Anti-Engineer strategy

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The Engineer has a sturdy built, but a poor amount of health. He is average at self-defense, requiring the firepower of his Sentry Guns and assistance from his Dispensers.

General

• The Engineer should always be in high priority when you are considering whom to kill. A team with a functional sentry can be deadly.
• It's always best to disconnect and isolate the Engineer from his buildings to prevent him to repair or upgrade his buildings.
• As a Sniper, it is easier to bodyshot the Engineer then go for a headshot. A fully charged bodyshot will kill in one hit, granted the Engineer is not overhealed. You can easily do this when he's upgrading or repairing his Sentry Gun.
• As a Spy, you are the one the Engineer looks for, so try to use stealth instead of deceit.

Weapon Specific

A list of useful tidbits about the Engineer's weaponry, and how to best counter them.

Shotgun

Frontier Justice

• Kill the Engineer before getting rid of his Sentry Gun to prevent him from getting Revenge Crits.

Pistol / Lugermorph

Wrangler

• The Wrangler protects the sentry from 60% of the damage you can inflict, so instead, try to kill the Engineer
• The Engineer with rely heavily on mobility and hiding, so try to sneak up behind him due to the disabled auto-aiming of the Sentry Gun.
• When the laser is not pointed at you or the sentry is currently deactivated, you can quickly lay in a powerful hit on the sentry before the Engineer can repair it.

Wrench / Golden Wrench

Gunslinger

• Try to avoid getting him too often to counter the Gunslinger's three-punch combo.

Southern Hospitality

• The 20% vulnerability to fire makes the Pyro a dangerous enemy to Engineer.

Jag

• This has reduced damage, but you still have to look out for Crits.

Buildings

• Engineers will automatically vocalize when their buildings are being sapped. Use this as a signal and kill the Engineer.
• An Übercharge can swiftly destroy any Engineer nests, but be prepared to face knockback from their Sentry Guns.
• When faced with an unprotected base, what to destroy is dependent on the map and situation. Dispensers can easily supply the entire team on small maps like Turbine or for the defending team on Dustbowl, but destroying the offense's teleporter on Gold Rush will make enemy reinforcements slow for a while.
• If the area is clear of other Sentry Guns, pulling out the Revolver and shooting a sapped building can assist the Electro Sapper in taking it down faster.

Sentry Guns

• As a Spy, disguise as an enemy class, preferably an Engineer or Pyro, and approach the Sentry Gun. Sap it beforehand and then backstab the Engineer.
• If the Engineer's back is exposed, one can quickly stab the Engineer and sap the Sentry Gun. This is called a stab-n-sap.
• As a Soldier, keep at a distance and fire rockets at the sentry to create hassle for the Engineer.
• Use Splash damage to try and kill the Engineer from behind his buildings. This may be difficult if he has a Dispenser feeding him health.
• As a Pyro, you can easily take down a sentry at a corner if you hide behind it.
• To dispose of Engineers out of reach, sap their Sentry Gun, then follow up with a Revolver shot to the Engineer, then sap, and repeat.
• As a Demoman, drop two or three stickies before detonating them for a guaranteed destruction of the Sentry Gun. If the sentry is wrangled, try to wait until the shield goes down, or it will take at least twice as many stickies.
• As a Demoman, it is sometimes quicker and easier to take down enemy Sentry Guns using the Grenade Launcher than the Stickybomb Launcher.
• Sentry Guns are slow to turn. If you approach from a blindspot, you can run around the gun while meleeing it. Be careful, though. Run too far ahead, and the gun will rotate the other way around and kill you.

Dispenser

• As a Sniper, snipe enemy Dispensers to deny the enemy Engineers metal to maintain their buildings.

Teleporter

• While it's fun (and sometimes the best option) to melee an unguarded teleporter exit, beware of telefrags.
• While disguised as an enemy or cloaked, a Spy can use enemy Teleporters.
• With a disguise on, sap enemy Teleporter entrances, then stand over them. If you are lucky, when the Electro Sapper is removed, you will go through and telefrag the Engineer.

See also

• Engineer strategy
• Community Engineer strategy
• Sentry Guns
• Engineer match-ups
• Team strategy