Community Territorial Control strategy

Hydro

This article is about Community Territrorial Control strategy.

General strategy

Territorial Control combines Control Points gameplay with Attack/Defend elements. As such, strategies for Territorial Control are somewhat similar. However, compared to standard Control Points, Territorial Control is much faster because only one point per team is in play rather than 5. Therefore, thought has to be given to both offense and defense.

• Since the control points belonging to both sides are both in play at the same time, it is possible for both RED and BLU to attempt to capture each other's point simultaneously. When this happens, whoever captures faster won't just lock the other team out of capturing, like in standard Control Points, they'll also win the mini-round.

• This also means that it's inadvisable to have all teammates push simultaneously, since this creates the possibility of backcaps with Scouts or Spies. Territorial Control, more than any other game mode, emphasises a good balance between offense and defense.

• For the non-base territories, other than the increased necessity of defense, standard Control Points strategy still applies.

• For the base territories, while game mode may seem similar to Attack/Defend, it's really much more like King of the Hill, with the sole difference that you cannot allow the opposing team to capture the control point at all.

• Because of the faster play structure, where only 2 control points are in play for 8 minutes, as compared to Control Points where time controls are much longer, classes which need setup time like Engineers or Medics are at a disadvantage, especially since there is no setup time. Spies are also less useful because there is less time for them to set up and prepare, but not to the extent of Arena. Be prepared to withstand heavy attacking pressure when down to only your base territory, as these classes will have almost no opportunity to bring their full power to bear at first.

Class-specific strategy

 Scout

• Because gameplay is like Control Points, Scouts are theoretically as useful when non-base territories are being contested as they are in Control Points. This is not very observable in Hydro, the only Territorial Control map so far, since it is a rather cramped map - however, this may change if more Territorial Control maps are released.

• As with any control point-centric game mode, Scouts are valued for their superior mobility and capture rate, so don't be afraid to roll out with your teammates and get to the point.

• It also follows that Scouts are far better in Offense than Defense. As such, if you have to defend, pick another class, but if you're attacking, Scout is a decent choice.

 Soldier

• Spamming the point with rockets can be a great way to clear it of defenders, or sticky bombs.

• Because you can rocket jump you can cover a large area in a short time.

• You can easily take down an enemy Sentry Gun from a safe distance with your Rocket Launcher.

• Use the Disciplinary Action to help your team reach the front lines faster.

• The Black Box is a good option due to health packs being far from each other.

• Make use of your splash radius by taking out enemy behind cover.

 Pyro

• You effectively clear out a Chokepoint with your Flamethrower.

• Wait and ambush to take enemy by surprise.

• Help your Engineers by using your Airblast to push away sticky bombs and rockets.

• As always, spycheck.

 Demoman

• Lay sticky traps to halt enemy attackers.

• The Scottish Resistance is recommended for defending the points and over all territory.

• Try to sticky jump to cover large gaps.

• Use your Grenade Launcher to take down enemy Sentry Guns.

• Try avoid using a Demoknight based loadout due to the map's large size.

 Heavy

• Use the G.R.U to make up for you slow speed.

• Use a Sandvich to restore health due to medpacks being far from each other.

• The Tomislav can be a good weapon for offense and to ambush enemies around corners.

• Stay close to the point when on defense.

 Engineer

• Build a Teleporter to help your team reach the front lines faster.

• The Jag can be really helpful in this game mode.

• The Widowmaker is not recommended for this game mode due to ammo boxes being far from each other.

 Medic

• Always heal your teammates and stick with them due to health packs being far from each other.