Disclaimer: Please do not take this piece too literally. Many have fallen into such a hole and have criticized this article for providing a poor comparison. We can compare chess with anything; likewise we can compare Counter-Strike with everything. If you truly believe that you can compare egg tossing with Counter-Strike as well as I can provide a contrast between Counter-Strike and chess and show just as strong a correlation, as ranged of an extrapolation, and as profound of a rationale, then please do so at your own discretion.

Welcome to the second installment of ‘Checkmate’. It’s been a pleasure to see the good and the bad comments from the many readers since the first installment was released to the public. Within that short period of time, I have received tons of emails and messages regarding the article and Counter-Strike strategies in general. For those teams and individuals that I’ve had the chance to chat with, I can be absolutely certain that their way of thinking and/or their style of playing have improved since. As for those who criticize me for trying to ‘teach’ Counter-Strike without having sufficient experience in the game, I can answer with this: Although I am not the best Counter-Strike player, although I am an ‘unknown’ in the Counter-Strike community, and although Decline from Nameless is giving me free lessons on how to play CS (mad props!!) it does not necessary mean that I cannot judge and critically analyze the game. It does not take death to judge life; we judge life even though we have not ascended to the next phase. Why then can we not do the same to anything else?

Moving on...

This series consists of an uncertain number of sections; as time goes by, ideas form and my fingers type. The sections are neither ordered in terms of importance, nor are they chronologically ordered. They are all just faculties within themselves that contribute to the whole picture. What I can now reveal, however, are the current topics that are actively involved in my head and in this series. Below are some of these topics, with a little description as a teaser.

 The Ultimate Weapon - ‘Predicting’ Part One – … the ability to predict is a powerful weapon that more than often will determine the outcome of the game… (Last installment)

 Mind Sets: Offense is the Best Defense – You start off with the 'Leet Krew' model. Are you now the offense or the defense? Think carefully before you answer this... (This installment)

 The Art of Probability – Probability is an art, like other aesthetics it does not provide answers but simply an image or map that allows one to analyze the situation and act upon it… (Next installment)

 Mind Sets: The map is the chessboard – In a game of chess there are 64 squares to play, yet infinite numbers of moves. In a game of Counter-Strike there are infinite squares to play; what then is your next move?

 Mind Sets: You’re an enemy to yourself – …your opponent didn’t defeat you, you defeated yourself…

 Mind Sets: Estimation – They say not to underestimate your enemy? I say don't overestimate them!

 Openings & Variations – The opening move in chess determines your style of play, and the pistol round in Counter-Strike determines your opponent's mind set of your style of play… manipulate them to think what you want them to think…

 The Ultimate Weapon - ‘Predicting’ Part Two – Back to step one! Time to upgrade our weapon with everything we now know.

With such a wide topic scope, a lot of material will be left out. Teams or players that wish to learn more, or feel that I can be of some use in training/speaking to the team, feel free to contact me through email: mlau@connect.carleton.ca or find me in #gotfrag
If you want to play a game of chess with me, you can also find me through the methods mentioned above.