There is more to the Black Ops Cold War patch released on 6th December than just preparing for COD Vanguard, however, as Treyarch also made weapon balance changes, updated the Prestige item shop, unlocked challenges from all previous seasons, and much more.
Black Ops Cold War 6th December patch notes
As per an official post by Treyarch, the Black Ops Cold War 6th December patch notes are quite big.
There are some balance changes, fixes and changes to Zombies, and as mentioned, several changes and additions to the Prestige system.

Take a look at all the changes in the Black Ops Cold War 6th December patch notes below, starting with some good news about Season Challenges.
Season Challenges
All previous Black Ops Cold War Season Challenges will be revealed and can be progressed by players who hadn’t revealed them over the course of previous seasons. Legacy Season Challenges can continue to be progressed in Black Ops Cold War.
Starting with Season One, players can access and progress new Multiplayer Season Challenges in Vanguard and Warzone, as well as Zombies Season Challenges in Vanguard.
Weapon Unlock Challenges
.410 Ironhide:
- Weapon unlock challenge added to Multiplayer and Zombies for the .410 Ironhide Shotgun.
Grav:
- Weapon unlock challenge added to Multiplayer and Zombies for the Grav Assault Rifle.
Weapon balance changes (6 December)

Marshal:
- Reduced Damage Range from 3.81m to 3.68m.
- Increased Damage drop-off when fired beyond 3.68m.
Dragon’s Breath Attachment:
- Now has a -5% effect on Fire Rate.
- Increased Damage Range penalty from -25% to -35%.
- Reduced Damage bonus from +17% to +16%.
12.1″ Extended Barrel - Reduced Damage Range bonus from +20% to +15%.
Lobby update:
- Updated Lobby theming in Multiplayer and Zombies.
Zombies changes & fixes

- Closed an exploit during the Main Quest boss fight.
- Added “Not Enough Essence” prompt to the Arcade Token dispenser when the player does not have enough Essence to purchase a token.
- Addressed an issue where a texture was not appearing correctly after melting the door during the Main Quest.
- Enemies killed by Brain Rot zombies will now contribute toward the Dragon Relic World Event.
- Added Onslaught Containment and Onslaught Deprogram to offline Local play.
Stability - Fixed stability issues related to the Arsenal.
So there you have it, the changes and fixes in the latest Black Ops Cold War update preparing for the release of COD Vanguard Season 1. Learn more about the updated Prestige system and progress sync in the article linked below.
Check out our dedicated Call of Duty section for more featured guides, best loadouts, weapon tier lists and much more.
Featured image courtesy of Activision.