General Tactics
Actually, there is nothing like a 'general tactic' in a game like half life. Your strategy
(if you would have any) highly depends on the kind of map you are playing. eg. it is not wise
to be camping if you have a large, open map!
Maps
----
I urge you to explore the map before you go into battle (a tournament). If you don't you'll
get fried. Of course, you can't know all the maps, but most half life servers support a range
of good to excellent maps which will return quite often. Try to learn the positions which
might give you an edge over your opponent.
This exploring can be done off-line if you want too but it might be more beneficial to start
playing right away and to experience what good positions are. Some spots may seem excellent
when you are off-line, but it might turn out otherwisewhen you are on-line, because it's too
obvious or some other reason. If your ass gets blown off several times, you'll know that it's
a poor spot (believe me)!
It's also important to know where the good guns are on the map. You don't want to be running
around with your 9mm gun all the time, sooner or later you'll get fragged. A good gun doesn't
necessarily mean the gluon gun. This also depends on the map you're playing on. Long range
guns might be applied on large, open maps (like crossfire), while short range guns are
better to use in small, fast paced maps.
If you don't know the map you're playing you should try to remember both of the things
mentioned above (positions, guns) as soon as possible. Also try to get an advantage by
listening, if you hear someone reloading a gun, you know you should be careful. Too many
people (including myself) tend to forget about this! Players tend to be fixed on their screen,
not on the sounds that surrounds them.
Camping
-------
Camping, in general, isn't a good tactic. You might snipe a few other players, but as soon as
they know where you are you're fried. Even worse, they can see you, but you don't see them in
time. Camping should only be done from dark (preferably higher) positions. If it isn't dark,
don't start camping, you'll be spotted fairly easy and it only takes a good RPG rocketto take
you out. Furthermore, camping should only be done if you have the right weapons. If you don't
have a crossbow or the RPG rocket launcher, camping on a sniping position doesn't have any use!
If you are camping in a small bunker, make sure you have a powerfull short range gun (eg. shot
gun). If you don't have the appropriate weapons get the hell out of there. But even if you
have the right weapons and in a dark spot, camping is not advised ... you are a sitting duck.
Keep on moving, the more you move, the harder it is to hit you.
Dodging
-------
Dodging is another word for acting like a nut. Which is good since you can't predict what a
nut is going to do. What does this actually mean when you are in a multi-player game:
Don't walk/run in straight lines, it's very easy to hit someone if he walks straight, even
snipers can take you out. If you walk, try walking from the left to the right and the other way
around. This will make it more difficult for snipers to hit you.
When you are in a direct confrontation with someone try to move around. It's harder for you to
aim too (but that just takes some practice) but the other player will be having difficulties
hitting you too. Like I said before you can strafe, but if you really want to be confusing try
jumping around in combination with some crawling. The first time I saw someone do this, I
thought he was crazy, but he fragged me before I could even hit him. This also takes a bit of
practice, not so much for better aim, but rather to "not forget" to do all these crazy things.
I recently started applying this technique and it does work, I die less (which means that the
others don't have as many kills ;)) but I also tend to forget to jump around sometimes, which
usually results into death.
Techniques
----------
This sounds fancier than it really is. What do I mean by techniques? You probably do know all
the basics of jumping and crawling. But there are some additional moves that might prove to be
beneficial.
First of all, don't risk your life to get it ... only if it's up for grabs. Once you have it
try the combination of crawling and jumping. This will give you a huge boost in terms of speed
... excellent to cross wide, open spaces.
Secondly the famous 'Gauss jump'. All you need is: a gauss gun and a place to land (but that
doesn't tend to be a problem). All you have to do is charge the gauss gun, point it to the
ground and release the charge. You'll be flying high into the air. This is usefull if there
are maps with high elevations which you want to reach quickly but it can also be applied in
emergencies (read: dead threatening situations). Make sure you land on an elevated position,
since you'll lose hit points if you don't. You can also do this using the rocket launcher, but
this is not advised since it does involve a "health risk" ;).
This takes me to the concept of 'falling'. In most MP games realistic damage is turned off,
resulting in a loss of 10 HP when you fall. If this is the case, fall ahead I would say.
10 HP is nothing, especially if you have to go a long way down in open positions (I'm not
talking about tunnels or anything). You shouldn't worry about the 10 HP because it can cost you
a lot more if you climb down.
Retreating
----------
I can be pretty short on this one. If you do have to retreat, always try to walk backwards. Ok,
there is a chance that you run into a trip mine, but it's pretty low. Why do you have to run
backwards? Simple, to beat the hell out of the person you are running away from. If you just
run away, you will be shot in the back. However if you run backwards there still might be
chance that you send the guy to fraggy heaven before he whacks you.
Target
------
I mean 2 things by this:
First of all you have to target someone to kill! This doesn't mean shooting some rounds in the
air, nope you need to aim. Aim is an important aspect of the game and it isn't easy! If you
can't aim, you can't kill ... if you can't kill, well ... you get the idea. Once you can aim
properly, you can beat anyone. If you have the chance to hit the competitor in the head,
do so ... he'll get more damage.
Secondly, if you target someone, keep a 'lock' on him. Don't start shooting multiple targets,
try to concentrate on 1 target, finish him off and then proceed to the next. If you take on
too many targets at once, the impact will be limited. Ok, you'll wound the guy, but he can
heal himself or even worse, it's easier for your competitors to take him out! This is something
you don't want to do, always go for the kill!
Medical/HEV stations
--------------------
Whenever you are using one of these, make sure the area is clear of enemies. Also when using it
try to face it in a way that you can see a large portion of the field. Try to avoid turning
your back to the playing field. But even if you use this technique, these reloading stations
are still dangerous spots. Only use them if you really need them or when they are at a more
covered spot.