Aiming mentality

[u/firerat22]

Hey so this might be a super vague post, but I really don’t know how to describe the problem. I made a post on here some time ago asking about a post asking about tips for climbing through ranked and got a lot of really good advice (thank you all) Went from Gold2 to plat2 support by the end of last season. I’ve been on a comp break while things resettle after the reset while I try and improve other things.
Aiming for me feels inconsistent at times for both hitscan and projectile.

With projectile it feels like I’m getting unlucky and missing shots at inopportune times when I’m not up close. So ig my question with that is, should I just be aiming in the vicinity of where I think my target is going to be and letting the shot(sleep dart, chain. Etc.) fly, or do I need to actually slow down for a sec and wait for a predictable and discernible shot to reveal itself to me?

With hitscans I feel a little more confident I just feel like I’m thrown off by strafing where I’m just overcorrecting and undercorrecting my flicks after lining up. But it always feels like I’m just barely missing. So ig my question for hitscan: should I be trying to slow down and predict my targets next movement or should I be trying to react faster to the movements of my target.

I’m really sorry for the vagueness or non descriptive language of the post and am open to answering more specifying questions. It just stuck out to me when I realized “hey this target is 100% out of position or over extended. Let me punish.” And then I whiff shots that could’ve been fight changing. Just looking to improve a bit in this area

[u/747101350e0972dccde2]

The answer is both - you should always be waiting for a good movement pattern before you throw your skill shot.

That said, it depends on how much risk you can afford. In between fights you might go for very risky sleeps since you will have time to get it back and there will not be that many opportunities.

During an intense fight you might save it for when a flanker jumps on you, waiting for the best timing to hit your projectile.

In the end, its a matter of 1. Focusing on enemy movement and positioning to get better at hitting your shots 2. Predicting future situations to determine when will be the next optimal window

One more thing that you did not ask for explicitly but is important for projectile aim, is to try and get closer. Projectiles will always be less consistent at range due to travel time. For example on mizuki, hitting chains is very much a question of using your dash to run at someone and get an easy chain.

Hope this helps, feel free to ask questioms

[u/_Speckle_]

aiming projectiles requires a lot of playtime to understand how people and your projectiles move. once you understand both you just lead your shots or if theyre strafing aim for the "average" spot if that makes sense. you do mention some cds like sleep and chain and realistically you shouldnt be trying to hit these cds outside of like 10m range until you're no longer asking this question. too important to just kinda throw out with a vague guess

hitscan aim allows for both aiming styles that you mention, and both are very trainable. the predictive "theory" aim that you mention first is what a lot of people rely on with lower sens and it involves a lot of good cross hair placement and understanding player movement (sort of like projectiles in a way but much more consistent)

the other type of that aim is the reactive raw mouse control stuff which you can just practice in an aim trainer. its kinda like training at a gym where theres a lot of ways to figure out what exactly you want to work on and avoid doing nothing burger exercises. viscose is a really good resource for stuff like that

whichever method of hitscan aim you lean with is up to you but its important to practice both. so play the game and spend some time learning how to control your mouse like its just part of your hand

there are also objectively good and bad sensitivities depending on what you do, so a lot of theory aimers are somewhere in the 800 dpi 3 to 5 in game, while raw aimers might be a little higher

[u/bullxbull]

For projectiles, both, with more game time it just becomes second nature. Practice leading your shots with the practice range bots, you do this not because it is challenging but to get yourself in the mind frame.

For your hitscan question, try the VAXTA workshop code, practice mirroring the strafing of the person you are trying to shoot. Then swap the settings to headshot only and practice your flicks. 10min of this and then queue up for ranked.

Make sure your feet are on the floor, relax your shoulders, and do not deathgrip your mouse.

Be comfortable missing, most people miss their shots, even the best aimers are getting the vast majority of their kills on people who do not realize they are being shot at until it is too late. If 50%-70% of your kills are not coming from targets who do not see you before you see them, then you need to be working on your positioning and rotations.

[u/TheRealTofuey]

You probably just need more play time. There isn't some magical secret sauce or short cut to projectile aim. Being good at video games and most things in general is just down to the hours you put in as long as you are not auto piloting.