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Main Quest · Moon

Richtofen’s Grand Scheme

The Moon main quest is the climax Richtofen has been building toward across the whole original saga: swap his soul with Samantha’s inside the MPD and take control of the zombies, then watch Maxis talk the crew into firing three rockets at the Earth. It spans two achievements — "Cryogenic Slumber Party" for the soul swap and "Big Bang Theory" for the missiles — and in the original Black Ops release the full quest required four players; the Black Ops III Zombies Chronicles remaster lifts that restriction.

Difficulty: HardSpoilers: high
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Still from “Call of Duty: Black Ops Rezurrection - Zombie Lab”
Moon · Call of Duty 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

  • • Power on, with the Hacker and P.E.S. collected from the labs
  • • The Golden Rod and Focusing Stone carried forward from Call of the Dead and Shangri-La (their steps unlock the Vril interface)

Walkthrough

Step by step

  1. 01

    Samantha Says

    Repeat the colour sequence on the four spawn-area computer terminals as it plays.

  2. 02

    Hack the terminals

    Use the Hacker on the terminals in the Lab to continue the sequence.

  3. 03

    Deliver the Vril Sphere

    Move the Vril Sphere from near the M16 into the pyramid’s interface by shooting and knifing it along.

  4. 04

    Fill the soul tube

    Kill roughly twenty-five zombies beside the MPD until the risen tube fills.

  5. 05

    The soul swap

    Pull the MPD switch — Richtofen and Samantha trade places, completing "Cryogenic Slumber Party".

    Warning: This is the point of no return for the story: Richtofen now controls the horde.

  6. 06

    Big Bang Theory

    Follow Maxis’s directions to launch three rockets at the Earth and finish the quest.

    Maxis’s counter to Richtofen costs the planet: the missiles devastate Earth, which is the world every Black Ops II map inherits.

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

Answers

Frequently asked questions

Can Richtofen’s Grand Scheme be done solo?

Not in the original Black Ops — full completion required four players. The Black Ops III Zombies Chronicles remaster allows it solo.

References

  1. 1.Moon — Call of Duty Wiki — Call of Duty Wiki (Fandom). callofduty.fandom.com · accessed Jul 21, 2026Community-verifiedcorroborate

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