Medic weapons (competitive)

This article is for competitive play, based on the standard community competitive format.
The community competitive scene changes frequently. Some or all info may be outdated.

The Medic's role in the standard competitive lineup is solely for support and the weaponry at his disposal compliments this. Although he does have some forms of self defense, these are considered very weak and so the employment of a pocket, usually a Soldier or Heavy, are allocated towards defending the Medic. Barring the Mediguns, a majority of the Medic's unlockable weapons have purely passive effects and do not alter direct combat much.

Primary Weapon

Although the Mediguns take up the Medic's second slot, they are considered his "primary weapons" because these are the main reason he is valued in competitive teams and also his most used weapon during matches.

Medigun

The standard Medigun is arguably the most useful weapon in the lineup with its ability to keep players fighting on the front line without the need to retreat for health kits. The Übercharge the Medigun grants is extremely effective for pushes and defences as it makes the Medic and his patient invulnerable for eight seconds. Medics can Über more than one person although his charge will not last as long as keeping it on one person would.

Weapon	Damage	Critical Damage	Function Times	Special
Medigun	Min Heal: 24 per second Max Heal: 72 per second	N/A	ÜberCharge Fill Max Rate: 2.5% per second (40 seconds) Will charge at max rate if patient is below 142.5% health. Charge fixed at maximum rate during map setup time. Min Rate: 1.25% per second (80 seconds) Will charge at min rate only if patient is at 142.5% health or above. ÜberCharge Duration: 8 seconds Duration decreased by 50% of base speed for every target Übered in addition to the current patient. E.g, two target "multi-Über" will last for four seconds.	Heals at 24/sec if target took damage in the last 10 sec. Heals at 72/sec if target took damage over 15 sec ago. Between 10 sec and 15 sec wait, heal rate scales linearly. Heals at max rate at the start of round.

Kritzkrieg

The Kritzkrieg is the alternative to the Medigun. Although the two share identical healing rates, the Kritzkrieg's advantage comes from the fact it will fill its Übercharge meter 25% faster than its counterpart. Übercharges used with the Kritzkrieg grant 100% chance of getting a critical hit for the patient for the next 8 seconds. Although it can be shared between team members, similar to the standard charge, this should only be done if the original patient has jumped beyond the healing range and the Medic is forced to switch to another patient. The reason for this is that Kritz don't immediately take effect when switching to a patient and so staying with one patient, or a bare minimum amount of patients, will prolong the use of a Kritzkrieg charge. As well, if a medic is isolated and hurt, he can retreat and taunt to heal himself 11 health at a time, which can make a difference if the medic is near death and can't resupply or find a health pack.

Weapon	Damage	Critical Damage	Function Times	Special
Kritzkrieg	Min Heal: 24 per second Max Heal: 72 per second	N/A	ÜberCharge Fill Max Rate: 3.125% per second (32 seconds) Will charge at max rate if patient is below 142.5% health. Charge fixed at maximum rate during map setup time. Min Rate: 1.56% per second (64 seconds) Will charge at min rate only if patient is at 142.5% health or above. ÜberCharge Duration: 8 seconds Duration decreased by 50% of base speed for every target Übered in addition to the current patient. E.g, two target "multi-Über" will last for four seconds.	Heals at 24/sec if target took damage in the last 10 sec. Heals at 72/sec if target took damage over 15 sec ago. Between 10 sec and 15 sec wait, heal rate scales linearly. Heals at max rate at the start of round.

Usage

Both guns have their advantages and are both used depending on the situation teams face. Medics will generally prefer the Medigun over the Kritzkrieg simply because of the protection of eight seconds of invulnerability offered as opposed to the critical hits. The Kritzkrieg, however, does offer an intriguing alternative particularly if teams wish to play aggressive during mid-fights on 5CP maps. Medics may also choose the Kritzkrieg simply because they haven't had the chance of charging for a normal Über during the previous rounds.

Secondary Weapon

The Syringe Guns take up the Medic's primary weapon slot, although in comparison to Medigun usage, they are the least used weapons in the Medic's disposal - the guns should only be used in desperate needs of self defense. The weapons available to the Medic may have an effect on his ability to regenerate health.

Syringe Gun

The Syringe Gun is the stock weapon for the Medic's first weapon slot. The weapon is relatively weak in terms of it's ability to offer damage output and self defense for the Medic. However, unlike it's unlockable counterpart, the weapon does not effect the Medic's health regeneration ability, keeping it at 3-6 health per second, depending on time since last hit.

Weapon	Damage	Critical Damage	Function Times	Special
Syringe Gun	Point-Blank: 12 512 units: 10 Over 1024 units: 5	Critical: 30 Point-Blank Mini-Crit: 16 Over 512 unit Mini-Crit: 14	Attack: 0.1s Reload: 1.6	If equipped, Medic passive regen will be 3-6 health/second. Regen scales based on time since damaged in last 10s. Will regen 27-48 health during a single-target Über.

Blutsauger

The Blutsauger is the alternative to the Syringe Gun, offering itself as a somewhat more effective means for Medics to defend themselves. It adds three health every time a needle hits an enemy, at the sacrifice of their health regeneration rate, now being capped at 1-4 health per second once again depending on how much time has passed since last hit the Medic has taken.

Weapon	Damage	Critical Damage	Function Times	Special
Blutsauger	Point-Blank: 12 512 units: 10 Over 1024 units: 5	Critical: 30 Point-Blank Mini-Crit: 16 Over 512 unit Mini-Crit: 14	Attack: 0.1s Reload: 1.6	Gives shooter +3 health on hit. Non-lethal hits on disguised Spies don't give health. If equipped, Medic passive regen will be 1-4 health/second. Regen scales based on time since damaged in last 10s. Will regen 12-32 health during a single-target Über.

Usage

The choice all depends on how competent the Medic is at avoiding the enemies' firing line. Skilled Medics that can avoid spam and can utilize hiding spots effectively will have no need for the extra healing rate offered by the Syringe Gun and will instead opt for the extra offensive power of the Blutsauger. It is generally suggest that players of a low skill level and those new to competitive games should stick with the Syringe Gun at first so any mistakes during matches can be minimized with the extra health regeneration offered.

Melee Weapon

Medics involved in melee combat are a rare sight and should only be resorted to it very desperate circumstances. Like the Syringe Guns, however, some replacements do offer extra bonuses, either when the weapon is active or passively, that may affect a Medic's decision on what item to use.

Bonesaw

The Bonesaw is the Medic’s stock melee weapon. Like other standard melee weapons, it deals moderate damage, but because most weapons are far more effective than it, the Bonesaw is only good as a novelty or a last resort.

Weapon	Damage	Critical Damage	Function Times	Special
Bonesaw	Melee: 65	Critical: 195 Minicrit: 88	Attack: 0.8s	Completely standard melee weapon.

Übersaw

Although it has a slower attack interval than the Bonesaw, the Übersaw is a very useful weapon for Medics as every successful hit on an enemy, excluding non-fatal hits on disguised Spies, adds 25% onto the Medic's ÜberCharge. This attribute is very useful for Medics wanting to grab a bit of extra charge from an unsuspecting enemy. Although very situational, if a Medic is trapped behind enemy lines with 75%+ charge he can try and escape with a quick Übersaw hit on an enemy and attempt to escape by deploying an Übercharge.

If a friendly player has been hit by the Medic's Übersaw they should inform their team how many times they were hit so the rest of the team have knowledge that the enemy may have an Über advantage over them.

Weapon	Damage	Critical Damage	Function Times	Special
Übersaw	Melee: 65	Critical: 195 Minicrit: 88	Attack: 0.96s	Gives attacker +25% ÜberCharge fill on hit. Non-lethal hits on disguised Spies don't give Charge.

Vita-Saw

Note: The Vita-Saw is banned in most leagues for acquisition time.

The Vita-Saw is a second alternative to the Bonesaw. Like the Übersaw it's effect related to the Übercharge meter. In this case, this weapon will preserve up to 20% of the Übercharge from a previous life and grant it onto the Medic when he spawns. For example, if a Medic dies with 35% of his charge he will respawn with 20% whilst if he dies with 15% he will respawn with 15% Über. However, when equipped the Vita-Saw will remove 10 health.

Weapon	Damage	Critical Damage	Function Times	Special
Vita-Saw	Melee: 65	Critical: 195 Minicrit: 88	Attack: 0.8s	While equipped, preserves ÜberCharge on death (caps at 20%). Reduces max health by 10hp while equipped

Usage

Arguably, the Übersaw is commonly used melee weapon for the Medic. The ability to charge up Über whilst damaging the enemy with a negligible negative effect, slower attack speed, makes the weapon a much more attractive option than the other two. The Vita-Saw, like the Blutsauger, should only be used by Medics who feel confident in their ability to stay out of trouble and avoid getting damaged. Medics that also feel they die too often during matches may wish to equip this as it will slightly negate Übers lost when teams are unsuccessful in defending their Medics.

See Also

• Medic (competitive)