The perilously fine line between good and great.

[Americ4n Psych0]

We've all heard it. The ubiquitious "my teammates aren't doing enough" saying. I believe it's safe to say the vast majority of the folks who post here are much better than your "average" Halo player. One lonely trip into the doldrums of the multiteam or team objective playlists will confirm this.

However, by the same token, I'm sure all of us here have ran into our fair share of games where we feel outmatched, outclassed, and ultimately--outmaneuvered. Utilitizing the practical theatre tool will often give a good indicator as to what happened and why, but does it sometimes feel like no matter WHAT you try to do in certain games, things just WON'T go your way?

Simply put, what makes the great players great? What are they doing, consistently, that us peons are not? I often find myself speculating about things like this long into the night. Can I shoot with most anyone I run into? Certainly. Do I understand the core concepts of team play? I like to think so. Yet I've only won 58% of my MLG games. This seems staggeringly low, and I want it to be fixed. But how?

I guess the point of this thread, if anyone is still reading, is to ask what you all consider to be the most important things when it comes to succeeding at a high level in Halo: Reach. I'd really be interested in hearing what I believe will be varied responses. How do you get your team/teammates to work collaboratively together? Something more concrete than talk, but ACTION? What steps do you take to improve your game, talk about it, and expand on it?

Thoughts?

[xxcolossus117xx]

I Like to think it is the little things, Like when to push. When to wait, When to challenge and when not to challenge. But Iknow what you mean.

[Adrenalize]

You have to talk to your teammates ALL the time. and obviously help each other out and team shot. But. you also need to know your fights. you have to back down when u need too. you cant challenge things you cant win. I mean like some people know what they're doing when they go up against people and occasionally everybody has there "montage" moments. but yeah. lol

[Letthe]

I've only won 58% of my MLG games.


I only have 4% on you.

You have to listen, learn, and think.

[Vivacity]

Most people can hear each other just fine, but very few people can actually listen to each other.



Understanding what you need to do in relation to the current state of the game with the spawn that your given, and being able to base that off of what others around you are communicating to you is paramount. Most people come off a spawn in Halo and have an automatic reaction depending on their spawn location, even if that action isn't appropriate for their team's situation. This automatic reaction is built upon hundreds of games where you weren't receiving communication, before you began to think critically about the state of the game, and/or from past experiences in other games.
Situational awareness (a.k.a knowing how to help when you're alive). There's numerous instances in every game where one player is occupied in a fight they shouldn't be having that results in the death of a teammate who called out a person within their line of sight. They should have turned and helped that person instead. Again, hearing is one thing, listening is entirely different. Often, one can save their teammates life, and that person can now help them finish their original kill.
Push intelligently. A player needs to setup in a position where they can help their teammates, and teams need to push together. A lot of the time a good player fails to do #1 on this list and winds up on the other side of the map, with no chance of getting support from their team. Furthermore, if a team has to sacrifice map control to complete an objective, it's usually better to just setup while the other team is on spawn. When pushing players should take intelligent routes and give themselves outs/opportunities to help their teammates along the way.
Communication. In order to #1-3 on this list effectively, players must have a level of communication that goes beyond the basics and are intended for players thinking two steps ahead. If you watch the LANs here, or the tournament gameplay on MLG you know what I'm talking about. Average players rarely communicate on that level.

Obviously, there's a lot more to being a great player than just those four things, but I thought it would be a good start for this thread. :)

[SullyVan]

Most people can hear each other just fine, but very few people can actually listen to each other.



Understanding what you need to do in relation to the current state of the game with the spawn that your given, and being able to base that off of what others around you are communicating to you is paramount. Most people come off a spawn in Halo and have an automatic reaction depending on their spawn location, even if that action isn't appropriate for their team's situation. This automatic reaction is built upon hundreds of games where you weren't receiving communication, before you began to think critically about the state of the game, and/or from past experiences in other games.
Situational awareness (a.k.a knowing how to help when you're alive). There's numerous instances in every game where one player is occupied in a fight they shouldn't be having that results in the death of a teammate who called out a person within their line of sight. They should have turned and helped that person instead. Again, hearing is one thing, listening is entirely different. Often, one can save their teammates life, and that person can now help them finish their original kill.
Push intelligently. A player needs to setup in a position where they can help their teammates, and teams need to push together. A lot of the time a good player fails to do #1 on this list and winds up on the other side of the map, with no chance of getting support from their team. Furthermore, if a team has to sacrifice map control to complete an objective, it's usually better to just setup while the other team is on spawn. When pushing players should take intelligent routes and give themselves outs/opportunities to help their teammates along the way.
Communication. In order to #1-3 on this list effectively, players must have a level of communication that goes beyond the basics and are intended for players thinking two steps ahead. If you watch the LANs here, or the tournament gameplay on MLG you know what I'm talking about. Average players rarely communicate on that level.

Obviously, there's a lot more to being a great player than just those four things, but I thought it would be a good start for this thread. :)

well this works! :P

[Chopz]

Well put Vivacity.

[Hylian]

Most people can hear each other just fine, but very few people can actually listen to each other.



Understanding what you need to do in relation to the current state of the game with the spawn that your given, and being able to base that off of what others around you are communicating to you is paramount. Most people come off a spawn in Halo and have an automatic reaction depending on their spawn location, even if that action isn't appropriate for their team's situation. This automatic reaction is built upon hundreds of games where you weren't receiving communication, before you began to think critically about the state of the game, and/or from past experiences in other games.
Situational awareness (a.k.a knowing how to help when you're alive). There's numerous instances in every game where one player is occupied in a fight they shouldn't be having that results in the death of a teammate who called out a person within their line of sight. They should have turned and helped that person instead. Again, hearing is one thing, listening is entirely different. Often, one can save their teammates life, and that person can now help them finish their original kill.
Push intelligently. A player needs to setup in a position where they can help their teammates, and teams need to push together. A lot of the time a good player fails to do #1 on this list and winds up on the other side of the map, with no chance of getting support from their team. Furthermore, if a team has to sacrifice map control to complete an objective, it's usually better to just setup while the other team is on spawn. When pushing players should take intelligent routes and give themselves outs/opportunities to help their teammates along the way.
Communication. In order to #1-3 on this list effectively, players must have a level of communication that goes beyond the basics and are intended for players thinking two steps ahead. If you watch the LANs here, or the tournament gameplay on MLG you know what I'm talking about. Average players rarely communicate on that level.

Obviously, there's a lot more to being a great player than just those four things, but I thought it would be a good start for this thread. :)

Great write up!

[KRILLIN]

Most people can hear each other just fine, but very few people can actually listen to each other.



Understanding what you need to do in relation to the current state of the game with the spawn that your given, and being able to base that off of what others around you are communicating to you is paramount. Most people come off a spawn in Halo and have an automatic reaction depending on their spawn location, even if that action isn't appropriate for their team's situation. This automatic reaction is built upon hundreds of games where you weren't receiving communication, before you began to think critically about the state of the game, and/or from past experiences in other games.
Situational awareness (a.k.a knowing how to help when you're alive). There's numerous instances in every game where one player is occupied in a fight they shouldn't be having that results in the death of a teammate who called out a person within their line of sight. They should have turned and helped that person instead. Again, hearing is one thing, listening is entirely different. Often, one can save their teammates life, and that person can now help them finish their original kill.
Push intelligently. A player needs to setup in a position where they can help their teammates, and teams need to push together. A lot of the time a good player fails to do #1 on this list and winds up on the other side of the map, with no chance of getting support from their team. Furthermore, if a team has to sacrifice map control to complete an objective, it's usually better to just setup while the other team is on spawn. When pushing players should take intelligent routes and give themselves outs/opportunities to help their teammates along the way.
Communication. In order to #1-3 on this list effectively, players must have a level of communication that goes beyond the basics and are intended for players thinking two steps ahead. If you watch the LANs here, or the tournament gameplay on MLG you know what I'm talking about. Average players rarely communicate on that level.

Obviously, there's a lot more to being a great player than just those four things, but I thought it would be a good start for this thread. :)

I was gonna say all of that. :) Who am I kidding I know nothing about being good at Halo lol.

[PK Toolboxxx]

vivacity said it better than i can, but something i think people tend to look over is the fact that you have to enjoy who your are teaming with. honestly the times that i play the best is when im either laughing inbetween games with my teamates or just fucking around shootin the shit with my team. chemistry is incredibly important, as u can see with top teams, as well as people who play together often. Me and Broski play alot and both of us can say that we are completely confident in each others abilities to be in the right place, and that helps alot.

i hope this was another thing that could help u out.

[Luke]

i like to think it is the little things, like when to push. When to wait, when to challenge and when not to challenge. But iknow what you mean.

always push.

[Joe Fries]

Communication separates the good players from the great players.

[Danimal04]

If you want to be more competitive I'd suggest trying to team with some TLN Members for MLG playlist. Find people you enjoy playing with and communicate well. Practice makes perfect. If you have the money go to Pro's Vs. Joe's. Papa Squared will show you a thing or two.

[Luke]

If you want to be more competitive I'd suggest trying to team with some TLN Members for MLG playlist. Find people you enjoy playing with and communicate well. Practice makes perfect. If you have the money go to Pro's Vs. Joe's. Papa Squared will show you a thing or two.

agree with this