Community Scout Mann vs. Machine strategy

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Yeah, come get some, you frickin' wuss! Click to listen — The Scout taunting Gray Mann and his robot army.

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This article details Scout Strategy for the Mann vs. Machine game mode.

Playing the role of Scout in Mann vs Machine is vastly different then playing standard multiplayer. Due to the Scout's low health and lack of ranged weaponry, coupled with the horde style of MvM forces Scouts to take the role of Support rather than strictly Offensive. However, this doesn't mean a Scout cannot contribute in an Mann vs Machine match. Scouts are the only class that have increased credit radius and heal from collecting cash. That in combination to the Scout's speed, double jumping and ability to respawn instantly after death making them great cash grabbers. They also have a variety of support weapons that allow them to help teammates take out Giants with easy and keep them in the fight against hordes.

General Strategy

Primary Weapons

Scattergun

The Scattergun can kill most non giant robots at pointblank rage with 1 or 2 shots. However, the horde style of Mann vs Machine means that you will most likely be taking fire from other robots while attacking one. Use the Scattergun primarily on lone foes like Snipers, Spies, or Lone Robots. Against Tanks, the Scattergun can deal a lot of damage, albeit with long reloads.

Upgrades to the Scattergun should consist of a larger clip sizes with reload speeds, allowing high damage per second. Firing speed or damage dealt can also mean spending less time focusing on a single enemy.

Force-A-Nature

While the Force-a-Nature deals great damage at close range, the best way to make use of it is the knockback. The Knockback can buy your team seconds if the bomb is being deployed, or push a bomb into a pit or further back on the path. This is one of the controllable ways of direct the bomb.

The Force-a-Nature is severely limited in what upgrades it can receive. Because firing speed and reload speed cannot be increased, consider increasing the clip size and ammo pool if you find yourself reloading or running out of ammo in the middle of a fight. If you increase damage, you run the risk of killing the bomb carrier instead of just pushing it away.

Shortstop

The Shortstop allows you to engage robots from medium distance as well as close range. This will allow you to deal with threats at longer ranges as the cost of some damage done, which can be compensated by upgrades. That said, remember that the pistol upgrades share the same ammo pool, upgrading one will also upgrade your pistols.

Considering the range effectiveness of the Shortstop, investing on projectile penetration and damage upgrades will allow you to funnel damage done to robots while also packing a punch. While reload speed cannot be upgraded, upgrading the firing speed and clip size can increase damage per second against robot hordes or large targets.

Soda Popper

While being similar to the Force-A-Nature, the Soda Popper sacrifices knockback for increased reload speed and mini-crits. This can allow Scouts to deal with lone threats like Snipers, Spies, and even Medic robots on their own, provided their timing is right and aim is accurate. The increased reload speed will also allow a Scout to stay in combat longer.

Also, like the Force-A-Nature, the reload speed and firing speed cannot be changed, so upgrading ammo pool and clip size becomes imperative. However, timing mini-crits with increase damage from the Soda Popper can allow Scouts to kill non-giant robots quickly, even if they are under the regenerative effects from carrying the bomb.

Baby Face's Blaster

The Baby Face's Blaster allows scouts to increase their running speed, allowing them to heckle robots easier or collect cash easier. However, the slower starting speed means that back at spawn will have to take an Engineer's teleporter to quickly return to the front lines or risk the credits disappearing in his absence. Also, the Boost will reset if a Scout jumps. However, if the Scout is already near the front lines and the number of targets are plentiful, there should be enough time to hit any robot once or twice to regain enough boost to flee. In terms of combat, the Baby Face's Blaster allows the Scout to deal damage easier from a range, while also allowing him to take advantage of timed reloads similar to that of the Scattergun. Remember that damage done with any weapon increases Boost, but Boost will not increase from damage inflicted onto a Tank. If you have a Pistol, popping a few shots at a giant or group of regular robots will help you increase the Boost quickly.

In terms of upgrades, the Scout should focus on increasing his running speed if he hasn't already. Doing so with the Baby Face's Blaster will only cause a 5% decrease to the Scout's normal speed, which can then be doubled to nearly twice his original speed at full boost. Aside from that, this weapons should be treated similarly to the Scattergun, upgrading reload speed and clip size to increase damage per second, or increasing damage done and firing speeds to allow Scouts to dispatch threats easier.

Secondary Weapons

Pistol + reskins

Pistols can be a great way to attack the robot horde from a distance. However, because a Scout's primary goal in Mann vs Machine should be collecting credits, a lot of combat the Scout will face is at close range. Still, a Pistol can prove to be a valuable side arm and allow the Scout to pick off weakened targets from a distance as he is fleeing or approaching them.

Because reload speed and firing rate are naturally quick for a pistol, consider upgrading the ammo pool, since the scout only carries 36 for a regular Pistol. Invisting in projectile penetration can allow the Scout to weaken multiple targets standing inline.

Bonk! Atomic Punch

Bonk! Atomic Punch is one of the most commonly used among credit collecting Scouts, and for good reason. The ability to be invisible allows you to get behind enemy lines to collect credits from a fallen defensive position. It can also serve as a way of distracting a giant, allowing another class to finish them off while the giant tries to deal with a Scout under its effects. While you may not be able to attack and are still under the effects of explosive knockback, Bonk! Atomic Punch can make the difference between getting or losing a bonus.

The only upgrade available for Bonk! Atomic Punch is recharge time. While only costing 1000 credits to fully upgrade, it allows Scouts to be ready to phase again just after their last phase wears off, making for a nearly invulnerable Scout.

Crit-a-Cola

Crit-a-Cola allows two benefits to Scouts who take risks. While you will constantly be under Mini-Crit damage for the duration, you will be able to deal Mini-Crits yourself and run 15% faster. Should you need to collect credits or deal with a particular low health robot in a pinch, Crit-a-Cola can help deal additional speed or damage, respectively. While the vulnerability to Mini-crits can easily end a Scout, the constant health bonus one recieves from collecting credits or buying additional crit resistance can lower the drawback of this utility item.

Much like Bonk!, Crit-a-cola can only reduce its recharge time.

Mad Milk

Mad Milk is extremely valuable in Mann vs Machine for its healing properties and the ability to slow down robots. Any player damaging enemies coated in Mad Milk are healed 60% of the damage done, which can be necessary in keeping damage dealing classes like the Heavy or Pyro alive when fighting a large horde or giant. It can also be handy putting out fires or detecting cloaked spies. When upgraded, it can also slow down fast moving robots. This becomes crucial when fighting Super Scouts, as there are very few alternatives to slowing them down.

Upgrades to Mad Milk are required, especially further in the mission. Upgrading the recharge speed can allow you to keep enemies soaked for your teammate's benefit, while the slow down property can be great at slowing down fast robots or just buying time to set up.

Winger

Much like the Pistols, the Winger will have a serious disadvantage due to constantly fighting in close range. However, due to the small clip size, it should mostly be used as a last resort or for dealing with lone targets.

While it can be upgraded to match the magazine of an original Pistol, the damage increase bonus is slight compared to overall necessity.

Pretty Boy's Pocket Pistol

In terms of combat, the Pocket Pistol should be discarded in favor of the other pistols. However, due to the fall damage immunity, it can be a favorable choice if you find yourself having trouble due to explosive knockback form Demo bots or Soldier Robots. The small health bonus is negligible due to the ability to overheal from credits, while the increase fire vulnerability puts you at a large risk when facing Pyros. Unless no Pyros spawn in the mission or you invest in fire resistance, consider another Pistol replacement.

Flying Guillotine

While the Flying Guillotine will have issues due to the slow firing speed and being unable to pick up the projectile, it is good at dealing with giant robots in whittling down their health. With upgrades, a new Guillotine will be ready to fire every 3-4 seconds, allowing players to keep a constant source of bleed damage on a target.

Melee Weapons

Bat + Holy Mackerel + reskins

Although the Holy Mackerel and its reskins pop up a counter where the Bat and its reskins do not, they serve no purpose as you will be the only one who sees your kill feed. These melee weapons attack quickly at the Scout's normal damage output, which can be used against distracted robots or against a Tank.

As with most melee weapons, the scout can only upgrade swing speed and health on kill. Upgrading swing speed can increase the Scout's damage per second, which can deliver a lot of damage against Tanks.

Sandman

The Scout's sandman is one of two valuable melee items for its ability to Mark targets. While the Sandman must upgrade in order to preform this ability, it can allow any hit (with the ball or the bat) to mark a target. Although only one target can be marked at a time, Scout's can mark targets from longer ranges and will stun the smaller robots.

Much like other bats, swing speed and health on kill can be applied. Yet unique to the Sandman, is the marking a target, the number of balls a scout can hold at one time, and recharge rate. Do note that the recharge rate is recharge rate per ball, so consider investing it in before getting additional misc. ammo. Also note that while only one target at a time can be marked for death, there is no limit to how many targets can be stunned at one time.

Candy Cane

The candy cane becomes an supporting tool when used in MvM. Killing a robot with any weapon or assisting in a kill will result in a small health pack dropping. However, because a Scout will constantly be healed by the source of credits, it becomes more of an assisting tool for teammates or if you need to quickly extinguish yourself. While the Candy Cane possesses a vulnerability to explosives, namely a rocket or a grenade, the ability to purchase resistances can negate this weapons downsides.

Boston Basher + reskins

The Boston Basher carries a high risk in use in Mann vs Machine. While the ability to inflict bleed on a target may assist in killing it, a single miss can send a player scurrying for a health kit or losing focus on the fight. That coupled with additional sources of damage from the robotic horde can quickly finish a Scout. However, if a scout is constantly healed by a source of credits, its risked can be minimized.

Upgrades to the attack speed are extremely risky as they give you a chance to hit the target more, but bleed does not stack and a single miss will start damaging the Scout. However, targets that die from the bleed effect will give the health bonus, so consider if it you are instantiate on using it.

Sun-on-a-Stick

The Sun-on-a-Stick can deal out a constant source of Crits if there are friendly Pyros on your team. In combination with Uber Canteens, this can allow a Scout to drain a Giants health while distracting them for other teammates to help finish them off. However, if there are no Pyro's on your team, there will be no way to receive the bonus from this weapon.

Fan O'War

Much like the Sandman, the Fan O'War's ability to mark targets can help a team destroy a giant robot very quickly. However, because the Fan O'War has no ability to mark targets from a range, Scouts using it must use hit and run tactics, relying more on their primaries and secondaries or movement speed and jumping ability. Also, due to the Fan O'War dealing only 10% the damage of a regular bat, investing any upgrades into it is generally a waste of credits.

Atomizer

Like the Candy Cane, the Atomizer does not need to be wielded to have its effect granted. This can allow a Scout to stay mobile on the battle field. While it shouldn't be used offensively, the Atomizer can help scouts dodge projectiles or stay mobile in their hunts for credits. In addition, upgrading your jump height can allow the Scout to leap across entire section of the map, bypassing both natural hazards and enemies. The damage done per third jump can easily be counted by constantly collecting credits. However, do note that with high jump height, you will most likely take fall damage. Consider equiping the Pretty Boy's Pocket Pistol in the event of excessive fall damage.

Wrap Assassin

While the Wrap Assassin has a projectile that allows bleed on targets from longer ranges, the ball cannot be upgraded to mark targets. However, the recharge rate and number of bulbs that a Scout can have can be increased, allowing players to make multiple targets bleed at a single time. Do note that bleed does not stack, yet the bulb's impact will cause some additional damage.