Passive-Passive

If there’s a word to describe a passive-passive tactic in the game of Counter-strike, then it would be called a “full out rush”. In chess, we call it a “2-minute game”. Many would have thought that a passive-passive tactic would mean to be extremely patient and wait for a cause before choosing a response. This is not totally accurate; a passive-passive tactic means to immediately initiate an action to reach a specific goal –- that means to let the opponent know your strategy right away.

The tactic is ‘passive’ because you are releasing all information about your strategy from the start of the round. This leaves the ‘respondent’ role to your opponent and not you. By running a passive-passive tactic, you are abruptly implementing the strategy, leaving no ‘time’ for you or your opponent to play mind games. This tactic is especially beneficial when your strategy is to play by method of isolation (as mentioned in the first article). You immediately deal a huge blow to the mentality of the player you are attacking or not attacking -– likewise, leaving an area of the map out, or constantly bombarding the same area, can cause the opposing team to rethink and reimplement their tactics and strategy as well.

Aggressive-Passive

Aggressive-Passive tactics are really where the mind-play and stratagems kick in. Chess players do this almost imperatively. They develop their pieces quick, take over priority points immediately, set up their snipers (bishops) abruptly before approaching a more subtle form of play. You’ll notice in many chess games that pieces are traded regularly at the beginning before things slow down –- this is the Aggressive-Passive game.

By playing this form, you put your opponent to the test to think quickly and react promptly. The chances of them showing their vulnerability is higher; likewise, your chances of showing your vulnerability are high as well. But with proper planning beforehand, this tactic divides the opponent’s pieces, leaving holes in their unity and allowing you to harass them later on in the round. Mind play immediately kicks in the moment things slow down and the opponent is trying frantically to regroup.

Taking this moment to initiate another swift blow or to pressure priority points can lead to your victory or their defeat (they are not the same).

Passive-Aggressive

By now, you can probably guess what the Passive-Aggressive tactic is all about. And you’re probably right too. Although rarely done in Chess, mainly due to the nature of the board being completely identical on both sides, it is highly favored in modern tactics by Counter-Strike teams.

The reason, though? It’s just an easier way to build up uniformity as a team. It allows each and every member to first “feel at home” before testing the waters, allowing the opponent to initiate the first attack or to make their first mistake before punishing them and making them pay for what they did.

However, mind play can still be used to your advantage with this tactic. First setting up defaults and initiating the same type of signals each time, but then taking a variation, can throw the opponent off guard. Even better, it can even manipulate the opponent to react the way you want them to. This also implies, however, that the opponent must be playing an aggressive-aggressive style of play -- releasing as little of their strategy as possible.

Conclusion

So there’s another installment of this series, and by now I hope everyone is more aware of the different strategies and tactics that can be used. Thorough planning is the key to strategy, thorough practice is the key to tactics. Common sense? Of course it is.

Just remember, we can prevent ourselves from being defeated, but to defeat the enemy lies in the enemy themselves.

Enjoyed this read? Check out the other articles in the series by clicking here.