Introduction

Getting the bomb down on the terrorist side in Counter-Strike is part of the fundamental core of the game. It begins the ticking clock for the counter-terrorists and their efforts to defuse it will decide the round; success either way is a round win for that side. A lot of new players will plant in what they feel are the easiest or safest positions after taking a site. There is nothing inherently wrong with this; however, they do not always provide the best angles for your teammates to watch after the plant.

One of the easiest ways to start improving your level of play is to get to grips with the finer mechanics of the game and start gaining the confidence to apply this knowledge in game. Typically this is achieved through the learning of smoke grenade placement, various pop flashes, common pre-fire angles and boost spots. Something that is often overlooked is the importance of bomb plant positions and the positions to take up after the bomb goes down.

The Purpose

In this series of guides I will be highlighting some of the best bomb plant positions on the current collection of competitive maps, with an explanation of how they will help your team. This is the second guide in the series, focusing on the ever popular de_inferno, one of my personal favourites. Using the feedback I received following the first guide on de_dust2 I shall now also be covering the default positions for each site on all future maps. Hopefully this will provide newer players with a better idea of what makes a good plant and how to utilise player positioning as well as get them comfortable with the default positions on each map.

It is worth noting that every round is different and the situation may not allow for anything other than a plant in the default position, which is often the safest. Therefore, it is up to you to decide when a riskier plant can be used. Simply knowing these plants may also help on the counter-terrorist side; if you have retaken a site and there is only a short amount of time left knowing the likely positions of the bomb can save you a few precious milliseconds for a successful defuse.

A Site
The Default Plant

The default plant for bomb site A on Inferno is arguably one of the strongest default plants on any map. It provides fantastic options for after plant positions for your teammates and can also be quick to get down if the bombsite is cleared from CT mid and Short/Speedway. Provided you have cleared the counter-terrorist A site players, there is nothing wrong with using this plant.

You can peek and check on this plant from Pit, Graveyard, Apartments and Short/Speedway, all with relative ease. The strength of these positions adds to the strength of the plant, with players in Pit, Apartments and Graveyard being especially difficult to deal with for retaking counter-terrorists. It is impossible to defuse this plant from a position that lets you check all of these angles. The counter-terrorist has to expose their back to at least one of the after plant positions while sticking a defuse.

The Almost Default Plant

As the name suggests this plant is very similar to the default one, but flush against the corner box means it is closer to Short/Speedway and CT Mid. This plant naturally shares a lot of the benefits of the default one, with good options to peek at from Pit and the corner of Short/Speedway.

However, this plant is harder to watch from Graveyard and far riskier to peek from Apartments. It is only favourable to the default in certain situations, for example if time is an issue and you need the bomb down quickly or if you are uncertain if Moto has been cleared and fear there may be an AWP positioned towards Library. It is a situational plant, but it can have its uses and is certainly worth knowing about.

The Moto Plant

This is an interesting plant that you may see occasionally from time to time. It is definitely more unique than the first two, placing the bomb firmly out in the open. Because of this it is only worth doing if you know you are definitely safe. It is possible to watch this plant from Pit, Apartments, Arch Side and Library.

Perhaps a good situation for this plant would arise if you have a player lurking from CT spawn or near Arch and know that your opponent is somewhere around mid. There is a risk of being smoked off with this plant due to its openness and the level of cover that being on the bombsite side could provide against the view from library. But, with the numbers advantage and restrained peeking it can be prove too tricky for counter-terrorists to deal with effectively.

B Site
The Default Plant

The default plant for the B bomb site has a few immediate problems associated with it. First and foremost is the susceptibility to being picked at from CT spawn as you make your way to the back of the site. Even with a smoke placed in the CT gap it is a fairly simple pre-fire angle to get him from. Even after a successful take of the site it still requires Construction to be fully cleared or at least covered as you plant. On a more intricate level there is the time requirement for getting to the position, if time on the clock is tight and it is the only plant you know of it can cause problems.

However, it does have its benefits too. Provided you are not tagged as you get into position and you are not hit in the side from Construction it is a fairly reliable plant to get down. It also gives your team a lot of close angles to play from on the site, though the options for long distance peeks are more limited. There is not a huge variety of choice for planting on the B site and as a result this is not the worst plant to resort to as a default, but it’s situationally not the best either.

The Grill Plant

This plant sees more use in the higher levels of Counter-Strike. It is sometimes combined with a set play that smokes off the majority of the site or after a wrap from Arch through the counter-terrorist spawn. Planting here gives you quite nice protection from Construction because it forces any player there to peek fully out wide, a dangerously open position that your teammates should be able to capitalise on nicely.

Once down it can be watched adequately from Banana, Close/First Oranges, Second Oranges Emo/Dark Spot and New Box. It also provides a nice amount of distance for each of these positions, useful to know if you are expecting the Counter-Terrorists to be using notoriously close range weapons such as P250’s or shotguns. It is worth being aware that there is some variation on precisely where this plant is placed, some drop it in front of the grill on the ground and some on the grill itself.

The Close/First Oranges Plant

This can be a useful plant if your team has taken the B site from banana and you are being shot at through the CT spawn smoke. By jumping up and over the wall and straight round into this position you can eliminate most of the risk of these sprays. It is also fairly safe from anyone pushing you on a quick rotate up banana.

Because it is slightly less common there is a small chance this plant will take a fraction longer for the counter-terrorists to find as they enter the site, though it is not worth relying on. It offers a good angle to peek at from Emo/Dark Spot, Construction and New Box and even from Second Oranges or on top of it at First/Close Oranges as well. It isn’t likely to become your go-to plant, but it might be worth using every now and then to change things up and to keep your opponents on their toes.

End Note

Hopefully this short guide has provided some useful information for anyone new to the game and looking to make some small improvements to their play on the terrorist side. It is worth noting that you should always do what you feel comfortable with on a round by round basis, but it will not hurt to be aware of different planting positions as well as being confident with the defaults. Next up in this series we will be looking at planting on de_mirage, another classic and widely enjoyed map. As always any feedback is appreciated, both positive and negative. You can direct any comments to me on here or through my twitter @dig_Serenity and I will endeavour to get back to you.