You’ve been grinding for days. The sweat is real. Your Jackal PDW is finally maxed out, and that gold camo is glinting just right in the lobby light. Then you see it—the level 55 cap. The big button. Most people hover over it with a mix of excitement and genuine dread because, let's be honest, nobody likes losing their toys. But learning how to prestige bo6 isn't just about getting a shiny new icon next to your name; it’s about entering the "real" game that Treyarch built for the long haul.
Black Ops 6 brought back the classic Prestige system. Thank god. After years of that weird seasonal leveling that reset everyone to the same spot every few months, we finally have the old-school grind back. It’s brutal. It’s rewarding. And if you don't know what you're doing, you're going to spend the next ten levels getting absolutely shredded because you forgot to bring a decent secondary.
The Actual Process: Pushing the Button
So, you hit Level 55. You'll see a notification in the Barracks or the main multiplayer menu. It isn't automatic—you have to actually choose to initiate it.
Once you click through the "Are you sure?" warnings (and there are a few), your rank resets to Level 1. You lose access to all your level-unlocked weapons, perks, and equipment. That means your favorite XM4 or that specific Perk 3 Greed wildcard you rely on is gone until you level up again.
But here is what stays: your weapon levels. If you got your C9 to max level, it stays max level. The moment you unlock the gun again at its required level, all your attachments are right there waiting for you. Same goes for camos. Your progress toward Diamond or Dark Spine isn't touched.
What You Get for Your Trouble
It's not just for clout.
Every time you prestige, you get a Permanent Unlock Token. This is the holy grail of the grind. You can use it to keep one single item—a gun, a perk, a wildcard—unlocked forever, regardless of your level. Most players waste their first one. Don't be that guy. If you’re a sniper and the gun you want is locked until Level 49, use the token there. Don't use it on something you unlock at Level 10. That's just bad math.
You also get access to the Prestige Hub. This is where you can see your historical progress across the 10 standard Prestige levels before you hit the "Prestige Master" ranks. Each tier comes with a unique animated emblem and a "Prestige Gift," which usually includes a blueprint or a specific skin that lets everyone in the lobby know you haven't seen sunlight in a week.
Strategy: Making the Level 1 to 55 Reset Less Painful
Honestly, the first few levels after you prestige are the hardest. You're stuck with the starter classes.
To survive the early levels of how to prestige bo6, you need to focus on the things that don't reset. Since weapon levels stay, the guns you worked on during your previous run are your best friends. Even if the gun itself is locked, you can sometimes use "Vault Edition" blueprints or store blueprints to bypass the level requirement for that specific weapon build. It's a bit of a loophole, but it works.
Daily Challenges are your best friend here.
They provide massive XP boosts that can catapult you from Level 1 to 10 in about three matches. Also, save your Double XP tokens. Do not use them when you're Level 54. Use them the second you hit Prestige 1, Level 1.
The Permanent Unlock Tier List
If you're wondering what to burn that first token on, think about the "meta" dependencies.
- High-Level Wildcards: These often define your playstyle more than a gun does. If you love running six perks, unlock "Perk Greed" immediately.
- Late-Unlock Weapons: Guns like the AS Val or specific high-tier marksman rifles that don't unlock until the late 40s or early 50s.
- Ghost or Ninja: If you're a stealth player, being without these perks feels like playing with one hand tied behind your back.
Prestige Master and the "Secret" Rewards
Once you clear all 10 Prestige levels, you enter Prestige Master. This is where the leveling goes up to 1,000.
At this stage, the game changes. You stop losing your unlocks. Everything stays open, and you're just climbing for the sake of the rewards. Treyarch added a cool feature where you can actually change your Prestige icon to look like icons from previous Call of Duty games. Want the Black Ops 1 15th Prestige icon? You can get it, but only after you’ve put in the work.
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There's also the matter of the "Specialist" rewards and the unique calling cards that only track progress once you've hit certain Prestige milestones. If you're looking for that "Nuke" calling card or the high-end mastery badges, you basically have to be in the Prestige cycle for them to even count in some cases.
Why People Get Stuck
A lot of players hesitate to prestige because of the "camo grind."
They think resetting their level will hurt their progress toward the ultimate mastery camos. It doesn't. In fact, prestiging makes the camo grind more efficient because you're earning Rank XP and Weapon XP simultaneously. If you stay at Level 55, all that Rank XP is just evaporating into the ether. It’s wasted.
The only real reason to stay at 55 is if you’re about to play in a high-stakes tournament or a very sweaty Ranked Play session and you absolutely need every single piece of equipment available to you. Otherwise, hit the button.
Handling the "Gear Fear"
It's normal to feel a bit of "gear fear" when you see your loadouts grayed out.
To mitigate this, try to have at least two weapons gold before you prestige. This gives you a sense of accomplishment that carries over. Also, remember that the "Combat Axe" or specific lethal equipment you love might be locked for a while. Get used to using the Frag again. It builds character. Or at least, that’s what I tell myself when I’m getting outplayed by a level 12 with a lucky grenade throw.
Actionable Steps for Your Next Prestige
Don't just blindly click the button. Follow this checklist to make sure you're ready for the reset:
- Bank your tokens: Ensure you have at least one or two 1-hour Double XP tokens ready to go.
- Identify your "Forever" item: Decide right now what you're going to permanently unlock. If you're struggling, pick the Perk 3 Greed wildcard. It's almost always the right choice.
- Clear your active challenges: If you're 90% done with a high-XP challenge, finish it before you prestige so the XP doesn't go toward a capped Level 55.
- Check your blueprints: See which weapons you have blueprints for; these can often be used even if the base weapon is technically locked, giving you a massive head start on attachments.
- Set a goal: Don't just prestige to prestige. Decide if you're aiming for Prestige 5 (for a specific emblem) or if you're going all the way to Master. Having a goal keeps the "Level 20 slump" from making you quit.
The grind in Black Ops 6 is a marathon, not a sprint. Every time you reset, you're becoming a more versatile player because you're forced to use gear you'd normally ignore. It breaks the monotony. It keeps the game fresh. And honestly, there’s nothing quite like the feeling of top-fragging in a lobby full of Level 55s while you're sitting there at Prestige 2, Level 4. It sends a message.
Now, go to the Barracks, find that Prestige shop, and embrace the reset. Those legacy icons aren't going to unlock themselves.