Uberslice

“

Haha! Vat a bloodbasz! Click to listen — The Medic

”

With the Übersaw equipped, a Medic can perform a lethal Spinal Tap taunt. When performing the taunt, the Medic enters a combat pose, thrusts his Übersaw forward, and then retracts it. The thrust will stun anyone slow, unaware or simply unfortunate enough to be in front of the Medic at the time and deal 1 damage, while the retraction deals 500 damage (similar to the Sniper's Skewer). Killing someone with a Spinal Tap gives the Medic 50% ÜberCharge, the equivalent of two normal hits with the Übersaw. Like all taunt attacks, this can be used during Humiliation to kill the winning team members even though normal weaponry is disabled.

It should be noted that the stun effect of the taunt works on both ÜberCharged enemies and enemies under the effects of Bonk! Atomic Punch, but will not kill them.

Damage

• Initial Stab: 1. Stun effect.
• Removal: 500
• Mini-Crit (Removal only): 675
• Critical hit: N/A

Damages are approximate and determined by community testing.

Function times

• Attack Interval: ~4

All times are in seconds. Times are approximate and determined by community testing.

Notes

• This is currently the second unique taunt to be given to the Medic after his update, the first being the Kritzkrieg's Oktoberfest self-healing taunt.
• Before the January 13, 2010 Patch, the Übersaw taunt was the same as the Bonesaw, albeit with a harsher, more cello-like sound.
• This and the Organ Grinder are currently the only Taunt Kills without accompanying achievements.
• This taunt is very similar to Sniper's taunt with his Huntsman, but a bit longer in time.
• The initial thrust of 1 damage will not grant any ÜberCharge, even if it kills the enemy. The 50% ÜberCharge is granted on the 2nd damage dealt.
• The removal damage applies even if the enemy wasn't immobilized by the thrust beforehand, but is in front of the Medic when he withdraws the Übersaw.

Trivia

• The Spinal Tap name is a reference to the colloquial term for a lumbar puncture, a medical procedure in which a needle is inserted between the vertebrae at the base of the spine to extract a sample of spinal fluid. Though not at all fatal when performed by a professional, (i.e. anyone but the Medic) it does have the potential to be extremely painful. It could also be a reference to the fictional rock band Spın̈al Tap, given the Übersaw's previously metal-themed taunt.
• There is an achievement in Left 4 Dead with the same name, which involves meleeing an unaware infected from behind, killing them instantly.
• Although a unique kill icon is located in the game files, a normal Übersaw kill icon is still displayed. That makes Spinal Tap the only taunt kill without a unique kill icon.

See also

• Spinal Tap taunt strategy