I’m a somewhat poor FPS player. I don’t have good aim. But I’ve been able to achieve S rank in solo Ranked, mostly by playing smart and following a few simple guidelines.
This guide will apply mostly to shooters, but is still relevant for most weapons besides chargers. (For the record, I made my way to S using a combo of the Tentatek, .52 Gal and Spash-o-Matic.)
I’ve broken this into three sections, each of which has 2 simple tips for progressing through a given letter of ranks (ex: C-, C, C+). While I think these are all good principles, I'll start with a few easy ones — which should be good enough to get through C on their own — then build to a few more nuanced tips.
Tips for getting through C ranks
1. Choose your encounters
From my experience, a lot of C players run straight forward into the fray, fire indiscriminately, get splatted, then repeat. Over and over. Instead of repeatedly getting killed, take two seconds before engaging an enemy and think, “Am I confident I can win this exchange?” If you’re not ~70% confident, back away and go another route.
This means avoiding Dynamos if you are a Splattershot Jr, swimming away from a Splash-o-Matic who is two feet away if all you have is a Squelcher. If you’re doing encounters right, you’ll be running away frequently, then sneaking up on foes and getting easy kills — even if at first it's happening unintentionally. Think, then ink.
2. Never forget the objective
This is a critical counterpoint to tip #1. Always play the objective. Get on the tower. Grab the rainmaker. Cover the zone. The second most common bad habit for C players (beyond charging in without thinking) is mindlessly inking away from the objective, or cowering in a corner out of fear. Remember that you can win matches with negative kill-death ratios, simply because you were hyper focused on advancing the tower or covering the zone.
I know this might sound like it goes against tip #1, but balancing these two together can vastly improve your play. Avoid encounters you have a good chance of losing. But still hurry toward the objective (aka rainmaker/tower/zone). If you just keep those two things in mind, you’ll be far more efficient than 90% of C players.
Tips for getting through B ranks
1. Flank
By the time you get to the B ranks, you’ll find that most players now know to play the objective consistently, and many will be decent at one-on-one firefights. Your new trick? Constantly flank around the backside of your opponents’ position, regardless of the mode.
This sounds simple, and it is, but it’s easy to forget about this during the urgency of a ranked match. You’ll feel like you’re wasting time swimming on dead side of Bluefin, or taking the low paths on Saltspray, etc.
Give the main action a wide berth, keep an eye out for respawning opponents that might catch you, but beyond that, simply circle around and see if you can nab 3-4 quick kills. Even if your surprise attack fails 50% of the time, when it succeeds, your team can single-handedly win a round, pushing the timer/tower/rainmaker enough to take the lead while the majority of your opponents respawn.
Again, I know it sounds simple, but it’s surprising how many matches you can win in the B ranks with a few solid flanks.
2. Anticipate movement
This is similar to flanking, but a little more nuanced, and it applies especially in tower control and rainmaker. Particularly in those two modes — in B ranks — players tend to move like the kids in little league soccer matches, constantly hovering right around the ball. Your job is to consistently swim way ahead to where the action is going to come, rather than chasing down the tower/rainmaker directly. While you’re making your journey, you can build special, lay beacons, plant a mine, or whatever else your kit allows you to do.
You’ll usually have at least two teammates who are still obsessed with standing on the tower or carrying the rainmaker, so you’ll tend to serve as a good complement to the team, wiping out defenders from behind, or else serving as “the last squid back” when your team is on its heels. If you’re anticipating correctly, you’ll feel like you’re constantly running back and forth the entire length of the field, like a halfback in soccer, even when the tower or rainmaker remains relatively close to the center.
Tips for getting through A ranks
1. Play especially aggressively for the first 30 seconds
By the time you get to A ranks, the first 30 seconds becomes absolutely critical. Usually, this means swimming as fast as possible to a key location, typically near the objective (but not the objective itself). Examples include the back area of Saltspray, the opponents’ ramps on Moray, the open area near the far zone on Port, etc.
By quickly establishing your ink in these areas, you set up an advanced base where you can maintain area control, set a safe super jump point, and distract enemies. As long as you get an early grip on these key areas, it doesn’t matter so much whether you are first to capture the zone/tower/rainmaker, only that you have secured a location *near* to the objective.
The best example is Saltspray Splat Zones. If you can secure the back area right away, ALL three of your teammates can die, your opponents can capture the objective, and then your three teammates can jump to you and retake the objective from behind.
Develop strategies for each map. You’ll find that you can frequently take an early advantage just by prioritizing speed and area control in the first 30 seconds.
2. Provide good super jump points and wait to attack as one
A good player in B ranks can be a hero. In A ranks, a “hero” is more often an “idiot.” Play smart, maintain key areas, and provide a safe super jump point whenever possible. Wait for a buddy (or two) and attack as one unit. Back off from the fray when you have a numbers disadvantage, but dart in courageously when you gain the advantage back. Map awareness and constant movement — in and out, in and out — are critical.
- - -
I want to emphasize that there's nothing particularly high-level about these tips, and that's the point. This isn't about how to win a tournament of S+-rank teams. There are much better guides and tips when you're ready for that level.
Instead, try just keeping two of these tips in mind at a time, as you attempt to climb through the ranks. Regardless of your actual skill, I bet you'll see results. Play smart.
This guide will apply mostly to shooters, but is still relevant for most weapons besides chargers. (For the record, I made my way to S using a combo of the Tentatek, .52 Gal and Spash-o-Matic.)
I’ve broken this into three sections, each of which has 2 simple tips for progressing through a given letter of ranks (ex: C-, C, C+). While I think these are all good principles, I'll start with a few easy ones — which should be good enough to get through C on their own — then build to a few more nuanced tips.
Tips for getting through C ranks
1. Choose your encounters
From my experience, a lot of C players run straight forward into the fray, fire indiscriminately, get splatted, then repeat. Over and over. Instead of repeatedly getting killed, take two seconds before engaging an enemy and think, “Am I confident I can win this exchange?” If you’re not ~70% confident, back away and go another route.
This means avoiding Dynamos if you are a Splattershot Jr, swimming away from a Splash-o-Matic who is two feet away if all you have is a Squelcher. If you’re doing encounters right, you’ll be running away frequently, then sneaking up on foes and getting easy kills — even if at first it's happening unintentionally. Think, then ink.
2. Never forget the objective
This is a critical counterpoint to tip #1. Always play the objective. Get on the tower. Grab the rainmaker. Cover the zone. The second most common bad habit for C players (beyond charging in without thinking) is mindlessly inking away from the objective, or cowering in a corner out of fear. Remember that you can win matches with negative kill-death ratios, simply because you were hyper focused on advancing the tower or covering the zone.
I know this might sound like it goes against tip #1, but balancing these two together can vastly improve your play. Avoid encounters you have a good chance of losing. But still hurry toward the objective (aka rainmaker/tower/zone). If you just keep those two things in mind, you’ll be far more efficient than 90% of C players.
Tips for getting through B ranks
1. Flank
By the time you get to the B ranks, you’ll find that most players now know to play the objective consistently, and many will be decent at one-on-one firefights. Your new trick? Constantly flank around the backside of your opponents’ position, regardless of the mode.
This sounds simple, and it is, but it’s easy to forget about this during the urgency of a ranked match. You’ll feel like you’re wasting time swimming on dead side of Bluefin, or taking the low paths on Saltspray, etc.
Give the main action a wide berth, keep an eye out for respawning opponents that might catch you, but beyond that, simply circle around and see if you can nab 3-4 quick kills. Even if your surprise attack fails 50% of the time, when it succeeds, your team can single-handedly win a round, pushing the timer/tower/rainmaker enough to take the lead while the majority of your opponents respawn.
Again, I know it sounds simple, but it’s surprising how many matches you can win in the B ranks with a few solid flanks.
2. Anticipate movement
This is similar to flanking, but a little more nuanced, and it applies especially in tower control and rainmaker. Particularly in those two modes — in B ranks — players tend to move like the kids in little league soccer matches, constantly hovering right around the ball. Your job is to consistently swim way ahead to where the action is going to come, rather than chasing down the tower/rainmaker directly. While you’re making your journey, you can build special, lay beacons, plant a mine, or whatever else your kit allows you to do.
You’ll usually have at least two teammates who are still obsessed with standing on the tower or carrying the rainmaker, so you’ll tend to serve as a good complement to the team, wiping out defenders from behind, or else serving as “the last squid back” when your team is on its heels. If you’re anticipating correctly, you’ll feel like you’re constantly running back and forth the entire length of the field, like a halfback in soccer, even when the tower or rainmaker remains relatively close to the center.
Tips for getting through A ranks
1. Play especially aggressively for the first 30 seconds
By the time you get to A ranks, the first 30 seconds becomes absolutely critical. Usually, this means swimming as fast as possible to a key location, typically near the objective (but not the objective itself). Examples include the back area of Saltspray, the opponents’ ramps on Moray, the open area near the far zone on Port, etc.
By quickly establishing your ink in these areas, you set up an advanced base where you can maintain area control, set a safe super jump point, and distract enemies. As long as you get an early grip on these key areas, it doesn’t matter so much whether you are first to capture the zone/tower/rainmaker, only that you have secured a location *near* to the objective.
The best example is Saltspray Splat Zones. If you can secure the back area right away, ALL three of your teammates can die, your opponents can capture the objective, and then your three teammates can jump to you and retake the objective from behind.
Develop strategies for each map. You’ll find that you can frequently take an early advantage just by prioritizing speed and area control in the first 30 seconds.
2. Provide good super jump points and wait to attack as one
A good player in B ranks can be a hero. In A ranks, a “hero” is more often an “idiot.” Play smart, maintain key areas, and provide a safe super jump point whenever possible. Wait for a buddy (or two) and attack as one unit. Back off from the fray when you have a numbers disadvantage, but dart in courageously when you gain the advantage back. Map awareness and constant movement — in and out, in and out — are critical.
- - -
I want to emphasize that there's nothing particularly high-level about these tips, and that's the point. This isn't about how to win a tournament of S+-rank teams. There are much better guides and tips when you're ready for that level.
Instead, try just keeping two of these tips in mind at a time, as you attempt to climb through the ranks. Regardless of your actual skill, I bet you'll see results. Play smart.
