Anti-Heavy strategy

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The Heavy is the sturdiest class, but also the least maneuverable. He has a large amount of health and firepower but moves very slowly, requiring him to keep aware of his surroundings. Generally, going against a Heavy head-on is suicide; his Minigun can mow down any class within seconds at close range and he is usually supported by a Medic. While not having quite as diverse a loadout as other classes, the Heavy can nevertheless change his gameplay in several different ways, including gaining the ability to heal, running substantially faster than normal, and even shrugging off ranged damage. Surprise and distance are often the best ways to overcome a Heavy's massive amount of firepower.

General

Attributes	Anti-Heavy strategy
Role	The Heavy's large size and weapon makes him a great shield for his allies. Taking him out can make your assault far easier. The Heavy is often at the center of many pushes. Taking out the Heavy can often defeat an entire push.
Health	The Heavy can soak up a lot of damage, especially if overhealed. Teams should focus their fire on Heavies in order to take them down quickly.
Speed	The Heavy's slow movement speed makes him an easy target for Snipers and Spies. Try to catch him off guard and take him out quickly, before he can spin his gun up and start firing on you. Effects that depend on hits, such as Jarate and The Buff Banner, will be very effective due to the Heavy's inability to dodge.
Power	The Heavy's Minigun is quite a formidable weapon. It will quickly take care of any unaware class in seconds, so remain far away and wait for the Heavy's Minigun to stop spinning to strike.

Weapon-specific

Main article: Heavy weapons

Primary weapons

• All of the Heavy's primary weapons require a moment to spin up before he can start firing. This makes him vulnerable to ambushes.
• When any of the Heavy's weapons are spun up, the Heavy moves much more slowly. A preoccupied Heavy can easily be taken down.
• Keep your distance from a Heavy with his Minigun revved, as it can mow down you and your nearby teammates within seconds.
• If a Heavy is careless, he can consume all of his Minigun ammo in under a minute; your team can counter this by destroying Dispensers, stealing any ammo pickups, and tricking him into wasting ammunition.

Weapon	Anti-Heavy strategy
Minigun + reskins	The Minigun has a shorter spin-up time than most of the Heavy's alternate primary weapons. Be aware of this and retreat if you are facing a Minigun-wielding Heavy at mid-to-close range.
Natascha	The Natascha has a longer spin-up than the Minigun. Hit-and-run tactics are more effective on Heavies using this weapon. At long distances, this weapon's slow down has little effect. At mid-range or closer, you'll likely be unable to escape. A Heavy with Natascha lacks firepower when compared to his other primary weapons, meaning that the more bulky classes can take him head-on with proper positioning.
Brass Beast	The Brass Beast deals insane damage, making it near impossible to face directly. The Brass Beast takes even longer to spin-up than Natascha and brings the Heavy's speed to a crawl, making it impossible for him to avoid oncoming fire. Hit-and-run tactics are also much more effective. Because it encourages the Heavy to linger in locations longer, the Brass Beast will typically be found in defensive situations.
Tomislav	The Tomislav spins up quickly and silently, making it excel at ambushing. It becomes more difficult to tell if a Heavy is lying in wait or is just coming around a corner, so be prepared with teammates if in enemy territory. Forcing the Heavy to fight in the open will lower his effectiveness, as the Tomislav fires 20% slower than the Minigun.
Huo-Long Heater	Spies can jump over the ring of flames let out by the Huo-Long Heater, making it possible for them backstab the Heavy without being set on fire or losing their Spy-cicle. Making a Heavy waste ammo by causing him to miss and stealing or destroying nearby sources becomes extremely effective due to the increased consumption of the Huo-Long Heater.

Secondary weapons

Armaments

Weapon	Anti-Heavy strategy
Shotgun	A Heavy may switch to the Shotgun when he is moving between areas or his Minigun runs out of ammunition. Take him down before he can prepare his other weapon. The Shotgun is a point-blank-to-medium range weapon and will be ineffective at long range. The Shotgun only has six shots. Keep pressuring the Heavy so that he will be forced to reload, resulting in considerably lowered damage output and giving you the opportunity to move in close and deal damage.
Family Business	The Family Business has a 33% increased ammo clip compared to the Shotgun (for a total of eight shots), at the cost of doing 15% less damage. This makes constantly pressuring him less effective, but will also make combat beyond close-range less dangerous.

Edibles

• A Lunchbox item replaces the Heavy's Shotgun, leaving him with one less weapon to attack you with.
• If a Heavy retreats from a fight to find cover, he is probably low on health and is trying to eat. He makes a distinct sound when eating, making him easy to track down.
• A Heavy is relatively defenseless when consuming a Lunchbox item, especially if none of his teammates are nearby; kill him while he is eating.
• Due to how a Lunchbox item gradually restores health over a modest amount of time, it may also be practical to use kill taunts on the Heavy instead of conventional attacks.

Weapon	Anti-Heavy strategy
Sandvich + reskins	The Sandvich slowly restores the Heavy to full health over the course of its consumption, so he may be able to soak up the damage dealt by your attacks. At the very least, harm him enough so that eating the Sandvich was a pointless endeavor. A Heavy can acquire a new Sandvich by picking up a medkit while at full health; either take any nearby medkits for yourself, or damage him so that he does not receive a brand new Sandvich. A Heavy can throw his Sandvich on the ground for anyone else to pick up in order to regain 50% of their HP instantly. This is commonly done to heal a friendly Medic who is low on health. Steal the Sandvich yourself or knock his allies away using knock back.
Dalokohs Bar + reskins	The Dalokohs Bar only heals the Heavy for 100 HP but does not have a cooldown timer. He can eat it constantly to heal minor injuries and stay healthy. The Dalokohs Bar increases a Heavy's maximum Health by 50 for 30 seconds, which can determine the winner of a duel. Unlike the Sandvich, the Heavy cannot drop the Dalokohs Bar for his allies.
Buffalo Steak Sandvich	The Buffalo Steak Sandvich increases the Heavy's speed and damage, but locks him into his melee weapon. Keep a distance if possible. Additionally, it increases the damage the Heavy takes. If he uses it to reach the front lines and you catch him off guard, it's an easy kill. Like the regular Sandvich, a Heavy can toss his Buffalo Steak Sandvich for others to pick up. Try to deny his allies this healing.

Melee weapons

Weapon	Anti-Heavy strategy
Fists + reskins	The Heavy's slow speed is a disadvantage that can be exploited by faster classes during a melee fight; strafe around him or back up as you attack. The Heavy is the class with the highest health; it will take more hits to take him down, which gives the Heavy more chances to strike you in turn.
Killing Gloves of Boxing	If a Heavy gains the critical hit boost from the K.G.B., stay back until it wears off. If he kills you, your death will just reset the effect's duration. The Heavy can also apply his K.G.B. Crit bonus to his other weapons when switched. Quickly decide whether to take him down or take cover. A Heavy may switch to his Shotgun for the remainder of the bonus, as a Minigun takes too much time to fire.
Gloves of Running Urgently + reskins	A Heavy will usually only have the G.R.U. out whilst running to a contested area and switch weapons once he nears it. While they are active, he takes increased damage. He might not expect enemies along the way, so you can ambush him en route. If you catch the Heavy while he still has the G.R.U. active, he is an easier target; he will be marked for death and has to waste time switching to another weapon. A Heavy could use the G.R.U. as a means of pursuit. If you cannot escape him, turn around and fight before he switches to another weapon.
Warrior's Spirit	A Heavy with the Warrior's Spirit inflicts heavy damage, so don't engage him in melee combat. A Heavy with the Warrior's Spirit will have 20 HP less than default. He will be slightly easier to take down - afterburn or bleed effects might finish him off when they ordinarily wouldn't.
Fists of Steel	The Fists of Steel reduce ranged damage, allowing the Heavy to approach the battlefield a bit safer. It increases the time it takes for him to switch weapons, so catching him by surprise is always a good option. The Heavy suffers doubled melee damage while the Fists of Steel are active, but he'll typically switch to his Minigun before you can reach him with your melee weapon. You can either fake an approach to weapon heckle him or attack with both ranged and melee alongside teammates.
Eviction Notice	Treat the Eviction Notice weapon as if dealing with the default Fists; it attacks 50% faster but deals 60% less damage, making it inflict less damage than the Fists overall.
Holiday Punch	Try not to engage in melee combat with a Heavy using the Holiday Punch; if he manages to hit your back, you will be stuck laughing in place. You cannot be forced into an animation while jumping. If you're fighting a Heavy with the Holiday Punch, constantly jump.

See also

• Team strategy