The CLF is a so called terrorist organization that is more of an insurgency rather than an army. That means they are poorly equipped and they cannot partake in conventional warfare without getting obliterated. Due to that their tactics cannot be conventional, they need to be guerrilla ones. What does that mean.
They need to rely on numbers for starters since it is certain they will take heavy casualties and they need to rely on ambushes and harassment in order to wear the enemy down. They are better off engaging smaller groups of enemies in situations where they can surprise the enemy and fire first. They need to target the means the enemy uses to sustain themselves like medics, specialists and smartgunners (though for some it is hard due to NVGs) even if that means they will take casualties. They need to set up traps like IEDs that can be triggered from a distance dealing a lot of damage without risking exposing themselves. Explosives in general are a prime way of dealing high damage at minimum cost so grenades, grenade launchers and even rocket launchers need to be more common. They need to stay mobile in order to avoid getting steamrolled. Holding one position must be a last resort as they lack both armour and firepower in a gunfight.
There are some problems however that make these tactics hard and even impossible in game. The worst part is the motion detectors. If a marine has one it is impossible to sneak up on them, which is they only way a CLF can engage a marine or a group of marines and have any chance of dealing damage. So thatâs one. NVGs are also the bane of the guerrilla however since only few select marines have them it doesnât matter that much. As for the numbers I think lots of respawns are a must or it will end the same way the last HvH match ended, with the marines mopping the floor with the CLF that were outnumbered and outgunned at every turn. For that to work there also needs to be less intel on the enemy. At the HvH we knew where the enemy was holding the hostages and we just rolled there stomping on every enemy we faced. Flanks were rare and were usually 1 or 2 enemies that just fired a few shots before getting mowed down. We generally knew where the enemy was and thanks to their low numbers it was impossible for them to do any real damage. Cades were overwhelmed in minutes and CLF were lying on the floor dead every 10-15 blocks. Only reason there were not so many bodies was cause the CLF just didnât have the numbers. Constant replenishment of CLF is imo the ideal way to go about this, the same way that zombies spawn only there should be more spawn points that are not too far away or too close from the marines. I think that adding combat synths into the mix should also do to balance the odds better. Synths are players that are good at the game to a sufficient extent and can also use actual guerrilla tactics effectively like flanking and ambushing the enemy from the dark with firearms or using explosives while at the same time being able to survive the engagement. Lastly they need to see the enemy before the enemy sees them which means lots and lots of binos. Unfortunately scopes are out of the game in HvH so snipers are also out of the questions, though ranged weaponry is a big must in guerrilla warfare. I think we should revise the no scopes rule.
The CLF must move and attack in ways that make the marines scared of the dark in case thereâs a CLF with a rocket waiting to blow their ass up. Or to slowly advance in fear that under that wooden board thereâs an IED or a mine. Of course we cannot expect that your average player to use these tactics effectively however if we are to have CLF in events against the marines we must at least help and guide them into the way a guerrilla war is actually fought. So in short, ambushes, lots of explosives and low intel. These are the things that can make the CLF a more powerful opponent in HvH.