends.
On the path up to the greenhouse the player can get stuck in between the fence and the hill if running down.
In the bathroom, if the player jumps on the toilet and looks in the alcove on the other side, one can see a hula doll squeezed in.
This is the only map to feature a red car.
The boots next to the plant are very similar to Shepherd's boots.
The New York license plates on the cars must have been reused from a map that was cut out of production, as there are no New York settings featured in the game, except for the map Highrise.
In the kitchen there are two watermelons, a reference to the watermelons from FNG. If shot or stabbed, the watermelon will explode, sending pieces of it all over the room.
In the upstairs bedroom there is a laptop with the same design used in Headquarters Pro.`
The names Vince Zampella and Jason West can be seen, in very small print, at the bottom of all the movie posters.
In the garage type building which is a popular camping spot for Snipers, there are two platforms. If one plants a Tactical Insertion on the second platform (furthest away from the house) the Tactical Insertion will be planted over the wood planks on the first platform.
All the movie posters have the Infinity Ward logo without the "Infinity Ward" text in it.
In the building with the Snowmobile, there is a picture of a tree. If one stands directly next to the wall and looks at it, the player can see that it is floating off the wall.
The middle windows in the Vioxys (Chevy Suburban or Cadillac Escalade) scattered around the map will always stay fixed when the car explodes. This can be seen when you shoot out ALL of the windows including the middle one and blow up the car the middle window will appear to be fixed.
There is a similar map to estate in Call of Duty: Black Ops called Villa.