How to Practice Nades in CS2: Full Guide
Contents
CS2 grenades are one of the key tactical tools in the game. You might be the best marksman around, but what good does that do if you can't even get close to the enemy because a passageway is blocked by fire?
Throwing grenades is an art, and it's not easy to master it. Can you lob a grenade halfway across the map and nail the perfect spot? Yes, but only after plenty of practice. So, let's break down how to sharpen your skills with grenades and take your gameplay to the next level in our CS2 grenade practice guide.
Basics of Mastering CS2 Nades: Types and Stats
Grenades are an auxiliary tool that beginners often overlook. Nevertheless, it is the nades that allow you to unlock a whole new layer of tactical depth. The player who uses them wisely is more likely to come out on top.
There are five types of grenades in CS2:
- Smoke;
- Flashbang;
- Molotov/Incendiary;
- HE;
- Decoy.
A player can carry up to four grenades of different types at a time, with one of each type. The exception is Flashbangs, which you can take two of. Grenades are used to block passages, cut down enemy visibility while retreating or advancing, or even to blind your opponent.
Smoke
Cost: $300
Available for: Counter-Terrorists and Terrorists
Main purpose: Block enemy vision
Smoke is one of the essential grenades in CS2. It helps you take control of the map and hides your actions from your enemies, which can be for both attacking and defending.
For example, when playing for the T side, you can throw a smoke on the B Site and switch your play over to A. The enemy won't know if you're waiting there for him or if you're already moving elsewhere. This forces your opponents to split forces. Meanwhile, as a Counter-Terrorist, you can throw a smoke to halt the opponent's push. Advancing without knowing what's ahead is extremely risky and can cost the entire team a win, so they are likely to change direction or wait for the smoke to disappear, giving you precious seconds to regroup.
Flashbang
Cost: $200
Available for: Counter-Terrorists and Terrorists
Main purpose: Disorient enemies
If you've spent more than five minutes in CS2, you've definitely heard “Throwing flashbang!” at least once. This is the cheapest yet one of the most useful grenades. Moreover, unlike all other grenades, you can gain two copies of it. Thus, the developers hint at the tactical importance of flashbang.
The Flashbang’s primary function is to blind and deafen enemies. Thus, it has special mechanics that tie the duration of the dazzle and noise to the angle of view.
For example, if a flash goes off right in front of your eyes, you will be completely blinded and disoriented by a ringing squeak for a few seconds. However, if it goes off to the side, or if you turn your back to it, the impact will be far less.
Flashbangs are perfect when you need to peek around a corner. Given that the flashbang bounces off surfaces, it can be used to secure your route if the enemy is holding an angle with a pre-aim. In addition, flashbang can be used for pushing. The main thing is to throw it behind the backs of your teammates so that they are not blinded. Be careful — you don’t want to accidentally flash them!
Molotov
Cost: $400
Available for: Terrorists only
Main purpose: Create fire to burn enemies
Molotovs are some of the most useful and versatile nade types in terms of usage scenarios. You can use them to block off areas, reduce visibility, and, of course, inflict damage — a lot of damage that ignores armor.
When thrown, Molotov creates a pool of fire upon contact with anything, whether it's a player or the ground. Fire damage from the pool is dealt gradually, starting at 1 and increasing each tick up to 8. The flames last for 7 seconds, which is more than enough time to burn any unfortunate enemy caught in the fire.
Aside from dealing damage, the Molotov excels at map control, as no one in their right mind is going to charge through flames. It's especially useful in tight spaces, as it can bounce off the wall once, allowing you to lob it around the corners without exposing yourself.
Incendiary
Cost: $600
Available for: Counter-Terrorists only
Main purpose: Creates fire to burn enemies
This baby is an enhanced Molotov's bolder stepsister with attitude, exclusive to the CT side. Its purpose is exactly the same as the Molotov, but there are a few key differences. First of all, it comes with a higher price tag at $600 compared to the Molotov’s $400. At the same time, it can bounce up to twice off surfaces, offering more tactical flexibility. In addition, the Incendiary grenade is smaller than the Molotov, making it easier to throw in tighter places.
By the way, the fire from Incendiary grenades and Molotovs can be extinguished by smoke. The logic is simple: no oxygen, no fire. For this to work, the smoke needs to cover at least one-third of the burning area.
HE
Cost: $300
Available for: Counter-Terrorists and Terrorists
Main purpose: Deal damage in an area
HE stands for Highly Explosive, which perfectly sums up what this grenade does when thrown successfully at an opponent's feet. The HE grenade is exactly what most people understand when they hear the word “grenade.” It's the classic "ball of explosives” that you throw at an enemy causing damage. Properly using an HE grenade is almost an art form, as they are highly bouncy and tricky to land effectively.
An HE grenade deals up to 98 damage to an unarmored opponent and 57 damage to an armored one if it explodes right beneath their feet. So, you'll need at least two perfect throws to take down your target. They’re most often used for weakening enemies, securing kills, and gaining map control and preemptive strikes.
Decoy
Cost: $50
Available for: Counter-Terrorists and Terrorists
Main purpose: Creating distractions
Let's be honest: you won’t be using a decoy much. While it’s cheap, it takes up a grenade slot, and its tactical value is highly situational. The decoy mimics the sound of your main weapon, serving as a distraction for your enemies.
In theory, it can be useful in some situations. For example, throwing it into an empty lane might trick enemies into thinking you’re there. Or you could swap your AK-47 for a lesser weapon, toss the decoy, and then pick up the AK again. The decoy will mimic the bad gun, giving a false impression of your loadout. But in competitive matches, you’re unlikely to bother with this.
Techniques to Improve Your Grenade Throws
Now, we’ve come to the most exciting part — how to practice nades in CS2. There are several important CS2 nade practice techniques to master that will allow you to significantly improve your skill and take your nade game to the next level.
Pop Flash Technique
It is worthwhile to open CS2 nade training tips with the flashbang technique. The main drawback of flashbang is that the enemy can turn away from it. Therefore, you need to throw it in such a way that leaves the enemy no time to react.
This is where the pop-flash shines. The name suggests it’s a sudden flashbang that detonates right under the enemy's nose. You need to calculate the throw’s trajectory and timing of the throw so that the grenade explodes right in front of the enemy, guaranteeing they’re blinded. Knowing the throwing spots helps achieve this.
Bounce Throws
If you plan to throw a grenade in a straight line, you risk getting caught with it in your hands. One of the main tips in any guide on how to practice nades in Counter-Strike 2 is to learn to bounce them. This allows you to toss them around corners without exposing yourself, and sometimes even land them right behind an enemy's back from far across the map.
To master bounce throws, you need to know the map's callouts and grenade-throwing spots. And, of course, understanding grenade flight paths will also help. There are tons of YouTube videos breaking down these mechanics and points, and there are even special maps designed to teach you how to use bounces effectively.
Map-specific lineups
If you want to learn how to practice CS2 nades, remember that your opponent’s possible standing positions are limited. Accordingly, there are a limited number of points at which to throw grenades in CS2. By learning the peculiarities of the map and the trajectory of the grenade flight, you can find the optimal spots to land your grenades right at enemy positions.
At the same time, by knowing these lineups, you’ll avoid getting caught out yourself when tossing grenades across the map. Of course, you'll have to take time to memorize the right spots on each map and refine your aim, but the payoff is well worth it.
Supporting teammates with flashes
Flashbangs are useful for both attacking and defending. However, they can just as easily disrupt your teammates as your enemies. If you are going to practice grenades in CS2, the first thing you should learn is that teamwork is key — no lone wolf strategies here. You have to communicate constantly with your team.
By learning map callouts and getting intel on where your teammate is heading, you can toss flashbangs to ensure they move safely into position. In doing so, you dramatically increase your team’s chances of success.
Coordinating smoke grenades
The same principle applies here as with flashbangs. When practicing nades in CS2, you must act in coordination with your team. However, unlike flashbangs, which give you some leeway since you have two, that luxury doesn’t apply to other types of Counter-Strike 2 nades.
To be effective, you and your team need to synchronize your smoke throws. For example, one player can block the enemy's view of your position, while another can throw smoke out at the enemy’s position directly.
How to Practice Nades in CS2?
CS2 Nade Practice Commands
Practicing grenades in 5v5 bot matches isn’t practical at all. Instead, it's better to train alone using a few CS2 nade practice commands. Start by typing sv_cheats 1 in the console and follow up with these handy commands:
sv_infinite_ammo 1— infinite ammo, including grenades;noclip— move through walls;mp_freezetime 0— skip freeze time at the match start;bot_kick— remove all bots;mp_roundtime 60— set round time to 60 minutes;mp_startmoney 60000— start with $60,000 in the first round;sv_showimpacts 1— see where grenades land;sv_showimpacts_time 10— extends the visibility of your grenade impacts for 10 seconds;sv_grenade_trajectory_prac_pipreview 1— visualize grenade landing points;ammo_grenade_limit_total 5— carry five grenades instead of four;
Daily Practice Routines
During the match, you don't have time to stop and think. To remember the order of operations, you need to drill these actions until they become second nature, so your muscle memory takes over.
Daily practice is key. You can either create your own routine based on the previous section, or you can follow an existing one made by someone else. A great approach is to watch some guide to CS2 nades, memorizing the best throw spots, and then replicating what you see. This repetition will help you develop and solidify your skills much faster.
Watch Lineup Tutorials
Most of the crucial lineups have already been discovered and tested. All you need to do is study them, and there are plenty of resources to help with that. You can find tutorials for each map on the Profilerr website:
- CS2 Overpass Smokes;
- CS2 Vertigo Smokes;
- CS2 Inferno Smokes;
- CS2 Dust 2 Smokes;
- CS2 Mirage Smokes;
- CS2 Nuke Smokes;
- CS2 Ancient Smokes;
- CS2 Anubis Smokes.
That said, there’s always room for creativity. By mastering CS2 nades on a map, you might discover your own effective lineup that only you know. At the very least, it’ll be a satisfying discovery — at best, it could turn the tide of a match in your favor.
