So you just joined an online server and you got schooled like a youngin'. Chances are, you played some hardcore gunslingers. They probably seemed like they were invulnerable to your bullets, or they were everywhere you seemed to go, or maybe they seem like they had god like aim. Well have no worries: the purpose of this thread is to provide insight and advice to SG beginners who are wondering what the veterans are doing that make them so good.
Gerneral Gameplay
This section, by far is the hardest. This is the stuff that you may learn from playing bots, but mostly learn from playing other players. Everybody has their own style, I will try to sum up the things I have seen many new players do on the servers, as well as explain some techniques that the gunslingers use to bring in the frags.
- First off, check out the SG user manual. It has plenty of useful information, including how to reload akimbo pistols.
- Moving about the map
- Don't go out into the street with out a plan. If you need to get to the other side of the street, find a way around. If you must cross the street, wait until someone is shot. It will pop up saying someone shot someone..... this means one person is dead and another is reloading. Skilled gunslingers can, and will pick you off if you keep wondering into the street.
- Walking and crouching is very important. It hides your footsteps. If you can sneak up on your opponent with out tipping him off, you have a major advantage. Crouching also lowers the spread of the bullets.
- If you see someone with a chat bubble about their head, please don't shoot them. Please be a good sport about chat killing and buy killing. Like wise, please do not start a conversation while you are out in the open. Find a nice safe sport to chat. This prevents any sore feelings.
- TNT and Molotov are a great way to cause damage where you cannot shoot. Molotov are great for blocking you opponents path, and TNT explodes when shot.... so watch out for TNT traps.
- Use your ears as well as your eyes. You can usually get a good idea where your opponent is just by listening. When experienced players go at it, its usually "First to make a sound, first to die"
- Wait for opponent reload. This will both give you a clue where they are and it means that they cannot shoot back!
- Listen for footsteps. This will tell you where they are and where they are headed. Different textures have different sounds: dirt, sand, rock, wood, metal, etc.
- Get some headphones. They help out tremendously.
- Once in a gun fight
- Wait to shoot your opponent in the back. As yellow as it seems, the best way to win a gunfight is not let your opponent shoot back.
- Aim for the head. Usually it will be a one shot kill and the boiler plate does not cover the head.
- If you run out of ammo, use your knife instead of reloading. t is very common practice among experienced gunfighters to empty their guns then get out the knife while in the heat of things. When you have time again, reload your guns.
- There is a common trick among gunslingers.. "One left in the chamber trick" When emptying your guns, leave one bullet in each pistol, then switch to the knife and wait for your opponent to do the same. When your gullible opponent does, switch back to your pistols and blow them away!
- Lear to use the "quick swap". I think it is officially called the "Last used weapon" key. What this handy function does is switch to your last used weapon. SO for instance: you have a shotgun and two pistols. First, change to the shotgun, then change to the dual pistols. Now when you press the "last used weapon" key, it will change between the pistols and the shotgun. This removes the messy scroll wheel.
- Learn to do the "Two pistol two step." When you get into a close pistol fight in open area, learn to move around randomly. This will make getting a clean shot very hard. What ever you do, do not stand still.
- Some experienced players will set up camp and not move. They know where they can defend themselves easily, and they can rake in the bounty for it. You can choose to avoid those spots and make them come to you or you can go back for the revenge kill. Warning: if you set up camp, any experienced gunslinger will be back for the revenge kill so watch out!
Know Your Maps
You really have to learn the maps. I cannot tell you how you learn the maps, and I will not spoil the secrets of each map. These should be discovered by you; I'll probably get hate mail from the mappers, if I spoil them here. So what is the purpose of this section then? I just wanted to take some time and point out somethings you should be watching for on a map as well as some pointers as to how to learn the maps.
- If it looks like you can go there, it means you probably can. Play the map on single player mode and try to get there. Also, don't be afraid to as someone on the server if they know how to get to a certain section of the map.
- Get to the roofs. Mappers seem to like to make it so you can get on the roofs. You should learn to watch the roofs as well as try to get there.
- Things break. Anything from glass windows, to safe doors, to boarded up rooms, to covered graves, to boardwalks, etc. If something is there one time you play it, but not the next... that means it was either shot down or blown up. Note: somethings need TNT to open like safe doors.
- Follow an experienced gunslinger. See where they go and what lines they follow. Most likely, they know where the hot spots are, how to get their quickly, and where the advantage points are. Don't hate them for it, learn from them.
- Know where the hot spots are. If you stand on a roof, learn where to expect you opponent to pop up: door ways, windows, etc.
- Learn to navigate the map smoothly. If you need to get from point A to point B... learn how to do it quickly and smoothly.
Know Your Items
What I would like to do here is just run through the items that you may purchase using your bounty money. First off, take a look at the weapon damage thread, just to get an idea of the weapons strengths and weaknesses. Also, when you finally find your favorite weapons, learn the buying combination: peacemakers:b13, tnt=b54, pistol ammo=b6, etc. This allows you to buy your weapons, items, and ammo much faster.
- Pistols: always use akimbo(duel): two shots are better than one.
- Remington 1858 Model: Never! EVER! buy this pistol. It takes 2 headshots to get a kill, and chances for a headshot are less than a body shot.
- Smith & Wesson Schofield: The second best weapon in the game. You spawn with at least $20.... use it to get one of these. Your chances of getting a kill with a Remington'58+Scholfield is much greater than with a single Remington'58. The Schofield is also great because it has a very fast reload time. When there is a lot of people playing on one server, I use this to my advantage when reload time is worth more than shooting power.
- Colt Peacemaker: This is the gun to get. Great range, even better damage, but bad reload time. If you spawn near money, buy a peacemaker. The best gun in the game: plan and simple.
- Rifles: I am not a huge rifle fan. I find the pistols are just as accurate, only rifles you can just press and hold fire... no trick timing to master.
- Winchester 1866 Model: I don't use rifles. They are not good for close range, and my peacemakers are just as good at long range. Of course, I wont argue having one that I looted from a fallen player. I think the Winchester 1866 just sounds cool.
- Colt Rifle: Faster fire rate makes the colt a better weapon than the Winchester 1866. Doesn't sound as cool.
- Sharps Rifle: If your in close range maps... don't buy this gun. I hardly every get a kill on the first shot, and that all you have with the sharps. The cool thin with the sharps is you can mount a scope on it and zoom in. Very handy for long/very long range combat. Just don't stay still should you decide to snipe.
- Shotguns: kings of close quarters.
- Remington 12 Gauge: The best all round shotgun. The switch time is more than the Sawed-off, but the spread is less and range is greater. This gun is the pistol yielder's worst enemy. Its good for short/mid range and the damage is just devastating. I recommend the single fire mod (one shot at a time) rather than the double shot because of unpredictable lag. If you miss the first shot, then you still have an equally powerful second shot.
- Sawed-Off Shotgun: king of train. More powerful than the 12guage and it has a very fast switch time. This is very nice for me because I use pistols and then I can very quickly switch to and fire the sawed off. I do have a problem with lag with the sawed off though. Firing both barrels brings my computer almost to a FPS halt.
- Winchester 1897 Model: this gun really gets my blood boiling. It has 5 shots, it is good for mid range, and it has a very small spread. This makes it great for shooting through walls and stopping someone dead in their tracks. This is my preferred shotgun.
- Machineguns
- Gatling Gun: fires powerful, long range bullets in fast succession (COOL), but your stuck in one place(NOT COOL). I hate not being able to move, therefore I hate using the Gatling. If you use the Gatling, you will become every bodies target.
- Misc
- Boiler Plate: its armor. the more you have the longer you live.... but don't buy it. its a waste because I always seem to die to leg shots, arm shots, and head shots: all of which are not covered by the boiler plate. If you are low on health and you have $15, then yes grab a boiler plate, but chances are you'll die anyway.
- Scope: Can only be use with the sharps, so only buy it when you have the sharps!
- Ammunition Belt gives you full ammo for all weapons. If you dont shoot 48 pistol rounds, 24 shotgun rounds, or 24 rifle rounds, I don't recommend buying this.
- Dynamite is great for blowing stuff up. Also handy for setting taps because you can shoot it on the ground or set it of with a light Molotov Cocktail.
- Molotov Cocktail are great for burning your opponent or just blocking their path. Nobody wants to walk through a burning fire!
- Knives: tied of using guns? You can slash your opponents, or through a knife at them from afar. Nothing says "OWNED!" like sneaking behind you opponent and knifing them in the back!
- Prim. Ammo: I usually buy this when I'm empty. I don't know how long I'm going to be alive and its cheaper than the ammo belt
- Sec. Ammo:I usually buy this when I'm empty. I don't know how long I'm going to be alive and its cheaper than the ammo belt. If I'm low on both primary and secondary, then I'll buy the ammo belt.
Config
It is very important to know your config. I highly suggest going through your config and learning/setting all your keys. The big ones to know are: Last-used weapon (quick swap), crouch, reload, fire1, fire2. I don't want to have this thread become a config discussion thread, but knowing your config is as important as knowing the maps.
Conclusion
Now unfortunately, a lot of these pointers pertain to any first person shooter. This has mainly been "Western according to Pardner." My hope is that any one of the gunslingers (you know who you are) will point out there most favorite trick, or bring up a new one of their own. Just remember that the game is for fun, and that anyone of those experienced gunslingers will be more than willing to help you: they are just happy that there is new blood in town.
-Pardner
NOTE: maybe I'll add some screens later. I realize that this post is long and filled with too much text. I'll try to revise it later.