In Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4’s DMZ, being downed doesn’t necessarily end your run (new to the mode? see how DMZ works). The Tourniquet ability comes with every operator at deployment, so there’s no need to loot one or sacrifice backpack space for it. You can activate it more than once in a match, too. What matters is the effect it has on your health afterward and the item needed to restore it.
Quick answer: Use the Tourniquet to get up. You are now wounded at 100 health. Use a Medkit to repair the wound and recharge the Tourniquet. Bandages, stims and painkillers don’t recharge it.
Infinity Ward was asked whether operators would be limited to one self-revive. It said that “every operator deploys with the Tourniquet ability” and that players “can also loot and print Self Revives.”
The Tourniquet cycle: Down, wounded, repaired
The Tourniquet works as a loop. Each time you use it, you have to repair your wound before you can use it again. Here is how the loop runs.
That means a single match can include several Tourniquet uses, one for each wound a Medkit repairs.
Medkit vs. Bandages, stims and painkillers
Several healing items can lift you back to 150 health while you are wounded. Only a Medkit repairs the wound itself.
| Item | Effect when wounded | Restores Tourniquet? |
|---|---|---|
| Medkit | Fully repairs the wound | Yes |
| Bandage | Temporary 150 health | No |
| Stims | Temporary 150 health | No |
| Painkillers | Temporary 150 health | No |
The Bandage’s in-game text describes it plainly: “Temporarily restores max health when wounded.” That extra health wears off. Bandages, stims and painkillers are useful for getting through a fight that’s already happening, but they don’t reset anything.
Bandages, stims, or painkillers leave you on temporary health, during which the Tourniquet is locked. Should you be downed again before a Medkit heals the wound, the Tourniquet won’t let you rise.
Self-Revive Kits as a backup
The Tourniquet isn’t your only way back up. Self-Revive Kits are a separate item, and they are worth carrying for moments when the Tourniquet isn’t available. For example, you might go down again while you’re still on temporary health from a Bandage.
You can get Medkits, Bandages and Self-Revive Kits in two ways:
- Search containers and the bodies of fallen enemies in Hajin to find them.
- Use the FOB’s 3D Printer and select CONSUMABLES to make them.
The 3D Printer’s CONSUMABLES list includes MEDKIT, BANDAGE, PAIN KILLERS and SELF-REVIVE KIT, along with items such as ENERGY DRINK, SEDATIVE INHALER, RADIATION BLOCKERS and SMELLING SALTS. Each recipe lists the materials it needs. The BANDAGE is an UNCOMMON consumable, and its recipe calls for Synthetics and Chemicals.
When you print, you choose either PRINT TO OPERATOR or PRINT TO STASH. If you’re missing parts, TRACK RECIPE pins the recipe so you can look for its materials.
Metabolism trait and the Tourniquet
One trait changes how the wound plays out. METABOLISM, in the Survivalist tree, reads “Slowly regenerate health lost via tourniquet.” It gives you a way to win back health lost to the wound without using a healing item. The other traits are covered in our DMZ operators and traits guide.
