An old axiom states that "the best defense is a good offense." Sometimes trying to play things too safely can lead to imminent failure. High stakes, high-stress scenarios call for thoughtful decision making and improvisation - not fear and trepidation. Perhaps no one else on this Earth understands this better than professional Rainbow Six Seige players.
All jokes aside, Attacking in Seige can be very nerve-wracking for inexperienced players; Defenders have the home advantage after all and have the benefit of making their opponents come to them. However, pro R6 players never let a little thing like a severe tactical disadvantage stop them from winning matches. Here are ten tips to help you improve when Attacking - regardless of the odds stacked against you and your team.
10 Choose The Right Operator
Everyone's got their favorite Operators. It's a lot of fun mowing enemies down with Buck's Skeleton Key or blasting them to bits with Fuze's CLuster Charge. But different maps and game modes call for varied approaches. If you try to apply that 'kill 'em all, let God sort 'em out' mentality to a Hostage match, you're team is going to lose very quickly!
Instead, try choosing your Operator based on the terrain of the map. If you're attacking in a place with a lot of narrow corridors, maybe Blackbeard's Rifle-Shields could come in clutch. Conversely, Lion's EE-ONE-D drone can help flush out Defenders on maps with a lot of hiding places. Choosing your Operator is your first tactical decision in a match, so do so wisely.
9 Hide Your Drone
Lion's EE-ONE-D drone may be one of the most sophisticated gadgets in the game, but it's not the only one. Once the match starts, all Attackers man humble little RC drones while the Defenders reinforce their position. Attackers have forty-five seconds to find their foes' location, lest they remain undetected by the start of the round.
Some Attacking players panic and try to find the Defenders as haphazardly as possible. However, you should try to preserve your drone for as long as possible by hiding it near the end of the Prep Phase. Having the extra set of eyes can be useful for tagging hidden opponents and disorientating them during tense moments. Even if you don't find the Defenders, prioritize hiding and preserving your drone for as long as possible.
8 Learn The Lay Of The Land
Of course, it'd be a lot easier to find the Defenders if you were already familiar with the map. After all, there are only so many places where the Defenders and the Objective can spawn during a match. Consequently, knowing the map means knowing where all of the best hiding spots are.
There are tons of videos on the internet that let you virtually tour R6 maps. You can even start up a private game (either with friends or by yourself,) and learn the lay of the land yourself. If this method's too slow for you, Ubisoft provides multiple schematics of all the maps on the Rainbow Six Seige official website. In the end, an Operator is only as good as a player is knowledgable.
7 Mind The Cameras
Despite whatever the memes on the internet may imply, the Defending team won't just sit around and wait for you to find them. Some of their Operators will set up traps that disable gadgets as well as others that can outright kill you! Regardless of which Operators are in play, most of the Defenders will try to spot you using surveillance cameras.
With knowledge of the battlefield comes greater situational awareness. Once you know the ins and outs of a map, you'll have a better idea of where to go to avoid the cameras' lines of sight. As an Attacker, always look out for red blinking lights. Those indicate that a camera is active and that you need to shoot it down. Subtle nuances like this make Siege one of the best games in the series.
6 Carefully Consider Your Weapon
Backtracking a bit, let's talk loadouts. R6 thankfully limits the selection of weapons Operators can use to prevent overpowered combinations like a shield wielding shotgunner! However, it's still possible to choose the wrong tools for the job if you're acting too hastily. Again, it's all about the game mode that you and your team is playing.
Inaccurate weapons like shotguns and LMG's aren't that great for Hostage matches. Attachments also make a world of difference too - suppressors mask the sound of gunfire but limit your range. Building a loadout is all about making sacrifices. Once you know your Operator and the map, it'll become that much easier to learn which sacrifices need to be made.
5 Focus On The Objective
This is perhaps the hardest aspect of playing R6 for both teams. To succeed in this game, you'll have to find a happy medium between taking out your enemies and attacking or defending the objective. Many Attackers have lost games, despite killing all of the Defenders, because they accidentally executed their hostages. Conversely, plenty of Defenders lost because one Attacker snuck in and planted a bomb undetected.
So focus on the objective, but don't develop tunnel vision. Try to play the objective primarily, killing enemies when needed. And if you or your teammates plant the bomb, focus on stalling out your foes until that timer runs out.
4 Coordination Is Key
Talking with other players online can be an intimidating prospect sometimes, what with all the toxicity that's inherent in so many team-based games. Nevertheless, coming up with coordinated strategies is what sets the pros apart from the plebs. So dust off that mic or open up a Discord chatroom. Either way, you'll need to communicate with your fellow Attackers.
If your attempts at playing with random players continue to fail, try assembling a crew of your friends, family members, SOs, or even coworkers. Don't have enough members from any of those previous categories to play R6 with you? Hit up the Seige forums and Reddit pages - you're bound to find friends there. Playing with a solo mentality is a common mistake many new players make but eventually overcome.
3 Practice Defending
What better way is there to know your enemy than to walk a mile in their shoes? By playing as a Defender, you'll get familiar with the home team's spawn points and camera locations. You'll also have the benefit of fighting other, potentially more experienced, Attackers.
The best way to follow this tip is by playing against other Attacking teams online, in casual matches. You can load up a private game if you've got enough people to play with you. Otherwise, your next best bet is to watch as many videos of players defending as possible. There is no shortage of excellent Twitch channels that you can tune into, including Ubisoft's official page!
2 Expect (And Try) The Unexpected
The typical consensus is that Defenders are turtles in tactical armor; they'd never try to rush you down or give up their heavily reinforced position, right? Well, life's full of surprises - and so can the Defending team be at times! Just when you least expect it, a Defender could run outside and flank your entire team!
Be wary of wild, unconventional plays by the enemy team. Conversely, don't be afraid to think outside of the box as you gain more experience. This tip doesn't endorse picking Thermite on Hostage mode and tossing his charges near the objective. Just do your best to keep the enemy from reading you like an open book. Sometimes the unexpected tactics are the most effective.
1 Don't Get Cocky
After logging in enough hours in Rainbow Six Seige, everything will start to click; you'll get kills much more frequently and might even pull off a few stealthy rescues from time to time. When the odds mount against you and all your teammates lay dead on the ground, you might even be experienced enough to singlehandedly win the game!
As tempting as it might be, resist the urge to become overly cocky and arrogant. Don't be that player who kills his teammates to "make things more challenging" for himself. We started this article off with an old proverb, so we'll end with another; "pride goeth before a great fall." Or do become toxic and get instantly banned - your call.