Your TF2 tips.

[keybird]

Yeah I'm calling bullshit on this.

Same

Ditto

 

[Caliostro]

And where the objectiveness?
If I told you I got 24 kills in one life with the Huntsman would hat change your mind?

Nop. The Huntsman is a non-AoE projectile based weapon. Past close range the projectile is completely avoidable, and hitting with it relies on the enemy maintaining a predictable movement pattern. In other words, hitting with the Huntsman outside of close range is guessing. It relies on the target, not the firer. Meanwhile the sniper rifle is instant, which means it will always hit the target (provided you don't miss yourself) regardless of other issues. If you don't screw up, it's unavoidable. It relies on the user, not the target. And that's what sums it up really... To hit anything with the huntsman you need to rely on it being stupid enough to move predictably, or you being lucky enough to just guess (which is luck, not skill) where the target is going. It's unreliable and completely dependent on luck.

Meanwhile the rifle shoots faster, is a hitscan weapon (meaning it's instant, no travel time), has more consistent damage, kills 5 of the 9 classes with a single uncharged headshot, 2 more with an extra body shot, and the last two with 2 headshots, and is the only weapon in the game capable of killing ANY enemy, even an overhealed heavy, in a single shot (Overhealed heavy has 450 health, huntsman does a max of 360 on a fully charged headshot, the rifle does precisely 450).


Translated, if you got 24 kills in one life with the Huntsman you were either playing against some REALLY bad people, or were really lucky spamming down hallways and doorways. Huntsman Snipers are generally free kills for me, with any class but especially as a Sniper.

There's your objectiveness.

Ok here is a list of classes and some of them may have tips that I had conviniently lieing around:

1.) Pyros are fail. Any moron with half a brain can play them. They are the definition of noob. If they use backburner as well then they are an "Uber Noob".

W+M1 pyros fail. Good pyros don't. Learn to play.

2.) Snipers are a great class. One of the more challenging classes to play. However if they use a Huntsman they rely on pure luck, hence the name lucksman. Learn to get headshots while moving. It is an invaluable asset.

Based on the rest of your post I'm gonna guess you're just parroting that, and honestly have no idea what that really means.

3.) Spys are backstabbers. If they use Dead-ringer or Cloak and Dagger in an arena match they are considered pathetic. Only use the default set up for watches. Use the normal gun as well unless you are excellent on getting headshots.

Learn to play. Both are useful assuming you know what you're doing... Which I'm guessing is your problem.

4.) Medics heal... That is really it. Do not heal the moron, and never go battle medic unless you are the last one standing.

Medics can fight. The thing is that healing is usually more helpful, but in specific situations fighting does more... It's not a "never" thing.

5.) Engineers are useful, but are a pussy class. They rely on getting kills from idiots.

I'd say "learn to play" but it feels redundant at this point. Bad engies sit there and whack away at their sentries all day, good engies move.

Ever tried playing offensive engineer? Fun, not easy, and quite effective if done right. Look it up.

6.) Heavy. Another W+M1 class. Really useful in holding down an enemy position, always look around you and behind you. Spys are your mortal enemy.

If you're playing heavy as a W+M1, you're going to die fast.

7.) Demoman. The most overpowered and possibly the hardest class to play. You must know what angle to shoot your pills stickys and know when to slash and charge. NOT EASY.

AHAHAH... Demo is the hardest??? It's easily the most failsafe if you have a clue.

This is a testament to your own ignorance. The highest "tier" of demo still isn't the hardest class. See above for the usual recommendation.

8.) Scouts. They are the bastards. They are very usefull if you are good at them, however if you use the FAN (Force-a-Nature) you will be called a noob until your dieing breath.

Nobody with a half-functional brain cares what they're being called. That said, the FaN is a noobish weapon not because "people say so" but because it's basically the scout's "training wheels". It trades reliability and overall usefulness for "easier" individual kills.

9.) Soldiers. A fun class. Using rockets to blow up anything. Remember to switch to your shotgun when you are out of ammo and getting flanked by a near death enemy.

Just an FYI, shotguns can be used for more than just "when you're out of rockets". For instances, most light classes (125 hp classes) die from a single rocket and a shotgun shot or two. It's a great way to kill them and conserve rocket ammo. Juggle them with 1 rocket, and pepper them with the shotgun before they land.

The shotgun is also quite useful against good scouts in the open, good pyros that know how to reflect, and lately, against Targe wielding demos.

Here are some other tips for you:

Don't comment on a game you obviously have no idea how to play properly. Good day.

 

[Simriel]

Of you ever try and use the Cloak and Dagger, patience is key. decloak, backstab, move to new location in spurts of movement. Rinse and Repeat.

 

[Twilight_guy]

Shoot the medic first, keep your medic alive, don't play the class everyone else is. Don't play spy or engineer until you have watched other play it first, You should start with soldier, heavy or pyro, remember that you are on a team: don't go all Rambo and get yourself killed a bunch of times, Watch others play, have fun!

 

[comadorcrack]

Nop. The Huntsman is a non-AoE projectile based weapon. Past close range the projectile is completely avoidable, and hitting with it relies on the enemy maintaining a predictable movement pattern. In other words, hitting with the Huntsman outside of close range is guessing. It relies on the target, not the firer. Meanwhile the sniper rifle is instant, which means it will always hit the target (provided you don't miss yourself) regardless of other issues. If you don't screw up, it's unavoidable. It relies on the user, not the target. And that's what sums it up really... To hit anything with the huntsman you need to rely on it being stupid enough to move predictably, or you being lucky enough to just guess (which is luck, not skill) where the target is going. It's unreliable and completely dependent on luck.

Meanwhile the rifle shoots faster, is a hitscan weapon (meaning it's instant, no travel time), has more consistent damage, kills 5 of the 9 classes with a single uncharged headshot, 2 more with an extra body shot, and the last two with 2 headshots, and is the only weapon in the game capable of killing ANY enemy, even an overhealed heavy, in a single shot (Overhealed heavy has 450 health, huntsman does a max of 360 on a fully charged headshot, the rifle does precisely 450).


Translated, if you got 24 kills in one life with the Huntsman you were either playing against some REALLY bad people, or were really lucky spamming down hallways and doorways. Huntsman Snipers are generally free kills for me, with any class but especially as a Sniper.

There's your objectiveness.

Well, Actually, most players do have predictable movement. Well, at least I can predict it, I dunno about you, Huntsman is definitely a more difficult weapon to use, but once you've been playing TF2 as long as I have you need a proper challenging weapon.

Its all about double guessing their next move. For example, a scout will usually attempt to change their direction in the double jump, so the key is to fire in the opposite direction of their first jump. Granted its not Infallible, but its a nice little challenge.

Snipers using the riffle are very simple to kill, once you know they've seen you hide behind a corner and pull back, eventually they will sneak around the corner assuming they're faster than you're arrow, again its not infallible, but if you can fire just a split second before you see them its easy picking.

So yeah, the Riffle, may be better technically, but its not an objective choice, I like a harder challenge so I use it.

Also, the Rifle isn't instant. Its near Instant, but not instant.

 

[GamingAwesome1]

I am not very pro seeing as I play on 360 and all.

But my advice is this "Keep Moving" a moving target is much harder to hit than a stationary one.

 

[psychic psycho]

great generaln advice, if you see a teleporter lvl 1, switch to engie for 10 secs and upgrade it to lvl 3. You will most likely save the life of an eng that is trying to hold his position on the fron lines and will be able to focus on his sentry.

Second golden tip: If you see a sapped teleporter, switch quickly to eng and unsap it. A game winner.

This is really good advice. It's simple to do and helps the team greatly. It's a shame that very few people do this; most of the time I end up having to build my tele entrance up to lvl.3 before leaving the starting area.

 

[DazZ.]

Probably using my Christmas money for this, along with Machinarium. Played TF2 on Xbox, but doesn't seem to be anywhere near as good. So are TF2 and Machinarium on PC worth it?

Obviously extremely different games.

TF2 is defiantly worth it, it's my 3rd most played game of the past 4 years.
Play the Machinarium demo and see if it's your thing. I love the art style of it but I got annoyed at some point in the demo that I couldn't work out, and I don't like looking at walkthoughs. I've only played a few point and clicks though and wouldn't be a good judge for this genre.

 

[Russian_Assassin]

1. Kill the medic first and also protect your medic. You have no idea how many times I switched from medic to something else because the assholes on my team completely ignored my cries for help.

2. Also, don't humiliate yourself by chasing your nemesis, you will get the chance to kill them eventually.

3. Taunt, it irritates people you kill

 

[Lord Krunk]

Don't use the backburner

I love killing soldiers with their own ammo ;o

Nah, I love killing Demos with their own stickybombs. You wouldn't believe how often it happens.

But yeah. Here are some tips from a veteran:

1) Never use the backburner. Compression blasts are an underappreciated godsend.

2) Never trust a Medic. They chicken out all the time, sometimes even mid-Ubercharge.

3) LRN2JUMP. Stickybomb jumping, rocket jumping, scout double jumps + Force-A-Nature boost: learn where you stand, and where you can go. Master the jump, and you are unstoppable (sorta). Also, try them out as a getaway tactic to escape sticky situations.

4) Work with your fellow man. You can try to play this game on your own and sometimes succeed, but know that there is definitely safety in numbers. Unless your enemy's a smart Demo. Then you're fucked.

5) (Spy) People are paranoid; don't give them the chance to think twice. The Cloak And Dagger is a lifesaver, and the Dead Ringer is useless for exactly these reasons.

6) It doesn't matter how good your enemy is, 2 well-placed stickybombs will be enough to turn your nemesis into a pile of steaming organs.

7) Have fun! Seriously, if you really need this advice, ur doin it rong. This game was made with mindlessness in mind, why treat it as anything else?

The following unlocks are junk, regardless of other issues, and shouldn't be used if you plan on not sucking: The Backburner, The Sandman, The Huntsman, The Razorback.

Er-hem. The Huntsman and Backburner I respect, but the Sandman is useful (well, it was before the last couple of nerfs). I see the Razorback as a good precaution as well, but I'm always cautious enough with my SMG.

Here are the really useless items though:

The Blutsauger, Kritzkrieg, Backburner, Cloak and Dagger, Huntsman, Flare Gun, Bonk.

Here are the good ones:

Sandman (although it's getting worse and worse with each update), Force-A-Nature (This requires practise to learn all its... capabilities), Axetinguisher, and any Heavy, Soldier or Demoman weapon (Except the Eyelander and Chargin' Targe must be a pair at all times).

But I have to say, once you get the Equaliser, NEVER GO BACK. It is the greatest weapon/getaway tactic in existence. The shovel is useless. It'll probably get nerfed soon, but you can't win 'em all!

 

[Caliostro]

Well, Actually, most players do have predictable movement. Well, at least I can predict it, I dunno about you, Huntsman is definitely a more difficult weapon to use, but once you've been playing TF2 as long as I have you need a proper challenging weapon.

Its all about double guessing their next move. For example, a scout will usually attempt to change their direction in the double jump, so the key is to fire in the opposite direction of their first jump. Granted its not Infallible, but its a nice little challenge.

I think your idea of "challenge" is different from mine.

See, here's the keyword: Guess.

Guess work isn't skill, it's luck. I can throw an arrow at an hallway but will it hit? I don't know! I'm guessing... Maybe, maybe not. It's entirely non-dependent on myself. I'm GUESSING someone might go through, whether or not they actually do go around is up to the machinations of fate. Guessing is what you do when you play Slot machines or Russian roulette.

The huntsman is not a difficult weapon to use. It's skill floor and ceiling are at nearly the exact same level, very low, simply because no matter the amount of actual skill in the user it's all up to luck and sufficient spam. There's simply no way to influence the final result past estimations and guesses. A new player using the Huntsman and someone who has used it for 10 years will be at a very close (and fairly low) skill level.

The rifle, on the other hand, has a considerably higher skill floor and a colossally high skill ceiling. In the hands of a perfect player the Sniper rifle is the single most deadly weapon in the entire game. In the hands of a bad player it's an entirely useless contraption.

You want a good objective example? Think of an aimbot. I'm not condoning the use of cheats, I'm just telling you to think about it. An aimbot is a computer generated simulation of the perfect player. 100% accuracy, it simulates the perfect player skill. The player itself never misses. Notice how an aimbot with the Huntsman won't help much if at all... Even if you code it to account for player movement and to do the kind of mathematical predictions the human mind can't even phantom. The aimbot on a huntsman does fuck all simply because the biggest factor is not player skill, it's cheer dumb luck. Conversely an aimbot with the sniper rifle means anything in front of you dies horribly.

Snipers using the riffle are very simple to kill, once you know they've seen you hide behind a corner and pull back, eventually they will sneak around the corner assuming they're faster than you're arrow, again its not infallible, but if you can fire just a split second before you see them its easy picking.

Then you're playing against bad snipers that sit and camp. They're easy pickings for anyone. What are you going to do if I don't sit and camp around a corner waiting for the stupidly huge arrow hitboxes to cut me off around a corner even if my head isn't out?

What if I stay and face you (which I usually do)? My gun is instant and will kill you in a single unavoidable shot to the head. Yours is slow, predictable and the damage it does is arbitrary (yes, even a full charge shot may or may not kill a 125 hp class)? Really wanna bet who wins? The only way you have to actually win is if I screw up. That wouldn't be your skill, that would be my lack of skill.

So yeah, the Riffle, may be better technically, but its not an objective choice, I like a harder challenge so I use it.

Yes it is. In the hands of a skilled player the Rifle outperforms the Huntsman in EVERY area except DPS to sentries... Even at that the neither can destroy a manned sentry, and both can easily destroy an unmanned one, so it's academic.

The huntsman is the Sniper's training wheels. It's good for beginners with the huge hitboxes, low reliance on player skill and "spammability". It's an introduction to the class. To a new/bad sniper it's more useful simply because it doesn't rely on precision and, well, skill... They can still get kills, it's less frustrating than a weapon that relies entirely on a skill they don't yet have. Once they're good as Snipers, the Huntsman is just... Gimmicky junk. It's outperformed in every area (including close range), it's less reliable and it depends more on the enemy fucking up than it does on the user being good. This is objective. You may like the Huntsman personally, but it's an inferior weapon in every single way.

Also, the Rifle isn't instant. Its near Instant, but not instant.

Yes it is. Learn what a hitscan weapon is.

 

[Deleted]

As medic only heal heavies nobody else deserves it.

 

[The_Bearded_One]

When playing as Heavy, only use your fists.

It won't help you win, but you'll have a laugh when you're doing it.

Amen to that

 

[Daveman]

if you're sniper, I'm not sure if it still works but apparently if you're good and quick, switching weapons back and forth is faster than reloading the rifle... they might've fixed it though. haven't played in ages

 

[Acaroid]

Im bored and I bought TF2 the other day because of the 50% off.
Anyway, im wondering if any of you have any good tips to post? =o


Oh, and does the escapist have a TF2 clan?

Good tips,
If there are already 2 of a class they generally dont need a 3rd...unless it is a medic, maybe an engi

Even though they havent captured the 1st point, it is always good to keep the 2nd one covered just incase.

If at first you dont succed, try a different class. The game is built on knowing what combo of classes are good for disabling certain situations.

If all else fails, uber. Really, no matter how good a defense, get a few medics and get some ubers going!!

the biggest tip of all
HAVE FUN XD
if it seems stupid and spazz... YOU SHOULD DO IT!!

 

[Caliostro]

Er-hem. The Huntsman and Backburner I respect, but the Sandman is useful (well, it was before the last couple of nerfs). I see the Razorback as a good precaution as well, but I'm always cautious enough with my SMG.

It was useful before the original nerf, when you could stun ubers and lock people down for a cheap kill. It was also slightly overpowered in a "rewarding spam" sense, while still being bad for a good scout (due to loss of double jump).

Nowadays it's junk. 95 Health is pathetic. A single shot from almost any main weapon in the game kills you, all for an item that doesn't even grant you any useful advantage in the first place. The time it takes you to throw that thing on someone would be best spent shooting them.

Here are the really useless items though:

The Blutsauger, Kritzkrieg,

You're a terrible medic. The blutsauger is one of the strongest, borderline overpowered weapons in the entire game. It does around 50-100 damage per second at medium range (100-150 at close range) while healing you around 30hp a second (providing you don't miss much), it's an absurdly quickly firing weapon, has giant magazines and a huge ammo count. It's a straight upgrade from the needle gun if you know what you're doing.

The Kritzkrieg is a blessing on defense, where you're mostly facing human rushes, or if you don't have a lot of sentries around. A good player can destroy sentry nests almost as easily with kritz as he can with ubers (except for pyros since they need to get close). A single kritz can clear an entire battlefield and allow your team to move up. It's a tactical choice between kritz and uber, learn to use them.

Cloak and Dagger

While I find it less efficient than the invisibility watch, it's far from useless. In the right hands it's amazing at causing the entire enemy defense to panic and waste precious time looking for you. Again, learn to use it.

Flare Gun

Learn to use it. It's amazing to wear down heavies, to spam down snipers (who will either get hit, screwing their aim for several seconds, or be forced to avoid it, allowing you to move up unharmed) and particularly good in conjunction with the airblast.

"But Cali, you just did a huge post explaining how the Huntsman is a piece of useless turd. The flare gun is also a non-AoE slow projectile weapon. What's the difference?"

Number one difference being the weapon they're substituting. The rifle as a weapon is already incredibly efficient, and the huntsman's pros does not make up for all it's cons (see my other post as to why). In the pyro's case, the weapon being replaced is the shotgun. The flare can almost kill a 125 class with a single flare (around 30 damage for the flare + 60 damage afterburn, totaling 90 damage in one hit at any distance), doesn't need to charge up, can be reloaded while inactive (meaning you can fire, switch to flame thrower and fire) and it refires at a fair rate. The flare gun also has synergies with the pyro's main weapon, the flamethrower. Mini-crits do considerable damage, they can be easily landed on targets that are airblast (which are usually targets on fire, but too far to axtinguish).

It's not a straight upgrade mind you, the shotgun has it's advantages (it's a hitscan weapon, making it more reliable, does more damage to pyros that only suffer the Flare's 30 damage hit, not the afterburn, etc), but it's a sidegrade with enough pros to compensate for the cons.

Bonk.

This one actually has a crucial use, but it's just too "technical" for most pub games, requiring a coordinated team. A single bonk can distract sentry fire long enough for your team to wipe it out unharmed.

...Goodluck finding a team that coordinated in pub matches though...

Force-A-Nature (This requires practise to learn all its... capabilities)

The FaN is actually inferior to the scattergun. The scattergun will kill anything the FaN kills just as fast, with the advantage that it fires 6 shots while the fan Fires 2 before reloading.

It's not ENTIRELY useless since it makes individual kills easier/less reliant on player skill (since the knockback makes them easy targets), but any good Scout will get better performance out of the Scattergun. I'm saying this as an old FaN fan that simply had to face the facts. The scattergun is harder to use, but it's more advantageous.

It's a bit like the Huntsman/sniper thing, except it's not as stupidly marked. The FaN is still pretty ok in the right hands, just not as good.

and any Heavy, Soldier or Demoman weapon (Except the Eyelander and Chargin' Targe must be a pair at all times).

It's not so linear. Most of them are sidegrades, not upgrades. The only exception that I can think of are the KGB, since they offer no significant downside vs. the heavy's fists... And maybe...

...the Equaliser...

Yeah that. It's not overpowered, and the shovel is not useless, but the Equalizer just doesn't have enough drawbacks to consider NOT using it. Straight upgrade IMO.

 

[bradley348]

Just play a full round with every class, learning its playstyle, and pick one you like the most, and play it a lot and unlock its new weapons and etc.

you will be blazing in no time

 

[bcponpcp27]

Watch EvilDaedalus's videos on youtube for good class specific core tips for the Scout, Pyro, Spy, and Engy. They helped me a ton actually.

 

[Connor Lonske]

First of all, you should play spy first. It will be very easy. When you unlock the dead ringer spy watch, make sure to only use that watch.

You should also try medic, who's purpose is to get high of his unlock able healing gun, which make the enemy team laugh uncontrollably for 2 seconds. This two second should be enough time for you team to cap the last point.

And lastly, when in dough, play demo and spam pipe bombs, and it that don't work, play soldier and spam rockets.

 

[The DSM]

If your a pyro kill it with fire.

And hit everyone just to spy check.