2020 Edit by Charley - this guide was made for fighting in VC:MP 0.3z, not R2, not 0.4. However, there is still some useful/relevant stuff in there. I guess the biggest change worth noting is that what is called 'fast shot' below became universally known as 'ghost shot', and the term 'fast shot' came to be associated with the new, shorter switching time between stubby and other weapons that was introduced in 0.3zR2. Also, it's worth noting that in 0.4, ghost shots are still possible, but they're not as effective or reliable.Charley asked me to post this, so here it is:
Edit:- VUs go
here to see up to date guide(s)
Cuttons Guide to Stubby Fighting PrologueOk so it was a rainy day, an hour before work and I had nothing to do so I decided to write this. This is guide will address basic technique, and a most different types of shots. I am not going to go very deeply into the technical side of why these shots work, I will just outline the principles behind them.
I will be referering to 2 different types of lag in my description of some shots.
One is Latency lag, represented by ping. You could write pages on the full effects of latency, but the basic priniciple is this: People with higher pings, have more latency lag. This can appear on others screens in a couple of ways. One is warping, not being able to see fluid movement. Another is the effect that other players will see what the player with high ping does, a short time after the player does it. It is generally accepted that people with a higher ping have advantage in fighting against low ping players. I will not go any deeper into this, but I will refer to it a couple of times within the guide. Press F5 ingame to see a list of players names, with their pings.
The other type of lag I will refer to is FPS lag. FPS stands for Frames Per Second. The standard FPS for VCMP is 30, set by the frame limiter that should always be on. However whilst it is not possible to excede this rate (without turning FL off) some players dip below it. If you can imagine opening and closing your eyes twice a second, you will see some things, but miss others. Imagine your game is opening and closings its eyes 30 times a second, this provides a smooth enough image so that all things are seen. However if someone's game is only 'opening its eyes' 20 times a second, there will be some things that are missed by that player. EG) They might miss you shoot. There are many things that can contribute to FPS lag. Here are a few:
- Insufficient graphics card
- Insufficient processor
- Running background programs (Eg Virus Scan)
There are some other things that affect FPS, but they are the main causes.
BasicsRight lets start with the very basics, before you even touch the keyboard you should get your controls configured in the appropriate way. Here is an image describing what is regarded by most as the best method:
Credit goes to ULK.HeAD for that image. One thing he did leave out though, is that crouch should be 'c'. Also you should use your mouse wheel to change weapon.
To set your controls press the esc key, go to options, controller options, redefine controls and there you go.
Also before you start you should also go ino mouse settings and set the mouse sensitivity to maximum. This makes certain shots that I will talk about later possible and makes aiming a lot easier. You will need to do this step every time you open vcmp, because it sets it back to default every time the program is closed.
Basic TechniqueGood aim is essential to any technique. In general you get better aim after practise, but one thing that you must know is not to shoot directly at player if theyre moving. Because of latency lag, you must shoot in front of your opponent. IE, not where they are, but where you think they are going to go. This is easiest when your opponent is jumping, always shoot where you think they will land. And when they run, shoot where you think they will be in a couple of split seconds. This is called Lead Aiming. For people with lower pings, you don't need to shoot as far in front, but the higher the ping, the further in front you need to shoot. Also take into account your ping, this also effects lead aim in the same way.
The first thing to learn, is to shoot then jump after your shot. The jump will break the shoot animation, meaning you don't have to wait until it has finished before you can move. Try shooting, then jumping, then shooting, then jumping. It is not hard to master. You should try to vary the direction in which you jump, so that you do not become predictable.
Once you have mastered the jump technique, you can move on to the jump and run technique. This one requires a bit more practise. You shoot, jump then switch to a weapon you can sprint with (Eg Pistol or uzi) then run with shift. You should try to run after every jump, when you run you are a lot harder to hit then when you jump.
Once you have mastered that, you should work on your running technique. A good one to try first of all is to zig zag quickly, so tap A and D in fairly quick succession. This will make you harder to predict. I tend to run at the player, instead of around because this means their aim has to be more accurate. (The closer you are the less spread their bullets will have). After some practising you should develop your own style of running, everyone's is different and it will change depending on who you fight. One thing you should never do however, is just run in a circle around your opponent. This makes it very easy to predict where you will next be.
So the basic technique is: Shoot, jump, switch (more on the timing of the switch later), run. Then start the cycle again.
Different ShotsThere are many different shots, and there are surely some that haven't been discovered yet, but here are most of them.
Stick shotsStick shots are shots used to combat FPS laggers. If you don't understand what FPS lag is, read the prologue. This is where you shoot the oponent, but instead of jumping away quickly, or moving after the shot, you hold still for a second or two. This gives their game the chance to 'see' your shot. Using my analogy earlier where usually if you close your eyes and get shot, you don't 'see' it and so don't notice then you open your eyes to see your opponent jumping away, you just think theyre jumping. With this method you close your eyes, you don't see you've been shot but then you open them again and see someone has shot at you thus you fall down.
Sweep and Snap-to shotsA sweep shot is where you shoot, then follow your opponent with your aim, whilst you are shooting. This should be fast, but steady. Also sweep shots should sweep across your opponent, and so often finishing in front of them on the ground or in the air. This shot is especially good against high pingers, because they will pick up the shot often at the time when you hit the ground, but it will be aimed straight at them due to the delay, meaning a knock down.
A snap-to shot is where you begin to shoot, then quickly turn to your opponent. This is useful against all kinds of players, as long as you attribute it with the right technique. (Ie lead aiming, or stick shots)
These two shots are often referred to collectively as 'Turn shots'.
Fast shotThis is where you jump, before you see bullets coming out of your gun, or any sound. This will still play the animation in your opponents screen, whilst giving you less time in the shot. The advantage of this is that you can move away from your shot quicker. The disadvantage being that it makes stick shots impossible, and turn (sweep, snap-to) shots very hard. I believe this is also called by some a 'ghost shot.' But I first heard it defined as a fast shot, so I'll stick to that.
Silent Switch shotThis is where you switch weapon and jump, the instant that bullets come out of your gun. If done correctly, you should hear the sound of the gun you have switched to instead of the sound of the stubby. If you switch to fist, you shouldn't hear any sound at all hense the name 'Silent' shot.
Fast shoot, long jump technique [This is a complex technique]I decided to call this a technique instead of a shot, because there is quite a few elements involved in it. This technique is still being looked into by a few of us and only a select few can carry it out effectively at this moment in time. If mastered though, I can see it becoming the standard technique in VCMP.
First I'll describe what you do step by step:
- Hold fire whilst you're sprinting.
- When you shoot, keep hold of fire but let go of shift (sprint button)
- Then, as soon as the shot animation has started, roll your mouse back onto your sprint weapon.
- Hold down shift again
- Jump before any bullets come out.
You should see yourself jump a bit further than usual if done correctly, and some players may say that you slide a bit before your jump. (It is thought that this effect is changed by ping ratios)
When practised a lot, you should be able to carry out the steps way before you shoot. The effect of this being that you can 'leave behind' your shot. The advantage of this is that your speed is greatly increased, and that you can fire shots at a more rapid pace. Holding fire before you switch onto stubby enables you to 'fast draw' meaning that your stubby shot animation starts faster than it would usually. This means you have less time to carry out the steps, but if done correctly increases your speed even further. Myself and ULK.HeAD are still experimenting with this technique, and the effects the FPS lag has on it. The technique he thinks is best for dealing with FPS laggers, is to fire a lot of threat shots (you now have the power to do this, as you can move away from them quickly) to antagonise your opponent into jumping unexpectantly, then nail a stick shot on them when they land. This technique is effected by pings, and it seems to work best with low ping vs mid-range ping (ie 100-200). It is thought that GaLL uses part of this technique (he inspired us to find it) so if you want a masterclass on it, go and watch him. It is also thought that ULK.Prontera has mastered this technique. Another thing we have noticed whilst using it, is that it only works effectively at mid-long range. If you get up close and personal with someone, it is hard to get an aim on then due to the fast nature of the shot (Turn shots are hard). As I said work is stil being done on this technique, but it's worth trying out to see if you can find anything hew about it in the mean time.
Crouch GlitchingIf you crouch whilst using a stubby, you will notice that you have rapid fire. Perhaps around twice the rate of fire. This in itself isnt that useful when fighting experienced players, but there are a couple of methods using crouch that are deadly.
The two methods are very similar, but look very different.
The first is to crouch, shoot, then change weapon, then run. If you get good at this you can shoot then move off almost instantly.
The second is to shoot, then crouch, change weapon quickly, then run. If carried out properly, you and your oponent will not see the crouch at all. On your screen you will shoot, then run off. On their screen you will shoot then slide away with your stubby bullets in front of you (hard to explain).
You can use the second technique on the fly, if you shoot, then do the c-glitch, then jump after a step or two, it will just appear as if you slide before you jump. Only experienced players will pick up on this (or players who read this :p)
Crouch Glitching is generally frowned upon by most servers, in Littlewhiteys it can result in a ban. In XE it results in a kick, and if used constantly against everyone can result in further punishment (ie tempban). Servers will not mind however, if you agree with your oponent to have a 'glitch fight' or if you're just showing them or w/e. It is like an unwritten law, it is allowed as long as you don't use it against players who don't want you to. This will probably stay the same forever in LWs but XE is more open to considering it's allowance.
You will hear Crouch glitching referred to as a number of things including 'c-bug' 'c-glitch' 'deagle bug' or just a 'glitch.'
Epilogue I hope this guide will help some newbies to the game, and perhaps some people who regard themselves as experienced players. I have almost certainly left out some things (some on purpose) so if you spot anything you think should be added, or that needs to be changed, post below.
Feel free to post links to this guide wherever you like, but please don't copy sections without leaving credit as I did put quite a lot of effort into this. (especially the fast shoot, long jump technique) also massive thanks to ULK.HeAD for helping hugely with that.
One hour wasted, now time to go to work.
Charley
