An In-Depth Guide Looking at the The Support Position In CS:GO
Learning one of themore difficult roles on a team: Support.
Counter Strike: Global Offensive: Learning the more difficult roles of a team
As many know there are 4 core roles to any successful team in Counter Strike (CS). These roles differ greatly in the practice requirements to the brains required. On the brainier end of the spectrum is the In Game Leader (IGL). Shifting towards the more skill based end is the Entry Fragger (Entry). In between is the Support and Lurker. These 4 main roles are what make or break any competitive CS team.
Roles that have been covered in this series:
The Support Player (Support)
The Support Player on any team is the anchor of the team. The Support is characteristically the player who anchors the site when the opposing site is being pushed. For example, Xyp9x from Team Question Mark (Formerly Team Solo Mid), will often be seen staying on B site of Mirage, even if a push is happening on the A site. Xyp9x will stay on site until the bomb is spotted. This is to prevent over-rotations by the CTs unecessarily exposing a bomb site. If the Terrorists are successful in their push onto site the bomb will generally be spotted before it is planted by a team mate. If the site is unsuccessfully taken by the Terrorists and the CTs rotate off both sites. There is still a chance for the bomb to be planted at the site that no CTs are currently at.
Pre-Game
The Support Player on any team should know all smokes that will be thrown during an execute, this includes smokes that are not thrown by the player, but are thrown by teammates. This is something that should be synonymous throughout the entire team, as if only 3 people throw smokes and 1 of them dies before the execute it is important to be able to still follow through with the execute.
Mid Game: Pre Round
The Support, above all else, should always listen to what the IGL is saying. This goes for buys as well as for what site will be hit. If a smoke is misbought or misthrown, the round can end badly or unfavorably, all because of a simple mistake.
Mid Game: Mid Round - Pre Bomb Plant
The Support of the team should focus on achieving two main objectives throughout a round on T side. If the IGL has called for a fast hit, or if the Entry Fragger is pushing onto a site, the Support has two key roles.
- Throw all necessary grenades for the Entry Fragger
- Be in a position to effectively trade kills if the Entry Fragger goes down.
If you are on the CT side, prior to bomb plant, your job is to anchor the site you are on to the best of your ability. This can be anything from making sensible pushes to gain information on the location of the Terrorists to playing from an unobvious or one-sided position.
Mid Game: Mid Round - Post Bomb Plant
Following the successful planting of the bomb, the Support, like everyone else on your team, has the objective to prevent the defusing of the bomb. You should play in very defensive positions, as the rest of your team should do the main fragging. Your job is to make sure that the bomb does not get defused or “ninja-defused”.
Mid Game: Mid Round - Set Execute
In the event of a set execute taking place you have 2 main jobs, as the Support on your team.
- Throw all necessary grenades for the set execute to take place
- Be in a position to effectively trade kills if the Entry Fragger goes down.
Post-Game: Debrief
As the player that has the closest contact with the Entry Fragger as he pushes onto site, if you spot something that the Entry could refine you should tell them. Communication is important for a team to be successful. Without communication your team will not achieve what it can. As a CT, you need to communicate with your team exactly what you see and hear. This is important to know, as it helps the IGL to tell someone to rotate.
Post-Game: Refining
As a Support, it is important to know if jump throw scripts are allowed in the league you are playing in. This is important as it helps you achieve your smokes throws 100% accurately. If a jump throw script is not allowed in the league you are participating in, find a new way to smoke the location off.
Once the game is finished, go over the game and criticize yourself. Look at the plays that you made and how you could have handled that situation better. These situations can be as varied as mishearing foot steps to pushing too far and allowing for a bomb plant.
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