Summary
Highlights
When using a shotgun, keep it hidden by jump-spotting or jiggle-peeking with your secondary or knife. Break enemy info utility with your pistol or have a teammate help. This tricks opponents into pushing you aggressively, expecting an easy kill.
Anticipate enemy swings by pre-firing a burst next to a corner where you expect them. This can eliminate enemies before they react and intimidate the opposing team from swinging aggressively.
While one-tap headshots with Jett's knives are satisfying, don't neglect her alternate fire. Use it to secure a quick kill on high-value targets at close range, even if it means losing all your knives. This can snowball the round by denying the enemy a key player and their weapon.
Utilize unfair off-angles to pick off enemies. For example, on Sunset A site, stand on the yellow tape at elbow to isolate fights. On Pearl B site, play behind the left pillar to catch enemies clearing heaven off guard.
Execute 'grim walls' with Sage by jumping backward and crouching as you place the wall. This allows you to elevate a segment of the wall and yourself, creating new, unexpected angles of attack. This provides an advantage by positioning you higher up.
Use Sova's Recon Dart to force enemy decisions. Dart the ground near or next to an opponent. They must either break it, giving up their crosshair placement, or get scanned, allowing you to pre-fire. This gives you the upper hand in duels.
Use Phoenix's Blaze ability to cancel enemy initiator drones like Sova's, denying crucial information. Throw the blaze through a wall directly at the known drone location to promptly end the information gathering phase.
Utilize the minimap to your advantage by spraying through smokes. If a teammate pings an enemy through a smoke, use the minimap to aim and spray in their direction, especially effective with weapons like the Ghost, Phantom, or Spectre that don't show tracers.
Avoid the effects of ultimate abilities like Killjoy's Lockdown or Gekko's Thrash by using invulnerability frames from abilities such as Reyna's Dismiss, Yoru's Ultimate, or Way's Recall. Time these abilities right before the ultimate pops to negate its effect and surprise enemies.
Instead of always smoking choke points, consider smoking directly on the bomb site during defense. This forces attacking teams to commit more resources to take the site, complicating their push and creating opportunities for your team.
Take calculated risks by pushing through your own or your teammates' mollies. Your own mollies deal 33% less damage, making it a viable, unexpected play to catch opponents off guard. Be mindful of the risk-reward.
Capitalize on chaotic situations in ranked games. When enemies are distracted by engagements, reloading, or using utility, take unexpected angles to swing and make round-changing plays, especially valuable on eco rounds.
Position yourself at the very edge of a smoke where enemies are likely to enter. This makes you difficult to spot, allowing for disciplined plays on unsuspecting opponents. Avoid this tactic when enemies are on a weak buy to prevent giving them an upgrade.
For Chamber players, use the Marshall and Headhunter combo on eco rounds. Shoot an enemy in the body with the Marshall, then quickly switch to the Headhunter for another body shot to secure a fast kill on a full-shield opponent.
Deceive opponents with Omen's Shrouded Step. Instead of teleporting away, jump out from cover and flick your TP back to your original position mid-air. This makes enemies think you've relocated, allowing you to re-engage from the same spot with an advantage.
When using Sova's Recon Bolt or Fade's Eye, place it high up and behind enemy positions. This forces enemies to move their crosshair significantly to break it, leaving them vulnerable to being scanned or shot by your team.
Even against full buys, the Outlaw can be effective. Use it to one-shot light-shield players to the body, then rely on a Killjoy turret or a teammate's spam to finish them off. Don't toss it immediately when opponents are fully bought out.
When using Gekko's Thrash, aim to steer it into an area where you can easily reclaim it after clearing a site, especially if you don't find a detain. This allows you to reuse Thrash later in the round, such as during the post-plant.
Utilize Raze's satchels to punish enemy peeks. Place a satchel on the floor where you anticipate an opponent to swing. Detonate it as they move, launching them airborne and causing movement error, making them easy targets due to inaccurate shots.
Before engaging, jiggle your shoulder out of cover to bait enemies into moving their crosshair towards the corner. This displaces their aim, giving you an advantage when you wide swing and surprising them. This also works for baiting Operator shots.
While stopping to shoot is generally crucial for accuracy, know when to break this rule. In close-quarters combat, like inside a smoke, the inaccuracy of running and gunning is minimal. Strafe and spray in these situations as most bullets will still hit.