Anti-Scout strategy

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Never send a boy to fight a man's war. Click to listen — The Soldier

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The Scout is a very fast, maneuverable class that packs a high amount of firepower at close range, making him extremely effective in one-on-one combat. He excels in open environments, where his speed and double jump allow him to easily maneuver around a map, close long distances, and ambush the most vulnerable enemies. He can use his mobility to completely avoid damage, more than making up for his lack of health. Depending on his loadout, a Scout can bring along weapons with additional utility that help him pick off individual targets with even more ease. If you can restrict a Scout's maneuverability or keep him at range, he becomes far less of a threat.

General

Attributes	Anti-Scout strategy
Role	The Scout excels at taking alternate paths to avoid direct combat, ambushing vulnerable enemies, and accomplishing mission objectives. Keep an eye on routes he might take and report his location to teammates.
Health	The Scout is very frail and can usually be killed with two solid hits.
Speed	The Scout is extremely fast and can double jump. No class can outrun him without certain equipment, so always be prepared to fight. Carefully predict his movements to ensure your attacks hit, particularly when using projectile weapons. If he is airborne, wait until he uses his double jump before trying to land airshots. His maneuverability allows him to easily chase after any other class, but is less powerful in confined areas, where he has less room to dodge.
Power	The Scout’s weapons are devastating at close range but very weak at long range. Thus, he must put himself in danger and actively enter combat to have any chance at killing enemies.

Weapon-specific

Main article: Scout weapons

Primary weapons

Weapon	Anti-Scout strategy
Scattergun + reskins	The Scattergun deals immense damage at point-blank range and will allow a Scout to stay in combat for a modest amount of time. Although he is faster than you, do your best to stay at medium range to minimize the damage you take while trading blows. It takes a considerably long time for a Scout to reload his Scattergun; if he uses most of his six shots, keep pressuring him into firing so that he cannot fully reload.
Force-A-Nature + reskins	The Force-A-Nature deals even more damage than the Scattergun up close, but must be reloaded every two shots. If the Scout insists on staying nearby, pick him off during his frequent reloading periods. The Force-A-Nature's knock back effects let a Scout easily reposition himself or push you backwards for a follow-up shot, so avoid lingering near walls where you can quickly be cornered or hazards that you can be blasted into. The Force-A-Nature will also knock the Scout back if he is in mid-air. If he decides to attack while in midair, you can easily line up a counterattack.
Shortstop	The Shortstop has a tight bullet spread suited for medium range. By closing the distance, the Scout may find it more difficult to hit you. When the Scout has his Shortstop as his active weapon, he suffers extra vulnerability to knockback. Options to deal with him now include juggling him into the air or pushing him into an environmental hazard. The Shortstop has a non-damaging shove which deals medium knockback at melee range. Don't position yourself near an environmental hazard for too long.
Soda Popper	The Soda Popper holds two shots that fire quickly and deal Scattergun-level damage. It must be reloaded frequently, which gives you opportunities to fight back. The Soda Popper's second shot will fire almost immediately after the first. Avoid being hit by both shots by changing direction after the first attack. If the Scout deals enough damage, he can activate his Hype charge, which gives him five mid-air jumps (for a total of six jumps). If you notice a bright purple glow, know that shooting the Scout in midair will be very difficult.
Baby Face's Blaster	The Baby Face's Blaster only holds 4 rounds per clip, giving it less raw offensive power. As the Scout deals damage, his movement speed will increase. It would be wise to lead your shots, even with hitscan weapons. Reduce the Scout's boost by dealing chip damage and forcing him to double jump. Each point of damage you land on the Scout will drain 4% of his boost - even a weak hit can slow him down to his base speed.
Back Scatter	The Back Scatter only holds 4 rounds per clip, giving it less raw offensive power. Scouts tend to take alternate routes to catch you off-guard. Check your back often. Since the Back Scatter deals mini-crits from behind, keep facing the Scout so he can't get behind you. The Back Scatter is 20% less accurate than the Scattergun, so keeping a distance is more effective.

Secondary weapons

Weapon	Anti-Scout strategy
Pistol + reskins	The Scout may switch to the Pistol to harass you from a distance or finish you off after firing all their Scattergun shots. Its ammunition pool is meager; if you avoid dying to the first few barrages, he will not have any remaining offensive pressure. The Pistol is the Scout's only option at long range.
Bonk! Atomic Punch + reskins	Bonk! Atomic Punch helps a Scout get past dangerous areas, such as chokepoints or Sentry Gun nests. He can’t fight while under its effects, so impede his movement by body blocking him or using knock back. If the Scout absorbs damage while invulnerable, he will be greatly slowed for up to 5 seconds once the effect wears off. Attack him during his invulnerability to prevent him from escaping once it ends - two solid hits will slow him to half-speed and allow you to easily kill him.
Crit-a-Cola	Although the Scout will deal guaranteed mini-crits, he will be Marked-For-Death for 5 seconds every time he fires a shot. Stay calm and fight back.
Mad Milk + reskins	The healing provided by Mad Milk lets an accurate Scout stay fighting for a prolonged period of time. If you’re covered by it, prevent him from healing by dodging his attacks. Taking Mad Milk means giving up the Pistol; dealing with the Scout's primary weapon appropriately leaves him with no other options.
Winger	The Winger functions similarly to the Pistol and should be treated the same way; keep a distance so it deals minor damage. This gun also gives the Scout a +25% bonus jump height when active, so be prepared to cover additional routes he can take.
Pretty Boy's Pocket Pistol	The Pretty Boy's Pocket Pistol fires faster and grants health-on-hit, but has a smaller clip size. If the Scout resorts to using this, his health may be low. Keep pressuring him - the healing the gun provides is barely enough to tide him over until he reaches a health pack and won’t save him from a solid hit.
Flying Guillotine	The Flying Guillotine is ideal for picking off weakened targets but recharges only every five seconds. Long-distance hits reduce the Guillotine's recharge time. Do your best to avoid getting hit.

Melee weapons

Weapon	Anti-Scout strategy
Bat + reskins	A Scout that insists on using the Bat could easily deal more damage at close range with any of his primary weapons, actually giving you a slight advantage in melee combat if you can keep your aim steady.
Sandman	Keep moving to avoid getting hit by the Sandman's stun ball. Being hit will slow you down, and the duration of the slow increases with range. If you are struck by the Sandman's baseball, retreat towards your teammates so that they can protect you. Keep your aim on the Scout as he may go in for close combat. The Sandman reduces the Scout's health by 15, making killing him significantly easier - a point-blank rocket can instantly kill him.
Holy Mackerel + reskins	The Holy Mackerel functions similarly to the Bat but announces each hit in the kill feed. Hit announcements can be used to determine the whereabouts of a Scout. Spies using the Dead Ringer should be wary of the Holy Mackerel, as the hit announcements can give away how they used the Ringer to escape.
Candy Cane	A Scout who causes health packs to drop from your dead teammates has the Candy Cane in his loadout. He is 25% more vulnerable to explosions, so a direct hit from a rocket or grenade will often kill him instantly. Try to steal the small health kits dropped by teammates killed by the Scout, preventing him from using the benefit of the weapon.
Boston Basher + reskins	Evade a Scout that is attacking you with the Boston Basher so that he damages himself instead. A creative Scout might use the weapon's negative attribute to propel himself to high locations at the cost of a significant amount of health.
Sun-on-a-Stick	The Sun-on-a-Stick does increased damage to burning enemies. If you are set on fire, you should be trying to extinguish yourself, retreating from and repelling any Scout that tries to pick you off. The Sun-on-a-Stick grants a passive 25% resistance against fire damage. A burning Scout may deploy it to reduce damage as he retreats.
Fan O'War	If you are marked for death by the Fan O’War, the Scout will likely try to chase you down with his primary weapon. Adjust your one-on-one tactics to his chosen weapon and try to move to your teammates for help. A Scout may use the Fan O'War to identify which enemy his team should focus fire on; take cover until the mark wears off if there are too many enemies.
Atomizer	The Scout can triple jump when the Atomizer is deployed. Keep in mind alternate routes he can take. The Scout must have the Atomizer deployed to triple jump. When fighting him, you should only have to deal with his double jump. A Scout who deploys it in combat may be planning to retreat. The Atomizer can also mini-crit while airborne. This doesn’t deal much bonus damage - deal with the Scout as if he were fighting with the stock Bat.
Wrap Assassin	While a Scout will rarely use the Wrap Assassin as a melee weapon, the projectile it launches can inflict the bleed effect on you. Bleeding can be negated by any source of healing.

See also

• Double jumping
• Team strategy