Dys said:
Flying-Emu said:
Dys said:
(only natasha, the direct hit and a few others are "better" than their default counterparts).
There is so much wrong with this statement, I can't even begin to tell you.
Is there? I only tend to play pubs, so if you find that the gun balance is different in clan matches I wouldn't know, but I can't imagine how they are.
I only play pubs, however I play on a pub server with plenty of folk who DO play scrims.
With Natasha, -25% damage or whatever it is for such a gigantic slow (that is a guaranteed slow) I honestly can't see how you can argue that it's ever not better. It instantly cripples demoman (renders his melee combos especially useless as a single hit counters the shields charge) as he becomes to slow to properly move, renders the pyro useless (I sincerely hope this one is obvious). It also means that any unit caught within range, out of cover that isn't a scout or a soldier (assuming all soldiers are smart enough to rocket jump away) is dead. If you have any remote skill with it, the -25% damage is irrelivent as the damage is still so high that it will kill any unit getting hit above the shoulders nearly instantly, and it pushes enemies back (meaning that it's literally impossible to get to the heavy head on with most classes). It's very rare that I get killed by a heavy who isn't using natascha. I suppose in a one v one fight the extra damage % would be significant, but the game is team fortress, and if your team isn't retarded the slow is going to be a damn sight more useful than the damage.
The only proper way to play a heavy is an ambush/support character. He CAN act as an offensive unit, but he requires two things: Faster classes (Preferably Scouts and Soldiers who know how to rocket jump) to eliminate enemies he weakens, and a literal harem of medics. Without those two things, Heavy Weapons Guy is relegated to being about as sneaky as the pyro. This is not a bad thing. For example, at the tunnel exit of point 1 on pl_badwater, one heavy jumping down with Sasha (the standard minigun) can easily kill 3-4 people, provided there isn't a heavy with a medic attached to him. You could NOT do this with Natascha, because what takes you 6 seconds as a heavy takes you 8 seconds as a Natascha heavy. And that means that they can kill you.
In the end, it comes down to what kind of heavy you play. And frankly, the Minigun is better in almost all situations: In Base-Busting, if you're forced to use a Heavy, a Natascha is going to get a lot less done than a Minigun, since that -25% damage really drags you down, since unless you are RIGHT on top of the sentry, the Engineer is going to be able to repair faster than you can damage.
Natascha should be used for two things: A full-frontal assault when supported by heavier damage classes, and against a Scout rush. You can cry "but it's TEAM fortress 2" all you want, but the fact is, if you absolutely REQUIRE teammates to properly function, YOU'RE DOING IT WRONG.
As for the direct hit, if you have any timing it simply does more damage. It also moves faster, making it easier to hit enemies. I can see how, if you're new to the game (or if you didn't spend an ungodly amount of time learning how to use dystopia's bolt gun better than god himself) it wouldn't necessarily be superior, but once you're better at the game it's far more useful. If you need a higher explosion radius then you'd usually need a demoman over a soldier anyway, so...>>
Now this is something that is arguable. Saying that the DH is a direct upgrade is false; if it was TRUE, then that's all that would be used in scrims. It's not. In pubs, since it would be unfair to use scrims as an example, people tend to travel in groups. While the DH may be able to do more damage to a singular target, the RL has a MUCHHH larger splash damage radius (Did you know that the DH's splash radius is the same size as a Teleporter?), which enables higher damage overall.
In addition, I've talked to people who have used the DH since day 01, and they have the same consensus: They miss MUCH more often with the Direct Hit. As in, 30-40% of their rockets miss. So it comes down to playstyle: The DH is good if you're willing to take a risk. With the RL, you KNOW that you'll, almost no matter what, be doing some measure of damage.
Plus, it's much easier to pop Heavies out of the way with the Rocket Launcher. And Crockets with the DH are... well, frankly, less effective than the RL's.
Overall, the items ALL have their uses. However, I'm a man of utility: I need to be able to function in any situation. And considering how TF2's battlefield is NEVER static, Natascha and the DH simply feel too specialized to be worth it.
