Nuke is one of the most legendary maps in all of the Counter Strike franchise. It has been around since the 1.6 days, getting multiple updates and remakes throughout the past 20 years. Being one of the most complex maps from a tactical POV, it is often avoided by casual players. In this guide, you will learn the utility you need to dominate T-Side Nuke.
Involving a mission happening on a nuclear power plant, originally situated in Germany, Nuke is one of the most iconic maps in the Counter Strike franchise. Its first appearance was still in CS 1.6, with its main characteristic being the fact that the A bombsite is a floor above the other one, which in 1.6 even meant players shooting through the floor and killing CTs defusing the bomb from the opposite bombsite.
After also making an appearance on CS:Source, in 2012, when CS:GO was first launched, the Nuke that came with it was extremely similar to the Source one, with a few improvements in graphics quality and gameplay here and there. After many updates, with even a complete remaking of the map in 2016, and a few minor changes from time to time, Nuke has been stable for quite some time now, and it has been the stage for numerous legendary moments in the competitive scene over the last few years.
There are thousands of ways to use your utility efficiently on this map. It is a very complex map when being approached from a tactical point of view. In this guide, you will learn how to set yourself up for an A-Site execute, for a A-Site Vent dive and ultimately for gaining Outside control. With this knowledge, you will be perfectly able to dominate your pugs, so let us get started! Every line-up mentioned in this article will have a video depicting everything you need to do, so do not be afraid of getting lost!
Normally when you think of an execute, you visualize a lot of smokes and flashes flying into a bombsite. However, when you see a professional team perform a hard A-Site execute on Nuke, you may not see many smokes being used, as this site is such a closed space already. Because of how closed it is, we will only provide you with a single smoke line-up to be used on this bombsite that we find to be of the utmost importance, with the addition of two crucial Molotovs and a few flashes to time with your teammates' entrance.
Always remember to break the windows above the A-Site, so that your utility lands where you want it to!
Climb up to the top of the roof of the building just in front of spawn. As you are climbing towards Silo using the pipe on its side, place yourself on the middle of the line to the side of that pipe. Then, point your crosshair towards the windows where you can throw utility into the bombsite. You will be able to notice some pipes just in front of the power plant in the distance. Finally, aim your crosshair just to the left of the top left corner of the metal structure holding these pipes in the air, and simply throw the smoke grenade.
This one is thrown from the same roof as the heaven smoke. As you exit T-Spawn, climb up the ladder leading to the roof. In front of you there will be two identical round metal structures on the floor. Place yourself on top of the one to the right. On the side that is facing T-Spawn, there is a line going down the structure. After you have aligned yourself with it, aim at the top right corner of the window farthest to the right and throw the Molotov while running. This one might take a bit of practice to get the hang of, as it involves running, so it would not hurt to jump on an offline server to practice these beforehand.
Behind site is one of the most used spots to play from on the A bombsite, so learning this Molotov will prove to be useful. Once again, as you go up to the same roof mentioned above, the metal structures used for the top of hut incendiary are on a higher level in comparison to the rest of the roof. Place yourself against the left corner of that change in height. When looking towards the building you will find some metal stairs leading to A-Lobby. Place your crosshair at the intersection between the second vertical metal pole of the handrail (counting from the right) and the actual metal stairs on the floor and simply hit your jump throw bind.
To complete the execute, you can always have a teammate entering through Squeaky, with him smoking off A-Main and throwing a Molotov behind closed vent, as shown in the previous video.
As for the flashes you can combine the Molotovs with, a good option would be using the exact same line-ups as the ones you used for throwing the Molotovs. These flashes are very effective and you do not have to bother memorising more line-ups than you need. In the previous videos it is shown where those flashes would “bang”.
Outside is one of the most important parts of the map to have control over. Terrorists need to use it if they want to get to the B bombsite through Secret. However, because it is such an open space, this is much harder than it sounds. Trying to cross outside without using any utility may prove to be a very difficult task for any terrorist, as the CTs will have the upperhand in the majority of fights they take, especially with a zoomed weapon.
Because of this, there are a few smoke combinations you can use to deny CTs from having such information. You will even be able to use them as a fake, as they cannot be sure whether you crossed to Secret or not. But remember, you can also gather information through sound, so always remember not to make noise.
There are numerous variations for these smokes. In this guide, we will only go through the most common ones. We will also teach you how to throw a proper Secret Molotov, to prevent any curious CT from getting an entry kill from that area of the map.
When you run towards the outside area, there will be a fence right in front of you, that continues to limit the map until you reach Secret. As you run towards this metal fence, place your crosshair between the first and second post of the fence and throw your smoke. Always remember to test these "easy line-ups" before jumping into your games.
As you are leaving T-Spawn, there is a truck to the right of it with a red metal crate on top. Place your crosshair on the bottom left part of the first window just above the red metal crate. Adjust slightly to the left and hit your jump throw bind.
Place yourself against the left part of the truck used for the First Outside Smoke, in the middle of the gap between the metal crate on top of the truck and the actual truck. Aim towards the electric cables on the top left corner of the wall to your right. Finally, hit your jump throw bind.
This smoke will also be included in the video showing the first Outside smoke, as these smokes must be used simultaneously!
As you run past the silo outside, you will find two metal boxes just behind red, a smaller one next to a bigger one. Place yourself against the intersection of the two boxes. Just above, secret, there is a tall electricity post. Put your crosshair in the intersection between the post and the farthest building, and finally throw the Molotov using left-click.
A very common and useful tactic to use in your Nuke T side is going for a Vent dive. Using your utility to do so can prove to be very rewarding. The utility used can be as little as a single HE grenade combined with a smoke. The smoke will allow you to go down Vent without being spotted, and can even guarantee you with a bomb plant a few seconds into the round!
At the beginning of the round, throw a HE grenade against the door. This way the door will disappear by exploding, allowing you to throw the smoke you need much faster. The smoke is total no-brainer. As you run towards the broken door, aim your crosshair at the wall to the right of it and throw your smoke without stopping.
Concerning the B-Site, there are not many line-ups you should memorise, if any. To get there you have to either go down Secret, Ramp or even Vent. But once you do, the utility you have left should be used wisely. Make sure to use your smokes and Molotovs to help you secure the bomb plant by closing off some of the choke points the CTs might contest you from, and I believe you will not be needing line-ups for that.
As I mentioned at the beginning of this guide, Nuke is a very complex map tactically. However, I do believe that these few line-ups will prove to be very useful to you throughout your matchmaking adventures. Always make sure you are totally comfortable with them before jumping into the actual game. The worst way to die in CS:GO is through a giant gap in a smoke you have thrown! Hope you have found this guide somewhat useful, good luck on your road to Global Elite!
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