Difference between revisions of "Basic Medic strategy"

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m (Frying pan added to melee weapons list alongside the bonesaw/saxxy/conscientious objector.)
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{{hatnote|This page contains basic strategy for the Medic. For more advanced strategies, see [[Community Medic strategy]]. For how to play against the Medic, see [[Anti-Medic strategy]].}}
 
{{Quotation|'''The Medic''' |Ze healing leaves little time for ze hurting.|sound=Medic_specialcompleted03.wav}}
 
{{Quotation|'''The Medic''' |Ze healing leaves little time for ze hurting.|sound=Medic_specialcompleted03.wav}}
The [[Medic]] is arguably the most important class on a team. Although he only has average health and mediocre firepower, his ability to heal and [[Healing#Overheal|overheal]] teammates using the [[Medi Gun]] makes him invaluable. Additionally, the Medic continually builds an [[ÜberCharge]] meter as he heals others. Once full, he can provide invulnerability with the [[Medi Gun]], [[Crit#Crit boost|Crit]]-boost a teammate with the [[Kritzkrieg]], or perform rapid healing with the [[Quick-Fix]]. Proper deployment of an [[ÜberCharge]] can easily make the difference between victory and defeat. In any firefight, it is incredibly important that the Medic survives. Teammates may die, [[Glossary of player terms#P 2|pockets]] may die, ÜberCharges may be spent, but as long as the Medic is alive and building a new ÜberCharge, his team has the advantage. The Medic relies on having good teammates: as long as he is protected, he is free to heal and keep his team alive.
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[[File:Medictaunt3.PNG|350px|right]]
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The [[Medic]] is arguably the most important class. He is the only class with a reliable way to heal and [[Healing#Overheal|overheal]], putting any team without one at a severe disadvantage. As the Medic heals others, he builds an [[ÜberCharge]] meter. Once this meter is full, he can buff a teammate with effects such as the [[Medi Gun]]'s invulnerability or the [[Kritzkrieg]]'s [[Crit#Crit boost|Crit]]-boost, giving his team a chance to forge ahead. However, if the Medic dies, he loses his accumulated [[ÜberCharge]]. Knowing this, the flow of battle can be dictated by if a team's Medic is alive and/or charged. The Medic is a priority, both for his team to protect and the enemy to kill.
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The Medic's weapons are designed more for self-protection and supplemental healing. He relies on having competent teammates who will protect him so that he is free to heal, not fight. More than with any other class, communication is key, both for indicating who to heal and when to activate an ÜberCharge.
  
 
== Primary weapons ==
 
== Primary weapons ==
Your ability to heal others will often make you the number one target of many enemy players. When in combat, be hard to hit: jump, duck, and [[strafe]] to avoid damage. Your natural health regeneration will often not be enough to keep you alive, so rely on your allies for protection and ask them to leave [[health]] pickups for you. Unless you are forced to fight, you should retreat if all nearby teammates are defeated.
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Your ability to heal teammates will often make you the primary target of many enemy players. When in combat, be hard to hit: jump, duck, and [[strafe]] to avoid damage. Your natural health regeneration will often not be enough to keep you alive, so rely on your allies for protection and ask them to leave [[health]] pickups for you. Unless you are forced to fight, you should retreat if all nearby teammates are defeated.
 
   
 
   
 
===[[Syringe Gun]]===
 
===[[Syringe Gun]]===
 
{{icon item|Syringe Gun|100px}}
 
{{icon item|Syringe Gun|100px}}
  
Although the Syringe Gun fires rapidly and deals fair damage, you should still be relying on your teammates to protect you. The needles from the Syringe Gun travel rather slowly in a gentle parabolic arc, so you'll need to aim upwards slightly and lead fast targets accordingly to compensate.
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The Syringe Gun rapidly fires needles in a slow parabolic arc, which deal moderate damage at close range only. It is not a great weapon - your teammates should protect you so that you don't have to use it. The Syringe Gun should be used as a last resort when enemies directly attack you; aim slightly upward and lead targets accordingly to compensate for the slow projectile speed.  
 
 
  
=== [[Blutsauger]] ===
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=== [[Blutsauger]] + [[reskins]]===
{{icon item|Blutsauger|100px}}
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{{icon item|Blutsauger|100px}} {{icon item|Australium Blutsauger|100px|link=Australium weapons}}
  
The Blutsauger can be useful if you constantly find yourself being pursued by enemies; if you consistently land your shots when using the Blutsauger, you will heal yourself more than your standard regeneration can. If you're injured and can afford to stop healing your patient momentarily, attack with the Blutsauger to restore some health. However, your decreased health regeneration will leave you vulnerable to damage-over-time effects such as [[fire]] or [[bleed]]. Continue to avoid fights and stay behind your allies; you are still your team's main source of healing.  
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The Blutsauger heals you for 3 health for each shot that hits an enemy, but lowers your natural health regeneration even when it's not your active weapon. The lifesteal effect is useful in a direct fight, usually when you are caught out alone and need to find teammates or a health kit. If your team reliably protects you from enemies, equip a different weapon to retain your natural regeneration.
  
===[[Crusader's Crossbow]]===
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===[[Crusader's Crossbow]] + [[reskins]]===
{{icon item|Crusader's Crossbow|100px}}
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{{icon item|Crusader's Crossbow|100px}} {{icon item|Festive Crusader's Crossbow|100px|link=Festive weapons}}
  
The Crusader's Crossbow, while tricky to aim, allows you to heal teammates from very far away. At close range, it can be used for a quick burst of healing to a critically wounded ally. For the most part, stick to your [[Medi Gun]], as the Crossbow won't help build your ÜberCharge meter. The Crusader's Crossbow is not meant for combat; in addition to its slow reload time, the bolts arc over distances and travel relatively slowly, making them difficult to aim. Think of its ability to damage enemies as a bonus and let your teammates do the fighting.
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The Crusader's Crossbow is your only primary weapon that can heal, at a distance further than the Medi Gun, no less! Depending on who you hit, crossbow bolts either damage enemies or heal allies, with shot power increasing the farther it travels. The Crossbow's most common application is to heal teammates that are far away from you, such as roaming Scouts, Soldiers, and Spies; you can tell your allies to stand still if you have trouble landing long-range healing shots. For nearby injured teammates, shoot them with the Crossbow for burst healing before swapping to your Medi Gun. Overall, you gain an extra healing ability in exchange for self-defense; the Crossbow's slow fire rate makes it unreliable in a fight.
  
 
===[[Overdose]]===
 
===[[Overdose]]===
 
{{icon item|Overdose|100px}}
 
{{icon item|Overdose|100px}}
  
Depending on how full your ÜberCharge meter is, you'll gain up to a 10% movement speed increase.
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Depending on how full your ÜberCharge meter is, the Overdose grants up to 20% additional movement speed. This weapon makes it easier to dodge projectiles or flee from enemies if you're under attack. In particular, the extra speed increases the odds that you won't have to waste your ÜberCharge in self-defense. The movement speed bonus only applies when the Overdose is your active weapon, so healing teammates will return you to normal speed. The Overdose deals slightly less damage in combat, encouraging you to seek help from teammates to preserve ÜberCharge instead of fighting enemies. The maximum speed bonus is still not enough to outrun an aggressive Scout, so you may still need to turn and fight regardless.
Although this is not enough to keep up with the [[Scout]], the increased mobility should make dodging attacks and maneuvering around the battlefield a bit easier. Although you sacrifice some offensive power, you should not be in combat often enough for it to matter. While the Overdose may seem best when paired with the [[Kritzkrieg]] or [[Quick-Fix]], the ÜberCharges offered by those particular secondary weapons work best when deployed as soon as possible, leaving you to choose which healing gun best suits the overall team needs.
 
  
 
== Secondary weapons ==
 
== Secondary weapons ==
Your healing beam will stay locked onto a patient no matter what direction you face, so turn around frequently to watch for [[Spy|Spies]] and other ambushers. Stay behind your [[Medic buddy]] so that he can take all of the damage. The beam can bend around corners, allowing you to heal teammates from behind cover. Don't make the common mistake of only healing one player: your ÜberCharge meter will fill up more quickly if you are healing wounded allies, so spread your healing evenly during moments of downtime. Generally speaking, you first want to heal other Medics, then combat classes, then support classes. Whenever it comes time to unleash a charge, inform your team.  You'll want as much support as possible following behind you and your patient.  
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You cannot heal yourself, so you will want to work with your team. To heal an ally, target them with your Medi Gun out and fire away. You can only heal one teammate at a time, so you will sometimes need to decide who takes priority:
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* Before a fight, spread your healing among your team to [[overheal]] them and decide which allies might best protect you. If there is not enough time to heal everyone, prioritize classes likely to take damage first: the Scout, Soldier, Demoman, Heavy, and Sniper.
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* Once the fight begins, prioritize healing other Medics, then teammates who are taking heavy damage, then teammates with low health. If no one is in danger of dying, heal and overheal nearby teammates that roam away from you often, who you won't get to often heal.
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* At all times, '''you''' take priority. Your healing beam bends around corners and stays locked onto patients, so you are able to stay behind cover, dodge enemy attacks, and turn around to watch for flanking foes.
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* Prioritize targets that are under fire over ones that are at the back, even if the ones behind the frontline have less health. Teammates that are under fire need it most to keep the enemy team back.
  
===[[Medi Gun]] / [[Medi Gun|Festive Medi Gun]]===
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As you heal allies, the ÜberCharge meter will gradually fill up. It fills more quickly if you are healing wounded allies, rewarding you for staying near combat. Your different secondary weapons have different ÜberCharges; communicate with your team to best use your chosen effect.
{{icon item|Medi Gun|100px}} {{icon item|Festive Medi Gun|100px}}
 
  
Most of the time, you will equip the Medi Gun for the standard [[ÜberCharge]]. While your [[Medic buddy]] will differ from time to time, an ÜberCharge will help your team make a push into almost any defensive encampment, particularly those with [[Sentry Gun]]s. Invincibility is useful on defense, too: you can counter an enemy Medic's [[ÜberCharge]] by deploying your own, preferably just after his finishes. If you are in danger of being killed, activate your ÜberCharge in self-defense: it's better to survive than to die with a full meter. You can keep multiple targets ÜberCharged at once by quickly switching between them. Although your charge drains faster, you will generally make the team push stronger.  
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===[[Medi Gun]] + [[reskins]]===
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{{icon item|Medi Gun|100px}} {{icon item|Festive Medi Gun|100px|link=Festive weapons}} {{icon item|Silver Botkiller Medi Gun|100px|link=Botkiller weapons}} {{icon item|Australium Medi Gun|100px|link=Australium weapons}}
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Compared to your other choices, the standard Medi Gun charges the slowest but arguably has the most powerful [[ÜberCharge]]. It provides 8 seconds of invincibility to you and an ally, which is useful in almost any situation. Offensively, you can push into a defensive encampment, particularly those with chokepoints or [[Sentry Gun]]s. Defensively, you can hold a contested area when outnumbered or counter an enemy Medic's ÜberCharge. If you are in danger of being killed, activate your ÜberCharge in self-defense: it's better to survive than to die with a full meter. You can keep multiple targets ÜberCharged at once by quickly switching your healing beam between them, at the cost of it draining significantly faster.
  
 
===[[Kritzkrieg]]===
 
===[[Kritzkrieg]]===
 
{{icon item|Kritzkrieg|100px}}
 
{{icon item|Kritzkrieg|100px}}
  
The best candidates for the Kritzkrieg's ÜberCharge are the Soldier, the Demoman, and the Heavy. These classes can deal damage over a wide area and use the critical hits to eliminate entire groups of enemies. Deploying the Kritzkrieg does not protect you, so you're relying completely on the skill level of your patient and will lose should an enemy Medic deploy a standard ÜberCharge. Because your meter charges faster, it is best to deploy the Kritzkrieg as soon as possible, before the enemy Medics are fully charged. Sentry Guns are not affected by critical hits, so do not use the Kritzkrieg when trying to destroy [[Engineer]] nests.
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The Kritzkrieg functions similarly to the Medi Gun, but charges 25% faster and provides 8 seconds of guaranteed [[Crits|Critical hits]] to its target upon ÜberCharge instead of invulnerability. It promotes a riskier, offensive playstyle; if the enemy Medic uses the standard Medi Gun, you will be fully charged first and can quickly overwhelm his team. The Kritzkrieg's ÜberCharge does not protect you or your teammate, so it is best on the Soldier, Demoman, and Heavy, classes that deal ranged area damage. Unlike the Medi Gun, the Kritzkrieg is ineffective against the [[Engineer]]'s Sentry Gun, as buildings are not affected by critical hits.
  
 
===[[Quick-Fix]]===
 
===[[Quick-Fix]]===
 
{{icon item|Quick-Fix|100px}}
 
{{icon item|Quick-Fix|100px}}
  
The Quick-Fix heals more rapidly than both the Medi Gun and Kritzkrieg, allowing you to gain an immediate advantage in an area with multiple injured teammates and maintain momentum during a team push. In addition to this, healing a Scout will allow you to move around the battlefield very rapidly. However, the inability to [[overheal]] means that you cannot boost your teammates' health for future confrontations and will be at a disadvantage at the beginning of a clash. Should your team allow an enemy Medic to accumulate a full ÜberCharge, the invincibility offered by the [[Medi Gun]] or the crit boost offered by the [[Kritzkrieg]] will overpower your tripled healing rate.
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The Quick-Fix heals teammates the fastest of your secondary weapons, making it useful for healing multiple injured teammates during combat. You also copy the explosive jumps of a friendly Soldier or Demoman when healing them, allowing you to easily keep up with them. However, the Quick-Fix can only [[overheal]] allies to 125% of their max health rather than 150%. Your team will be at disadvantage at the beginning of fights, when your enemies are presumably fully overhealed.
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The Quick-Fix's ÜberCharge triples the rate of healing, grants immunity to knockback, and charges 10% faster than the Medi Gun. It is best used to maintain momentum rather than protect an area; you can still be overpowered by the invincibility from an enemy Medic's Medi Gun ÜberCharge and sources of massive damage, such as crit boosts.
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===[[Vaccinator]]===
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{{icon item|Vaccinator|100px}}
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The Vaccinator is trickier to use than your other options. When healing an ally with the Vaccinator, you can cycle between granting the two of you a 10% resistance to either [[Hitscan|bullets]], [[Projectile|explosions]], or [[fire]]. Its [[ÜberCharge]], which builds 67% faster and is stored in 4 smaller bars, increases the chosen resistance to 75% for 2.5 seconds. The Vaccinator's defensive capabilities, combined with the reduced overheal rate, are best used to maintain an immediate advantage at the front lines. In fights, adjust the Vaccinator to face whatever weapons your enemies carry. For example, a [[Pyro]] can always deal fire damage, but may have a [[Shotgun]], which deals bullet damage. The Vaccinator deploys each ÜberCharge as a shield; you can rapidly place shields on multiple teammates or stack them on the same target to protect against multiple damage types. Note that the Vaccinator's ÜberCharge rate is significantly reduced when healing targets at full health; stay near the action to heal injured teammates.
  
 
== Melee weapons ==
 
== Melee weapons ==
===[[Bonesaw]] / [[Saxxy]] / [[Conscientious Objector]] / [[Frying Pan]]===
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==={{anchor|Bonesaw}}[[Bonesaw]] + [[reskins]]===
{{icon item|Bonesaw|100px}} {{icon item|Saxxy|100px}} {{icon item|Conscientious Objector|100px}}  {{icon item|Frying Pan|100px}}
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{{icon item|Bonesaw|100px}} {{icon item|Frying Pan|100px}} {{icon item|Saxxy|100px}} {{icon item|Conscientious Objector|100px}} {{icon item|Freedom Staff|100px}}  {{icon item|Bat Outta Hell|100px}} {{icon item|Memory Maker|100px}} {{icon item|Ham Shank|100px}} {{icon item|Golden Frying Pan|100px}} {{icon item|Necro Smasher|100px}} {{icon item|Crossing Guard|100px}} {{icon item|Festive Bonesaw|100px|link=Festive weapons}} {{icon item|Prinny Machete|100px}}  
  
The Bonesaw is useful for getting the first strike on a distracted opponent but still loses to the Syringe Gun in damage over time. There is no reason to use the Bonesaw; because Medics rarely engage in combat, all of your other melee weapons possess some sort of utility and are generally seen as straight upgrades.
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If you are cornered and aiming your Syringe Gun is difficult, you can take out the Bonesaw as a last resort. Although you have above-average movement speed to catch up to enemies, keep in mind that they still have guns. All of your other melee weapons possess some sort of utility. Because of how rarely you enter melee combat in standard gameplay, melee weapons that provide some utility buff are preferred.
  
===[[Übersaw]]===
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===[[Ubersaw]] + [[reskins]]===
{{icon item|Übersaw|100px}}
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{{icon item|Übersaw|100px}} {{icon item|Festive Ubersaw|100px|link=Festive weapons}}
 
   
 
   
If you are cornered by the enemy, use the Übersaw to rapidly fill your ÜberCharge meter. Don't be zealous, even if your foe is quite weakened; once your meter is filled, escape back to your teammates, deploying the ÜberCharge if necessary.
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The Ubersaw swings slightly slower than the Bonesaw, but grants a massive 25% boost to your [[ÜberCharge]] meter for each attack that lands. If an enemy misjudges his ability to fight you, take him out with the Ubersaw for an instant advantage. If you end up cornered, as a last resort, you can try taking out the Ubersaw to quickly fill the default Medi Gun's meter, then escape with the resulting invincibility.
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Avoid actively seeking combat with the Ubersaw to build charge. Melee combat is risky against any class, and you can build the equivalent 25% after about 10 seconds of healing injured teammates as they fight.
  
 
===[[Vita-Saw]]===
 
===[[Vita-Saw]]===
 
{{icon item|Vita-Saw|100px}}
 
{{icon item|Vita-Saw|100px}}
  
The Vita-Saw grants minor [[ÜberCharge]] insurance. As a Medic, you are generally healing teammates while at the frontlines and will be targeted by any competent enemy. Death is almost inevitable, so equip the Vita-Saw if the 20% saved charge can significantly impact the flow of battle. If you equip anything except the [[Blutsauger]], your natural health regeneration can make up for the small health penalty. It is obviously useless in situations where you cannot respawn, such as [[Arena]] or [[Sudden Death]].
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The Vita-Saw grants minor [[ÜberCharge]] insurance. Hitting an enemy with it harvests an Organ; each Organ lets you retain 15% of your ÜberCharge upon dying, up to a cap of 60%. As a Medic, you will inevitably become a priority target for the enemy team. If your ÜberCharge is not fully charged and you are cornered, fight back with the Vita-Saw to ensure at least some of your hard work remains after death. Of course, the small -10 health penalty might mean you die more often against burst damage. The Vita-Saw is useless in situations where you cannot respawn, such as [[Arena]] or [[Sudden Death]].
  
 
===[[Amputator]]===
 
===[[Amputator]]===
 
{{icon item|Amputator|100px}}
 
{{icon item|Amputator|100px}}
  
The Amputator has no downsides and is a straight upgrade from the Bonesaw. Using its taunt to heal will not build your ÜberCharge meter, so you should still be using your [[Medi Gun]] of choice for most of your healing. Only use its taunt-heal when there are numerous injured teammates clustered nearby, staying behind cover even if there are no enemies in sight. Taunting in the midst of combat may get you killed, no matter how much healing you provide.
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While you hold the Amputator, you regenerate 3 extra health per second, useful when escaping a fight or suffering from effects such as [[afterburn]] and [[bleeding]]. Taunting will play a [[Medicating Melody|melody]] that heals all nearby allies that are not obstructed by cover. This melody doesn't build much ÜberCharge and leaves you defenseless for four seconds, so play it only when you absolutely need to heal multiple teammates at once. The Amputator deals 20% less damage than the Bonesaw but is still considered an upgrade because as the Medic, you'll rarely engage in melee combat.
  
 
===[[Solemn Vow]]===
 
===[[Solemn Vow]]===
 
{{icon item|Solemn Vow|100px}}
 
{{icon item|Solemn Vow|100px}}
  
The Solemn Vow has no downsides and is a straight upgrade to the Bonesaw. The ability to see enemy health can be useful for informing teammates of weakened foes who can easily be picked off. Defensively, this ability can be useful when deciding to fight or run from a pursuing enemy.
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The Solemn Vow allows you to see enemy health, names, and ÜberCharge percentage, like with the Spy. While you heal teammates, also spend time looking at the enemy - you can tell your team about weakened foes and the ÜberCharge state of enemy Medics. If you are alone, this ability helps you decide whether to fight or run from a pursuing enemy. The Solemn Vow suffers a 10% attack speed penalty, which is practically negligible for its benefits.
 
 
==Item set effects==
 
===[[The Medieval Medic]]===
 
{{item icon|Crusader's Crossbow|100px}}
 
{{item icon|Amputator|100px}}
 
  
The increased health regeneration granted by the item set can significantly increase your survivability, particularly against damage-over-time effects like [[afterburn]]. You will need to rely further on your teammates for protection, as only using the [[Crusader's Crossbow]] to fight off enemies can be very difficult.
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The Solemn Vow's benefits are always active, unlike how the Ubersaw or Vitasaw require you to land melee attacks, or how the Amputator's taunt leaves you vulnerable. It becomes a more useful choice against skilled opponents who will not let you freely utilize the other melee weapons.
  
 
== See also ==
 
== See also ==
*[[ÜberCharge]]
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* [[ÜberCharge]]
*[[Medic buddy]]
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* [[Medic buddy]]
  
{{Class strategy}}
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{{Class Strategy Nav}}
 
{{Medic Nav}}
 
{{Medic Nav}}
  
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[[Category:Medic]]
 
[[Category:Strategy]]
 
[[Category:Strategy]]
[[Category:Medic]]
 

Latest revision as of 20:47, 20 September 2023

This page contains basic strategy for the Medic. For more advanced strategies, see Community Medic strategy. For how to play against the Medic, see Anti-Medic strategy.
Ze healing leaves little time for ze hurting.
The Medic
Medictaunt3.PNG

The Medic is arguably the most important class. He is the only class with a reliable way to heal and overheal, putting any team without one at a severe disadvantage. As the Medic heals others, he builds an ÜberCharge meter. Once this meter is full, he can buff a teammate with effects such as the Medi Gun's invulnerability or the Kritzkrieg's Crit-boost, giving his team a chance to forge ahead. However, if the Medic dies, he loses his accumulated ÜberCharge. Knowing this, the flow of battle can be dictated by if a team's Medic is alive and/or charged. The Medic is a priority, both for his team to protect and the enemy to kill.

The Medic's weapons are designed more for self-protection and supplemental healing. He relies on having competent teammates who will protect him so that he is free to heal, not fight. More than with any other class, communication is key, both for indicating who to heal and when to activate an ÜberCharge.

Primary weapons

Your ability to heal teammates will often make you the primary target of many enemy players. When in combat, be hard to hit: jump, duck, and strafe to avoid damage. Your natural health regeneration will often not be enough to keep you alive, so rely on your allies for protection and ask them to leave health pickups for you. Unless you are forced to fight, you should retreat if all nearby teammates are defeated.

Syringe Gun

Syringe Gun

The Syringe Gun rapidly fires needles in a slow parabolic arc, which deal moderate damage at close range only. It is not a great weapon - your teammates should protect you so that you don't have to use it. The Syringe Gun should be used as a last resort when enemies directly attack you; aim slightly upward and lead targets accordingly to compensate for the slow projectile speed.

Blutsauger + reskins

Blutsauger Australium Blutsauger

The Blutsauger heals you for 3 health for each shot that hits an enemy, but lowers your natural health regeneration even when it's not your active weapon. The lifesteal effect is useful in a direct fight, usually when you are caught out alone and need to find teammates or a health kit. If your team reliably protects you from enemies, equip a different weapon to retain your natural regeneration.

Crusader's Crossbow + reskins

Crusader's Crossbow Festive Crusader's Crossbow

The Crusader's Crossbow is your only primary weapon that can heal, at a distance further than the Medi Gun, no less! Depending on who you hit, crossbow bolts either damage enemies or heal allies, with shot power increasing the farther it travels. The Crossbow's most common application is to heal teammates that are far away from you, such as roaming Scouts, Soldiers, and Spies; you can tell your allies to stand still if you have trouble landing long-range healing shots. For nearby injured teammates, shoot them with the Crossbow for burst healing before swapping to your Medi Gun. Overall, you gain an extra healing ability in exchange for self-defense; the Crossbow's slow fire rate makes it unreliable in a fight.

Overdose

Overdose

Depending on how full your ÜberCharge meter is, the Overdose grants up to 20% additional movement speed. This weapon makes it easier to dodge projectiles or flee from enemies if you're under attack. In particular, the extra speed increases the odds that you won't have to waste your ÜberCharge in self-defense. The movement speed bonus only applies when the Overdose is your active weapon, so healing teammates will return you to normal speed. The Overdose deals slightly less damage in combat, encouraging you to seek help from teammates to preserve ÜberCharge instead of fighting enemies. The maximum speed bonus is still not enough to outrun an aggressive Scout, so you may still need to turn and fight regardless.

Secondary weapons

You cannot heal yourself, so you will want to work with your team. To heal an ally, target them with your Medi Gun out and fire away. You can only heal one teammate at a time, so you will sometimes need to decide who takes priority:

  • Before a fight, spread your healing among your team to overheal them and decide which allies might best protect you. If there is not enough time to heal everyone, prioritize classes likely to take damage first: the Scout, Soldier, Demoman, Heavy, and Sniper.
  • Once the fight begins, prioritize healing other Medics, then teammates who are taking heavy damage, then teammates with low health. If no one is in danger of dying, heal and overheal nearby teammates that roam away from you often, who you won't get to often heal.
  • At all times, you take priority. Your healing beam bends around corners and stays locked onto patients, so you are able to stay behind cover, dodge enemy attacks, and turn around to watch for flanking foes.
  • Prioritize targets that are under fire over ones that are at the back, even if the ones behind the frontline have less health. Teammates that are under fire need it most to keep the enemy team back.

As you heal allies, the ÜberCharge meter will gradually fill up. It fills more quickly if you are healing wounded allies, rewarding you for staying near combat. Your different secondary weapons have different ÜberCharges; communicate with your team to best use your chosen effect.

Medi Gun + reskins

Medi Gun Festive Medi Gun Silver Botkiller Medi Gun Australium Medi Gun

Compared to your other choices, the standard Medi Gun charges the slowest but arguably has the most powerful ÜberCharge. It provides 8 seconds of invincibility to you and an ally, which is useful in almost any situation. Offensively, you can push into a defensive encampment, particularly those with chokepoints or Sentry Guns. Defensively, you can hold a contested area when outnumbered or counter an enemy Medic's ÜberCharge. If you are in danger of being killed, activate your ÜberCharge in self-defense: it's better to survive than to die with a full meter. You can keep multiple targets ÜberCharged at once by quickly switching your healing beam between them, at the cost of it draining significantly faster.

Kritzkrieg

Kritzkrieg

The Kritzkrieg functions similarly to the Medi Gun, but charges 25% faster and provides 8 seconds of guaranteed Critical hits to its target upon ÜberCharge instead of invulnerability. It promotes a riskier, offensive playstyle; if the enemy Medic uses the standard Medi Gun, you will be fully charged first and can quickly overwhelm his team. The Kritzkrieg's ÜberCharge does not protect you or your teammate, so it is best on the Soldier, Demoman, and Heavy, classes that deal ranged area damage. Unlike the Medi Gun, the Kritzkrieg is ineffective against the Engineer's Sentry Gun, as buildings are not affected by critical hits.

Quick-Fix

Quick-Fix

The Quick-Fix heals teammates the fastest of your secondary weapons, making it useful for healing multiple injured teammates during combat. You also copy the explosive jumps of a friendly Soldier or Demoman when healing them, allowing you to easily keep up with them. However, the Quick-Fix can only overheal allies to 125% of their max health rather than 150%. Your team will be at disadvantage at the beginning of fights, when your enemies are presumably fully overhealed.

The Quick-Fix's ÜberCharge triples the rate of healing, grants immunity to knockback, and charges 10% faster than the Medi Gun. It is best used to maintain momentum rather than protect an area; you can still be overpowered by the invincibility from an enemy Medic's Medi Gun ÜberCharge and sources of massive damage, such as crit boosts.

Vaccinator

Vaccinator

The Vaccinator is trickier to use than your other options. When healing an ally with the Vaccinator, you can cycle between granting the two of you a 10% resistance to either bullets, explosions, or fire. Its ÜberCharge, which builds 67% faster and is stored in 4 smaller bars, increases the chosen resistance to 75% for 2.5 seconds. The Vaccinator's defensive capabilities, combined with the reduced overheal rate, are best used to maintain an immediate advantage at the front lines. In fights, adjust the Vaccinator to face whatever weapons your enemies carry. For example, a Pyro can always deal fire damage, but may have a Shotgun, which deals bullet damage. The Vaccinator deploys each ÜberCharge as a shield; you can rapidly place shields on multiple teammates or stack them on the same target to protect against multiple damage types. Note that the Vaccinator's ÜberCharge rate is significantly reduced when healing targets at full health; stay near the action to heal injured teammates.

Melee weapons

Bonesaw + reskins

Bonesaw Frying Pan Saxxy Conscientious Objector Freedom Staff Bat Outta Hell Memory Maker Ham Shank Golden Frying Pan Necro Smasher Crossing Guard Festive Bonesaw Prinny Machete

If you are cornered and aiming your Syringe Gun is difficult, you can take out the Bonesaw as a last resort. Although you have above-average movement speed to catch up to enemies, keep in mind that they still have guns. All of your other melee weapons possess some sort of utility. Because of how rarely you enter melee combat in standard gameplay, melee weapons that provide some utility buff are preferred.

Ubersaw + reskins

Übersaw Festive Ubersaw

The Ubersaw swings slightly slower than the Bonesaw, but grants a massive 25% boost to your ÜberCharge meter for each attack that lands. If an enemy misjudges his ability to fight you, take him out with the Ubersaw for an instant advantage. If you end up cornered, as a last resort, you can try taking out the Ubersaw to quickly fill the default Medi Gun's meter, then escape with the resulting invincibility.

Avoid actively seeking combat with the Ubersaw to build charge. Melee combat is risky against any class, and you can build the equivalent 25% after about 10 seconds of healing injured teammates as they fight.

Vita-Saw

Vita-Saw

The Vita-Saw grants minor ÜberCharge insurance. Hitting an enemy with it harvests an Organ; each Organ lets you retain 15% of your ÜberCharge upon dying, up to a cap of 60%. As a Medic, you will inevitably become a priority target for the enemy team. If your ÜberCharge is not fully charged and you are cornered, fight back with the Vita-Saw to ensure at least some of your hard work remains after death. Of course, the small -10 health penalty might mean you die more often against burst damage. The Vita-Saw is useless in situations where you cannot respawn, such as Arena or Sudden Death.

Amputator

Amputator

While you hold the Amputator, you regenerate 3 extra health per second, useful when escaping a fight or suffering from effects such as afterburn and bleeding. Taunting will play a melody that heals all nearby allies that are not obstructed by cover. This melody doesn't build much ÜberCharge and leaves you defenseless for four seconds, so play it only when you absolutely need to heal multiple teammates at once. The Amputator deals 20% less damage than the Bonesaw but is still considered an upgrade because as the Medic, you'll rarely engage in melee combat.

Solemn Vow

Solemn Vow

The Solemn Vow allows you to see enemy health, names, and ÜberCharge percentage, like with the Spy. While you heal teammates, also spend time looking at the enemy - you can tell your team about weakened foes and the ÜberCharge state of enemy Medics. If you are alone, this ability helps you decide whether to fight or run from a pursuing enemy. The Solemn Vow suffers a 10% attack speed penalty, which is practically negligible for its benefits.

The Solemn Vow's benefits are always active, unlike how the Ubersaw or Vitasaw require you to land melee attacks, or how the Amputator's taunt leaves you vulnerable. It becomes a more useful choice against skilled opponents who will not let you freely utilize the other melee weapons.

See also