INTRODUCTION
PREVIOUS PART: The Guns
The best way to get better at Quake 3 is to simply play it, practice, and learn what works from experience. However, the nature of this guide is to help people improve with minimal frustration, so here's some simple movements and strategies you can use to improve your game.
TIP 1: Don't stop moving
This is simple. If you're not moving, you're either a sitting target or everybody is running away from you. Neither helps you score frags, so get moving and don't stop. Which leads into...
TIP 2: Bunny-hopping
Another really simple trick. In Quake 3, if you jump then press the jump button again, holding it as you land, as soon as you hit the ground you'll break into another jump. Try it a couple times to get the hang of chaining jumps together.
Now move forward while chaining jumps together, and with every jump you'll gain a little bit more forward momentum. Keep moving and jumping and you'll be able to traverse the map much faster than just running. Make adjustments the instants you land by strafing to the sides (A and D keys).
It takes a while to get the hang of and you will sound like an absolute loon during a match, what with the "DAH! DAH! DAH!" of constantly bouncing around. Ignore this. Embrace the Dah. Become one with the Dah.
There's a lot of useful things you can do with the additional speed. Run from fights you don't care to finish, or chase down a running target to finish them off. Survey the map quickly when it's unfamiliar. Beat people to powerups and armor. It's probably the single best way to improve your game.
TIP 3: Grab all the things
This one makes you feel like a bit of a jerk but it does help your game. If your opponent is shooting you with a certain gun, grab the ammo for that gun before he can. In fact, grab all the ammo! You'll pick up the guns they go to eventually. If you see armor, grab it - it certainly can't hurt. The same goes for health and the little green stimpacks. Just keep hoovering up goodies while you're bouncing around and at the very least you deprive your opponents of their advantages.
TIP 4: Fire in motion
An extension of tip 1. Never stop moving, even when you're trying to shoot someone. It's harder to aim from a moving platform but it also makes it harder for people to hit you. Particularly, if you strafe to the sides when shooting people it tends to throw people's aim off.
Also, you can bunny-hop for a sort of "hit and run" technique. Jump past someone and drop a few rockets or grenades as you pass by, or turn around for a Railgun shot.
TIP 5: Fun with bounce pads
You may have noticed a few animated pads on the floor that send you flying when you step on them. They're not just good for bouncing around with, they can also help with certain frags. Whenever someone hops on one of these bounce pads, their trajectory is pretty much fixed when they go flying. If you know their trajectory and how they'll move, it makes it easier to nail them with, say, the Railgun at the peak of their flight. Alternatively, if you know where they're going to land, you can drop a few explosives in that spot the moment before they hit the ground.
Another fun trick involves messing with momentum in midair. Say your target has just hopped on a bounce pad that launches him across lava or a bottomless pit. Weapons with knockback like the Railgun and Lightning Gun will significantly cut the momentum he needs to cross the gap and send him plummeting to his demise. Admittedly, you don't get a frag out of this - your target will lose a frag instead - but it's quite satisfying and may still put you in the lead if you're playing one-on-one.
Take in mind other people can do these to you when you hop on a bounce pad yourself, so have a bit of care before hopping on. It also takes a bit of skill, but you can use the same concepts for normal jumps. If someone is bunny-hopping around you, aim for where they're going to land and shoot right before they can touch down and change direction.
TIP 6: Rocket-jumping
Simple. Grab a rocket launcher, point at your feet, jump, and shoot. If all goes well you should send yourself flying at the expense of some of your health. If somebody is camping, holding off all routes of approach with the BFG or Railgun? Rocket-jump, catapult yourself into his lair, and pop a few bombs into him before he knows what's going on.
Needless to say you can use this to grab powerups and such in other hard-to-reach areas as well. You'll also hurt yourself in the process, but health is plentiful in Quake 3, so (again) keep moving and grab some packs as you go.
I do realize a lot of these techniques require some amount of practice, but I believe them to be rather easy to pick up for the improvements they make to your game.
So: practice a little, play well, and most of all, have fun!
NEXT PART: Coming soon
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