Ace of Spades Newbie Guide

What is Ace of Spades?

Ace of Spades is a first person shooter which is sourced base on a voxel engine that it is combined with a Minecraft-like sandbox environment. There are two teams, the Green Team and the Blue Team, which fight on randomly generated maps (Custom Maps) to capture the Intel. Players can use the sandbox environment to build forts to defend their intel, or tunnel under hills to achieve more strategic positions. These are just a few examples of things that can be done, however there are many things that only experience can guide you through. The rest of this quick guide will help you in getting started.

Installing AoS and setting up a User Name

This section of the guide will walk you through the process of installing AoS and setting up a User Name. By default, your username is "Deuce".

Step 1: Direct your web browser to the Ace of Spades official website.

Step 2: Click the link at the top to download the current beta version. (0.75)

Step 3: After downloading the installer, run it from the folder you downloaded it in.

Step 4: Once installed, go to Start > All Programs > Ace of Spades > Configuration.ini

Step 5: In this file, locate the line name "Deuce". Replace the name "Deuce" with the username of your liking (this will serve as your in-game id).

Step 6: Save and close the file.

You're done installing the game! If you need more help installing check this troubleshooting page, if you need more help with changing your user name visit this Changing Name page.

Basic Quick Links

The following pages cover all of the topics needed to learn the game-play.

Controls: Complete controls information for AoS

Map: Learn how to navigate the map.

Weapons: See what you have at your disposal

Tools: Important section about your toolbox

Joining a server

As the game is still in beta, finding a server can be troublesome. You can try to join a server through the Ace of Spades Website, which contains a list of many popular servers. Alternatively, you can try one of the many Server Browsers.

Using the Ace of Spades Website

To pick a server from the Ace of Spades website, go to [ace-spades.com/play] and find a server that looks good. It's best to pick one with a low ping (this is related to internet connection speed). Once you've found a good server, click on its name to join it.

If your client successfully connects to a server, the screen should go dark, and you will see a loading bar. Otherwise, you will see an error message. If this occurs, try a different server, or try again in a few minutes. The server might be full.

Choosing Team and Weapon

Upon entering the server, you will see a screen with two lists of names. These are the two teams. You can join the Blue Team by pressing '1', or the Green Team by pressing '2'.

You will then be prompted to select a starting weapon. As of the current version of Ace of Spades (Beta 0.60), you have three choices.

• The Rifle, a very accurate long-range weapon. Choose this weapon by pressing 1.
• The Submachine Gun, a fully automatic medium-range weapon. Choose this weapon by pressing 2.
• The Shotgun, a lethal close-range weapon. Choose this weapon by pressing 3.

Keep in mind that you can pick a different weapon or switch teams later. It is recommended that you try out each of the three weapons to get a feel for their strengths and weaknesses.

Tips and Advice

Movement

• You can walk over one-block-tall inclines without having to jump. This means that you should be able to walk on most hills smoothly and without having to jump.
• Crouching while walking makes you two blocks tall, so you can fit into small spaces. It also makes you move silently, even in water. Use this to infiltrate enemy bases.
• When charging the enemy, don't run forward in a straight line. Zigzag from side to side to make it harder for riflemen to headshot you.
• Stuck in the water? Go to the water's edge, walk right up against the land, and hold spacebar while walking forward. You should get out fairly quickly.
• Lost? Press M to bring up the map. Your location is shown as a light blue circle with a line pointing in the direction you're facing. Or change your weapon by pressing .(dot), to die and respawn.
• Be on the lookout for suspicious activity and sounds. Sappers would often try to dig tunnels to get closer to your intel and positions.

Combat

• Current weapon not working well? Press '.' to change your weapon.
• The rifle is a powerful marksman weapon, but has a small magazine. Aim carefully, and try to line up headshots: they're a one-hit kill. For long-range combat
• The SMG is fast-firing and high-damage, but has a lot of recoil. Fire in bursts or while crouching to counteract this. For mid-range combat
• The shotgun is capable of killing an enemy at close range with a single blast, but becomes less effective as the distance increases. For close-range combat
• Grenades are valuable. They can destroy blocks in a small area, and have a surprisingly large kill radius. Use them against enemies in cover.
• The shovel can be used as a melee weapon.
• Remember that you can destroy blocks by attacking them with your weapons. SMGs and shotguns in particular, due to their high volume of fire, tear through enemy cover like tissue paper. Just keep an eye on your ammo, as this tactic can quickly drain your supply.

Building

• Don't build like you were playing Minecraft. As fun as Minecraft may be, there's a war going on and you can't spend it building elaborate fortresses, creeper statues, or swastikas.
• Your buildings WILL be destroyed. That's why, especially on the front lines, simple, quick structures are best.
• Sometimes the best protection is the simplest. It's incredible how much difference a simple trench or low wall can make for a team.
• Your character is three blocks tall. While crouching, you become two blocks tall. Therefore, 2 blocks is the perfect height for trenches and walls: when standing, you can shoot over it, but you can still crouch to duck behind cover.
• Since you can climb onto single blocks without having to jump, you can construct staircases with single blocks.
• Remember that blocks can't float: if all the blocks supporting a structure are destroyed, the structure collapses. When building sniper towers and elevated bunkers, the more blocks touching the ground, the better. Don't forget to keep checking your buildings for damages.
• An easy way to rack up kills is to create a camouflaged bunker built into a mountainside. Just cover up the hole with green-colored blocks and you are barely noticeable.

Team Play

• Talk with your team! By pressing 'Y', you can send messages that only your team can see. By pressing 'T', you can send messages that can be seen by all players on the server. Working together lets you coordinate rushes and other tactics, and is a lot more fun.
• When trying to tell your teammates a location, use the map coordinates. Press M to view these coordinates.
• If you're building a structure and other teammates start adding parts onto it, don't get mad at them or try to boss them around. Just keep working and let them do their thing - sometimes they'll surprise you with cool ideas that you hadn't thought of.
• Pay attention to the chat window. If someone is trying to vote-kick a griefer, type "/y" to help them, even if the griefer is on the other team.
• Griefing just makes you look like a jerk. Don't do it.
• Don't understand what your team's talking about? Take a look at the lexicon for some popular slang terms.
• Have fun! It's a game. Don't take it too seriouslybewair of wmoose