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Don't silhouette yourself doors and windows

There is no sound-tactical reason to stand directly in a door or window to shoot out.

• Standing directly in front of or in doors and windows silhouettes you perfectly for anyone who wants to return fire.
  
• Door and window frames make you vulnerable to splash damage.
  
• Instead, take a step or two back from the door. It's still as easy for you to shoot into a room and actually reduces the area inside the room from which people can see you. Plus you retain your peripheral vision to see people coming down the hall.
  
• Stepping back will most likely put you into more shadows.
  
• It also gives you a little more room to maneuver to incoming fire or if you get surprised.
  

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Use prep fire when available

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Strafe around corners

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Backtrack occasionally

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Avoid natural kill zones

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Getting your groove back

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Advanced Topics

• Voice communications
  
• Map reconnaisance
  
• Basic small team tactics
  

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Sources

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Basic Team Techniques for Dummies

Overview

Team Integrity

• Never go anywhere by yourself. Individual players running around a map are too easy to pick off and it's hard to keep track of everything yourself.
  

  
  

• A coordinated team of two is more than twice as effective as a single person running around.
  

  
  

• If you're not leading a team, then follow someone else and stick to them. Watch where everyone runs off to upon respawn and if you see a player running off on their own, follow them (assuming they haven't proven themselves to be total jerks).
  

Movement

• When traveling down corridors, don't stack up behind each other. People should be in a staggered file on opposite walls. If enemy contact is made, this lets the first 2-3 people shoot back and provides some spacing in case an enemy tosses a grenade. If you're in a single file, not only can you not shoot back, but also any enemy bullets that miss the lead man will probably hit someone in the middle of the file. Why make it easier for them?
  

  
  

• When traveling in more open areas, the staggered file still works but you probably want to have a little more space. A wedge with just a little more space keeps fields of fire open and the dispersion helps protect against artillery fire and air strikes. Also, having a few people trailing behind may give you a bit of a jump on any enemy who shoots at the pointman. They might not have seen the rest of the team before opening fire.
  

  
  

• Constantly look around, up, left and right, AND behind you. The team needs to stay aware of what's going on around them. You probably want to stop every now and then and just listen for what's going on.
  

  
  
  This should be familiar as the tunnel to No Man's Land on the Wizernes map. If people take up firing positions in the red zone, teammates are forced to cross in front of and will block their line of fire. Conversely, if people take up positions in the green zone, enough space is left behind them for teammates to move into No Man's Land without blocking LOF
  

  
  

• When at all possible, do not cross in front of another person's line of fire. Try to pass behind them. Don't count on the other player recognizing that you're there and not shooting when you run in front of them. The corollary to this rule is that if you take up a firing position, make sure you leave space for people to pass behind you. If you can't, then it is your responsibility to watch out for friendlies that might block your line of fire.
  

  
  

• Don't crowd the doors. Nothing sucks more than running from fire only to find your exit blocked by someone standing in it. In fact, on beach, you'll often see me standing in the door at the top of the stairs by the breach, on the inside of the room, overwatching the door from the axis spawn. That way I don't block the door, can shoot over the heads of people coming in, yet still suppress enemy reinforcements coming through the door. Also, it's harder for the enemy to see you when you're at the back of a room, vs. silhouetted in the doorway.
  

  
  

• If you're the last man in the column or wedge, look behind you every now and then. It's worth it to check your six periodically to make sure the bad people aren't sneaking up on you.
  

  
  

• The pointman also needs to turn around occassionally to see if anyone is still moving in the same direction as he is or even just to make sure the rest of the team is still there.
  
  

Actions on contact

• When contact is made, not everyone should shoot back, just those with clean lines of fire (LOF). Anyone not engaging the enemy should 1) look for other enemies coming up the flank, 2) move into supporting positions where they can return fire, drop med packs, or provide ammo, or 3) look for opportunities to flank the enemy up front.
  

  
  
  

• Upon contact, the first 2 or 3 people with clear lines of fire should engage and try to move on-line with one another - meaning moving up so that your team forms a line - maximizing the amount of fire that can be delivered. Circle strafe left or right so that your wedge expands into a pocket that envelopes the enemy element. This accomplishes 2 goals 1), opens up LOF for people behind you and 2) sets up a cross fire on the target. Typically, people try to dodge left or right. If you are shooting at a target along two axis of movement, then the target is always dodging towards/away from one of the shooters, making it easier for one of you to hit.
  

  
  In this example, we have a three man team moving in a staggered file, each with an assigned zone to watch. Once contact is made, the point man immediately returns fire. The trailing two men, move on line and establish interlocking fires on the two enemy soldiers
  

  
  

• The key is to gang up on the opposition wherever possible. If my team of 2 runs into another team of 2, I'll often make sure I'm shooting at the same guy as my partner, even if I'm taking fire from the other guy. The faster we put one down, the faster we can turn both guns on #2
  

  
  

• If you can find a way to flank the enemy, do so. This could mean moving on-line as I just mentioned, or backing off a bit and finding another route to a position from which you can start firing at the enemies sides. Make sure that the rest of your element knows what you're doing because they may have to cover you and you don't want them to start pulling back while you're off sneaking around.
  

  
  

• If you have to retreat from a position, grenades are good tools to buy some time. If possible, the second person closest to the enemy should toss the grenade so that the closest person can keep up a stream of fire. Once the grenade is tossed, the #2 man runs back to take up a position where he can cover the withdrawal of the #1 man.
  

  
  

• Once the firefight is over, establish security and begin stocking up on health and ammo. One person should always be watching while the others stock up on ammo, health, and reload. Lieutenants and medics should go to the person on security to deliver ammo and health to him. As people get topped off, they should take up security positions. This improves the overall security of the team and signals to the LTs and medics that you don't need any more assistance.
  

Setting up interlocking fields of fire

• Setting up effective crossfires with a little bit of depth and support are extremely effective. On a map like Assault, the Allied team can effectively bottle the Axis team inside the rear Axis spawn point because they can concentrate a large amount of firepower on a small exit door while Axis return fire is minimized by the same constricting door. The Allied team can direct all of their fire on Axis soldiers emerging one at a time from the spawn point.
  

  
  

• Ideally, no friendly player sets up directly in front of the engagement area. If the enemy is moving properly, this allows them to concentrate their return fire on you, before the rest of your team engages them fully. You actually want to direct fire into their flanks.
  

  
  

• Firing from the flanks accomplishes 2 things, 1) the enemy has to turn from their direction of movement to deal with you and 2) by turning, their fire is split while your fire is still concentrated on them which improves your survivability.
  
• Be careful not to set up in such a way that a friendly person is in your cone of fire.
  

  
  

• If you have a third person on the team, let them pick up leakers, or enemy who make it through your interlocking fire. You'll have to trust that the forward element has wounded them enough so that the floating man can take care of the leakers. A medic is a good choice for a floater since he can also move forward and supply med packs to the wounded.
  

Working with other classes (Very Basic)

• Engineers. Often times the engineer's mission is to blow a game critical objective. Protecting the engineer often makes the difference between winning the game and losing the game. Protect the engineer by:
  
  
  
  • Giving him room to work. Don't stand between him and the objective he's trying to blow so that you can watch.
    
  • Do take up a covering position where you can pick up and engage any enemies coming in to stop the engineer.
    
  • Once the dynamite has been successfully planted, DO NOT run away, the dynamite still has to be protected.
    
  • If the enemy comes out to disarm the dynamite, prioritize your fire against the enemy engineers. If you kill them all, your engineers' mission was a success, regardless of how many other enemy soldiers are still standing around.
    
  
  

  
  

• Medics. Medics are the life blood of a team. They provide critical sustainability so that a team isn't constantly losing people to the respawn point and your team doesn't lose valuable time moving from the spawn point to the front lines. Make their job of healing you easier by:
  
  
  
  • Covering the medic while they go to revive fallen comrades. Often, the fallen are out in the open and the medic will need some covering fire while they sprint out to the fallen and get them back on their feet.
    
  • Giving them room to work and not getting in their way
    
  • As the fallen comrade, don't limbo out immediately. Look around to see if there is a medic around who can get to you. When the respawn timer is about to run out, tap out and then respawn. Please do not tap out when you see a medic running towards you. There's nothing more frustrating than braving enemy fire to reach a fallen buddy only to see them fade into the ground.
    
  • Also, be aware that once your revived, you won't be able to move for a couple of seconds. However, you can still shoot - this may give you an opportunity to provide some cover for the medic if he gets attacked while reviving you.
    
  • Once you're revived, get the hell back into cover so that I won't have to make a second trip out for you.
    
  • When being resupplied with health, there is no good reason why you need to face the medic. Take up a security position and let the medic hand med packs into your back.
    
  • Medics can hand out 4 med packs at full charge, no more. If a medic doesn't hand out a med pack when you ask, it may be that his charge meter is low. Don't constantly bug him.
    
  
  

  
  

• Lieutenants. Lieutenants are also critical to sustaining a team. They can also provide needed heavy firepower to harass, delay, and support. Help them out by:
  
  
  
  • Following the lieutenants and supporting them so that they stay alive long enough to provide you with ammunition.
    
  • When being resupplied with ammo, there is no good reason why you need to face the lieutenant. Take up a security position and let the LT hand ammo packs into your back. When you're topped off, move off so that the LT knows that you don't need any more.
    
  • Lieutenants can hand out 4 ammo packs at full charge, no more. If one doesn't hand out an ammo pack when you ask, it may be that his charge meter is low or he's conserving charge for air strikes (requires at least half a charge) and artillery (requires full charge). Don't constantly bug him.
    
  • Keep this in mind too, when the LT is running backwards and tossing out ammo packs, those 4 packs have to be shared with the rest of the team. Be careful not to take more than your fair share of ammo.
    
  
  

  
  

• Soldiers. Soldiers with heavy weapons fill very specific mission roles. Each heavy weapon is very useful for certain tasks, but also has its downsides. You have to appreciate how these weapons work and plan that into your interaction with the heavy weapons soldier. Help them out by:
  
  
  
  • Supporting soldiers with heavy weapons. They have specific missions in each game but are vulnerable if left to run around on their own. It's useful to have another player around to provide some cover fire as they get their heavy weapons ready (panzerfaust or venom cannon) or while they run around with the puny little pistols.
    
  • Providing security. They're probably pretty focused on a specific target and might miss the close by enemy approaching. It's your job to pick them up. Often times the heavy weapon will soften up a group of enemy enough where you can finish them off pretty easily.
    
  • Staying out of their way. Flamers and panzerfausts are area effect weapons. Give them room to work.
    
  
  

Map Recon for Dummies

How do you methodically work through a map you're not familiar with? I'll give you a couple of pointers, listed in priority of how I would organize the work. If you're part of a clan, prepping for a match on an unfamiliar map, I would recommend that several people run through this exercise and compare notes because each person will have a slightly different takes on how the map should be managed.

1. Determine location of objectives and relative importance to winning the game.
   

   
   

2. Identify friendly and enemy spawn points. Understand when and under what circumstances each becomes activated.
   

   
   

3. Identify primary and alternate routes from various spawn points to each objective. A primary route is the most direct route that provides the best cover and concealment. Determine which ones are the quickest and which ones offer the most cover and concealment. As you reach major landmarks, note the locational name in the upper right-hand corner of your HUD as you navigate the map.
   

   
   

4. Determine primary and alternate routes from various enemy spawn points to each objective. Determine which ones are the quickest and which ones offer the most cover and concealment.
   

   
   

5. Look for high points in the maps where you can get good fields of observation and fire into key areas - think about what weapons you'll need to place fire into those key areas (grenades, sniper rifle, artillery). Also look for dark areas that offer hiding spots. You'll want to be using these places to ambush people and will want to at least give them a quick check whenever you pass by them to make sure there isn't anyone hiding there. The crates on the right hand side of the ramp exit on Bridge is a good example of a place you always want to check.
   

   
   

6. For each route, identify chokepoints, branch points, potential staging areas, cover, firing positions, both enemy and yours. For example, on Assault there are the following:
   

   
   

   
   
   • Main gate - Obstacle and choke point to both sides
     
   • Barbwire obstacle in front of gate - Obstacle to both sides
     
   • Hatch entrance - Obstacle to Axis
     
   • Stairwell entrance up to comm tower - mostly a choke point for the Axis
     
   • Ladder from Allied spawn point to comm tower - mostly a choke point for the Allies
     
   • Exits from spawn points - choke point for respective sides
     
   
   

   
   

7. Identify special equipment/skills or strategies needed to clear various parts of each path (engineers to blow breaches, panzerfausts to take out bunkers, etc).
   

   
   

   
   
   • Main gate - There are 2 ways for the Allies to get around the main gate. A team can go up and through the guard tower or they can fight their way through the tunnels. Additionally, there are two paths to the guard tower - the fast way, on the ground, or a slower path along the left-side ledge.
     
   • Barbwire obstacle in front of gate. This obstacle is designed to slow down movement and buy the Axis time to plant dynamite at the gate hatch. There are at least two ways to gain a few extra seconds. First, you can use a panzerfaust to blow the barrier so that the assaulting team isn't forced to stop. Second, you can simply run through the wire. This tactic will cost you some health, but at the right time, it might be worth it to get the drop on the Axis engineer planting dynamite.
     
   • Hatch entrance - You know that the Axis side has to stop, plant, and arm the dynamite in order to blow the hatch. This buys you some time to take actions to kill the engineers before they can complete the arming. A team can rush the tower or you could drop artillery and airstrikes into the gate area.
     
   
   

   
   The corollary to this is the following: once you've identified ways to circumvent obstacles and chokepoints, expect that your opponent will have figured out the same tactic and develop counter-measures. If the Allies are always coming through the guard tower at the gate area, man the MG42 and keep up a stream of fire on the tower window or a panzerfaust shoot at the first sign of allied soliders.
   

   
   

8. Once you've identified chokepoints, look around for good spots from which to cover them and determine which weapons you need to do that job. This will vary from weapon to weapon. For example, on the Wizernes map, the tunnel is a natural choke point. If you're armed with the SMG, a good covering position is just to the right of the last right-hand side concrete obstacle. This is a good covering position because it lets you see and shoot past the bend of the tunnel, gives you cover, and greatly minimizes the amount of return fire. Basically only one person can shoot at you while any of your stray shots have a good chance of going into someone else. Similar spots exist on most maps, you just need to find them. Here are two examples:
   

   
   
   
   
   
   
   

   In Assault, you can wait right in front of the warehouse door. If you position your self right, you have a clean shot into anyone coming through the doorway but return fire is partially blocked by the stair rail and the center pillar. If you have a buddy off to your left, he can take care of anyone trying to assault you from the left hand stairs.	On Wizernes, this spot near the last obstacle on the right allows a clear stream of fire into the tunnel while return fire is blocked by the right hand tunnel wall and the concrete block.

   
   
   

   
   

9. For teams, you need to identify key branch points (if they exist) and develop strategies to prevent the other team from making it that far. A branch point is an area or event on the map which opens up courses of action to the enemy. Opening the gate hatch is a branch point for the Axis. Once they open this, they have the option of running through the gate or going into the tunnels. IF you can prevent this event from happening, the Axis side's options are greatly reduced and makes it easy for the Allies to control the game. Once the Axis gains access to the hatch, the Allies have to defend against 2 potential routes to the comm tower and spreads the Allied defense out. Similarly, the side blowing the side entrance on Wizernes opens up more options to get to the comm center. In some cases, there won't be anything you can do about it.
   

   
   

10. Identify secondary routes that can be taken in case a primary is blocked.
    

    
    

11. From several stationary postions, have a buddy walk around the engagement area and note when you can see and shoot him and where you cannot. This may vary by weapon.
    

As you start formulating an idea for a map strategy, a useful acronym to keep in mind is OCOKA. This stands for:

Observation and fields of fire. Where will you and the enemy have clear lines of sight and fire? In some places, you may have line of sight, but not line of fire with certain weapons due to range. You might have to make sure that someone with long range ability (artillery or sniper) can cover this.




Cover and concealment. Where are the physical structures that block enemy fire (cover)? What blocks or can block enemy observation (concealment)? If an area needs to be crossed, what means do you have to temporarily block line of sight? Airstrikes, artillery, and flamethrowers can help out here. Also keep in mind that the enemy is going to do the same thing. Where are they going to try and provide concealment for moving troops? Where might those troops be moving and how can you counter that?




Obstacles. Are there barriers or terrain features that prevent or channel movement? Wire, rivers, unpassable hills? Which can be moved (e.g., some barbed wire obstacles) and how can you create your own (e.g., artillery and airstrikes) to channel the enemy into preplanned kill zones?




Key Terrain. What key terrain features or locations give the possessor a significant tactical advantage? Far side spawn points, objectives, key fortifications (e.g., the far side spawn points on Wizernes). How fast can you take them?




Avenues of Approach. What are the primary routes of travel and attack? Where are the best points from which to stage and how can you tell if the enemy is staging for a push?

This is just a useful framework to make sure you haven't left anything out.

Basic Voice Communications 4 Dummies

Since it seems like a lot of people are starting to use gamevoice, roger wilco, etc, I thought that this might be a good time to introduce the concept of radio discipline.

Hardware and Voice Applications

• There are a lot of pretty good voice apps on the market right now which range in price from free to ~$50 USD. Roger Wilco,
  Gamevoice, and Teamsound are probably the three best known voice apps.
  
  
• At a minimum, you'll need the application and a microphone. Some packages come with additional hardware, but you should really try it out and determine that you really have a need for such an extensive package before going out and spending your money.
  
  
• Try to stick with a push to talk (PTT) configuration where a key is set up as the transmit button. Voice activated (VOX) is cool, but can cause problems if it is set too sensitive - then, you transmit and therefore step on other people whenever you make the slightest noise.
  

Prowords

• Over - used at end of phrase to signify that you are finished talking - so that other people don't step on your transmission
  
• Out - used to signify the conversation is over. Typically used by the person who initiated the conversation
  
• Roger - I understand
  
• Wilco - I understand AND will comply
  
• Say Again - repeat what you just said (NOT REPEAT)
  
• Say again all after ... - self explanatory
  
• SITREP - typically tells current situation, casualties, and ammo status. You might give a quick sitrep after capturing the documents in the map room
  
• Wait one - wait one second
  

Other protocols.

Direction

Conciseness.

Size (3 men)

Activity (approaching forward bunker)

Location (from the boats)

Uniform (1 engineer, 1 medic, 1 soldier)

Time (right now)

Equipment (flamethower)

Being a Good Newbie 4 Dummies

While I can only speak for the RTCW Central.com and the Planetwolfenstein forums, as far as I can tell, newbies are always welcome there. Hang around either one of those forums, play with us on a couple of servers the regulars frequent, and you will learn how to play RTCW in a good, supportive, team environment - the way it's supposed to be played. However, as the new player, you have certain responsibilities:

1. RTFM - You have to learn the basics. We can help you out, but please take the time to figure out the basic controls, what each class does, and how to zoom with the sniper rifle. We're willing to teach, but we're in-server to play a game, not teach RTCW 101.
   

   
   

2. Take time to spectate for a while. However, keep in mind that most of the 'good' servers stay pretty busy and are almost always full. If you spectate for more than a couple of minutes, you're taking up a valuable slot that someone else could be using. This isn't the Victoria's Secrets Web Show.
   

   
   

3. Team killing is inevitable, but if you're going to indiscriminately shoot your panzerfaust or flamethrower into a crowd of teammates, you'll find that people aren't going to be too jazzed to help you out. Newbs should probably stick to the basic guns first. Additionally, a little bit of trigger control and common sense will go a long ways.
   

   
   

4. Start a server on your own, gain a basic familiarity with the more common maps, and give each class a spin. Wander around the maps a little and learn where the objectives are. It will do wonders when you realize that you actually know where people are going and from where they're calling "Medic!" While in your own server, try out each class and figure out what each key does. The friendly spawn point during your first on-line game should not be where you figure out that the funny green grenade is an airstrike cannister.
   

   
   

5. Don't spam for medics or ammo. Most of the regulars in either forum will be pretty proactive in finding you and feeding you health and ammo. Remember when you ask for ammo a sign apears above your head so be a bit patient and you will get what you requested. Continuous spam is highly annoying and a good way to ensure you don't get squat.
   

   
   

6. Resist the temptation to go for glory. The game is about teamwork and not individual points. In fact, don't even think about the points - that's the fastest way to improve your game. Every newbie who wants to be John Wayne is just another body I have to fight my way into No Man's Land to revive.
   

   
   

7. Be a good sport. Common courtesy goes a long ways. Be nice to your fellow team mates and your opponents, because in later games, they'll also be your team mates. Just avoid being a jerk in general. Say thanks and sorry.
   

   
   

8. Don't automatically assume that other people are cheaters - it gets old fast and kills your credibility. You're going to see a lot of people do things you never imagined were possible. Watch and learn.
   

   
   

9. Have fun! Remember, it's a game and nothing more. If you're losing, it's not the time to start screaming abuse at everyone. When you start losing your cool then it's time to take a break. Never resort to TKing it achieves nothing and you will only find your name being remembered in the server for the wrong reasons.
   

   
   

10. Never be afraid to ask questions (but do some basic research first). You can bet your ass someone knows the answer. Also remember that this forum alone will improve your game. So sign your name up now introduce yourself and kiss goodbye all your free time.
    

Joining Clans 4 Dummies

So you want to join a clan?

The very team-based nature of RTCW seems to motivate a lot of people to begin seriously looking into joining clans - for fun and competition. Many want more than the public server (pub) experience, but don't really know how to get started. Maybe we can help you get started.

What is a clan?

• Dedicated game server;
  
• Clan web site with public and private forums;
  
• IRC channel (or other comparable chat forum);
  
• Specialized in-game communications software, such as Gamevoice
  

Why join a clan?

• Just want to belong to a group of people with the same interests:
  
  
  
  • Older players;
    
  • Highly aggressive game play;
    
  • Weapons specialty, such as sniping;
    
  • Team killing (of all things);
    
  • Geographic specific (such as Australia);
    
  • Beer party play or just hanging out
    
  
  
• Share a forum affiliation;
  
• Tired of pub play with random people;
  
• Desire to develop team skills with a consistent set of teammates;
  
• Want to compete in organized scrimmages;
  
• Want to compete in organized matches, leagues, or ladders;
  

What do clans do?

How do I join a clan?

• Be confident in your abilities, but don't be arrogant;
  
• Be respectful of other players;
  
• Do not bad mouth other players or clans;
  
• Participate in public forums, such as rtcwcentral.com or planetwolfenstein.com to gain a sense for how people conduct themselves and interact with others;
  
• Introduce yourself on the forums, but don't necessarily ask to join a clan up front - if you get an offer, you'll have no idea what you're getting yourself into;
  
• Learn which clans frequent different servers, and identify a few that maybe of interest to you;
  
• Play regularly on public servers that the clan members play on;
  
• Get addresses of clan servers from the forums, and play there as well;
  
• Visit the web servers of the clans you're interested in;
  
• Join the clan members in their IRC (or other) chat rooms;
  
• See how the clan members interact with each other, and with other teams;
  
• Discuss clan options with other peers who are also seeking clans;
  
• Once you get comfortable with some of the clan members, don't be afraid to ask, "what kind of people are you looking for?" and "where is your clan going?"
  

Making the decision to join a clan

• Will you start out as a junior member of the clan?
  
• Do they have openings for the type of class you prefer, (i.e., medic, soldier with a flamethrower)?
  
• Will you need to practice regularly with your clanmates, often once or more a week?
  
• If so, what flexibility is there if your time commitments change?
  
• In what time zones are most of your potential clanmates? 9:00-11:00 EST seems to be the most popular time for scrims.
  
• What are your playing styles?
  
• Is there a clan theme to which you need to conform? (e.g., special names, age, location, etc)
  
• Is there a $$$ cost to support the web site or game server?
  
• What can I give to the clan, such as web skills?
  
• What do I want to learn from the clan?
  
• Level of competitive play is the clan aiming for, ie. play for fun, ladder competition, elite status?
  

Before you join a clan

Suggestions for Recruiters (New Clans)

• Participate in public forums such as rtcwcentral.com or planetwolfenstein.com;
  
• Play on the forum's official or unofficial game servers;
  
• Develop a reasonable web site that identifies who your members are, where you play and how prospects can get in touch with you;
  
• Register a chat room on irc.enterthegame.com;
  
• Create practice and scrimmage schedules;
  
• Meet and play with other clans;
  
• Develop your code of ethics and a clear mission statement;
  
• Maintain a clean clan 'image' by practicing good sportsmanship and giving back to the community;
  
• Be respectful of other players and clans on the forums;
  
• Develop good clan leadership;
  
• Provide mentoring for junior members
  

Suggestions On Recruitment Postings

• Clearly identify what kind of people you are looking for
  
• Provide the URL of your website where people can go for more information
  
• Give some background on your clan (e.g., new, expanding, in several ladders, etc)
  
• Do not sound desperate;
  
• Do not offer immediate enrollment in your clan;
  
• Invite candidates to your IRC channel as a start;
  
• Invite candidates to play with your clan
  

Resources

RTCW Central.com

Planet Wolfenstein

Cached.net

Tweaking for Dummies

What is a CVAR and what do they do?

Public config vs. a very tweaked configs (Ice)

Public vs. CAL vs. unlimited configs (Assault)

CVARs, when altered, as you have obviously seen, can limit or increase the visual quality of how textures and models are rendered in the game. When a CVAR is tweaked so as to limit/lower the quality, it usually increases the frame rate (FPS = frames per second) and that means smoother game-play; more snapshots of the map as you see it are drawn. So with a frame rate of 135, there are 135 frames being drawn in one second. Some low end computers with older hardware (ie graphics card, processor, etc.), can be very challenged to generate even minimal FPS. This in turn can make for a very choppy game. Obviously, the higher the FPS, the smoother the game and is easier for the eyes to process info compared to the twitching one's eyes can do with a frame rate of 10 FPS. Tweakers tend to tweak CVARs that greatly affect FPS because their hardware can't reach reasonable FPS with default settings; hence, their lack of capable hardware warrants them to alter the game's default graphics in order to make it playable. But even then, they can't achieve that much of a boost in FPS without taking CVAR values to extreme.

Isn't this considered to be cheating?

So what does this mean to the tweaker? Each server admin will set the range of "acceptable" CVAR values for their server and use Punkbuster to control observation of the limits. Players are allowed to modify CVAR values within those limits, but no more. Tweakers who find the stated limits unacceptable, simply get to find another server. Cheating? Hardly - it's just a matter of knowing the rules and exercising your choice to accept them or not - on a server by server basis.

OK, so what does each CVAR do?

Increase FPS

r_picmip (default 1) [high picmip alone eliminates tree limbs]

r_picmip2 (default 2)








r_mode (default 3) [changes screen resolution]

r_rmse (default 0) [note: r_rmse used by itself just changes the level of detail in textures (first screenie) but when used with r_picmip > 4, and r_rmse > 120, tree limbs go away. This is restricted by most leagues]















r_subdivisions (default 0) [adjusts the granularity of faces drawn in curved surfaces]

r_lodbias (default 0) [adjusts level of detail]

r_texturebits (default 16 or 32)

r_colorbits (default 16 or 32)

r_dynamiclights (default 1) [can be turned on and off from the in-game menu]

cg_marktime (default 1250) [can be turned on and off from the in-game menu]

cg_brassTime (default 1250) [can be turned on and off from the in-game menu]










cg_gibs (default 1)

cg_drawgun (default 1) [can be turned on and off from the in-game menu]

cg_shadows (default 1)

cg_simpleitems (default 0) [causes 3d items to be rendered as 2d stencils]

Remove Map Elements

r_uifullscreen 1 (default 0) [will remove fog on some maps. However on tram and some custom maps, which use fogclipping, it won't be useful. test it and you will see why]










r_fastsky (default 0) [can be turned on and off from the in-game menu, also improves FPS]










r_drawsun (default 1) [can be turned on and off from the in-game menu]

cg_wolfparticles (default 1) [can be turned on and off from the in-game menu, also improves FPS]

Increase Brightness and Eliminate shadows

r_gamma (default 1.3 - in game max value 2.0)

r_intensity (default 1)

r_mapoverbrightbits (default 2)

r_overbrightbits (default 1)

r_vertexlight (default 0)

Other

cg_fov (default 90) [usually increased to widen the field of view (FOV) - some players tend to use around 110, or their personal preference]

cg_bobpitch (default 0.002)

cg_bobroll (default 0.002)

cg_bobup (default 0.005)

s_mixahead (default 0.20) - lower values improve FPS at the cost of some sound choppiness

CVAR Experiments - Comparion of 5 Configs (Ice)

1. Default settings. This is what RTCW looks like out of the box with the one exception of changing screensize from 640 x 480 to 1156 x 864
   
2. Max settings allowed within the Setup menu (Lightmap off, brightness slider all the way to the left)
   
3. Evenbalance recommended limits. Fairly restrictive. This is my public server config.
   
4. CAL cvar limits. (r_subdivisions 999; r_color/texturebits 16; r_picmip 3; r_ignorehwgamma 1; r_gamma 4; r_intensity 2.7; r_mapoverbrightbits 3). These limits have also been adopted by TWL and STA. This is my match config.
   
5. Extreme config. picmip, gamma, and intensity jacked way up - not legal in any known league.
   

If you look at my config settings, you'll see that I really haven't maxed out all of the settings, but I have them set where I like them while still being in compliance with the limits. For pub play, I keep lightmap on, even though vertex lighting isn't a restricted setting.

What do I need to tweak to remove screen elements

What's Punkbuster and what does it have to do with CVARs?

The way Punkbuster checks all this, is that each server has it's own settings, or server.cfg (configuration file). And if a server has Punkbuster enabled, then ONLY clients with Punkbuster enabled also on their end can join that server. Otherwise, if Punkbuster were not enabled on client-side, then they would be rejected by the server so long as it has Punkbuster enabled.

Within the configuration files are code that tells Punkbuster what settings to check each client for. If a client doesn't meet the ranges, then punkbuster might at best warn before kicking the client. If the client does not change the values in error (which usually requires a video restart - type /vid_restart in console to do so), then Punkbuster will kick the client for unaccepted settings.

Not all servers run same settings. That's why it's important to find out if 1) the server you are playing on has Punkbuster enabled (a good thing IMO), 2) What are the restrictions listed for that particular server, and 3) are those restrictions acceptable to you.

So with every server running their own cvar limits, how do you find out if your settings are compliant? The command you want is pb_cvarlist. You can either drop the console and type in pb_cvarlist or you can bind a key like this (bind x "pb_cvarlist"). Once you enter the command, you should see the following in the console:

You can see that it tells me that I have no violations. If there are problems, you will see the following:

In this case, it tells me that three of my cvar settings are in violation and specifies each one with (violation) after the name of the cvar (take a look at r_gamma, r_mapoverbrightbits, and r_overbrightbits). It also tells me what my current setting is and the range that it must be inside or outside of.

You can always look at server configs, when posted, to view the CVAR limits set on each server. Hopefully, you'll see something like this (taken from the CAL-Open server config link):

pb_sv_cvar com_maxfps out 0.000001 40

pb_sv_cvar m_pitch out -0.015 0.015

pb_sv_cvar m_yaw in 0.022

pb_sv_cvar cg_shadows in 0 1

pb_sv_cvar cl_freelook in 1

pb_sv_cvar r_rmse in 0 0

pb_sv_cvar cg_fov in 90 120

pb_sv_cvar r_intensity in 0 6

You'll see that each line is formatted like:

pb_sv_cvar [name of CVAR] [in/out] [X to Y]

What it's telling you is that that [name of CVAR] must be either INside of X to Y or OUTside of X to Y. Failure to comply with these limits will result in you being kicked.

A good rule of thumb, if you are hopping on an unknown server, is to ensure that more restrictive settings (I use the Evenbalance config limits) would load no matter what so as to avoid punkbuster warnings before I could check the restrictions. Then, check the punkbuster limits of that server, using the pb_cvarlist command and then if you can use higher settings, press a key that would toggle between my pub and competition settings (look at my scripting section to see how you can set this up as a script and a bind). Each time I changed settings, the game would do a vid_restart (video restart) to make them take effect.

References

• Tweaking Guides: Quake 3 Arena
  
• Techspot: Return to Castle Wolfenstein MP Test tweak guide
  
• Elite Killers: Quake 3 Config Guide
  
• Upset Chaps: Framerate and Visual Tweaks
  
• Commander Keen's Q3 Console
  
• Iffy's list of RTCW-specific variables and commands
  
• Evenbalance CVAR Limits
  

Setting up Your Controls

When I say 'controls', I'm actually talking about two distinct components.

1. Physical assignment of keys on the keyboard and mouse
   
2. Creation of an autoexec.cfg file to save key assignments, scripts, and other custom variables
   

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Setting Up The Autoexec File

Creating An Autoexec File

seta name "Pvt. Snuffy"

Save it to your [gamedir]/main directory as "autoexec.cfg". You have to encase the filename within the quotes. Notepad has a nasty habit of adding a .txt extension on files. Verify that the .txt extension did not get tagged on. Make sure you have "hide extensions of files with known file types" turned off so you can see what type of files it is. If you did it right, when you launch RTCW, you should be named Pvt. Snuffy and the lettering should be in red.

Organizing the Autoexec

The autoexec loads binds and settings from top to bottom. This means that if you bound the same key to two functions or have two conflicting settings; the last one listed will be the active when the game starts.

I've organized my autoexec in a couple of discrete sections for better organization and to facilitate sharing of sections such as server lists and communications binds. This way, I always know where to look for something, or if I'm helping someone who used my autoexec as a base, I can walk him or her through problems.

Section	Typical Commands/Variables (examples)
Player Setting. Commands that define who I am in the game. Unique to me.	name model headmodel
Video and Network Settings. Commands and variables, which affect my visual quality and connection to the Net. Unique to my system.	rate com_maxfps r_vertexlighting cg_drawgun
Misc Game Settings. Unique to my game playing/viewing preferences.	cg_fov sensitivity cg_drawcrosshair
Movement Settings. Unique to the way I play, but can be shared with others.	forward/back moveright/moveleft button 5
Weapons Settings. Unique to the way I organize my weapons, but can be shared with others.	Weapon binds Zoom
Function Keys. Mostly used for toggles that turn information on and off	cg_drawFPS cg_drawtimer cg_drawthirdperson
Other Game Commands. Unique to the way I play, but can be shared with others	scores screenshot Start and Stop recording a series of 5 demos Binds to exec configs for specific classes or mods (engineer.cfg, medic.cfg)
Executables. Separate files that execute during the start up process, but are meant for sharing with others. In the case of team communication binds or server lists, I can e-mail them to teammates so that we are all using the same messages.	class-select-v1.cfg medic.cfg engineer.cfg lieutenant.cfg solider.cfg demo.cfg bindchats.cfg
Scripts. Scripts and toggles that can be shared with others.	Multiple weapon scripts Demo recording script Crouch toggle

When you want to edit your autoexec, use Wordpad or Notepad as your editing tool. Try to keep the autoexec as neat as possible and use //comments to help annotate what different commands do. Quake will not execute anything that follows a pair of double-backslashes (//).

Example of //

Maintenance

Just like you have to tweak your keyboard configuration and keep it up-to-date, you have to do the same for your autoexec. Over time, you'll add new scripts, reassign binds, update your hardware, etc that will require changes to the file. Play with it until you get it just right.

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Troubleshooting Your Control Setup

If you're thinking about tweaking your control configuration, start by asking a few diagnostic questions:

1. Are you always reaching to get at critical keys?
   
2. Do you store all of your custom bindings and settings in wolf_mp.cfg?
   
3. Do you lose track of what each key does during games?
   
4. When you edit your autoexec.cfg, do you have a difficult time finding the line you want to edit?
   
5. Do you have a lot of keys that pretty much do the same thing?
   

A few people have asked to review their autoexec files and I've found some common themes:

• Using the arrow keys for movement. This is usually a holdover from old DOOM days, but some people persist in using the arrow keys for movement because that is what they learned on. For starters, you might consider moving your movement keys to either a WASD/ESDF configuration or use the keypad - depending on whether you're left or right handed. The arrow keys are almost always an inefficient choice because, on most keyboards, there are no other keys that are contiguous around them. This means, that in order to execute any other command other than move, you are forced to stretch.
  

  
  

• Multiple and redundant binds. There are several reasons that multiple keys can end up bound to the same or similar functions. Sometimes you delete scripts and forget to reassign the keys, other times, you might have a button bound to show the FPS counter and another counter to remove it. Start off by cleaning up your autoexec and removing inactive binds. You might be surprised at how much extra space you find. Next, see if there are scripts or toggles that can help you consolidate keys. I use a lot of two-weapon toggles and other keys bound to turn the timer or FPS counter on and off. There isn't space here to talk about scripts, but you can visit The Bind or my scripting tutorial for a quick tutorial.
  

  
  

• No organization to the autoexec. Often times, I see people who have used q3config.cfg as the basis for their autoexec but haven't bothered to reorganize or group similar functions. My Quake 2 config is like this. In the case of key assignments, q3config lists them alphabetically. This may help you identify which keys are free, but if you are trying to bind movement keys, you'll have to hunt all over the place. Likewise, when I bind weapons, I want to look at key assignments as a group because 1) I want to make sure I haven't left anything out and 2) I want to see where the keys are in relation to one another. Do whatever works best for you, but grouping keys somewhat will make editing your autoexec a little easier.
  

  
  

• Leaving weapons assigned to the default number keys. 1-0 are the default assignments for weapons but you probably want to consolidate your weapon assignments to 1-6 and one or two closer to your movement keys. 7-0 are probably too far away from your Primary Zone to reach effectively, especially since some of the more powerful weapons are numbered higher. Group them into a tighter group and pick one or two of your favorite weapons and move them where you can most easily access them.
  

Remember, have fun and just play the game!

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Additional Resources

Ifurita's Basic Scripting Tutorial

Ifurita's Autoexec

Console Commands and Variables

The Bind:Arena

Scripting for Dummies

First, why write scripts and what do they do for you?

I've added scripts to my basic configuration for three main reasons:

1. Improve control flexibility (e.g., multiple weapon binds)
   
2. Execute multiple functions with one keystroke (e.g., demo recording)
   
3. Facilitate config customization for multiple mods or classes (e.g., Engineer vs Medic)
   

After reading through this basic explanation of script writing you should be comfortable with writing your own basic scripts. Visit The Bind:Arena to see some examples of some really cool Q3:A scripts and Commander Keen's Quake 3 Arena Console Page for all of the different console commands and variables you might need while writing your scripts. the sites I've referred you to are Quake 3: Arena oriented sites, but since RTCW is based on the Quake 3 engine, most of the material should still work for you.

• Script Organization
  
• Basic Binds
  
• Multiple Binds
  
• Recursive Scripts
  
• Toggles
  
• Executables
  
• Examples
  
• Resources and Intellectual Property
  

Script Organization

Scripts have to be saved in a separate .cfg file from your wolf_mp.cfg. The reason is that RTCW overwrites the wolf_mp.cfg file every time you start a game or change settings and therefore will delete any scripts and comments you add. I put all of my scripts into an autoexec.cfg. If you don't know how to put one together, visit the Tweaking Your Controls:Making an Autoexec article I wrote for a quick lesson.

As you write scripts, use //comments to help annotate what your script does. It will help better organize scripts in your configuration and if you want to give your scripts to other people, it makes it pretty clear what it does. RTCW will not execute anything that follows a pair of double-backslashes (//).

Example of //

You can also use the Echo command (more on this later) to give yourself in-game messages when a script has been activated. We'll discuss this later, but you can go to some of the examples section and look at the crouch toggle and the demo recording script to see what in-game messages I give myself when the script is activated.

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Basic Binds

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Multiple Binds

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Recursive Scripts

set [scriptline(n)] "[command]; set [nextscriptline] vstr [scriptline(n+1)]; echo [comment]"





1. The set command tells RTCW that you are defining a line of commands that will be grouped and executed under the name [scriptline].
   
   
2. [scriptline(n)] - is the name of one iteration or step in your script. If you have a large number of steps, start numbering with 1. If you have 4 steps, then the highest number should be 4. For scripts with a small number of steps, you can use simple names, just make sure that you don't use the same name twice.
   
   
3. [command] - is the command or set of commands you want to execute with the script. Multiple commands should be separated by a semicolon (;) like we learned in the Multiple Binds section.
   
   
4. set [nextscriptline] - this tells the script to assign [nextscriptline] to execute the string of commands defined in [scriptline(n+1)]
   
   
5. vstr [scriptline(n+1)] - is the name of the next alias in the sequence to be activated. Look at the weapon scripts. In the first iteration, I want to choose the SMG, but in the second, I want to reverse the sequence and choose the pistol. In your last iteration, make n=1 to start all over from the beginning. This will let your key cycle through all of the combinations you've written, then start all over from the beginning. You don't have to use a numerical sequence, but it might make it easier to keep track of. In any case, pick whatever you're comfortable with.
   
   
6. echo [comment] - Any text that follows the echo command will be shown to you as an in-game message. I find this useful for reminding me what my script just did.
   

set w-bank2 "weaponbank 2; set nextw-bank23 vstr w-bank3"
set w-bank3 "weaponbank 3; set nextw-bank23 vstr w-bank2"

Step 3 - Assign dynamic variable to first 'step' in sequence

set [nextscriptline] vstr [scriptline(n+1)]

set nextw-bank23 "vstr w-bank2"

Step 4 - Bind key to execute dynamic variable

bind w "vstr nextw-bank23"

Here's what it looks like when it's all put together:

Try this out and play around a little. You'll be writing your own scripts in no time. Go to the Examples section to see a couple I've written.

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Toggles

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Other Executables

exec engineer.cfg

exec medic.cfg

exec lieutenant.cfg

exec soldier.cfg

exec demorecord.cfg

exec bindchats.cfg

exec class-select-v1.cfg

exec matchgfx.cfg

bind 7 "exec engineer.cfg"

Here's a schematic showing how all of my config files are related and executed

Notice that all of my key settings are actually saved in a file called ifurita.cfg, not autoexec.cfg. The file autoexec.cfg only has one line in it, exec ifurita.cfg. This autoexec can then be dropped into each mod folder which will then execute the single file, ifurita.cfg which resides in /Main. One advantage of this arrangement is that I don't have to edit multiple autoexec files whenever I change key assignments.

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Examples

How To Make A RTCW Movie Guide

If you are looking for some specific cvars or quick answers jump to the end.

Overview

Getting Started and What You Will Need

Converting The Demos

Setting Up The Graphics

: This is what you'll see with the full pro version of DivX. You may see less if you are using the free version.




What we are going to do is a multipass rendering job. So select Multipass, 1st Pass in the Variable bitrate mode area as shown below.




Then go to the encoding bitrate. This is a very important area to think about. The more you give to the bitrate the larger the file will be but the quality will increase. There is no perfect bitrate setting to use. In this example 3500 is used. This will create a pretty nice looking video but the file size will be on the heavy side. Toy around with this setting to find the perfect balance between quality of the movie and file size.



Next choose the Write MV file option, as shown below. You want this on. This helps with the quality of the video in the end.



The prompt with erros and warnings option is entirely up to you. The quick config cli is for advance using and I won't go into how to use it.

Ok hop on over to the general parameters tab. You will want the general parameters area to look like this.



Do not enable crop or enable resize. Leave off psychovisual enhancements and pre processing source. They most likely will not help with quality or file size of the video and just add time to your rendering jobs. Don't mess with the keyframe as it's already at it's best setting. Put the performance/quality to slowest. Source interlace should be put to encode as progressive and do not check the deinterlace box. We are watching this on a computer we don't want silly scanlines.

The manage settings tab lets you save your settings and lets you keep your different settings all nice and tidy.

Now go to the Profiles tab. You want to turn off bidirectional encoding if you are using a higher bitrate (I say 2000 and above count as higher bitrates). In this case we are so make sure the box is unchecked as shown below.




Alright now click ok and exit out of the DivX options.

: Remember all of your DivX settings or save them. You will need to use the exact same settings again later on. Go and choose your audio codec and then start your rendering job. The time it takes depends on the length of the movie and the options you chose in the DivX options. Chances are though it will take a long long long time.

Ok rendering job is done. If you want you can go see the file size of the video. If you try to play the video it will most likely be all black with just the audio. This is suppose to happen. You have to do the 2nd pass to get a final .avi. So go back to the rendering setup and open your DivX options again. You need to have the same settings as you did the first time except with two changes. Change your variable bitrate mode to Multipass, nth pass as shown below.




After you change the variable bitrate mode to nth pass. The bitrate modulation option should become ungreyed for use. Slide this option to the far left so it's the high setting and it reads -0.25 in the box at the right.




Finally make sure the update log file and read mv file are checked.




Make sure the settings are the same as they were the first time under the general parameters tab and profiles tab.

Hit ok. Go select your audio codec stuff and render.

Once that 2nd render is done you are finally finished...sort of. You're avi should be fully playable with video and audio. If it's not well you got to troubleshoot then. The problem maybe with your editing software or your DivX options. Have fun figuring it out.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q. How do I stop the console messages from appearing on screen?

A. con_notifytime 0 will stop the console messages from appearing on screen


Q. How do I remove the stopwatch icon in the hud?

A. You can't. There is no known cvar to remove it. The only option is to use cg_draw2d which removes EVERYTHING 2d on the screen.


Q. How do import my clips into my editing software?

A. Read the damn help file of your editing software.


Q. How big should my movie be?

A. Depends on the length of your video and bitrate you use in your codec for compression. Rule of thumb is try to aim under 200mb for the final video. If your video is beyond a good 8 minutes or so this won't be easily achieved.


Q. What audio codec should I use?

A. mp3 and ogg are the most popular.


Q. Why doesn't my video look as good as that one?

A. Read through the graphics portion of this guide. It will tell you why probably.


Q. Will you make a video for me gearbolt?

A. Maybe. If you don't have demos that are very short with a name like PanzerShotAtBeggining.dm_60 you will need to make a small .txt file telling me what times the good stuff happens in what demo. I will not dig through 40mb demos searching for action. Also, I just might not have the time to dedicate to making a video for you. Simply put, make it so I don't have to dig through demos searching for action. Also remember I have a life (sometimes) and may not have the time to making one for you. I do not put anything personal between me and the person who wants a video made by me. In other words, I do not care who you are. It all comes down to the two factors I've listed, demos and time I have to dedicate.