MW3 survival - cashing up

Ok. After some more gaming on Survival mode, some themes emerge.
1. Maximum $value from contracts
2. Minimum expenditure on armouries

Maximum $value from contracts
Just like Zombies, Survival is about cashing up early and using it later.

In zombies, cashing up  meant getting the maximum points per zombie in the early rounds, via M1911 bullets and slashes, and in later rounds you just empty all your ammo at the zombies.

In Survival, what counts are streaks within a round, either streaks of kills without being hit yourself, or rampages, knife streaks, headshot streaks, flashbang streaks and quadkills. This is a challenge in two-player co-op, as it would be in the best interests of both players to let one guy get all the kills each round in order to maximize the bonus points available.

Note that players can really co-operate via sharing $500 cash in-game.

Maybe in Co-op, players should take it in turns each round, but that depends on who has what 'contracts' each round. I think that the easiest contract is 'rampage' as all you need to do is round up the enemies like in zombies, then take them all out as fast as possible (e.g. with an MP9 as mentioned previously).

Early rounds
In the early rounds of zombies, you get more points from slashes and the zombies are easier.
In the early rounds of Survival, the enemies are relatively weak, carrying either a Model 1885 shotguns (Tier 1 and 2 maps) or MP5 (Tier 4 maps), and later you get suicide bombers.  This makes it easier to score slash kills - as in higher rounds it takes more than one slash to kill - and similar contracts. Having any gun better than an MP5 or AK47 is the way to get points here, as well as having armour to protect your killstreak.

Middle rounds
Before and after the enemies start to carry the ACR weapon, and the chemical warfare guys start to arrive. This is where air support  Delta teams and Sentry Guns help you get heaps of points via the 'killstreak' contract - just be sure to have some ARMOUR on you to protect your killstreak.

Later rounds
When the enemies are carrying the FAD gun, this is the later rounds and the enemies are more heavily armoured and take more bullets (and time) to finish.


Minimum expenditure on armouries.

It looks like a good idea to pick up enemy weapons and collect all the ammo that they drop; but instead, if you really want to use these dropped weapons, you should pick up just one weapon as soon as possible then head straight for the Weapons Armoury to buy an ammo refill for $750. This means that you get full ammo without having to buy the gun from the Weapons Armoury, and you'll have spares lying around the place to collect later.
I don't recommend this strategy as I doubt you can get ahead with it. First, it means that your weapons are 'behind' rather than more advanced than the enemies, which slows you down in-game. Second, the Model 1885 and MP5 reload is not a good thing, same the AK47, when trying to get a rampage or killstreak. Better to invest in good stuff early on, or at least cheap stuff for a round or two.

So, I recommend that you save $500 and buy a handgun at the end of Round 1, either as a second gun or to replace your existing pistol.
If you are carrying anything but the Five Seven or P99, I recommend buying and using either for just $250 as soon as the Weapons Armoury is available, which will come with full ammo. And if you are carrying one of these handguns, I recommend buying the other as your second weapon. The Five Seven has 20 rounds per clip and the P99 is just brilliant, both with quick reload time and good impact on the enemies, and remember: switching to your side arm is always faster than reloading. So, basically, I save cash by using two pistols in the first few rounds.
Also, with two pistols, it is cheaper to replace each empty handgun with a new pistol than to buy a refill - but by that point in time you probably have enough cash for something else anyway.

If at all possible, your next gun purchase should be an LMG, then perhaps get the grip and some sights on it. This will put you ahead of the enemies up to the later rounds, where you will probably be on 'equal' footing weapons-wise. The cost is $7k but is worth it: you get 100 ammo per clip with three spare clips, which really helps with the killstreaks and rampages, and full ammo for $750 is always a better bargain for 400 bullets than 200, right?

As mentioned, the MP9 has an awesome effect for rampages; well worth the $1500 but if buying a pistol helps me get an LMG, I prefer that first.

The other good gun seems to be the Type 95 - the last assault rifle unlocked in Survival mode. You can take out one Juggernaut with 1.3 clips from this gun, so get some scope to help you focus all the bullets from a distance. Then again, most assault rifles have a good impact on the juggernaut - somewhere between 1 and 2 clips does the trick, so go with what you prefer I guess.

I had thought that getting a sniper rifle early on is a good investment - and it still is, so long as you have a Killstreak contract and can maintain a long distance from the enemies, and in the early to middle rounds. Then again, a Delta team is about as good for getting the killstreak contracts on most maps.

This should minimise the costs per effective bullet - and by effective I mean effect on the enemies.

Sentry Guns: if you place them in a corner, face them at the 45 degree angle. You should switch to Sentry Guns (rather than Delta teams) at some point and try to place two sentry guns not far from each other - even facing the same general direction. Move your sentry guns out of the way of the AH6 minibird choppers (which shoot through windows to take out your sentry guns) and don't get too far from them if possible - the enemy will shoot at them.

Armour: buying armour protects your Killstreak contract. avoiding damage also protects your killstreak contract, but the armour is your 'insurance' on keeping the killstreak contract.

Self-Revive: not initial equipment in Tier 4 maps, maybe not helpful in the later Tier4map rounds either unless you can find a dog to shoot. Best thing to do with it is to learn how to avoid having to use it, so that you can save yourself and your teammate about $4000 points and the effort of trying to revive you in the later rounds.