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Main Quest · Buried

Mined Games

Buried’s "Mined Games" settles the Maxis-versus-Richtofen struggle that has run since TranZit. Building the Guillotine beside the Saloon commits the game to Richtofen; building the Gallows by the Courthouse commits it to Maxis — the two share parts, so each match picks exactly one master. Both sides then charge orbs, raise a lantern, punch a cipher’s mine signs and shepherd a wisp before the shared fountain finale pays out every perk; a crew that has completed all three Victis quests on one side can then press the courthouse button and end the story. Original difficulty only, and strictly co-op.

Difficulty: ExpertSpoilers: high
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Still from “Official Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 Video (Buried) - "Always Running"”
Buried · Treyarch via YouTubeOpen route diagram

Spoiler warning

This walkthrough reveals the map's finale. Continue only if you want to know how it ends.

Preparation

Before you start

Prerequisites

  • • Original difficulty
  • • Richtofen’s side: four players; Maxis’s side: at least three
  • • Richtofen needs the Paralyzer and Vulture Aid; Maxis needs the Subsurface Resonator and Turbine
  • • A Time Bomb from the Mystery Box for either side

Walkthrough

Step by step

  1. 01

    Commit to a side

    Assemble the Guillotine beside the Saloon for Richtofen, or the Gallows by the Courthouse for Maxis — they share parts, so building one locks the game to that master.

  2. 02

    Richtofen: charge the orbs and the lantern

    Charge the four red orbs with the Paralyzer, then knock down the floating lantern, fill it by killing ghosts in the mansion, and set it on the gunsmith’s roof.

  3. 03

    Richtofen: cipher, wisp and Round ∞

    Punch the three mine signs the pigpen cipher names, walk the wisp to the Guillotine with Vulture Aid showing the way, then Time-Bomb the team into "Round ∞" to pull the switch from your own fallen bodies.

    Warning: This is the step that strictly requires four players.

  4. 04

    Richtofen: the maze levers

    Pull the four coloured levers hidden in the shifting hedge maze in the correct order — trial, error and patience.

  5. 05

    Maxis: break the orbs and raise the lantern

    Destroy the four red orbs with the Turbine-powered Subsurface Resonator, then charge the lantern with ordinary kills and place it on the roof.

  6. 06

    Maxis: the wisp, twice

    Punch the cipher’s signs, escort the wisp to the Gallows — then rewind with the Time Bomb and deliver it a second time.

  7. 07

    Maxis: for whom the bells toll

    One player reads the lit grid on the switchboard behind the mansion bookcase while teammates ring the matching bells in the Candy Store, barn and Courthouse on callout.

  8. 08

    Wish at the fountain

    Make a wish at the fountain by the mansion, then shoot every lightning-struck metal target at all four sites before any of them fade — every perk, for everyone, for the rest of the game.

    With Tower of Babble, High Maintenance and Mined Games all complete on the same side, the tracker in the Courthouse offers the button that ends the Victis arc — canonically, Maxis wins.

Following along in-game? Switch to Guided Mode for one step at a time on a screen you can read at arm's length.

References

  1. 1.Mined Games — Call of Duty Wiki — Call of Duty Wiki (Fandom). callofduty.fandom.com · accessed Jul 22, 2026Community-verifiedcorroborate

Last reviewed Jul 15, 2026. Spotted an error? Suggest a correction.