Basic CS Strategies

[TheFeniX]

I define a Tactic as a means to an end. The Strategy is that end. Hence, I use tactics to achieve my strategic goal. The goals in CS are layed out in plain English in the maps, I won't explain what the goal of the maps are. If you need that explained I recommend you send me your home address so we can have a discussion with blunt objects. Tactics (means used to further a strategy) are already covered, this thread is about seeing the "bigger picture."

Goals are static. They will not change at all during a map.
Strategies are usually more "muddy" than goals and tactics. You can change them mid-round, but you may have already expended too many resources to attempt a switch.
Tactics are changed up constantly in a given round. They are fully dynamic.

Everyone understand where I'm going with this? Ok, probably not, but tough.

Since the same Strats tend to work no matter if you are rescuing hostages or planting a bomb, then I'll just refer to each team as either Offense or Defense (Attackers/Defender). NOTE: I will not be able to post on all the strats available to you, only those I find most important. But I will do my best to hammer more of these home later on.

NOTE: You can (and damn sure better) mix these strats for an effective plan. I'm just trying to hit on the basics.

Basic Attacker Strategies:
The Rush

Premise: The Entire team forces one way through the map in the quickest way possible to keep the defenders from becoming entrenched. They rely on surprise and overwhelming numbers to catch the defending team "with their pants down." This Strategy realies heavily on a few things:

1. The entire team needs to go: You have to be willing to match the defenders man-for-man and not be afraid of losing your precious Scout/Deagle/TMP/whatever. If you're in front, you will most likely die. I don't care about dying so I'm usually at the front.

2. A good flash/smoke routine: one minute the defender just croutched down and started roasting marshmellows, the next he hears a "tink-tink." Smoke pours of and all the sudden he's full of more lead than the paint at my old High School.

3. Momentum (I can't stress this enough): Keep moving. You do not have time in a rush to stop and reload/snipe/play with yourself. That's the whole point of a rush. If you're afraid of dying either find a new Strat, or find a new server.

Pros:
1. Catches Defenders off guard if they aren't expecting it.
2. Weight in numbers. Your team is concentrating all their firepower on a, more than likely, split up team.
3. If you can take out the defenders in that area fast, they have no time to communicate their situation.
4. Tends to disorient any snipers.

Cons:
1. "Do or die" strat. If you mess this up, your chances of winning the round are slim to none.
2. Noise: Thunder Boots™ are a must, but someone with keen hearing will know about how many are coming.
3.Grenade Bait: 7 attackers in close proximity + 2-3 HE nades = Chunky Salsa.

Change Strat during round: Not likely as you will have lost most of your resources.

The "Slow-play"
Premise: Take as much time as possible to get to your objective making as little noise as possible.

Factors:
1. Walk: See that shift key? Either Shift or CTRL should be held until such time as your team has engaged the enemy.
2. Take your time: Check every corner and sniper spot carefully. The last thing you want is your cover blown because one guy flanked you and took out half your team.
3. Back-Off: NEVER be afraid to switch your tactics while keeping in with the underlying Strat. You are allowed to choose another path, just keep it quiet.
4. Did I mention by quiet? One person will ruin this for you. I recommend using them as part of the later mentioned Diversion Strat. Just stay away from them.

Pros:
1. Surprise: Can throw the defenders off more than a rush. They call in "Sector Clear" then get taken out by before they know what hit them.
2. Uneasyness: Makes the defenders nervous and "itchy." They will give up their camping spots and move around (making noise for you to hear). And generally makes them bored/complacent (I have had my eyes go blurry from looking at the same screen for so long).

Cons:
1. Map knowledge: Relies on people who know the hiding spots of the defenders and who can take them out before they radio in.
2. Snipers: If they have better ones than you do: you might be screwed. I'd include some good flash/smoke tactics for this one.
3. As mentioned before: One screw up can blow this. Make sure you make ZERO noise.

Change mid-round: Yes, provided you didn't take heavy losses in the beginning. I usually mix this strat once we've reached our objective or have killed most of the defenders. We can then just rush in FTW.

The Diversion
Premise: Send one (or two at the max) guy(s) off to either another bomb-site or another venue to get to the hostages/bomb site. The rest of his team sets up at the actual target.

Relies on:
1. The diversion needs to be worried about creating noise and nothing else. Load him up with all the nades and leave the silenced guns at home.
2. Communication is paramount: No one moves until everyone is ready.

Pros:
1. Can divert people away from their objective thus making it easier for you to get to your real target.
2. Diversion may get lucky and score a kill, thus making to ratio uneven in your favor.
3. Diversion causes the defenders to waste ammo and grenades on him. Useful later in the match.

Cons:
1. If the Diversion is taken out to early, then some defenders may move off in search of the "real" target.

Changable mid-round: Yes. The loss of one diversionary man can still have you in a situation to either modify or out-right change the strat mid-round.

"Wait them out"
Premise: Sit in Attacker spawn for at least one minute (maybe even 2). Then combine with another Strat.

Relies on:
1. Patience: duh.

Pros:
1. Pisses the Defenders off to no end.
2. Confuses the Defenders.
3. Can make them waste grenades and ammo firing randomly at "ghosts."
4. Some defenders might get so mad they rush your spawn making easy pickings.

Cons:
1. Some Defenders make come and kill half your team while you're telling the latest joke you heard online. Stay alert.

Changable: Duh, yes.

I'll post more later on. Hopefully, I can go into Defender strats this next week.

Questions, comments, I miss something? Go to Hell... I mean, please let me know.

[Wyzcrak]

It's no wonder you're developing into the fine NS player you are.

Very well written. Many thanks.

[TheFeniX]

"Developing:" Bah, bah to you I say. My early motion strat pwns your Angry Bees.

Hehe, thanks for the support. Although it might be impossible with a game like CS, I would really enjoy seeing the kind of teamwork and communication we have every day on the NS server.

EDIT: I feel I should mention this. Wyz and I had absolutely the worst communication on the NS server today. Hilariously bad communication.

"FeniX, I'll finish this node, you go kill that skulk that's hiding around the corner."
"Ok" ::Moves up to kill the skulk, not noticing Wyz suddenly decided to come along::

::Fires at skulk only to see Wyz move into my crosshair taking all 10 pellets to the back, then dying from the attacking skulk::

"What the Hell where you doing wyz!?"
Wyz: "Blarg, I'm a nub."

[Wyzcrak]

It's not impossible in PCS... it's optional in PCS.. and that's why it's more rare than in NS.

Ahhhh... but with rarity comes value, no? The teamwork on the CSS server is maturing. It's like watching a rose garden bloom, really. Such maturity is quickened, I think, by threads like these, as satisfying teamwork must be built on competent tactics.

[Wyzcrak]

Originally Posted by TheFeniX

"What the Hell where you doing wyz!?"
Wyz: "Blarg, I'm a nub."

ohemgee that was terrible.

LOL I was off my NS game pretty much all night.

( yeah yeah more like since 2002, but I digress... )

[Tempus]

Very nice writeup Fenix. I wish more players here would read that.

[Addict]

Nice Fenix. With our 7 minute time limit, the "Wait them out" basic strat esp seems powerful. Even more so if you are playing at a time when non-regulars do as they are more likely to poke their heads too far(and get killed by 7 vigilant offensive team players).

Going to discuss particular implementations of these basic strats? As Italy doesn't seem suited to the rush, nore Aztec to the slow play.

[TheFeniX]

Originally Posted by Addict

Nice Fenix.

Thanks.

Going to discuss particular implementations of these basic strats? As Italy doesn't seem suited to the rush, nore Aztec to the slow play.

Yes actually, but later on.

[Wintermute]

Originally Posted by TheFeniX

Although it might be impossible with a game like CS, I would really enjoy seeing the kind of teamwork and communication we have every day on the NS server.

We had it almost every round of every game back in the good ol' days of PCS.

Every round a strat would be called, everyone would follow orders, die valiently and complete the objective. CS became more about second guessing what the other team would be trying next round or the round after. People thought long term, and weren't sitisfied unless their team won the whole map, nevermind a single round or getting individual kills.

[Karkianman101]

another couple less thought out strategies, from Kark:

Anti Diversion: aggressive
Best for t de_maps. You send one or two people, including the bomber if de, to "distract. drop the bomb so they dont see it. Distract, then have the "main" team move in. Then shave off a couple people from the "main" team to the main team, rush in, and take the objective. then, the main ct force still has to battle the diversion, since just running to get the bomb will end in bullets in their backs.

Pros: Can surprise enemy, is sneaky
cons: major major risk if the bomb is there.

Test the Water: aggressive
Again, best for t de_maps. Send 1 person each possible way to the bomb, and have them stay at the boundary, playing safe, firing off shots. try and figure who and how many are at each spot, then send the main bulk to the weakest link, and have the diversions (if more than one) converge and go through another way.
pros: lets you find the hole in the fence, can have a distraction affect on the other team
cons: might lose guys that you could have used.

Spam Camp: defensive
Best for t cs_maps. Just pick one room with hosties, and fit everyone in, so every location is covered in every way. Especially useful in compound >:-)

pros: semi surprises ct's, has a castle 10 for 1 effect, unflankable
cons: FXXNG FLASHES, and the chance of tk's. also risky if the walls are shoot through.

[TheFeniX]

I completely forgot about this. I'll get to work on some additions.

Kark, can I add your strats (maybe modified a bit) in my post? I'll be sure to give you credit.

[Buck Fush]

Originally Posted by Karkianman101

Especially useful in compound >:-)

We had a good group of T's on Compound the other night and this was very effective for us. The best part is staying near the door so you can close it when the CT's open it to throw a flash in. Most of the time they flash themselves and you can rush out to kill them. We did like 3 rounds in a row of just waiting for them to come in to get us and taking them out 1 by 1, then we switched it up on them and the first time a CT opened the door we all threw HEs out and spilled out on them. I love it when a plan comes together.

[Karkianman101]

Sure Fenix :P the other day me and Somniloquist did and Anti Diversion, but the distraction died, though there was NOBODY guarding where we were, and we planted then camped the bomb.

[J3wishN1nja]

Strat for T's that i like is snipe/pick off... Works on Prodigy and most other maps where there are long halls/choke points.

Only works if the snipers on your team are > than the ones on the other team. Send 1 person to snipe/pick off... once he kills 1 or 2 fall back and wait. doesnt matter how long, just should give time for the cts to come, get bored and think it was a diversion... having 1 or 2 people go smoke an alternate path helps. After waiting, use 1 of the various rush tactics.

Pros- surprise, can get u uperhand number wise, very flexible(u can change it to something else easily)
Cons- if the sniper dies it sucks and ruins everything, but since its flexible it isnt going 2 kill ur chances at winning

[Mateo]

I was thinking about how to apply some of this last night.....some of the strategies work well regardless of map, others not so well.

Chateau (I think that's what it is called) is hell to rush A as a terrorist. The only way to make it work is if 1) you are there before the CT team is, and 2) you get the bomb down early.

If you are in a firefight at A early, its impossible to retreat and make a play for B.

There is also a variation of the Diversion strategy....send all but the bomb team and 2 guards on a rush, which should keep the CT team occupied long enough to plant the bomb.