Timings
Timing is at the core of parkour: understanding how ticks work and how to use them for gaining momentum is a crucial skill.
Timings constitute elementary bricks for more advanced strategies, such as Backward Momentum.
Getting used to these basic timings is essential in becoming proficient at parkour.
Randomness:
Because Minecraft's phyics is tick-based, there is an undeniable amount of randomness involved in timing. Most games use a fixed-tickrate input system, and players would experience similar randomness in those too. An argument could be made that timing your inputs perfectly (in intervals of exactly 50ms) negates the randomness; while a player could certainly train their muscle memory towards that goal, it would never reach the point of being infallible.
An important strategy in parkour is to use timings that grant the most consistent results.
For example, a very simple timing for headhitter jumps is the hh timing, but it only has a 1 tick opening and no failsafe. A much more consistent strategy is the pessi timing, which has a more lenient opening and offers enough time for recovery in case of failure.
Notations:
- t stands for tick.
- W,A,S,D refer to the movement keys (W=Forward, A=Left, S=Backward, D=Right)
Unless mentioned otherwise, the player is assumed to be always sprinting.
Basic Timings
| Name (and aliases) | Description | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 0t (jam) | Hold W, Jump on the same tick. | The most basic timing, used to initiate momentum. |
| 1t (hh) | Hold W, Jump one tick later. | hh refers to the most common use of this timing, headhitter jumps.
This timing can be used when no momentum is given. |
| 2t | Hold W, Jump two ticks later. | Used on extremely short momentums, such as a backwalled ladder. |
| Jump 0t (jump jam) | Hold Jump
Press and hold W when landing. |
More consistent than a regular jam timing, but has the same jump distance. |
| Jump 1t
(jump hh, a7hh) |
Hold Jump (double tap if low ceiling)
Press and hold W 1 tick before landing. |
Used on X-facing neos with very little momentum given.
With no ceiling, W is pressed 11 ticks after jumping. |
| -1t
(reverse hh, fast pessi hh) |
Hold Jump (double tap if low ceiling)
Press and hold W a tick later. |
Notably used for 1bm hh, can be used on short momentums.
Technically, this timing could be called "Jump 11t" if we follow the previous definition, but that is obviously not a good notation. |
| -2t (slow pessi hh) | Hold Jump
Press and hold W two ticks later. |
-1t, -2t, and -3t will all clear a 1bm hh if performed
from the back, looking straight. This makes for a very consistent strat for headhitter jumps. |
| Burst 0t
(burst jam, adv jam) |
Hold Sneak and W
Release Sneak and press Jump on the same tick. |
Sneaking on an edge does not reset the player's speed.
The jump distance increases with how long you sneak forward (it converges very quickly) Generally, you do not want to do this timing but rather a burst 1t. |
| Burst 1t
(burst hh, adv hh) |
Hold Sneak and W
Release Sneak, and press Jump one tick later. |
Used on the edge of a block, when no momentum is given.
You gain ~41% more momentum when sneaking with 45° strafe. With this strat and 45°, a no-momentum 3+1 becomes possible. |
| 1t run | When landing, run for 1 tick before jumping again. | Used for some specific jumps where it's better than jumping immediately,
or when the momentum doesn't allow the player to jump immediately. |
Advanced Timings
| Name (Aliases) | Description | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Force Momentum | Perform a jam or jump jam without sprinting.
Press Sprint 1 tick later, wait |
Used as a simple 1bm strat
Can easily do jumps like 4b, and is very consistent |
| Carpet 4.5 | Perform a jam or jump jam without sprinting.
Press Sprint 4 ticks later, do a 1t run before jumping again. |
More complicated than a force momentum, but goes further.
The name refers to its original use: 1bm 4+4375.
|
Examples
- 1bm 3+1 is possible with only running from the back (7t timing).
- 1bm 4b is possible with only running from the back (7t timing) if you first do a tap (preferably 4).
- Backwalled 1bm 4b is possible with only running from the back (5t timing) if you first do a tap (preferably 3).
- Performing a jam on 2bm overjumps by a small amount. To correct that, you could start jumping at a ~10° angle. A more advanced strat involves sneaking backward, releasing sneak for 3 ticks, then jamming forward (goes further, but is obviously less consistent).
- When gaining momentum under a 2-block ceiling (aka headhitter momentum), the ideal timing is to press jump every 3 ticks. When a trapdoor is added under the ceiling (becomes 1.8125bc), the ideal is to press jump every 2 ticks (i.e. 10 times second, which can be difficult to do consistently).