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By: Andrew ":8:Quetzal" Plucker

A lot of deathmatch fans tend to avoid Capture the Flag games because they have read about how communication and teamwork are essential to a successful CTF team.   While a team playing as a well oiled CTF machine will almost always triumph over a group of uncoordinated loners, it is possible for a lone wolf to excel at CTF without so much as hitting the "Team Say" key.  Besides, playing CTF online is like joining a pick-up game of basketball.  You will always have showboating ball hogs on your team as well as people who spread the ball around.   Itâs the same with CTF:  you will rarely run into a group that jells into a well rounded team that can take on all comers.  With the following skills, however, even the most avid deathmatch player can be turned into a successful, team supporting, CTF wonk without cramping their "me against the world" persona.

Many CTF servers are set to automatically balance the teams as players join, sometimes filling disparities with bots.  If the server isn't set to autobalance, the first thing to do when joining a CTF match is to hit F1 and make sure that your presence hasn't created unbalanced teams.  If  you have, hit ESC, then pull down the Options menu, select Player Setup, and change to the other team.  If you don't want to switch because you just look so much better in blue, expect to be reminded multiple times by the players already on the server.

Before you log on to a CTF server, check its friendly fire status in the in-game browser's Rule/Value window.  Most servers have it set at 10% to 25%, but a few hardcore admins have it jacked all the way up to 100%.  Nothing makes your teammates crankier than taking one of your rockets in the back just as they are about to run down the enemy flag carrier.  And nothing is more embarrassing than turning your own team's flag carrier into a pile of giblets.   Making a habit of checking the friendly fire setting before logging on can eliminate a lot of those "Whoops! Sorry" team messages you will be sending otherwise.

One of the things you will notice about ammo placement on CTF maps is that ammo almost always comes in sets of two.  Before you wonder at your luck and snatch both clips remember, your teammates could probably use a few bullets as well.  Grabbing all the ammo, weapons and armor you can find will only leave your teammates poorly armed and vulnerable.

This, of course, only applies when you're in your own base.  In your enemy's base, take everything that isn't nailed down, especially armor (unless you're traveling with a teammate; then share just like you learned on Sesame Street).  Even if you are already wearing an assault vest, grab your enemy's too. Deprive them of as much fire power and protection as you can on your way to the steal their flag.

It is important not to ignore the necessity of defending your base.  On a team of up to five, one person on defense will probably do.  On teams of six and above, you should have at least two people back patrolling your base and keeping an eye on the flag.  If you have a bot or two on your team, set their orders to defend the base.  They are much better at defense than offense.

The problem you always run into with keeping your base defended is that everyone wants to play offense, including you.  The last thing you want is to get stuck defending the base all game while the rest of your team gets all of the flag snatching glory.  Lucky for you, UT comes with a convienient feature to take care of part of this problem for you: respawning.  If you respawn in your own base and find it undefended, stick around and take care of any infiltrators you find.  Then, as your attacking teammates get fragged and respawn, they turn into the perfect defenders.  After you've taken care of the base patrol duties for a while, let your freshly respawned teammates take over the responsibility as you head off to snag the flag.

When you are defending your base and get fragged, respawn as quickly as possible and jump back into the fray. One of the biggest advantages defenders have is that they will almost always respawn close to where they were taken down.  If you have a sound comprehension of the map layout, you can prove to be a persistent and, hopefully deadly annoyance to any prospective attackers.

One of the coolest features of UT is that it allows you to keybind voice messages to send to your teammates.  Simply pull down the Options menu, select Preferences, click on the Input tab and hit the Speech Binder button.  While trying to decide which of over 40 messages to bind to a finite number of keys, be sure not to overlook the following:

"Incoming!" - To let your team know that hostile company is heading their way.
"Roger that"/"Got it" etc. - Something that gives a quick affirmative to orders sent to you.
"Enemy Flag Carrier is Here" - You've sought and found. Now let your teammates know where to come and destroy.
"I'm Under Heavy Attack" - Only use this if you are the flag carrier and need assistance.  If you're not, who cares?

I know that it will be hard to put away those deathmatch tendencies, but, in CTF it is not always wise to frag every enemy you see.  Case in point: when you are on your way to assault the enemy base, every opponent you take out will respawn as a defender between you and the flag.  By letting the enemy slip past, you are creating a less fortified target to assault.  Just let out an "Incoming!", and let your team's defenders do their job.

When making your way back to base, always check behind you, especially if don't have any back-up.  As the flag carrier, the primary move to master is transitioning from looking in front of you/running forward to looking behind you/running backwards without missing a step.  Never run back to base with a blind backside.

Now, youâve made it back safely to base at the end of a hairy flag run. Your armor is in shreds, you're low on health and running out of rockets.  You turn the corner to plant your flag and find that its gone and you canât score.  Now what?

Your first response is to find a good hiding place and wait for one of your teammates to return your flag.  Problem is that easily defensible hiding places in UT maps are few and far between.  Those few that do exist are well known to seasoned players and will be the first place they come looking for you to retrieve their flag.  It is a good practice, when waiting for your flag to be returned, to keep moving in a pattern around your flag base making sure to stay close to health, armor and ammo.  If you can, find a teammate to follow you on your rounds to increase your odds of surviving an enemy onslaught.

If you find yourself alone, cornered and things are looking pretty grim, load up a bunch of rockets and take your opponents out with you.  Sure, you will drop the flag, but when you respawn, run to where you pulled your kamikaze act and you should find it waiting for you.  Meanwhile, your enemies will respawn far, far away, back at their base.

There are an awful lot of twos in this game: two teams, two flags, ammo in sets of two, and (at least) two entrances to every base.  The most effective assault that you can launch is for two teams of multiple members to each infiltrate a separate entrance of an enemy base. Usually, one of the teams will encounter a larger force and/or divert resources from other areas while the second team will be able to make it to the flag room and out meeting only token resistance.

While a coordinated, two-pronged frontal assault with every member of your team would probably be the most successful type of flag run you could mount, you will probably have little luck mounting such an offense online.  In an actual game your teammates are respawning, gathering weapons and armor, getting fragged, have their own agendas and tactics in mind that they don't feel like communicating, and may even be on the phone in the other room.  In this type of atmosphere, you're lucky if you can assemble an assault force of two.

Thankfully, in many maps, two is enough to successfully mount the above strategy, and it doesn't even take that much coordination, or communication.  If you see a teammate taking the high road, take the low road, and vice versa.  Presto! You've just implemented an offensive strategy. While its not exactly Sun Tzu, it can be effective.

The last skill to add to your repertoire before hitting the CTF maps is to ALWAYS PROTECT YOUR FLAG CARRIER.   The easiest way to do this is to run interference for them.  Flag carriers rarely need someone to lead the way.  They do need, however, ALWAYS need someone watching their flank and rear. The easiest way to do this is to simply plant yourself between the flag carrier and any pursuing enemy.  This, in many instances, can mean virtual suicide.  But, if you can hold up a horde of pursuers for a second or two while your flag carrier sprints away, you have made all the difference.

So make yourself useful and go get yourself killed.  It will be a valiant sacrifice and your martyrdom will be remembered in story and song until you respawn.

I know its fun and extremely addictive, but instagib will ruin your UT skills.  Just think about it: instagib is UT without the worries of armor, health, weapons or ammo.  So its about 75% short of all strategy and tactics.  Unless you've put in a long day of UT and you're exhausted but don't want to quit playing, just say no to instagib.

So there you have it:  Share the ammo, don't kill your teammates, shout "Incoming!" when people are attacking, "Roger" when you're asked to do something, defend your base until someone respawns, back up your flag carrier and remember that two strike forces of one are better than one strike force of two.

Congratulations!  You are now ready to be an effective member of a CTF team.

Now, Somebody get our flag back!