Anti-Heavy strategy

“

This American boot just kicked your ass back to Russia. Click to listen — The Soldier

”

The Heavy is the sturdiest but least maneuverable class. He easily soaks up damage and still poses a threat thanks to his Minigun, which can mow down anyone who dares face him head-on. The Heavy will almost always be found at the frontlines, often supported by a Medic. Because his direct combat is so powerful, taking him down will require smart play or additional firepower from teammates. The Heavy's weakness lies in his size and lack of speed, which makes him an easy target for sneak attacks or long-range weapons. Additionally, he has less diverse loadout options than other classes, limiting his unpredictability; any weapon that provides utility usually comes with heavy combat drawbacks.

General

Attributes	Anti-Heavy strategy
Role	The Heavy's large size and firepower often places him at the center of any fight. He is a natural shield and rallying point for his allies - taking him out can often cause the enemy team to consider falling back.
Health	The Heavy has the largest health pool of all nine classes. Defeating him will usually require focused fire from multiple allies, especially if he is being healed. The Heavy can use his large size to draw attention away from frailer teammates.
Speed	The Heavy's main weakness is his slow movement speed - he cannot easily dodge attacks or pursue you. The Heavy's lack of movement options make him a juicy target for enemy Snipers and Spies. If you can't take a Heavy by surprise, take potshots from behind cover.
Power	The Heavy possesses the most powerful weapons in the game. Fighting him head-on without backup is usually a bad idea. The Heavy's guns are not accurate at long range. If he is far enough away, you need not fear his damage output.

Weapon-specific

Main article: Heavy weapons

Primary weapons

Weapon	Anti-Heavy strategy
Minigun + reskins	The Minigun rapidly fires rounds that deal immense damage at close range, but is inaccurate at long range. Use cover and don't charge directly at him. The Minigun must be spun for one second before firing. Additionally, it takes one more second to ramp up to full damage and accuracy. If the Heavy does not already have the weapon spun up, you have the opportunity to retreat or take him out quickly. Firing the Minigun slows the Heavy's movement speed to a crawl, making him vulnerable to flanking and coordinated attacks from different directions.
Natascha	Natascha has a longer spin-up than the default Minigun, but slows targets it hits. This makes hit-and-run tactics easier to begin, but harder to run away from should you be caught in its fire. Natascha grants 20% damage resistance to the Heavy when he's below 50% health. The Heavy will need to be focused by your team if he is suppressing an important area. Due to Natascha's significantly reduced damage, more bulky classes, such as the Soldier or Demoman, can face its user head-on with proper positioning. At long distances, this weapon's slow down has little effect.
Brass Beast	The Brass Beast deals increased damage, making it near impossible to face directly. The Brass Beast takes even longer to spin up than Natascha and brings the Heavy's speed to a crawl. It becomes nearly impossible for him to avoid oncoming fire, especially from the Demoman or Sniper. The Brass Beast grants 20% damage resistance to the Heavy when he's below 50% health. The Heavy will need to be focused by your team if he is suppressing an important area. The Heavy's decreased movement speed encourages him to linger in defensive locations longer. When fighting in enemy territory, take care to not run straight into a Heavy, no matter what weapon he wields.
Tomislav	The Tomislav spins up quickly and quietly, making it excel at ambushing. Listen for a rattling noise when approaching corners, which may indicate that a Heavy with the Tomislav lies in wait. Forcing the Heavy to fight in the open will lower his effectiveness, as the Tomislav fires 20% slower than the Minigun.
Huo-Long Heater	When the Huo-Long Heater is spun up, it consumes 4 ammo per second to deploy a ring of flames. You can get his attention and stay behind cover to force him to keep his gun spun up and waste ammunition. Spies can jump over the ring of flames deployed by the Huo-Long Heater, making it possible for them to backstab the Heavy without being set on fire or losing their Spy-cicle.

Secondary weapons

Armaments

Weapon	Anti-Heavy strategy
Shotgun + reskins	A Heavy may switch to the Shotgun when he is moving between areas or his Minigun runs out of ammunition. Take him down before he can prepare his other weapon. The Shotgun is a close-to-medium range weapon and ineffective at long range. The Shotgun only has six shots. If he is pressured enough to switch back to the Minigun, you should easily be able to finish him off.
Family Business	The Family Business has a total of 8 shots compared to the Shotgun's 6, but deals 15% less damage per shot. This makes constantly pressuring him less effective, but will also make combat beyond close-range less dangerous.
Panic Attack	The Panic Attack deploys quickly but suffers from massive bullet spread with consecutive shots. Survive the first shot, and the following ones are easier to dodge. If he is pressured enough to switch back to the Minigun, you should easily be able to finish him off.

Edibles

• A Lunchbox item replaces the Heavy's Shotgun, leaving him with only one ranged weapon.
• If a Heavy retreats from a fight, listen for a "nom" and check if he is trying to eat.
• A Heavy is defenseless while eating. If no other enemies are nearby, interrupt his meal and kill him. Many taunt kills are faster than the eating animation and are guaranteed to outdamage the maximum healing of 300.

Weapon	Anti-Heavy strategy
Sandvich + reskins	The Sandvich quickly restores the Heavy to full health as he eats it, so he may be able to soak up the damage dealt by your attacks. At the very least, harm him enough so that eating the Sandvich was a pointless endeavor. A Heavy can acquire a new Sandvich by picking up a medkit while at full health; take any nearby medkits for yourself or damage him so that he does not receive a new Sandvich. A Heavy can throw his Sandvich on the ground for anyone else to pick up in order to regain 50% of their HP instantly. This is commonly done to heal a friendly Medic. Steal the Sandvich yourself or knock his allies away using knock back.
Dalokohs Bar + reskins	The Dalokohs Bar only heals the Heavy for 100 HP but increases his maximum Health by 50 for 30 seconds, which can determine the winner of a duel. Compared to the Sandvich, the Dalokohs Bar can be used more often but restores less health. It has a cooldown timer of only 10 seconds, compared to the Sandvich’s 30 seconds. Most significantly, while a thrown Dalokohs Bar heals for less than the Sandvich, it can be thrown more often to dispense more total health.
Buffalo Steak Sandvich	The Buffalo Steak Sandvich increases the Heavy's speed and damage, but locks him into his melee weapon. It also increases the damage he takes by 20%, so keep a distance and shoot him down. The Heavy may consume the Steak Sandvich to reach the front lines faster. If you catch him off guard while he is traveling, he is helpless against your ranged attacks. Like the regular Sandvich, a Heavy can toss his Buffalo Steak Sandvich for others to pick up, restoring 50% of their max health. Deny his allies this healing by knocking them away with rockets or grenades, or stealing the Steak for yourself.
Second Banana	The Second Banana recharges twice as fast the Sandvich, but only heals 200 health at a time. Aggressively prevent the Heavy from having any meals alone by constantly following and attacking him. Similar to the Dalokohs Bar, a thrown Second Banana heals for less than the Sandvich, but can be thrown more often to dispense more total health. Expect the Heavy to eat the Second Banana more often, but don't ignore that he can still heal his teammates pretty often.

Melee weapons

Weapon	Anti-Heavy strategy
Fists + reskins	The Heavy's slow speed is a disadvantage that can be exploited by faster classes during a melee fight; strafe around him, back up between attacks, and use high ground to jump over his head to disorient him. The Heavy is the class with the highest health; it will take more hits to take him down, which gives the Heavy more chances to strike you in turn.
Killing Gloves of Boxing	If a Heavy gains the critical hit boost from the K.G.B., stay back until it wears off. If he kills you with a critical punch, your death will just reset the buff’s duration. The Heavy can also apply the Crit boost to his other weapons when switched. Quickly decide whether to take him down or retreat until his buff wears off.
Gloves of Running Urgently + reskins	The G.R.U. significantly boosts the Heavy's movement speed but drains his maximum health over time. He will typically use them to run to a battlefield, then switch weapons upon arriving. The G.R.U. take a significant amount of time to holster. Catching the Heavy as he travels should let you significantly damage him. The Heavy could take out the G.R.U. to pursue you or retreat. If you realize this, turn around and fight before he switches to another weapon.
Warrior's Spirit	A Heavy using the Warrior's Spirit inflicts and receives 30% more damage, leaving less room for mistakes for both of you. If a Heavy recently obtained a kill using the Warrior's Spirit, remember that he will have recovered some health and won't be an easy kill even with his damage vulnerability.
Fists of Steel	The Fists of Steel reduce ranged damage, allowing the Heavy to approach the battlefield a bit more safely. It increases the time it takes for him to switch weapons, so catching him by surprise is always a good option. The Heavy takes doubled melee damage while the Fists of Steel are active. Consider charging at him with your melee weapon. If you don't think you can reach him before he switches to his Minigun, you can fake an approach to weapon heckle him or attack with both ranged and melee alongside teammates.
Eviction Notice	Outside of combat, the Eviction Notice acts as a lesser version of the Gloves of Running Urgently; the speed boost is smaller, but the health drain is lower. In combat, treat the Eviction Notice as if dealing with the default Fists; it attacks twice as fast but deals 60% less damage, making it inflict 20% less damage than the Fists overall. The Eviction Notice gives the Heavy a speed boost on-hit. Slower classes might have trouble avoiding him if he manages to land the first hit.
Holiday Punch	Don't leave your back exposed; if the Heavy manages to hit your back with the Holiday Punch, you will be stuck laughing in place and will probably suffer a humiliating death. You cannot be forced into an animation while airborne. If you're fighting a Heavy with the Holiday Punch, jump whenever he punches. This weapon's forced-laughter effect can pierce through an ÜberCharge, wasting the invulnerability. Again, try to jump while the Heavy punches to avoid this.

See also

• Team strategy