Distance + Timing

[FaZ-]

Okay, what I'm about to do is explain the fundamentals of the StarCraft physics system in a relatively quick and simple manner. It will still be pretty long, but if it's any consolation I'm damned sure that it's right. This is essentially "Pulse Theory" with the mistakes fixed. The majority of good snipers used to use these tactics regularly, but it's just not necessary anymore to be a good player. That is what I refer to when I say the game has been dumbed down. Understanding this won't make you great, but it will help. It will also probably make LAN or OI gameplay seem less "stupid" or "lucky" to you.

Anyway, on to the explanation, it's been a long time coming:

Basics
All of the following applies only to shots made on equal ground. If someone drifts, causes a drift, uses fog of war, whatever, it adds another layer of complexity that would make this even harder to explain. So assume that all of these shots are done on a basic map that's just empty.

Compared to Vision
When you walk along the map in snipers, every four seconds your vision "updates" and re-centers around your sniper. The same thing happens with your range, but a lot faster. Every fraction of a second (I believe every 84 ms is the common estimate?) the game will check to see if your target is in range. If it is, you fire. If it's not, you don't fire. However, you can force this timer to check whenever you want to by giving your sniper an action. So, assuming that you're just standing still and lock someone as soon as they come into range, you fire instantly and are guaranteed to get a kill. This is a stance.

Circles
Now, picture your sniper. Around him are a number of imaginary circles. The first one is your range. The next one is your range plus as far as you can walk in one "update" as described above. The next one is your range plus as far as you can walk in two "updates" or "pulses." And so on across the map. At the edge of each one of these circles, if you lock someone you will kill them. However, these circles don't move as you move. Every time you give an action to your sniper, you reset these circles. If you don't give any actions, the circles will reset every 84 ms (.084 seconds).

Luring
So, the most ancient of techniques: before even blind spots were known there was luring. A lure takes into account one "pulse" to get a kill. If you lock an opponent at the range where a sniper's range plus the time it takes for our range to refresh or "update" or "pulse," you are guaranteed a kill because you will fire at max range. All you need to do is lock once. You can "lure" from a standstill, when being chased, and even when running towards someone. If you are slightly too close, however, you're almost guaranteed to die because your sniper will check if the opponent is in range a tiny bit before he is and won't check again until you're very close. When two opponents do this to each other, the hilarious short ranged shots occur.

S-Lock
This term and technique have fallen completely out of use as it is a counter to luring, which has also fallen out of use. Imagine you're chasing someone and notice that he has the distance correctly for to lure you. Assuming your opponent realizes this, if you continued on you'd die. So instead, you stop. As your opponent locks, expecting you to be lured, he turns and his sniper makes the initial check to see if you're in range. You're not, that would've made it a walkstance and you weren't supposed to be. However, a fraction of a second later it makes the next check when you WERE supposed to be in range. But because you stopped, you're just out of range of this and it won't check again for a good time. Thus, you have an easy kill.

D-Lock
So how does this explain D-Locking? It's simple if you think about it: each D-Lock is just a walkstance. However, because you don't lock immediately and instead turn around first, your sniper doesn't check to see if your opponent is in range until you turn. So you haven't locked someone at the initial circle of your sniper's range. Instead, you've forced the circles to update by turning then locking. If you distanced yourself properly to account for the time it takes to turn and your sniper's range, you will get a kill every time. Whether you die or not too depends on your opponent's actions.


If anything was confusing or poorly explained let me know. This was intended to be more of a quick rough draft and only took me 30 minutes or so. I'll update accordingly because I don't feel this has ever properly been explained and my understanding of this is the main reason that I push for the game to be played with LAN Latency or OI. I've realized rather belatedly that explaining it is the best way to get other people to want to play that more skill intensive style. I'll answer any questions or add explanations for other "phenomena" to the best of my ability because everything that I've seen in snipers through almost a decade can be explained through distance and timing.

[ZER(o)]

Thank you, FaZ-. It's good to see someone on the same page as me. Angling and pulsing are the exact same thing, and are both explained with this guide. I've encountered and used a variety of other angling tricks throughout the years, and admittedly, using many of them made me much better. But that's only because I had complete faith in them, and used them until I worked myself into a groove and could repeat the same timing and distance through repeated use, and it's the same way with everyone else. I was arguably at my best compared to everyone else when I used a gun trick similar to KLiT's in '03/'04, and it was only because I placed myself in a familiar routine.

I hope this helps people out, it's a good little faq.

[TeaLaGe]

Those circles you talk about, how do you know if you're at the edge of the "circle", I do not believe people will keep track of all that circles just to get a kill. Imagine if everyone tries to do that, it would take forever for anyone to get a kill.

What if u get rushed and have no time to do those "circles"?

[ZER(o)]

Those circles you talk about, how do you know if you're at the edge of the "circle", I do not believe people will keep track of all that circles just to get a kill. Imagine if everyone tries to do that, it would take forever for anyone to get a kill.

What if u get rushed and have no time to do those "circles"?

Understanding this won't make you great, but it will help.

You're not supposed to look out for them, it's impossible to, anyway. Knowing this helps you learn that angling doesn't have anything to do with what side or degree (unless it's drastic enough to cause a drift) your positioning is, nor does it have anything to do with what direction the gun is arbitrarily pointing. It just helps you learn that it's possible to become better by learning to angle by experimenting with distance, as well as working on improving your timing.

[Oragami]

Jesus, they are all the same fucking thing T_T. Just different 'methods' of applying the pulse.

[FalseLights]

Every time you give an action to your sniper, you reset these circles. If you don't give any actions, the circles will reset every 84 ms (.084 seconds).

After doing some testing I believe this to be true. I could rabidly lock a sniper and get a kill, but not very easily nor efficiently. I would either lose my speed, ds or mc. But if you could constantly locked the nearest sniper every .08ms, I'd bet you could walk people all day.

If a person were to ql some one on the edge of his vision on Lan Latency, it would essentially be a nl because the edge of a ghosts vision is not his range. Because of there being little to no delay time, you can angle faster and pulse more efficiently. If you mc, you still have a chance to pull and pulse again. It's a hit or miss on regular, you have to time your locks accordingly and plan your pulse ahead of time.

[ZER(o)]

Jesus, they are all the same fucking thing T_T. Just different 'methods' of applying the pulse.

That's kind of what we're saying. Pulsing and angling are, and always have been, the same thing.

[FaZ-]

Those circles you talk about, how do you know if you're at the edge of the "circle", I do not believe people will keep track of all that circles just to get a kill. Imagine if everyone tries to do that, it would take forever for anyone to get a kill.

What if u get rushed and have no time to do those "circles"?

It's something I don't think about anymore. Like throwing a knife with the proper rotation, or timing your steps to jump over something, etc. You just get used to it and then it becomes second nature to utilize it. I almost never intentionally do more than a lure though, it's too hard to judge.

[Oragami]

It's something I don't think about anymore. Like throwing a knife with the proper rotation, or timing your steps to jump over something, etc. You just get used to it and then it becomes second nature to utilize it. I almost never intentionally do more than a lure though, it's too hard to judge.

All things you can't do.

You are like a back seat driver.

Annoying.

[ZER(o)]

What do you mean "all things you can't do?" Everything he listed were things that people can do. And there are several activities that you can do that you will suck at at first, but over time, you gain some sort of control technique that is not visible to the human eye. Like basketball players dribbling, or someone being able to kick a hacky sack. I'd imagine that angling could be the same way.

[Oragami]

What do you mean "all things you can't do?" Everything he listed were things that people can do. And there are several activities that you can do that you will suck at at first, but over time, you gain some sort of control technique that is not visible to the human eye. Like basketball players dribbling, or someone being able to kick a hacky sack. I'd imagine that angling could be the same way.

I'm referring to FaZ- as an individual, he 'knows' these techniques but didn't get far in terms of applying his knowledge.

AKA I'm putting him down, talking shit, ect.

Yes he's 'smart' made maps blah blah, but as a player..Meh lol

[ZER(o)]

I have to disagree with that. He sucks these days due to a lack of motivation. I don't ever remember walks players being as omnipotent and smart as he lets on (not even him), if anything, we're way better as players now than we were five or six years ago, but in my opinion he has shaped the face of this game more than anyone besides the creator, with the exception of Twip- and Consumed., maybe. FaZ- and CiViC are two of the most ahead-of-their-time thinkers I think the game has seen.

[Oragami]

I have to disagree with that. He sucks these days due to a lack of motivation. I don't ever remember walks players being as omnipotent and smart as he lets on (not even him), if anything, we're way better as players now than we were five or six years ago, but in my opinion he has shaped the face of this game more than anyone besides the creator, with the exception of Twip- and Consumed., maybe. FaZ- and CiViC are two of the most ahead-of-their-time thinkers I think the game has seen.

It got him nowhere, whats the point of knowing, when you can't apply the knowledge.

[FaZ-]

I'm good at a different type of snipers than the one you play. There's no excitement to me in getting better at quickly clicking someone or being more patient: there are games called first person shooters and they're way more intense if that's the style you're looking for. I assure you that my reflexes there are far beyond yours, but that's never what snipers was to me or any of the walks players and that's why the vast majority of us left after the shift to locks; the game is immensely dumbed down so that fools like you who understand nothing can actually excel.

I can do well in any locks game by "playing strategically" and trail visioning for half of the game but it's not even remotely fun. Why would I compete seriously in a game that isn't fun, lacks a deep metagame, and isn't technically demanding when I can play one with all of those qualities?

[TeaLaGe]

put your money where your mouth is.

[Oragami]

I'm good at a different type of snipers than the one you play. There's no excitement to me in getting better at quickly clicking someone or being more patient: there are games called first person shooters and they're way more intense if that's the style you're looking for. I assure you that my reflexes there are far beyond yours, but that's never what snipers was to me or any of the walks players and that's why the vast majority of us left after the shift to locks; the game is immensely dumbed down so that fools like you who understand nothing can actually excel.

I can do well in any locks game by "playing strategically" and trail visioning for half of the game but it's not even remotely fun. Why would I compete seriously in a game that isn't fun, lacks a deep metagame, and isn't technically demanding when I can play one with all of those qualities?

Bla Bla Bla Bla, "I suck @ Snipers so I dont play, my reflex's at video games are fast bla bla bla"

LOL FaZ- my Reflexes are insane, video games, whatever. I shoot Expert on the rifle range, can survive in the wilderness far longer than you. Dude Stfu, at least ur smart LOL!!!!!!!!


Edit: I reread ur post again, and came to this conclusion, you suck @ a shitty game, that doesn't demand much. Dude LOL, go play tic tac toe, maybe your speed will help u win...rofl k