Racing Through The Rounds - Five

[InfestLithium]

FIVE is ultimately one of my top favorite maps to play both in co-op and solo. Extremely narrow spaces, multiple floors, challenging spawns, and most importantly, killing freakbags as John F. Kennedy. As fun as this map is, it is also increasingly difficult to get into the mid 20's due to poor planning. Many slayers insist on prepping for an excruciatingly long match; however, very seldom do they realize that the beginning is just as important as the adventure. No, it's not as difficult as it looks - patience and persistence is all you really need. 

 

Rounds 1-6 :: Spawn

 

As stated before, we're not specifically looking to see how long you or your group can survive in a given area. Rather, try focusing on maximizing your point management so you are well-equipped before heading out. For Rounds 1-4, put 6 bullets into the chest of a zombie, followed by a knife (specifically Round 1). For Round 2, 10 bullets...Round 3 can use 12-17 bullets...Round 4 can pack 18-24 bullets but you are bound to run through all of your M1911 ammo.

 

Note: Every player has their own strategy when point maximizing, so do as you please.

 

Between those rounds, you are 90% certain to pick up a Max Ammo that will keep your point maximization at its highest. Should you not, I strongly advise to grab the M14 off the wall and continue practicing chest shots plus a knife. [Knifing will become a hassle if playing on Solo.] From Round 4-6, you will need that M14 anyways if you plan on not getting overrun. If you are playing with other fellow slayers, you may continue the knifing technique; otherwise, invest in cracking some heads. [i like holding onto my M1911 for the remainder of the match. You'll see why later in the guide.]

 

 

The boxed area is where I tend to stay within when playing Solo. Call it a safe zone if you will. Obviously, more players = more focus on single barriers. The extra one near the Olympia can be a freebie for anyone wanting the extra points.

 

I would consider leaving towards the end of Round 6 so you can escape the spawn room. Because the M14 would have only cost you 500 points, you (and each player) should have anywhere from 4,300 - 7,000. Of course, the range is ambiguous the point is that you have close to 5k points in your pocket. Fair enough, right?

 

Rounds 7-8 :: Hallways

 

I know what you're thinking. "Round 8 in the hallway? Isn't that overkill?" Nope - not at all. Should the M14 fail you, the MPL will do just nicely in terms of point intake and damage (for headshots). Rounds 7-8 is going to blitz by surprisingly fast, but don't let yourself get cocky so easily. Remember that you also have entry from spawn so there amount of room you can do circles is very limited. Here is a possible route you can take to avoid mashing into the incoming horde at the wrong time:

 

 

The dotted area represents a potential route in the event you are feeling uneasy with the original tight loop. By doing a figure 8, you're giving yourself more access to rebuild a few barriers while on the move as you purchase more ammo for your MPL. For me, I like having the elevator debris opened for a quick getaway. Plus, I can make up for the 1,250 points lost once I actually use it.

 

Note: This is an extremely dangerous path if you are unfamiliar with popular training techniques such as dragging. You can leave at any given point in time, but this will greatly increase your points for what's to come later.

 

The latter of Round 8 is the best time to say farewell to spawn. At this point, you may have accumulated an additional 2,000/3,000 points for your adventure. If you kept an eye on your gun accuracy and point intake, you're probably around an easy 8,000 point level. You won't need to end the round just yet, but we're trying to make sure that we can access most of our arsenal as quickly as possible without having power on so quickly.

 

Rounds 9-12 :: Control Room

 

Here it goes - the room that you will more than likely train later in the match. We won't get that far because our concern was getting set up for that moment. What makes this level crazy is that single direction pathing you will encounter when tackling zombies (especially on you're own). You can choose to hold onto your MPL, but I would very much prefer the MP5K.

 

 

Let's dissect this route a bit more. The outer path focuses on keeping near the edges of the catwalk where the barriers are located. There is a short, dotted inner path that particularly works with the steps near the debris. When traveling here, it is crucial that you keep the train as compiled as possible because it allows for a U-turn. What you're doing is using the stairway as a trick to reverse the outer path direction should your original direction be blocked by a couple of zombies. Do this for all of Round 9 so you can hit around the 10k point mark.

 

"But Festo, I'm not liking that route." No problemo - that's why the control room consists of two floors. If you did the above, however, you've basically given yourself a better advantage over the situation. 

 

 

This is arguably the most important train in the map's entirety. Before we get hasty and assume that we will always be safe here, allow me to explain why this area is so crucial before turning power on. The teleporter represented by that purple-looking dot is blocked off so long as power is inactive. This is beneficial as it prevents zombies from randomly spawning in and any come through the machine itself. If you plan to survive here, you need to learn cut-backs [primarily where the Pack-a-Punch door is] and dragging [in the large space behind the teleporter].

 

Note: I don't advise taking the stairway as a process of getting to the other side of the control room at all; however, it is available should be pathway be open. The direction you choose to go is by your personal choice. It's always good to run along the route closest to Juggernog. You may open the debris towards the lower level elevator, but I try to hold off to avoid that additional zombie spawn.

 

Blasting Rounds 9-11 here is a cinch as you should have total control over the playing field. You could essentially survive here longer, but that's not the point. At the end of Round 11, you may have an estimated 10,000-12,500 point balance. This is enough to take the elevator down to power (given you haven't opened it yet) and will allow you Juggernog + Speed Cola with the option to Pack-a-Punch as well as a hit on the Mystery Box (or use the PaP option on that weapon). Use the teleporters as your mode of transport to avoid paying several elevator fees. You only need to wait a little while after teleporting to go back again.

 

A forewarning: once power is on and the new round starts, you will more than likely begin the Pentagon Thief round. If you didn't Pack-a-Punch that M1911, now is the time to bust it out or whatever your weakest weapon is. Once he takes it (should that be the case), you have a [hopefully] sturdy weapon to take him down fairly quickly. This is why it is helpful to Pack-a-Punch before facing him. You can grab an off-the-wall weapon if he is coming for your next weapon. 

 

The rest of the match, I would say to follow the given path in the lower control room level. It's all fair game for you so long as you keep yourself aware of the spawn points. 

[MegaAfroMan]

These are my favorite types of guides. Early rounds are my weakspot. I'm many times more likely to down in the first 15 rounds, than I am anytime past 30-40.

Thanks for the tips! I'll be sure to give this a shot. I usually rush Jug and Bowie.

[Mr. Jay]

I love seeing these types of guides and tutorials, if nothing else just to see others play and look for things to potentially incorporate into my game.

However, I disagree with many of your points. Unless this is mostly a coop guide.

The spawn will always always be four entries for zombies, either thru windows or two holes by Olympia. I think if you like the each player grab a window strategy, the easiest would be top war room with debris to lower room shut. Get there as soon as you can and breeze thru 8-9. Round 7-8 on MPL hall is far more dangerous, especially especially solo because you need refill at least two times.

Here is a what I believe a safer way solo:

Round 3 when zombies break in, open first door and MPL. This to insure safe hall way. Round 4-5 if I get overrun I head downstairs via elevator. Again I wait for zombies to break in then open debris to lower war room. This to ensure safe bottom floor.

Finish the round and you should have 6-8 grand after opening the stakeout debris. Take your pick jug or bowie.

Five is by far my favorite map. And the source of many of my failure. But I love it.

Hope to talk more.

[InfestLithium]

Thanks Mega! I am always in a pickle as well with starting out the match on here.

Jay, it does have a co-op bias because - like you said - is hard to hold out for so long by yourself. This can be done in Solo, but will require a great deal of perseverance and luck. It can work eithe way though. :)

[MegaAfroMan]

I've always wondered whether it was preferable in general for matches to Jug rush, or to build up points as long as possible.

I ended up with Jug rush, at least in BO1, MotD, Origins. TranZit, Die Rise, Buried and Nuketown, don't quite follow these two choices, as they are somewhat oddballs.

Maybe I'll try holding out and maxing points for my next few games on each applicable map, and see how it compares to rushing for Jug.

[InfestLithium]

Sorry for the hasty post friendos. It is so difficult to type comprehensive messages on an iPhone.

 

Mega: It depends on your style of preparing. For me, I prefer maxing out my points so I can have mar arsenal all in one sitting instead of gradually working my way up. This may make me biased in a guide such as this one; however, there are always downsides to one another. In this case, you sacrifice another spawn point (War Room) + Pentagon Thief if you attempt Juggernog since you need power on. While point hoarding, you run the risk of ending the game based on a small mistake that could've been prevented had you ____________ purchased.

 

Jay: Pretty much what I said to Mega applies to why this seems co-op biased. I integrated techniques I use in Solo, so these can even be incorporated into Co-op. What I like about your strategy is how quick it works for that guaranteed Bowie Knife or Juggernog. But as I was telling Mega, it varies on what you see as more important - grabbing 1/2 items out of the bunch, or waiting until you're fully prepared to have essentially everything you need but at the cost of an early death. 

 

This strategy, of course, is not the greatest nor do I imply it is. If it works for someone, great - if not, then that just means there are several other strategies that can be toyed around with. To be honest, I'm actually glad you disagree with this, Jay. That actually helps me see how others navigate through certain maps and what their approach to prepping up is. 

[Chopper]

Clever little guide, my first 8 are the same as yours and then I do it a little differently, but not so.  Never thought about no power and that teleporter path, which is very cool.

 

8 can be very hard in that hallway however, make sure the debris is cleared in case you need to haul out of there!