The Beginner’s Guide to Utility in CSGO

One of the most impressive things you might see when watching a CSGO matchup is how the pros work utility. Here, we are looking at how beginners can practise utility, config set up, tips and tricks.

Have you ever seen a cool smoke in a tournament that you have wanted to recreate? Has your teammate ever told you to throw a molotov Dark on retake, but had no idea what you were doing? Maybe you have been caught out by an unorthodox flashbang – and want to give as good as you get? Well, here is our CSGO beginner’s guide to make sure you can keep on practising your utility.

Counter-Strike (CSGO) Utility

Throughout any CSGO player’s career, it is vital that they need to know how to make a config file so that they can practise utility. Often, players will naturally improve their game sense and aim by keeping on playing the game consistently and regularly – in match. However, it is also important to practise out of match as well if you want to get the upper hand against your opposition.

By effectively making the most of out-of-match practice, you will start being able to exercise efficient utility usage. As well as classic smoke lineups, knowing where to throw a fake smoke or being able to work together to coordinate a nade stack lineup can be vital in a pivotal situation. Preparation is necessary to maximise your efficiency and to make sure that you have all the tools you require to theorycraft in your personal custom server. 

Simply follow these guidelines and you will start experiencing a smoother time down the line. 

Making a Practice Config

Your first step is to create a custom CSGO config for each of your utility practice commands. 

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To do this, simply open up a plain text editor, like Notepad, and create a new file (you cannot use word processing software). It doesn’t matter what you name the file, as long as you remember what you named it. You might choose to use a name such as  ‘smokepractice’. You then need to save the file using a .cfg file extension at the end and this will be your custom config. There are then two options where you place this file:

1. [Path to your Steam installation]\steamapps\common\Counter-Strike Global Offensive\csgo\cfg (for example, on my setup this is C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\Counter-Strike Global Offensive\csgo\cfg).

or

2. [Path to your Steam installation]\userdata\[STEAM3ID]\730\local\cfg (for example, on my setup this is C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\userdata\[insert your STEAM3ID here]\730\local\cfg).

If you go for the second option, you will need to find your appropriate Steam3ID, which you can do so by following these steps.

1. Head to your Steam profile inventory
2. Click on the Trade Offers button found at the top right-hand corner.
3. Click on ‘Who can send me a Trade Offer’?
4. You will see your Trade URL. The number that is between ?partner= and &token is your desired Steam ID.

Which Option to Choose

This very much depends. In terms of the way CSGO works on startup, the first option might be the best choice, with the steamapps directory acting as the ‘master source’. This means that when you launch the game, anything that is stored in steamapps will override any config settings placed in user data (which is the directory for the second option). So, you would probably want to choose this option if you play under multiple accounts or if you share your computer with different CS: GO players. It allows for the config to be shared across each account without the need to create the same config for each different account.

However, with Option 1, your config setting will be removed if you ever uninstall CSGO, and you would need to repeat the process.

Option 2 would require you to store your config in your own Steam account files instead of in CSGO’s files. This is a better option if you only play under the one account and are not interested in using the config in any other account. This also means that your files will stay in place and won’t be deleted if you uninstall the game.

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CSGO Utility Commands

When you have named and placed your config file, you then need to look at the commands. All of the text you write into your config file will be commands that are made available for you to use in CSGO. Here is a list of all the recommended commands that will help you to achieve the most effective and efficient practice:

• sv_cheats 1; This enables cheat commands.
• sv_infinite_ammo 2; Will provide an endless number of magazines (while still requiring you to reload).
• sv_infinite_ammo 1; Will provide an endless number of bullets (without needing you to reload).Please note that this will conflict with the above command, so you can only include one or the other.
• ammo_grenade_limit_total 5; This will increase the maximum number of grenades you can carry.
• mp_warmup_end; This command ends the warmup phase.
• mp_freezetime 0; This will set the time (in seconds) that players freeze at the start of the round to 0.
• mp_roundtime 60; This one sets the time (in minutes) that a round lasts for up to 60.
• mp_roundtime_defuse 60; This sets the time (in minutes) that a round lasts for in competitive games up to 60.
• sv_grenade_trajectory 1; This will show the grenade trajectory.
• sv_grenade_trajectory_time 10; This command sets the amount of time (in seconds) that the grenade trajectory stays before it disappears.
• sv_showimpacts 1; Will shows bullet impacts.
• mp_limitteams 0; This disables team number limit.
• mp_autoteambalance 0; This disables auto team balancing.
• mp_maxmoney 60000; Will set the maximum money amount to $60,000.
• mp_startmoney 60000; Will set the available starting money to $60,000.
• mp_buytime 9999; The command allows for unlimited buytime.
• mp_buy_anywhere 1; This allows you to buy anywhere on the map.
• mp_restartgame 1; Will restart the server after 1 second. This is important in order for the previous commands to be implemented properly.
• bind [KEY] noclip; This will allow you to toggle noclip on or off by pressing the  key of your choice — you need to replace [KEY] with your preferred key in the command text. It will allow for efficient movement in a custom server.
• bind [KEY] sv_rethrow_last_grenade; Will allow the server to rethrow the last thrown utility by pressing the key that you choose — replace [KEY] with your key of choice in the command text. This will allow you to move to the point of impact and see how your grenade landed.

Look through this comprehensive list of commands and simply choose which ones you want to copy and paste into your config file and you are all set to go.

You need to remember to save your modified file and then launch the game. When you are in, then launch a custom server (such as the ‘Practice with Bots’ game mode). Then, whenever you are looking to practise utility, simply type ‘exec[Name of Config]’  (without the quotation marks) into your console. So, if your config file is called ‘smokepractice.cfg’, then you would need to enter ‘exec smokepractice’ into your console.

Extra Recommended Steps

As well as creating your custom config file, it is recommended that you also create an autoexec file in which you can store all of your in-game settings, such as crosshairs and viewmodel configurations.

If you have created your own autoexec file, then when you next launch CS:GO, all of the commands in autoexec will automatically be executed. Here are some particularly helpful commands that are great in throwing grenades in the match. We would recommend that you include the following three commands – which, in combination, allow you to perform jump throws:

• alias “+jumpthrow” “+jump;-attack”;
• alias “-jumpthrow” “-jump”;
• bind [KEY] “+jumpthrow” Certain utility throws require a jumpthrow bind in order to be consistent.

As with our list of practice config files, simply copy these commands and paste them into your autoexec files and you’ll be all set. Please also note that you won’t need to type in ‘exec autoexec’ into your console as they will automatically be executed whenever you open your game

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What to Look Out For

You need to remember that professional CSGO matches are played on 128 tick servers, compared to Valve’s matchmaking servers, that are hosted with a 64 tick rate. As such, if you see a professional player throw a smoke and want to give it a go yourself, make sure you check the tick rate of the server. If it is different, then certain jump throws and lineups may be different and need different positions for the same outcome. 

So, if you’re ready to go, then good luck! Try it out, play around with it and get in lots of practice so that you can perfect your config file and have lots of fun on the practice server! You’ll be playing utility like CSGO a pro in no time at all!