Communication

## Intro

Communication is one of the most important factors of a good competitive Insurgency player. Due to the very fast TTK (Time to Kill), precision skills such as getting headshots and having good recoil control are less important than simply knowing *where* to look for enemy players to appear.

The goal of good communication is for every player to have enough information to make quick and effective decisions about how to rotate and where to expect enemies. This page will break down the *what, how, and when* of good communication for **pick up games**. Communication within a rostered team differs based on how that team operates and by having a dedicated IGL (In-Game Leader).

## Pre-Game, Halftime, & Tactical Timeouts

Before the game starts, players should talk with their team to figure out where everyone is playing. If you have any questions about how to play your lane, ask more experienced players during the pre-game. This time can also be used show map callouts to new players. Make sure you know which lanes your teammates are playing and what they intend to do (i.e. rushing a lane, playing passively, cross-picking, throwing grenades, etc.) so that you can start to build a mental image of how the round will play out. This will help you make effective rotations during the round as you hear callouts regarding deaths, kills, and spotted enemies.

During the game, teams may call tactical timeouts to stall the momentum of the opposing team and/or to redefine the team strategy. This time should also be used by new players to discuss any issues with lanes, or to ask for advice on how to beat an opposing player who is utilizing a new tactic they aren't familiar with.

Halftime is basically the same as pre-game but with less downtime since everybody is already in the server. This time *can* be used in place of a tactical timeout, but be warned that the eleventh round *will* start regardless of whether or not everyone has readied-up.

## Gameplay

Once the round has begun, communication should be limited strictly to gameplay topics of that round. Hearing low-key sounds such as footsteps is a huge part of Insurgency's gameplay, so any voice chat should be important enough to potentially block those out. When only one or two teammates are alive, they're going to be depending on hearing their enemies, so the rest of the team should be extra mindful of their voice chat during this time.

Here are the main callouts that players should be making during a round:

* When an enemy is killed, and can be confirmed killed, the player who killed the enemy should call their kill as a "minus," followed by the name of the map callout of where the enemy was. *Ex: "minus balc."*
	+ If you aren't entirely sure that the enemy died you can call it as a "possible minus." This can be confirmed later on by a teammate if need be.
	+ The original idea of the minus callout system is that every kill made by the team should be called as a minus followed by the total number of called kills. For example: "minus one," "minus two," "minus three," etc. However that system is rarely used in PUGs, most of the time players will just say "minus" whenever they get a kill (or "minus two/three/etc." if they get multiple kills in the same area in quick succession) and its up to everybody to keep a mental note of how many minuses have been called so far. Typically, more experienced players will keep the running count in their head in order to ensure accuracy.

* If you die, the first thing to do is call out where the enemy who killed you was and/or where they were going (if you know) followed by calling out your own death & location. Be sure to use the words "I'm dead" instead of something like "I got killed" which can be misheard as "I got a kill" or "I killed." *Ex: "one T3, I'm dead balc," "one pushing yellow bridge, I'm dead shops."*
	+ It is imperative that the callout comes **before** any emotional response to the death. Competitive Insurgency is extremely fast paced, and it is highly likely that there is a teammate in position to trade your death out in the event that you die. Calling the enemy location before you rage will determine whether or not your teammate lives or dies.
* If you spot a dead enemy that wasn't called out or was called as a possible minus, you should confirm the kill. Often times this will be a result of cross-picks or pre-nades, where the person who got the kill didn't have line of sight to call it themselves. *Ex: "there's a nade kill on ridge."*
* If you spot an enemy, but were unable to kill them yourself, you should call out where they are and if applicable where you saw them going. *Ex: "one top kitchen," or "one crossing blue bridge to top barber."*
* If you've lost track of how many kills have been called ask "what's the kill count?" to which someone who is certain of it may respond with something like "two up" if there are two enemies alive. If nobody is certain of the total count then each player will say how many kills they got: "I got one," "I got two," etc.
* When you are making a rotation out of your lane give a quick callout describing what you're doing. *Ex: "I'm flanking apts," "I'm getting on C," "I'm leaving balc to cover our street."*
* Objective related communication:
	+ If you are capturing the objective call out "I'm capping [obj]," or if the enemy got on and started capturing before you: "I'm blocking [obj], its [percentage] for them."
	+ If you're capturing the objective and an enemy gets on, first call out the enemy position if you know it, followed by "I'm blocked on [obj]."
	+ If you're on the objective but the enemy is still capturing it then call out that there's multiple enemies on the obj but that you're blocking, then follow that up with what percentage the enemy capture is at. *Ex: "two on B, I'm blocking, it's 75 for them"*
	+ As you are capturing the objective give a quick callout for every quarter of capture progress you make. *Ex: "I'm 25 B," "50 B," "75 B"*
	+ Players who plan to play an objective from the onset of a round should communicate what part of the map they'll watch during the capping process. This information should be communicated during the pre-round pause time. As the round develops it is important for the team to communicate what parts of the map are being watched by what players. *Ex: "I'm capping B from T2, watching our arch,"* to which a teammate might respond *"I'm watching your blue flank," etc.*
		- In the event that a dead teammate is spectating two players who are watching the same angle, the dead player should let the two living players know that they are watching the same angle. Typically, an experienced IGL will inform both players, and then direct each individual player to watch specific areas that the enemy is likely to approach from based on prior calls.
* As the round goes on you may find yourself outnumbered or unsure of what to do with little time left. It is perfectly acceptable to ask what you should do, and your IGL/captain/more experienced teammate will give you a suggestion based on the information available.
* Alternatively, someone who's performing the IGL role may tell other players what to do without them asking. A well functioning PUG team will usually have one or two people giving these sort of callouts as necessary without much complaint from their teammates. Newer players should avoid trying to give these sorts of callouts to more experienced players, unless there was some sort of obvious miscommunication.

## Post-Round

The time between a round ending and the next round starting is best used to discuss strategy and lane changes. Topics to cover include:

* How the enemy team played that round and how they're likely to change their strategy in the coming round. *Ex: "How many players did they have on balc?" "Did their kitchen player rush or hold a certain angle?" "I shut down their A rush so they'll probably be more passive this round."*
* How your team will change the overall strategy to effectively counter what the other team is likely to do. *Ex: "Their apts player killed two of us from A2, can someone pre-fire it from dark?" "They're leaving B completely open, I'm going to get on T2 at the start and watch S2."*
* If you are changing your lane, or questions/advice on how to play your lane. *Ex: "They're shutting down my balc rush, I'm going to watch it from S1 instead." "They killed me from forklift, what's the best way to counter that angle?"*
* Larger changes to team strategy, usually suggested by an IGL. *Ex: "They're shutting down our A play so let's have [A player] support B from connector instead, and construction can watch for the A alley flank after cross-picking."*

Good communications should be clear and concise. If you do not know a callout, it is crucial that you ask after the round in order to prevent future miscommunications.

## Note

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