Basic Scout strategy

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Say goodbye to ya kneecaps, chucklehead! Click to listen — The Scout

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The Scout is the fastest and arguably the most mobile class in the game. Although frail, his speed and ability to double-jump allow him to easily access alternate routes on many maps, making him extremely unpredictable and effective at ambushing. He counts as two players when capturing control points or pushing Payload carts, making him ideal for completing mission objectives quickly. When fighting, his high damage output and mobility make him one of the best classes in one-on-one combat. Because his health pool is so low, the Scout relies on completely avoiding damage to survive; for example, his double jump lets him escape knock back and fall damage. To maximize damage dealt and minimize damage taken, a good Scout tends to weave around the outskirts of a battlefield, picking off important enemy targets. Weaponry that can slow or track players, such as Natascha or the Sentry Gun, are deadly to the Scout.

Primary weapons

When fighting, don't rely on your mouse alone to track foes. Use your movement to keep the opponent centered on your screen, firing whenever your cross-hairs and opponent match up. This allows you to focus on moving efficiently and erratically, making you harder to hit, while at the same time making your aim smoother and more accurate via prediction. Find what distance you operate at best and use your speed to maintain it; extremely close range combat favors quick jumping to avoid enemy shots fired downward, while more moderate distances allow you to stay grounded and continuously strafe from side to side.

Scattergun / Festive Scattergun

At point blank range, your Scattergun can kill most classes in just two well placed shots. It is your best weapon for prolonged combat due to its reasonable magazine size and high damage output. The Scattergun's bullet spread is very wide, so switch to your Pistol for enemies that are far away.

Force-A-Nature

The Force-A-Nature deals heavy burst damage but must be reloaded often, making it best used as a hit-and-run weapon. You can use the Force-A-Nature's knock back on you or your target; an enemy launched into the air makes for an easy kill, while the self-inflicted knock back allows you to Force jump to even more unpredictable locations. If you actively jump while in combat, save your extra jump until after you've fired the Force-A-Nature; the knock back can leave you suspended in midair and vulnerable, as well. For efficient ammo usage, always fire your two shots before reloading; reloading with one shot in the barrel will discard that shot.

Shortstop

The Shortstop is a cross between the Shotgun and Pistol. While it deals less damage than your other primary weapons, its narrow bullet spread makes it reliable at longer ranges. The Shortstop reloads quite quickly, allowing you to continuously fire shots and deal consistent damage. However, the Shortstop draws from the same ammunition pool as the Pistol, so you should use a different secondary weapon to conserve ammunition.

Soda Popper

The Soda Popper is similar to the Force-A-Nature, but does not possess its knock back effects. Like the Force-A-Nature, it is best used as a hit-and-run weapon. However, the faster reloading speed means that it is more viable for prolonged combat. The Soda Popper's Hype meter will only fill when you are mobile and have the Soda Popper itself as your active weapon. You can control when to activate your Hype by moving around until the Hype meter is nearly full, then switching to a different weapon until you encounter an enemy. The guaranteed mini-crits from Hype are not limited to just the Soda Popper and work rather well with your other weapons. For efficient ammo usage, always fire your two shots before reloading; reloading with one shot in the barrel will discard that shot.

Secondary weapons

Pistol / Lugermorph

The Pistol is a backup weapon, primarily used for finishing off wounded targets. It reloads much more quickly than any of your primary weapons and can be used to harass enemies or cover a retreat. At longer ranges, use the Pistol to deal consistent damage.

Bonk! Atomic Punch

Bonk! Atomic Punch is a situational utility item that can be used to dodge or draw enemy fire. For example, you can use it to distract Sentry Guns, retreat safely, bait Demomen into detonating their sticky traps, or block chokepoints.

Crit-a-Cola

Crit-a-Cola is an item that rewards you for taking risks. Since it turns all the attacks you deal and take into mini-crits, you should drink it only before an ambush or to harass enemies at range with your Shortstop. The boost provided by Crit-a-Cola will not stack with the boosting effects of other items, so don't drink it and take increased damage if you don't have to.

Mad Milk

Mad Milk is thrown like a grenade and inflicts a temporary debuff upon its victims, allowing any member on your team to heal by damaging an opponent under its effects. It can be used both in single combat or large firefights to give you and allies additional survivability. Additionally, Mad Milk can be used to extinguish teammates and reveal cloaked Spies.

Winger

Like the Pistol, the Winger can be used to harass enemies or cover a retreat. Its increased damage is balanced by the reduced magazine size. The Winger deals less damage than the Pistol over long periods of time, making it better for short encounters.

Melee weapons

Bat / Saxxy / Conscientious Objector / Festive Bat

Because you already deal so much damage at close range, you should only use the Bat when out of loaded ammunition or when dealing with unattended Engineer structures. While it swings rapidly, it deals less damage than other melee weapons.

Sandman

The Sandman slightly lowers your maximum health but grants access to an alternate fire that launches a baseball capable of stunning enemies. It moves as a moderately fast, arced projectile, so lead your foe accordingly. You can stun enemies either before moving in for the kill or to retreat safely. In large firefights, focus on stunning the more dangerous foes, such as Heavies and crit boosted enemies.

Holy Mackerel / Unarmed Combat

The Holy Mackerel functions identically to the Bat but announces each hit in the kill feed. A hit that triggers a Spy's feign death will appear as a hit, not a kill, allowing you to track down a Spy using the Dead Ringer.

• The Unarmed Combat cannot be used as part of the Special Delivery item set.

Candy Cane

When you have the Candy Cane equipped, any kill or assist you make will cause your victims to drop health packs that can be used to heal teammates as they fight at the front lines. The Candy Cane does not need to be the active weapon for this bonus to occur. However, your vulnerability to explosive damage is increased, meaning that a direct hit from a rocket or grenade is now capable of killing you in just one hit. A Spy who uses the Dead Ringer to trigger a feign death will not drop a health pack and is easier to discern.

Boston Basher / Three-Rune Blade

When striking an enemy, the Boston Basher inflicts the bleed status in addition to the standard Bat damage. However, any missed melee attacks will cause you to damage and inflict the bleed status on yourself instead. Thus, only attack if you're sure the strike will connect. You can use the self-damage to help a Medic fill his ÜberCharge meter and the bleed effect to track down Cloaked Spies. Damaging yourself will inflict a small amount of self-knock back that can be used as an additional jump in order to reach higher areas, albeit at the cost of a significant portion of health.

Sun-on-a-Stick

Against ignited foes, the Sun-on-a-Stick will deal as much damage as the Scattergun at point blank range in terms of damage-per-second. However, both you and the Pyro excel at close range combat and can often finish off an enemy without the help of an ally. As a result, you might not be able to utilize this combo frequently, as effective as it may be.

Fan O'War

The Fan O'War is best used at the beginning of a fight against a single target, as the Mark of Death can only be inflicted on one enemy at a time. After tagging your foe with it, switch to another weapon or let your teammates finish the job. This is especially effective with the Force-A-Nature and Soda Popper as the increased firing speed with the guaranteed mini-crits is likely to leave the enemy dead and the need to reload less problematic.

Atomizer

The Atomizer does not need to be active for you to have access to the triple jump, so you can ignore its downsides if you simply use your primary weapon in close range combat. The added mobility granted by the triple jump is often worth paying 10 health, especially if it means positioning yourself behind a key target or dodging a deadly rocket. If you pair the Atomizer with the Force-A-Nature, you can combine a triple jump and force jump into a quadruple jump. You will take no damage from the third jump while phasing with Bonk! Atomic Punch.

Wrap Assassin

In a similar fashion to the Sandman, the Wrap Assassin launches a projectile that is capable of inflicting the bleed status on hit enemies. It's most effective to use the projectile to weaken stronger enemies, rather than finish them off, before moving in with the Scattergun. If you simply use your primary weapon in close range combat, you can ignore its reduced damage.

Item set effects

The Special Delivery

The item set's health bonus greatly increases your survivability, especially when coupled with the healing from Mad Milk, while the Shortstop lets you deal consistent damage from medium range. Overall, you can have more of an impact in large, populated firefights. However, your overall firepower at close range is reduced, meaning that you must deal more consistent, sustained damage to remain a threat.