Being able to hold a Bomb Site from the continuous waves of Terrorists that try to enter them to make a bomb detonate can be a really daunting task, depending on the coordination and skill of the enemy team. What you may not know is that avoiding the bomb plant at all costs is not always the best way to make sure you come out victorious at the end of the round. Obviously, you will always need to defuse the explosive to win the round, but you have more than enough time to defuse it if everything goes according to the retake plan. In this article I’m going to go in depth on the two different approaches you might have when defending a site, the pros and cons of each one, and how the layout of different Bomb Sites might mean its better to use one or the other.

There are two basic ways to defend a site: either you play on it and avoid the bomb plant at all costs or play more passive and let the Terrorists plant the bomb to have a bigger chance on succeeding the retake (as more players are alive). Both are valid options, although, depending on the site and state of the match (score and economy), it may be better one or the other. It is important to note that the retake option also needs more fluid teamplay and communications, as well as good coordination between teammates, to allow for fast trades – remember that when playing solo queue or even without a full party.

Let’s now talk about the pros and cons of each one. Starting with the advantages of defending on site:

- Could avoid the plant, denying the Terrorists the plant money bonus;

- Does not require as much coordination as a retake strategy, although being able to trade effectively can make the job way easier;

- If the Terrorists decide to attack late in the round, a single kill on the bomb carrier can make for an easy round win;

But so many advantages also come with some disadvantages:

- If you lose the site, you will eventually have to retake with fewer players than the Terrorist team – and you still need to be careful with a possible Lurker, making you lose even more time;

- Sometimes trading kills can be hard when avoiding enemies from different positions and trying to hide at the same time after getting an initial frag.

Like I said before, whichever type of defending strategy you adapt really depends on the situation, map and economy. Given that, let’s now analyse the advantages of playing for the retake:

- You won’t get killed or caught off-guard so easily. In fact, you should do whatever it takes to avoid your death. Killing an untraded opponent is a big bonus – it allows the retake to be made with numerical superiority.

- Allows for the use of utility during the plant, which could damage the enemy player that is standing still while planting;

- If needed, allows for saving more weapons to the next round (assuming fewer deaths because of the more passive game style).

And now the disadvantages:

- Needs a more fluid and concise team play (better communication and timings);

- Playing for a retake needs a team that can play fast and be precise (and even faster if there are no kits available);

- If taking too long, the Terrorists may be able to get to optimal post-plant positions, making the defuse almost impossible.

As said in the beginning of the article, there are better sites for each strategy. I’m not going to talk about every single site of the entire map pool – instead, I’m going to say what makes a Bomb Site good or bad for each strategy.

Example of defensive positions on Inferno (Both On-Site)

There are very open Bomb Sites (like Mirage’s A) that allow for very diverse positions but only a few are good for being able to kill without being instantly traded. When looking for a site that could be good for defending on-site, you want one that has good hiding places that allows for easy movement and that has small and/or few entrances where the Terrorists can come from (these small spaces generally allows for good trading positioning from the Counter-Terrorists). This also allows you to easily burn time with well-thrown utility, inevitable forcing the Terrorists to attack while low on time, which could make some pushes less organized.

What makes a good Bomb Site for playing for a retake is not the same: generally, you want a bigger bomb-site, with lots of ways to enter it as that allows for the CTs to surprise the opponents from several different directions during the retake.

Example of defensive positions on Inferno (A - Retake | B - On-Site)

Another thing to have in mind while deciding what strategy to use is the current state of the match: economy, enemies play style, and current weapons. Generally, it is better to play for the retake while having the same tier or better weapons than the opponents as it allows you to play the long-range game, avoiding possible pistols in close combat (those CZs are lethal). Since pistols can be that good in close combat, it is recommended to play on-site and try to surprise your opponents when they push to the Bomb Site. But like I said, it all depends on the current state of the game and your own decisions – it is up to you to analyse and decide what is best for each situation.

Example of defensive positions on Inferno (A - Mix of On-Site/Retake | B - Retake)

The last point I want to touch on is the utility and what is the best way to use them depending on the strategy you decide to use. Although there are not many differences in this department, the timing you should use them differ a little. When defending on-site, your main concern is to burn as much time in the clock as you can: throw Smoke Grenades and Incendiaries on the choke points, coordinate them with your teammates to allow them to be used to maximum effectiveness. Use Flashbangs during those moments before the imminent push and to allow for untraded frags on the Terrorist team – have your teammate flash so you can surprise (or the other way around).

If playing for the retake, either you use the Smoke Grenades to burn time or use them to shut players of the site in their post-plant positions (I recommend the latter). Definitely save the Incendiaries for the player who will plant – they will be standing still when planting, causing them to severely lose health if they stick the plant. If they don’t they will lose time – it’s a win-win situation for you and your team.

Above all, always remember that this article is a compilation of my opinion and experience in this matter. You may have different opinions and that is perfectly valid – use my tips to try to adapt them to your own game. We all learn from experience and mistakes. Just get out there, play the game, improve and have fun!

Like our content? Support us by getting our merchandise in our shop