The Art of War

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The Art of War
The Extensive Strategy Guide to Pawn

Contents
Introduction
1.Communication
2.Players
3.Tactics
4.Environments

In ancient times, a master by the name of Sun Tzu depicted several generals discussing tactics and war strategies in his famous writing The Art of War

These tactics are still used today.

I shall now relate to you several strategies this book talks about, and how you may apply these in Pawn. The first of which is that a general always plans ahead, and tries to spot out enemy weak-points.


1. COMMUNICATION

You may think that in Pawn, there is little time to prepare in the beginning, because the enemy players have probably already spawned and are coming to attack you. And typing team messages while they recieve the gratifying "Headshot" sound is not very productive in terms of scoring. However, you should not be preparing in the beginning, because you are blind about the enemy movements. Instead, the first team message that should appear should be "Everyone scout ahead"

Now, when atacking a heavily defended position, a slow stream of attackers will immediately be killed walking into said position. If communication was a more viable option, the group could easily set up either an attack from two sides or a massive full frontal assault with all five players.

Unfortunately, this is not the case, because typing is slow. However, typing can be useful when used effectively. A simple msg like "HOLD" or "ATCK" can give people the idea with only 6 keystrokes (including pressing "l" and Enter). More complex messages like "Goto Top Left Screen" should probably be done when you are in a safe location... or when you are dead.

I realize there are incompetent soldiers that do not follow orders. And I do not generalize towards noobs, but I mean players who attack on a whim. These players are not part of your team. They are just fighting the same enemy. However, try to rally as many teammates as possible.


2. PLAYERS

This section will address different players, and what to do in certian situations to maximize their effectivness. I will list several roles playes take up, and how they must use them appropriately. Also, you can use this to plan attacks. If you have a lot of Hunters, allow them to hunt and rack up the kills for your team.

1. Organizer: Some players think they have complete control over the team, and will bark out orders from a safe position(Really annoying ones don't spawn at all). They are wrong, of course. The best option for this "leader" is to organize, not lead. What I mean is this player should suggest a course of action while taking up one of the following roles. It is the other players' will wether to accept. A message such as "Group at the center" is an example of orginization.

2. Assault: This player rushes an enemy strong-point with guns blazing, attempting to kill as many enemies as possibe before he respawns and tries again. This is ill-advised without the proper skill or weaponry, but can be usefull when their skills are honed. An Assault player must dodge to avoid headshots(There are other guides that describe this), know where to aim(Right above the first box is where the head is) and which weapons to use.
Against a moving enemy, use a gun with a faster rate of fire so you have a better chance of hitting(I suggest the G36C for its power).
Against a bunkered(still) enemy use a gun with a one-hit-kill headshot to take them out fast(The Desert Eagle works fine, but the L85 has a faster rate of fire).
Against an ambusher, use a short range gun ready for the attack(The P90 is best for this)
Against a combination of these, use a well-ballanced gun(The Colt is good, but the G36C is better)

3. Backup: This player comes in behind the rest of the team, essentially using them as a shield while pounding at the enemy with heavy weapons. This can be useful if this player has the heavy M29 or a sniper rifle: the squad takes the incoming fire, giving the backup player enough time to aim for one-hit-kill headshots and possibly kill the enemy team. The backup player can also use a shotgun to cover the squad while taking a position.

4: Hunter: This player ambushes or snipes out enemy players. The first type of Hunter is an ambusher. An ambusher uses LOS so that the enemy player does not see him until the last second, at which point the ambusher jumps in and kills him. Ledges are ideal for this situation, but non-collidable boxes can be used too. After the kill, move to a location near there, where you can ambush the enemies coming to flush you out of your previous location. Close range weapons are good for this tactic(I suggest the P90). The second type is a sniper, who uses the tactics above, only without the jumping into action. This player uses a sniper rifle instead to headshot incoming players. This player should find good LOS, but still switch positions in the same way.

5: Defender: This player hangs back to defend the base or a recently captured area. This player can be useful if the blue team in an assault match wants to attack. The defender guards the artifact, while the other players move out. Also, if a team doesn't want an enemy advance, a defender in a choke point could prevent said advance. A good defender should be able to kill 3 to 5 people fairly quickly. This player should use weapons that cover a large area, like a rapid fire weapon or a shotgun.

3. TACTICS

This section will cover what to do with your team in different situations. I will cver most of the situations you will encounter in Ladder games. In custom games, there are more posibilities, so I may not address all of them.

TEAM DEATHMATCH
Here are some example situations:

Enemy is Spawn Killing: Use your few seconds of invincibility after you spawn to find cover. Then either jump in and aim for the head or come behind him/her via another route.
Enemy has you Boxed-In: This is when all possibilities for escape are blocked. Note that players are not invincible: enough bullets and they will die. Try using a wave of soldiers with a heavy unit behind them.
Enemy has Captured an Area: Rally the troops and organize an attack from two sides if possible. If not, charge the position as a group or snipe them out.
Enemy has Contested an Area: Have some units hold the enemy off while getting defenders. If the line breaks, use the strategy above.
Enemy Has Set Up an Ambush: If you have the high ground(Which you should), swoop down on the enemy or set up your own ambush. If, not, flush out all ambush locations before proceeding. Shoot into non-collidable boxes and use the protogun(if you have it) to flush out people on ledges without moving into LOS.
Enemy Sniper: Try to attack the sniper from another direction. If not, send in an assault squad with a sniper attacking from the rear.
Enemy is Entrenched: This usually happens near a spawn point. Send in an assault squad with a heavy unit or two attacking from the rear, then protect that location.
Enemy has Escaped a Position: Send a scout to intercept them, while taking the position with a squad.
Enemy is Retreating: Try to keep the advance. Do not let a break come in your forces.

ASSAULT:
RED TEAM
Most of the above tactics can be applied. The only difference is that there is an artifact you must destroy. If you know the location of the artifact, you can easily set up an attack from two sides or organize a wave of troops.

ASSAULT:
BLUE TEAM
Always keep one or two people to defend. Use attack runs sparingly and only for diminishing an impendng attack, and definitely do not try to spawn kill. Set up Hunters and Defenders at the artifact location when all players are there. Because you should not move from the artifact location, most of the above principles do not apply.
Always make sure to account for all pathways to the artifact, and defend them accordingly.

GENERAL INFORMATION
Just because these are general guidlines, this does not mean adhere to these all the time. The rules of war are meant to be broken, as each side always needs to try something new which the enemy needs to counter. Always think for new ways to attack the enemy; new ways to trick them; new ways to counter their attacks to make them inevetably lose.

4. ENVIRONMENTS

Strategy is not only about acting a certian way in a given situation. To truly understand strategy, you must understand the environment you are in. Because every map is different, I can only give you a quick overview.

What they are:

Ambush Locations: Described earlier. Places where you can suprise-attack the enemy in a moments notice without them seeing you.
Sniper Posts: Ledges with good LOS so you can fire at enemys. Usually high on the screen, sometimnes in boxes. Should have ammo nearby.
Choke points: Easily defended, but essential areas. Usually tightly enclosed spaces. For example, a tightly enclosed space in an assault game.
Bases: Spawn points OR a designated gathering location. For example, a blue teams base could be the artifact.

What to do:

Areas rich with ambush locations should be flushed out, then taken advantage of.
Areas with a good sniper post should have a sniper placed there instead of a defender. Add a defender if neccisary.
High traffic areas should be heavily contested areas. This includes the center of a map.
Choke points should be heavily contested areas. This includes routes other than the center.
Never wander too far into enemy territory unless you are sure you will get there alive.
Never stay too close to your spawn points, so you can avoid spawn killing.

I hope this guide has given you a better understaning about the intricacies of pawn.

"Good fighters first put
themselves beyond the possibility of defeat, and then

wait for an opportunity of defeating the enemy." -Sun Tzu
 
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