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]

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5 things you may not know about stock weapons

The weapons that have been in the game since it came out in 2007. The oldest things in your backpack. Every player in the game has used them. Could there really be something you don’t know about them at this point? Maybe. Here are some things I didn’t know about several greytext weapons for a surprisingly long time. 1-Sticky Launcher nuances: Holding down right-click lets you charge up a sticky and shoot it really far. You already knew that? Shucks. How about that destroyed (not detonated) stickies leave 1 ammo you can pick up (or extinguish yourself, in the case… [Continue Reading]

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On The Direct Hit

The Direct Hit can either be the most devastating single-shot rocket launcher unlock or the worst rocket launcher to ever disgrace the battlefield if you can’t place your shots right and want to rely on splash damage. As a Soldier-main who’s retired his first strange Direct Hit for the easier stock rocket launcher after reaching a few hundred kills past Epic Rank, I too can agree that it’s a troublesome weapon to many who don’t know the nature behind using the Direct Hit. But mastering this pesky launcher can pull off some both quantitative and hilarious outcomes.

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Surviving Scream Fortress 2013 as a Soldier

You’ve probably guessed by now what my second most played class is. Yes, it’s Soldier. And because of all the spam, not to mention the horrors I’ve seen lately as a Medic, I’ve had to switch to Soldier quite a lot. Actually, I’ve been pretty much forced to play Soldier because a team composed entirely of Scouts, Snipers, Spies, Engineers and a lone Pyro is NOT a good place for a Medic to be. I could play Demoman, but I can’t aim. I could play Pyro, but there’s either one or billions of them. I could play Heavy, but, um…… [Continue Reading]

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Best Loadouts for Allcrit Servers

Readers, you love allcrit servers too, right? Shortstop scouts, Pomson engineers, Liberty Launcher soldiers…the actual loadouts people rock seem surprisingly limited, but in a weird way this can become refreshing. I know I love allcrit servers, but there are very specific ways I usually play them. In general, I try to be the most annoying mother♥♥♥♥er that these servers have ever seen. How? With these loadouts:

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Mangling Cows with Lasers

Everyone and their dog seems to hate the Dr Grordbort weapons, what with their fancy, overly sci-fi look, their overly bright lasers and their overly broken stats and abilities. The Pomson is hated by all but the most stubborn of Engineers. The Phlogistinator is only ever truly considered useful for destroying tanks in Mann VS Machine. The Eureka Effect breaks Arena Mode. And the Third Degree is a direct upgrade. But only one of these weapons has given its name to an illness. Yes, the Cow Mangler 5000. But since it was changed, it’s recovered from its debilitating disease. Almost.

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Six Shots

Ah, the Shotgun, everyone’s favourite stock weapon. Last time we covered it, we were talking about Fat Scouts (i.e. Heavies) but this time, we’re talking about Soldiers. Before we start, a little-known fact about me, Soldier is my second most played class, a fact that has been firmly reinforced since I faced a horde of beeping monstrosities. Being the all-rounder that Soldier is, the Shotgun is, in his hands, one of the most powerful tools around, despite the fact that he also has a bloody rocket launcher. But why?

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I’m gonna whip your ass!

Up until recently, every Soldier and his pet raccoon used the Escape Plan. And why shouldn’t they? Giving you a huge speed boost depending on how little health you have, the Escape Plan was basically a get out of jail free card. A tentative one, but one nonetheless. But in the big Move That Gear Up! update, the Escape Plan was nerfed. Using the Escape Plan now leaves you marked for death, making death even closer than usual. To many, this left a huge hole in their loadouts. Now, it’s the Disciplinary Action’s time to shine!

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Minuscule asymmetries in official maps that make a difference

Last time I wrote, I mentioned that the ramps on cp_orange_x3 were unevenly spaced apart from the spawn rooms, allowing BLU team to jump back into spawn from the railing but not RED team. Well, I’ve since learned about a number of other extremely small differences between sides of supposedly symmetrical maps that favor one team over the other. Let’s go over some.

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