Overview
Action Quake 2 is a great game. However, and speaking
from personal experience, if you are a complete newcomer to the world of mods and online
Quake, then it really can be a very daunting and awkward exercise to get it all correctly
installed and set up. I do not claim to know every bind, alias or console command, far
from it, but I do know enough now to be able to offer some practical advice on creating
simple and basic config files.
So
what's a config file then. Simply put a config file is a small text file that contains set
up information that Quake II, or in our case Action Quake 2 reads and acts upon when the
game is launched. Through a config file you can set up such things as your keyboard layout
for the game, any special binds that may be required (a bind is a keyboard command for the
game that cannot be set up directly from the in game menu) and certain advanced video
options for 3d cards.
In
the following paragraphs I intend to show two config files. One will be the most basic
config needed to get Action Quake 2 up and running, the other will be my very own config
file. In both instances I will explain in what I hope is clear and simple English what
each command does.
Creating The Config File
Ok then on with the show. The 1st thing you need to do is create your config file and
place it in the correct directory. The simplest way is to directly download one of the
example config files from this page ( you will need to rename the files to
"autoexec.cfg" without the quotes before placing them in your action directory)
You will then need to edit them to suit the keyboard set-up that you are most comfortable
with (using a programme such as notepad). If you read all the readme files that come with
AQ2, and read all the explanations on this guide page, you really shouldn't have too much
trouble.
Basic Config - click HERE to download the basic config file.
The 1st thing you should do is to set up the keys you wish to use for movement and basic
gameplay from the actual menu system inside the game. This basic config only includes for
the additional keys that are required to play Action Quake, but which cannot be set up
from the game menu itself. Text written in this colour refers
to the keystrokes used to carry out an action. Unfortunately being the awkward bugger that
I am I have a pretty unique set up so most of you will want to change at least some of
these keys. Text written in this colour refers to the
essential Action Quake binds that you must have to be able to play the game. Finally text
written in this colour refers to a text message that will be
displayed on screen when the relevant key is pressed. This can and should be edited by you
to say something amusing/arrogant/insulting, something to reflect your personality (or
lack thereof ;-P) The actual commands contained in this file are listed and explained
below.
// weapons
bind KP_END "use Combat Knife"
bind KP_DOWNARROW "use Blaster"
bind KP_PGDN "use special"
bind KP_LEFTARROW "use A 2nd Pistol"
bind KP_5 "use M26 Fragmentation Grenade"
*
Explanation - (Weapons) ok the commands listed after //weapons relate to the selection of
weapons in Action Quake 2. It is very important that these keys be located in a most
convenient position for you as nothing is more annoying than dying while you desperately
attempt to switch weapons. These should all be fairly self explanatory but I will briefly
expand on some of the binds. The "use blaster" bind actually refers to the
Pistol so pressing this key will switch you from whatever weapon you are holding at the
time to the pistol. The "use special" bind is a
very important bind. This is used to select whatever special weapon you may be carrying,
such as the M4 assault rifle, MP5/10 machine gun etc. The "use A 2nd Pistol"
bind puts you into akimbo pistol mode, where you have a pistol in each hand. Obviously you
will 1st need to acquire a 2nd pistol (by looting a corpse). The "use M26
Fragmentation Grenade" bind selects grenades (should you have one, and should the
server you are playing on support them) once selected, the grenades are configurable with
the use of the "weapon" bind key to either short,
medium or long range throw.
// mouse stuff
bind mouse1 "+attack"
bind mouse3 "weapon"
bind mouse2 "reload"
* Explanation -
(Mouse Stuff) Some very important binds here, as usual make sure and use keys that you are
comfortable finding in a hurry, as you can see I like to have final weapon control
(firing, reloading etc) on the mouse but I know many who don't. The 1st bind here is
simply the fire key and can be set up from the in game menu system. As the other two binds
are so important I will give a brief explanation of their in game use. The "weapon" bind is used to change the mode of operation of
certain weapons. For the
sniper rifle pressing this key will change to zoom mode, repeated presses increase the
zoom from 2X to 4X to 6X with a further press taking you back out of zoom mode. For the
MP5/10 and M4 pressing this key puts the weapons into semi-auto 3 shot mode (slightly more
accurate) with an additional press putting the weapons back into fully automatic firing
mode. For the pistol, it switches between semi-automatic and automatic (again
semi-automatic being more accurate). For the knife, it switches between slashing and
throwing. The "reload" bind
is simply used to reload your currently selected weapon.
// general stuff
bind KP_PLUS "drop item"
bind / "bandage"
bind SPACE "opendoor"
bind KP_MINUS "drop weapon"
bind c "irvision"
*
Explanation - (General stuff) These binds form the very heart of Action Quake 2 and as
such warrant full explanation. "drop item" In
Action Quake 2 you get to carry one special item. These items are the kevlar vest, laser
sight, bunny slippers, the silencer, and the bandolier. During a game circumstances and
the weapon you are carrying can often change rendering your current special item useless
(laser site and shotgun anyone?). You will find new items laying next to the corpses of
fallen player. To be able to pick them up you 1st need to drop whatever special item you
are currently carrying. "bandage" If you get hit
you will bleed, and you will continue to bleed until you die unless you do something about
it. bandaging will stop the bleeding, it will also fix up broken ankles and stop you from
limping after high falls. Note however that you will be unable to use your weapon for 6
seconds while you bandage. After 3 seconds you will stop bleeding, and be able to run
again. "opendoor" real simple this one, used to
err..open doors and stuff :-) "drop weapon" You
start all rounds in Action Quake 2 with a pistol and a knife. In team games you also get
to select one special weapon and one special item (see above for info on special items).
The special weapons are the M4 assault rifle, the MP5/10 automatic machine gun, the M3
super 90 shotgun, the SSG 300 sniper rifle and the 12 gauge sawn off shotgun (or hand
cannon). If during a round you run out of ammunition it is advisable to dump your current
weapon and go try finding a corpse to loot. Binding a key to "drop
weapon" enables you to drop your current special weapon and go pick up another
(hopefully one with ammo in it). "irvision" only
available if you are carrying a bandolier this is a vision enhancement that makes ALL
players glow red, making those sneaky darkness campers stick out like sore thumbs.
// communication
bind t "messagemode" /send a message
bind y "messagemode2"
/send a message only to team-mates
bind 1 "radio 1"
bind 2 "radio 2"
bind 3 "radio 3"
bind 4 "radio 4"
bind 5 "radio 5"
bind 6 "radio 6"
bind 7 "radio 7"
bind 8 "radio 8"
bind 9 "radio 9"
bind 0 "radio 10"
*
Explanation - (communication) There are times when the built in radio messages are not
what you want to say. In this case it is possible to type any message you like that will
appear in text format on the screen of just your team, or all players depending which
message mode you use. Using the binds messagemode (sends a message to all players) and
messagemode2 (sends a message only to team mates) you can relay any pearls of wisdom that
you care to share. So for instance using the binds as the appear above, pressing the
"T" key and then typing a message would result in that message being displayed
on the screen of all players in the game. Pressing the "Y" key however would
mean that your message only appears on the screen of your team mates.
// Radio Commands
bind b "radio enemys; say_team I
have my eye on them"
bind m "radio teamdown; say_team the
bastards got one"
bind v "radio cover;
say_team Spray some lead and cover me!!!"
bind u "radio im_hit; say_team Ouch
that stings :-("
bind j "radio go; say_team Go!!!"
bind k "radio treport;
say_team I fear I am alone in the world"
bind l "radio reportin;
say_team I think therefore I am!"
bind n "radio enemyd; say_team awwwww
get mummy kiss it better"
bind w "radio forward"
bind a "radio up"
bind q "radio left"
bind e "radio right"
bind s "radio back"
bind d "radio down"
*
Explanation - (Radio Commands) when the appropriate key is pressed, a stock phrase built
into the game will be spoken and the text message (indicated in blue) will be displayed on
screen. This phrase and message will only be heard and seen by your team mates and those
already dead. You should change the text message to suit yourself. Where there is no text
message, only the voice will be heard. Below is listed what the game actually says when
the key is pressed. You will note that in the case of radio messages that have attached
text messages, what is said by the voice can be different to the text message. Sheesh that
all sounds a lot more complicated than it actually is...just try it and you will see
instantly what I mean :-)
radio
enmys - voice says "enemy spotted"
radio teamdown - voice says "team mate down"
radio cover - voice says "cover me"
radio im_hit - voice syas I'm hit
radio go - voice says "Go"
radio treport - voice says "team report In"
radio reportin - voice says "reporting In"
radio enemyd - voice says "enemy down"
NB/
As a final note always ensure that you dont bind different actions to the same key by
mistake. Obvious I know, but easily done :-)
Click
HERE to check out the advanced
Config file.
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