Any team consists of people. People have their own ways of thinking and acting. A team, to be effective should think and act like one.
To form an effective team within TeamFortress (Classic) a hierarchical structure will be needed at some point. If everybody is dealing with the enemy in their own way, you will get an undisciplined bunch of players. At a certain moment a team leader will have to be appointed or elected. In most cases the founder of a clan will be the team leader. However, commanding people is more difficult then is generally thought. Leading a team is not about ordering people around.

1. Be careful what you wish for. Many clans are founded, and many teams are formed because somebody wanted to lead people into battle. They do this without having the necessary experience, and sometimes even the knowledge, which is needed to actually lead a team into battle successfully. Most new leaders do not realize that a carefully built team can fall into disarray or become the joke of the league by just a little mistake somewhere along the line. The �Nike�-approach to setting up a team will work, but in maintaining a team it will spell disaster.

2. Learn the trade before becoming a leader. All leaders had to start somewhere: the people who founded some of the oldest clans in existence had no experience at all at how to lead a team. As a result only some leaders (and teams) survived. These people learnt it the hard way. When you want to found a clan, make sure you first have some experience with teams. Apply for membership at a known and renowned clan and become an active member. Find out what the mechanics and the procedures are and the chain of command. You will find out that leading a team is not as easy as it looks. It requires dedication, discipline, and caring for your team. Experience and good conduct lead to honour: every other path into mistake or error.

3. A good leader will be able to put aside his personal emotions and act on the basis of the team�s best interest. He/She will define that interest and put it into action by caring for his team. Often, young or new leaders will subject themselves to whatever passion they have at the moment (I hate this clan or that clan, I think I can beat the number one clan, etc.). This will confuse his team and people will start to abandon you. Work carefully and see the team as an entity that needs to grow, and learn. For example: If you are playing your first match, it might not be such a good idea to play against the best in the league, just because you think you can lead them better then the other side.

4.Create a staff around you. The continuity of a team is the goal of any leader. A good leader will therefore create a staff around him, which he trusts and which can be trusted to lead the team to the best of their ability in the absence of the leader. With this staff the leader should be as open as possible on his/her train of thought and proposed strategies. Outside a match the staff should form the leader's equal partners on strategy discussions. The leader could even decide to delegate the decisions of offence and defense to his staff. It could be envisaged that one person is responsible for the offence and one for the defense, this will give the leader complete freedom to ponder over strategic decisions. Under this staff squad leaders are responsible for their men. Now, this must not be misunderstood as some sort of bureaucracy. It should be viewed as the leader gives a basic strategy on what points in a battle should be taken, which enemies eliminated. The offensive aid will then brief the squad leaders about this, who in there turn act, and only communicate when something doesn't go according to plan. A good squad leader only listens and executes orders. Try therefore to incorporate the idea of the general staff and the officer corps in your clan. You�d be amazed at what psychological effect titles have on people. A leader should have around him a number of vice-leaders. These vice-leaders will lead a team in the event of the absence of a teamleader. If, and when, the teamleader steps down, the vice-leaders decide upon a new leader. Vice-teamleaders should be skilled in both offence commanding and defence commanding, so that the teamleader may use them, in case he decides to personally command a battle. Every vice leader should have under him a defensive and an offensive commander. These commanders are in charge of the motions of battle, and command the defence and offence. Under these commanders sergeants walk around who command squads of 2/3 people. This doesn�t mean that we now have an officer corps sitting in a mess somewhere drinking port and playing with their riding crops. The vice-teamleader, as commander of the team in the absence of the teamleader, runs around the field and fights wherever necessary to releave a situation or start an attack. He orders the attack or the defensive position. In this the commanders take over, they give situation specific commands to the sergeants and men in the field. (In TF, for instance, this can be done by the binds separating offence-calls from defence-calls). The sergeants have nothing else to do then to follow orders and keep their men together.

5.The team must follow orders and be disciplined. Insubordination should be ruled out. The key to a good team is team play. Now if the leader cannot trust upon the fact that his orders will be executed the effectiveness of the team is downgraded. Discipline is the key to good team play. As mentioned above, the command structure will give orders to the players. These players should then execute them, and not try to do something else. The commander or leader has the overview: the operative only sees where he stands. Now it is admitted that this sounds a bit strange within a game where much of the fighting takes place on a one-on-one basis. However, we must take into account that the team leader and his aides have prepared the strategy, gone through the motions, so they are (or should be) prepared for any event. An operative should practice his class and practice following orders.

6. A leader should be decisive. All orders during a match and in matters concerning the team should be part of a greater strategy or policy. If orders are recalled or changed too often then the team will become confused and will start to do things on their own, whereby you lose the discipline you have built up. The form of communication within TF also prevents a real fluid strategy oriented play-style.

7.Be everywhere at once. In battle be at the front during the offensive and make sure that you are in the first line when playing on defense. If the strategy is correctly planned then the leader is an auxiliary player, i.e., not really needed in the actual movements. This means he/she should lend a helping hand wherever possible.

8.Rewards to the deserving. The leader should recognize and award whoever stood out in battle. If a teammember stands out on a regular basis consideration should be given to award the team member with a staff position. In this way you can build up an officer corps in charge of certain classes. The officer will receive the order to train all others of his class to the best of his ability: sharing his knowledge to make others better players. Furthermore, with a staff created you will ensure the existence of the team even after you have stepped down as leader. Many leaders, unfortunately, have teams built up around them personally. This will always result in the withering away and even demise of the team as soon as the said leader steps down.

9.Respect your team members. You might be having delusions of grandeur, with leading a team and such, but without its members a team leader is alone. Give them the respect due, and they will respect you.

10.Be there for your team members when they need you. Your team members have chosen to be on your team, they have chosen to listen to your orders in battle. Honour that trust. If you are thinking of quitting your team members will notice when you're going through the motions, but are really trying to get out. Be honest to them and to yourself.

11.Study. With your aides and with your team members actively discuss strategies and tactics. Read some strategy documents. Know the principles. Good leaders can overview a situation with one glance and adjust strategy accordingly. Everything you can do in TeamFortress has been done in real wars before. Learn from the great commanders.

12.Push your team members forward. Give the members of your team the necessary nudges in the right direction to let them master new classes, new strategies and new tricks. Support your team. A team leader who is just interested in himself will never get that kind of blind trust or loyalty which you need in the matches.