These are advanced tactics that require practice to master. However, if done correctly, players can drastically increase both mass and position on the leaderboard.
They range from common everyday moves, to very hard and rare tactics.
Solo[]
Linesplit[]
Horizontal[]
(THIS TRICK IS JUST FOR ENTERTAINMENT) Make yourself AFK by putting your mouse in the center of your cell (Make sure you are in one piece) and then split four times. If done correctly, your cells should form a horizontal line. Instead of placing your mouse in the EXACT center, you could get an extension that when a hotkey is pressed, your movement stops.
Vertical[]
Do as above, but this time, before you split four times, move your mouse cursor up just a few pixels. If done correctly, your cells should form a vertical line. This is much harder than a horizontal linesplit, so you might want to practice first.
Into mass[]
This trick is just a linesplit, but this time, you linesplit into mass. It can be any kind of mass, viruses, W, another player, or even pellets. (Warning: Make sure the piece getting the mass does not go over 22.5K mass, or else you will lose a lot because the piece can not autosplit because it is already in the max amount of pieces! [This is usually referred to as a mass void])
A diagram of a Linesplit
Self-Feed Escape/Bait[]
When you are in a bad situation (surrounded), split away from the predator 3-4 times. Make sure to keep your pieces close to each other. When all your pieces are together, quickly press W into the center piece, and all your mass will go into that piece, hopefully making you big enough to eat them if they try to split on you. However, this will waste a lot of mass by self-feeding in such an extreme way.
Popsplit[]
Regular[]
Chase a person (example, you have 4,000 mass and that person has 2,000 mass) and get them close to a virus, then press space twice. The prey will eat your 4th piece then hit the virus due to expanding in diameter, and your third part will eat everything. This does not always work, but if it works you usually get a lot of mass. Sometimes, the player is too small to be popsplitted normally. This will require you to judge whether or not the person is big enough to be popsplitted normally. If they are too small, you would split 3 times, First split away from the target, then popsplit them like you normally would. Another way to popsplit a player if they are too small is to just split 3 times at them. However, this is risky as one of your pieces could eat the virus making the popsplit a fail and leaving you with big problem to deal with.
Same Size/Smaller Sized[]
It looks impossible and seems impossible, but it has been done. For both tricks, make sure you get the opponent to get as close to the virus as they can. This is crucial. Also, try to keep a split-second space between your 2 splits. (For a smaller size popsplit, make sure you are max 20% smaller than the enemy, or you will probably fail)
Mathematically, you can popsplit a player up to 125% of your mass. However, the success rate decreases as the ratio of the enemy's mass to your mass increases.
Mini Popsplit[]
When you have 200-300 mass and you see a cell hiding in a virus with 100-130 mass, split into the virus just enough 2-3 times, depending on the ratio of your mass to the cell's mass. Make sure the cell is big enough to eat one and only one of your pieces before he becomes too big and explodes on the virus. Your other pieces may sometimes absorb the rest of the pieces, sometimes you have to split again to get them. This is more risky because if incorrectly calculated, your 4 pieces could be the same size forcing you to split again or your pieces won't be big enough to absorb your prey, leaving you with a loss of mass.
Cross Split[]
When you have a big piece behind small piece(s), and there is a prey in front of your small cells that your big piece is big enough to eat, put your cursor right in front of the piece that you want to split, but behind the smaller pieces. The big piece will move forward (towards the prey), while the smaller pieces will stay there or move backward (behind where the big piece was originally). Your big piece will consume the prey without your smaller pieces going into the prey as well.
Vanishsplit[]
Regular[]
You should have 2 pieces, one with at least double the mass of the other. You can have more pieces, but these 2 pieces must be next to each other. The target should be overlapping your smaller piece. Bring this smaller piece next to a virus, and split with your cursor on the target when the target is close enough to the virus. The target will expand in diameter and hit the virus, and your bigger piece should absorb it completely. This needs practice and experience, especially for judging if the target is close enough to the virus for the vanish to be successful.
A common mistake is splitting when your small piece is very close to the virus, but not the target. Split when the target is close enough to the virus, not your small piece.
90° Vanish[]
Similar, except that your smaller piece is not completely overlapping the target. The angle between your large piece, target and small piece should be about 90°. Split with your cursor on the target when the target is very close to the virus. Usually only half of your smaller piece will go into the target, but they should also pop in the same way, and your bigger piece will absorb them, if done correctly.
Do note that popsplits, vanishsplits, and pushsplits all have higher success rates when done along near sides and corners.
Teaming[]
Tricksplit[]
This is a very popular tactic in teams. Get a teammate, find a person that your teammate cannot eat with a single split. Split multiple times in between your target and your teammate, while your teammate splits onto your pieces and onto the target. Be careful on doing this though, as an experienced player can easily split on your pieces and gain your mass.
An irreversible tricksplit can be done by cross teaming in Teams Mode, if the player that splits multiple times is the same colour as the player you are doing the tricksplit on.
Cannonsplit[]
Similar to a tricksplit, but you should be in 2 pieces and your teammate right behind you, with the target in front of you. You then split multiple times towards the target and then the teammate splits once or twice to eat your pieces and the target (like the tricksplit). This is really hard, as an experienced player can still kill you by splitting on your small pieces just like a tricksplit.
BACKSPLIT
Often,a player will find him/her self in a situation where one teammate is in 2 pieces, and chased by a larger cell, if a virus comes between the 2 pieces, maneuver the smaller teammate(In 1 piece.)In front of the larger one, first teammate splits several times into the smaller teammate, causing the enemy cell to try and eat the larger teammate, who has long been eaten by the second teammate.If done correctly, the enemy cell should eat the virus, splitting into many pieces leaving it vulnerable to the now larger teammate.
Bait[]
Get a teammate, and split multiple times. Your teammate should be in the middle of your pieces but not enough to eat them. Wait for someone to come and split on you, then split before they touch you, feeding all the mass to your mate. If done correctly, then your mate should have enough to eat the splitting prey.
You can also pretend that your Afk, then when someone comes to eat you,split into your partner and let him/her split onto the one who was going to eat you in the first place.
Magic Cell[]
This requires two teammates or more. For max effect, get four teammates, feed them around the same mass. (WARNING: DO NOT DO THIS IF YOUR MASS IS OVER 10000 AS YOU WILL AUTOSPLIT IF YOU HAVE 3 TEAMMATES OR MORE) Find a person and pretend you are AFK, then make the teammate split to finish off the person.
Linesplit-Tricksplit[]
(THIS TRICK IS VERY RARE AND HARD TO DO) This requires a teamate and a considerable amount of mass. Get at least >16,000 mass and prepare yourself as if you were to linesplit. Then, when a player much smaller then you are moves to your left or right where your teamate is in between you and the enemy, Do a linesplit and your smaller teamate should split into 16 pieces like a tricksplit, leading to a piece with a lot more mass heading to the enemy (The amount of times you split depends on how far away the player is and how big they are.). If done correctly, you should have 16 pieces all in a line, one of them bigger then the rest that will eat the enemy.
Countering them[]
Tricksplit/Cannonsplit[]
Split towards the smaller teamer at the RIGHT moment (right when the bigger teamer splits multiple times in between you and the smaller teamer). This is known as a reverse tricksplit/cannonsplit. Try recognizing when they are going to tricksplit/cannonsplit.
Bait[]
Try to make them think you don't care about them, throw W in any direction, and then suddenly split on them. Or just throw W at them to scare them, and one teammate might get completely absorbed by the other. Or if you're confident that you can doublesplit far enough to reach them, move away from them then suddenly turn back and doublesplit onto them.
Magic Cell[]
You can tell someone is using the magic cell tactic if you can see their piece moving and the borders bending, like if a player moves over another player. If they are doing the tactic, use the eject mass to your advantage by feeding the enemy and making him eat their teamate or shoot viruses at them.
(note: some cells may be actually afk, you can tell if they are trying to hide their teamates or not, they could also be bots that happened to disconnect on top of one another.)
Self Feed Escape/Bait[]
Quickly split on the escaping target on the outer pieces before he has a chance to self feed. Never split on the center piece.
BACKSPLIT
Try to Popsplit one of the opposite cells pieces, takes away the person AND the problem.
Popsplit, Vanishsplit, Pushsplit[]
Stay/swerve away from the virus (all) or split once you see them wanting to pop you so THEY might get popped instead of you (popsplit only). Or at least, you won’t get popped.
Linesplit-Tricksplit[]
Have a lot of mass and avoid being directly to the left or right of a huge player. Or Splitrun with a teamate to move faster and escape the person you suspect is attempting to Linesplit-Tricksplit you.