Halo 4 | PVP Tips: First-Strike Advantage

In the confine's of Infinity's training station, Spartans (you), must stay ever combat ready. In this post, I offer and explain an important method of how to get an edge on your enemy.



Halo 4 is unlike other first-person shooters, notably games from the Call of Duty franchise. The game, in my opinion at least, is much more complicated than whoever shoots first wins.

This article, however, will explain and explore the "first strike" advantage. In multiplayer matchmaking, it is especially important to understand how having the first strike can allow you to overcome your opponent, and to understand how to appropriately react when someone else hits you first.

Let's first put this into perspective. Here are two Spartans of opposing forces. Both are equipped with a DMR, and are both relatively distanced from each other. They both see each other. One fires a DMR shot and it lands, damaging the other's shields.

Now stop. Immediately one Spartan has the advantage over the other. As we all know, the DMR is a five-shot kill weapon on Halo 4, making the damaged Spartan be 20% dead. If the two were to exchange fire, whoever shot first would theoretically win.

There are variables that also factor in to this. It is possible that you may miss when firing, giving your opponent a chance to hit you! Vice versa, if your opponent miss, then you have an opportunity to be ahead of your opponent.

Let's now look into this in a closer range perspective. This time, there are two Spartans facing each other with assault rifles. You must understand that the first bullet that hits, even though one individual shot from an assault rifle is little, grants that person the advantage. That one bullet makes all the difference in fire exchanging.

If you are caught in this situation and the other player hit you first, you have three logical options to take.

1. Face your opponent and maneuver in random directions. Having them miss even a single shot will level the playing field to your advantage.
2. Make a dash for cover. Realistically, your opponent may not miss a shot, therefore you must distance yourself from your opponent. This makes the most sense when caught in this situation, but you must be situated in a spot where cover is readily available, such as a building with a lot of turns or a say a lot of rocks that can be used to cover you.
3. Sprint to your opponent and melee them. If they have the first strike advantage, then you can level the field by hitting them. If the enemy player melees you back, it's theoretically fine since even if you have little shields left, the melee will not do more than depleting your shields.
4. Attempt to stick them with a plasma grenade. This is usually a last-resort option if the three options are unavailable to you. In most cases, you're already screwed, and you might as well try to take down your opponent with you. If you do plan to do this, run up to your opponent to give you a lower miss chance.

Now if you have the advantage, here are things you should not be doing:

1. Throwing grenades. Throwing grenades take time that you could spend shooting at your enemy. If you miss, which you likely will when your opponent is watching you, your opponent will likely have enough time to do more damage to you by firing.
2. Do not melee when you have the first strike. There are times when your opponent may try to rush you when they find themselves at a disadvantage. The smart response to this would be to back up while firing at the charging bull.

Although this may seem insignificant, understanding a small thing like how to handle first strikes on your enemies will grant you an edge to surviving fights.