Knife

Overview

“Quiet and always available, the knife has a fast, low-damage primary attack and a slow, high-damage secondary attack. A backstab will earn quiet players an instant kill.”
―Official description

The knife is the basic melee weapon in the Counter-Strike series. It is available to all players by default and cannot be dropped.

Overview

For every player, the knife is a melee weapon in the 3rd weapon slot. When held, players are able to run at the fastest speed possible, which is measured at 250 units/second. In Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, only the knife grants no speed reduction.

The Arms Deal update of Global Offensive introduced new cosmetic knives.

Counter-Strike: Global Offensive
Hitbox	Primary Attack		Secondary Attack
Hitbox	Armored	Unarmored	Armored	Unarmored
Head	34 or 21*	40 or 25*	55	65
Chest & Arm	34 or 21*	40 or 25*	55	65
Stomach	34 or 21*	40 or 25*	55	65
Leg	34 or 21*	40 or 25*	55	65
Back	76	90	153	180
Red signifies a fatal hit
* Deals reduced damage on any consecutive hit.

Counter-Strike: Source
Hitbox	Primary Attack		Secondary Attack
Hitbox	Armored	Unarmored	Armored	Unarmored
Head	20 or 15*	20 or 15*	55	65
Chest & Arm	20 or 15*	20 or 15*	55	65
Stomach	20 or 15*	20 or 15*	55	65
Leg	20 or 15*	20 or 15*	55	65
Back	20 or 15*	20 or 15*	195	195
Red signifies a fatal hit
* Deals reduced damage on any consecutive hit.

Counter-Strike 1.6 and Counter-Strike: Condition Zero
Hitbox	Primary Attack		Secondary Attack
Hitbox	Unarmored	Armored	Unarmored	Armored
Head	60	50	260	250
Chest & Arm	15	12	65	55
Stomach	15	12	65	55
Leg	15	12	65	55
Back	15	12	195 (660 head)	165 (660 head)
Red signifies a fatal hit

Multiplayer

Every player starts out with a knife. Unlike the other weapons, it cannot be dropped.
The knife has a fast, low-damage primary attack and a slow, high-damage secondary attack which can kill most opponents with two stabs (one if the back of a target is attacked).
Players are able to run at the fastest speed possible, 250 units/second, and for that reason it is often used when rushing. With any weapon or equipment other than the knife you run slower than 250 units/second, with the speed depending on the weapon (from 245 for grenades to 195 for LMGs).
- There is an exception though as a Steyr Scout user can run at 260 units/second.
In Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, the Gold Knife was added to Arsenal: Arms race scenario as the last weapon requiring a kill. It was only added to distinguish it from a normal knife kill in Arsenal Mode.

Counter-Strike: Condition Zero Deleted Scenes

The weapon appears as a different model and has a unique stab animation. Compared to its multiplayer counterpart, it has a slower swing rate but does slightly more damage.

If an enemy target was unaware of the player, a single slash or stab will kill him instantly.

Advantages

Fairly quiet.
Always available with no cost.
Increased movement speed when drawn compared to most other weapons, allowing for greater mobility when traversing the map or agility for outmaneuvering opponents.
A good weapon to wield if both your primary and secondary weapons have to be reloaded.
A last resort when facing a confused enemy.
Given the short range, it is considered very embarrassing to be killed by a knife and can be detrimental to an opponent's morale, especially if the victim has a powerful weapon.
Slashing at the back of an enemy player allows a quick and easy one-hit kill
In Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, this weapon offers the most amount of money as a reward for eliminating an opponent ($1500 in competitive mode and $750 in casual mode).
- Moreover in Deathmatch, eliminating an opponent with the knife awards the highest amount of points (20 points) and a bonus is offered at +10 points.

Disadvantages

Low damage done in primary attack.
Low rate of fire in secondary attack.
Very short range.
Almost useless in a head-on attack unless the enemy is out of ammo or does not expect you.
Some enemies (usually bots) can still detect a death if one of their team members is killed by a knife and the dying sound is heard.
When armed with the Tactical Shield, users can only inflict small amounts of damage and suffer a low rate of fire. Moreover, players cannot perform an instant kill with a back-stab.
Lower movement speed than the Scout in older games.

Gameplay

Tactics

The knife is useful when you need to run fast, especially when leaving a bombsite that is about to explode, while you have a firearm that is heavier than the knife. However, it should not be used when you have contact with other enemies.
- The only weapon that beats the knife in movement speed is the Scout in older games.
If you and your opponent are both injured and the last members of your respective teams, running around with a knife and (accidentally) encountering them can result in a kill with a knife if it's close quarters. This is best done if your opponent doesn't have a powerful weapon out and your arrival is unexpected: meaning your opponent isn't camping and is running around as well.
Keep in mind that the secondary attack has shorter range. As an example, the secondary attack does not reach the ground you're standing on unless you crouch, but the primary attack does.
If confronting an opponent at close to mid range and both of you have used most, if not all, of your ammunition for both your primary and secondary weapons, quickly draw out your knife to go for the kill as it is quicker than reloading and both of you are already moderately injured. Thus, the first one to hit the other will usually win. However, this tactic is not recommended if you are facing more than one opponent or for long ranges.
- Be warned however, depending on how hasty enemies are, they may simply run backward while reloading their weapons instead of challenging you with the knife. If you unable to hit any retreating foes, quickly fall back far away from the position of assailants and quickly reload your weapon. However, if they do switch to the knife, killing enemies will depend on your reaction, skill, and luck.
Unlike firearms, using the knife will only make a small amount noise within the area, though it is still louder than firearms that are fitted with a silencer.
When an enemy target is unaware of your location or they are attacking your teammates while you are behind him, you can sneak behind the enemy and stab him; a single stab will kill the target instantly. This is not recommended when multiple enemies are at same area, unless they are not paying attention.
- Footsteps play an important role when attempting to backstab someone. If you run too much, you will be detected. Stab at the back of a target and run only if they are distracted or when reaching close proximity.
When engaged in hand-to-hand combat, aim for the face of the target, as it will get an instant kill in Counter-Strike 1.6 and in Condition Zero. Avoid engaging the enemy head-on when your health is below 45m as a secondary attack will kill you instantly.
- Depending on the distance and the enemy's health, it may be more wise to use the primary attack than the secondary attack and vice versa.
The knife is useful for breaking objects since it does not use ammunition and it makes less noise.

Counter-tactics

If you encounter an enemy who is wielding the Knife in open areas (provided they are not at point blank range), he can be easily killed with any firearms since switching back to another weapon takes time.
- However, this can be seen as a lack of sportsmanship in special cases, such as when a knife duel is declared.
Avoid engaging multiple enemies with the Knife in hand-to-hand combat as you are unlikely to survive.
In later or near the end of the round, if your location is too quiet, look every 10 second behind you so the enemy is unlikely to kill you with a backstab. Also, listen to footsteps as this is an important tactic to prevent getting killed.
- When defusing the bomb, make sure that all Terrorists are killed. If not, have at least one backup unit next to you so the enemy cannot kill you with a knife from behind while you defuse the bomb.
When engaging an enemy from afar (especially with a rifle), make sure there is either someone guarding your back or find a secure position as one can come up from behind with a knife while their teammate/s distract you.

Achievements

Weapon

Knife Expert
Kill 100 enemy players with the knife

Kill

Make the Cut
Win a knife fight

Sknifed
Kill a zoomed-in enemy sniper with a knife

Street Fighter
Kill an enemy player with a knife during the pistol round

The Bleeding Edge
Win 100 knife fights

Weapon Specialist

Knife Expert
Kill 100 enemies with the knife.

Combat Skills

Make the Cut
Win a knife fight.

The Bleeding Edge
Win 100 knife fights.

Sknifed
Kill a zoomed-in enemy sniper with a knife.

Street Fighter
Kill an enemy with a knife during the Pistol Round in Competitive mode.

Arms Race & Demolition

Knife on Knife
Kill an enemy who is on gold knife level with your own knife in Arms Race or Demolition mode.

Gallery

Main article: Knife/Gallery

Trivia

The knife is the only weapon that cannot be purchased and cannot be dropped.
The knife included in Counter-Strike 1.0 - 1.5 and Deleted Scenes is modeled after the SOG Seal 2000 knife.
The knife included in Counter-Strike 1.6 and Counter-Strike: Source is modeled after the Bad Land Bowie made by custom knife maker Mick Strider.
The Combat Knife in the German version of Left 4 Dead 2 is a direct port of the Counter-Strike: Source version.
The knife in Deleted Scenes does not have an idle animation, the secondary attack will have a unique animation as well.
In Counter-Strike: Condition Zero, there are new animations and sounds for the knife. If the player is to use the secondary attack with the knife equiped on a solid surface or on another player, the knife has a stab animation in which the knife twists. Otherwise, the animation does not occur if the player is swinging the knife at empty space.
In Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, the Counter-Terrorists use a military grade combat knife, modeled after the German Eickhorn Recondo IV. The Terrorists use a traditional Persian blade shape knife.
In Deleted Scenes, Turn of the Crank is the only mission that the player is not equipped with a knife.
Bots will only use the knife if all firearms and equipment have been restricted, their weapons have run out of ammo, at the beginning of a round for rushing purposes, or they are attempting to leave a bombsite before the C4 explodes. Bots set on higher difficulty will equip knife first until they encounter the enemy.
The kill icon in Counter-Strike 1.6 and Condition Zero is reused from Counter-Strike 1.0's knife world model.
In Counter-Strike and in Condition Zero, if a player is killed with knife, some unique dying animations may be used.
In Counter-Strike 1.6, the world model and the Tactical Shield player model of the knife is reused from CS 1.5
In Counter-Strike: Source, the slash and stab animations are switched.
Counter-Strike: Global Offensive includes special animations for backstabbing. For the primary attack, the character thrusts with the tip of the knife, and the secondary attack is a stab with a backhand grip.
In Counter-Strike: Global Offensive Beta, the knife had different attack animations.
In the alpha version of Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, the Bayonet was the Counter-Terrorist knife, while the Flip Knife was the Terrorist knife.

External links

Combat knife at Wikipedia.