- last post: 01.01.0001 12:00 AM PDT
This may already be posted elsewhere, but I haven’t seen anything beyond basic guidelines that defines a tker, so I thought this might need to be said.
We all know them. The retard who stands in the way of a needed exit or teleporter. They kill the flag bearer in CTF, and then run back to the other team. Or they just jump around our bases like kamikaze bunny rabbits, throwing grenades at hogs and firing their weapons at the first person they see. They’re tker’s. They’re a part of life. Team Killing is as old as PC gaming itself. But something new in the Halo PC multiplayer game is giving tker’s an added edge.
When you started playing Halo PC multiplayer, your first experience with a tk is probably not something you want to boast about. More than likely, you retaliated against the offending player several times, and then got kicked for TKing yourself. And if it was their first time team killing then the tker was probably close behind you.
But tkers are growing more and more savvy as autoban throws them. As they mature, their wanton team destruction is reaching greater heights. There are several team killers that need to be addressed that I haven’t seen spoken of in depth in the Bungie rules or the forums. These advanced tkers are the ones you need to watch out for, because they’ll really ruin your game (if they don’t get you banned).
The first is the Quitter. I’m sure everyone playing Halo knows this trick; we’ve all seen it by now. Tkers type in the specific IP address of the game they wish to crash and connect using the direct IP function of Gamespy or another server program. They then enter said game, kill three people, and quit. The minimum number of team kills before an autoban takes effect is four (I think). So by quitting and then rebooting to the same game they effectively confuse the game into thinking they are a new player. One with a fresh slate of Team Kills at his disposal.
There’s not much you can do against a quitter unless you’re an administrator for the private server or Bungie. I’ve gone so far as to offer my assistance to the opposing team when they have a tker. Eight red snipers spawn killing a blue tker would make them think twice and quit quickly. Unfortunately, this kind of teamwork on Halo servers is rare. Best thing you can do is find a new server.
Another type of tker I wanted to address is the Kamikaze. This is the biggest threat to the seasoned player. A Kamikaze will shoot you down to half your shields (a bad place for you to be in the middle of an offensive) and stop. The natural reaction is “You stupid –blam-” and you punch him, shoot back, or nade him. You do this to relieve the frustration of having a team killer but you also know better than to finish him off. RESIST THIS URGE. The kamikaze will gladly take the damage you inflict, throw a grenade into a nearby corner, and kill himself. Why? Because of another exploitable bug in the Halo game code. When you hit him, and he then kills himself, YOU get betrayal status instead of his actual suicide. I’ve been kicked twice by Kamikazes on servers.
A spin off of the Kamikaze is the Body Shield. They will actually run around the map looking for a firefight just to get in your line of fire. The hope of these tkers is that you will kill them accidentally while trying to defend yourself from the opposing team. In the wrong hands, it’s very effective. Avoid using flamethrowers when you suspect one of these.
With autobalance disabled (or if the teams are already uneven like three on four, seven against eight, etc.) in some games, a Jumper tk can switch between teams at will. When on the team of his choice, he acts in a civil manner. But if his team begins to (or is about to) lose, this jerk will actually switch sides to take on the opposition from the inside.
It’s like spying. A red tker has numerous advantages over the normal blue opponent when it comes to combat aside from the fact that you aren't expecting your allies to shoot at you: green triangles tell Jumpers exactly where you are so they don’t have to search (as much), the flag bearer or oddball holder has a blue diamond over his head giving a Jumper easy access to his prey. His respawn point is right at your base now, effectively dropping your “enemy” smack down behind your defense line and giving him a chance to take powerful weapons away from you without your fighting back. If all else fails, there’s the team chat window and he can listen in on the chatter, give false information, and otherwise ruin the sportsmanly conduct of the game.
The pitiable part about Jumpers is that they really do think other players WANT this kind of help. The truth of the matter is that the game loses ALL appeal with a Jumper (or any tk for that matter). They take the skill out the game, for both sides, and the fun follows quickly.
Which leads us to the Passive tker. This person almost never shoots his teammates, but he can make life a living hell for them nonetheless. He’ll get the oddball and sit in a ghost or hog, preventing your team from gaining time. He’ll grab the flag and refuse to score. When he does attack his actions are to the opposing sides benefit. Killing the flag bearer or oddball holder and returning it the opposing team. Taking heavy weapons and your last vehicle to the other side’s base, letting them kill him and gaining the benefit of said equipment. The Passive may not always be “passive" either. They may initiate a firefight with you in the hopes of luring you from your camping position, or start shooting you along with the opposing team as a means to further break you health or concentration. Fighting one opponent with a shotgun is easy. Fighting an opponent with a shotgun when he has a tk for support? That’s hard.
It’s often hard to spot a Passive tker as opposed to a new player who just doesn’t know better yet. It’s also equally hard to stop them as there are no protocols in the autoban system, and no effective monitor to prevent their acting out through passive resistance against the team. An administrator can ban them if he sees first hand how their actions are affecting the team and believes that these actions are intentional. Even then, I’m sure it’s a hard call.
Most of the older, seasoned players have encountered these tkers in some way or another. But for the new player these people and the inherent frustration they bring to an otherwise good game, create a dangerous combination.
The end goal of these people is not to get banned. It is to get YOU banned players. Check your fire when dealing with a tker. In the end, retaliation is exactly what they want you to do. I’m sure there is nothing more satisfying to these deviants than to be tked themselves and then see you inexplicably quit (be auto banned) immediately following.
Remember though; it’s hard to spot a TK. They know (or figure out) how to hide. They TK you, appologize. But before you jump down the offender’s throat, there’s something I want to make sure everyone knows:
I’ve been accused of Team Killing. Someone jumps from his camping position right into the blast of my grenade and dies (it happens.). But I win the fight, so took our teams new warthog back to base…and parked it right where he respawns (which burns because I was going back to base to get a gunner). I apologized for both betrayals but the next time I saw him, he has his finger on the trigger of a rocket launcher and me in his sights. In my case, the person spent the better part of the next game trying to kill me as much as the opposition.
This post was designed to give people an aide in figuring out what’s going on, not to point fingers. If I say it once, I mean it forever: check your fire when dealing with a tker and make sure he is a tker before you start flaming him over chat text or cutting him down because he has the flag.
Remember folks, this road doesn’t only go one way.
In open text I like to type “New001. You are red. Stop shooting red.”
This is typically responded to with a “sry” or an “opps”
If its not responded to, wait a while and watch the player. If his actions modify, he probably got the message and may be too embarrassed to respond.
If, however, the next time you see this player he’s attacking you to cut down your shields…start looking for new servers or learn to live with him (most better players can leave the base relatively unscathed because the typical TK is just….a really bad shot.)
Thank you for your attention and please respond if you have another tk type you think new players (or old) should be on the lookout for.
“ – “ Minus Sign
[Edited on 8/3/2005]