Basic Pyro strategy

The Pyro is a moderately tough, close-range combat and utility class. He ambushes his enemies, combos them with his various other weapons, or pushes them around with a burst of air. Fleeing enemies can die from his afterburn, making him a good hit and run class. He has a low difficulty curve so it's an easy class to start playing, but his other skills give him some depth to master.

General

• The Flamethrower's compressed-air blast ability is useful for clearing away projectiles, stopping enemy ÜberCharges, and knocking enemies off ledges.

• Fragile classes like the Sniper die quickly to the Flamethrower. Don't bother swapping to your secondary or melee weapons unless the foe moves out of range. You'll kill them faster with fire than you would with a combo attack.

• Heavier classes like the Soldier can kill you faster than your Flamethrower can kill them. Reflect their shots, and if the opportunity arises, combo attack them with the Flare Gun, Shotgun or Axtinguisher. The burst damage can save your life or even net you a clean kill.

• The Pyro can easily destroy a level 1 Sentry Gun with his fire. If a level 2 or 3 Sentry is close to a corner, he can sometimes circle-strafe it, successfully burning down both the Engineer and his nest all at once.

• The Flamethrower has a deceptively short range. Many new Pyros empty their weapon at a fleeing or strafing enemy to no effect. Remember to aim ahead, and listen for the sizzling sound of a frying foe. That will inform you whether or not you're burning them.

• Keep in mind that an enemy goes 10% slower while running backwards, so the pursuing Pyro has the speed advantage in most cases.

• Pyros wear flame retardant suits and are unable to catch fire, but they still take damage from an enemy Pyro's flames.

• Using your Flamethrower on team-mates is a good way to Spy-check. Only a momentary burst of flame is needed to ignite an enemy Spy; briefly shooting every team-mate is a cost-effective method of minimizing Spy encounters.

Weapon Specific

A list of useful tidbits about the Pyro's tools.

Flamethrower

• Medics, Dispensers, your team's Payload Cart, Jarate, Mad Milk, Health Kits, Resupply lockers, compression blasts from other Pyros, and water will put out your flames.

• The Flamethrower is the in-between choice. It lacks the highly-damaging effects of the Backburner but has more utility. It deals more afterburn damage than the Degreaser but has less utility.

Compression blast

• You can use the compression blast to knock enemy players into map hazards or push them away if you cannot beat them one-on-one.
• Blast to blast enemies away from Health pickups they are trying to take.
• Push invulnerable Medics, phasing Scouts, and other foes into a corner where you or a friend can easily dispatch them.
• It is very difficult to reflect objects at close range, so learn the timing of your foes. Ambushed Soldiers will fire a rocket as soon as they turn. Reloading foes will fire as soon as possible.
• As of the Spy vs. Sniper update, the compression blast can put out allies on fire.
• The compression blast gains any on-hit effects of the projectile e.g. a Black Box rocket will restore 15 health, and a long-range flare will Crit on a burning enemy. All reflected shots will Mini-Crit at minimum.

Backburner

• Without the compression blast, you rely on surprising enemies and high damage to quickly dispatch foes.
• The Backburner criticals register up to approximately a 45° angle to the back of a target's left or right, i.e. roughly a 90° angle centered behind where they are facing. This is significantly smaller than the Spy's Backstab angle, which appears to be 160°.
• You're more likely to set off Crits by strafing across the foe's back when you first attack them.
• The Backburner's extra 15% damage makes it very effective in face-to-face combat.

Degreaser

• Due to the 65% decreased weapon switch time, the Degreaser is recommended for Pyros who quickly ignite enemies and Compression Blast them into the air for quick Shotgun blasts, Flare Gun or Axtinguisher kills. Some of these combos are significantly more difficult to perform without it.
• The Degreaser's negative attribute only applies to afterburn, so don't rely on it to finish off your enemies for you. Try to deal the most damage possible before you die or he/she/it retreats.

Shotgun

• The Shotgun is an excellent weapon to follow up from an attack with a Flamethrower. It allows you to back off a dangerous foe while dealing good damage and aiding your afterburn.
• If you are a good shooter, the Shotgun actually overpowers the Flamethrower for single-target fighting.
• The Shotgun is the Pyro's best weapon for aquatic combat.

Flare Gun

• The Flare Gun does not have falloff damage, meaning it does just as much damage at close range as at far range.
• The Flare Gun is much less powerful against Pyros because they are flame retardant.
• Snipers are easy targets, and their aim is constantly shaking while they're on fire.
• The Flare Gun will Mini-Crit on burning enemies at short range, and fully Crit at medium to long range. This makes it a highly effective finisher if the opponent flees.

Fire Axe

• The Fire Axe is rarely used because the Pyro's other weapons are superior in close combat.
• If you like scoring surprise melee Crits, this is your best choice. You don't have to burn the enemy, so they won't know you're coming.

Axtinguisher

• The guaranteed Critical hit makes the Axtinguisher very useful when ambushing classes with high health. It's one of the few ways a Pyro can routinely score a clean kill.
• Set your foe on fire, knock them into the air with compression blast, and finish them with the Axtinguisher. This is a very effective tactic, often called the "Puff and Sting."
• The Axtinguisher can be used for super-fast criticals when combined with the Degreaser.

Homewrecker

• The Homewrecker can readily two-shot any building at full health in 1.6 seconds, and it instakills Mini-Sentry Guns. However, building destruction is not its primary use.
• A Pyro with the Homewrecker is an Engineer's best friend. Constant flames will keep out Spies, the Compression Blast pushes projectiles and ubers away, and the Homewrecker clears Sappers even when the Engineer is dead.
• Keep a Homewrecker equipped in your Pyro loadout if you aren't currently playing as Pyro. Doing this will allow you to quickly switch to Pyro and destroy Sappers on friendly Teleporters if you spawn while they're being sapped.

Powerjack

• The Powerjack is a good offensive alternative to the Axtinguisher, but it leaves you without a quick and decisive way to take out Soldiers, Demomen, and Heavies.
• Even at full health it can be beneficial to try to kill with the Powerjack; the +75 healing from a kill can push your health over the maximum, providing a temporary Overheal.
• Barring Critical hits, the Powerjack is the most damaging melee weapon in the game.

Back Scratcher

• The Back Scratcher is best used in Medieval Mode, due to it benefiting from the extra Health recovery from medkits.
• If there are no Medics on your team, the Back Scratcher is a good choice.
• If you are playing in a map with many medkits, this weapon can be useful.

The Gas Jockey's Gear

• The 10% movement speed increase this loadout grants you is helpful when flanking, ambushing, and chasing enemies.
• Using the compression blast with the Powerjack similarly to the Axtinguisher will allow you to get health from weakened lighter classes like Scouts.
• Your increased speed can help you defeat Spies and Medics since you are now faster than them.
• With the Gas Jockey's Gear item set equipped, the Pyro can make some jumps that they otherwise could not, such as jumping directly onto the final point on CP_Steel.

See also

• Community Pyro strategy
• Pyro match-ups
• Ambushing
• Team strategy