Metal

Metal
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Pickup Type:	Building & Ammo

For the crafting material, see Crafting.

“

Grab some steel boys, they're comin'!

Click to listen

— The Engineer

”

Metal is a resource exclusive and unique to the Engineer and is used in the construction, upgrade, or repair of buildings, and as ammunition for the Widowmaker and Short Circuit. The Engineer spawns with a full supply of 200 Metal. Metal can be acquired through various means, including picking up ammo boxes and pieces of destroyed buildings.

Sources

Ammo boxes

All ammo crates have a 10 second respawn time.

Small Ammo Pickup: 40 Metal
Medium Ammo Pickup: 100 Metal
Large Ammo Pickup: 200 Metal

Debris

Broken Dispenser parts: 10 Metal each, 5 parts per Dispenser, total of 50 Metal.
Broken Teleporter parts: 3 parts 6 Metal each, 1 part 7 Metal, per Teleporter, total of 25 Metal.
Broken Sentry Gun parts: 3 parts 16 Metal each, 1 part 17 Metal, per Sentry Gun, total of 65 Metal.
Broken Mini-Sentry Gun do not return any Metal.

Dropped items

Fallen ammo crates from an Engineer (including toolbox): Amount equal to the Engineer's Metal at the time of death up to 100 Metal, with a minimum of 5 Metal.
- The Heavy's lunchbox items provide health instead of metal.
- Fallen ammo crates from a Spy feigning death with the Dead Ringer do not provide any metal.

Other sources

Dispensers: can hold a maximum of 400 metal at once; generate Metal every 6 seconds and can dispense an equivalent amount every second (Amount dispensed is reduced by 20% when using the Eureka Effect)
- Level 1 – produces 40 Metal at once
- Level 2 – produces 50 Metal at once
- Level 3 – produces 60 Metal at once
Payload carts: produce 40 Metal at once; has an infinite supply
Resupply lockers: Refill to maximum of 200 Metal
Widowmaker: Metal gained equivalent to damage dealt (Metal gained is reduced by 20% when using the Eureka Effect)
Metal Regen upgrade: regenerates 5 * (upgrade level) Metal every 5 seconds
Max Metal Capacity upgrade: increases maximum Metal capacity by 100 * (upgrade level), Metal gained from ammo pickups and dropped weapons increases proportionally.
Refill Clips and Ammo canteen: Completely refills Metal to maximum capacity.
Halloween pumpkins and Christmas gifts refill 50% Metal capacity.

Uses

Buildings

Sentry Gun: 130 Metal to build
Combat Mini-Sentry: 100 Metal to build
Dispenser: 100 Metal to build
Teleporter: 50 Metal to build on both entrance and exit (25 Metal with the Eureka Effect)

Building maintenance

Repairs: 1 Metal for every 3 health points repaired rounded up, max of 33 per swing (100 health)
Reloading: 1 Metal for every bullet, 2 Metal for every rocket, max of 56 per swing (40 for bullets, 16 for rockets)
Upgrades: 200 Metal per level (100 on Teleporter with the Eureka Effect equipped), max of 25 per swing (50 per swing during Setup)
- The prioritisation for this is repairing, reloading, then upgrading.
  - Only two of these properties are ever done with 1 swing of the Wrench.
  - If a Sentry Gun's HP is full, but it does not have ammo, it can be upgraded to regain full ammo on the Sentry Gun, assuming that the upgrade level is close to 200.

Weapons

Widowmaker: uses 30 Metal per shot
Short Circuit: uses 5 Metal per shot, 65 Metal from alt-fire
Rescue Ranger: uses 100 Metal to haul buildings, 1 Metal for each up to 4 damage repair using the bolt.