In most games all players are equipped with a pistol and two of their favorite loadout weapons. Furthermore, explosive weapons can be collected in the arena, such as grenades, mines and rockets, unless these are disabled via the basic mutator.
Loadout weapons
These weapons can be chosen in the profile game menu, and it is even possible to change the weapon selection mid-match by pressing the comma key (per default). Note that one or both of the loadout weapon slots can be randomized. All of loadout weapons come with an unlimited supply of ammo, but must be reloaded when the clip is empty. Each weapon has two unique fire modes.
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Exception: When the classic game mutator is active, loadout weapons must be collected in the arena.
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Some game mutators force players to use specific weapons.
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Sword
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Summary
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Very limited range, but devastating when at point-blank.
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Clip
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A sword will never run out of ammo.
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Primary fire
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Automatic. A quick, horizontal swing. Induces bleeding. Has a short range, but a wide hitting arc.
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Secondary fire
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Automatic. A slower, vertical swing. Induces bleeding and does heavy damage. Has a longer range, but a very narrow hitting arc.
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Tips and strategy
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- Don't charge right in front of enemies, specifically with shotguns or SMGs, or you will be an easy target.
- You need to get very close to chop an enemy - why not greet them with a hearty kick at the same time?
- Use impulse dashes, double jumps and even wall-runs to quickly get beside your enemies to land a hit or two.
- Whilst the secondary mode deals higher damage, it has a more limited range, so only use it when your opponent is still, moving slowly or in front of yourself.
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Shotgun
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Summary
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Can instantly kill at point-blank. High risk, high reward weapon, popularly used in Deathmatch games.
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Clip
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8 shells
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Primary fire
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Semi-automatic. Short to medium range. fires off a quick buckshot making for an array of pellets, spreading further apart at longer ranges. Auto-reload.
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Secondary fire
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Semi-automatic. Lobs out a large, round projectile which splits into stray shards when hitting any solid surface, a long distance or players. Moves slowly in air. Heavily affected by gravity. Induces bleeding. Uses two shells. Auto-reload.
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Tips and strategy
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Shotgun primary
- Always aim for the torso. The shotguns primary fire is composed of pellets which individually give damage, so whilst pellets to the head cause more damage, much more pellets reach the torso. At point-blank, a short aimed at the torso will instantly kill.
- If the opponent is not using a shotgun, run circles around them, firing instantly after the attack delay has finished. This is indicated by the red reloading circle and reloading sound effect.
- If the opponent is using a shotgun, time yourself to dodge their attack by either to-the-side double jumps or impulse dashes. When in mid-range, conserve your impulse energy and simple strife side-to-side.
- When the opponent uses a lot of energy all at once and it's too hard to get a hit of them when moving, only shoot when they land on the ground (when jumping) or have slowed down (when dashing). Because of the long attack delay and short clip size, it's better to be careful not to waste ammo if you are not equipped with another short/mid range weapon.
- For a more aggressive play-style, you can quickly use up a clip of the shotgun and then use a flamer or SMG (the other weapons are useful, but limited).
Shotgun secondary
- The alternative fire can be aimed for the ground in front of your enemy and hit them with the bounce of flak shards, which whilst slow can travel long distances.
- The shards that come out can be used to hit opponents who are around a tight corner because the shards will deflect on surfaces. These shards cause bleed damage, diminishing the affected's health over time.
- The ball itself can instantly kill when contacting an enemy, but is easy to dodge. Use it on enemies moving directly towards you or standing still.
- Don't overuse the alternative fire at shorter ranges as the shotgun features a small clip size, long attack delay and slow time for reload. The primary fire is much more effective when the opponent moves irregularly. The same goes for the primary fire at longer ranges, as it does insignificant damage.
- When trying to escape, use this for extra pushback (because of it's high recoil). It can be especially useful when in air and you fear a rifle user can easily hit you.
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SMG
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Summary
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Vicious shooting speed with decently low recoil to be useful at any range.
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Clip
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40 bullets
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Primary fire
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Automatic. Short to long range. Fires off the clip in quick succession. Bounces off hard surfaces.
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Secondary fire
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Automatic. Short to long range. Launches a ball of flak that explodes on impact or after a few seconds, launching flak in all directions. Moves slowly in air. Uses 4 bullets.
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Tips and strategy
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SMG primary
- You can fire at long ranges but against a good rifle or plasma user you will be worse off. Move in for the kill.
- Against shotguns, flamers and swords you should keep a healthy short distance, being out of reach of any dangerous shotgun bursts, flames or quick sword cuts. If the enemy charges in using double jumps, impulse dashes or power slides (and so be moving quickly) you should not turn and run but impulse dash/double jump backwards to maintain that distance.
- Crouching for more accuracy is a good tactic when you are not in danger of receiving fire.
- Whilst mostly for show, the bouncing bullets can quite an annoyance to opponents around corners.
SMG secondary
- When the opponent is moving directly towards/away from you, use it to cause massive damage.
- Use the alternative fire for longer ranges against a rifle player who is scoping, as they will be moving slower and therefore become easier targets.
- The alternate fire mode can be used to hit multiple players in a confined space.
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Flamer
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Summary
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Powerful in close-quarters-combat and traversing around the map.
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Clip
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50 units
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Primary fire
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Automatic. Shoots out a short distance, concentrated stream of flame. Induces burning.
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Secondary fire
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Semi-automatic. Shoots out an air blast which greatly pushes yourself when directed at hard surfaces. Pushes others away when directed at them. Negates burning. Uses 5 units.
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Tips and strategy
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Flamer primary
- Don't flame an enemy once and hope the burn will finish them off. The continued firing of the flamer does significant damage if you can keep firing directly at the opponent at a short range. Do, however, try to keep enemies lit, especially when changing a clip, since this both damages the opponent and places their regen on hold for several seconds.
- Circle around enemies to minimize being hit. Impulse dashes and double jumps are especially useful. Quickly consume energy with the confidence that the secondary fire can allow for quick escapes.
Flamer secondary
- Using the flamer secondary is counterproductive above 5 meters: you'll push the enemy out of flamer range and extinguish any flames while dealing negligible damage.
- The air blast does not inflict damage on team mates or yourself - useful to extinguish flames, but annoying for those who get pushed around.
- Blast jump: During a jump, fire on the ground to gain a mighty push. This works best if you either shoot precisely downwards or while jumping backwards.
- Blast boost: Use an impulse boost directly after a blast jump to redirect the push and gain an impressive amount of forward momentum.
- When against a shotgun or sword user, use a backwards blast jump to escape a confrontation and switch to a longer-ranged weapon.
- Should you get caught in your own flames, a blast jump will quickly remove the burn status effect.
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Plasma
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Summary
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Large bullets with slow speed makes this most effective at medium range and escaping confrontations.
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Clip
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20 charges
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Primary fire
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Automatic. Shoots out a medium range, high velocity, splash-damaging plasma ball.
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Secondary fire
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Semi-automatic. Shoots out a big plasma ball, sucking in enemies close to it and causes continuous damage on contact. Charge longer for a larger and slower moving sphere, which uses up more ammo.
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Tips and strategy
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Plasma primary
- Keep a distance from short range weaponry.
- If an enemy tries to close on you, try using backward (mid-air) impulse dashes to maintain a safe distance.
- The plasma balls are effective against rifle users because their size blinds players looking directly towards you.
- Be wary of the limited range, which makes the plasma not useful for enemies far-off.
Plasma secondary
- Charge the secondary to full to make for a devastating plasma ball, which is useful to at as a shield for any opponents trying to get close to you and control their movements to make them easy targets for your other loadout weapon (as reloading the plasma will take a long time).
- Easily defend control points in the Defend-and-control mode by shooting a fully-charged plasma ball to give the other team(s) second thoughts on trying to capture the point.
- Plasma balls that are only partially charged are useful for their faster speed. Whilst still quite slow, you can hit an opponent if they're standing still or have limited movement, usually when they're scoping a rifle or capturing/defending a control point.
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Zapper
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Summary
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A great support weapon that allows to slow enemy movement.
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Clip
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35 charges
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Primary fire
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Fires bolts of lightning, very rapid fire rate, precise, but limited damage.
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Secondary fire
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Strong bursts of electricity that deal damage over time and induce shock to slow down enemies.
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Tips and strategy
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Zapper primary
- Plays like a SMG just without the bounce and having less direct damage, so use similar strategy.
- Compared to the SMG, zapper shots are more precise, travel more quickly and offer an even faster fire rate.
- The damage output may be weak, but this fire mode is occasionally adequate to finish off weakened opponents.
Zapper secondary
- Inflict shock on enemy flag or bomb carriers to make them easy pickings.
- When the enemy is shocked, you may want to switch to a more offensive weapon.
- Inducing shock, then burn or bleed will cause a damaging double status effect, which can be effective for hit-and-run encounters.
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Rifle
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Summary
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Shocking at long and medium ranges with a good aim.
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Clip
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6 beams per clip
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Primary fire
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Semi-automatic. fires off an ultra long-range purple beam of energy. Shoot at the ground for minor splash damage.
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Secondary fire
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Scope. Scroll the mouse wheel for different zoom levels. Zoomed shots do more damage and even penetrate multiple targets, but have no splash damage. Must stay in scope for a short period of time for maximum damage.
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Tips and strategy
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Rifle primary
- Useful at short ranges when an enemy has closed in to get in one hit and then switch to a more appropriate weapon.
- From medium and long ranges, the primary can be more useful to keep track of fast moving opponents if you're not confident with the secondary, although is not a particularly quick method.
- The attackdelay of the primary is lower than the secondary, so can 'spammed' and still be significantly powerful.
Rifle secondary
- A rifle user will always favour the longest distance when fighting non-rifle users, so try and find a vantage point to snipe from. However, do not try and stick around one place for too long as once you have killed people a few times they will start to target you.
- Wait until the the rifle is fully charged (indicated by a completed circle loop around the cross-hair) before firing to shoot at maximum damage.
- Shooting at the head will instantly kill, but it is much more easier to aim at the torso. Only try for a headshot when the opponent is still or moving directly towards/away from you.
- Never stay still in an open area as it's likely that there are other snipers out to kill you.
- Whilst moving will affect your accuracy, against another rifle user it is better to focus on dodging rifle shots rather than getting hits unless you're confident that you can get the first shot instantly- if that's the case, crouch or walk for better accuracy but strife side-to-side in the case of your opponent not dying.
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Weapon combos

Shotgun and Rifle
This traditional choice of loadout weapons is very popular, especially in Deathmatch, Capture-the-flag, Defend-and-control, and Bomber-ball games. A player with these tools of destruction prioritizes the ability to inflict heavy damage - any time, anywhere, and over any distance.

Flamer and Zapper
This pair of weapons optimizes a players ability to outrun and annoy his enemies and to support his team mates. It serves well for hit-and-run tactics, not only in Capture-the-flag games. It is also very effective at getting enemies to waste time telling you in chat how "nooby" your weapon loadout is and attempt to convince you that other (read: shotgun/rifle) loadouts are what you "should" be using.

Plasma and Zapper
This pair of weapons optimizes the chances of being kicked by people who don't find getting shredded by "noob" weapons funny. The best way to exploit this is by teamkilling with plasma2 and accidentally using zapper2 on teammates.
This combo can really be very effective since the vast majority of duelists are used to facing the rifle/sword or rifle/shotgun combo.
Explosives
Explosive weapons can be collected from certain spots of the arena. Unlike other weapons, they cannot be reloaded.
Exception: In kaboom games, players start with grenades and mines that reload over time.
Grenade
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Summary
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Can instantly kill at any range, but requires good timing and aim to be effective.
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Clip
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You can hold up to two grenades at a time.
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Primary fire
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Press to throw. Hold to charge, the longer you cook it the sooner explodes after being thrown. Your velocity affects its trajectory- lunge forward to throw further, or jump or fall for different effects. Causes burning. Bounces off level geometry and players.
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Secondary fire
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Sticky grenades - has a smaller explosion radius than the primary fire mode, but will stick to hard surfaces rather than bouncing off. Can be attached to players.
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Tips and strategy
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Grenade notes
- If a player dies whilst charging up the primary or secondary fire, the grenade will explode.
- Kamikaze (exploding oneself by holding the grenade) is counterproductive in deathmatch, where it will cost you 6 points; however, in certain situations in Defend and Control, kamikaze can help deny an opponent a capture point that you may not be able to deny in any other way.
- Switch weapons or press reload whilst charging either the primary or secondary to stop throwing the grenade.
- Failing to throw after most/all of the charge time has been used will result in suiciding.
Grenade primary
- Use the bounce to get grenades around tight corners and in enclosed spaces.
Grenade secondary
- This firing mode has a smaller explosion radius than the primary.
- Timing your grenade throw to an estimated destination of an opponent can effectively damage your surprise your opponent.
- If confident in making your grenade directly hitting your opponent, then use the secondary. When the grenade explodes when stuck to a player (as well as in close range) it will instantly kill.
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Mine
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Summary
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Heavy damage and applies the shock status effect.
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Clip
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You can hold up to two mines at a time.
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Primary fire
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Fire to throw. When in contact with a solid surface or player, it will stick. When any player comes into the small proximity of the mine, the mine will explode and they will receive heavy damage and shock.
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Secondary fire
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Shock beam trap - the top of the mine emits a beam that extends until it hits a solid surface. Anyone who gets in contact with the beam will cause the mine to detonate and receive damage and shock from the beam.
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Tips and strategy
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Mine notes
- Mines emit a 'droning' sound when close by.
- Never use this in team games unless there's a much higher chance of the enemy team(s) hitting it.
- Switch immediately back to your loadout weapons if a player can see you, as then mines lose their surprise value
Mine primary
- Place mines in choke points so your opponent cannot see them, such as:
- Landing points from pushers
- Around corners
- On edges where players will walk off
- Destination spots from portals
Mine secondary
- Use the secondary use to block of entrances in objective-based team games- whilst they can be seen, the enemy has to waste time destroying the mines.
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Rocket
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Summary
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Spawns and re-spawns on the map at long intervals, used to completely overpower your enemies.
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Clip
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holds 1 rocket, does not reload.
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Primary fire
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Fires out a straight shot. Very high splash damage. Induces burning.
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Secondary fire
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Fires out a guided shot- aim at a target spot on the ground or on walls to guide the rocket through the air. Be careful not to make the rocket explode prematurely.
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Tips and strategy
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Rocket notes
- Usually spawns on the middle of the map. Some maps have multiple rockets.
- In Kaboom games, additional rockets may be available.
- The detonation of a rocket does not only inflict heavy damage, but also has a very strong pushing effect.
- For rushers: Who needs strategy? Just fire and KABOOM!
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Spawn weapons
Spawn weapons are available to all players in addition to the chosen loadout weapons. This includes a pistol and the option to use parkour moves as melee attacks.
Pistol
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Summary
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This is a spawn-weapon: A backup handgun everyone spawns with.
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Clip
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10 bullets
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Primary fire
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Semi-automatic, quick rate of fire, fires one shot at a time.
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Secondary fire
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Deals more damage per shot, reduced accuracy and slower rate of fire.
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Tips and strategy
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deadlier than you may expect
- The pistol is often underestimated due to its limited clip size. In the hands of a skilled warrior, it can be a very effective weapon, though.
- Best used as a back up when both your loadout weapons are used up and you know the enemy has low health
- If you have no long-range weapon and want to deal some, use the pistol. Do not engage for any significant period of time however if the opponent has a long-range loadout weapon, as you'll be worse off.
- The primary and secondary are both useful and it's a matter of preference for which one to use- quick spray and pray versus timely powerful shots.
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Claw
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Summary
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The second spawn weapon is used for movement and close combat.
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Clip
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none
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Primary fire
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Basic, horizontal claw slash, best used in conjunction with an impulse kick
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Secondary fire
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Slower and weaker claw attack that pulls you towards the enemy or performs low impulse cost wall grabs.
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Tips and strategy
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move and kill with style
- Grabs are stronger than other parkour moves and they also use 50% less impulse energy
- You cannot perform extra moves with the claw, the rules of impulse delay and count still apply
- The claw does not have the range, power and bleed effect of the sword, but claw frags have style!
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Melee
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Summary
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Parkour moves can be used to damage enemies, also while attacking with another weapon.
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Clip
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None
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Primary fire
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Kicks can be performed any time: Simply jump at an opponent and press Q.
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Secondary fire
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Crash into an enemy while doing an impulse slide. Deals more damage than a kick.
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Tips and strategy
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unarmed combat
- There is no penalty in clicking Q whilst in air, so feel free to do it whenever you think there's a chance of hitting an enemy.
- Melee is also useful in instagib games - one kick, one kill.
- The secondary mode variables of this "weapon" apply to impulse slides, but there is no actual primary or secondary fire mode.
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Weapon Mechanics
Status effects
Some weapons induce status ailments that inflict some damage over time and last for about five seconds. Useful to delay enemy health recovery. Multiple effects can be stacked.
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Shock- Slows down movement greatly. Deals 2 damage per second. Caused by the zapper and by mines.
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Burn- Deals 3 damage per second. Can be negated with the secondary fire of the flamer or by entering water (as long as you are at least half submerged). Caused by grenades, rockets and the flamer.
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Bleed- Deals 3 damage per second. Caused by the secondary fire of the shotgun and by the sword.
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Anatomy
The player model is split into 3 parts which determine how much damage is applied to them: head, torso and legs. All damage values determined by the weapon specific variables apply to the head. The torso and legs then take a variable percentage of that damage value, sometimes higher (like the flamer's secondary fire) but usually smaller than the head damage.
Weapon variables
When playing offline or as a server operator, almost all aspects of game rules can be tuned and modified using the console to control thousands of variables. This includes a large array of variables for each weapon that give you deep control of the weapon characteristics.
Weapon IDs
Weapon numbers or IDs are used for certain variables, for instance when defining the weapon for the instagib game mutator or when referring to some particle presets. The following table gives a compact overview of the available weapons slots and their IDs. For some variables, such as fragweap, an additional ID refers to the secondary fire mode.
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spawn
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loadout weapons
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explosives
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weapon
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primary
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0
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1
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2
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3
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4
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5
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6
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7
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8
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9
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10
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11
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12
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secondary
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13
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14
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15
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16
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17
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18
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19
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20
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21
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22
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23
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24
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25
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Frag and flak vars
Variables related to flak or fragmentation give a plethora of options for creating weapon mods. However, the use of these variables can be rather confusing.
- In essence, when the projectile of a weapon is destroyed (impact or expired lifetime), new flak projectiles can be created (fragmentation).
- The corresponding fragweap variable defines which type of projectiles are created according to a #weapon ID (none for -1).
- Further frag variables define the number and dynamics of these projectiles.
- A large array of flak variables has defaults inherited from their base weapon variables.
- These flak variables define many properties of flak projectiles. The variable names refer to the type of flak created (the ID used for fragweap), not the type of parent projectile.
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