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Death Ratio and your status at your local LAN, then you should read on!

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*** 6.1 - Gameplay Styles ***

The various stages of a round in CS are roughly those of any story:
Beginning, Middle and End. The length of these stages is irrelevant,
what is important is how you play during each one. Keep in mind that
some rounds aren't as straightforward as this; sometimes very few of
the enemy die and your team gets it between the eyes! But this is
simply an overview of how the round would progress when two evenly
matched teams face off.

So here's a breakdown of each stage and the various gameplay styles. In
most cases where numbers are concerned, I'm dealing with matches with
more than 8 players per team. In smaller games, such as clan matches,
the breakdown categories might not necessarily apply, but that's offset
by a clan's ability to co-ordinate game plans much better than Net/LAN
players, right?

>

Head-on Assaulting:

Player will rush quickly to a point he has decided to go to where he
can engage the enemy assaulters. Usually one side or the other is
outnumbered and will be eliminated. That's the disadvantage of this
style; few players are prepared to risk their lives in an assault. On
certain maps, such as de_dust, most players usually lay back, waiting
for the occasionally brave player to "volunteer" to foray into enemy
territory. (See Gameplay Dynamics).

Pack-Follower:

Player follows the main pack of teammates in hope of safety in numbers.
The pack routes are actually quite predictable - it is whereever the
lead man feels like going to!

For instance, as a T on Dust2, I've noticed many players go down the
spawn ramp and decide between rushing right past the double doors or
turn left. Most players like safety in numbers, so they go wherever the
leading point-man is going. Players further back decide they'd go
wherever there are more buddies, and in this cycle, a large pack forms.

This is (generally) a foolish option; chances are the player will get
killed in a massive melee, and score yet another death on their not-so-
pretty KD ratio. The difference between the the pack-follower and true
rushing is that the pack is too scared to advance past certain points -
like the CT's past Bombsite A double doors in dust2. Pack mentality and
fear of the "enemy pack" on the other side fuel this reaction.

Head-on Camping or "Rush Camping":

Player rushes to a chokepoint to camp; waits for enemies to pass
through, nabbing a few easy kills. Out of these three, this is probably
the best choice. Players should relocate when certain criteria are met:

- too few enemies pass through the chokepoint (indicates that
enemies have finally evolved! They are either camping, or have
chosen another route)
- too many teammates also rush to this chokepoint (say, more than
4 or 5)
indicates that a new pack is forming; you will not
get many kills if there are too many teammates around)
- player has been flanked/backstabbed by a smart enemy who
finally learnt his lesson and turned the tables around!!

>

This stage usually begins once roughly half the enemy team is dead.

Camping:

Player is camping (usually with his AWP). The most common on Dust2
seems to be the "bunker" at Bombsite A, where a sniper can easily kill
anyone at the bombsite and anyone who passes through the double doors.
Camping during this stage is actually quite difficult, because the
enemy will probably not pass by the camping position - they will all be
grouped together at some other position, and shooting them if they did
pass by would probably only garner a few kills at most. Unless you have
several "buddy" campers, this leads either to boredom, or death!

Pack-Follower:

If the team is fortunate and not many died in the pack-fights, then the
pack will continue intact and roam around as a unit. Occasionally it
breaks up into smaller units. Joining the pack at this time is a good
idea if you're low on health and want safety/protection etc.

Rover:

Player runs around the map searching for enemies to pick off. In this
stage, it is by far the most satisfying style. If the player is
reasonably good (in terms of aiming), he can take out most of the
enemies in easy one on ones.

Note: Sometimes the Rover runs into a small enemy sub-pack that is
tending its wounds. Usually he attacks on sight, but sometimes he
discovers that he is outgunned and should retreat immediately -
remember, you should know when to press the attack and when not to.
Self-preservation is more important than most people would like to
think ... the best analogy is real life - you do want to live, right?

The mid-game can also be a *dangerous* time for the rover-style of
gameplay; he can easily run into the second pack of enemies. Especially
in Dust2, the CT's can't really cover each chokepoint effectively, and
the T's can sometimes break through to either bombsite. If this happens
during the mid-game, then it is difficult for the rover to assault the
enemy position. The best approach is to gather together into two small
groups and assault the T's from different angles. Example: 5 or 6
Terrorists have planted the bomb, and are camping at Bombsite A
(Dust2), and there are about 8 Counter-Terrorists. In this case, the
CT's should break up into 2 groups of 4, and one will rush from the
"Short A" route (up the steps), and the other take the long run from the
Bombsite A doors - though both are very dangerous due to possible
Terrorist AWPers. That is why the group rush is vital - don't hesitate
to attack, and your teammates won't either.

>

If the teams are relatively evenly matched, then only a few
members of each team are alive by this stage.

Camping:

It's a good choice to camp (or roam very cautiously) during this stage,
because it is easy to pick off single enemies with an AWP covering a
large, open area - such as the CT spawn in Dust2. It's better still to
plant the bomb if you're T.

Rover:

The enemies are few and far between; the enemy will usually be inclined
to camp at this stage, especially if they are on low health. So the
rover must be exceptionally careful and cautious. It is safer to move
in a pack.

(Small) Pack:

Try to meet up with your teammates and roam around covering each
other's backs. This way, the isolated and scattered enemies will have
difficulty killing you.

Generally, it is better to go roving/camping during the start and
middle game, and join up as a pack if you survive until the end game.

"Never attack a prepared opponent ... unless you can overpower him."

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*** 6.2 - Team Camping ***

This is related to Gameplay Dynamics. Like the de_dust example I
outlined, an entire team of quite skilled players can be overcome by
fear and simply camp. Not just a select few individuals, this is the
whole *&^%$$@ team camping!

How then, you might ask, do I "adapt" or "not be scared"? If I myself
venture out into the wild, past my fellow campers, it's likely I'll get
killed.

Well firstly, you didn't realise soon enough in the preceding rounds
that your team strategy was wrong! If you don't counter the opposing
side's strategy with your own, you're just playing into their strategy,
playing how they would like you to play.

In most games there is a fundamental flaw, which is a lack of
communication and co-ordination between players. This is VITAL - you're
not Rambo, you're on a team, just like a basketball team or any other
team sport. By scoring kills, you're upping your own stats, yet at the
same time helping the team by eliminating enemies. But if you can't co-
ordinate properly, and organise a team plan and communicate, then even
if you outnumber the enemy 2 to 1, you're still going to suffer heaps
of casualties.

A truly victorious CS team would be one that could:

- work out a plan for the round; where certain players should go
with what weapons, camp/assaulting
- have good morale and know each other well; you would feel more
confident with a team member whom you've played alongside alot
- be able to communicate so that you can tell each other what's
going on! ie. where the enemy is, requests for help etc

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*** 6.3 - Anti Team Camping ***

Yesterday I participated in one of the most one-sided matches I've ever
seen.

Playing as a Terrorist on de_aztec, our team managed to scare the CT's
into "spawn-camping" (what I call Team camping); a truly magnificent
display of bravery and sheer force by us.

In Counter-Strike, many real life war strategies hold true. There is
always a countermeasure possible for anything the enemy does. If he
camps, you rush. But not piecemeal! You have to get the whole team
to deluge their defended position. Like a siege, almost. By sheer
force and bravery, of not fearing death, but of welcoming the
challenge and relishing the chance to kill, you can overpower your
camping opponents.

Heck, I can't stop thinking about that particular game. We were a
massive ** 36 to 1 ** on the scoreboard! In a massive rush, all
16 of us took separate routes to the CT spawn site, where they
were cowardly camping, too scared to leave.

I could perhaps draw a conclusion from this experience, one that
holds true for all types of Counter-Strike matches, be it Net,
LAN or even clan matches:

"CHARGE and FORCE back the enemy, and you will truly SURPRISE,
FRIGHTEN, and DISILLUSION them. Attack is the best form
of Defense!"

That match virtually changed my outlook on CS gameplay. If you want
to be successful, you must make the team work as ONE. You can't let
some of the team go attacking, whilst some lay back to "defend" an
area. Either the whole team attacks, or the whole team camps. There
is no in-between.

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*** 6.4 - Summary ***

Don't always go the same routes, or do the same things. You have to be
dynamic, be ever-changing and unpredictable. Try to flank or sneak up
on the enemy. If you feel you're outgunned and you're marching into
enemy territory, then rove around in small packs. Vary your strategy
during each stage of the round; sometimes try to rush, other times
camp. Once you have found something works, don't rely on it too much -
the enemy isn't stupid. That's the key to the "dynamic" style. You
can't stay in the same position too long; you can't do the same thing
for too long; you can't always roam around or always camp in the same
spot; you should continually adapt to changing conditions.

Didn't get all that? The crux of it is this:

"Whomever has adapted will surprise his enemy, and win. Survival of the
fittest."

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Section 7: Miscellaneous

*** 7.1 - Anti-AWPer ***

Definitely not good if you're up against a good AWPer; you gotta give