Introduction

The Drop room position is one that is highly contended in any Cobble game and offers fast paced elevated gameplay that is almost unseen anywhere else in the competitive map pool. With the ability for both the offensive and defensive teams to utilise shotguns, SMGs, rifles and even the Zeus, the Drop position can be both a rewarding and frustrating one to play. This guide will aim to show you why the Drop room is so important in any game of Cobble and how you can effectively exploit it on both the T and CT side.

It's cool that such a small room has such a major impact!

Why Is Drop So Important?

Cobble is a very interesting map because the connection between the A and B bombsite is so small and allows for quick rotations. Dividing this A – B connector is Drop, a position that is quickly and easily accessible for the terrorist team that can thrust you right into the action. The Drop room is important for a few main reasons: One, it is actually fairly easy to take especially as you add more and more players into the mix. Two, you have the ability to make plays towards both the A and B bombsite if you take Drop. Three, if you don’t defend Drop directly you have to hold the two positions the Ts can exit from, each of which leads directly to a bombsite. Four, the position can land you behind enemy lines enabling a two-pronged attack that can leave either the default player or the Drop players behind the CT defense.

Terrorist

Taking Drop isn’t a particularly hard task if you have a plan to either take the A or B site, what you need to work out is what you’re trying to do by taking drop. The most common plan is a B rush in which case you’re going to want to be the first person in. While the CTs can get into position before you, a fast rush can still catch them off guard. In this case a rifle isn’t necessarily the best weapon; your job is to kill someone playing drop and draw site’s attention from Long B towards Drop by pushing out. In this case I recommend an SMG, shotgun or Tec-9. These guns are more accurate while falling and will allow you to move really quickly from Drop onto site so you can become a nuisance more quickly.

Sawn-off its your time to shine!

The other play is to hold Drop more passively while your team plays an execution strategy. Here you can work for a pick more passively, or you can wait for the players to be pulled from Drop to help defend site at which point you’re the aggressor, killing players while their attention is drawn away. Here an AK might be a better choice as you’re not necessarily dropping and shooting but holding angles and preparing to push later. This is more of a lurk role and depending on your team’s success at pushing out, you may have to engage and take control mid-round or you might get to sit back and do nothing holding Drop room from above as well as the B hall flank. This can come in handy late in a round if a player is lurking around Connector or Juliette, as you can easily flank them and consolidate the round for your team. The hardest part about taking Drop is the initial play. If they catch you falling you’re likely going to die, so flashbangs, smokes and mollys are an invaluable tool in your arsenal. Once you get down into the room you have the advantage and can start making plays all over the map.

Bang a smoke off the wall to smoke off window side and cut the CT defense in half

Counter-Terrorist

Now we’ve heard about what the Terrorists want to do, how can you minimise the impact Drop has on your defense. Quite often, especially on early rounds where you might expect a rush, it can be advantageous to play 4 players towards the B site and Connector to make sure Drop is held. If you play a player deep on A, say in Mid or Long, they are able to get the information and enable a quick rotate from one, two or all of the B players due to the map design. Having said that, there are two main ways to hold the Drop room, from within or outside. If you’re opting to hold the inside of Drop, once again a shotgun or SMG or even a Zeus on saves is a great option as the close quarters environment and the need for T players to actually fall through the air lends itself to these CQC weapons. You can really play any angle from here, whether it's more aggressively close to the wall where they won’t see you until they enter and it's too late or just outside window or in the side room to be a little more passive. Be careful, because it is quite easy to molly close to the wall negating that position if you choose to play it. You can also choose to boost if you have another player with you and this can be used to get a quick pick before rotating one of you back to B or A to hold for a future push.

Shhhh! I'm hiding.

The other option is to play outside Drop at window and on B site. Here rifles tend to be more effective as you will have much more time to react to your opponent's movements and maintain range against the potential pistols and shotguns. This is a viable strategy as you have one person basically on the A site for a quick rotate in case of a rush. It also puts another player on the B site who can rotate to either Broken Wall or Fountain if Long gets overwhelmed. Just be aware of the previous T strategy. If they have a lurker and you rotate off too early, you can quickly find yourself outnumbered and surrounded without ever knowing that someone dropped in late. However, if you’re holding it and someone drops they are essentially stuck there, taking them out of the round until they decide to push. It is often a good decision to smoke or molly the upper level of Drop to delay the push for a good 5 – 10 seconds and allow you and your team time to prepare for the inevitable play.

Conclusion

A lot of games on Cobble are won and lost in the Drop room. While it can be a difficult position to play properly, it is a really necessary skill for both the attacking and defending sides. Understanding why Drop is so important is half the battle and learning what kind of strategies you like to employ around the Drop room is necessary if you’re going to be successful on Cobble.

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