The police teach tactics to win a gunfight, which explains why it’s rare to see crude criminals overcome real-life shootouts. The military teaches these strategies too, but that’s by the way. Let’s go ahead.

A gunfight is quite similar to hand-to-hand combat, in the sense that there are skills & tactics to adopt to overcome your opponent. A gun is such a dangerous weapon; did you think just anyone can shoot one much more win a gunfight? Forget what Hollywood shows you: you don’t believe that four teens without prior training would plan a bank robbery & come out victorious against 20+ trained police officers in a shootout. Do you?

4 Foremost Tactics to Win a Gunfight

Apart from the basic training you’ll go through before handling a gun, there are special tips & strategies to ensure you win a gunfight, and these are what this article discusses. It’s just like football. Everyone knows the basics are passing & shooting, but we also know there are special skill sets displayed by the extraordinary players. That’s what we want to help you develop…

However, note that 3 on 3 is better than 3 on 1. So, if you can get any help before or during a shootout, never hesitate to accept it. In fact, seek this help. That’s that… so, here we go.

Keep a Delightful Little Sidearm Pistol Handy

Weapons fire; weapons stop. This is a fact taught to all soldiers in the first lessons of weapon training. You have to know this because real-life guns are very different from what you use in Call of Duty. Weapons can stop firing for many reasons. It could be due to the exhaustion of bullets, or the tired tool could decide not to automatically reload after a take a shot (which would be because there’s a chunky metal stuck in your ejection port). So many reasons, but you get the idea already.

Now, a good shooter can pull out his magazine, cock his weapon & give the metal a shake or nudge to ease the jam, but this has to be done in about a second. And no, you’re NOT going to do that. What you will do in case of an instant jam is to sling that pistol & pull out your merry little fella. 

That little fella is your backup for some minutes. So, except you have about 30 of it tucked in your pants, you have to get a cover before your round exhausts & bring your main man back into the game.

Be Sure of Your Ejection Port

Yes, we all want to kiss John Wick & the Extractor guy (Hemsworth) for their shooting expertise, but not every one of their moves is that accurate — or at least real-life worthy, particularly when talking about bullet casings. All weapons have their ejection port, which is where you find the bullet, but that never leaves the barrel of your gun. This port is called the casing & oh, is it hot!

The 1st reason to know the exact position of your casing is that it is where to look when your gun jams — like we explained above. Often, your weapon hand because a bullet was not properly struck & thus incorrectly fed into the gun, and the casing us where you will find this. You never can tell when you’ll be carrying only one gun; you must know how to fix a jammed firearm as soon as possible. 

The 2nd reason, which I bet you’ll learn very quickly as a beginner, is that the ejection ports of some guns can eject bullet casings so forcefully that they’ll land on your skin & burn a sweet little tattoo on you.

The ejection port is typically on the right side of your weapon, so if you’re on the right of your shooting partners, you’ll be suffering a lot of little burns. And here’s what to do: suck it up! You all are trying to live.

If I Pull the Trigger, You Run

If you’re not shooting your gun, you should be running. Your gun buddies should know this too. You all should form a synchronized system, such that when you’re running, your partner is shooting to offer you cover — just as you should when your partner is running. You can do all this until you reach your bunker hideout.

This works when you’re attacking too. You can alternate the covering & running procedures to get closer to your enemies. This is called the “fire & movement” technique.

Remember, the logic behind this is that repeated shots at your enemy’s exact location will keep them pinned, seeking cover, so ensure to continue shooting at them until your man is safe. Your firearm should never jam at this moment.

Always Keep 3 Things in View

Your eyes have to be kept on three things as you duck, dive & pull the trigger. Now, I agree 3 is a lot to pay attention to when you’re battling for life, but they are necessary. They are the bad guys, your partner & a possible cover. This is all to be focused on.

Be aware of where your enemy is, where you have just seen them or where it sounds like their shots are coming from. You should keep your eyes on this because this is where you are raining shots on when your partner is up & running. 

Stay updated with your partner’s location & movements. When he is shooting, run. When he isn’t, ensure he isn’t down. Or it could be that he has lost track of where the bad guys are.

Lastly, continue looking out for spots you can move to. Whether you’re retreating or advancing, the key is to seek cover behind places you know bullets won’t meet you. Before moving to a spot, you should have an estimate of how long you can stay there.

Concluding The Tactics to Win a Gunfight

Winning a gunfight takes more than your initial training. It requires wits & techniques. In subsequent articles, we’ll look at other excellent tactics to win a gunfight, but until then: which of the 4 points above are you familiar with?