Counter-Strike: The Scrim Guide

So you play Counter-strike. But do you know that Counter-strike is an online phenomenon, with an estimated 600,000 player's active every moment and a total statistic count of 6.177 billion minutes played per month. And probably half of these players are total insolents when it comes to playing? This guide/tutorial will show you how to play Counter-Strike as a more organized sport, or in CS terms, "scrimming."

Scrimming is the act of a five-person team going head to head against another five-person team on a selected map with the preset goal of winning 16 rounds out of 30. Scrimming has become so popular that many professional gamers have been born out of the craze, some even making profits so lucrative that they need no career other than outside their computer room to support themselves. While I wouldn't recommend this lifestyle and career for the feeble or undetermined, organized Counter-Strike is still a very engaging and productive hobby for people who like a less physical sport while still touching all aspects of a mental workout - sounds silly, but it's true.

So let's begin. You might have just started a team with a couple of friends, but none of you guys really know the mainline rules and devices of scrimming. It's really simple, actually. You already know that to win, you need 16 out of 30 rounds. What else do you need? The knowledge, mostly, and skills needed to carry out the actions required to win those 16 rounds. I'll elaborate on a later article on how to find scrims/set up a team voice program/ overall team organizing, but for now we'll focus on the scrimming aspect itself.

Overall etiquette of a scrim is that challengers get Terrorist-side first. If preferences differ, just be the bigger man and choose a side that will get the scrim going as soon as possible; there's really no point in arguing for which side to start on, practicing both sides will grant you invaluable experience in later official scrims.

The first three rounds of a scrim are called "save rounds", respectively named because of the miniscule amount of money ($800) that all players start off with. In save rounds, your number one objective is just to win first, as every round won brings you a payoff of $3500.

Terrorists should always buy armor in the first round, except maybe a selected individual who buys grenades/flashes just to lead the way with some sort of precipitate offense. Terrorist start off with the rapid fire, although weak, glock. What does that mean? Absolutely nothing. If anything, I prefer the glock over the USP. The glock is a lean mean killing machine; aim for the head/neck up close and burst/jump on your last three bullets to sprint away if your kill was not successful. Terrorists should immediately stick together on the save rounds, unless the plan is to diverge attention away from a certain point by sending a "distracter", or a person to "flank" after the attention has already been successfully distracted. Rushes are great on save rounds, because no matter where they guard, a quick mobilized rush towards any bomb site will jolt the person there guarding, overwhelming them at the numbers of individuals shooting at them. Always plant the bomb in an easy-to-locate spot, so that wherever you guard, you have a clear view of it. Nothing more frustrating than being a super hero and killing four people only to have the last one hiding behind a box defusing because your stupid teammate planted with poor judgment. Make sure to spread out and have each person guard an entrance of the respective bombsite; there are no results if everyone looks straight at the window. Smoking the entrances of a bombsite, throwing grenades at entrances when you hear them approaching, and flashing over possible terrain are all great defensive offensives when trying to sustain their own offensive until the bomb goes off. One key point to remember, patience is the key; you must stay cool at all times and never let the heat of the moment force you to do something hot-headed, like run around blindly making plenty of noise.

Counter-terrorists should always buy one flash, one grenade, a defuse kit, and precisely two clips of extra ammo. Here's where it begins. On no matter what map either side plays, counter-terrorists should always guard from a spot where they have a great view and thus pick-off scope of incoming terrorists, yet an overall hard target. Creativity is prolific in this game, meaning that you could also abandon the orthodox defense to "camp" in some nook or cranny that most terrorists would never expect you to be, especially in the first round. I would however not advise this for any role where you'll be by yourself, because without any nearby assistance, the chances of you taking five people completely by yourself is highly unlikely. Defend and focus on spots where you can see the complete view of what you're supposed to be guarding, yet within the scope of your own teammates, so should heat ever come, they can quickly back you up. If your aim and knowledge of the map angles are good enough, try throwing grenades at the bombsite location where you know they'll be planting, so you can detain the bomb from being set. Also, throw grenades at places you suspect they might be obviously camping, as a grenade right at the feet of a camper will take off at least 70% of their health even with armor on. Flashes through small and large openings of the bombsite will flash the opposing team, giving you the ample opportunity to rush in and take them by surprise. In the case of a successful break-in and the dispatching of all in-site defenders, one person should immediately begin defusing (always remember to buy defuse kits), while the others crowd around looking at all possible locations where the rest of the terrorists might try sniping from.

Whoever wins the first save round is at an immense advantage for the next two rounds. Winning side could begin to upgrade to cheaper rifles, such as the MP5 or the Clarion, while the losing side must still stick with their default pistols. Winning side should now not even considering pushing their spots, but to stay in a single position either far away or at an angle where they get the first shot. Being careful pays off here, as an enemy who manages to kill you and take your gun can stand a pretty good chance of killing off your whole unsuspecting team and reversing the tide of war.

Losing side should do everything in their power and creative mind to stop the enemy on this next round, albeit the chances are pretty good that they will lose. Things to focus on the save round is 1) Pick off as much from you defended spot even though they have much better weapons, courage pays off sometimes, 2) Try to kill someone and secure the place, so you can later take their weapon.

The rest is pretty basic after the save rounds, both sides equipped with equally devastating weapons and equal opportunities. Some notes,

Never ever try to go head to head with a sniper from a far away location. Yes, you might be good enough to pick him off in one headshot far away, but he could also as easily pick you off with a leg shot far away.

In places where the view both ways is long and clear, you should always consider smoking it if you are the aggressor, so that the person guarding, if they are equipped with an AWP (sniper rifle), can't pick you off as you run buy.

Always walk when you're trying to set up an offensive. No seriously, always walk. Feeling jittery and want to skip around a little bit? Not here, you better walk. Running around like morons will tip the enemy off about your location and they'll immediately set up a trap for all possible scenarios if they know where your whole team is at.

Patience is the key. If you set up a shot and are waiting there for a person you know is about to peek, just wait. Always trust your teammate's opinion, your own instincts, and never act too rash. That one second between guarding and walking away could be the second that you lost your chance to win.

Only buy more expensive pistols if you have the financial stability to do so.

Never overbuy on a round. Buy the essentials. Nothing hurts more than being broke next round and having to save because you went overboard last round on that whole arsenal of equipment.

These aren't really part of the strategy tutorial, but learn to shoot. Burst, tap, spray, and control your recoil no matter what. No matter your shooting style, found out how to control it.

Overall, just play smart. What would you do in that real situation? Would you really jump off that cliff, lose 20 healths, and run around enemy base with a grenade in your hand? No, you'd probably hide behind that door and wait for someone to come. No shame in that, it's the smart thing.

Practice makes perfect, go own some b*tches now.