Counter-Strike: The Scrim Guide Part 3 - How to Use the Glock Effectively

In my last two segments of the Counter-Strike Scrim Guide series, I dived into the intricate nuances of beginner scrimming as well as the technical setup of Ventrilo, an online voice chat program. In this segment of my ongoing Counter-strike tutorials, I will explain in detail the strengths, weaknesses, and proper usage of each respective weapon in the game.

Let's begin first with the terrorist exclusive weapons, as they tend to require more timely experience in order to be able to maximize their full potential; learning these weapons first in succession will help pave an easier approach to the much simple counterterrorist firearms.

The default starting pistol, in all Counter-Strike games, is the infamous Glock. Beginners often tend to see the Glock as a weak, underdeveloped weapon that has no chance of effectively dispatching an opponent without a tremendous amount of luck, and I honestly can't blame them as I once also thought if it in that perspective in my earlier years. But with the right training, honed techniques, and knowledge of the firearm's more fine vices, it is more than capable of holding it's own against any of the other pistols in Counter-Strike.

The Glock holds 20 bullets, a much higher clip reserve than the other pistols in the game, excluding the Dual Elites (which purpose in a scrim stands only to humiliate your adversaries), an incredibly fast rate of fire, and a special function to change it from a semi-automatic to a three-bullet burst.

Other notable advantages of the Glock:

1) The Glock shares the same bullets as the MP5 rifle, thus considerably saving money when it comes to a successful save round (elaborated in my previous Counter-Strike Scrim Guide Part One).

2) The Glock is notoriously lighter than many other pistols and firearms in the game, increasing speed reduction.

3) The rate of fire of a Glock is near limitless.

When using a Glock, you should place yourself in an up-close situation where you can fully see the opponent with a full view of his body. A Glock can also be extremely effective in team coordinated "rushes", where one or more teammate's band together to execute a straightforward blitz maneuver towards a predetermined destination. The main strength in both an up-close encounter and/or a team rush is the Glock's blazingly fast rate of fire. Although the Glock's bullet damage to any body part besides the head is relatively minor, its shooting speed allows you to realistically "bind", or paralyze, an opponent by continuously shooting them, and thus limiting his movements or offense.

Whist the Glock isn't sufficiently accurate far away, a general rule of thumb in all situations is to aim for the head/neck area up close, and the neck/torso far away, increasing your chances of landing a headshot, or the quite endearing name that Counter-Strike players have derived from the sound of a bullet finding its way to an opponent's head, a "dink".

A Glock can also be used to a rushing advantage due to its ability to still land semi-accurate shots whilst continuously while moving, a trait unique to it's own mobility characteristics. Advanced players can also experiment with this discipline, utilizing the Glock's "burst mode" option; a familiar technique among more experienced players is the execution of a few bullets shot at an enemy in semi-automatic mode, and once the distance has reached to close proximities, to jump forwards to decrease the distance all the while switching over the burst mode, landing a three-bullet burst headshot in midair. While it's never highly probable that bullets will still embrace accuracy in midair, the burst mode and target radius of the head gives a rather nice percentage of success.

However, a note to burst-mode users. Bursting is only effective in either a point blank situation, as the shot speed of the burst mode is incredibly slow compared to the semi-automatic counterpart, leaving you vulnerable for a half second, and in Counter-Strike, a half second is all you need.

On the subject of how a Glock should be used, always try to keep in mind that whilst the Glock doesn't particularly have a high recoil, it is still fairly inaccurate in far distances. Try a slow tapping rhythm far away, and a semi-rapid shots up close.

Stay tuned for my next part of the Counter-Strike Scrim Guide as I go into further detail the weapons of the game.