# Axion vs Cronen Squall in MW4

URL: https://codloadout.gitlab.io/mw4/compare/axion-vs-cronen-squall/
Updated: 2026-11-04

Axion is ahead on 8 of the 12 key stats that both weapons report; Cronen Squall is ahead on 2, and 2 stats are tied. Axion's biggest lead is magazine size (30 rounds against 20 rounds). Cronen Squall's is horizontal recoil (6.3 against 13.7). Fire rate and magazine size are Activision's numbers; the other key stats are community-reported by CODMunity, read November 4, 2026.

[Open both in the compare tool](https://codloadout.gitlab.io/mw4/compare/?w=axion,cronen-squall) [Build with Axion](https://codloadout.gitlab.io/mw4/?w=axion) [Build with Cronen Squall](https://codloadout.gitlab.io/mw4/?w=cronen-squall)

Same class: Assault Rifle

## Official numbers

*Official numbers for Axion and Cronen Squall, from Activision's launch weapon sheets*

| Stat | [Axion](https://codloadout.gitlab.io/mw4/weapons/axion/) | [Cronen Squall](https://codloadout.gitlab.io/mw4/weapons/cronen-squall/) |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Fire rate (higher is better) | 705 RPM Ahead | 673 RPM |
| Magazine size (higher is better) | 30 rounds Ahead | 20 rounds |
| Reserve rounds (higher is better) | 90 rounds Ahead | 80 rounds |
| Total rounds (higher is better) Magazine plus reserve | 120 rounds Ahead | 100 rounds |
| Unlock level | Player Level 52 | Player Level 55 |
| Weapon levels | 69 | 67 |
| Apex Attachment | Axion Clearcut | Cronen Maelstrom |
| Apex blocks | Optic, Laser, Underbarrel, Stock and Rear Grip | Laser and Underbarrel |

From Activision's launch weapon sheets. A damage table and time to kill are not published.

## About Axion and Cronen Squall

### Axion

Subsonic rifle with a slower rate of fire and strong stopping power at most ranges; subsonic rounds hide enemy skulls on kills.

Apex Attachment, Axion Clearcut: Chainsaw-style rear grip with a handlebar foregrip, hip laser and canted aiming for mobile, hip-fire play. It blocks optic, laser, underbarrel, stock, and rear grip attachments.

### Cronen Squall

Open-bolt bullpup rifle with long-range accuracy, controllable recoil and heavy damage.

Apex Attachment, Cronen Maelstrom: Guided missile you steer with an infrared laser while aiming down sights. It also fires unguided but loses effectiveness at long range. It blocks laser and underbarrel attachments.

## Community-reported stats

Community-reported Base values with nothing attached, read from [CODMunity](https://codmunity.gg/weapon-stats/mw4) on November 4, 2026. Unverified.

Across the 31 rows with a direction, Axion is ahead on 15 and Cronen Squall on 7; 9 rows are tied and 0 rows are not compared because a weapon has no value.

- Official numbers: Axion is ahead on magazine size (wide), total rounds (clear), reserve rounds (clear), and fire rate (narrow); Cronen Squall leads no row of this group.
- Mobility: Axion is ahead on ADS movement speed (moderate), firing movement speed (narrow), strafe speed (tiny), movement speed (tiny), tactical sprint speed (tiny), and sprint speed (tiny); Cronen Squall leads no row of this group. Level on crouch movement speed.
- Handling: Axion is ahead on ADS speed (clear), reload time (moderate), and ADS out speed (narrow), and Cronen Squall is ahead on drop speed (clear) and raise speed (moderate). Level on sprint to fire speed.
- Recoil: Axion is ahead on horizontal gun kick (wide) and vertical recoil (narrow), and Cronen Squall is ahead on horizontal recoil (very wide) and vertical gun kick (narrow). Level on ADS idle sway and ADS gun bob.
- Range and bullets: Cronen Squall is ahead on bullet penetration (very wide) and bullet velocity (wide); Axion leads no row of this group. Level on damage range.
- Hip fire and flinch: Cronen Squall is ahead on hip turn sway (very wide); Axion leads no row of this group. Level on hip idle sway, hip gun bob, and flinch received.
- Fire rate and ammo: no row has a leader. Level on headshot multiplier.

Brackets give the size of the gap as a share of the larger value: tiny under 2%, narrow under 5%, moderate under 10%, clear under 20%, wide under 40%, very wide above.

The widest gaps across both tables are bullet penetration (Cronen Squall 21.0 in against 9.0 in), horizontal recoil (Cronen Squall 6.3 against 13.7), and hip turn sway (Cronen Squall 10.8° against 20.9°).

Axion Clearcut, community-reported effects from CODMunity: Horizontal gun kick +179% (worse), Hip idle sway −50% (better), Vertical gun kick −27% (better), and Movement speed −16% (worse).

CODMunity lists no stat change for the Cronen Maelstrom.

### Attachment effects reported for Axion

The community-reported attachments for Axion with the largest change to a key stat, according to CODMunity.

- [100 Round Drum](https://codloadout.gitlab.io/mw4/attachments/100-round-drum/) (magazine): Magazine size +233% (better).
- [20 Round Mag](https://codloadout.gitlab.io/mw4/attachments/20-round-mag/) (magazine): Reload time −41% (better).
- [40 Round Mag](https://codloadout.gitlab.io/mw4/attachments/40-round-mag/) (magazine): Magazine size +33% (better).
- [Locus PX3 Canted](https://codloadout.gitlab.io/mw4/attachments/locus-px3-canted/) (optic): Vertical recoil −30% (better).

### Attachment effects reported for Cronen Squall

The community-reported attachments for Cronen Squall with the largest change to a key stat, according to CODMunity.

- [60 Round Drum](https://codloadout.gitlab.io/mw4/attachments/60-round-drum/) (magazine): Magazine size +200% (better).
- [30 Round Mag](https://codloadout.gitlab.io/mw4/attachments/30-round-mag/) (magazine): Magazine size +50% (better).
- [Locus PX3 Canted](https://codloadout.gitlab.io/mw4/attachments/locus-px3-canted/) (optic): Vertical recoil −30% (better).
- [RVX9 Thermo](https://codloadout.gitlab.io/mw4/attachments/rvx9-thermo/) (optic): Vertical recoil −30% (better).

*Community-reported base stats of Axion and Cronen Squall from CODMunity, row by row*

| Stat | [Axion](https://codloadout.gitlab.io/mw4/weapons/axion/) | [Cronen Squall](https://codloadout.gitlab.io/mw4/weapons/cronen-squall/) |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Mobility |  |  |
| Movement speed (higher is better) | 4.62 m/s Ahead | 4.55 m/s |
| ADS movement speed (higher is better) | 2.41 m/s Ahead | 2.24 m/s |
| Sprint speed (higher is better) | 6.11 m/s Ahead | 6.07 m/s |
| Tactical sprint speed (higher is better) | 7.16 m/s Ahead | 7.11 m/s |
| Crouch movement speed (higher is better) | 2.16 m/s Tie | 2.16 m/s Tie |
| Strafe speed (higher is better) | 3.54 m/s Ahead | 3.48 m/s |
| Firing movement speed (higher is better) | 4.05 m/s Ahead | 3.96 m/s |
| Handling |  |  |
| ADS speed (lower is better) | 260 ms Ahead | 305 ms |
| ADS out speed (lower is better) | 325 ms Ahead | 340 ms |
| Sprint to fire speed (lower is better) | 210 ms Tie | 210 ms Tie |
| Reload time (lower is better) | 3333 ms Ahead | 3533 ms |
| Raise speed (lower is better) | 1033 ms | 967 ms Ahead |
| Drop speed (lower is better) | 700 ms | 600 ms Ahead |
| Recoil |  |  |
| Vertical recoil (lower is better) | 48.9 Ahead | 50.4 |
| Horizontal recoil (lower is better) | 13.7 | 6.3 Ahead |
| Vertical gun kick (lower is better) | 17.6 | 17.1 Ahead |
| Horizontal gun kick (lower is better) | 2.8 Ahead | 3.5 |
| ADS idle sway (lower is better) | 0.40° Tie | 0.40° Tie |
| ADS gun bob (lower is better) | 0.09° Tie | 0.09° Tie |
| Range and bullets |  |  |
| Bullet velocity (higher is better) | 400 m/s | 660 m/s Ahead |
| Damage range (higher is better) An index: 100 is the weapon's own damage range, and attachments scale it | 100% Tie | 100% Tie |
| Bullet penetration (higher is better) | 9.0 in | 21.0 in Ahead |
| Hip fire and flinch |  |  |
| Hip idle sway (lower is better) | 1.31° Tie | 1.31° Tie |
| Hip gun bob (lower is better) | 1.09° Tie | 1.09° Tie |
| Hip turn sway (lower is better) | 20.9° | 10.8° Ahead |
| Flinch received (lower is better) | 0.29x Tie | 0.29x Tie |
| Fire rate and ammo |  |  |
| Headshot multiplier (higher is better) | 1.30x Tie | 1.30x Tie |

"Ahead" marks the better value of a row; "not reported" means no value, not zero.

## Pick rates and tiers

Community-reported Other sites' own figures and opinions about Axion and Cronen Squall, not Activision data.

*Community pick rates, tiers and builds for Axion and Cronen Squall*

| Figure | Axion | Cronen Squall |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Multiplayer pick rate (CODMunity) | 5.2% | 2.0% |
| ggranked tier | Tier A, 853 ms time to kill | Tier B, 915 ms time to kill |
| DMZ Radar tier | Tier B | Tier B |
| Community builds listed | 3 Multiplayer and 2 DMZ | 2 Multiplayer and 1 DMZ |

## Latest official changes

The newest patch notes that change Axion or Cronen Squall, as listed on this site.

No change to Axion is listed in the patch notes tracked on this site.

No change to Cronen Squall is listed in the patch notes tracked on this site.

## Weapon pages, builds and tools

- [Axion: stats, attachments and Apex Attachment](https://codloadout.gitlab.io/mw4/weapons/axion/)
- [Cronen Squall: stats, attachments and Apex Attachment](https://codloadout.gitlab.io/mw4/weapons/cronen-squall/)
- [Best build for Axion](https://codloadout.gitlab.io/mw4/weapons/axion/best-build/)
- [Best build for Cronen Squall](https://codloadout.gitlab.io/mw4/weapons/cronen-squall/best-build/)
- [Open Axion in the class builder](https://codloadout.gitlab.io/mw4/?w=axion)
- [Open Cronen Squall in the class builder](https://codloadout.gitlab.io/mw4/?w=cronen-squall)

## More assault rifles comparisons

### Other pair pages with Axion

- [Axion vs Hyeon Burst](https://codloadout.gitlab.io/mw4/compare/axion-vs-hyeon-burst/)
- [Axion vs Han 86](https://codloadout.gitlab.io/mw4/compare/axion-vs-han-86/)
- [Axion vs M4](https://codloadout.gitlab.io/mw4/compare/axion-vs-m4/)
- [Axion vs Kastov 762](https://codloadout.gitlab.io/mw4/compare/axion-vs-kastov-762/)

### Other pair pages with Cronen Squall

- [Cronen Squall vs Hyeon Burst](https://codloadout.gitlab.io/mw4/compare/cronen-squall-vs-hyeon-burst/)
- [Cronen Squall vs Han 86](https://codloadout.gitlab.io/mw4/compare/cronen-squall-vs-han-86/)
- [Cronen Squall vs M4](https://codloadout.gitlab.io/mw4/compare/cronen-squall-vs-m4/)
- [Cronen Squall vs Kastov 762](https://codloadout.gitlab.io/mw4/compare/cronen-squall-vs-kastov-762/)

## Frequently asked questions

**Q: What do the Apex Attachments of Axion and Cronen Squall do?**

A: Axion Clearcut (Axion): Chainsaw-style rear grip with a handlebar foregrip, hip laser and canted aiming for mobile, hip-fire play. It blocks optic, laser, underbarrel, stock, and rear grip attachments. Cronen Maelstrom (Cronen Squall): Guided missile you steer with an infrared laser while aiming down sights. It also fires unguided but loses effectiveness at long range. It blocks laser and underbarrel attachments.

**Q: Where is Axion ahead of Cronen Squall, and where is Cronen Squall ahead?**

A: On CODMunity's base values (community-reported, read November 4, 2026): Axion is ahead on magazine size (wide), horizontal gun kick (wide), total rounds (clear), ADS speed (clear), reserve rounds (clear), ADS movement speed (moderate), and 9 other rows. Cronen Squall is ahead on bullet penetration (very wide), horizontal recoil (very wide), hip turn sway (very wide), bullet velocity (wide), drop speed (clear), raise speed (moderate), and 1 other row.

**Q: How often are Axion and Cronen Squall picked, and what tiers do they have?**

A: CODMunity's Multiplayer pick rate is 5.2% for Axion and 2.0% for Cronen Squall, so Axion is picked about 2.6 times as often. ggranked places Axion in tier A and Cronen Squall in tier B. ggranked gives a time to kill of 853 ms for Axion and 915 ms for Cronen Squall; that is the site's own calculation, not a published value. DMZ Radar places both weapons in tier B. These are community figures, not Activision data: CODMunity and the tier lists, read November 4, 2026.

Community-reported values: CODMunity, read November 4, 2026. Official numbers: Activision launch posts, updated October 24, 2026. Unofficial fan site; see Data and assumptions for every source and gap.