Part of the success of Quake 3 was thanks to the "tricks" that it allowed, and OpenArena allows them, too. The physics engine is not designed to be very realistic (however, there are some mods that aim for more realism), but to allow fast-paced action. Some advanced techniques can make the difference between players, while others, instead, are useful as skill demos and not much more. Players really should learn how to do the techinques known as strafe jump and rocket jump: using them allows to move very quickly around the arena; without strafe jumps, it's difficult to keep up with other players!