[RP GUIDE] Fist-fighting guide on GTA: W - Scripted & /me fights.

[Mistery14]

INTRODUCTION

 

 

 

References:

 

Sections:

 

1. Fist fighting on GTA: World

2. How to avoid a fight

3. The best way to fight

4. Bad examples of a fight

5. Good examples of a fight

6. Helpful rules

 

 

1. Fist-fighting on GTA: World

 

It's difficult to find helpful text in the rules for guidance in fist fights to apply it to RP, it's a little ambiguous! Which can make it a little difficult for new players and regular players alike to grasp what they're getting into and might make their first fist fight leave a bitter taste in their mouth. This guide aims to bring a little more insight as to what you might come across when in-game, and help you approach situations more cautiously and become more aware of the possible situations and outcomes you might face.

 

Fights come in different shapes and colors, you can either have a scripted fight, or a /me fight. Here's the difference between the two:

 

- A /me fight is when the two fighting parties make use of /mes to attack one another through RP. They may exclusively use /mes, or use both script and /me.

 

- A scripted fight is when two players decide to punch each other's characters via left-click, typically after an initiating /me.

 

2. How to avoid a fight

 

If you have the opportunity to avoid a fight, the best course of action is to try and avoid it. Fist-fights are a good way for situations to voluntarily or involuntarily escalate into something bigger. Los Santos is quite unforgiving and so are the people. Needless to say, one good way to avoid fights is to not going around provoking people.

 

So, how to avoid fights? It's a slippery slope, and oftentimes you'll have to just walk away from situations and not argue.

 

- If a character is yelling at you, do not yell back. This will make them want to get into your face and challenge you.

- If you accidentally piss someone off, apologize and move on. You're much better hurting your ego a little bit by apologizing than to hurt it even more by encouraging a fight and then losing it in front of everyone. People will remember you for being more of a loud mouth than anything else if that happens.

- Just walk away. If the threat follows you, make it clear you don't want to fight. Run if you really have to and think you're in more danger than it's worth.

- Remember, do not take out your phone to call the police in front of your aggressor. It is not a deterrent in Los Santos and will only make things worse for you.

 

 

3. The best way to fight

 

Avoiding a fight is good and responsible. But avoidance is not always an option and a luxury your character will have when walking the streets of LS. Sometimes you have to face your threat, toe-to-toe. Throw hands, basically.

 

So what's the best way to fight?

 

In both cases, the initial encounter must be done through at least an initiating /me from both fighting parties. Someone /mes pushing you and you decide to punch them? You can't just press left click to do so, you have to RP it before you go ahead with the punch. Both parties should be let the time to /me so that they both get a chance to RP, regardless if the following is a scripted or /me fight.

 

In the event that a character is unaware that they're about to be punched, that principle of allowing the player to react by typing a /me still applies. Take OOC reaction time into account, not IC reaction time, these are two different things! You're letting the player time to react to your actions with a /me of their own, not their character.

 

For /me fights:

 

Usually, /me fights are not used to win a situation but to make the RP more enjoyable and feel tense. 

Utilize what is known as "P2L" with your /mes, or "play-to-lose" (The opposite of play-to-win, P2W) But what is it, exactly?

 

Play-to-lose is a way to roleplay where you, as a player, take into account the context of a situation and translate it in-game to keep RP as realistic as possible. Play-to-lose does not automatically mean you will "lose" a fight, per se. P2L simply makes the fight grounded for both parties by neither trying to get an immediate upper hand, or getting an unrealistic advantage.

 

A good rule of thumb is to always take into account your character's physical state when RPing fights.

 

If you do have a physical advantage at your character's disposal (i.e your character's weight) - Point it out in your /mes and take it into consideration, if you do not point it out and simply try to get the upper hand by default without any mention of why you would get that advantage, it could be considered play-to-win/powergaming, neither of which is going to make it fun and might lead to confusion. It goes with anything really, but there is no rush in a /me fight. Take the time to detail your /mes, let your opponent do the same, and you will get a much more enjoyable experience.

 

For scripted fights:

 

Prefer a defensive stance in a scripted fight !

As with boxing for example, aggressive defense is always the best option you will have.

 

Stand your ground, focus on the player with right click, and hold space. Let the punches come. Once they do, your character will dodge the incoming attack. Once that is the case, immediately press one of the "attack" buttons on your mouse/keyboard: (Q, R, left click), this will launch a counter-attack from your part. If you see your opponent back up and their guard is down, you can try to attack, but remaining in a defensive stance is always the best.

 

If you are unsure:

 

Always assume a scripted fight is coming your way.

Why? - It's simply the preferred method. If someone looks like they're about to throw a punch and your character knows it, hold down the space bar and brace for impact.

 

(Sadly, as of right now it's safe to assume most people aren't going to give you the time to RP or /me your character's reaction before throwing scripted punches at you, as people tend to think OOC reaction time equals IC reaction time. This is a widespread misconception in RP, and a preventable issue that hopefully gains more attention in the future, which I will address below. So, hold down the space bar and hope for the best for now if you're not sure).

 

As a side note, for both /me and scripted fights, always take into account your character's background. Do they know how to fight? Are they drunk/under the influence of drugs? Is it the first time your character gets into a fight? Be reasonable and avoid powergaming.

 

 

4. Bad examples of a fight

 

There are bad apples out there, people who do not want to accept the chance of losing and will do anything not to. This is true for any server and game, and it applies here as well.

 

What's a bad fight? To me, it's simple. If there's one-sided RP or any abuse, then it's a bad fight RP from the get-go. Let's take scripted fights for this one, as they're the most commonly used method and most relevant, as you'll encounter them most often.

 

Here's a few examples of bad fighting RP:

 

*Player A and B are having an IC argument.*

-Player A is typing

-Player B types /me rushes [Player A] fast!

-Player B punches Player A multiple times as Player A is typing.

-Player A is downed eventually due to this.

 

Result: Player A is now downed, not because Player A is bad at script fighting, but because Player B did not let them react to their initiative /me, in addition to that, Player B has an unfair, OOC advantage by punching player A when they were typing.

Rule(s) broken: Powergaming, Common Courtesy.

 

*Player A and Player B are fighting*

Player A keeps their guard up.

Player B runs around Player A in circles rapidly to try and counter-act the dodge mechanic and to be able to hit Player A.

 

Result: Player B is abusing game mechanics to get hits on Player A, and is not keeping the fight fair nor realistic. Their RP is not up to good standards.

Rule(s) broken: Powergaming, Common Courtesy, Bug abuse.

 

*Player A doesn't know Player B is about to punch*

Player A minds their own business.

Player B sneaks up on Player A and /mes throwing a punch before immediately doing so.

Player A instantly turns around and presses space to dodge the incoming attack, retaliating immediately and with no /me.

 

Result: Player B did not allow Player A to react with a /me of their own, but Player A is also powergaming AND metagaming by gaining IC knowledge through reading the /me and trying to get an advantage over Player B using that information. Both players are at fault.

Rule(s) broken: Powergaming, Common Courtesy, Metagaming.

 

The best way to act as these situations happen is to report them. A good way to do that is to either record your game or take a screenshot before and after the scripted punches occur. Always provide proof that you were not allowed the time to RP.

 

If a player does not leave you the time to /me and immediately throws punches to get an OOC advantage, the next screenshot you can take will have proof of them causing damage to your character before you had a chance to RP. This is even better if the screenshot includes you being in the middle of typing. Make sure to not report the fight itself! Report the rule broken first, the fight is the context. Doing otherwise will make your report seem as if you're reporting a player because you've lost a fight, which will not help you.

 

 

5. Good examples of a fight

 

It's not all doom and gloom. There are also good apples on the server.

 

A good fight is a fight where the two players aren't seeking to get an unfair OOC advantage over each other, and if they are getting an advantage in any way, they're doing it properly and IC. I will take the same examples as above, once again applying to script fights.

 

Here's a few examples of good fighting RP:

 

*Player A and B are having an IC argument.*

-Player A types their /me; *throws a punch*, initiating the fight with Player B.

-Payer A waits for Player B to respond to their action.

-Player B types their /me in return to Player A initiating the fight.

-Once that is done, both Player A and Player B begin to script fight one another.

 

Result: Both players let each other the time to react to each other's initiative /mes before the scripted fight. They successfully started a fight with no unfair OOC advantage given as both players allowed each other to be able and ready to throw scripted punches.

 

*Player A and Player B are fighting*

-Player A keeps their guard up.

-Player B does NOT run around in circles, and instead keeps their guard up as well (or not!).

-Both players throw punches at each other, trying to time it right until either one is downed.

 

Result: Neither players are abusing game mechanics to get unfair hits on one another, both players are fighting via script normally.

 

*Player A doesn't know Player B is about to punch*

-Player A minds their own business.

-Player B sneaks up on Player A and /mes throwing a punch. They wait for player A's /me response.

-Player A types out their /me in response to being sucker-punched, either being knocked out or tanking the punch and turning around.

-Both players engage in a scripted fight afterwards.

 

Result: Player A roleplays their character being surprised and sucker-punched accordingly and did not metagame the fact they were about to be punched. Neither players are breaking any rules in that instance.

 

(It's just a small gesture that goes a long way, if you find that a fight was good and see that someone is putting effort into their RP and is not playing-to-win, people will appreciate you pointing out that you enjoyed the RP interaction even though the IC circumstances was a fight. If the RP is good, then there is no reason for you to feel bitter about the counter OOC).

 

7. Helpful rules

 

Server rules still apply in fights, here's a few examples of helpful rules that applies to fist-fights which can prevent poor escalation situations:

 

The common courtesy rule:

 

Quote

taking advantage of an OOC issue to give yourself an advantage in an IC situation (stealing a vehicle from a player whose game crashed, initiating a shootout when a player involved crashed, driving off from a traffic stop when a law enforcement officer disconnects, waiting for someone to type to get an IC advantage);

 

Powergaming:

 

Quote

It is not allowed to perform actions which would not be possible in real life either, this is not limited to roleplay through /me. It is not allowed to force actions upon another player. You are not allowed to roleplay a non-player character.

 

Deathmatching:

 

Quote

killing another player without or with poor reason to do so. This also includes you provoking others, followed by performing aggressive actions such as shooting or killing and (or) the provoked party ending up dead.

 

Third-Party modifications and software:

 

Quote

Any type of game modification or software which gives a player any type of advantage over another player is forbidden. This includes but is not limited to binds or hotkeys using programs such as AutoHotkey or macros on a keyboard or mouse. 

 

Client side modding to give an advantage is also considered a breach of the rule. Client side modding may only be done for aesthetic purposes and should never be done to change the function of anything in-game. 

Players are permitted to use a controller to play the game. However, due to the fact that controllers have aim assist they may not be used during shootings. All shooting must be done while playing with mouse and keyboard. Controller usage for driving and flying is acceptable.

 

Usage of keybinds, hotkeys or macros to replace roleplay or give an advantage in a roleplay scene.

 

Bug Abuse:

 

Quote

Any bugs found out by players are to be reported in the right forum section. Abusing or exploiting features in order to gain a result that is not intended by the server's script, the RageMP client and/or the game itself is considered to be bug abuse. 

 

 

Thank you for reading.

 

Edited June 30, 2022 by Mistery14

[Jankara]

I mean irl 90% of fights are not one and one, don't end up in boxing like exchanges,  very rarely have a clean winner and mostly end up rolling around on the floor 

 

People grab and hold, second and third person joins in, people try to split it up and it just gets messy.

[Chloe_Diaz]

Good read!

 

 

Edited July 1, 2022 by Chloe_Diaz

[Nora]

Good stuff!

[Gigabyte]

Very, very helpful guide! Solid stuff 🙂

[Mistery14]

On 7/1/2022 at 9:35 PM, Chloe_Diaz said:

Subjecting such exchanges to "good faith" in outcome is just asking for bigger problems. 

 

I can tell you that fighting, via the actual game mechanic, is skill based, and the recent sink fix should make it even more so.. For instance, me fighting anyone, would result in me being beat up.. because I am not savvy with the mechanics, nor do I know all the tips and tricks someone who brawls every day would know.

 

🤷‍♀️

 

Hi,

 

I understand and do agree that script fighting is most definitely skill based on a game such as this, but it's beyond the point of this guide, which focuses precisely on RP first before all, and while it does provide some examples and advice as to how to approach scripted fights correctly without abusing its mechanics. I can't exactly provide the secret to becoming good at script fighting, this comes with practice and experience with the game itself and probably deserves its own separate guide.

 

My guide is specifically designed to showcase the preferable way (as I see it) to engage in fights in a context where RP supposedly comes before skill, which applies to both scripted and /me fights, as both are considered RP.

 

If skill was the only thing we had to worry about when fighting, or even just playing GTA World in general, then this guide would become practically irrelevant. Both /me fights and scripted fights require an initiative /me from both parties respectively at the very least for it to be legitimized as an RP exchange from two players.
 

Quote

 

Why not simply rely on a mechanic that is already at your fingertips? In essence, the same mindset could be applied to firearms... Whereas a punch thrown already connects and produces damage where it lands.. Is someone expected to RP "Pulls the trigger, shooting a projectile at X"? That's trivial.

 

I'd bet money that if such a ruleset was applied, their would be a report within every brawl. Your heavy strike will be dodged, whereas I will upper cut you with trained precision... And you will probably not like that I may feel that you were KTFO...

 

In itself, fighting isn't any different from any other RP. The expected RP from you stays the same - In any other RP scenario, people would normally type out their /me and expect a /me from your part in response to their own. Why shouldn't it be the case for fist-fighting in an RP context?

 

Gun-play is a little different whereas the server not only encourages slight "Light-RP" mechanics for some firearms (pistols, some melee weapons) by allowing weapon-scrolling without RP, in addition to that, the rules specifically have a section dedicated to firearm RP, which is not the case with fist-fights, this makes it safe to assume you are to treat fist-fights as any other RP scenario - Which is to /me and allow others to /me before you actually proceed with your actions, in short.

 

Unfortunately, the "Bad examples" listed in this guide happens all too often which misleads people into believing that fist-fighting is purely skill based and requires little to no RP reciprocity between players, which is especially the case for scripted fist-fights. Like I said on the guide; OOC reaction time (reading, processing text and writing) is entirely separate from your character's IC reaction time and should not be assimilated as being the same thing when RPing in general.

 

I really appreciate the constructive criticism! 🙂 Sorry for the lengthy response but I hope my explanations clarifies and helps you understand a little more as to why this guide was made.

 

[EDIT: Chloe_Diaz's initial comment was a misunderstanding! But the reply does provide some useful clarifications for anyone wanting to read it!]

Edited July 6, 2022 by Mistery14

[Lexy]

here's the real guide
0) press 'O' and figure out the ping of ur opponent. 1-90 is low / 100+ is high
1) emote /me throws a punch
2) just start hitting in script

how to beat ppl with low ping:
* you can hold space and dodge + counter punch most of their swings, there is little chance that sync will let the damage pass through your dodge
* if ur up against an experienced fighter, they will 'push attack' which goes through ur defense, the best way to counter that is press 'attack' at the same time and exchange the pushing damages
* combo the 2 and u'll beat most of ur opponents

how to beat ppl with high ping:
* strike first, the damage will register even if they dodge
* don't relay on dodging because 90% of their strikes will go through ur defense because of the sync. whoever gets 10 damage on the other person 1st wins
* chicken run to actually dodge them and once they hit the air strike them from the side

bonus:
* don't spam attack
* sometimes sync prevents a person from getting hit if they're in active attack animation
* release the 'guard/aim' button and simply walk towards ur opponent, if u get TOO CLOSE, u'll do an unavoidable push attack

if none of it works:
* just shoot them bro

[Mistery14]

10 hours ago, Tammm said:

here's the real guide
0) press 'O' and figure out the ping of ur opponent. 1-90 is low / 100+ is high
1) emote /me throws a punch
2) just start hitting in script

how to beat ppl with low ping:
* you can hold space and dodge + counter punch most of their swings, there is little chance that sync will let the damage pass through your dodge
* if ur up against an experienced fighter, they will 'push attack' which goes through ur defense, the best way to counter that is press 'attack' at the same time and exchange the pushing damages
* combo the 2 and u'll beat most of ur opponents

how to beat ppl with high ping:
* strike first, the damage will register even if they dodge
* don't relay on dodging because 90% of their strikes will go through ur defense because of the sync. whoever gets 10 damage on the other person 1st wins
* chicken run to actually dodge them and once they hit the air strike them from the side

bonus:
* don't spam attack
* sometimes sync prevents a person from getting hit if they're in active attack animation
* release the 'guard/aim' button and simply walk towards ur opponent, if u get TOO CLOSE, u'll do an unavoidable push attack

if none of it works:
* just shoot them bro

 

perfect