Overview
I wrote this awhile back for fun when I used to play GunGame or knife only maps a lot, figured I’d post it here on the Steam guides. It is a fairly detailed analysis of the tactics one should use while fighting with just a knife. Some of it is a bit whimsical as I come up with my own names for maneuvers but it none the less describes the motion of the players.
Intro: Swing types
In Counter-Strike: Source there are two swing types. Left click is more like a short quick slice. It is fast but deals less damage. Right click is a stab. It takes longer but takes down an opponent in two swings or one back stab. That, though, is fairly common knowledge. Another thing worth noting is that the knife quite literally comes to a point. Despite the animation slashing the knife across the entire screen the only spot on which the knife hit consistently registers is dead center of the cross-hairs. Often times players miss completely or fail to get a back stab because their cross hair was not pointed at the right spot. Back stabs are quite simple. Stab as close to the center of the back as possible, one hit kill. There is, however, one unusual thing about back stabs that makes jumping precarious: a back stab can also register on the heels of a player.
Jumping During a Knife fight
Jumping during a knife fight is often times not beneficial. I would not recommend jumping unless one is skilled at bunny hopping and/or surfing. The only time when jumping is necessary is if low gravity is on. At this point, maneuvering in the air becomes crucial. You can curve your path in the air by releasing forwards, strafing, and moving your mouse in the same direction as the strafe. Add jumping each time you hit the ground and you have bunny hopping. If sv_airaccelerate is set to 100, you will be able to turn mid-air. If it is at the default value, then an attempt to change direction will result in a sudden and possibly dangerous journey to the ground.
The range of the Knife
The most necessary knowledge about knifing is to understand when an opponent comes into range. The length of the knife is much longer than what is shown. Even though it may look as if your are holding a small knife, the range is closer to that of a machete or short sword. A good way to get an idea of the range is to knife the lights hanging in de_season, Long Hall. Their distance is about a short swords length from the player when jumping. If possible, do this with two people because it is even more noticeable if you are not the one doing the knifing. Learning the exact reach of the knife is mostly a matter of experience. So practice.
Locking of Horns
When knifing, there are two over all strategies. One I like to refer to as the “locking of horns”. As implied by the name, in this kind of fight both players charge each other and then remain within each other’s range for the duration of the battle. The winner is usually he who swings first. There are several tricks to this method. One is the left-left-right click. If done correctly and your opponent is not wearing kevlar, you may come out on top even if he swung first. Another is to quite simply hold your right mouse button down. Often times, this is enough to save you even though your attacker hit you first. Lastly, another but often unsuccessful form of attack is the Crouching’N’Flying Tiger. This involves crouch-jumping right before you come into range. If done right, you will crouch-jump over your opponent’s swing while still hitting them. The fact that a lot of players point their cross-hairs slightly down all the time does not help them. However, this only works to a limited degree. Anyone who knows this technique or is good enough such that they keep their sights on their assailants at all times will not be defeated by the attack. A person may even crouch and thus you will wind up on their head unable to hit them and in danger of being stabbed in the Achilles heel.
The Dance
The next major form of knife combat is the dance. The object of this is to dance in and out of your opponent’s range, only moving in when you are ready to swing and dancing away in between the swings. The most basic form of this method is not unlike the locking of horns. The key difference is that after the first charge and knife swing, both step back, or one of the players steps back, possibly before one of them even hits the other, charging again when they are ready to swing their knives. The next step up is the Joust. In a Joust, both players charge one another, but right at the point of meeting, veer off and attempt to hit the other while curving and doing a gradual 180, more or less switching places while preparing for another charge. A pro of the Joust is that, if your opponent does not follow suit, you will be behind them with the obvious advantages. Then there is the true dance. In this method, one or both players mash W, A, S, and D with 3 parts random and 1 part method, while engaging each other. As the players near, less movement is random and more is attempted passes or dodges. A key maneuver of the true dance is the Backwards Walk of Death. If you see an opponent running away from the fight but doing so backwards, then that is the BWoD. The reason this is so deadly is because the person doing this will be able to begin moving forward towards you. By doing this, he will be aware of when you come in range first. If you see someone doing this, do not closely follow them them but slowly edge towards them. To preform this, you must be aware of your surroundings because you may need to walk backwards for some distance before your opponent is in range, if they are giving chase.
Code of honor and Fighting two oppenents
Now, there is an unwritten (until now) Code of Honor. There are only a handful of cases that determine whether or not you play dirty when knifing by double teaming. The first is if you and your team mate are greatly outmatched by your opponent in skill and kdr. In this case, double teaming may be necessary for you to even achieve victory, though it is still slightly dishonorable. The other is if your opponent is the last player on the other team and he is fleeing. You may need to use teamwork and set up an ambush to catch them. Fighting two opponents isn’t ideal since they can easily just rush you and only one of them has a chance at taking a single hit. If forced to fight as such either flee a short distance and engage one alone or fight them in a tight space where they might get in each others way.
Knives vs Guns
Knifing when your opponents have guns is tricky and very risky. Most of the time it takes longer and is less likely to succeed, so I would recommend sticking to your guns and only using the knife as a last resort when at close range. One of the reasons why NOT to knife is because mysteriously, even though the knife is the among faster run-speed weapons, as soon as you begin chasing someone, they somehow are allowed to move faster despite the fact that they are holding a gun. I think this is mostly due to taking damage slowing your move speed but I haven’t been able to verify this. However it is worthy to note, that save for the p90, all the pistols and smgs have the same move speed as the knife and the scout has slightly more. You also should be aware of your target and make sure they are not someone who pays attention to every sound and often looks behind them. Such people will not be back-stab-able and will likely shoot you even before you have a chance to hit them once. Also, don’t try to knife anyone wielding a Desert Eagle, shotgun, P90, or Mac10. These weapons are devastating at close range and will be able to take you down very quickly even if you have knifed them once. Snipers are obvious targets since their scopes make them oblivious to their surroundings. Equip your knife when at a distance or under the cover of some noisy commotion lest the sound caused by unsheathing it alert your target.