Myths to bust

It is the most widespread myth. Kills matter, but the game rewards rounds won, not kills. A player who gets lots of kills in rounds already decided, or by taking duels alone, may help the team less than one who gets few kills but gives information, uses utility well, trades and plants the spike.

Examples of contributions that do not show in kills: the smoke that wins an execute, the call that avoids a fake, the delay that lets the rotation arrive, the retake where you go in first and die but open the site. The chapter on what wins rounds explains what really counts.

Holding an angle is right when it makes sense: when from there you control an entrance, when you are waiting for the enemy to come to you, when the team counts on you there. It becomes a mistake when you hold it on principle, even when:

• the enemy knows where you are (they saw you, you already shot from there);
• the situation has changed (the site has fallen, the team is rotating);
• enemy utility forces you out.

Staying in the same angle after shooting is one of the most punished mistakes: the enemy knows where to look. The chapter on what to do after shooting explains how to change position.

Rotating early feels cautious: "if I hear them, I go help". But the first sound is exactly what an attack uses for a fake: a bit of utility, a few footsteps, and the defense moves, leaving the other site empty.

The right rule is to rotate on a fact: a number of enemies seen, utility that matches a real execute, a dead teammate with more enemies coming. As long as the information is a sound, whoever rotates plays into the attack's hands. The chapter on rotations goes into detail.

Aim matters a lot in the low tiers, where rounds are mostly decided by duels. But the higher you go, the more everyone aims well, and the difference comes from position, timing and decisions: who gets into the right duel, at the right moment, with a teammate ready to trade.

Training aim is useful at every level. But a player who only trains aim stops climbing past a certain point: their limit is no longer aim.

• "You need expensive gear." A comfortable mouse and a stable sensitivity help; the difference between good gear and expensive gear is small compared to habits. The chapter on hardware explains what matters.
• "You do not play eco rounds." An eco round is played to surprise and to gain weapons, not given away. Often whoever plays it better wins, not whoever has more money.
• "The duelist must get the most kills." The duelist has to open space for the team: sometimes that means dying first with a useful trade.
• "The more utility you use, the better." What matters is using it at the right moment: utility spent in the first seconds for no reason is missing when you need it.
• "Smokes must cover everything." A smoke is for taking away a precise sightline, not for filling the site.

A myth almost always has a recognizable shape: it is an absolute rule ("always", "never"), with no reason, that you hear repeated in games. When you hear one, ask yourself three things:

• in which situation is it true? Almost every rule is in some case;
• in which situation is it wrong? If you cannot find any, maybe it really is a good rule;
• who says it, and why? Often it is the frustration of the moment, not advice.

Academy's rules always try to give the why and the when: it is the best way to keep them from turning into myths themselves.

Myths survive because they contain some truth: kills matter, holding angles helps, rotating early sometimes saves a site. The problem is turning them into rules without context.

The best defense against myths is the question that runs through all of Academy: why? Why do you do this, and when? A rule you can explain, you can use well; a rule you follow without understanding leads you wrong precisely when it does not apply.