Both Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare and its battle royale component, Warzone, offer a range of customization options from gun camos to player cosmetics. The player cosmetics are called Operators. Each Operator skin comes with a different character model, unique dialogues, and finishing moves (more on that below). Note that these cosmetics are purely for decorative / visual purposes, and often bragging rights! They do not give any added advantage during your gameplay. Before the release of Black Ops Cold War (i.e. Warzone within the 2019 version of Modern Warfare), there were two main factions in the game, the Coalition, and the Allegiance. Both factions included a variety of Operators to choose from and you could choose any one of the factions to play with. You can still play with whichever Operator you choose, but the Factions are now removed from Warzone since it is now a standalone game, separate from Modern Warfare and Black Ops Cold War. The Operators no longer have different categories - they have all been placed within a single Operators menu.
You can choose Operators from both Modern Warfare and Black Ops Cold War. They are clearly labeled in the Operator selection menu as you can see below.
In the regular Multiplayer version of the game (i.e. Modern Warfare), choosing a faction will increase your chances of being put into that particular faction when a match starts, such as Ground War. However, it is not the same in Warzone, and choosing a faction is irrelevant since everyone has different skins. Remember, the use of these operators are just for aesthetic purposes. There are two main types of skins - Mil-Sim which are the default real-world inspired Operator skins (i.e. military simulator) and in-game character skins.
Unlocking Operators
Those who own the full version of the game (i.e. Modern Warfare) have the exclusive advantage of some Operators being completely free since they are unlocked by completing certain Campaign Missions and Co-Op missions. Warzone players have a number of different options to unlock operators though. You can: (1) acquire Operator skins through the in-game Store; (2) complete Battle Pass challenges; or (3) acquire additional skins for Operators which will automatically unlock the base version of the Operator. You can acquire a skin by obtaining a skin variant of any one of the Operators through Battle Pass (that is, if there is any skin variant available on one of the tiers). For example, the Mara Operator was available upon purchasing the Season 1 Battle Pass. However, since Season 1 is finished, Warzone players can easily get it now by buying Battle Pass Season 3 and upgrading to tier level 90 in order to acquire a Death Dealer Rare Mara Skin. Obtaining this skin will automatically unlock the Mara Operator as well. So we think it’s safe to say that Warzone-only players are not missing out on any of the Operators, as long as they are able to acquire a skin for an Operator. Unlocking Operators through doing certain Co-Op challenges and campaign missions is only possible for those who own the full version of the game, Modern Warfare, but as stated above, free Warzone players can always acquire a skin to unlock those Operators. Those who own Black Ops Cold War will also be able to use their Operators in Warzone. You must first unlock the Operators in Black Ops Cold War.
Mil-Sim Operators
Modern Warfare
Default
This Operator is available by default.
USEF
The USEF Mil-Sim has three skin variants (USEF I,II & III). USEF I unlocks at Battle Pass Season 3 Tier Level 10.
SKSF
The SKSF Mil-Sim has three skin variants (SKSF I,II & III). SKSF I unlocks at Battle Pass Season 3 Tier Level 30.
Pararescue
The Pararescue Mil-Sim has three skin variants (Pararescue I,II & III). Pararescue I unlocks at Battle Pass Season 3 Tier Level 50.
CTSFO
The CTSFO Mil-Sim has three skin variants (CTSFO I,II & III). CTSFO I unlocks at Battle Pass Season 3 Tier Level 70.
USMC Raider
The USMC Raider Mil-Sim has three skin variants (USMC Raider I,II & III). USMC Raider I unlocks at Battle Pass Season 4 Tier Level 30.
Lagunari
The Lagunari Mil-Sim has three skin variants (Lagunari I,II & III). Lagunari I unlocks at Battle Pass Season 4 Tier Level 50.
JTF2
The JTF2 Mil-Sim has two skin variants (JTF2 I & II). JTF2 I unlocks at Battle Pass Season 5 Tier Level 40.
Shadow Company
The Shadow Company Mil-Sim has three skin variants (Shadow Company I, II & III). Shadow Company I unlocks at Battle Pass Season 5 Tier Level 19.
Urzikstan SSG
The Urzikstan SSG Mil-Sim has three skin variants (Urzikstan SSG I,II & III). Urzikstan SSG I unlocks at Battle Pass Season 4 Tier Level 10.
Russian FGF
The Russian FGF Mil-Sim has three skin variants (Russian FGF I,II & III). Russian FGF I unlocks at Battle Pass Season 4 Tier Level 70.
Default 2
Black Ops Cold War
Hunter
Available by default if you’ve purchased Black Ops Cold War.
Powers
Available by default if you’ve purchased Black Ops Cold War.