The Hunted
The Hunted is a VIP escort game mode made possible through the use of a server-side SourceMod plug-in, that is based off of the original Hunted map in Team Fortress Classic. The game mode is simple - the Blue Team must escort the Hunted player over to each capture Goal safely, while the Red team tries to kill him and score. The only way to Capture a Goal is to have the Hunted Player present on it. If the Hunted player dies, both Teams will respawn. The player that is the Hunted is the lone Engineer on Blue.
Contents
Playing the Hunted
Overview
The Hunted gameplay mod changes many core elements and tactics of Team Fortress 2. Each team is restricted to what classes they are allowed to play, and the Hunted player - a lone Blue Engineer - is only able to use melee weapons and is unable to build anything. There are no adjustments to health, class speed, critical attack percentages, or other gameplay elements.
This game mode requires a high amount of teamwork on the Blue team, as failure is as easy as letting the Hunted be killed. For the Red team, they are able to lie in wait for the Hunted or attempt to track him down and kill him in a face-to-face encounter. The next two sections will detail the strategies for each team.
Blue Team
Available Classes:
Playing as the Blue Team
As the Blue Team, you're limited to much slower yet stronger classes. Your goal is to protect the Hunted from dying. If he does, you'll need to respawn and try again. Below are possible strategies for each of the available Blue classes. While many specific class strategies may still apply, certain things such as traditional "Medic Buddies" may take a back seat to the overall goal of keeping the Hunted alive.
The most basic and obvious strategy for Blue is to stay close to the Hunted and guide him through the map to the Capture Point. While most people will let the Hunted lead the pack, it is generally smarter for most of the Blue team to lead, so that they can spot any Spies or Snipers before they have a chance to take out the Hunted. You should always be aware of the Hunted's location, and communication is a vital key to success. Pyros will offer the most challenge as they have the most health, and one getting up-close to the Hunted can prove to be almost instantly fatal. When Spy checking, keep in mind the class restrictions, as a Spy who is disguised as common disguise classes but a class you obviously cannot be such as Pyro or Demoman is clearly out of place. While it is an effective strategy for the Spies to disguise as an Engineer, a spy who forgets to change his disguise weapon to the wrench is very easy to spot.
Playing as The Hunted
As the Hunted, you must rely almost entirely on your team. While you can attack with your wrench, it won't do a lot of damage and is generally a last-ditch attempt at survival. This is most useful against Spies who will constantly be trying to Backstab you or the occasional Sniper who comes in close to try and get a Kukri kill. Trying to use your wrench against a Pyro, even if ÜberCharged, is almost always a terrible idea.
The best way to avoid death is to let your Bodyguards go ahead of you to clear a path and kill any Assassins who may be waiting for you to pop out. As an Engineer, you are much faster then your Team, so in some occasions, you may need to wait for them to catch up. You should never be alone as you are almost defenseless. When an area is clear, you can move up slowly and approach the Goal. You should always try to hide behind objects or other teammates for cover and stealth. If the Assassins spot you they will try any method to kill you, either by taking you out from a distance as Snipers, or making a Pyro kamikaze rush towards you.
Most importantly, the Control Points in a map cannot be captured without you being present. Be sure to communicate with the rest of the team when you are going to make a push for a Capture Point, as the Assassins will do anything to attack you when you are about to succeed. As the top-priority player on the team, it is acceptable if not encouraged for you to take the health packs in a map in order for you to survive.
Soldier
The Soldier is the second fastest class on the Bodyguards. Because of this you have a lot of advantages over the Red team. You have two key advantages of rocket jumping and splash damage. Having the ability to Rocket Jump, you can quickly move forward to eliminate any Red Snipers, or even get a glimpse at possible Spies preparing to cloak. However, you are slow, and because of that you can still die fairly easy. Pyros and Snipers are your worst enemy in this case, and can also do the worst towards the Hunted, so make it your job to rocket jump from place to place, to kill any snipers fast that are zoomed in and unaware of what's going on. Most Snipers will be concentrated on finding the Hunted, yet they will mostly shoot anyone that comes in view. Last, stay ahead of the Team slightly, as your Rockets can cause a great deal of damage in a radius.
Also if possible, help medics gain an ÜberCharge to help the Hunted out. You can do this by damaging yourself.
Heavy
As the Heavy you are the slowest class of the bunch, but the most powerful. Because of this the Heavy makes for a fantastic Bodyguard. Yet, because of your speed, your goal should be to stick close to the Hunted, and watch carefully for spies, your worst enemy. Snipers are just as dangerous, but if soldiers manage to eliminate them, they shouldn't be much of a problem. Your main advantage as a Heavy is your ability to kill approaching Pyros quickly. However, Pyros that ambush you can bring you down fast, especially with the Backburner. However, if you have a medic, you should be fairly safe, and a train of pain against Red.
Medic
The Medic is the fastest class of the bunch, but is only slightly faster than the Engineer. While not being tough, you still have the tough jobs of keeping your team alive and the Hunted fully healed. As a medic you have many options, you can choose to concentrate on the Hunted and never leave his side or, concentrate on the rest of your team more. Doing both can be a bit difficult, mainly because your most of your team is slower than you, and the Hunted is just as fast. With that mixture of speed, it can be difficult to really help the entire team, so it's always wise to have two medics to aid in the Fight. This problem can be avoided by having the Hunted travel with the rest of the team.
Another advantage you have is the ÜberCharge, while it can really help the team clear out an area. It can also be great for keeping the Hunted alive in situations where you just need to run. Be careful for Pyros as they can air blast the Hunted out of your healing range. The Übersaw is an even greater advantage, allowing you to gather an Uber faster for the safety of the Hunted, but it can also mean compromising your life, and leaving the Hunted wide open if no one else is around.
As the medic you can't do much damage against any of the classes, and in most cases all the classes on Red are your worst nightmare. A sniper can headshot you from a distance, and a Pyro can ambush you easily and kill you. While the spy can also backstab you, he is much easier to kill and is the perfect opportunity for an Ubersaw swing.
Last, be sure to check for Spies constantly.
Red Team
Available Classes:
Playing as the Red Team
With the Red Team, you have much faster yet weaker classes. Your goal is to kill the Hunted, or even clear a path just to get to him. In some cases, you may be able to find him, then skip the rest of the Blue team and rush the Hunted. Also if the Hunted dies, you get respawned and so does Blue, and in some cases this may allow the Hunted to get to a goal much faster then you, provided he's not dragged down by his teammates.
Sniper
As a Sniper, you have a great range, but lack in close quarter combat, and because of that your goal should be to stay far away from the action and wait for an opportunity to headshot the Hunted. As a sniper you can eliminate the most important players on Blue, like a Heavy or Medic.
Be sure to watch for the Soldier. He can rocket jump out of nowhere and quickly surprise you with a sequence of rockets to your face. In most cases, you can always look around to find any soldiers that will try and do this, but that can also mean letting the Hunted slip past your line of sight.
Spy
A Spy can be either you best weapon or a useless team member, depending on the skill of player. Since most of Blue is slow, it's a field day for any Spy. In most cases you can play two kind of ways. You can be an offensive Spy, and backstab anyone one that comes your way on Blue, or you can play a lookout. As a lookout, you can try to find the Hunted, and kill him without even touching the rest of his team. However if the Hunted has people around him, it may be better to just tell your team where he is, and plan a strategy to get him.
Due to the limited class selections, you have few convincing disguise options. As only the slow classes are available to disguise as (and the Medic), it may be better to just cloak and slip behind them.
Pyro
The Pyro is a fantastic addition to the team, as he can do major amounts of damage to any member on the Blue team, and perhaps even put them in a panic. As a Pyro, try to ambush the Blue team; because of how slow they are, you can easily slip by in certain areas unnoticed. The Backburner is also a great weapon to have against the Blue team, mainly because it can deal great damage to any Blue members retreating away from your fire. However, because of it's lack of the Flamethrower's compressed air blast, you won't be able to reflect Soldier Rockets or defend against ÜberCharges, either weapon can be useful depending on the player's core intentions.
Heavies, while being slow, can easily take you down if not careful. Soldiers are deadly with Crit rockets and splash damage, but this can be nullified with a well timed compression blast that can hopefully kill the clustered group of bodyguards and the hunted.
Be that as it may, as a good Pyro, you're fairly even against all of the other classes on Blue.
Theory
After reading much of this, you should have a fairly good idea of how to play Hunted, and perhaps how to play Hunted well. Overall the idea is to think at a much faster pace then normal in most cases. Aside from that, Hunted relies heavily on teamwork, so the mod works even better if you are voice chatting, as typing can really bog down your chance of surviving.
Also because Hunted is much different then any other game mode, it only works currently on CP type maps. The recommended maps are:
