Building in Fortnite is evolving every day with new techniques and strategies emerging all the time. Building techniques have been around for a long time and are constantly being refined. Today, these techniques are the basis for a lot of moves players use in their everyday gameplay. While every player has different styles, a lot of the core moves are the same. As the counters and editing get more intense, it calls for some higher tier IQ and moves. Getting the basics down is important to the many steps it takes to get better at out-building and countering the opponent.
Alpine Ace performing a basic 90 // In game capture by Nicholas Rivera
Doing 90’s has become the cornerstone of building. When new and old players are ready to start learning how to build, 90’s are the go to. At first sight, 90’s look intimidating, especially if the player is watching someone speed through them. In reality, doing a 90 is very simple. Starting with a ramp, all a player has to do is place two walls, a floor and a ramp. However, simplicity and difficulty are two separate things.
In order to master 90’s, players must practice in creative for a good chunk of time before they flow naturally. Typically players will try to go too fast and ramp/floor over themselves, which slows the entire process. Players need to go in slow motion, placing a ramp, wall, another wall to the left/right (depending on the player), a floor beneath them, and a ramp. Repetition of good builds will build muscle memory and before too long players will get it down. Once a player starts doing 90’s consistently, the speed will come. Forced speed causes errors and is bad practice, so patience here in these reps. To see some 90’s in action, check out Frenzii’s youtube video on 90’s here, around 2:00 for some awesome footage.
Alpine Ace placing two roofs, editing through one // In game capture by Nicholas Rivera
Another great trick to learn for building is roofs. Roofs are used for coning or for normal building. In this instance, roofs are a great extension of doing 90’s. After two to three 90’s, players start to ramp out towards the enemy. When rushing at them, some enemies will attempt to place a roof overhead, leaving that player in a bad spot. Instead of getting trapped, players should place their own roof down at the suspected spot. When a player puts down their own roof, this allows them to edit through it and continue building up. This is useful because not only can you edit through, but it stops the enemy from blocking you off. This allows the player to stay in the fight and not get trapped early on. A great example of this in action is in ChronicLuis’ video here, around 1:15.
Alpine Ace building shortly after a side roof jump // In game capture by Nicholas Rivera
Known as a slightly harder move, side jumping is a great alternative for getting around enemy roofs. When an enemy places a roof in a players way, it is hard to readjust when it’s unexpected. Instead of turning around to build the other way, players can side jump the roof and place a floor. This move is hard to do without some practice, so it is important to learn it before-hand. Jumping at just the right time allows the player to floor next to the roof, allowing them to build up from there and take the high ground. This move is common, so mastering it will help stay with the curve for building. This move works so well because it is unexpected by most players and they stop building after they cone. A great example of this move in action is on EssentriX’s youtube video at around 1:49.
Alpine Ace running through roof/floor edit // In game capture by Nicholas Rivera
Another great move to boost building technique is floor/roof edits. While editing is fairly easy to do, placing a roof and a floor overhead and editing fast through both is not. Doing this move in one fluid motion takes practice, especially without stopping forward motion. The reason this move works so well is it covers over top of you in two layers. This makes anyone on the high ground unable to sneak a shot in or fire a Deagle through the build. It also works well because when a player puts their own roof down, an enemy can still block using a floor. With this method, you control both ways out, making it very hard for anyone to stop the player from building up. A great example of this can be found in Likezy’s youtube video here, where he breaks down and demonstrates the process at 2:08 minutes in.
ramp switch to roof edit-misdirection play // In game capture by Nicholas Rivera
Misdirection is a more advanced move because the player has to fake going one way and quickly switch to avoid being shot at. There are many ways to do this, but the purpose for all of them is the same. Misdirection is used to throw an enemy off guard and catch them in a spot they were not ready for. In building, misdirection can be done primarily in two ways. One way to misdirect an enemy is to flip a ramp overhead backwards, causing them to fall on top of you and killing them.
Another way is by editing. Editing windows and doors into a wall can have an enemy dazed, depending on how fast the player can edit. In this clip by Fortnite Clips, it shows Symfuhny quickly editing the wall multiple times to kill his opponent at 1:38. While a lot of players cannot edit this fast, this move can still be done to disorient an enemy. Editing to disorient is not easy to do, but mastered can be very effective in making an opponent shoot at something they should not have shot at. This gives the player the shotgun delay time to edit again and land a shot without the fear of getting hit.
Feature Image Courtesy of @_NicholasRivera
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