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Quake 3: Arena
=========================================================================================
Written By:Gamerhelp
Email: gamerhelp@gamerhelp.com
=========================================================================================
Below we've broken down the essentials of understanding Quake 3 Arena, understanding
the weapons in this world and understanding the items that will help you. In the
weapons section you'll find all the weapons in the game, pertinent statistical information,
and application insights for high-end combat. In the items sections you'll find every item
available to you in Quake, and the effects of each..
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Weapons
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Gauntlet
Ideal Range: Point Blank
Damage: 50
Default Ammo: N/A
Max Ammo: N/A
Your average low-level player will swear to no end that the Gauntlet is a useless weapon
and a strict last resort in match play. Given that the Machinegun does so little damage in
melee and that one slap of the Gauntlet can belt out a solid 50 points, you should always
consider it after you've re-spawned. The ideal scenario is to balance the Gauntlet and the
Machinegun. When you re-spawn into a tight space, use the Gauntlet and save the
Machinegun for times when you spawn in an open area. Once you've mastered movement
in Q3A, you may actually find the Gauntlet more useful than the Machinegun, which just
takes far too many rounds to bring someone down.
One fun trick to try with the Gauntlet when you're being hounded by an aggressive player
is to run into a warp, jump through, and then immediately spin 180 degrees and face the
edge of the Warp with your Gauntlet buzzing! Not only will they be shocked, but they'll
also be pinned up against the Warp with your Gauntlet grinding down their health.
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Machinegun
Ideal Range: Close
Damage: 7
Default Ammo: 100
Max Ammo: 200
The Machinegun is the second weapon you re-spawn with, and while it can be a viable
weapon, you should begin searching for another instrument of death immediately. The
bullets of the Machinegun tend to spread out rapidly, so it's best used as a close and semi-
mid range weapon. The Machinegun may seem like an ideal Quad damage weapon, but
realistically, when you consider that one round will now do 21 damage while your
opponent's Rocket or Rail is still doing 100, the odds really aren't in your favor.
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Shotgun
Ideal Range: Close
Damage: Varies
Default Ammo: 10
Max Ammo: 200
The Shotgun can be applied from a variety of ranges, but its true power lies in close range
combat and point blank execution. At point blank range the Shotgun does 110 points of
damage, killing just about anything it hits outside of a massively armored foe. The
damage scales from there and tends to get extremely gray as the pellets continue to
spread, dropping your consistency as you use it from further out.
The primary advantages of the Shotgun are its instant impact and severe close range
damage. These properties make it a favorite in FFA games on tight maps.
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Grenade Launcher
Ideal Range: Varies
Damage: 120
Default Ammo: 10
Max Ammo: 200
Offensively, the Grenade Launcher is rather hard to use, but as a defensive tool you can
really frustrate your foes! When an aggressive opponent is chasing you down, throw
these out behind you and watch them chew on your Grenades! Once they've tasted a few
of these, they will typically fall back and pursue an easier target.
Realistically, you'll have a hard time applying the Grenade Launcher offensively, and
since offense generates frags, you should scour up a new weapon immediately. However,
keep in mind that you can apply the Grenade Launcher offensively by lobbing grenades
from above at areas where people congregate, float them around bounce pads, use them
near doors to secure an area, and leave them on Warps for unsuspecting opponents.
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Rocket Launcher
Ideal Range: Mid
Damage: 100
Default Ammo: 10
Max Ammo: 200
This is the big bad boy of the Q3A world; the Rocket Launcher not only excels in pure
fragging power, it also retains a solid measure of versatility and ease of application.
Ideally the Rocket Launcher is strictly a mid-range tool, but as your skill with the Rocket
Launcher increases, so will the ranges and situations in which you find it useful. The
Rocket Launcher isn't the kind of weapon that you want to aim directly at your opponent
because the rockets are slow enough that any skilled player will easily evade them.
The key principle behind the Rocket Launcher is in your approach to its application.
Think of it as a weapon that it fires "instant proximity mines" rather than rockets. By
firing at your opponent's feet, the walls near your opponent, or where you think their
momentum will carry them, you can effectively take out even the best players. Lead your
opponent, and rack up the frags with "splash damage" hits. Once you master this concept,
try firing rockets at your opponent's feet and then blasting them out of the sky as they
flail about helplessly!
As a Quad-based weapon, the Rocket Launcher can be a beast with its splash-damage
killing everything it touches, but also remember that at close range your own splash
damage will do the same to you!
The final tactical Rocket Launcher application is the ever-famous Rocket Jump. Given
that all weapons in Q3A induce a momentum shift on your character you can effectively
use this combined with your own jump momentum to hurl yourself great distances.
Essentially you want to fire the rocket at your own feet and immediately jump off the
splash damage. Timing is essential in this endeavor; you want the maximum jump height
with the least damage. Try pressing the jump button and then instantly rolling to the
fire button, almost at the same time but jump just a fraction of a second before firing.
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Plasma Gun
Ideal Range: Close, Mid
Damage: 20
Default Ammo: 50
Max Ammo: 200
The Plasma Gun is a great tool for players with sloppy aim, because the splash damage is
fairly consistent and the size of the plasma balls makes them rather hard to avoid.
Typically you can spray the Plasma Gun in a narrow lateral field, an S shaped spread, or
a narrow circular pattern to reduce your opponent's evasion potential. The Plasma Gun
offers splash damage like the Rocket Launcher, so it is wise to keep it trained on the
floor or the walls near your opponent to further reduce their evasion potential.
Many argue that the Plasma Gun is the ideal Quad gun. Its rate of fire, speed, size,
slash damage, and Quad based damage support this argument.
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Railgun
Ideal Range: Mid, Long
Damage: 100
Default Ammo: 10
Max Ammo: 200
The Railgun is the expert's gun of choice; it has an instant impact and reliable damage,
but its limited versatility imposes a long learning curve. The firing rate on the Railgun
is slow, but you can hear it reload and see the color restored in the muzzle and, as your
experience with it increases, you will naturally know when it is ready to fire again.
Essentially the Railgun is a hybrid sniper rifle that can be used in a variety of situations
but is best applied at a distance with an understanding of your target's intentions. Bottom
line, experts rely on the Railgun for a reason. Once you master it, you can take down an
opponent in a single shot, or two if need be. When you consider that a protracted
engagement will drain your life and even lead to your death you want to earn each frag
with as little engagement time as possible; the Railgun's long range instant kill factor
lends well to this.
You may think that the Railgun could make a solid Quad based weapon considering the
guaranteed 300 points of damage, but realistically its rate of fire will make it poorly
suited for this task.
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Lightning Gun
Ideal Range: Close
Damage: 8
Default Ammo: 80
Max Ammo: 200
If you've mastered circle strafing, the Lightning Gun is a serious tool that can grind down
your opponent's health quickly. The Lightning Gun is ideal in tight maps that prevent
your opponent from making erratic motions, and the longer you keep the Lightning Gun
tracked on them, the more damage it does per cell. The Lightning Gun is a fairly
straightforward gun; keep it aimed at your opponent and you'll take them down pretty
quickly.
As a Quad based tool the Lightning Gun is pretty strong. Just keep it trained on your
target and they will fall.
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BFG10K
Ideal Range: Close, Mid
Damage: 100
Default Ammo: 20
Max Ammo: 200
We'll let you decide what BFG stands for on your own, but this beast is the strongest and
most coveted gun in Q3A. The BFG10K is basically a Rocket Launcher that has a slightly
diminished blast radius but a faster projectile and an increased rate of fire. Think
of it as the nasty child of the Plasma Gun and the Rocket Launcher. Now, your first
inclination may be to hold down fire and blast out like a massive turret of destruction,
but the BFG is so powerful you should pace your shots to conserve ammo and keep the BFG
as long as you can.
You may assume the BFG10K is the ideal Quad based weapon, 300 points of rapid firing
death is certainly a slap across the face! But when you consider the BFG10K's strength
on its own there is little reason to empower it with the Quad. If you have the Quad,
switch to a weaker gun and save the BFG10K for after your Quad spree!
=========================================================================================
ITEMS
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Armor
Armor absorbs damage at a ratio of 2/3rds to armor and 1/3rds to health. Given this math,
if you have 100 points of armor and 100 points of health and you eat a single Railgun
shot you will then have 34 points of armor and 66 points of health. Hoarding armor is not
only a common tactic; it is a necessary one if you're interested in long term survival in
the Q3A world.You can build your armor stock up to 200 points, but it will gradually drop
back to 100 at the rate of 1 point each second. This system prevents players from becoming
invincible armor-hoarding machines, but hoarding is still rewarded, if only temporarily.
Heavy Armor
Armor Points: 100
Heavy Armor appears as the red armor suit. It offers an instant 100-point bonus to your
current armor total and is subsequently the most sought after armor.
Armor
Armor Points: 50
Armor appear as the yellow armor suit, which offers an instant 50-point bonus to your
current armor total and thus is a valued possession for anyone that seeks armor.
Armor Shards
Armor Points: 5
The shards appear as small transparent metallic bits. They offer an instant 5-point bonus
to your current armor total. Shards are typically found in bunches, and it is certainly
worth nabbing the lot of them, but shards make a very distinct sound, so your opponent
may be able to use these sounds to track your present location.
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Health
It's rare that a melee exchange will result in the victor coming out with full health. Health
items let you restore your condition and fight again. You may often find yourself running
from engagements, so knowledge of the location and value of each health item in a level
is your only hope for success. Some health items can also push you over 100 points of
health, with the cap set at 200 points. Should your health points exceed 100 points they
will slowly count down to 100 points at the rate of 1 point per second.
Mega Health
Health Points: 100
This gem appears as a transparent globe with a blue M in the middle. Once collected, it
adds an additional 100 points of health to your current total. The Mega Health and the 5
point health items are the only items that can push you over 100 points of total health.
50 Health
Health Points: 50
These golden globes have a small cross in the center of their transparent shell. Upon
collection they restore 50 points of health. While these are key when you're low on
health, they will never push you over 100 points of total health.
25 Health
Health Points: 25
The yellow globes have a small cross in the center of their transparent shell. Upon
collection they restore 25 points of health. Like the 50 Health they will never offer
health beyond 100 points.
5 Health
Health Points: 5
While these green-crossed globes may only offer 5 points of health, they and the Mega
Health are the only items that will allow you to break the 100 health limit. Typically
these are found in masses, but you should wait to nab them until your health is at 100
points or more.
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Power-Ups
Quad Damage
Effect: Triples weapon damage.
Dominating the Quad is paramount in your quest to be a Q3A beat-down king. Upon
possession of this wicked tool you should proceed to find as many slaughter worthy
people as you can and gun them down! Despite its name, the Quad actually only triples
your weapon's damage value.
The Quad lasts for 30 seconds from its initial spawning and re-spawns every two
minutes. If you frag an opponent with the Quad, they will drop it and it will retain its
unused time. Taking on an opponent who possesses the Quad is pretty suicidal;
realistically you should do the same thing that millions of other Quake players do: run
and hide!
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Regeneration
Effect: If current health is less than 100; +15 Health. If current health is greater than
100; +5 health.
Each second you're equipped with Regeneration, it boosts your health by 15 points if
your current health is below 100 and 5 points if it is above 100. Regeneration caps at 200
health points, but as long as it is active it will keep you fixed at 200. Regeneration lasts
for 30 seconds from its initial spawning, and if you frag an opponent who has it, they will
drop it and you can pick it up for the remainder of its time.
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Haste
Effect: Increases rate of travel and rate of fire.
As it doubles your firing rate, Haste is potentially the second best overall power-up. With
your rate of fire doubled, you should consider using weapons that already have a high
rate of fire like the Plasma Gun or with weapons that have a semi constrained rate of fire
like the Railgun. Haste also opens up more hit-and-run based tactics; you can effectively
pound your opponent from a distance with a rocket or rail, circle around, and then pound
them again from another angle. Hit-and-run tactics can also be viable when low on
health. They allow you to briefly engage an opponent, flea from the engagement to
collect health, and return in a timely manner.
Haste lasts for 30 seconds from its initial spawning, and if you frag an opponent who has
it, they will drop it and you can pick it up for the remainder of its time.
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Flight
Effect: Enables Flight controlled with the jump and crouch buttons.
Flight is the rarest of the power-ups and is rather impractical overall. You can apply it
to rain down on your opponent while avoiding rockets and other splash damage weapons.
However, you can quickly become Railgun bait to a skilled player, so be cautious.
Overall, the rarity of Flight and it's application makes it somewhat impractical so don't
stress hunting this one down.
Flight lasts for 60 seconds from its initial spawning, and if you frag an opponent who has
it, they will drop it and you can pick it up for the remainder of its time.
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Invisibility
Effect: Turns player near invisible.
While Invisibility is certainly an effective power-up, it is not quite as venerable as the
Quad. Stealth tactics are ideal in this case; you're not completely invisible, but players
already locked in melee will never see your rockets coming! The ideal application of
Invisibility comes when you see a massive horde of Quakers slugging it out - dive in and
cut loose! They should all be dead from your spraying before they even notice! Overall
just make sure to stay aware at all times, you're not truly invisible, just really hard to
see. Invisibility lasts for 30 seconds from its initial spawning, and if you frag an opponent
who has it, they will drop it and you can pick it up for the remainder of its time.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Battle Suit
Effect: Protects player from indirect damage.
The Battle Suit does exactly what the description says it does: it protects against all forms
of indirect damage, be it rocket splash damage, acid, lava, drowning, falling, and so on. It
will not save you from instant death pits like falling out into space. If you're up against a
player hoarding the Rocket Launcher, the Battle Suit can be an effective aid in taking
them down, but if your opponent is a Railgun freak, the battle suit will have no effect.
The Battle Suit lasts for 30 seconds from its initial spawning, and if you frag an opponent
who has it, they will drop it and you can pick it up for the remainder of its time.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Miscellaneous Items
You can activate these gems anytime, just use your item button to activate them. Both of
these items can save your skin in tight situations, so you should always consider having
your item button within easy access at all times.
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Personal Teleporter
Effect: Warps player to a random spawning point.
This little trinket can be invaluable when you're caught dead in crossfire or just in a
completely disadvantageous situation and you need a way out. Keep in mind that you
can't control the Personal Teleporter, and you may find yourself hopping out of the frying
pan and into the fire, so use it only in the most dire of situations.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Med Kit
Effect: Restores full health regardless of current heath total.
This is another gem that can really save your hide when you're in serious trouble. If you
use it well your opponent may have to frag you twice! There are a couple of hindrances
that keep the Med Kit from unbalancing gameplay. First, many attacks in Q3A kill
instantly with the right stipulations, so you'd never even get the chance to use the Med
Kit. Second, relying on the Med Kid in this sense forces you to keep your eyes trained on
your health; this will not only dampen your aim, but it may get you killed out right.
---
End