Cloak
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— The Spy
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Cloak, or cloaking, is an inherent ability of the Spy which is controlled through the watch strapped onto his wrist. Cloaking allows the Spy to become invisible for short periods of time, allowing him to move unnoticed through enemy lines or make a quick escape when attacked. While cloaked, the Spy is unable to attack for the duration of the Cloak.
Contents
General attributes
While cloaking disables attacking, the player may still still use the Disguise Kit. Disguising while cloaked will remove the team tinted smoke particle effect, allowing seamless disguise changing. While cloaked, the Spy is completely invisible to all enemies. The Spy's teammates will be able to see him as a semi-transparent silhouette tinted in the team color. This will allow players to determine if an area is being surveyed by a friendly Spy and to structure future movements around him.
One of the few ways to reveal a Spy is by simply bumping into them or any form of damage. Harming a cloaked Spy results in the Cloak function to malfunction, producing a temporary, team-colored outline that is visible to all players regardless of team. A Spy therefore cannot simply charge through an enemy offensive with the Cloak. However, this does not apply to all watches, as the Dead Ringer does not produce a silhouette if bumped into while under its effects for the duration.
Should the Spy be hit with weapons that produce visual effects, such as Jarate, Milk, Bleeding and Fire, the Cloak will be rendered useless; the effects will make the Spy clearly visible to all. Similarly, emerging from water will cause the Spy to drip water droplets even when cloaked. Falling from a certain height will also produce a blood particle effect, and an audible crack. Spy players should avoid these weapons and their carriers if they wish to remain incognito in the field.
Upon de-cloaking, the Spy will make a unique noise and briefly appear in a team colored silhouette, regardless of disguise, before becoming visible. Because of this, care should be taken to de-Cloak out of sight and hearing range of enemies.
Each watch will display its Cloak meter on the weapon model viewed by the player. The meter is also visible in the HUD.
The Spy cannot activate Cloak within 0.5 seconds after attempting to backstab, however the Spy can immediately use Cloak after using an Electro Sapper or firing the Revolver, Ambassador or L'Etranger.
Strategy
The nature and strategy for cloaking depends on the type of watch the Spy uses in battle. Additionally, the enemy team may alter their behavior in order to protect themselves against a certain type of watch. A Spy should therefore be proficient in all Cloak types to be able to adapt to any opposing force.
Invisibility Watch
With the Invisibility Watch, the default watch in the Spy loadout, players can Cloak for a maximum of 9 seconds, during which they can move through enemy lines, across Sentry Gun paths, or away from attackers whilst remaining completely invisible. Picking up ammo in the form of boxes or dropped weapons will replenish the Cloak at the default rate. Map layout and location of various ammo points, therefore, are important to players who wish to remain cloaked for a longer period of time. Dispensers on either team can also fill the Cloak meter even when the Spy is cloaked. Be advised, however, that using an enemy Dispenser will require the correct disguise, and that the Spy may be discovered if bumped into by Engineers collecting their metal or any other class whom are healing themselves at the Dispenser.
Uncloaking will produce a quiet 'whooshing' sound that can be heard by other players in the immediate vicinity. Experienced Spies should therefore uncloak in a lone location, preferably with an appropriate disguise, in order to avoid enemies who may start searching the area upon hearing the noise.
While cloaked, the Spy moves at his normal movement rate regardless of what class he is disguised as.
The direct counter of the Cloak is the Pyro. If set on fire while cloaked, the Spy will be rendered visible and will burn with a team-colored ambiance. Spies should avoid Pyros when cloaked; if bumped into, a Pyro may begin to Spycheck the vicinity in which case it can prove difficult to escape unharmed.
Dead Ringer
The Dead Ringer watch is unique in terms of cloaking. The watch does not produce a Cloak when the correct bound key is pressed, but rather it will be held up in the player's view in a ready position. Subsequently, the next time the Spy is dealt damage, either by enemies or falling, he will drop a fake corpse and immediately become cloaked for a total of 6.5 seconds. During this time any damage received by the player will be reduced by 90%, and will not shimmer if attacked or bumped into by enemies.
The corpse dropped is dependent on the disguise the player was using at the time. Dropping a friendly disguise as a corpse, therefore, may allow the Spy to move into enemy territory without arousing suspicion. It should be noted however that the occasionally the dropped ragdoll is somewhat bugged and noticeable by experienced players, who may alert their team of a Dead Ringer Spy being present. Furthermore, activating the Dead Ringer upon being attacked once will almost immediately be suspicious to the enemy. Players should therefore wait a couple of seconds if under continuous fire before cloaking to provide a more convincing fake death. This should not apply to competent Snipers, Sticky Bomb traps or forms of critical attacks.
Spies with the Dead Ringer can collect ammo and use Dispensers to replenish the Cloak, albeit at a reduced amount compared to the Invisibility Watch. Once cloaked for longer than 6.5 seconds, however, the Spy will shimmer upon damage or contact with the enemy as with any other watch. Making a run through the map with the Dead Ringer, therefore, is just as risky as with the default watch.
The main disadvantage of the watch is the loud and distinctive de-cloaking sound. Players should therefore utilize cover or remote locations to uncloak. Should the Dead Ringer be heard, enemies may begin searching the area for the Spy. Due to the Cloak taking a long time to recharge without nearby ammo, uncloaking far from enemies is a priority if the player wishes to remain alive.
While the Dead Ringer Cloak is activated, the Spy can still be set on fire by a Pyro. The damage reduction, however, may allow the player to seek out water and extinguish themselves where otherwise they would have died. Many Pyros will continue to chase the Spy once alight, making escape more difficult. Should the Pyro prowl the area outside the water, players may consider hiding in the water for as long as the Cloak permits until the Pyro leaves. Shooting at the Pyro from the water is also a viable option, as his Flamethrower is ineffective underwater. On the other hand, leading the Pyro into a friendly Sentry Gun or experienced teammate may prove successful.
Aside from providing normal Cloak espionage, the Dead Ringer can serve as a paranoia tool. Making an obvious fake death can lead to enemies spending more time spychecking, possibly even causing Medics to deploy their ÜberCharge early in anticipation of being backstabbed. This can allow teammates an opportunity to advance on an objective under the Spy's command, or wait for the enemy ÜberCharge to end before activating their own.
Cloak and Dagger
The Cloak and Dagger watch serves as a sidegrade for the default watch. The Cloak will last for 6.6 seconds when the Spy is running, and cannot be replenished by ammo crates. Instead the Cloak is recharged by standing completely still.
Due to the nature of the recharge, a Cloak and Dagger Spy will mostly conduct his espionage standing still. Objects in the map such as boxes or corners will therefore provide strategic points from which to crouch and relay enemy movement to the team through chat or microphone. Additionally, these areas provide points from which players can backstab slow moving classes or Sap buildings. Once the Spy performs these quick assassinations, they can return to their vantage point for the next unsuspecting victim. This can effectively cut off high traffic areas, as the enemy will become wary of using the route. Alternatively, they may send in a Pyro to flush out the Spy; should this happen, the player may want to seek a different place to hide.
Once the Cloak meter is drained, the Spy will have a clear visible outline, similar to being bumped into by an enemy. Coming to a halt will resume full invisibility, but any enemy players nearby that see this will attack. A crouch-walking Spy will drain the Cloak at a slower rate, but will move more slowly.
Related Achievements
Pyro
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Demoman
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Heavy
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Engineer
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Sniper
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Spy
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