Stay Alive

Wanna be AZRAEL? Tired of dying so many times? Then look no further.
This guide will help you to stay alive and to not die in co-op checkpoint.

Intro

Yesterday I met some guys who where impressed by my ability to stay alive. So I thought lets make a guide.
I have like 300 hours in Sandstorm and almost all of them in co-op. After I figured the bots out and playing my fair share of matches, I rarely die in Coop now. In the last 100 hours of playtime my personal goal was always to not die at all and I often succeeded while placing on top of the scoreboard. I don't do that by camping. I actively go into objectives and capture and defend them.

1. Slow is smooth and smooth is fast

Don't rush from one objective to the next. Yes by doing so you could potentially face less enemies but they will be all around you and you will make it harder for yourself and your team trying to catch up to you. You have to go with the flow of the battle. That means you have to be aggressive and push to the next objective but don't be reckless. That also means don't sit in one area for like 4 minutes and then realize you only have 1 more minute to make it to the next objective and capture it. Don't rush and get yourself surrounded but also don't sit in one spot and therefore get flanked (bots will do that if you give them enough time).
There are a lot of ways to get to your objective. The most direct way isn't always the best way. Try to approach your objective from a direction that gives you a good chance of survival. That means try to avoid approaching through open areas and use alternative routes that provide better cover or concealment. That can also be achieved by positioning yourself better in an open area or approaching the objective from a direction where no windows overlook your approach. There are a lot of options when approaching an objective, so get a little creative (not too creative you still want to get there before the time runs out) and don't just blindly run towards it.

2. Check your corners

That plays hand in hand with 1. Always check corners. And by corners I don't mean exclusively corners. Check behind cars, check windows, hallways, rooms, everything. Check everything you walk by that would be an immediate threat to you or your team if unchecked.

3. Room clearing

Don't rush in and then look 360 degrees. Also don't kick in the door, stop in the doorway and check the room. That will get you killed.
Before clearing a room be sure that your surroundings are cleared. When approaching a doorway approach it so you can see the farthest corner of the room ( 90 degrees left or right from the doorway). Then walk your way on the outside of the doorway all the way through to the opposite corner you started out on. You basically want to do a half a circle in front of the doorway while looking inside the room. That way you cleared about 95% of the room without even entering it. Use leaning as an advantage to minimize exposing your body. After that you enter the room and commit to one side of the room. You go into the room and immediately clear 90 degrees to the left or right, since these are the only two corners that aren't completely visible from outside. The corner you are going to commit to depends on the distance from the doorway to each corner. You want to commit to the corner further away from the doorway because that corner has a bigger blind-spot you cannot clear from the outside. When entering the room DON'T STOP IN THE DOORWAY. After going inside the room and clearing that corner you committed to you want to turn into the room and look at any possible threats like open doors, furniture that could be used as cover or things like that.

When there is a closed door, look at the door and understand how it is going to open. If it's opening to the outside start on the side of the doorknob. In that case you will have a bigger blind-spot on the side where you started out, because the door is blocking your half circle outside the doorway. In that case you commit to that side when entering. If the door opens to the inside start on the side of the hinges. Also when the door opens to the inside you can only commit to one side because the other side will be blocked by the opened door. In that case commit to the only possible side, clear that corner, turn into the room and then clear behind the door. If you do it right you should be concealed by the opened door the whole way until you actively clear behind the door.

Room clearing could be a whole guide for itself so I only touched it briefly but if you understand the general concept you should be able to clear even oddly shaped rooms in a much safer manner than before.

4. Don't always sprint

That one took me a while to figure out but basically only sprint when necessary or if you want to attract enemies. The AI will react much stronger to running footsteps than walking footsteps. When you need to catch up or want to cross a open area sprint. If you are near enemies or don't need to sprint don't sprint. That way the AI won't recognize you as fast and you will be able to react quicker to enemy contact.

5. Cover and concealment

Try avoid standing in the open for too long. Try to seek cover behind solid material. Sandbags, behind the engine of a vehicle, concrete barriers, ... are excellent cover. Wood, sheet metal, cars(except engine block), most walls are only concealment. The AI can and will shoot through these if they know that you are there. If you need to engage the enemy try shooting around things with the lean function and try to avoid looking over the top of your cover.
Always try to use cover when reloading. Just go back behind cover, reload and come back out when ready to shoot again.

6. "Crosshair" placement and scoping

Don't look at the ground or the explosions. Always try to point your gun in the direction you expect the enemy to come from. That way you won't be as surprised when rounds start flying and you can engage much quicker and accurate. Always scope when shooting at someone further away than 2 meters. The time you lose when scoping is way less than shooting the first 5 rounds into the dirt. Even when getting surprised and closer than 2 meters try to scope. It often is the better option.

7. Avoiding grenades

When in a firefight try to avoid staying in one place too long. That way you can avoid those crazy mollies and grenades. Seeking cover underneath a roof or behind a high wall will also grant some protection against these crazy throws. Try scoping out once in a while when in a firefight and with no enemy in your field of view. That way you will get a better view of the firefight and maybe see some enemies you missed while scoped in. More importantly you will able to see the mollies right after being thrown at you. When you see a molotov flying your direction just run to the next available cover that's at least 5 meters away from your old spot. Also never run to another team member close to you because maybe that molotov wasn't meant for you but your team member.
Listen to the sound of grenades landing near you and if you hear one too close for comfort run for the next cover that is able to shield you from the general direction where the grenade landed. Try avoid running towards the enemy in that case. Back where you came from is often the best possible option.

8. Defending

Defending depends a lot on the objective you are trying to defend but generally pick a spot and cover one area or entry point that no one else covers. Try avoid looking the same way as your mates. Always look what your mates are covering and try to cover uncovered or weak covered areas. While defending try to look how your team is doing. That way you can adjust when one of your mates goes down and you need to cover a different area. Don't run around the objective and try to cover all the entry points by yourself. That way you will only get in the way of your mates. Try to concentrate on one entry point (max two; if they are close together and you don't have to look around to see both).
After successfully defending an objective don't rush immediately outside. Just wait a few seconds inside. That way you won't get blown up by some suicider waiting outside the door. When going outside the defended objective don't get into tunnel vision for the next objective. Look around you sometimes some enemies lag behind and are still near the old objective.

9. Gear and ammo

Picking the right attachments has a lot to do with personal preference. Since I never use full-auto (except SMGs) I would recommend the 2x optics for all maps because its the most versatile optic. I use the 2x almost exclusively and nothing else. I also use 1x and 4x on some guns and maps. The 4x optics I only use on guns with the caliber of 7.62 NATO or higher and only on long range maps like crossing. The 1x optics I use exclusively on the SMGs and Shotguns.
I don't use Drum mags because I don't like their slow reload. I also think that wasting points on some larger mags isn't worth it except for pistols.
The bipod is in my eyes pretty much useless except for LMGs. Same goes for the bipod foregrip. Just save those points and invest them in a better sidearm.
A good sidearm is key for not dying. More Bullets are always better. I would recommend the M9, PF940, Browing HP or L106A1. The quickdraw holster is a must have for your sidearm. The extended mag is also a very good attachment and highly recommended. Muzzle devices do have some use but I don't like that they obstruct your sights. That's especially bad if you want to take some shots at some distant targets.
For armor I think it's best to have the light armor because it doesn't slow you down as much and you will still be able to survive at least one shot from most guns to your chest.
As a carrier rig I also use the light carrier. Because when defending and being the last one alive you can quickly run through 2 or 3 mags even on semi auto and hitting almost every shot. In those situations more ammo is always nice to have. The heavy carrier is too much in my opinion except if you are playing as demolitions and want that extra rocket or 40mm. Also when using an LMG the heavy carrier is pretty nice.

Always try to keep count on your ammo. Do tactical reloads before entering a building or defending an objective. Don't dump every mag. Only dump mags that have less than 10% of their capacity left. Try using your mags as close to empty as possible. Sometimes its better to do a quick reload even if you have like half a mag left. That is especially true when the last one standing and defending an objective.
Don't be afraid to use your sidearm when running low on your primary. Also switch to your sidearm when clearing a building with a high-powered scope on your primary or using a LMG as a primary. After using your sidearm because of running low on your primary always reload both.

10. Last one standing

If you are the last one standing in your team don't change your playstyle. I often see people getting nervous or too aggressive and therefore changing their playstyle completely. You don't have to proof anything it's just a game. Just try to keep yourself calm and don't pressure yourself or do things that you normally wouldn't do just because you think you have to because your the last one standing. Just try to follow my advice from the other sections and you should be good.
There is still some advice I can give you depending on the situation you are in as a last man standing.

Last man standing defending an objective. Take a position that is easy to defend. Your back should be facing a wall or a dead end. All entry points to your position should be visible or blocked by a door so you can hear when someone is entering. Sometimes this isn't possible in that case try to find a position that gets as close as possible to what I described. When choosing a position watch out for windows or cracks in the wall that could expose you to outside of the objective and avoid standing in front of them. Now hold that position until the clock is at zero. At this point you probably still have enemies on the objective. In that case just clear the objective one room at a time. Be careful to not expose your back to uncleared rooms or areas. Another option is to stay in the room you were holding and calling out to the enemy or moving in that room. That way the AI will either come to you so you can kill them or they will try to find another route to you and often get off the objective. But be aware that luring the enemy to you sometimes doesn't work and the AI won't move at all. From my experience it's often better to try clearing the objective actively.
When defending don't run around because that will attract enemies so I recommend moving around by walking but only if you have to. Same goes for clearing the objective. Never run when clearing the objective.

Last man standing attacking an objective. Don't rush and don't sit at on spot for to long. Just remember Slow is smooth and smooth is fast. Remember my advice from the previous sections and you should be good. Move slowly and thoroughly to the objective. Depending on the available time and the distance you have to cover you may have to pick it up a bit.

11. Using Grenades

Smoke grenades do not have any value in Coop in my opinion. Just leave them and use flashbangs instead. Don't pick up any smokes and don't use them under any circumstance. The smoke will only block your vision and you or your teammates will die because of it. Bots often shoot through the smoke even if they shouldn't be able to see you. And since you blocked your vision you cannot do anything against that.

Flashbangs are really nice if used correctly. Most effective when used right before entering a room or the objective. Throw inside the room, don't look inside, wait for bang, clear the room. If used with the room clearing technique I describe above it's very effective. Just throw it right before entering the room (after doing the half-circle I described in the room clearing part). Always be aware where your teammates are to avoid flashing them.

Frag grenades are pretty straight forward. Can be used inside and outside. Also most effective before clearing a room. Keep in mind that it is possible that the enemy inside can be still alive, so don't treat a fragged room as cleared. Cooking the grenade also helps a lot for room clearing. When throwing them a far distance don't cook them or only for a very short time, to ensure it will be detonating where you want it to detonate.

Incendiary and Moltovs are good for two things. Destroying a cache and entry/area denial. For destroying a cache they are my favorite method because it takes time before they detonate the cache so you can get out in time, it only takes one when thrown correctly and they are cheaper than C4 or RPGs. Only use them for entry denial if you cannot cover or no one is covering that entry. As they are not as effective as someone with a gun, especially when not thrown at the best possible spot. Don't waste them right after capping the obj. Wait for the actual counterattack to actually happen and your mates to get in so you don't trap yourself inside or your mates outside. It's often better to hold on to them in case someone goes down and an entry cannot be covered.

12. Avoiding Crossfire/Friendly fire

That should be pretty easy to avoid if you follow a lot of the advice I have given so far.
(probably more important in hardcore Coop for the most part)

Some quick advice:
Always try to keep track of where your teammates are roughly.
Identify your target before shooting.
Listen too sounds especially call-outs because the Bots are often giving themselves away.
Notice the movements, your mates often move a lot different than a Bot.

When capturing an objective don't use every possible entryway. Everyone should come form 1 max 2 different directions, like south and west (NEVER north and south or west and east). That way you can minimize Crossfire and It's clear to everyone that whoever comes from the other 2-3 directions is not friendly. That way you don't have to think too much about is it a mate or not.
If you are late to the party don't take another direction to enter. Always enter behind your team.

When defending stay inside. Don't run around outside like its COD or some BS like that. Because If you decide to come back in you have to use the entry that usually only the enemy takes. Friendly fire is pretty much unavoidable in that case.

General movement:
Try to cross behind your mates don't run right in front of them.
Don't overtake your mates on a staircase or anywhere where you don't see what your mate is looking at.
Try not to peek the same way and direction as your mate behind or in front of you (First come first serve more or less).

13. Night Maps Gear

First of all there are plenty of options for night gear. The equipment I use is based on my experience and what helped me the most. Keep in mind a lot of it changes with your gamma value (mine is at 2.2) and display.

First of all don't use normal Flashlights. They give away your position like nothing else. You can often hear the AI say "Flashlight" or something like that. Also they provide only a small, not very well lit illuminated area and at longer distances they are pretty much useless except for showing everyone your position.

NVGs are superior in my opinion. I usually use the more expensive ones because they provide you the best experience (militray NODs for Insurgents and quad-NODs for Security). Those provide the best field of view and do a better job at making the night to day. They also make identifying targets at longer ranges easier. I pair my NVGs always with IR flashlights on primary and secondary so you can light up the darkest places without the AI going crazy over your flashlight. IR flashlights also make target acquisition under some light conditions a lot easier. When in a well lit room or section of the map where you are blinded I just turn the NODs off. Yes they are quite expensive but it is worth it. I usually use a cheap gun like the M16 or AKM to save points for the NODs. Just don't save it by unequipping your secondary. I also always use Suppressors on night maps to minimize obscuring my vision with additional light-flashes. I never use scopes with the night vision option or the IR laser because i don't like either of those.

When using NODs don't use mollys or incendiary for entry denial because they will blind you a lot if you are too close to it.

14. Doors are your best friend

Could have been a lot further up the list but recently I have seen a lot of people kicking down doors just for the sake of kicking down a door. So I realized that it's probably good to address it finally.

First of all that doesn't apply to all doors. This applies to most doors in objectives that have to be defended. So try not to destroy doors when capping an objective or defending one. This also is more important the less of you are alive and is incredible useful when you are the last one standing.

Generally doors are the best indicator for where the enemy is coming from as bots 99% of the time kick open the door when entering an objective. This gives you a clear sound which is heard even if mortars or arty is currently raining down on the objective. From that sound you can get at least the general direction and since there often aren't that many doors in that specific direction it's really easy to make out where the AI is breaching right now. That way you can look at another entryway (without a door), a window or whatever and still get alerted when the enemy is breaching a door somewhere which isn't in your field of view.
The best thing about it most of the time doors open to the inside, which means as soon as the AI breached to the objective and is killed you can close the door and everything is reset.

Another advantage of closed doors is concealment and protection against grenades.

One Example where this is really effective is on the map Power Plant (Security) defending the last objective from inside the room where the resupply box is (especially as the last one standing).

Outro

That's what I came up with. I hope it will help you in your pursuit of becoming AZRAEL.

I may be adding some things in the future if I get to it. If you have some ideas or you want to know my take on certain things I didn't cover in this guide just leave them in the comments and I will try to add it to the guide or answer them.

[cvllen]

get rpged across map after spawn

[Kotal Aztec]

You don't need to do so much, just think about what you can do in your mind without going to random places while playing the game. In this game, there is no such thing that you will be perfect as you start right away, I had memorized all the maps after my 100th hour. I usually play Versus mode and I get kills constantly, I have 368 hours.

[autonomous_lass]

A lot of stuff I already do but some new ideas to implement into my playstyle! Thanks for the guide!

[Бонзибадди]

blah blah blah

[Insonmiac]

Survival mode is all commit and bravery, as long as you keep moving the bots can't one shot you (except mosin and pkm)

[Trigga]

AWESOME GUIDE!

This game is 100% the most realistic tactical shooters that can really relate to intense combat

Especially hardcore check point, this is the only game mode i play now, when i play this i only aiming for 0 deaths.

I can barely came across with players that plays like us, most of them just running around like COD

Lets get some game on together so we can tag team like real operators!

[🐠•-F I S H-•🐟]

Great guide!
Still, I would recommend turning off the in-game music. It really helps a lot especially when you are the last one standing. You can easily hear the enemies footsteps.

[AviatorShades]

honestly, the best advice for staying alive in coop is: let someone else go first
works every time

[Gnoll]

Can you do a guide on Azreal PvP?

[WelcomeToTheShitshow]

Guide Updated:

- Updated 13. Night Maps Gear
-> edited the flashlight section since they are a lot weaker "now"