Community Engineer strategy

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You're all about to have a real bad day! Click to listen — The Engineer to enemies before Setup concludes

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This article is about Community Engineer strategy.

The Engineer is a unique class due to his ability to construct buildings. He can get his teammates to the front lines faster with Teleporters, create a powerful Sentry Gun to ward off enemies and can build Dispensers to heal and supply ammunition to his teammates. The Engineer's low Health and average speed make it important for him to rely on his Sentry Gun, other buildings, and his teammates for protection. While his ways can seem somewhat passive and methodical, Engineers are not to be underestimated. A talented Engineer can make it much easier for his team to hold its ground, keep up the pressure on the attack, and defend vital objectives such as control point and Intelligence.

Quick tips

• A team without an effective Engineer is at an extreme disadvantage, especially while playing Defense on Attack/Defend maps.
• Always stay close to your buildings. Unguarded buildings are especially vulnerable to Spies, Demomen, and Soldiers.
• The Teleporter can be your most important contribution to your team's success. If properly placed and defended, a Teleporter will allow your team to keep the pressure on the enemy team.
• All buildings build faster during construction if you repeatedly strike them with your melee weapon.
• You can construct a building in safety, then right-click to haul it to the battle. You can even carry buildings through Teleporters!
  • However, if you die while carrying a building, the building is destroyed.
• You can help other Engineers by hitting their buildings with your melee weapon to speed up the building's construction or repair the existing buildings.
• Your Shotgun and Pistol are not useless in combat; use them in supplement to your Sentry Gun fire to peck away at the enemy's health.

• Avoid standing in front of your Sentry Gun. This reduces the chances of your sentry shooting you, as well as lowers the chance of being shot easily, as the Sentry can intercept enemy fire.

General

• As an Engineer, you can do more than just upgrade and repair your buildings. If you have metal, don't hesitate to hit friendly buildings with your melee weapon to either repair or upgrade them. Watching your teams buildings allows other Engineers to set up Sentry Guns, Dispensers, and Teleporters on other areas.
• You can rotate the placement of a Building while the blueprint is out by pressing the alternate fire button. Changing a Sentry Gun's direction allows you to place them in corners and other odd locations. Rotating a Teleporter exit affects the direction one faces when exiting. An arrow on the blueprint indicates said direction. Remember that the direction one faces could mean life or death in some situations. Rotating a Dispenser has no effect on its function, but can allow you to place it into a tight space or help conceal its location.
• Alternate fire while looking at a building you placed allows you to "haul" that building to new locations. While hauling a building, your movement speed is reduced to slightly slower than a Heavy, and you are unable to switch weapons. If you are killed while carrying a building, the building will be destroyed.
  • A redeploying building will construct faster than normal without help from an Engineer, though you can still speed up the building of the structure by hitting it with your melee weapon. Once built, if the building has already been upgraded to level 2 or 3, it will then undergo the animations for deploying to those levels as well.
• Enemy players, including disguised Spies, cannot walk through buildings belonging to your team. You can use this for Spy checking by placing buildings in chokepoints, such as doors and hallways.
• It is not a good idea to build your buildings, particularly your Sentry Gun, in the exact same location as another Engineer on your team. Clustering too many Engineer buildings together maximizes their weakness to explosives or other weapons that deal splash damage, and clustering makes it easier for an enemy Spy to sap all of your buildings. In addition, remember that friendly buildings block the line of sight and line of fire of friendly Sentry Guns.
• If your buildings are under attack by Soldiers or Demomen, try to time your repair hits in between enemy rockets or grenades to avoid getting killed, or build your Sentry Gun near cover that you can use to shield yourself. If your buildings are under attack by multiple Soldiers and Demomen, your buildings are likely going to go down AND take you alongside unless you have support from friendly Medics, Engineers, or Pyros using the compression blast.
• Build where you can support your team and where your team can support you. Sentry Guns provide high-volume firepower at decent range, but it is still supporting fire that is best served to cover your teammates and deny areas to enemy movement. Do not expect to be able to fight off entire enemy attack groups with just your Sentry Gun. It is very unlikely that anyone on your own team will be down there with you to support you and without your Sentry Gun in a more forward location, enemies have a much easier time getting inside the base and causing havoc.
  • Your best friend is often an allied Pyro. Pyros are excellent for taking care of an Engineer's greatest weaknesses: keeping Spies at bay; destroying Sappers on your buildings with the Homewrecker or Maul; and deflecting incoming rockets, grenades, Stickybombs, and invulnerable enemies. This is also usually beneficial for Pyros, as they often run of ammunition and health spamming their Flamethrower, which a Dispenser can restore, and are poor at mid to long range: an Engineer's forte.
• Setting up a base with a Teleporter, a Dispenser and a Sentry Gun near the front lines after capturing an initial control point can help your team maintain their position. A skilled enemy team can push you right back to your first spawn, forcing you to gain ground again even if you have already captured the first point.
• To make the best use of Setup time, it is important to know ahead of time where effective spots to build are and the best way to set up your buildings the fastest.

Weapon specific

Primary weapons

Shotgun

Weapon	Kill Icon	Ammo		Damage
		Loaded	Carried	Point Blank	Medium Range	Long Range	Critical
Stock Shotgun		6	32	86-90	24-67	3-26	120

Of the Engineer's Primary weapons, the Shotgun is the most versatile due to its larger (minimum) clip size and lack of reliance on a Dispenser or Sentry Gun or specific positioning of enemies.

• It works well in narrow corridors. If you're intending to stay close to your Sentry Gun, make sure to build it in a spot where you can keep enemy players in groups. You will be able fight on more even ground after the Sentry Gun has softened them up for a Shotgun blast.
• Its large spread pattern is quite useful for Spy checking. Fire at corners, 'team mates' or in the Spy's general direction and look for tell-tales. Often, the spread will allow for at least one pellet to hit a cloaked Spy, giving you an idea of his location.
• It is good for destroying planted Stickybombs due to its spread.
• It can be used to deal some extra damage against enemies outside the Sentry Gun's range or who are damaged and retreating when the Sentry Gun is not in any immediate danger.

Frontier Justice

Weapon	Kill Icon	Ammo		Damage
		Loaded	Carried	Point Blank	Medium Range	Long Range	Critical
Unlock Frontier Justice		3	32	86-90	24-67	3-26	120

The purposes of the Frontier Justice are similar to those outlined for the stock Shotgun above but the introduction of revenge crits modifies the accompanied playstyle.

• Sentry Guns should be built in more aggressive areas where kills and assists will be awarded relatively frequently.
• Revenge crits should be used sparingly as the Frontier Justice's small clip size cripples it in combat unaided by Sentry Guns. The player relies more on highly damaging direct hits.
  • This is even more true when the Wrangler is equipped as the removal of reserve ammunition size further handicaps unprotected players.
• Revenge crits can support offensive pushes. Placing the Gunslinger's Combat Mini-Sentry Guns or an upgraded sentry into enemy territory and fighting with revenge crits while it builds can buy time for your Sentry to deploy and join the fight.
  • Despite this, even large supplies of revenge crits are usually insufficient to be able to take down clusters of opponents and it is usually unwise to try.
• Revenge crits are only deployed upon a Sentry Gun's destruction: Sentry Guns that have gained kills and assists may be demolished for immediate crits. This is a risky maneuver that should only be used in dire scenarios, when moving up while playing offensively or when combined with the more disposable Combat Mini-Sentry Guns.
  • However, "cashing-in" during a quiet period in a safe area can be useful, as you can re-build and re-upgrade your Sentry in peace and have some revenge crits on hand for a sticky situation. Just be careful about this, because if you die after redeeming the crits, they'll have gone to waste and you'll be left with a fresh Sentry empty of kills and potential crits.
• Spy checking with revenge crits is often unwise as if the Dead Ringer is equipped he could cause the wastage of a crit by triggering the feign death. Monitor the watches used by the opposing team.
• Make conscious decisions whether or not to take out the Frontier Justice when not ready to fire. The crit glow on the Frontier Justice could either make you a target for the enemy team or be used to scare away stray opponents.

Dischord

	Kill Icon	Damage	Duration	Details
Guitar Smash		500	4 seconds	The Engineer pulls out his trusty guitar, plays a chord, and then bashes it over the head of any enemy slow, unaware, or unfortunate enough to be in his way.

• Although not recommended as a legitimate strategy in most cases, the Dischord taunt can be a fun way to kill unaware Snipers or AFKs.
• Dischord can also be used during Humiliation or Stalemate.

Widowmaker

Weapon	Kill Icon	Ammo		Damage
		Loaded	Carried	Point Blank	Medium Range	Long Range	Critical
Promotional/Craft Widowmaker		1 per 30 Metal	N/A	86-90	24-67	3-26	120

The purposes of the Widowmaker are similar to those outlined for the stock Shotgun above but the replacement of standard ammunition with metal modifies the accompanied playstyle, making it preferable to the Engineer's other primary weapons when predominantly at close range as opposed to woeful waste of Metal at longer range.

• It causes a higher reliance on metal supplies, but also ensures that you can gain metal back from enemies.
• It can gain more metal than used in firing after a good shot at close-range despite only having the capacity to be fired six times with a full load of Metal. Potentially, you can fire as much as you want as long as you keep landing good hits due to this weapon's clipless nature.
• It works well in conjunction with Dispenser or Payload cart support. This help from a Dispenser can keep the Widowmaker loaded and allow free firing whilst the metal supply lasts.
• It should not be used with the Wrangler or Short Circuit unless staying nearby a constant supply of metal or consistently replenishing sufficient metal to continue shooting: should you run out of metal, you are left without any ranged weaponry to defend yourself with.
• It can turn the Engineer into a viable Ubercharge recipient, since if enough damage is done, it can be fired indefinitely without ever needing to be reloaded.
• While it may seem obvious, you're going to need some metal on you to fire. This leaves you vulnerable if you've been maintaining buildings recently. If you can afford to work more slowly, try not letting your metal fall below a certain level, just in case you need to defend yourself.
• Widowmaker can be used very effectively with gunslinger. However, this requires you to constantly refill your ammo so you can build mini-sentry at any time. When this combination is being used, a pistol is strongly suggested as a backup.
• Widowmaker can also be used very effectively with Eureka Effect. If the map allows, you can take alternative routes to flank enemy from behind, and output tons of damage on unaware enemies without having to worry about reloading. If something were to go wrong, you can go to safety, and teleport back to spawn, and repeat the process over again. This is not a conventional way of playing engineer however if the map allows flank routes, you can do good damage without relying on sentry.
• Widowmaker is one of the easiest way for an engineer to spy check. Simply shoot at a suspicious teammate and watch your ammo count. If some of the ammo comes back then continue shooting because the player you're shooting at is an enemy spy.

Pomson 6000

Weapon	Kill Icon	Ammo		Damage
		Loaded	Carried	Point Blank	Medium Range	Long Range	Critical
Pomson 6000		4	N/A	17-63	11-42	11-42	36-60

The Pomson 6000 functions like the Soldier's Righteous Bison in terms of its projectiles and unlimited ammo, but provides the bonuses of anti-Spy and anti-Medic capabilities.

• Whilst protecting a sentry under attack is usually priority, the Pomson 6000 gives the bonus of reducing an attacking Medic's Übercharge faster, giving the potential of rendering an Übercharge push useless or - assuming you can hit the Medic within a small time window - cause him to charge into danger without a full charge.
• The Pomson also eats into a Spy's Cloak on successful hit, forcing him to retreat if using conventional watches.
  • Should the Spy be using the Dead Ringer, he will have 10% less time if he cloaks on a Pomson hit, reducing the already-low amount of time he has.
• Due to the Pomson's nature, it excels at long-range damage and finishing off enemies, but is generally poor in close quarters. As such, the Pomson is generally best used when supporting teammates at long range.
• Shooting a Huntsman Sniper on your team will cause the arrow to catch fire. Flaming arrows are more powerful than standard arrows as they deal afterburn in addition the initial hit. Shoot your team's Snipers when you get a chance.
  • Remember, shooting your teammates is also a measure of Spy checking. The Pomson's unlimited ammo can come in handy for this.
• The Pomsom is a good way to attack a Heavy Medic Combo or any other enemy being supported by a medic. The Pomsom's shots penetrate players, meaning it's fairly easy to catch the medic off guard and hit him with a couple of shots, draining his Ubercharge meter. The longer it takes for the enemy team to use Ubercharges, the more difficult it will be for them to destroy your sentry.
• If an enemy dead ringer spy is fleeing to refil cloak, you can often hunt them down with Pomson. Simply keep shooting at the spy and he won't be able to use his dead ringer. Meanwhile, you'll be doing some damage on him. This will obviously also work on enemy spy however since dead ringer requires full recharge before use, dead ringer spy are easier to hunt down with Pomson.

Secondary weapons

Pistol/Lugermorph

Weapon	Kill Icon	Ammo		Damage
		Loaded	Carried	Point Blank	Medium Range	Long Range	Critical
Stock Pistol		12	200	22	10-15	8-9	45
Promotional Lugermorph

The Pistol has three main strengths over the Shotgun, its greater accuracy and damage at longer distances, its large ammunition reserve and faster reload time. These give the Pistol several key functions:

• It can be used to ward off Snipers by instigating recoil and dealing notable damage.
• It can be used to pick off retreating units who are usually doing so due to low health.
• It is the most reliable weapon to use in conjunction with the Gunslinger's Combat Mini-Sentry Guns, as they also are most effective at a similar range, enabling opponents to be worn down quickly while staying at a reasonably safe distance.
• Its large ammunition reserve allows it to be a great Spy checker, especially down narrow corridors.
• It can be switched to when in direct combat with an enemy and the Shotgun has run out of ammunition to ensure that there is more damage per second throughout the fight done to the opponent.
• The high ammunition reserve and fast reload speed also allows you to provide covering fire during a firefight and support your teammates' own attacks. The higher accuracy and range than the Shotgun also means you can hang back somewhat while doing this and not expose yourself to too much fire.

Wrangler

Weapon	Kill Icon	Ammo		Damage
		Loaded	Carried	Point Blank	Medium Range	Long Range	Critical
Unlock Wrangler		N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A

• The Wrangler is an unlockable secondary weapon for the Engineer. While you have it drawn, you are given the ability to manually aim and fire your Sentry Gun, along with your Sentry Gun being protected by a shield that effectively triples its health.
• While using the Wrangler to aim your Sentry Gun, remember that you cannot switch weapons to repair your Sentry Gun without it being disabled temporarily. A way around this weakness is to ask another Engineer on your team to repair your Sentry Gun while you aim it. This allows you to continue to use the Wrangler for long periods, even while under heavy fire.
• With the Wrangler it is possible to aim and fire your Sentry Gun at enemies outside of the Sentry Gun's normal range, meaning that it is possible to fire at enemy Snipers or Soldiers attempting to hit you from long range. However, in order to do this, you will be exposed to the return fire from such enemies, making this a risky tactic. Consider asking a Medic to heal or even ÜberCharge you to negate this weakness. Even though hitting an enemy Sniper will throw off his aim, you can't necessarily count on this to save you.
• Similar to the Sniper's Sniper Rifle, the Wrangler creates a laser dot on the surface of where you aim it, along with a long laser ranging from your Sentry Gun to its current target.
• The Wrangler has an auto-aim that makes it easier to lock on to enemies, especially distant enemies.
• Use the Wrangler to Spy check randomly for cloaked Spies during quiet moments, and use it to target and kill Spies that are still disguised. This is especially important since Shotgun rounds and/or Revenge crits are too valuable to use for random spam and you do not have the Pistol which is your default Spy checking weapon.
• Using the Wrangler doubles your Sentry Gun's firing rate. In addition to increased damage, this also causes your Sentry Gun to quickly drain its ammunition reserves, necessitating regular refills in order to keep it firing. Make sure you have enough Metal available to also make repairs. A completely empty level 3 Sentry Gun requires 240 Metal to completely restock with ammunition – 200 Metal for the bullets, and 40 for the rockets.
• As a general rule of thumb, switch to the Wrangler to take out slower moving and more durable foes such as Soldiers, Heavies, and Demomen. The doubled firing rate will carve through their hitpoints fast enough to kill them even if they are being healed by a Medic. Since these classes are often the greatest threat to your Sentry Gun, having the Wrangler's shield active will also help preserve it more effectively than simply repairing, particularly in the case of a Demoman placing Stickybombs as he will need to place twice as many to take down a level 3 Sentry Gun at full health, and you can also have your Sentry Gun destroy the Stickybombs. Remember that you should dodge as much as possible if enemies switch their aim to you.
• In a quiet period after a battle, switch to your melee weapon and repair and refill your Sentry Gun, and then to one of your own Primary weapons and let your Sentry Gun take care of itself for awhile. Switching modes often prevents you from becoming too preoccupied with Wrangling and getting killed and keeps your enemies guessing.
• Use the Wrangler to counter opponents attempting to take advantage of a Sentry Gun's corner weakness. This is when an enemy is popping in and out of cover and firing faster than your Sentry Gun can react on its own. When this happens, take control! Level 3 Sentry Guns are great for this thanks to the splash-damaging rockets, but even the bullets can punish enemies dodging around corners because you can react faster than your Sentry Gun's auto-target.
• The Wrangler is a powerful defensive as well as offensive tool. The shield provides the Engineer with a much safer way to protect his Sentry Gun when it is under fire as it allows the Engineer to keep his distance from his Gun unlike with repairing, which forces him right next to the Sentry Gun and exposes him to lethal splash damage. However, if you have to stand right next to your Sentry Gun in order to aim at attackers, you lose this advantage. Make sure you have room to work with to give yourself good firing angles while you Wrangle.
• You can use the Wrangler as a purely defensive measure to help your Sentry Gun survive just by switching to it for an instant. You can then switch back to a repair tool or weapon. The energy shield will last for the duration of the Sentry Gun's deactivation period. Do this only if you can afford to be without the Sentry Gun's firepower. A Sentry Gun that is unattended by an Engineer does not last long once it comes under attack, particularly from Soldiers and Demomen.
  • If you ever have to leave your Sentry Gun's proximity for any reason, having the Wrangler activated can make sure the Sentry survives until you can return to it.
  • If you are being attacked by an ÜberCharged Heavy, you might want to consider using this trick as the damage reduction of the shield may allow you to "keep pace" with Heavy as he damages your Gun while you repair it; and may sometimes mean the difference between losing the Sentry Gun or killing the Heavy + Medic pair.
• As mentioned earlier, the Wrangler is one of your most powerful tools for countering enemy ÜberCharges. Get used to using the Wrangler when you come under heavy attack.
• You can also use the Wrangler to prevent your Sentry Gun from being distracted by ÜberCharged enemies or Scouts using Bonk! Atomic Punch. Keep in mind though that the simple "push" of your Sentry Gun's fire can also prevent such enemies from accomplishing their goal by disrupting their movement.
  • Remember, though, that if the Medic and his healing target are using the Quick-Fix they can quickly negate your Sentry Gun's damage and are immune to its knockback effect.
• Experienced players will listen for the telltale beeping sound of a Sentry before entering certain areas such as Intelligence rooms. However, a Wrangled Sentry is silent -- use this to turn the tables on approaching foes.
  • If you are using this tactic, try to hide the laser that your Sentry Gun creates when Wrangled.
• Although the Wrangler's three second deactivation is a disadvantage in most respects, it can be used strategically to ambush opponents by keeping your Sentry Gun deactivated until the right moment (by fleeing from an otherwise unseen Sentry Gun, luring the enemies in front of it so that upon reactivation is can instantly attack them).
  • The deactivation can also be negated to a degree should you want to continue using the Wrangler after reloading the Sentry Gun. To do this, simply switch to your Wrench or Gunslinger, whack the Sentry Gun a couple of times and then switch back to the Wrangler and the deactivation will be cut short.
  • The deactivation can also be interrupted by hauling your Sentry Gun. While this is useless in terms of cutting down its inactive time (due to having to redeploy the Sentry Gun), this means that should your Sentry Gun start taking heavy fire or run out of ammo while being Wrangled, you can quickly switch to another weapon, pack it up and move out to keep it alive.
• The Wrangler makes you and your Sentry Gun much more vulnerable to flanking. Even enemies that are usually easy prey for a Sentry Gun such as Scouts and Pyros can get close to you while you are Wrangling and potentially finish you off. If you want to Wrangle for long periods, make sure you are in a location that has limited avenues of attack, and that you have nearby support or a system of early warning. Otherwise limit your Wrangling to short periods when you really need it.
• While it is often best to stand near or behind your Sentry Gun while your aim it, it is not strictly necessary. You can move forward or even retreat and still be able to use your Sentry Gun's fire to protect you as long as you stay within an area you know your Sentry Gun can cover. However if you do so, you may run into one of two problems. Either you will 1) have no line of sight to an area your Sentry Gun can shoot or 2) have line of sight to an area your Sentry Gun cannot shoot.
• Be careful of buildings Sentry Guns in locations that are only useful if you Wrangle them but will otherwise be too far away to see much action. One of the Sentry Gun's strengths is the ability to attack on its own allowing you to do other things—depriving yourself of this advantage limits your options and forces you to Wrangle at the expense of being aware of your surroundings. Long-range Wrangling can make you less vulnerable to certain threats such as Übers but more vulnerable to others, mainly Spies and Snipers.
• It is possible to use both the bullets and rockets from your Sentry Gun to propel yourself across the map. This is known as Sentry jumping. It is possible to use this technique to quickly catch up with your team, build in locations normally out of reach such as rooftops, or even to quickly build Teleporters. With practice, it is even possible to carry buildings with you on such jumps, including the very Sentry Gun you used to launch yourself! Using these jumps will drain most of your health especially after fall damage, so use this technique with that in mind.

Short Circuit

Weapon	Kill Icon	Ammo		Damage
		Loaded	Carried	Point Blank	Critical
Promotional/Craft Short Circuit		1 per 35 Metal	N/A	5	18

The Short Circuit is a promotional and craftable secondary weapon for the Engineer. At a cost of uses 35 Metal for each shot, it creates a small electrical field that destroys all projectiles and does minor damage to enemies. Like the Widowmaker, it never requires reloading, and eats less Metal for ammo at the cost of no random Critical hits.

• While it only uses a small amount of Metal per shot, it's wise to equip a Shotgun other than the Widowmaker unless you're stationed in an Engineer nest, as you may find yourself defenseless very quickly with two weapons eating into the same ammo pool.
• Note that this weapon's primary use is defensive; should you and your sentry be cornered by a Demoman or Soldier, you can prevent them from using blast damage to destroy your sentry by vaporizing their explosives, thus forcing them to change tactics.
• This weapon also has offensive capabilities on Payload maps; should your allies be under attack by several projectile-using enemies, you can provide reasonable protection from harm without risk of running out of Metal due to the Dispenser on the cart.
• This weapon is extremely weak up front, dealing only 5 damage per shot. It is recommended to use the Shotgun whenever in combat, and using the other weapon for defense, support, or self-defense (such as against a Kritzkrieged Soldier). Only use the Short Circuit to attack as a last-ditch effort, when death seems certain otherwise. You may just find the enemy was low enough on health for you to kill them and make an escape.
• This weapon is recommended if you are having a problem with Demomen: it negates both their primary and secondary weapons, provided you have ammo.
• This weapon can be used to defuse traps made by multiple Demoman's since it can destroy a nearly unlimited amount of projectiles provided they are at range.
  • It is also possible to destroy stickybombs if you are close around a corner, this can be used to disarm a trap without worries of getting blown up by the Demoman.
• The Short Circuit really shines in supporting other Engineers and defending nests, where there's a steadier supply of metal from Dispensers and more buildings to defend at once. You might be better off taking another secondary if you're largely working alone or your buildings are spread-out and projectiles aren't much of a problem.

Melee weapons

Wrench/Golden Wrench/Saxxy/Festive Wrench

Weapon	Kill Icon	Attack Interval	Damage
			Point Blank	Critical
Stock Wrench		0.8 seconds	65	195
Promotional Golden Wrench
Promotional Saxxy
Uncrate Festive Wrench

• When a Spy is repeatedly sapping your Sentry Gun in an attempt to destroy it, your Wrench serves two purposes. First, you can use it to swing at the opposing Spy, 2-3 hits being enough to kill a Spy, ignoring Critical hits. After that you can quickly turn around and repair your Sentry Gun. Two strikes from the Wrench will disable an Electro Sapper and halt the progressive damage it causes; you can then fully repair the Sentry Gun after the Spy is killed. A good strategy would be to hit the Sentry Gun a single time, and then change targets towards the Spy, kill him and then take off the Electro Sapper with another swing.
• While it may be tempting to use the Wrench's high critical hit rate to club enemies to death, melee combat is usually not where the low-health Engineer shines. Unless an enemy does not see you coming, switch to something with better range.
• Team Fortress 2 prioritizes repairing buildings over melee combat when using the Wrench. This means that if there is an enemy, say a Spy, next to a friendly structure and you are using the Wrench to attempt to kill the enemy, you will find that you instead hear the Wrench hitting the building near or even behind the enemy you are trying to strike. Switch to the Shotgun or Pistol to deal with enemies that are very close to one of your buildings to avoid this.

Gunslinger

Weapon	Kill Icon	Attack Interval	Damage
			Point Blank	Critical
Unlock Gunslinger		0.8 seconds	65	195
		0.8 seconds	N/A	195

• The Gunslinger is an unlockable melee weapon for Engineers with an aggressive inclination. The added 25 hitpoints and the fact that your Combat Mini-Sentry Guns deploy quickly means that front-line duty is no longer something to shy away from. When played properly, a Gunslinger-equipped Engineer has fighting ability similar to classes such as a Scout or a Soldier; he has more health and mid range damage than the Scout and more foot speed than a Soldier. While having generally less firepower than either, a Gunslinger Engineer additionally can bring his Dispenser and Teleporter to bear to heal himself and support his team. Gunslinger Engineer can be played effectively on any map, but especially excel in smaller games with fewer players such as standard 5 Control Point maps, some Payload maps, Arena, and King of the Hill.
• You are always weak without a Sentry Gun to deal extra damage and serve as a distraction. Being alone and without a Sentry is a situation to avoid at all costs. Always put up a new Mini-Sentry as soon as the old one is destroyed or becomes useless. Like the Scout, when you're equipped with the Gunslinger, you do best in areas with room to maneuver and make pincer attacks with the Combat Mini-Sentry Gun. Tactical retreats are often necessary to refill Metal and Health and rebuild the Combat Mini-Sentry Gun. Dispensers should be placed conservatively in areas farther from the combat zone to ensure that you always have a place to recharge.
• The Gunslinger is less effective if you wish to set up solid, entrenched positions. Combat Mini-Sentry Guns lack both stopping power and durability, which may be exactly what you need in some situations. If the enemy team has a lot of Medics, the relatively small damage of Combat Mini-Sentry Guns can be very ineffective at killing enemies getting constant healing.
• Keep in mind that while Sappers can be removed from your Combat Mini-Sentry Guns, the damage dealt by them cannot be repaired. Since destroying and moving Combat Mini-Sentry Guns is often important, being sapped delays your ability to Demolish and rebuild.
• Psychology can work your advantage when using Combat Mini-Sentry Guns. Despite their low damage, many players, especially those playing lighter classes, reflexively retreat when they come under fire from any Sentry Gun, which can create a very valuable diversion for you or your teammates. If your enemies do retreat from your Combat Mini-Sentry Guns, don't let up! Keep up the pressure by rebuilding or moving your Combat Mini-Sentry Guns after them.
  • It also works the other way round. Many players that have high or full health will heavily underestimate the combined power of you and your Combat Mini-Sentry. They might try and gun you down in close range, and while you avoid damage, the Combat Mini-Sentry can take a good chunk of their health away without them noticing, allowing you or your teammates to finish them off!
• Avoid idle Combat Mini-Sentry Guns. They are so expendable and fast-building that defensive placement is a waste of their potential. Unless you are occupied building/repairing your other structures and need cover, your Combat Mini-Sentry Guns should be constantly going up where they can harass the enemy. It can be helpful to think of a Mini-Sentry as not a "trap" or "nest" as a normal Sentry Gun might be, but more of an actual primary Weapon that you "aim" by "building at" the enemy.
• While you'll usually want to keep your Dispenser by you when using the basic Sentry Gun to keep the Sentry Gun fully repaired and loaded, you may want to place the Dispenser in spots more useful for your team rather than you. As you cannot repair or upgrade the Combat Mini-Sentry Gun, you won't have to be nearby constantly. Have you and your Mini-Sentry fighting closer to the front lines and away from the Dispenser, and have the Dispenser in a spot useful for the team to retreat and resupply at.
  • Furthermore, because Combat Mini-Sentry Guns cost less Metal to build, remember that you can initially deploy both it and a Dispenser before going to look for more Metal. Don't be afraid to drop one down at any time you feel threatened or suspect that there might be danger around the next corner. Just be sure to keep a watch on how much Metal you have and make sure to have enough Metal to rebuild another Combat Mini-Sentry Gun.
• The aggressive play the Gunslinger encourages can make stopping to spend a minute or more making and upgrading Dispensers and Teleporters an unwelcome delay in your attacking. While you should not neglect making Dispensers and Teleporters altogether, if the situation calls for it don't be afraid to spend less time upgrading and more time fighting. Remember, without the heavy firepower and durability of a level 3 Sentry Gun, your other buildings will be less protected from destruction, wasting the time and Metal you put into upgrading them in the first place. If you find yourself getting caught up in "base making" you probably shouldn't be using the Gunslinger at all. It may be better to use your Teleporter and Dispenser similarly to how you use your Combat Mini-Sentry Guns—leave them at level 1 and don't be afraid to lose them and rebuild new ones. Alternately you can leave them with a friendly non-Gunslinger Engineer to take care of and upgrade for you.
• Attempt to use your Combat Mini-Sentry Gun to pincer your opponents by planting it and then attacking. The Engineer is the only class with the ability to attack from two places at once and this is of great effectiveness when used strategically. Your opponents will have to choose between attacking either your Sentry Gun or you, and unlike with the normal Sentry Gun, Combat Mini-Sentry Guns are not as vulnerable upon starting construction and will quickly start damaging your foes if they choose to ignore it. Use your Shotgun or Pistol to attack the same target your Sentry Gun is attacking to deal a lot of damage to that target quickly.
• The Mini-Sentry is quite useful against enemies with limited weapon clip sizes such as the Soldier and Scout, since they will use up some of their already limited clips destroying the Sentry Gun, making it much safer to move into point-blank Shotgun range. The damage from the Mini-Sentry, plus 1-2 well-aimed Shotgun blasts (or just one Revenge Crit), can finish off most enemies. Against Pyros and Heavies or fully-loaded Demomen, it can be wiser to try to wear them down more with several Combat Mini-Sentry Guns and Pistol fire before going for the finishing blow -- but enemy Medics can make this tactic unlikely to succeed.
• Picking up the fallen weapons from dead players is crucial to keep up your supply of Combat Mini-Sentry Guns. Also try to recycle all the Metal pieces from your destroyed Guns. The Metal from 2 destroyed Combat Mini-Sentry Guns grants 56 Metal, halfway to being able to afford a 3rd.
• For melee combat, the Gunslinger is most useful on servers that have random Crits disabled. With random Crits enabled, even a normal melee Weapon such as the Wrench will likely Crit at least one out of three hits anyway, and potentially Crit multiple times. Also consider the practicality of going for melee attacks on enemies, since almost every Class can deal lethal damage in return at close range.
• While it may seem like a good idea to use the Gunslinger in concert with the Frontier Justice, remember the Combat Mini-Sentry Guns are weaker and may not result in as many Revenge Crits. It can be easier to build up Revenge Crits without the Gunslinger equipped and then switch to it later to go on the attack. Knowing good ambush spots is also important when using the Gunslinger/Frontier combo.
  • On the other hand, the constant building/demolishing cycle of the Mini-Sentry lends itself well to using Revenge Crits, whereas a normal Sentry Gun typically doesn't get destroyed nearly as often (so while it might earn more kills than a Mini-Sentry, there is a higher opportunity cost for destroying a high level Sentry Gun). An offensively placed Mini-Sentry can also rack up a lot of kill assists (worth 1 Revenge Crit, vs. 2 for a kill).
• If on defense, consider teaming up with another Engineer that is maintaining a regular Sentry Gun. Gunslinger Engineers benefit from having some "breathing room" to reload and restock their health and ammo and "vanilla" Engineers are perfect for this, plus you can mutually assist each other in repairs, removing Sappers, or upgrading.
• While it is called a Combat Mini-Sentry, it's still what it is, a Mini-Sentry. Don't try and take strong classes on your own, or rely on it to take on loads of people.
• It is almost always faster and safer to demolish and rebuild a Mini-Sentry than it is to reload it or haul it. Also, demolishing a Mini-Sentry will give you access to any Revenge Crits that you may have earned during that Sentry Gun's lifetime. However hauling a Mini-Sentry short distances can still be useful since it will redeploy twice as fast as a new one would take to build, which for a Mini-Sentry is nearly instantaneous.
• In general, avoid using the Wrangler with the Gunslinger unless you have plenty of available Metal, since if you run out of Combat Mini-Sentry Guns your only backup Gun will be one of the Shotguns, which use up their magazines fast, reload slowly, and do poor damage at range. Wrangling Combat Mini-Sentry Guns is a great way to offset their low health and damage which can in turn help you gain a few Revenge Crits if you are using the Frontier Justice, however Combat Mini-Sentry Guns are still weaker than even a level 1 Sentry and if you ever found yourself in a position without one active you would have very few other options for damage, particularly at mid or long range.
• When using the Gunslinger, place Combat Mini-Sentry Guns near often visited health kits, like those around Control Points, such as the one under the bridge on Gorge. Enemies already low on health will flock to these health kits and promptly be gunned down. It's encouraged the use the Gunslinger here as the standard Sentry Gun is too impractical and expensive to use simply for ambushes.
• If you're attempting to keep your Mini-Sentry hidden, using yourself as a distraction while it helps you take down an enemy may prove useful if you feel you have enough health to spare and can risk being an enemy's target.
• Remember that a Mini-Sentry has a much smaller profile than even a level one Sentry Gun. Dropping one in the chaos of a firefight can prove beneficial as it can be overlooked in the confusion, assuming it survives the crossfire. Hiding Combat Mini-Sentry Guns in dark places can also work, but has limited effectiveness due to the flashing beacon on its top.
• Dropping a Mini-Sentry behind you or in front of an attacker is a great way to delay pursuers.
• A Mini-Sentry is disposable, since it is easy to build one and cannot be repaired or upgraded. Unless managed very carefully, a Mini-Sentry will not last long. Do not expect many kills from one Sentry Gun, expect many kills from a variety of Combat Mini-Sentry Guns.
• Mini-Sentry can be used to block enemies. It can be extremely effective against demoman who's using booties and shield. If you see them charging at you in a one way passage, place a sentry in between, and they won't be able to reach you. Meanwhile, you might be able to finish them off with your shotgun or pistol. If not, you'll at least be able to avoid a quick death from demoman's sword.

Organ Grinder

	Kill Icon	Weapon	Damage	Duration	Details
Arm Blender		Gunslinger	500	4 seconds	The Engineer pulls a rip-cord from his mechanical prosthetic, revving the hand of his Gunslinger up to vicious speeds, after which he thrusts it forward, gibbing any enemy player within reach.

• With correct timing you might be able to kill a distracted enemy, so keep in mind that it takes some time for the Engineer to spin his hand up.
• You can use the stunning effect of Organ Grinder to stun ÜberCharged enemies and waste their über time.
• Organ Grinder is also effective during humiliation.

Southern Hospitality

Weapon	Kill Icon	Attack Interval	Damage
			Point Blank	Critical
Craft Southern Hospitality		0.8 seconds	65	195
Bleeding		40 damage over 5 seconds	N/A	N/A

• The Southern Hospitality is nearly as versatile as the normal Wrench, with only a few situational weaknesses. As such, it is an upgrade to the default Wrench unless the enemy team has more than one actively attacking Pyro. The lost damage is compensated for by the Bleed status and the retained ability to wear opponents them down further with other weapons.
• The Southern Hospitality favors a defensive playstyle. Camping Engineers rarely encounter Pyros without having a Sentry Gun in between to win the skirmish whereas when pushing into enemy territory, should the Engineer encounter a Pyro, then the Engineer is at extreme disadvantage due to extra 20% fire vulnerability.
• The presence of bleeding on this weapon makes it an excellent anti-Spy tool, allowing you and your team-mates to monitor their movements should they try to escape. However, the inability to randomly crit makes killing Spies more difficult in a short span of time. Instead, hit them repeatedly with the Southern Hospitality, thus doing more average Wrench damage and resetting the Bleed timer each hit, or hit them with the Southern Hospitality, then switch to your Shotgun or Frontier Justice to finish them off.
• ÜberCharged Pyros are a major threat with the 20% increase to fire vulnerability. If one approaches, the most valuable building should be moved to a safe(r) location to be ready when the Übercharge wears off.
• The Southern Hospitality is very viable within Medieval Mode as the 40 damage added by Bleeding is a strong buff, and sources of fire damage are reduced significantly.

Jag

Weapon	Kill Icon	Attack Interval	Damage
			Point Blank	Critical
Craft Jag		0.8 seconds	49	146

• Due to a bug in how construction rate is calculated, the Jag only adds a 15.79% faster build rate to under-construction buildings being hit with it. Consider this when determining your loadout.
• Try to avoid melee combat due to the damage penalty. If your team is good at Spy checking, however, the loss of damage won't matter much.
• Get in the habit of hitting your buildings all the way to completion as soon as you plant them. Where the Jag really shines is in the construction of Dispensers. Taking 84.21% of the time to build a Dispenser speeds up supply of Metal which in turn can speeds other upgrades and buildings.
• The Jag is also useful in situations such as rebuilding a destroyed Teleporter Entrance or Exit while the other half is still up; being able to speedily rebuild the destroyed half means you can teleport back to your other buildings a few seconds faster.
• The Jag is a great weapon for "helper" Engineers who are only being Engineer temporarily to help other Engineers upgrade or repair their buildings.

Eureka Effect

Weapon	Kill Icon	Attack Interval	Damage
			Point Blank	Critical
Stock Eureka Effect		0.8 seconds	65	195

• The Eureka Effect functions the same as the default Wrench, but comes with the secondary ability to teleport back to spawn in exchange for being unable to move buildings.
• Triggering a teleport forces the player to wait 3 seconds while the Engineer performs a brief taunt; since taunting leaves the Engineer completely defenseless, retreating with low health or when the enemy is advancing can result in death if care is not taken.
• The Eureka Effect can be extremely useful in game modes lacking source of healing (such as a medic kit, medic gun, or a dispenser). You can engage enemy, go to safety when you're at low health, teleport back to base, come back with full health (and metal), and repeat.
• The Eureka Effect can be useful in setting up and upgrading a Sentry nest quickly; having it equipped means an Engineer is able to run back and forth between spawn and their nest very quickly by using the Eureka Effect's taunt and an active teleporter, allowing an instant metal refill with each trip.
• The Eureka Effect gives the defending team an advantage on attack/defense maps; if the penultimate point is being captured, a tactful teleport can allow an Engineer to fall back and prepare for an incoming attack.
• The teleport action also allows a teleporter exit to be placed at the front lines during setup on Payload maps; a quick teleport back to spawn and the teleporter is ready to go quickly.
• This Wrench is best avoided when on the attacking team, as teleporting back to spawn requires you to abandon potentially vulnerable buildings, and you can't move buildings up when your team advances.
  • On the other hand, if a Spy has destroyed your teleporter entrance or is currently spam-sapping it, the Eureka Effect allows you to surprise any Spies and/or rebuild an entrance.

Buildings

Sentry Gun

Level	Kill Icon	Health	Cost	Weaponry	Damage	Ammo
1		150 (effectively 450 with the Wrangler shielding)	130 Metal	Semi-Automatic Firing Barrel	Damage: 16 Shots per second: 4 (8 with Wrangler) Average DPS: 64 (128 with Wrangler)	100 rounds
2		180 (effectively 540 with the Wrangler shielding)	330 Metal	Dual Rotational Minigun Barrels	Damage: 16 Shots per second: 8 (16 with Wrangler) Average DPS: 128 (256 with Wrangler)	120 rounds
3		216 (effectively 648 with the Wrangler shielding)	530 Metal	Dual Rotational Minigun Barrels Target Guided Rocket Launch Support System	Damage: 16 Shots per second: 8 (16 with Wrangler) Average DPS: 128 (256 with Wrangler) Rockets fire every 3 seconds (slightly faster with the Wrangler) dealing 53 to 150 damage on direct hit (falloff is calculated from the distance of the Engineer to the target, not from the Sentry to the target). The rockets can be deflected with the Pyro's compression blast.	144 rounds 20 rocket salvos

Combat Mini-Sentry Gun

Level	Kill Icon	Health	Cost	Weaponry	Damage	Ammo
N/A		100 (effectively 300 with the Wrangler shielding)	100 Metal	Semi-Automatic Firing Barrel	Damage: 8 Shots per second: 6 (12 with Wrangler) Average DPS: 48 (96 with Wrangler)	100 rounds

• The difference between excellent Sentry Gun placement and average Sentry Gun placement can sometimes be very little; a matter of inches, or an angle that is off by a few degrees can determine whether a Sentry Gun can effectively cover a certain approach, whether it will give away its location to enemies too easily, whether it will take too long to rotate into firing positions, and so on. This does not mean that you should take a long time to adjust their Sentry Gun blueprint before placing it – doing so is a hallmark of inexperienced Engineer play. However, observe how certain placements perform and if the Sentry Gun demonstrates any weaknesses in that position, try to place the Sentry Gun so it will be more effective in the future.
  • A good rule of thumb for Sentry Gun placement is a location that maximizes the Sentry Gun's range while minimizing its corner weakness. In other words, any location where approaching enemies will likely receive fire from the Sentry Gun at close to its maximum range but will be unable to fire back from outside that range. This is because Sentry Guns do not suffer from damage falloff at range. While this does not always limit the damage your Sentry Gun will take in return (damage falloff due to range does not apply to damage done against buildings), it does reduce the damage you will take while you maintain the Sentry Gun, and it also reduces damage from short-range and/or high spread weapons such as the Scattergun, Flamethrower, and Minigun. Making good use of the Sentry Gun's range also gives the Sentry Gun a bigger field of fire and it gives you more warning of approaching enemies (and incoming projectiles), while denying the largest area to your enemies, one of the Engineer's primary roles.
• Sentry Guns are usually best built on high ground. However, you should avoid choosing an elevated spot that allows your Sentry Gun to be seen by enemies from beyond its ability to fire back. The best Sentry Gun placements allow a Sentry Gun to shoot at enemies at the same time or even a little before enemies are able to see and shoot back at the Sentry Gun and high ground can help achieve this as the diagram below-right demonstrates.
  • High ground is also great because it makes the Sentry Gun harder to hit with splash damage. As long as it is not built with its back to a wall, most projectiles will arc either too high or too low to hit hard, and the precision aiming required forces enemies to take the Sentry Gun's full weight of fire to try to take their shot. Conversely low ground creates the opposite effect, effectively "funneling" even stray projectiles such as Grenades right into the Sentry Gun. Avoid low ground positions such as pits and valleys.
  • High ground is also very useful by making it more difficult for Spies to get into sapping range. High ground placements reduce the number of routes Spies can use to get close, making it easier for you and your team to discover and remove potential Spy threats before they get a chance to disable your Sentry Gun.
• Build in areas that are open, but not too open, and give you some room to work. This allows you to dodge and gives yourself good angles for using the Wrangler while keeping a safe distance from your Sentry Gun if it is under fire. If possible, have a wall or other cover near to the Sentry Gun that you can use as cover while you repair, but try not to have an obscured view of what is attacking your Sentry Gun.
• Avoid "gimmicky" Sentry positions such as looking down holes in ceilings, in the middle of narrow hallways, or around sharp corners. Sentry Guns can certainly get kills in such positions, but while these positions can surprise the enemy temporarily, they aren't terribly effective since they won't seriously interfere with your opponents' movement. High level Sentry Guns take a lot of time and resources to make, so building them in areas where they will be useful only rarely is a waste.
• Great Sentry positions will allow the Sentry Gun to put suppressing fire on a number of key areas and also allow it to act as a first line of defense for your team. A Sentry being repaired or Wrangled (or both) is excellent at absorbing damage that would otherwise be directed at your fellow teammates.
  • Sentry Guns should not therefore be viewed as a "last line of defense". Building with this mentality is flawed, because while an Engineer and his Sentry can fend off most lone opponents fairly effectively, as little as two enemies can overwhelm an unsupported Engineer position, even if the base is well constructed and the Engineer is skilled.
• Don't build yourself into a corner if you want to be hanging around your Sentry Gun repairing; you deny yourself a line of retreat and ensure that you get damaged as much as your Sentry Gun. Sentry Guns right around corners can catch enemies off guard, but if you build such an "ambush" Sentry Gun, don't sit right on it. Leave it on its own and maybe support it offensively with your own weapons, and then move it or rebuild it once it becomes ineffective.
• In addition to building on high ground and in a moderately open area, you should build the Sentry Gun such that it covers narrow areas in the map called "chokepoints". This maximizes the area your team has to work with and minimizes the maneuvering room for attackers. This forces the enemy team to bunch up in narrow hallways and doorways, making them easy prey for your Sentry Gun's rockets or the splash damage from your team. Sentry Guns are at their best when they force enemies to fight from a disadvantageous position.
• Take note of where other Engineers have set up their Sentry Guns and set up yours to create overlapping fields of fire that can catch opponents in crossfire. Being within sight of another Engineer on your team makes it easy for you to help one other repair during times when either of you is dead or occupied. It also concentrates your team's defense and prevents your team from spreading too thinly. Two Sentry Guns that are spread out yet still covering the same choke point combined with adequate Spy checking can be an absolute nightmare for the enemy team to deal with and forces them to either come with everything they have or not come at all.
  • Conversely, try not to build two Sentry Guns next to each other; this doesn't help cover a wider area and makes the Spy's job of sapping Sentry Guns easier.
• After building a Sentry Gun, stand behind it and build a Dispenser behind your position; if a few enemies or an ÜberCharged enemy comes, you can kneel behind the Sentry for protection and continually repair the damage done to it while having your Metal replenished by the Dispenser behind you. This strategy works well wherever enemies are forced through a bottleneck while approaching the Gun or have no line of sight to the Dispenser, but does not work well in open areas where the Dispenser can be targeted from the side or from above.

Figure 1. Dustbowl, Stage 2, Point B example of excellent Sentry placement. Both Sentries A and B are on high ground in open areas covering chokepoints, with double coverage of two major chokes. Both Sentries are nearby and face each other making it easy for each Engineer to watch the other.

Figure 2. Illustrates the advantages of elevated placement. Sentry is in the open covering a chokepoint, is able to lock on and begin firing an instant before approaching enemies preventing abuse of cover and maximizing Sentry damage. Attacking Demomen in particular will have poor attack angles.

Dispenser

Level	Health	Cost	Generation
			Health	Ammo	Metal
1	150	100 Metal	10/sec	20%/sec	40/5 sec
2	180	300 Metal	15/sec	30%/sec	50/5 sec
3	216	500 Metal	20/sec	40%/sec	60/5 sec

The primary use of the Dispenser is to provide logistical support to yourself and your team. Dispensers act as unlimited health and ammo pickups that can be used by any number of teammates at once, making Dispensers more and more essential the greater the number of players on your team. Dispensers take time to build and are expensive and time-consuming to upgrade, but once they build up a good supply of Metal, they enable you to keep your buildings repaired almost indefinitely except under the most concentrated attacks. The Sentry Gun can secure an area from immediate attack, but it is upgraded Dispensers that can truly fortify a location.

• It can be used as an obstacle: members of the opposing team can't walk through your buildings so Dispensers can be strategically used to jam up doorways and stairs. or distinguish between Spies and teammates. Building a Dispenser in a location solely to detect Spies is typically not recommended since it most likely can be more beneficial elsewhere.
• It can be used to defend an area. Dispensers allow Heavies and Pyros to defend an area constantly with unlimited ammo (with the added bonus of slow healing).
• It can be built in certain areas to allow the Engineer to reach or build on a higher location. Since the Engineer's buildings are only solid to him and not his teammates however, this only benefits the Engineer unless he builds a Teleporter to allow teammates to follow. Placing a teleporter exit at the peak of a jump off a Dispenser can significantly increase maneuverability.
• Dispensers can block your Sentry Gun's line of sight, so try not to build them in front of your Sentry Gun whenever possible.

Teleporter

Level	Health	Cost	Recharge time
Level 1	150	125 Metal	10 seconds
Level 2	180	325 Metal	5 seconds
Level 3	216	525 Metal	3 seconds

• Teleporter Exits should be placed so that that teammates will instantly have a good idea of where to go when they use it, they can react more quickly to incoming enemies and it is harder to be backstabbed by enemy Spies (Alt-fire also rotates the Teleporter by 90 degrees, but pressing fire while it rotates can cause it to build at a 45 degree angle).
• The status of Teleporters should be known by the whole team as soon as possible: where they're built and whether or not they're being Sapped or attacked. It's also a good idea to give the team an Estimated Time of Arrival (ETA) of when the exit will be built so that if someone is just spawning they can wait by the entrance.
• If you have just built the exit and a teammate immediately uses it then picking it up and putting it down and hitting it with your Wrench will rebuild and recharge it in less than half the time (about 5 seconds) than if you just let it recharge by itself (about 10 seconds) until you can find enough metal to upgrade it.
• When playing on Control Point maps, the Teleporter should usually be the first thing built. Place an entrance outside spawn, replenish your metal within spawn and place the other Teleporter just out of the way of the front line.
• Enemy players such as Spies and Scouts will often try to sneak past your team and attempt to destroy your Teleporter Entrance, which is often not guarded by your Sentry Gun. If this happens repeatedly, you might consider moving your Sentry back to your Spawn to cover it, along with yourself. This can be less of a trade-off if there is another friendly Engineer who can pick up the slack on the front lines and cover the buildings back at the Exit. Often you can get away with doing this only temporarily, since once you have denied several attempts to kill your Teleporter Entrance the enemy will usually stop trying, and you can move back to the front lines.
• Never stand atop your Teleporter, because if an enemy Spy goes through your teleporter while you are standing on it, you will be instantly killed, otherwise known as a Telefrag
• When removing Sappers from Teleporters, ensure that you do not stand on the exit, preventing Spies from potentially Telefraging you.
• It's often better to be more conservative in the positioning of Teleporters. Building and upgrading a Teleporter is very time consuming, and potentially risky and thus should not be deliberately repeated. It's better to have a Teleporter remain active and take your allies 75% of the way to their destination, than to have a Teleporter go the whole distance but gets destroyed due to its proximity to the action.
• Teleporters leave a particle trail on the feet of anyone who uses them, revealing to enemies the presence of an active Teleporter nearby. This is yet another reason to think conservatively when placing your Teleporter.
• When playing in a purely defensive role and Teleporters are not needed to reach the front line, they can be used to retreat to reach the back line or any other safe position quickly. Be sure to let your team know why the Teleporter goes backwards.
• Placing Teleporter Exits in locations where they have an increased chance of causing telefrag kills against enemies can potentially be a legitimate possibility. Usually this will mean placing an Exit in a narrow area where there is no room to step around the Exit, forcing any enemies rushing through the area to be at risk of a Telefrag.
  • One example of this would be on Dustbowl Stage 1 Point B on the stairs leading from the sliding doors to the control point – enemies are often under fire and simply trying to move quickly through onto the point, and won't usually stop to destroy a Teleporter Exit which can easily result in telefrags.

When Teleporters are not needed for transportation purposes, they still have great value

• If a Teleporter is not needed to advance forward, then it can be used as an effective block similar to the Dispenser. A Teleporter built in front of under-fire buildings can absorb damage in place of a Sentry Gun or Dispenser without getting in the way of the building. Explosives and stray bullets will often hit the Teleporter instead of more important buildings, which can be repaired via the other Teleporter from a safe distance.
• In common situations where you can't build a Teleporter for your team, Teleporters can also be used as bait by placing one close to your base. An enemy will often destroy or sap the Teleporter, notifying the Engineer to prepare for an incoming enemy.

Weapon combinations

Weapon Combinations
Combo			Usage
Shotgun	Short Circuit	Southern Hospitality	For a purely defensive Engineer. This combination allows the Engineer to hold positions against attack, albeit with high cost in Metal and upgrade time. The Short Circuit provides defense against explosives (the greatest bane of a Sentry Gun), although it increases the Engineer's reliance on having a functioning, upgraded, and well-placed Dispenser. The weak damage of Short Circuit can leave you open to other attacks, such as Spies and flank attacks. Nonetheless, as the sentry it free to fire on its own and won't be disabled by the Wrangler, this combination allows the defensive Engineer to be a bit more independent. This weapon set will allow you to preserve your Sentry Gun as long as possible and use the Shotgun to weaken foes or kill any Spy in range. The Southern Hospitality provides excellent defense against Spies and prevents them from escaping via invisibility, however your weakness to fire can make any sort of offensive pushing much more risky.
Frontier Justice	or Pistol or Lugermorph	Jag	For an advanced supportive Engineer. This set allows you to deploy your buildings quickly with the 30% faster construction rate granted by the Jag. This may give you more time to walk around and help maintain the buildings of other Engineers. The Revenge crits will become useful if your sentry happens to be destroyed. The Pistol provides an alternative firearm and is great for conserving your Revenge Crits. You can freely use the Wrangler instead for long-range offense with your sentry to keep your opponents at bay, though this will distract you from your and other Engineers' buildings.
Shotgun	Wrangler	Jag	This combination is similar to the advanced supportive Engineer set but there are small changes. You can use your Wrangler to dispatch Snipers quickly and weaken enemies at the long distance. But having no bonus health means you are more likely to die. This can also be a good loadout for an Engineer who likes to try and build behind the enemy lines. The Jag helps build up the base more quickly and the Wrangler can help the Engineer build in some unusual locations and immediately attack foes with the enhanced firepower.
Frontier Justice	or Pistol or Lugermorph	Gunslinger	This set is for an assault-oriented Engineer who doesn't want to camp in the enemy base for the whole battle and get out and fight. The Gunslinger paired up with the Frontier Justice gives you many stored crits because the combat mini-sentry is very weak and will get destroyed often. The Pistol also gives you the upper hand when fighting from a distance, and you can also use it to finish off enemies weakened by a revenge crit. The extra 25 health from the Gunslinger gives you extra fighting time and the ability to take more damage. You can also place your mini-sentry to give you some more firepower in a battle. But this set is sometimes risky when going against classes that have a larger amount of firepower than you do, such as soldiers. An Engineer using these weapons can be used for support, as he can be effective when he sticks by his teammates and helps them out with his revenge crits and mini-sentry. You still pack a punch in most battles, think before you whip out your mini-sentry, as sometimes enemies will have much more firepower than you do. If so, plant you mini-sentry and retreat before they can catch you.
Frontier Justice	Wrangler	Jag	For the Engineer that likes to control his Sentry Gun. The Jag allows you to quickly deploy your Sentry Gun and the Wrangler grants you manual control over your Sentry Gun. If the Sentry Gun is destroyed while you are off getting Metal, you will be granted Revenge Crits. An important aspect of this set is that you should deploy your Sentry Gun in a hidden and safe spot, then slowly move it to the front lines while (hopefully) being accompanied by a Medic or a strong class (such as a Heavy) that is more likely to attract enemy fire. The Frontier Justice's reduced magazine size is not that much of a problem, since you will be spending more time defending yourself with the Sentry Gun than with a Shotgun.
Widowmaker	Short Circuit	or or or or Wrench or Golden Wrench or Saxxy or Festive Wrench or Gunslinger	The Deus-Ex Set This set will eat up your metal very quickly. Enough misplaced shots from the Widowmaker will render you useless, and force you to replenish your metal. These weapons are best used after you've already constructed your Sentry Gun and Dispenser. This way, you still have other means of survival, and the Dispenser can replenish any metal you lose with missed or poor shots. You can also use the Short Circuit to prevent enemy Soldiers or Demomen from destroying your buildings. This setup does, however, leave you with no reliable medium/long range weaponry, so stay close to your Sentry Gun in order to not be taken by surprise. Alternatively, when using the Gunslinger, you can make use of the reduced cost of the Mini-Sentry to fire a few shots and then still have enough metal to place a Mini-Sentry. Also, you can use the metal output to recharge your supply to continuously throw down Mini-Sentry Guns, keeping a constant force of pressure on the enemy. However, this leaves you mostly defenseless, as a Mini-Sentry is not something to hide behind when you're out of metal. Stay within running range of an upgraded Dispenser to always have a source of ammo.
Frontier Justice	or Pistol or Lugermorph	Eureka Effect	For a defending Engineer who focuses more on building than retaliating. The Eureka Effect is perfect for jumping back to the nearest spawn quickly for an instant refill, which allows faster nest building and grants the option to quickly fall back and rebuild (or to surprise a Scout/Spy making a bee line for the last control point). Since the Eureka Effect prevents moving buildings, the Frontier Justice counters this hindrance through granting easy crits when your Sentry is inevitably destroyed by an enemy or yourself when falling back/repositioning your nest. Finally, the Pistol/Lugermorph allows you to defend yourself over ranges the Frontier Justice cannot reach and/or to avoid wasting crits.

Class Combat Strategies

See also: Engineer match-ups

 Scout

• In a one-on-one battle, the Scout is a deadly opponent. Being faster and better armed, he is a difficult class to pick off. If it comes down to it, pick him off with shots from your Pistol, or if he comes in close, try to land a Shotgun blast.
• The Scouts lack of range makes him an easy target for your Sentry Gun. Even with his high speed, the ability of your sentry to track his movements will make him easy prey.
  • A Scout under the effects of Bonk! Atomic Punch can distract your sentry from oncoming fire. If you have the Wrangler equipped, it may be in your best interest to aim manually til the effects wear off.
• A Scout wielding the Sandman, while having lower max health, can stun you with the Ball if you're not careful. This could leave your buildings facing enemy fire without a means of repair.

 Soldier

• Directly, a Soldier is a very powerful adversary. A single shot from his Rocket Launcher could be the end of you. Only fight head on if necessary, otherwise, try and lead him into your Sentry Gun.
• Because of his range, a smart Soldier will try to attack your Sentry Gun from out of range with his Rocket Launcher. If this happens, remain in cover while repairing your buildings.
  • If necessary, use the Wrangler in an attempt to fire back and increase the life span of your Sentry Gun.
• The Cow Mangler 5000's charged shot can disable any building. You can repair the damage while the building is disabled, but any building won't perform its function until the 4 seconds are over. 4 seconds without buildings such as the Sentry Gun or the Dispenser could lead to your position being overrun. It may be in your best interest to fall back and live to build again if the Soldier is not alone.
• When the Frontier Justice is equipped, attacking Soldiers who have activated their Battalion's Backup with Revenge crits is unwise: switch to another weapon or use your Sentry to attack the Soldier instead if waiting for it to wear off is not ideal.

 Pyro

• As with most other classes, it is not recommended to face a Pyro head on. What the Flamethrower lacks in range, it makes up for in damage. Stay out of its range and pick away at there health with your Shotgun and Pistol.
  • Due to the short range, they may switch to the Shotgun or Flare Gun in an attempt to harm you or your buildings from a distance. Because of the guaranteed Critical Hit on a burning target, If you are hit once or were already on fire, take cover to prevent a possibly fatal shot.

 Demoman

• Because of his Stickybombs and Grenades, the Demoman is a worthy adversary in one-on-one fights and while you are protecting your nest. His weapons cause a lot of damage and are deadly at close range.
• If placed in the open, your buildings could easily be destroyed by a Demoman's Stickybombs. If he keeps firing, it's better to run away than trying to constantly repair your buildings and be killed. Think about this when building near a corner or in an open area.
• A smart Demoman will arc his grenades over your Sentry Gun in order to harm you, so don't rely on it to provide a shield.

 Heavy

• With the amount of firepower the Heavy possesses, it is unlikely that you will survive a one-on-one encounter unless you ambush him.
• Remain close to you buildings if a Heavy is lurking around. Without proper surveillance, a Heavy can single-handedly destroy any Engineer outpost.

• If your fighting a Heavy with a Medic and they uber if your Dispenser and sentry are level 3 you are capable of fending them off till their uber goes off. Simple crounch behind your sentry with your Dispenser near by. Most likely they will shoot your sentry at that time keep repairing your sentry till their uber goes off when you'll most likely defeat them.

 Engineer

• Because of the defensive nature of the Engineer, it is unlikely that a head on conflict will occur. From a distance, deter him with your Pistol and if they move in close, use your Shotgun.
  • It might also be a good idea to draw them into your nest if possible.

 Medic

• Alone, the Medic may not be much of a threat. Pester him from afar with your Pistol or up close and personal with the Shotgun.
• The four most common ÜberCharged enemies you will encounter attacking your position are Pyros, Heavies, Soldiers, and Demomen. Any one of them can take you and your buildings out if they are invulnerable.
• One of your best assets when going up against ÜberCharged enemies is the strong "knockback" of your Sentry Gun. The force of the bullets and rockets hitting enemies will push back against their forward movement and slow down their attempts to get close. If your Sentry Gun fires on an enemy who is in mid-air, they will be launched skywards or blown across the map, which is not only amusing but usually means the end of that particular threat.
• One of your best defenses against ÜberCharges is to have advance warning of them. Do your best to keep tabs on which enemies are approaching your position. Ask for information from teammates on the lookout, and listen. If you hear a Medic say "I am fully charged!" then get ready! The Medi Gun of a fully charged Medic also glows and crackles, so look/listen for that. It pays to be actively looking around and paying attention to other important information such as the Kill reporter (See: Head-up display). Do NOT simply sit passively behind your Sentry Gun. Information is a weapon.
  • Do not rely only on the Medic's "I am fully charged!". This is in the voice command list and can be used to fool enemies into thinking the Medic has ÜberCharge ready.
• Once you know that an Über is imminent, you have to make a decision: fight or flight! Do you attempt to hold your ground as best you can, or do you give it up for lost and retreat ASAP? Experience is the best teacher here, but these are a few important things to remember:
  • Do you have support? What kind of support is it?
  • Do you have somewhere to run to?
  • How important to your team is holding your current position? Will holding on as long as possible help the most, or will your survival?
  • If you hold your ground, generally you are risking your life for the sake of trying to keep your Sentry Gun alive until the enemy Über has run its course, allowing your team to continue to hold down that area. If the enemy manages to get at point-blank range, you will most likely fail, particularly if you are repairing your Sentry Gun as it takes damage. Smart enemies will attempt to eliminate you first, and if you sit next to your Sentry Gun you make this easy. The success of this strategy depends on your Sentry Gun placement; some positions are much safer to repair from while under fire than others, usually ones that allow you to repair while around a corner. If you can hold your opponents at arm's length, they will do less damage to you (though not your Sentry Gun) than they would up close (See: Damage) and you'll have an easier time staying alive while repairing, especially if you are in range of your Dispenser. You can also switch to the Wrangler briefly to activate the shield, but keep in mind that this turns off the automatic firing, often putting you at risk if you want to aim at anything.
  • Alternately, you can strike a middle-ground using the Wrangler to make a "fighting retreat" – activate the Wrangler but keep your distance, and simply use your shielded Sentry Gun to stall your opponents as long as possible. This can also prevent your Sentry Gun from firing uselessly at invulnerable enemies. If you're lucky, your Sentry Gun might even outlast the Über, but if it doesn't at least you escaped to build again.
  • Finally, you can make a "preemptive" retreat. If you know an Über is imminent or it has just deployed, pick up your Sentry Gun immediately and make a run for it. This is a risky strategy, since your slow speed while doing this can easily get you caught and killed. Not only are you abandoning your position without a fight, you are risking both yourself and your Sentry Gun anyway. Do this if you know you can find a good fallback position and you think that something else will occupy your enemy's attention if you leave, covering your retreat. If you want to get fancy, you can even make an "escape" Teleporter that leads away from the front line and make a quick and clean getaway – though this usually means your Teleporter will not be fulfilling its usual function of transporting your teammates into the fight.
  • Alternately you can leave your Sentry to buy time and instead flee with your Dispenser. This should only be attempted if you have a high level Dispenser or one that is well-stocked with Metal. Your Sentry will be destroyed, but you will have plenty of resources from your Dispenser to easily deploy another nest quickly in a safer location.
• Beware of the Kritzkrieg. While your buildings do not take extra damage from critical hits, you certainly do, and your life is your buildings' lives in most cases. Critical hits are one of the major reasons it is never a good idea to simply hide behind your Sentry Gun without having vision of what is approaching your position, since a single critical rocket can kill you instantly and clever opponents will try to eliminate you with the splash. However, if you are on the ball, your Sentry Gun position can be an excellent way to counter Kritzkriegs. There aren't many things that can survive a full clip of critical rockets or grenades but a Level 3 Sentry Gun being Wrangled or repaired is one of them.

 Sniper

• Because Snipers fight at long range, it is unlikely that either of you will come in contact. If you do, odds are that it will be away from your Sentry Gun. Use your Pistol for long range and Shotgun when close.
• Due to the long range of Snipers, they can easily pick off any building that is placed in the open. Try to keep from placing your buildings in areas with large lines of sight.
• Beware Snipers with Jarate equipped. If you are covered, you are more vulnerable to damage. This can be especially bothersome when your nest is under fire.
• If a Sniper knows that an enemy is approaching, he or she may attempt to scope in with the Sniper Rifle and land a headshot when the attacker appears. To avoid this, try to apply constant fire to the Sniper.

 Spy

• The Spy is typically the mortal enemy of the Engineer. Due to the Spy's ability to Sap your buildings, it makes him more than a match for you in a strategic sense. Sappers shut down your buildings immediately, leaving them effectively "destroyed" until you remove them. A building that gets Sapped while under fire is typically impossible for a lone Engineer to save.
  • The Spy's ability to disguise himself as any class on either team is also quite bothersome. While wearing a friendly disguise, the Spy has access to your buildings allowing him to restore health and Cloak from your Dispenser and travel through your Teleporters. Note that this also prevents your Sentry Gun from spotting him.
• Watch for Spies using the Your Eternal Reward. This knife, upon successful backstab, allows the Spy to take the form of his victim without dropping his disguise. Spies using it will not hesitate to backstab you or your allies within range of an active Sentry Gun if it he gets the chance.
• Spies have the potential to hide anywhere and appear as anyone. As such, you cannot rely solely on your Sentry Gun to protect you. Remain alert at all times and refrain from being stationary even while protecting your position to prevent Ambassador headshots and backstabs. If someone seems suspicious, don't be afraid to Spy-check them.
• A good Spy will often appear without warning, quickly sap your Sentry Gun, and start attacking you immediately with his Revolver or Knife, especially if you are alone. If you come under attack in this way, don't worry about your buildings. A Spy can place Sappers faster than you can remove them. It is much more important to eliminate the Spy before he causes anymore damage. Use your Shotgun to dispatch the trespasser before repair.
• Most of the time, you should save your Dispenser first, as it will break from an Electro Sapper faster than an upgraded Sentry Gun, and regenerating its Metal supply takes a lot of time. If you are staying in the same spot, saving your Dispenser first will always allow you to rebuild much faster because you'll have more Metal available. However, if the Spy has removed his disguise nearby, or there's urgent need for offense, you should save your Sentry Gun first. On some maps your Teleporter can actually be your most important building as it allows your team to keep a constant stream of reinforcements going. Losing your Teleporter is especially annoying due to the fact that you will lose both ends of it, requiring you to travel all the way to your Spawn to replant your Entrance. Teleporters take the longest to die from Sappers, but you should still try to save them. Deciding which Building to save first always depends on the circumstances. Practice is the best guide.
• While being in a crowd of your own teammates usually helps you defend against Spies more easily, it can sometimes be difficult to pick out which one of your "teammates" is actually a Spy placing Sappers. Even though placing Sappers will not break a disguise, the disguised Spy will actually move its hand in a "placing" motion at your Building when it does so. This is subtle but you can use it pick out the Spy in a crowd. If you are letting your team deal with the Spy while you remove Sappers, keep your back to something!
• A creative Spy will often disguise as an Engineer to try to fool you and your allies into thinking he is an Engineer trying to remove Sappers when he is in fact the one sapping. They may even use the voice command warning about Spies to add to the deception. Watch for teammates who aren't swinging or firing their weapons, as a disguised Spy cannot attack.
• If you have Revenge crits, try to save some of them for the inevitable Spy attack. Having a glowing Frontier Justice out can be enough on its own to deter a Spy, and if it doesn't, deter it with a critical hit. While it's true that you might waste a shot on a Dead Ringer, don't be afraid to do it. A Spy who feigns death likely won't be attacking you for at least a short duration, giving you time to call for help.

• Some Spies may keep placing Sappers as you take them off. If so stop trying to remove them cause they can place them faster , instead shoot or try to kill the Spy , then go back to tend to your buildings.

See also

• Team strategy