Season 1 in Black Ops 7 is here, and the grind feels a lot less punishing than it did a few seasons back. The page system actually makes sense now. You can plan your path, grab what matters, and skip the filler. If you're trying to keep up without paying for the premium pass, the free track is doing more work than people expected, and if you're the type who'd rather level gear without the constant sweat, BO7 Bot Lobbies can fit right into that routine without turning it into a second job.
What's worth chasing on the free pages
The headline items are the base weapons, and yeah, they're on the free path. First up, you'll hit the Kogot-7 SMG as a High Value Target on Page 3. It's built for tight spaces. Quick snaps, fast time-to-kill, and it doesn't feel like you're hauling a brick around corners. Then on Page 6 you've got the Maddox RFB Assault Rifle. It's the kind of rifle you pick when you don't want to overthink it. Holds lanes, stays steady in mid-range fights, and it's forgiving when your aim's a little off after a long day. The cosmetics are there too, but most players are really here for guns that actually change their matches.
How to earn tokens without burning out
If you're just spamming Team Deathmatch, you'll feel the crawl. The smarter loop is simple: start with Daily challenges, then roll straight into Weeklies. That's where the big chunks of XP come from, and the tokens follow. Objective modes help a ton because score stacks fast when you're capping, defending, and getting assist points instead of just chasing kills. And Zombies is still the quiet MVP for steady progress. You can put on music, zone out, and your XP keeps ticking up even if you're not playing like it's a tournament.
When matchmaking gets old
SBMM can be fine, right up until every lobby feels like a scrim. That's usually when people start looking for a smoother way to level weapons or knock out camo requirements. It's not always about "taking the easy way," it's more about time. Plenty of players have an hour, maybe two, and they'd like to spend it unlocking stuff instead of getting farmed while trying to do awkward challenge setups. The key is to stay focused on the free HVT rewards as you go, because missing those pages is the one mistake that'll make you feel behind later on.
Don't leave the best freebies unclaimed
The free track this season isn't charity, but it's generous enough that you can stay current if you're consistent. Work Page 1, then Page 2, then Page 3, and keep pushing in order until you've locked in the weapons you actually plan to use. Once those are done, everything else is just extra style. If you want to speed the process up and keep your sessions chill, a lot of players end up using services like RSVSR to get through the rough parts of the grind while the season's still active.