Shadow Company

> Shadow Company is called in to clean up the uncleanable messes, and take out targets other outfits can't touch. We're a magnet for missions too sensitive to ever get declassified and too messy for those who don't know when to bend the rules of engagement. To put it bluntly, we get the job done.
>
> Marcus "Lerch" Ortega

**Shadow Company** is a Tier One private military company (PMC) featured in *Call of Duty: Modern Warfare* and *Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II*. The PMC appears as an Allegiance sub-faction in the multiplayer of *Modern Warfare* and in *Call of Duty: Warzone*. In *Modern Warfare II*, Shadow Company appears as a supporting-turned-antagonistic faction in the campaign.

## History

### War in Verdansk

Following the collapse of Armistice, Shadow Company was hired by Allegiance to locate Victor Zakhaev in Verdansk. Operating outside the boundaries of the original alliance, the PMC could take the war directly to Zakhaev and Al-Qatala.

After receiving intel from Allegiance about radio chatter originating from the Acropolis National Arena, a small team of Shadow Company contractors led by Marcus "Lerch" Ortega flew to the stadium, seeking to intercept the potential source of the signal: Victor Zakhaev. As Lerch and the team arrived, Rozlin "Roze" Helms used explosives to blow open the roof of the stadium, allowing Lerch's team to land inside and begin their hunt for Zakhaev.

Despite their efforts, Shadow Company was unable to locate Zakhaev. Task Force 141 later discovered that he used the underground metro system to escape undetected. Nonetheless, Shadow Company operatives remained in Verdansk to continue the fight against Al-Qatala.

### Assassination of Ghorbrani

On July 15th, 2022, under the command of General Shepherd, Shadow Company was tasked in accordance with Task Force 141 operative Simon "Ghost" Riley to assassinate Quds Force General Ghorbrani while he was amidst an arms trade with Russian forces in Al Mazrah. Once the general was identified by Ghost, Shadow Company launched a ballistic missile at the arms trade, which completely decimated the site upon impact, killing Ghorbrani.

### Black Bag Operation

One month later on August 12th, Shadow Company was hired by Shepherd to transact American ballistic missiles
to American allies fighting Russian forces in the Middle East, though the transport team was kept privy of their cargo's contents. While Shadow Company was transporting their cargo of three missiles through Al Mazrah in the middle of the night, the convoy was intercepted and ambushed by Konni mercenaries hired by Ultranationalists.

Unfortunately, the transport team was unable to repel the assault and were all killed by the mercenaries, allowing the missiles to be stolen. The situation also allowed Konni to learn that Shepherd conducted the operation through hijacked Shadow Company communications, and Russia subsequently handed off the stolen missiles to Major Hassan Zyani, Ghorbrani's second-in-command who sought direct retribution against the United States.

Due to the illegal and off-the-books nature of the operation, Shepherd and Graves were both forced to cover-up and redact the incident, hiding the fact that there were now three American missiles out in the wild and in the hands of terrorists.

### Hunting Hassan Zyani

Two months later following the cover-up and the discovery of one of the stolen missiles in Al Mazrah, Shadow Company was tasked by Shepherd to assist Task Force 141 and Los Vaqueros in Las Almas with their hunt for Zyani in addition to locating the whereabouts of the remaining stolen missiles Zyani was transporting closer to the United States. On October 30th, Graves and a Shadow Company team utilized an AC-130 to provide close air support and assistance for the team capturing Zyani. However, Zyani was eventually released as the team had no jurisdiction to legally hold him prisoner.

### Capturing El Sin Nombre

Intel recovered by Kate Laswell eventually pointed to the leader of the Las Almas Cartel, the elusive El Sin Nombre who helped transport Hassan and his stolen missiles. On November 1st, Shadow Company was put on standby for additional support as Task Force 141 operative Johnny "Soap" MacTavish infiltrated the house of a Las Almas Cartel lieutenant where El Sin Nombre was meeting with VIPs of the cartel to discuss recent events.

As part of the plan, Soap would give intel to the cartel relating to the effort to capture Zyani in order to gain their trust and meet El Sin Nombre, providing the cartel information regarding Shadow Company and its leader, handing them a patch of the group's insignia given to him by Graves as proof. It was soon revealed that El Sin Nombre was a woman named Valeria Garza, and once Soap and Alejandro Vargas found her, she attempted to flee. However, she was cornered by a Shadow Company helicopter on the penthouse terrace, allowing Soap and Vargas to apprehend her.

### Stopping the Second Missile

Through interrogating Garza, the team learned that one of the stolen missiles was being setup on an abandoned oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico that the Las Almas Cartel was using as a smuggling dead drop site. On November 2nd, a Shadow Company-led operation with support from Task Force 141 and Vargas assaulted the rig via speedboats in order to prevent the missile's launch. While Shadow 1 and 2 led by Graves, Vargas and Soap underwent the main infiltration of the rig, Shadow 3 and Ghost were assigned to assault the nearby cargo ship anchored northwest of the rig.

However, upon reaching the missile as it began its first priming stage, it was soon discovered that the controls for the missile were relocated to the nearby ship, forcing Graves and Soap to link up with Ghost and Shadow 3 via boat. Together, the team fought across the deck of the ship toward the bridge, where the missile controls were. Soap and Graves managed to override the missile's original target of New Orleans to the rig itself upon seizing the controls, and after Vargas and the remaining Shadow Company forces on the rig were evacuated, Soap and Graves launched the missile into the rig, destroying both.

### The Truth Emerges

With two of the three missiles destroyed and Garza in their possession, Shadow Company was given jurisdiction by Shepherd to finish the mission themselves in order to finally put their cover-up to bed. Not long after the oil rig mission, Graves and Shadow Company soon acquired the Fuerzas Especiales base belonging to Vargas and his men, revealing to Ghost, Soap and Vargas at the base's checkpoint that Shadow Company was taking the base for themselves while the others were no longer needed to hunt down the last missile and Zyani, much to the three's chagrin.

When it came to light that Shepherd was supporting Shadow Company's actions and Vargas' men were detained, Vargas attacked Graves, though he was immediately apprehended. Soap and Ghost both dispatched a few Shadow Company soldiers before they were forced to flee into the nearby city. Graves ordered his men to find and kill them, and soon after, Shadow Company forces combed through Las Almas to find them. During this, Shadow Company invaded numerous homes and rounded up resistant civilians, cartel members and corrupt policemen alike, interrogating them for any intel regarding Zyani while executing them afterward. Meanwhile, Soap and Ghost managed to evade Shadow Company and escape the city.

Upon reaching Vargas' safehouse, Soap and Ghost learned from Rodolfo Parra that Shadow Company was keeping Vargas and the rest of Los Vaqueros prisoner at an abandoned maximum-security penitentiary outside Las Almas. The trio soon infiltrated the prison, sabotaging Shadow Company vehicles along the way and liberating the prisoners. Shadow Company attempted to stop the breakout, though they were unsuccessful as the infiltration team and prisoners escaped with additional help from Task Force 141 members John Price and Kyle "Gaz" Garrick. Afterwards, Price revealed to the others that after Shepherd went dark, Laswell used her CIA connections to uncover information regarding the failed Shadow Company missile transaction.

### Attacked by Ghost Team

Desiring retribution for Shadow Company's crimes, Task Force 141 and Los Vaqueros banded together to form a joint task force called Ghost Team to infiltrate the Shadow Company-occupied Fuerzas Especiales base and kill Graves. In the afternoon of November 3rd, Ghost Team assaulted the base while Shadow Company did their best to defend it and Graves. However, Shadow Company was eventually defeated by Ghost Team, who reclaimed the base. Graves attempted to kill Soap and Parra using a Shadow Company tank, though he was ultimately killed once Soap destroyed the tank using explosives.

### Aftermath

Eventually, Task Force 141 managed to locate Zyani and the final missile at a building in Chicago, Illinois owned by a shell company of the Las Almas Cartel through information provided once again by Garza. After infiltrating the building with help from MARSOC marines, Task Force 141 successfully neutralized the missile and Zyani, finally cleaning up the missile crisis caused by Shepherd and Shadow Company's actions.

Due to Graves' death, Shadow Company began to suffer from a failing command structure. As a result, Shadow Company contractors began pulling from their active contracts, subsequently abandoning their posts in the process. One notable pull-out was a Shadow Company security detail at the Mt. Zaya Observatory in Al Mazrah, leaving the facility open for an Al-Qatala assault and forcing a squadron of Demon Dogs to defend the site in Shadow Company's place.

## Arsenal

Shadow Company contractors utilize a variety of modern weapons on par with that of Task Force 141's arsenal. Some weapons found in Shadow Company's arsenal are not directly used by Shadow Company soldiers but rather are found in weapon caches owned by the group.

### Assault Rifles

* AN-94
* M4
* Lachmann-556
* TAQ-56

### Submachine Guns

* ISO
* Lachman Sub
* BAS-P
* MX9
* PDSW 528
* VEL 46
* FSS Hurricane (weapon cache)

### Light Machine Guns

* Bruen Mk9
* 556 Icarus
* SAKIN MG38 (weapon cache)

### Sniper Rifles

* Victus XMR
* Signal 50 (weapon cache)

### Shotguns

* Bryson 800
* Expedite 12

### Handguns

* P890
* X12
* X13 Auto (weapon cache)

### Launchers

* M203
* RPG-7
* REV G-80 (weapon cache)

### Grenades

* M67 Frag
* M64 Flash

### Other

* Riot Shield
* Combat Knife

### Vehicles

* Humvee
* JLTV
* LAV
* M2 Bradley
* Merkava
* Avenger
* HIMARS
* AH-6 Little Bird
* AH-64 Apache
* UH-60 Blackhawk
* AC-130 Spectre

## Gallery

Shadow Company Promo MW.jpgMW-S5-Battle-Pass-Lerch.jpgShadow Company Promo3 MW.jpgShadow Company Promo4 MW.jpgLerchVelikan Promo MW.jpgMW-S5-Velikan.jpgVelikan Crow Promo MW.jpgShadow Company Stadium MW.pngShadow Company in the Stadium.Shadow Company ADS MW.pngRookLogo ShadowCompany MW.pngShadow Company's Rook logo.Promo12 MWII.jpgPromo14 MWII.jpgShadow Company CEO Phillip Graves.Promo16 MWII.jpgShadow Company contractors in "Dark Water".Shadow Company Betrayal MWII.pngA Shadow Company operative held hostage by Johnny "Soap" MacTavish.Shadow Company Operator MWII.jpgA Shadow Company operative.Shadow Company Multiplayer Promo MWII.jpgShadow Company Multiplayer Promo2 MWII.jpgShadow Company Multiplayer Promo3 MWII.jpg
## Videos

Call of Duty® Modern Warfare® & Warzone® - Shadow Company Trailer
## Trivia

### General

* The black Rook chess piece prominently featured in Shadow Company’s logo is described by Marcus Ortega to be symbolic of Shadow Company's brute force and ability to operate in its own unique way, much like the Rook in chess.
* According to Phillip Graves, there is enough manpower within Shadow Company to invade an entire country.

### *Call of Duty: Modern Warfare*

* A Shadow Company patch is featured on Mace's *Tombstone* and *Metal Phantom* outfits, despite his current affiliations with the Jackals. Similarly in *Call of Duty: Vanguard*, Khaled Al-Asad's *Warlord* skin features the logo of Shadow Company.
* All Shadow Company operators will have black smoky clouds surrounding them while in pre-match lobbies.
* There are no multiplayer maps in *Call of Duty: Modern Warfare* that feature Shadow Company units, even with maps that were released after the aforementioned organization was added.
* Upon the initial release of Season Five, all Mil-Sim Shadow Company operators spoke with Russian accents. This was changed in an update to American accents.

### *Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II*

* According to dialogue in the mission "Alone", some Shadow Company soldiers were left weary of their betrayal to Task Force 141 and Los Vaqueros, though they only carried it out as Graves was the one who wrote their paychecks.

1. ↑ https://blog.activision.com/call-of-duty/2020-07/The-Rise-of-Shadow-Company-in-Modern-Warfare
2. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tfSozIZf3f0