Sometimes, when the sun is hiding behind the clouds and I’m feeling too lazy to bother even joining a Teufort server, I find myself wandering into the strange world of modded Mann VS Machine servers. And let me tell you, it really is a silly place…
Some Weapons with Surprising Synergy
Ever since Valve released the Axtinguisher, weapon combos have become a huge part of Team Fortress 2. From the Sandman/Cleaver to the Jarate/Bushwacka, Valve has released a number of weapons obviously designed to go together, and for that reason they do so very well. But sometimes there are weapons whose synergies are not so obvious, who were clearly built for widely different roles, and yet somehow they can combine to create a lethal combo to the keen player who can see untapped potential. Here are a few I’ve discovered throughout the years. 1. Beggars Bazooka / Righteous Bison The Beggar’s… [Continue Reading]
Trade Maps
Trading servers are a dime a dozen. They’re dime-a-dozen back-stabbing scumbags… No, wait, sorry, I was thinking of Spies. But there are lots of trade servers, from trade_plaza to trade_minecraft to trade_rawr to trade_achievement_idle_noglass, and so on and so forth. While some of these maps, like trade_minecraft_realms, are wonderfully made, with all sorts of pretty things, randomized spawns, health kits in convenient places and stuff, most trade servers are incredibly simple. Two spawn rooms and a room in the middle connecting them.
Boring, eh? Well, let’s go deeper…
December 23rd-29th
This week is our sparsest yet, and we can almost definitely chalk this up to it coinciding with Valve’s traditional vacation time at the end of the year. Since 2007, there have only been 2 updates during this week: The first, December 23rd 2010, has some interesting things. The Crusader’s Crossbow got its textures updated, and Valve revealed the stats to the Quick-Fix for the first time. This update also turned on double-drop week, the first of three times this has ever happened. This update also contained a cryptic change: “Added strings related to the Gadget Token to tf_english.txt.” We… [Continue Reading]
Advanced Doomsday Strats (and some glitches)
Since my last article on sd_doomsday, I’ve played the map a lot more, and learned a lot more about how to maximize your presence and worth on the battlefield. I’ve also learned a couple of glitches with the map, and since I don’t have enough of either to justify its own article, today we’re killing two monkeys with one stone. Strat 1- Best rollout: This is, in my opinion, the most optimal way a single player can spend the opening minute of the round to help his team: sticky-jumping over to the enemy intel door and controlling it before they… [Continue Reading]
Force-A-Nature: The Superior Scattergun
The Force A-Nature is a peculiar weapon. Seemingly underpowered, people constantly set it aside in their backpacks to collect dust or be converted into metal, but does it deserve this kind of treatment? I say ‘No, of course not!” The Force-A-Nature is different weapon, like the Quick-Fix. You have to think differently. Think mobility and disorientation. The FaN trades off six shots and a little damage for two shots, more pellets, knockback, and faster firing speed. At first glance, you may think “Why on earth would I use this? Six shots is much better than two, and knockback is a… [Continue Reading]
Smissmas 2013: A Completely On-Time Review
Merry Smissmas everyone! Today I’d like to talk to you ab- What’s that? It’s already 2014, you say? Maybe I wrote this on the 21st of December and Aabicus screwed something up again. Regardless, it’s time to discuss the somewhat divisive Teufort festivities that we got this time around. Also, a note to those who read my only other article thus far… I promise this isn’t going to be another complaint-fest about me losing my toys. This is my attempt at an article that actually matters. If my last entry was a page in some crappy tabloid, this is my… [Continue Reading]
Explaining Ubercharges to Patients
“So there I was, Uber ready to go, and the Heavy spinning up his minigun. I tell him, I’m about to deploy my uber, get ready. It’s time to go. I deploy my ubercharge, and the stupid Heavy fails to kill ANYONE!”
I bet that sounds pretty familiar to most of you Medics out there. I too have been in the same situation, and I have spent a long time trying to work out how to fix it. Of course, results my vary, as some people understand Medics, others don’t.
The New Popper-Cola Combo
Let’s face it: The new Soda Popper is pretty sweet. The new movement mechanic activated from hype that causes the Scout to have up to 5 jumps after getting off the ground has a far better purpose than farming situational mini-crits. It still does good damage without the mini-crits. I believe the weapon was buffed rather than nerfed, since there still isn’t a damage penalty that doesn’t allow you to land two good meatshots identical to the Scattergun’s damage. But besides that, what we’re overlooking right now is how it affects the old Popper-Cola Combo (Soda Popper + Crit-a-Cola of… [Continue Reading]
December 15th-December 22nd
If you want to pick a single week to play TF2 every year, this is the week. Huge updates almost every year. Our oldest landmark patch yet sneaks in this timeframe; the last patch of the original Quake Team Fortress (which had moved over to QuakeWorld at this point) was released in December 22, 1996. Have you wondered why some friendly soldiers and demomen will start shooting themselves while you heal them during setup time? Obviously in regular play this can help you build Uber, but the Uber rate cut at >142.5% doesn’t apply to setup times, right? Well, it… [Continue Reading]