Introduction to Counter-Strike
From Whisper's Wiki
| This is an Introduction to Counter-Strike |
I will be using Counter-Strike Source examples, but the examples nearly always work for all versions of Counter-Strike
What the different icons on your screen mean
The icons on your screen are called the HUD (Heads Up Display) and it shows you all the information about yourself and the world around you in Counter-Strike.
Cross 
Hair
- The Cross-Hair is what you use to aim at the enemy.
- Place the Cross-Hair over the opposition and then fire your gun. Repeat this process until either you or the opposition is dead. Attempt to keep the Cross-Hair on the opposition player you are trying to kill, for each and every shot your gun makes.
- The Cross-Hair always sits in the middle of your screen, regardless of how much you move your mouse around.
- The Cross-Hair changes size when you fire your gun and when you move. This function can be turned ON or OFF with cl_dynamiccrosshair 1 or 0 command.
- The Cross-Hair colour can be changed with the cl_crosshaircolor command. It can be advantageous to change the Cross-Hair colour from the default Green depending upon the map.
- The Cross-Hair size can be changed. The cl_crosshairscale command controls the size of the Cross-Hair on your screen. The value your use has a direct relationship to your in game resolution. What is a large Cross-Hair at one screen resolution will be a small Cross-Hair at a different screen resolution.
- Hold the Cross-Hair at head level and in the likely direction of where the enemy will appear from for more efficient aiming and shooting. Having your Cross-Hair pointed at the ground, means it will take longer for you to aim at the opposition when you want to shoot at them.
Health 
Points Indicator
How much Health you have. Also known as Hit Points.
The larger the number this is, the better
- By default starts at 100
- Turns RED if you fall below 25
- If it reaches to 0 you are dead
Armour 
Points Indicator
Armour protects your body from weapons fire by reducing the amount of damage an enemys bullets do to you.
You get 100 Armour points
Basic 
Basic Armour is part of the Equipment Buy Menu and the quickest way to buy it is to press the Default Equipment Buy Key O followed by the 1 Key.
Full 
The helmet helps protect your head from damage and stops many guns from being single shot headshot weapons, especially pistols.
Full Armour is part of the Equipment Buy Menu and the quickest way to buy it is to press the Default Equipment Buy Key O followed by the 2 Key.
You may upgrade from Basic Armour to Full Armour so long as your Basic Armour is undamaged for only $350. If it is damaged even by 1 Armour point, it will cost you $1000 if you want a Helmet.
You may replenish your Full
Round Time 
Is a digital clock that indicates how much time is remaining for the round.
Do not let this drop too low before trying to complete the map objective.
Many objectives have a minimum amount of time they require for you to complete them. e.g. It will take you X amount of seconds to retrieve the bomb and then plant it, or retrieve the hostages and get them back to the rescue zone.
Hostages 
/ Bomb Planted 
Indicator
This section of the screen indicates what status of the Hostages is, or whether the bomb has been planted.
Rescuing Hostages
Hostages 
Hostages show up as Light Blue Player dots on the Counter-Terrorists Radar.
Hostages are commanded by the Counter-Terrorists to follow them when a Counter-Terrorist moves up and touches them while holding down the USE (Default E) Key .
Hostages are then supposed to follow the Counter-Terrorist that touched them while holding the USE Key back to the Hostage Rescue Point.
The Hostage Rescue Point is designated by the Hostage Rescue Point Icon 
on the HUD
The Hostage Rescue Points are usually in Counter-Terrorist spawn and designated by the Hostage Rescue Zone Markers on the floor of the map.
Ammo in Current Magazine 
This section of the screen is a counter of the number of bullets currently in your weapon's magazine.
I have listed the default carrying capacity of each gun below.
7 Bullets
- Desert Eagle
- Auto Shotgun
8 Bullets
- M3 Shot Gun
10 Bullets
- Scout
- AWP
12 Bullets
- USP
13 Bullets
- P228
20 Bullets
- Glock
- FiveSeven
- G3SG1 T Auto-Sniper
25 Bullets
- UMP
- FAMAS
30 Bullets
- Dual Beretta 96G (15 in each Pistol)
- TMP
- MP5
- MAC-10
- AK-47
- Colt
- SIG552
- AUG
- Sig550 CT Auto-Sniper
35 Bullets
- Galil
50 Bullets
- FN P90
100 Bullets
- Para
Ammo in Reserve 
How much Ammunition you have in reserve that is not in the gun.
Please check the correctness of this list.
- H&K USP .45 Tactical - 100
- Glock 18 Select Fire - 120
- SIG P228 - 52
- Desert Eagle .50 AE - 35
- FN Five-Seven - 100
- Dual Beretta 96G - 120
- Benneli M3 Super90 - 32
- Benneli XM1014 - 32
- Steyr Tactical / Schmidt Machine Pistol - 120
- Ingram MAC-10 - 90
- H&K MP5-Navy / KM Sub-Machine Gun - 120
- H&K UMP / KM UMP45 - 200
- FN P90 / ES C90 - 100
- Galil / IDF Defender - 90
- FAMAS / Clarion 5.56 - 90
- AK-47 / CV-47 - 90
- Colt M4A1 Carbine / Maverick M4A1 Carbine - 90
- Steyr AUG / Bullpup - 90
- Sig SG-552 Commando / Krieg 552 - 90
- Steyr Scout / Schmidt Scout - 60
- AI Arctic Warfare / Magnum Sniper Rifle - 30
- Sig SG-550 Sniper / Krieg 550 Commando - 80
- H&K G3/SG-1 / D3/AU-1 - 60
- FN M249 Para - 200
Cash 
How much money you have
- You get $800 as the default start money
- You get $300 for each Kill
- You get $1,400 for the 1st round you lose, and this increases by $500 every subsequent round you lose in a row, to a maximum of $2,900
- You get $2,200 as a Terrorist for planting the bomb but losing the round
- You get $3,250 for winning a round
- You get $3,500 for winning the round as a Terrorist by planting and having the Bomb explode even if you die to the bomb explosion
- You get $150 for Touching a Hostage as a Counter-Terrorist if you are the first person to touch it in that round
- You get $1,500 for Rescuing each Hostage as a Counter-Terrorist
- The Counter-Terrorist Team gets $500 for each Hostage Rescued
- You get $0 if you have an objective and the round timer runs out!
- You lose $350 if you Injure a hostage
- You lose $2,250 if you Kill a hostage
Kill / Death Notifications
Kill/Death Notifications appear at the top right hand corner of the screen and tell you who killed who and with what weapon.
These are useful in knowing where the enemy is, and what gun they possibly have, if you know where your team mate just died, which is what your Radar is useful for.
- H&K USP .45 Tactical -
- Glock 18 Select Fire -
- SIG P228 -
- Desert Eagle .50 AE -
- FN Five-Seven -
- Dual Beretta 96G -
- Benneli M3 Super90 -
- Benneli XM1014 -
- Steyr Tactical / Schmidt Machine Pistol -
- Ingram MAC-10 -
- H&K MP5-Navy / KM Sub-Machine Gun -
- H&K UMP / KM UMP45 -
- FN P90 / ES C90 -
- Galil / IDF Defender -
- FAMAS / Clarion 5.56 -
- AK-47 / CV-47 -
- Colt M4A1 Carbine / Maverick M4A1 Carbine -
- Steyr AUG / Bullpup -
- Sig SG-552 Commando / Krieg 552 -
- Steyr Scout / Schmidt Scout -
- AI Arctic Warfare / Magnum Sniper Rifle -
- Sig SG-550 Sniper / Krieg 550 Commando -
- H&K G3/SG-1 / D3/AU-1 -
- FN M249 Para -
- Knife -
- HE Grenade -
- FlashBang Grenade -
- Smoke Grenade -
- Suicide -
- Headshot -
Buy Zone 
To Buy Weapons/Ammunition/Grenades/Equipment you must be within a Buy Zone.
You will be, by default when you spawn, within a Buy Zone.
There is usually a time limit for how long the Buy Zone is active for from the beginning of the round.
This is called the Buy Time, and is regulated by the mp_buytime server variable.
The B Key is the Default Key for Buying Weapons and Ammunition.
The O Key is the Default Key for Buying Grenades and Equipment.
Bomb 
This icon 
You must be in a Bomb Planting Zone to be able to plant the Bomb.
When this icon 
Defuse Kit 
This icon 
Buying a Defuse Kit costs $200 and reduces the defuse time from 10 Seconds to 5 Seconds.
The Defuse Kit is part of the Equipment Buy Menu and the quickest way to buy it is to press the Default Equipment Buy Key O followed by the 6 Key
What the Bomb is
The Bomb
The Bomb must be planted before the Round Time runs out
The Bomb can be dropped and then picked up by any Terrorist
The Bomb carrying player shows up RED on the Terrorists Radar
The Dropped Bomb shows up as a RED dot on the Terrorists Radar
The Planted Bomb shows up as a flashing RED dot on the Terrorists Radar
How to Plant the Bomb
When a Bomb Planter enters a bomb plant zone, the Bomb icon
How to Defuse the Bomb
If you are a Counter-Terrorist and the bomb is planted, you must proceed to the Bomb-Site at which the Bomb is planted and defuse the bomb. The default Bomb timer is 45 Seconds but is nearly always changed to 35 Seconds on most servers. You can tell the Bomb is Planted by the "The Bomb is Planted" Audio and Text Cue and by the Flashing Bomb Icon in the Heads Up Display.
To Defuse the bomb, all a Counter-Terrorist has to do is move up so they can touch the Bomb, and then hold down the USE (Default E) Key for 10 Seconds if you do not have a Defuse Kit, or only 5 Seconds if you do have a Defuse
You must not let go of your USE Key, and you cannot move or shoot while defusing.
Chat Area
The Chat area is where all text messages players send to each other in game are shown.
Y is the default key to activate chat to ALL players
U is the default key to activate chat to TEAM ONLY players
Dead Players cannot chat to live players, so don't bother trying.
ScoreBoard
The ScoreBoard shows a list of the following:
- The Score for Each Team
- Each Players Name and what Team they are on
- Each Players Kills
- Each Players Deaths
- Each Players Latency, which is the one way travel time for game packets from the player to the server measured in milliseconds (1/1000ths of a Second)
- Each Teams Average Latency
To bring up the ScoreBoard, you have to press TAB (Default Show ScoreBoard) Key on your Keyboard
Counter-Strike 1.6 Radar
 |  This is an example of a dropped Bomb on the Terrorist Radar |  This is an example of a planted Bomb on the Terrorists Radar |
Your own team appears as Dark Blue dots on your screen
Hostages appear as Light Blue versions of your own team on the Counter-Terrorists Radar with the same properties as a regular player on your Radar.
The Bomb appears (in RED) only on the Terrorists' Radar; when planted it becomes a flashing RED x, when dropped it's a flashing RED dot, when on a player's back it will appear as a RED live player icon on the radar with the same properties as a regular player on your Radar.
Counter-Strike:Source Radar
 | When you're dead or spectating, you will have a large radar view on your screen that will look similar to the first image above, where as while you are playing it will look similar to the second and third images on the left and right. Counter Terrorists will come up as your traditional blue colour, Terrorists will come up in a red colour and objectives such as the bomb, hostage and bombsites/rescue zones will come up as a yellow colour. The various icons that you see on the radar, will be defined below. |  |
Counter Terrorist Radar Specifics
General Information
-
Blue circle with white center and viewcone - Your current position on the radar screen.
-
Blue circle with an outer green ring - A team mate using radio commands/chat features.
(Note: A blinking green ring indicates that text/radio was used, while a solid ring indicates voice chat is being used. Also note that the ring will change size depending if the player is above or below you)
-
Transparent large blue circle with white arrow - A team mate above your location, the arrow shows the direction they are facing.
-
Blue circle with white arrow - Team mate, the arrow shows direction that they are facing.
-
Small blue circle with white arrow - A team mate that is below your location, the arrow shows the direction they are facing.
-
Blue triangle with an outer green triangle - A team mate using radio commands/chat features who is outside the view of your radar screen.
(Note: A blinking green triangle indicates that text/radio was used, while a solid triangle indicates voice chat is being used. Also note that the triangle will change size depending if the player is above or below you)
-
Transparent large blue arrow at the edge of the radar - Team mate outside the screen of the radar, above your current location.
-
Blue arrow at the edge of the radar - Team mate, outside of the view of the radar screen.
-
Small blue arrow at the edge of the radar - Team mate, outside of the view of the radar screen, below your current location.
-
Blue X or cross - A dead team mate.
(Note: The death icon will stay on the radar screen for ten seconds. The X image will be half cut off when on the edge of the radar, so instead it will look like a V)
Terrorists on the Counter Terrorist Radar
-
Red circle with a white arrow - A spotted enemys current location, the arrow shows direction they are facing.
(Note: The CT must keep their crosshair on the T for the T's current position to be relayed on the radar screen)
-
Transparent red circle with a white arrow - A spotted Terrorists LAST KNOWN location, the arrow shows direction they were facing at.
(Note: A spotted Terrorists last known location will stay up on the radar screen for four seconds)
-
Small red circle with a white arrow - The enemys current location that is below your current location, the arrow shows direction they are facing.
-
Transparent small red circle with a white arrow - A Terrorists LAST KNOWN location that is below your current location, the arrow shows direction they were facing.
-
Transparent large red circle with a white arrow - A Terrorists current location or last known location that is above your current location, the arrow shows direction they are facing.
(Note: Radar does not tell between a current location and last known location if the enemy or is above you. It may get fixed in a future update)
-
Red X or cross - A dead Terrorist.
(Note: The dead Terrorist icon lasts for 10 seconds on the radar screen and does not change size depending if it is above or below you)
DE_ Icons on the Counter Terrorist Radar
-
Red circle with a yellow ring & bomb icon - A Terrorist with bomb that is CURRENTLY being spotted by a Counter Terrorist.
(Note: A CT needs to get close to the T with the bomb, irregardless if the CT has a weapon with a scope that can see the bomb from a far distance or not)
-
Transparent red circle with a yellow ring & bomb icon - LAST KNOWN location of a Terrorist with the bomb that was spotted by a Counter Terrorist.
(Note: The yellow ring and bomb icon will only last two seconds while the player circle will last four seconds on the radar screen after being spotted)
-
Bomb icon with an expanding yellow ring - A dropped bomb that a Counter Terrorist has spotted, or is currently spotting.
(Note: You only need to look at it with your crosshairs and then have it remain on your screen to 'spot it')
-
Bomb icon with an expanding red ring - A planted bomb that a Counter Terrorist has spotted, or is currently spotting.
(Note: You need to look at it with your crosshairs and then remain looking at the bombs direction on your screen to 'spot it')
CS_ Icons on the Counter Terrorist Radar
-
Yellow circle with an aqua blue ring - A hostage following either you or a teammate.
(Note: You will want to keep an eye out for when the aqua blue ring disappears from a hostage that is being rescued, this means that they have stopped following the Counter Terrorist as they are too far away. Also note that the ring will change size depending if the hostage is above or below you)
-
Transparent large yellow circle - A hostage above your current location.
-
Yellow Circle - A hostage.
-
Small yellow circle - Hostage below your current location.
-
Yellow triangle with an aqua blue triangle - A hostage following either you or a teammate that is outside the view of the radar screen.
(Note: You will want to keep an eye out for when the aqua blue triangle disappears from a hostage that is being rescued, this means that they have stopped following the Counter Terrorist as they are too far away. Also note that the triangle will change size depending if the hostage is above or below you)
-
Transparent large yellow arrow - A hostage outside the view of the radar screen, above your current location.
-
Yellow arrow - A hostage outside the view of the radar screen.
-
Small yellow arrow - A hostage outside the view of the radar screen, below your current location.
-
Yellow X or cross - A dead hostage.
(Note: The death icon will stay on the radar screen for either two or ten seconds, it does either one of them)
Terrorist Radar Specifics
General Information
-
Red circle with white center and viewcone - Your current position on the radar screen.
-
Red circle with an outer green ring - A team mate using radio commands/chat features.
(Note: A blinking green ring indicates that text/radio was used, while a solid ring indicates voice chat is being used. Also note that the ring will change size depending if the player is above or below you)
-
-
-
-
Red triangle with an outer green triangle - A team mate using radio commands/chat features who is outside the view of your radar screen.
(Note: A blinking green triangle indicates that text/radio was used, while a solid triangle indicates voice chat is being used. Also note that the triangle will change size depending if the player is above or below you)
-
Transparent large red arrow at the edge of the radar - Team mate outside the screen of the radar, above your current location.
-
Red arrow at the edge of the radar - Team mate, outside of the view of the radar screen.
-
Small red arrow at the edge of the radar - Team mate, outside of the view of the radar screen, below your current location.
-
(Note: The death icon will stay on the radar screen for ten seconds. The X image will be half cut off when on the edge of the radar, so instead it will look like a V)
Counter Terrorists on the Terrorist Radar
-
(Note: The T must keep their crosshair on the CT for the CT's current position to be relayed on the radar screen)
-
Transparent blue circle with a white arrow - A spotted Counter Terrorists LAST KNOWN location, the arrow shows direction they were facing at.
(Note: A spotted Counter Terrorists last known location will stay up on the radar screen for four seconds)
-
-
Transparent small blue circle with a white arrow - A Counter Terrorists LAST KNOWN location that is below your current location, the arrow shows direction they were facing.
-
(Note: Radar does not tell between a current location and last known location if the enemy or is above you. It may get fixed in a future update)
-
(Note: The dead Counter Terrorist icon lasts for 10 seconds on the radar screen and does not change size depending if it is above or below you)
DE_ Icons on the Terrorist Radar
-
Red circle with a yellow ring, bomb icon & white center - Your current position on the radar screen with the bomb.
-
-
-
CS_ Icons on the Terrorist Radar
-
(Note: The dead Hostage icon lasts between two and ten seconds, one or the other)
General Radar Information
-
A yellow square in a DE_ map - A bombsite.
-
A letter (A or B) that stays in the corner of your radar screen - A bombsite outside of the view of your radar screen.
-
A letter (A or B) that resides in a yellow square - The name of the bombsite.
-
A yellow square with the letter H inside in a CS_ map - A hostage rescue zone.
-
The letter H in the corner of your radar screen - A hostage rescue zone outside the view of your radar screen.
-
The green text under the radar - The current location you are in, or of the player you are currently spectating.
Icons while Spectator Mode
-
An 'eye' in a players circle with a yellow spiked ring - The first person view of the player you are spectating.
-
A camera with a yellow spiked ring, following a player - The third person view of the player you are spectating.
-
A camera with a yellow spiked ring that you totally control - The 'free roam' camera view that allows you to view anywhere on the map.
-
The blue/red text under a players circle - The current name of the player controlling the 'circle'.
-
The green/black bar under a players circle - The current health of the player controlling the 'circle'.
-
Lines that follow behind a player - The path that the player has taken to get to where they currently are.
Source Radar Commands
-
"cl_radar_locked" = "0"
- - Lock the angle of the radar screen (Off, On <0|1>)
-
"cl_radartype" = "1"
- - When set to 1, allows cl_radaralpha to be used (Off, On <0|1>)
-
"cl_radaralpha" = "200"
- - How transparent your radar screen will be (Min, Max <0|255>)
-
"hideradar"
- - This will hide the location text under your radar screen
-
"drawradar"
- - This will show the location text under your radar screen
-
"overview_preferred_mode" = "1"
- - Preferred overview mode while spectating (Off, Minimap, Full map <0|1|2>)
-
"overview_health" = "1"
- - Show player's health in map overview (Off, On <0|1>)
-
"overview_names" = "1"
- - Show player's names in map overview (Off, On <0|1>)
-
"overview_tracks" = "1"
- - Show player's tracks in map overview (Off, On <0|1>)
-
"overview_locked" = "1"
- - Locks map angle, doesn't follow view angle (Off, On <0|1>)
-
"overview_alpha" = "1"
- - Overview map translucency (Off, Semi, On <0|0.5|1>)
Buying Guns
The quickest way to buy Guns is to use the short cut keys
Guns are part of the Weapon Buy Menu and the default Short Cut Weapon Buy Key is B
- Glock 18 Select Fire - B then 1 then 1 Cost:$400
- H&K USP .45 Tactical - B then 1 then 2 Cost:$500
- SIG P228 - B then 1 then 3 Cost:$600
- Desert Eagle .50 AE - B then 1 then 4 Cost:$650
- FN Five-Seven - B then 1 then 5 for Counter-Terrorists Only Cost:$750
- Dual Beretta 96G - B then 1 then 5 for Terrorists Only Cost:$800
- Benneli M3 Super90 - B then 2 then 1 Cost:$1700
- Benneli XM1014 - B then 2 then 2 Cost:$3000
- Steyr Tactical / Schmidt Machine Pistol - B then 3 then 1 for Counter-Terrorists Only Cost:$1250
- Ingram MAC-10 - B then 3 then 1 for Terrorists Only Cost:$1400
- H&K MP5-Navy / KM Sub-Machine Gun - B then 3 then 2 Cost:$1500
- H&K UMP / KM UMP45 - B then 3 then 3 Cost:$1700
- FN P90 / ES C90 - B then 3 then 4 Cost:$2350
- Galil / IDF Defender - B then 4 then 1 for Terrorists Only Cost:$2000
- FAMAS / Clarion 5.56 - B then 4 then 1 for Counter-Terrorists Only Cost:$2250
- AK-47 / CV-47 - B then 4 then 2 for Terrorists Only Cost:$2500
- Colt M4A1 Carbine / Maverick M4A1 Carbine - B then 4 then 3 for Counter-Terrorists Only Cost:$3100
- Steyr AUG / Bullpup- B then 4 then 4 for Counter-Terrorists Only Cost:$3500
- Sig SG-552 Commando / Krieg 552 - B then 4 then 4 for Terrorists Only Cost:$3500
- Steyr Scout / Schmidt Scout - B then 4 then 2 for Counter-Terrorists Only Cost:$2750
- Steyr Scout / Schmidt Scout - B then 4 then 3 for Terrorists Only Cost:$2750
- AI Arctic Warfare / Magnum Sniper Rifle - B then 4 then 6 for Counter-Terrorists Only Cost:$4750
- AI Arctic Warfare / Magnum Sniper Rifle - B then 4 then 5 for Terrorists Only Cost:$4750
- Sig SG-550 Sniper / Krieg 550 Commando - B then 4 then 5 for Counter-Terrorists Only Cost:$4200
- H&K G3/SG-1 / D3/AU-1 - B then 4 then 6 for Terrorists Only Cost:$5000
- FN M249 Para - B then 5 then 1 Cost:$5750
Buying Ammo
The quickest way to buy Ammunition is to use the short cut keys
Ammunition purchases are part of the Weapon Buy Menu and the default Short Cut Weapon Buy Key is B
To purchase Full Pistol Ammunition the short cut is B then 7
To purchase Full Primary Weapon Ammunition the short cut is B then 6
Be warned that this can be wasteful, escpecially when buying Full Pistol Ammunition that you do not need.
To get around this there 2 other Default Ammunition Purchase Keys for CS 1.6 and available to be bound manually in CS:Source:
- , purchases 1 magazine of Primary Ammo every time you press it (bind , buyammo1)
- . purchases 1 magazine of Pistol Ammo every time you press it (bind . buyammo2)
This can save you quite a bit of cash over the course of a whole map, and also allow you to possibly afford that Armour or Grenade you might have been a few dollars short of, if you just automatically bought full Ammunition for both pistol and primary gun.
Using Guns
To use a gun you begin by selecting it with your MOUSEWHEEL then pressing Fire (Default MOUSE BUTTON 1) or by pressing 1 for your Primary Weapon (if you have one purchased) or 2 for you Pistol then pressing Fire (Default MOUSE BUTTON 1)
This selects your gun, to fire your Primary Gun or Pistol you press down your Fire Button (Default MOUSE BUTTON 1). Some guns require you to press the Fire Button once for each bullet fired, and others will continue to fire for as long as you are holding down the Fire Button until the ammunition in the magazine is depleted.
Bullets tend to go where the Cross-Hair is pointed, so long as the cross-hair is pointed in the direction you want to shoot BEFORE begin firing.
Subsequent shots will tend to deviate further from the cross-hair the more shots that are fired within a short period of time. This is also subject to the guns capabilities and the users experience and skill with the gun.
Reloading Guns
The default key for Reloading you gun is R and you can reload at anytime, providing you have bullets in reserve for the clip.
Guns will automatically reload as soon as you empty the magazine and stop firing
If you stop a reload before it is complete by switching to any other weapon your reload will be cancelled
Secondary Fire
Some guns have a Secondary Fire Option
The Secondary Fire Option is activated by the pressing the Secondary Fire Key (Default MOUSE BUTTON 2) but this does not shoot the weapons.
For Sniper Rifles the Secondary Fire Option activates the Snipers Scope Crosshairs
- H&K USP .45 Tactical - Secondary Fire Enables/Disables Silenced USP
- Glock 18 Select Fire - Secondary Fire Enables/Disables 3 Shot Burst Fire
- FAMAS / Clarion - Secondary Fire Enables/Disables 3 Shot Burst Fire
- Colt M4A1 Carbine - Secondary Fire Enables/Disables Silenced Colt
- Steyr AUG - Secondary Fire Enables/Disables Zoomed Crosshairs
- Sig SG-552 Commando - Secondary Fire Enables/Disables Zoomed Crosshairs
- Steyr Scout - Secondary Fire Enables/Disables Sniper Scope Zoomed Crosshairs
- AI Arctic Warfare / Magnum - Secondary Fire Enables/Disables Sniper Scope Zoomed Crosshairs
- Sig SG-550 Sniper - Secondary Fire Enables/Disables Sniper Scope Zoomed Crosshairs
- H&K G3/SG-1 - Secondary Fire Enables/Disables Sniper Scope Zoomed Crosshairs
Grenades & What They Do
There are 3 types of Grenades and each has different effects:
| HE Grenade - Cost $300 - 1 Per Player - Explodes doing damage to all opposition within a given radius as well as partially defening them like a FlashBang Grenade. Commonly known as HE or just GRENADE. |
| FlashBang Grenade - Cost $200 - 2 Per Player - Explodes with a blinding flash and defening noise that temporarily disables a players ability to see and hear for a set period of if they are within eyeline of the flashbang. Commonly known as FLASHBANG or just plain FLASH. |
| Smoke Grenade - Cost $300 - 1 Per Player - Explodes in a thick cloud of grey/black smoke that impairs all players ability to see through the area the Smoke Grenade covers. Commonly known as SMOKE. |
Grenades cannot be dropped so other players can pick them up. Unless of course you are playing Counter-Strike:Source and the reason you dropped the Grenade is because you are dead!
Grenades in Counter-Strike:Source can be recovered from the ground by moving over them if your Inventory for that type of Grenade is not already FULL.
Buying Grenades
The quickest way to buy Grenades is to use the short cut keys
Grenades are counted as Equipment and the default Short Cut Equipment Buy Key is O
So to buy Grenades you use the following Key Combinations:
- FlashBang Grenade: O then 3 (Only 1 FlashBang Grenade purchased each time)
- HE Grenade: O then 4
- Smoke Grenade: O then 5
You can script these purchases if you want, and you can find more information in Whisper's Very Basic Counter-Strike War Strategies
Using Grenades
Grenades are used just like guns, you select them as you would any other weapon, then you press and hold down for a second your Fire (Default MOUSE BUTTON 1) Button, and then when you want to throw your Grenade, you release your Fire Button and you will then toss the Grenade in the direction of your crosshair.
Throwing Grenades is a skill that takes time to develop, as you have to learn how the Grenades respond to the different angles you use when tossing them through the air. Only experience over time can teach you how to do this well, and do it well under pressure, so do not be discouraged when first learning to use them.
Knife 
The Knife is provided to each player free of charge.
The Knife cannot be dropped.
The Knife is selected by pressing the 3 (Default) Key.
The Knife has a Primary & Secondary Fire.
The Knife Primary Fire is a Slash and does very little damage to an opposition player.
The Knife Secondary Fire is a Stab and does over 50% damage if done correctly.
The Knife Secondary Fire to the back of an Opposition Player will kill them instantly, regardless of their Health or Armour.
The Knife can be used to stealthly kill Opposition Players if you can use the Knife Secondary Fire while their backs are turned and presumably busy dealing with your TeamMates.
The Knife is a weapon of last resort if you are in Close Quarters Combat (CQC) with an Opposition Player and have depleted both your Primary Weapon and Pistol of loaded Ammunition and need to reload them.
Night Vision
Night Vision is supposed to help a player see better on darker maps or in the dark
Night Vision costs $1250
Night Vision is part of the Equipment Buy Menu and the quickest way to buy it is to press the Default Equipment Buy Key O followed by the 7 Key
Night Vision is turned ON by pressing the N (Default) Night Vision Key and turned OFF by pressing the same N (Default) Night Vision Key
Night Vision for the most part, is next to almost completely useless!
Flash Light 
The Flash Light is given to each player free of charge
The Flash Light is turned ON by pressing the F (Default) Flashlight Key and turned OFF by pressing the same F (Default) Flashlight Key
The Flash Light will light up small areas of darkness directly in front of you up to a medium range
The Flash Light will give your position away if other players see your Flash Light beam
99% of maps only require a minimal change to the in game Gamma/Brightness settings or the Video Card Drivers Gamma settings to make everything visible without the use of a flashlight on most monitors.
Movement
Movement keys by default are:
- W Move FORWARD or Move UP a Ladder
- A Move BACKWARD or Move DOWN a Ladder
- S Strafe LEFT
- D Strafe RIGHT
- Mouse X Axis Move Cross Hair LEFT or RIGHT (Crosshair stays in Centre of Screen, entire world rotates around you)
- Mouse Y Axis Move Cross Hair UP or DOWN (You are limited to looking straight up or straight down, the world doesn't flip over if you keep moving the mouse UP or DOWN)
There are more Advanced Movement Options, but they have no place in an Introductory Guide, and are therefore deliberately excluded. 99% of the time, these are the only things you will need to know navigate around a map.
Running & Walking
Running is the default movement action when pressing your Forward (Default W) Key.
Running Backwards (Default S) Key is the same speed as Forward.
Both make noise when you do but is the fastest way to move around the map.
Walking is slower but does not make noise.
Walking is accomplished by holding down the Walk (Default Shift) Key also known as +SPEED in your config.
Different weapons move you at different speeds when you have them out.
Scout is fastest weapon to move with.
Knife is second fastest (so run to certain places with your knife out to avoid moving slowly).
In Source, the Knife and Pistol run speed is the same, so run with your pistol out in Counter-Strike:Source.
AWP is slowest.
Jumping
Jumping is peformed by pressing Jump (Default SPACE BAR) Key
If you just press the Jump (Default SPACE BAR) Key you only move Vertically. Jump (Default SPACE BAR) Key and a Movement Key you will Jump Horizontally in the direction of that Movement Key. i.e. If you are pressing the FORWARD or BACKWARD Key at the same time you press JUMP, you will JUMP FORWARD or JUMP BACKWARD, depending upon which combination you used.
Crouching
Crouching is peformed by pressing the Crouch (Default C) Key.
Crouching makes you look smaller in relation to your surroundings, but does not necessarily hide you completely.
If you move while Crouching, you move very slowly, but do not make any noise.
When you are moving while Crouching, your knees will stick out of the corner before you actually are able to see around the corner.
Crouching is not advisable because of the movement penalty that it entails.
Crouching can be useful for providing quick control of the Rifle Class of Guns recoil that have a fully automatic operation. eg. Colt, AK-47 etc.
Crouching will never have a negative effect on firing, it will only increase your accuracy.
Crouch-Jumping
Simply this is the act of Jumping and then Crouching almost simultaneously, so you are able to reach higher positions that would otherwise be denied you with a regular Jump or for enabling you to fit through tight spaces such as Windows, that would not allow you to pass if you tried to move through them while standing.
In Counter-Strike 1.6 you press Jump, then Crouch.
In Counter-Strike:Source you press Crouch (very quickly), then Jump, then Crouch again.
Ladders
Moving up ladders can be accomplished one of 3 ways:
1. Very Quickly (For cs 1.6 only): Run at the ladder, move your mouse so that you are facing at an angle to the ladder and press one of your Strafe Keys (Default A or D) Keys to move up the ladder. This technique requires some practice to accomplish without falling off the ladder.
2. Quickly: Just run into the Ladder and press your Forward (Default W) Key. This will make noise though
3. Slowly: Run into the Ladder then hold down Crouch and then press your Forward (Default W) Key. This will allow you to move up the ladder silently but slowly. The angle at which you look up or down determines the speed at which you traverse the ladder.
If you are partially up or down a Ladder, the quickest way to get off the Ladder is to press you Jump (Default SPACE) Key.
To move down a Ladder if you are part the way up the Ladder, use your Backward (Default S) Key.
Sound
Running which is the default movement speed makes sound. The type of ground you are moving over will make a distinct sound that the advanced player will use to their advantage to locate your exact position along with the stereo position
Walking does not make sound
Jumping while stationary makes Sound in Source
Jumping while moving makes sound
Landing from a fall of more than the jump height makes sound
Jumping and crouching between the jump and landing makes sound
Using ladders usually makes sound (there is a way of moving up a ladder slowly which will not make sound)
Breaking Objects, Vents, Windows, Crates, Chairs and Tables make noise
Shooting your gun obviously makes noise except for the silenced weapons (assuming the silencer is on, which you can usually put on with the secondary fire key) (USP, TMP, Colt) which make very little noise whatsoever and are prized by many players for this reason
Buying makes noise
Reloading your gun makes noise
Selecting and then Pulling the Pin on any Grenades make noise
Zooming you gun makes noise
Switching between weapons makes noise
Planting and Defusing the Bomb makes noise
Why is this important? Because every little noise you make can cause your location to be given away before you are ready to reveal yourself or lead the enemy directly to your location already pre-aimed.
More sound related information can be found here!
Opening Doors
There are 2 ways of opening doors depending upon how the map maker created the door.
Some doors you merely have to walk into and they will open up for you (in 1.6 these doors may also be opened by throwing a grenade of any type, or a gun - by pressing G with the weapon selected - at them, this can be used for confusing people or opening a door from distance).
Other Doors you must press the USE Key (Default E Key) while simultaneously pushing through the door.
Pressing the USE key on a self-opening door does not usually cause any harm.
It should be noted that when you press the USE key, a sound will be made which can be heard by anyone when there is nothing to use. If a door does not need USE to open, learn not to press the USE key for that specific door, or you will be hunted down (especially relevant with a louder noise in 1.6).
N.B. In 1.6 there is one door which opens in a different way, on the map de_prodigy there is a door with a control panel next to it (near what is commonly referred to as the security room, and the lab area). Simply walk into the control panel to open the door.
Breaking Windows
Windows are broken by either shooting them, using your knife on them or throwing a grenade of any type through them.
You cannot break Windows (generally) by merely running through them.
You can run through a Window so long as it has been cracked, even if only by a single bullet
Unbroken Windows sometimes has an adverse effect on a Guns Damage capacity, where a Gun will do significantly less damage when shot through an unbroken Window.
Map Types
This is reproduced from the Article about Counter-Strike on Wikipedia
de_
One randomly selected Terrorist begins the round carrying a bomb. The Terrorists' objective is to plant the bomb at a bomb site (of which there usually are two in a map, Bombsite-A or Bombsite-B), and ensure its detonation. If the bomb has not been planted, if all the members of one team have been eliminated, then the surviving team wins. If the bomb has been planted and proceeds to explode, the Terrorists win, but if a Counter-Terrorist defuses the bomb (Counter-Terrorists can purchase an optional kit to speed up defusal times), the Counter-Terrorists win. When the round time expires, the Counter-Terrorists win. Deaths due to the detonation of the bomb do not increment the player's death count.
cs_
The map has hostages (usually four) generally placed near the Terrorist base. The Counter-Terrorists' objective is to escort the hostages to a hostage rescue point on the map. If all the members of a team have been eliminated, the prevailing team wins. If all the surviving hostages have been rescued, and that number is at least half of the initial hostage count, then the Counter-Terrorists win, and each Counter-Terrorist is awarded $2400. When round time expires, Terrorists win. Therefore, the game may effectively become a 'Terrorist hunt' game if enough hostages are killed, although server settings may be such that players are disconnected (kicked) from the server after killing a certain number of hostages (5 is default). When a Counter-Terrorist 'uses' a hostage (i.e. begins to rescue it), the Counter-Terrorist is awarded $150. Upon successfully escorting a hostage to a rescue point, $1000 is awarded. Killing a hostage incurs a penalty of $2250. There is also a penalty associated with injuring a hostage by gun fire or grenade shrapnel (hostages do not take damage for falling).
as_
In this mission, one Counter-Terrorist member chooses to become a VIP, a player with 200 units of Kevlar and nothing more than the Counter-Terrorist standard-issue USP pistol with one extra magazine. The VIP may not pick up dropped weapons other than the VIP's own pistol. The VIP's objective is to reach an extraction zone (1, normally), in which case the Counter-Terrorists win. If the VIP dies, the Terrorists win. As usual, if all Terrorists die, the Counter-Terrorists win. When time expires, Terrorists win. The lack of ammunition for the pistol means that a VIP should not expect to escape without the team's assistance; however, the pistol in conjunction with the special armour provides adequate protection. Assassination maps are the least played of the three types of Counter-Strike gameplay and they were not ported to Counter-Strike: Source, although a VIP mod is being produced by the community for Counter-Strike Source and surprisingly for some, is being greatly anticipated.
Server Settings
Friendly Fire
Friendly Fire Servers have Friendly Fire turned ON, which means you can shoot and damage your own team.
If you do manage to kill somebody from your own team, then you will be killed the next round.
mp_friendlyfire 1 is the server variable that turns Friendly Fire on
mp_tkpunish 1 is the server variable that tells the server to punish players who Team Kill by Killing that player at the start of the next round.
Do not play on Friendly Fire servers if you are just starting out playing Counter-Strike. You will invariably end up shooting your own team mates because you are having enough trouble just keeping up with everything that is going on in the game.
People who play on Friendly Fire servers, do so for the extra challenge of having to be far more aware of their surroundings and acting accordingly than they would have to on a Non Friendly Fire server. Correspondingly, the level of play tends to be at a higher level as more skillful players tend to gravitate to these types of servers, if they are well run.
This means, as a new player to Counter-Strike, you are more than likely not going to get much of an opportunity to play, since you will find yourself dying a lot more, since the standard of the opposition players will be higher than normal.
Once you do become adept at playing normal Counter-Strike, then you may find the extra challenge of a Friendly Fire server more to you liking, and you will be able to enjoy yourself more.
Learning to deal with Friendly Fire is a necessary skill for players who wish to play Counter-Strike competitively.
Freeze Time 
Freeze Time is that time at the beginning of the round where all players are frozen in place and cannot move, but can turn around and can buy Weapons/Ammunition/Grenades/Equipment.
The Round Time 
The Server variable that controls this is mp_freezetime and is measured in seconds
Round Time
Round time is the length of time the round will run for
It is controlled by the mp_roundtime server variable and is measured in Minutes
1.75 Minutes = 1 Minute & 45 Seconds and is the standard Round Time for Competitive Counter-Strike Matches
Round time on Public Servers will vary (this is not an all inclusive list of how servers will be setup, but just a guide on what to expect) from 1.5 Minutes (1 Minute & 30 Seconds) for Lightning/Rush Servers, 2.5 Minutes (2 Minute & 30 Seconds) for regular public play servers, 3.0 Minutes for Hostage Map Servers, right out to 5.0 Minute Default Round time Servers.
Map Time
The Map time decides how long a Map will run before the map changes to the next map.
This is controlled by the mp_timelimit server variable and is measured in Minutes.
The default mp_timelimit is 0 which means there is no time limit at all, and is not often used on servers, even those servers which run only 1 map, since its can be handy to have the map reload, simply to juggle the teams up a bit.
Common mp_timelimit values are:
- 15 Minutes
- 20 Minutes
- 25 Minutes
- 30 Minutes
- 60 Minutes
The mp_timelimit is sometimes determined as a function of the total number of maps in the rotation, as more maps means more time for a server to get through a whole map rotation before repeating a map. Simply put, the more maps in a servers map rotation, the shorter the round time may be.
Links
Video of Warden from Complexity L.A. explaning how to setup your computer for Counter-Strike
Video of Frod from Complexity L.A. Talks about AWP basics
Credits/Notes
There are probably mistakes in here mainly due to the fact I do not use many of the weapons or my keys are not default
Thanks to WaLLy3K for providing all of the pictures for the various HUD Element icons, and reminding me what the default keys were for many things. He also fixed up my office screenshot so it was nice and neat.
WaLLy3K was the primary author of the Counter-Strike:Source Radar explanation, so all credit for that section is due to him.
Ok, now that you have the very basics down, it is time to move on to Whisper's Very Basic Counter-Strike War Strategies
Cheers
Whisper
To Do
More 1.6 Radar Pictures: Player with Bomb.
More 1.6 Radar Pictures: When Radio and Mic used
Please add sections you think I might have missed down here. I am not going to bother with the shield at all.
