Day of Defeat: Source contains six classes for each team. Every class has a different weapon pre-set, with some differences between them being major while others are minor. Neither class starts with any health or armor advantages... Just different weapon pre-sets. The U.S. Army wears tan uniforms with olive pants, along with a standard army helmet and combat boots. The Wehrmacht wear dark black uniforms with a standard helmet and black boots. Be sure to check your targets before you shoot, as some servers allow friendly fire (which means that you are able to shoot your team-mates and kill them). Below is a list of each class pertaining to its team:
U.S. Army (Allies)[edit]
The U.S. Army (or Allies) are the combatants of the Wehrmacht (the Axis). They are viewed as the "good guys" in Day of Defeat: Source and have a weapon set very different from the opposite team, relying less on bolt-action firearms and more on fast automatic weapons.
Rifleman[edit]
- Primary firearm: M1 Garand
- Secondary firearm: N/A
- Equipment: Four rifle grenades
- Melee weapon: M1918 trench knife
The M1 Garand rifle is very different from its Wehrmacht counter-part, as it is semi-automatic instead of bolt-action. Because it is semi-automatic, you can keep firing the rifle as fast as you can instead of Wehrmacht players, who have to pull the bolt to trigger the next round. This makes the M1 Garand shine in indoor and medium-range outdoor environments because it can take out foes quickly and effectively without the danger of a delay. However, the semi-automatic benefit comes with a drawback: you cannot reload the M1 Garand until its clip depletes, the game restricts mid-clip ejecting and reloading to somewhat better balance this rifle with the German K98, if not, the M1 would hold every advantage over the K98. Once you shoot the entire clip, you will automatically reload (it is suggested that if you have less than three bullets, you should just waste them in order to reload quickly and easily). Keep an eye on how much ammo you have because that factor can lead to a quick defeat if you're not careful. Another drawback of the M1 Garand is that it is not as powerful as its German counter-part, so try to go for accurate headshots and chestshots as much as possible; use your ironsights (default: right mouse button) in order to zoom in and get a more accurate shot in (remember that the tip of the ironsight is where the bullet will approximately hit).
Riflemen also come equipped with two rifle grenades, which can be shot great distances and are great for clearing out snipers, machine gunners, or larger groups of enemies. Unlike a hand grenade, you cannot pull the pin and hold it in your hand in order to time the explosion. Instead, the pin is pulled the moment the grenade is fired. Some players shoot the grenade straight down, pick it up (with the "use" button), and then throw it some time later. Be careful, though. The fuse is only three seconds long instead of the normal five seconds for a hand grenade.
When in close quarter combat remember to use your knife since you don't have a secondary firearm.
Assault[edit]
- Primary firearm: M1A1 Thompson (with melee)
- Secondary firearm: Colt M1911A1
- Equipment: One MKllA1 fragmentation grenade and one M18 smoke grenade
- Melee weapon: Punch (with M1A1 Thompson)
Assault players have one of the more well-known sub-machine guns: the M1A1 Thompson (also called the "tommy gun"). The M1A1 Thompson is quite similar to its German counter-part, as there aren't too many differences between them. It is a very lightweight gun with superior firing speed and reload time; ammo shouldn't be a problem since you'll have plenty of magazines, but keep an eye on your ammo since this weapon can spit out bullets faster than you think. This is strictly a close to medium-range firearm... Don't even think about shooting at long ranges because you'll never hit anything. Shoot in small short bursts, aiming for the chest area, and try not to waste an entire magazine on a single enemy. The M1A1 Thompson is the superior weapon in close-range combat, and is almost unstoppable in indoor environments because of its excellent spray and firing speed. The most effective way to use the Assault class is to keep moving and firing in short, accurate bursts.
The secondary fire for the gun is a punch, which is about as powerful as a knife (one to three hit kills). It's good for killing unsuspecting victims from behind so that you don't waste ammo and keep a full magazine. Also, you can punch in the middle of reloading, giving the Assault class a decisive advantage during close range combat. However, this interrupts the reloading process completely.
If you're out of ammo in your primary gun and your enemy has managed to provide some distance between you two so that you cannot punch him, your best bet is to either find cover and reload or switch to your pistol and chase after him and fire. The pistol can fire very fast but is weak and inaccurate.
Assault players also spawn with one MKllA1 fragmentation grenade (good for clearing out snipers, machine gunners and large groups) and an M18 smoke grenade. The Assault class is the only class that spawns with a smoke grenade, so this makes the class especially unique. The smoke grenade can be used to create a "wall" of smoke wherever one is needed. When placed in front of an enemy sniper or MG, it blocks their view completely, allowing you and your team-mates to run past or even attack head on. Smoke grenades can also be thrown into choke points, allowing you and your team-mates to pass through more safely. Finally, smoke grenades can also be thrown at potential MG setup spots to allow a team-mate MG time to setup there without being killed by enemy fire. Once the smoke clears, the MG must quickly take out any exposed enemies so as not to get killed. This technique is most effective with an additional Sniper or Support player in the smoke to back the MG up.
Support[edit]
- Primary firearm: M1918A2 Browning Automatic Rifle (BAR)
- Secondary firearm: N/A
- Equipment: Two MKllA1 fragmentation grenades
- Melee weapon: M1918 trench knife
The Support class is unique, carrying the BAR (which is capable of being semi-automatic or fully automatic) and two grenades (which are very important for offense). The BAR is very similar to its German counter-part, although the STG 44 is somewhat more precise. The BAR fires slower and has worse recoil than the Thompson, but it is also more powerful. Pulling the mouse down while firing will help control the recoil to a certain degree. Moving while firing will yield the worst accuracy, making the Support class less mobile than the Assault class. Hence, it is best to crouch or prone while shooting to dramatically (in the case of proning) reduce the effects of recoil. Use the semi-automatic mode for more accuracy during long-distance shots.
The Support class is the only class that comes with two fragmentation hand grenades. Grenades can be throw into windows to kill MGs or snipers, or thrown into groups of enemies for maximum damage. They have a five second fuse, and you can pull the pin without throwing the grenade. The longer you hold the grenade the further you throw it. Players commonly hold a grenade for a few seconds before throwing so that they can throw them further and so that the enemy doesn't have time to react or throw it back. Be careful not to hold a grenade for too long and accidentally kill yourself and possibly your team-mates. An enemy near an exploding grenade, whether or not they are hurt by it, will be blinded for a moment, making that an ideal time to rush in and kill him before he recovers.
The Support class is best when used to support another class. With a sniper, the support player can make sure no one rushes the sniper and can use his fragmentation grenades to flush out enemies behind cover for the sniper to kill. With an assault player, the support player can provide cover fire for the assault player while he rushes or reloads and use his grenades to push forward with the assault. With a rifleman, the support player can handle any enemies that get too close and the combined power of their frag grenades can be used to quickly cover a whole area with explosives. With a rocket player, the support player can defend the vulnerable rocket player while he reloads or prepares to shoot. With an MG, the support player can provide cover fire while the MG deploys. The fact that the Support class is most effective when crouching or prone also makes it useful for holding strategic points on a map, such as chokepoints, when an MG or sniper is unavailable.
Don't forget about that handy trench knife for sneak attacks!
Sniper[edit]
- Primary firearm: Springfield M1903A4
- Secondary firearm: Colt M1911A1
- Equipment: N/A
- Melee weapon: M1918 trench knife
Of course there's a Sniper, and in Day of Defeat: Source, a Sniper player can be extremely effective. Hits to the torso from the Springfield will inflict 120 damage, killing the target instantly. Headshots inflict 300 damage, and can easily pierce the helmets donned by all players. Shots to legs or arms will inflict 90 damage, not quite enough to finish off a player with full health (100). When looking through the scope the player moves much slower, allowing the player to inch around corners where mg's and opposing snipers lie. The scope of the Springfield has a zoom effect, with a thin horizontal and vertical line forming the cross-hairs. The Springfield is inaccurate when not looking through the scope, so snipers are advised to find cover in a window or behind other scenery so they can safely snipe without coming under too much fire. When en route to a sniper spot, it is recommended that you have your pistol out as it is more useful in close combat than the Springfield. When using the scope, the crosshairs drift slowly in a figure-8 pattern, effectively reducing your accuracy. However, this effect can be reduced by crouching or proning. When looking down the scope of the Springfield, your area of visibility is greatly decreased. This means that enemies can easily sneak up behind you and kill you with their melee weapon, which can not only inflict up to 300 damage points when the player is looking down the scope, but will also give the attacking player up to 20 points in their stats.
Machine gunner[edit]
- Primary firearm: Browning M1919A6
- Secondary firearm: Colt M1911A1
- Equipment: N/A
- Melee weapon: M1918 trench knife
Machine guns are the classic camping weapon on DoD:S, and when well placed will net the user a very high kill death ratio. The American MG has a high rate of fire (but not nearly as high as its German counterpart), and a huge recoil when held normally. When undeployed, the MG is a fairly useless weapon as the recoil will cause the gun to almost instantly point upwards in the players hands, and cause the player to lose most of their stamina. To deploy a machine gun, totally eliminating its recoil, you must press the secondary fire button. A machine gun can only be deployed on a ledge, sandbag or when prone (default z key). A shot to the head will instantly kill, causing over 200 damage, and other shots, usually inflicting over 50 damage, soon mash opposing players due to the high rate of fire. The US MG is more accurate than the German MG, but as it is viewed as a spraying weapon this does not particularly matter. Due to their fixed status when deployed, players using MGs are particularly vulnerable to grenade, flank, melee and rocket attacks. However, a skilful MG user will be able to kill the player as they peep round a corner to launch their attack and move out of the way before they are killed. MGs are only capable of being reloaded when deployed, causing occasional vulnerability when the large ammo belt runs out. It must also be noted that MGs are the only weapons capable of shooting through walls, albeit at greatly reduced damage.
Rocket[edit]
- Primary firearm: M9A1 Bazooka
- Secondary firearm: M1 Carbine
- Equipment: N/A
- Melee weapon: M1918 trench knife
The rocket is probably the hardest class to handle correctly, and therefore the one which nets you the most points in terms of stats. The rocket launcher first of all must be mounted on the shoulder using secondary fire, causing the player to move at a similar speed as a player looking down the scope of a sniper rifle, and when fired the rockets are relatively slow moving (so alert players can dodge them over longer distances) and are not always powerful enough to secure a kill. Also the rocket only comes with 5 rockets per respawn, so its use is often limited. The use of rocket launchers is best against deployed MGs, as the user can sneak round a corner, fire, and run back again, hopefully killing the mg without being killed themselves. The rocket launcher is also effective when shooting into small rooms where enemies such as snipers cannot easily escape from, and also against larger groups of enemies. It must also be taken into account that over longer distances, a rocket will dip in it's path, so the player must aim slightly above the target. More advanced rocket users will be able to use the rocket launcher in closer combat, shooting at the oppositions feet and causing heavy damage. Due to the long reload and need to mount the rocket on the shoulder to fire, US rocket players have a good shorter range weapon at their disposal. The M1 carbine is very similar to its M1 Garand cousin, except with twice the rate of fire at the cost of being only half as powerful. The carbine can be quickly reloaded in a similar way to the Thomson, but doesn't have the iron sights of the Garand. The accuracy is better than the pistol, and shots to the head will instantly kill.
Wehrmacht (Axis)[edit]
The Wehrmacht (or Axis) are the combatants of the U.S. Army (the Allies). They are viewed as the "bad guys" in Day of Defeat: Source and have a weapon set very different from the opposite team, relying more on bolt-action firearms and less on fast automatic weapons.
Rifleman[edit]
- Primary firearm: Mauser Karabiner 98 Kurz
- Secondary firearm: N/A
- Equipment: Two rifle grenades
- Melee weapon: Entrenchment spade
More advanced players are likely to find the German rifle more useful than the Garand, due to it's ability to easily cause 1 hit kills. Like the Garand, the 98K rifle has extremely accurate iron sights and is accurate even when not using them. The rifle however will inflict 110 damage for a torso shot, rather than the 80 damage caused by the US rifle, this means all hits that hit the torso or head will instantly kill the target. However the rifle is bolt action, so the user is vulnerable when between shots, especially at closer range combat when they miss a shot. Due to this, it is advisable to find cover between shots so that the player always has a bullet in the chamber when facing the opposition. The 98K also has a magazine capacity of just 5 compared to the Garand's much larger clip. However the rifle can be loaded whenever the user requires, and at a similar speed to that of the US rifle.
Assault[edit]
- Primary firearm: Maschinenpistole 40 (with melee)
- Secondary firearm: Walther P38
- Equipment: One Stielhandgranate 24 fragmentation grenade and one Stielhandgranate 24 smoke grenade
- Melee weapon: Punch (with Maschinenpistole 40)
The German assault role is pretty much the same as the US in every way except the look of the weapons supplied.
Support[edit]
- Primary firearm: Sturmgewehr 44
- Secondary firearm: N/A
- Equipment: Two Stielhandgranates 24 fragmentation grenades
- Melee weapon: Entrenchment spade
Equipped with the worlds first successfully fielded Assault Rifle, the STG44 (Sturmgewehr 44), this class plays an important role in both offence and defense. Again the support role is almost the same in both teams, however the German assault rifle has a bigger magazine size and is slightly more accurate.
Sniper[edit]
- Primary firearm: Mauser Karabiner 98 Kurz (with scope)
- Secondary firearm: Walther P38
- Equipment: N/A
- Melee weapon: Entrenchment spade
The German sniper only differs from its US counterpart in that its crosshairs are made up of a thick horizontal line which tapers in the middle (leaving a gap), and a thick vertical line that runs from the bottom of the scope to just below the centre, tapering towards the end. This means that at first the German sniper can be harder to master, but once the player has had some practice with it, it is just as effective as the Springfield.
Machine gunner[edit]
- Primary firearm: Maschinengewehr 42
- Secondary firearm: Walther P38
- Equipment: N/A
- Melee weapon: Entrenchment spade
The German machine gunner should take the same advice as the US machine gunner. However the German MG42 has a much greater rate of fire than its US counterpart, making it easier to kill players as they try to dash across your line of sight. However, when continuously fired, the MG42 will overheat (there is a bar in the bottom right hand corner of the screen) causing the player to be vulnerable while they wait for the gun to cool down, enabling fire again. The German MG has a larger ammo belt size (250) compared to the US MG's 150 belt size. However this is compensated for in rate of fire.
Rocket[edit]
- Primary firearm: Panzerschreck RPZB 54
- Secondary firearm: Mauser M1932 C-96
- Equipment: N/A
- Melee weapon: Entrenchment spade
The German rocket is again essentially the same, although the Secondary firearm is very different. The C-96 is a machine pistol, with an even higher rate of fire than the MP40, although this causes it to eat its way through its short and limited magazines very quickly.