Welcome to CS:GO 101, where the basics of CS:GO are explained down to the finest details, giving you the chance to become a professional player and learn the essentials of the game.
Time to take the lift up and ascend to the skies, as we look at Vertigo, a map where all the action pops off on a skyscraper.
A flight of history
Whilst a lot of people believe Vertigo is new, its history actually traces back to the 1.6 days. It is however barely comparable to the current Global Offensive version. The map has been heavily changed up, to the point of being removed from the game at the end of 2017. At the start of 2019 Vertigo made its return, replacing Cache about two months later.
The A site
As a counter-terrorist, the A site shows wide angles and points of entry to expect terrorists from. All in all there are only two pathways for the enemy to get through. The action usually kicks off down at the Ramp. This is the first funnel Ts get sent through. A molotov or smoke here can work a charm to delay them. Once they do push ahead however, they will go through Yellow Tarp or further up the ramp.
Further up the ramp, the cement blocks are a good initial point of contact. One player here will suffice but be careful for molotovs; a smoke is necessary to cancel this out right away or you risk far too much damage. The terrorists will try to play around the corner and crane to clear out the site and open it up for a bomb plant.
The rest of your defence should be played further back on the site. There is a lot of cover available but it runs the risk of being quickly incapacitated by a simple smoke grenade. Play it dynamically and be ready to move quickly.
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As a terrorist everything is about moving rapidly and pushing through the ramp area. The strategy needs to be known through and through and your decision will have to be made beforehand about going further up the Ramp or diving into Yellow Tarp. A split strategy can be attempted but it will be reliant on outfragging one or two defending players past Yellow Tarp.
Furthermore utility will be your friend as per usual, with a few must handle spots. A molotov on cement is essential to flush out any possible players. A smoke to cover vision from the back of the site and potential rotating players coming in from middle. You could drop another one to help you plant the bomb and greatly reduce the risk of being caught.
The B site
Defending B is an easier chore compared to what it once was, nowadays only having one point of access through middle. The other place you might see enemies appear is on B stairs. Be wary of clever terrorists that decide to boost themselves up and behind the wooden fence. Regardless, they will have far less room to move with and are easier take out with an incendiary; the pathway via the stairs is narrow enough to be fully covered with one incendiary grenade.
You will find less space to move with on the B site and will be forced to either retreat towards CT spawn or play around the railings. The defence is required to be much faster and relentless in their response. As usual, communicate quickly to secure support from your teammates as they rotate from the A site.
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Attacking B might feel like an impossible task with how narrow the way up via stairs seems. Still, it is doable. Move the team as one cohesive unit and use utility if you have it. You will want to throw your smokes to create a wall covering off middle and CT spawn. This disables potential rotations and gives you time to clear out the site. A molotov towards the railing will also make the potential counter-terrorist located there clear out.
If you approach it from middle, smokes are once again a dear and trusted friend. Start out by covering Mid Window (the elevated part towards the B site) and the back of middle. You might run into a fight or two at the start but once you have control you have a strong position to push through to B. The fights here will be at close angles and short distances, seeing as the CTs usually take point right around the corner from CT spawn or defending from the boxes on the site itself. All in all you will have to move swiftly to take this site and then use its many boxes as defence for a solid afterplant.
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