Anti-Soldier strategy

“

Oi, lend us yer shovel, so I can dig yer grave! Click to listen — The Sniper

”

The Soldier is a well-rounded, bulky class that is capable of both taking and dealing a decent amount of damage. While slow on foot, the Soldier is known for his trademark ability to rocket jump, which allows him to quickly maneuver around a map. He is most effective at close range or on high ground, where he can use the powerful splash damage from his rockets to reliably dispatch foes. The Soldier has a number of different loadout options that, according to the situation, allow him to increase his offensive or defensive capabilities as well as buff teammates, making him extremely versatile. Although lacking many exploitable weaknesses, the Soldier is not the master of any one trade; for example, the Scout is faster while the Demoman and Heavy can deal more damage.

General

Attributes	Anti-Soldier strategy
Role	Due to the Soldier’s versatility, he is capable of performing many different tasks, such as assaulting an enemy base, defending mission objectives, or picking off important enemy targets. No matter what you are doing, always be prepared to deal with a Soldier.
Health	The Soldier has a relatively large amount of health, allowing him to keep fighting for long periods of time.
Speed	The Soldier's base speed is low. However, he can gain quick bursts of speed using rocket jumps, the Escape Plan when injured, or the Disciplinary Action when near teammates. If kept grounded, he should be easier to hit.
Power	The Soldier’s rockets are highly damaging, but are less powerful and can more easily be dodged as the distance between the two of you increases.

Weapon-specific

Main article: Soldier weapons

Primary weapons

Weapon	Anti-Soldier strategy
Rocket Launcher + reskins	While the projectiles from the Rocket Launcher travel fairly slowly, a Soldier will typically aim at your feet to hit you with the splash damage. Thus, seizing the high ground or keeping a distance makes it more difficult for him to hit you. The Rocket Launcher has a low magazine size and reloads slowly; if a Soldier misses all of his shots, he becomes extremely vulnerable afterward.
Direct Hit	Rockets from the Direct Hit travel faster and can kill low-health classes in one hit at close range. However, the splash damage radius is extremely low, so keep a moderate distance from the Soldier so that you can easily dodge his shots. If launched into the air by an explosion, continue maneuvering to avoid being airshot, as the Direct Hit deals mini-crits to those propelled airborne by an explosion.
Black Box + reskins	The Black Box heals the Soldier up to 20 Health when its rockets hit an enemy (depending on the damage done by a rocket), allowing him to stay in combat for prolonged periods of time. Rather than exchanging harassment, take out the Soldier before he can recover from any damage. Avoid staying in close groups while fighting a Black Box Soldier as his rockets may hit simultaneously you and your teammates and let him heal a greater ammount of health per rocket. Like so, a Medic should stay away from his patient to prevent the enemy Soldier from healing more and damaging both the Medic and his teammate. The Black Box only holds three rockets in its clip, leaving the Soldier quickly vulnerable. This also hinders his ability to ambush you through rocket jumping.
Rocket Jumper	The Rocket Jumper deals no damage and takes away the Soldier's most practical weapon, so dispatching him is much easier. Keep your distance from an airborne Soldier to avoid attacks from the Mantreads or Market Gardener. Don't linger in wide, vertical areas, where a Soldier could ambush you with these weapons.
Liberty Launcher	The Liberty Launcher’s rockets maintain the splash radius of those from the Rocket Launcher but travel moderately faster. Attack from a distance and make sure you have plenty of room to dodge any rockets that come your way. Be aware that the Liberty Launcher's clip size holds 5 rockets instead of 4 for other rocket launchers. The Liberty Launcher deals 25% less damage, making it ineffective if you have allies or sources of health nearby. Even if you can't dodge some of the rockets, you have a greater chance of surviving the engagement. The Liberty Launcher also deals 25% less rocket jump damage to the wielder, increasing his survivability while traversing the map; be aware of the extra health a Soldier using this weapon may have should he drop in on you.
Cow Mangler 5000	The Cow Mangler operates similarly to the Rocket Launcher but can never deal critical hits and inflicts heavily reduced damage to buildings. Don't allow a Soldier with the Cow Mangler 5000 to disable an allied Sentry Gun with a charged shot. It takes a few seconds to prepare, so use this time to take the Soldier out. If he succeeds in firing the charged shot, his entire clip will be emptied; either pursue him or switch focus to his teammates.
Original	The Original is statistically identical to the Rocket Launcher and should be treated as such. The Original's rockets are fired directly down the crosshair, possibly exposing the Soldier more if he tries to fire it from around a corner.
Beggar's Bazooka	Never let a Soldier with the Beggar's Bazooka come close enough to unleash a barrage on your teammates. Ambush him as he loads, or force him to fire from a longer distance, where its lack of precision will cause some rockets to miss.
Air Strike	The Air Strike now begins with the same clip size as a regular Rocket Launcher which increases if the Soldier gets a kill. Take him out before he becomes a greater threat. The Air Strike's rockets have reduced explosive radius and damage, making them easier to dodge. If the Soldier manages to increase his clip size, focus him down in between his aerial barrages. A Soldier with the Air Strike will most of the time fire all of his loaded rockets, leaving him easier to defeat when he stops firing as this means he must reload to either rocket jump to escape from the danger or to try to take you down. Deals damage to the Soldier while he's falling to make sure he won't be able to escape by rocket jumping, as he'll kill himself if he tries. A Soldier with the Air Strike needs to be airborne to fire his barrages. Predict his trajectory and shoot him down.

Secondary weapons

Armaments

Weapon	Anti-Soldier strategy
Shotgun + reskins	A Soldier will typically use the Shotgun if he has no time to reload his Rocket Launcher or does not wish to damage himself from firing rockets at point-blank range. Either way, he is more vulnerable to attack when he wields his Shotgun instead of his primary weapon. Outmaneuver a Soldier so that he misses more often with his Shotgun. Back away to reduce the number of pellets that can hit you.
Gunboats	A Soldier wearing the Gunboats will often rocket jump to higher ground without suffering too much damage and rain rockets upon you. Either take the high ground yourself or kill him before he even has the chance to begin a rocket jump assault. As the Gunboats replace the Soldier's Shotgun, he becomes less effective in direct combat; if he doesn't try to slowly reach you with his melee weapon, he risks self-injury from using his Rocket Launcher at close range.
Reserve Shooter	The Reserve Shooter is capable of landing mini-crits on airborne targets, even if the target is simply jumping, so stay grounded. If propelled into the air by a rocket, air strafe to avoid his fire and do your best to quickly reach solid ground. The Reserve Shooter's reduced magazine side makes it less reliable of a sidearm than the Shotgun. Weapon heckling is less effective against a Soldier with the Reserve Shooter due to its decreased weapon switch time.
Mantreads	A Soldier using the Mantreads will receive considerably less knock back from most weapons, allowing him to more easily maintain a high ground advantage. However, like with the Gunboats, he is deprived of a secondary weapon. Keep an eye out for airborne Soldiers; aside from firing rockets at you, one might try to fall on you and inflict damage with his Mantreads. The Mantreads only negate fall damage taken by the Soldier if he actually manages to land on an enemy; if you see a Soldier dropping towards you, back away so that he takes fall damage.
Righteous Bison	The Righteous Bison deals considerably less damage than the Shotgun, but pierces through enemies and is effective at medium- to long-range harassment. Avoid clustering near your teammates to reduce the effectiveness of its piercing shots. The Righteous Bison's shots can harm a single target multiple times; if you do not have enough room to dodge the slow-moving projectiles, close the distance between you and the Soldier to reduce the number of times you are hit. Never run away in the direction of the laser.
B.A.S.E. Jumper	The B.A.S.E Jumper allows a Soldier to slow his descent and fire more rockets at you from midair. Watch out for the potential barrage if a rocket jumping Soldier suddenly deploys it, especially if he is also using the Air Strike. The B.A.S.E Jumper is deadly when used alongside the Market Gardener. Keep an eye on an airborne Soldier to ensure he doesn't get close enough to smack you. Take advantage of how the B.A.S.E. Jumper slows the Soldier and shoot him out of the sky with an accurate weapon.

Banners

A Soldier's banners provide a 10-second area-of-effect buff to nearby allies once he has dealt enough damage. Because the Soldier's teammates must remain close to him, weapons with splash damage are effective for fighting a wave of buffed enemies. Killing the Soldier will end the effect immediately; if possible, aim for him first. Additionally, a Soldier using a banner lacks a secondary weapon, making him less effective in direct combat; if taken down quickly, he won't be able to activate his chosen banner.

Weapon	Anti-Soldier strategy
Buff Banner + reskins	The Buff Banner allows a Soldier and his allies to deal mini-crits; it's best to fight from behind cover while his team is buffed. You may also choose to retreat, wasting the limited time your enemies have to inflict more damage.
Battalion's Backup	Use teamwork to overpower enemies buffed defensively by the Battalion's Backup, one-by-one. Beware of activating the Kritzkrieg or other critboosts while the enemy has the Battalion's Backup in effect; most of the incoming targets will be immune to critical hits.
Concheror	Should an enemy Soldier activate his Concheror, take cover or retreat until the buff wears off. Your team should concentrate fire on single targets buffed by the Concheror to prevent them from regaining any lost health.

Melee weapons

Weapon	Anti-Soldier strategy
Shovel + reskins	You should be able to outmaneuver a Soldier using the standard Shovel, as his low movement speed puts him at a slight disadvantage in melee combat.
Escape Plan	A Soldier will typically use his Escape Plan's speed boost as a last resort to escape. When the Escape Plan is his active weapon, he takes guaranteed mini-crits. Note his movement speed to gauge his health; if a Soldier is running quickly while holding this weapon, he's definitely injured.
Equalizer	The more injured a Soldier is, the more damage his Equalizer deals. If a Soldier attacks you with this, he might be already injured. Treat him as if he were using the default Shovel.
Pain Train	The Pain Train increases the Soldier's capture rate. Be wary of any Soldier that may sneak by to capture your team's control points. The Pain Train causes the Soldier to take 10% more bullet damage, which allows the Scout or Heavy to have a much easier time dueling him.
Half-Zatoichi	The Half-Zatoichi heals its wielder completely upon obtaining a kill. If you see a Soldier slay a teammate with this weapon, know that he will be completely healthy. The Half-Zatoichi's wielder is Honorbound to obtain a kill before sheathing the blade. The Soldier is slow, so just stay outside his melee range.
Market Gardener	Keep an eye out for any airborne Soldier; aside from firing rockets at you, he might try to use his Market Gardener to land a guaranteed critical hit. Keep your distance until he lands.
Disciplinary Action	An enemy Soldier equipped with the Disciplinary Action will likely use it to hustle himself and teammates to the battlefield rather than fight. As with the Shovel, try to remain well out of the Soldier's melee range. Note that this weapon has a longer range than any other melee weapon (70% more range compared to a stock melee weapon, while the Eyelander and similar weapons have 66% more range).

See also

• Rocket jumping
• Team strategy