How to Complete Emergence Mission to Find 4 Director Keycards in CoD Black Ops 6 Campaign?

In Black Ops 6, the Emergence mission isn’t your typical fight—it’s a journey through a twisted institute packed with surprises and eerie corners. Fresh off your time at The Rook, you’ll be facing new challenges that call for quick thinking and some combat finesse.

Let’s get right into it: we’re after all four Director Keycards. I’ll show you how to unlock each one, avoid dead ends, and keep those undead foes at bay.

Entering Biotechnology

Marshall leads the way down the elevator shaft. But don’t get too comfy—something’s about to go wrong. When you splash into water below, swim up fast. Reach the room filled with green gas and mannequins. Your path is blocked by a locked door, but there’s a noise behind you. The mannequins near the entrance? Yeah, that’s where you’ll find a hatchet. Use it to break through.

Climbing the Stairway and Summoning Zombies

Head down the hallway, up the stairs, and into a huge hall. You’ll see two massive statues. Behind them, take the stairs up to an elevator. Pressing the elevator button will trigger a zombie swarm. Prepare to fight, hatchet in hand. Once clear, head back to the statues to pick up the orange phone—this unlocks the Facility Map, showing the locations of the four Director Keycards.

Tip: For the ‘Collect Calls’ challenge, answer all phones in the mission. The first call is at each keycard section start.

Director Keycard 1 Walkthrough: Advanced Combat Research

Locate the Advanced Combat Research wing in the southwest part of the map. Enter the hallway and take the stairs on your left to reach a round room with a computer.

Here comes a hacking puzzle—don’t worry, it’s simple. Just type in two words: “Access” and “Lift.” The elevator takes you down, where zombies await. You’ll find a shotgun and rifle with ammo near barrels marked “B2.”

Now, stay alert. To the right, grab some utility items and two turrets. Set these in the center of the room; they’ll come in handy soon.

The first Director Keycard is perched on a ledge across the room, held by a mannequin. You’ll need a grappling hook, which is on a nearby desk. But be ready: as soon as you grab the hook, a boss appears. Immediately press ‘Q’ to jump up onto the ledge.

Boss Fight Tips

The ledge moves up and down. Use this to your advantage—fire at the boss and zombies below, or grapple around the room for a better angle. If you placed the turrets earlier, they’ll clear out a good number of zombies for you.

Once the boss is defeated, grab the Director Keycard. Then, use your grappling hook to escape through the elevator shaft in the center of the room.

Director Keycard 2 Walkthrough: Administration

After collecting the first keycard in Advanced Combat Research, you’ll move to the Administration section through a grappling point on the opposite side of the hallway. This area holds a few surprises, so keep your guard up.

Step 1: Entering the Administration Area

Pick up the ringing red phone on your way in, then continue toward a large room. The map shows the next Director Keycard in this area, but it’s not easy to reach.

Inside, head down toward a locked door to the right—next to a red mannequin visible behind it. To unlock this door, you’ll need to find and place four Missing Reports in the yellow file holders beside it.

Step 2: Finding the Missing Reports

Note: Collecting each Missing Report will trigger mannequin attacks. Mannequins can only move when you’re not looking at them. If possible, grab each report with your back to a wall and keep your eyes on as many mannequins as you can while you shoot.

• Missing Report 1: Check the desk in the northwestern corner. Mannequins spawn around the desk area.
• Missing Report 2: Look behind the conference table in the western section of the room. Mannequins rush in from the hallway.
• Missing Report 3: Move to the southern part of the room, below the stairs. Expect mannequins to spawn as you leave, so use a grappling point to get some distance before attacking.
• Missing Report 4: On the table between the blackboard and a yellow couch. Collect it, then grapple away to avoid a mannequin ambush.

Step 3: Unlocking the Door and Chasing the Red Mannequin

Once all four Missing Reports are placed in the yellow holders, a short cutscene plays, showing the red mannequin fleeing. Now, you’re in pursuit mode—use your grappling hook to catch up, then grapple again each time the mannequin escapes.

Step 4: Defeating the Red Mannequin Boss

Eventually, the red mannequin morphs into a heavily armored boss with a strong ranged attack. To survive, keep moving with the grappling hook and fire from a distance. The boss’s attacks have a brief charge time, giving you an edge as long as you stay on the move.

When the boss finally goes down, grab the Director Keycard and head back to the hub. Expect to see zombies waiting here. Stick to the upper floor and take a left. Use the grappling hook to reach the eastern balcony, allowing you to skip past the zombie swarm below.

Director Keycard 3 Walkthrough: Joint Projects

In the Joint Projects area, prepare for another challenge. Your goal is to secure the third Director’s Keycard, but expect a fierce fight along the way.

Step 1: Entering the Joint Projects Area

Upon entering, pick up the ringing phone in the hallway. Move into the large room and take a moment to gather supplies scattered along the walls—there’s plenty of ammo, grenades, and some useful weapons here. Get ready; you’re about to face a boss.

Step 2: Collecting the Keycard and Starting the Boss Fight

Locate the machine holding the Director’s Keycard. As soon as you grab it, a dark zombie demon appears, kicking off a boss battle. This isn’t your average fight. The demon is fast, and the best way to stay alive is by using your grappling hook to keep some distance.

Step 3: Tracking Down the Disguised Boss

As the fight progresses, the boss occasionally takes enough damage to shift into “disguise mode.” During this time, he’ll hide by blending into the environment as an inanimate object, while summoning a wave of regular zombies to distract you. Clear out the zombies before you go searching for the disguised boss.

Tip: After each wave, restock your ammo and grenades to stay fully prepared.

Once the room is clear, move around carefully. Get close enough to the disguised boss, and he’ll drop the act and attack again.

Step 4: Defeating the Boss and Collecting the Keycard

When the boss is finally defeated, grab the Director’s Keycard. Your next destination is Cognitive Research, located south of Joint Projects.

Director Keycard 4 Walkthrough: Cognitive Research

The final Director Keycard is found in the Cognitive Research area, marked in red on the map. This section is a mix of puzzles, exploration, and combat, leading to the mission’s final boss fight.

Step 1: Navigating Cognitive Research

Upon entry, head left to reach the Director’s Keycard. For those interested in tackling the Emergence safe code puzzle, take a right at the first intersection.

Step 2: Unlocking the Observation Room and Prepping for Battle

Find the computer station with an observation room behind it—inside are both the keycard and a boss. To get there, look to the right of the computer and use the grappling point to reach an upper area. Loot the supplies here first, then dive into the water at the end of the red path and swim through the tunnel.

Once out, shoot the zombie guarding the door with a keypad on the left. Use your blacklight to reveal which digits are part of the code, then arrange them in the correct order (the code is randomized per playthrough).

Inside the door, look right to find the first of three Drain Switches needed to clear the water from the boss arena. But first, go into the nearby office and activate the computer—this gives you 25 seconds to flip all three Drain Switches.

Step 3: Pulling All Three Drain Switches

• Drain Switch 1: Directly left of the computer in the office.
• Drain Switch 2: Across the water, accessible by grappling hook.
• Drain Switch 3: Just behind the keypad door you unlocked.

Once the switches are flipped, return through the tunnels to the observation room. Grabbing the Director’s Keycard here will trigger a boss fight.

Step 4: Surviving the Boss Fight

The boss has strong ranged attacks, so use the grappling hook to reach the high ledges, staying mobile to avoid incoming fire. Between grapples, aim for headshots. Zombies will spawn periodically—use grenades or other explosives to handle them quickly.

Once the boss is defeated, collect the final Director’s Keycard and return to the Hub.

Emergence Safe Code Puzzle

For an optional reward, turn right upon entering Cognitive Research and proceed to the locker room. The safe sits to your left, with a radio nearby. Tune the radio by matching the two green wave lines to unlock the safe, which contains 1,000 credits. Each playthrough has a unique safe code, so use the radio puzzle to get yours.

Final Steps: Inserting Keycards and Facing the Last Boss

With all four Director Keycards in hand, return to the Hub. Insert the cards at the desk next to the two large statues. A small wave of zombies will appear; clear them out, then take the elevator to Biotechnology for the final showdown.

This final fight features hordes of zombies and a large, demon-like boss with glowing yellow eyes. Prioritize the main boss. Use the grappling hook to reach the highest level, allowing you to fire down on zombies from a safer position while picking up ammo and weapons along the way.

Mission Rewards

Completing the Emergence mission unlocks an ‘Allied Effort’ weapon sticker, along with two achievements:

• Head Games: Complete Emergence.
• Collect Calls: Answer every phone call in Advanced Technologies and Applications.