The Pyro in TF2

[TraumaRN]

Originally posted by: andylawcc
to be fair, anything can turn the tide of the game

1) a last minute uber charge at the CP.
2) a sniper headshot at the medic who is about to use an uber charge for a last minute capture
3) a spy backstab at the sniper who is about to headshot the medic
4) a demo who planted stickies around the CP and patiently waited to denote them once the uber is up (that happen to me once, I was like, I am teh win 4 sure... oh wait... ME NOOB!!!!)

5) one pyro can literally push a whole team of noobs back to their spawning point to prevent them from saving the CP. (Again, happened to me once, I was just hiding in the spawn point as we lost the game. No one was out there to defend the CP)
6) scout, rush, capture.

the only ones who I take for granted are soldier and heavy; they are the "bread-and-butter" essentials... save the last minute clutch shot for the other class.

I'll tell you what I've helped win a map many a time as a heavy. Attacking or defending, but especially attacking if I can kill 3-4 people and/or sentry guns in that last minute, as long as my team pushes that will be the proverbial straw to break the camel's back. I really think good heavy weapons guys are underrated.

Pyro and HW guy are similar to me because people seem to get this idea in their head that anyone can play that class and spam flame and bullets but really a team with a good pyro and a good HW guy can truly dominate

 

[Avalon]

"Along with all of the new content, we're also going to be making some significant changes to the Pyro class for everyone, regardless of whether they have unlocked any new items."

About damn time. I consider myself a really good Pyro, but these days it just seems like all he's good for is setting a few people on fire and then dying instantly. A good pyro has no chance against a good soldier, and even good scouts and demos will give him problems.

The axtinguisher will be nasty against heavies. I can't tell you how many times I've run up to a heavy before he's spotted me and then started lighting him on fire, only for him to turn around and kill me because they nerfed the damage the pyro does at his closest range. I'd be better off lighting the heavy on fire and then start axing him.

 

[andylawcc]

Originally posted by: Avalon
About damn time. I consider myself a really good Pyro, but these days it just seems like all he's good for is setting a few people on fire and then dying instantly. A good pyro has no chance against a good soldier, and even good scouts and demos will give him problems.

i don't have a problem in dealing with Soldiers: flame them, dodge rockets, and shotgun them to death. Same deal with Scout; but just as you said, a smart one with run circles around you, so it's a bit tricky. Demos, however, seems to be immune from fire. I was literally torching them in close range for a good 3 seconds and they still won't die. For Heavy, even without any medic healing him, a head on 1-on-1 with him is a bad idea, unless I can hide and wait to burn him from behind.

 

[schneiderguy]

Originally posted by: andylawcc

i don't have a problem in dealing with Soldiers: flame them, dodge rockets, and shotgun them to death.

Unless you can sneak up behind the soldier there isnt much chance of a pyro winning vs one At long range, they both have the shotgun but the soldier has more health. Close range the soldier can kill the pyro faster than the pyro can kill it (2 rockets in about 1 second will kill a pyro compared to around 2 seconds of torching to kill a soldier). IMO the soldiers should get damaged more for shooting their rockets in close range than they do. It's pretty stupid that shooting someone right next to you with a rocket will do 100+ damage to them but only 10-20 damage to you.

 

[andylawcc]

i guess I was lucky with the soldiers then. Soldier firing rate is slow, so the noobs I have been playing against often panicked, missed, and ran out of rockets by the time I sneak up on them.
I realized how fragile the Pyro is, so most of the time I hid at corners at the end of a tunnel (think Goldrush between the first and last checkpoints). I don't Leeroy jenkins my way into battle anymore.

 

[Capitalizt]

Originally posted by: andylawcc
I realized how fragile the Pyro is, so most of the time I hid at corners at the end of a tunnel (think Goldrush between the first and last checkpoints). I don't Leeroy jenkins my way into battle anymore.

I always Leeroy Jenkins my way into battle as a pyro doing the the "Hudda Hudda Huh!" taunt as I charge. Even though I die, I think it inspires the team behind me.

 

[andylawcc]

Originally posted by: Capitalizt

Originally posted by: andylawcc
I realized how fragile the Pyro is, so most of the time I hid at corners at the end of a tunnel (think Goldrush between the first and last checkpoints). I don't Leeroy jenkins my way into battle anymore.

I always Leeroy Jenkins my way into battle as a pyro doing the the "Hudda Hudda Huh!" taunt as I charge. Even though I die, I think it inspires the team behind me.

next time wait for an uber so you can come back alive, and leeroy jenkins a second time...

 

[PepePeru]

considering how much ass i kick w/ a 'broken' pyro i cant wait for the 'fixed' version.

lmao. i've single-handedly won dustbowl w/ a pyro (- a medic) a couple times.

and the only hint i'll provide is, wait a few secs before running out.

 

[Daverino]

As a soldier, I know that if I catch on fire, and I don't see a pyro, he's right behind me. It's almost a reflex to do a 180 and fire at my feet and it kills a lot of pyros.

As a pyro, I know exactly what I would do if I were a soldier, and if I come up behind a soldier I will hit him with my axe (I am faster) and then start burning him off to his left or right. Or I will light him on fire and immediately back away and see how he reacts.

The biggest issue with the pyro is that the 'skill cap' is very low. Because of the limitations of his weapons, there's only so much 'better' you can get with him once you get good. With a soldier, scout, demo or sniper, there's always the ability to improve your aiming skill through practice. Aiming with a pyro is rudimentary and the only real 'skill' that you need is circle-strafing. Once you have that down, the only thing you can improve on is tactics. And tactics will never save you against soldiers or demos with competition level pinpoint accuracy.

 

[PhatoseAlpha]

I've heard the pyro skill cap arguement before.
And yet somehow, I have yet to see a pyro who can track even close to 100%.

 

[imported_Imp]

I don't know about a skill cap on pyro. That's like saying the demo is just knowing how to use manual-det grenades and jumping around.

The main difficulty with pyro I have is shooting things perpendicular to their direction of movement. I clearly see my flame miss when it's suppose to be critin', but there's no feedback. However, that's probably more of a lag issue. The best way to get better at pyro really is to stop going after things so viciously. I've found that flame and run really helps your kill per death ratio. The easiest pyross to kill as demo and soldier are the ones that are out of range for their flame, and still continue to run straight at you as you lay pipes in their path.

As for the axe-crit unlockable weapon: I don't know. I guess it's for getting pyros to work in teams more than individually. If you manage to set enough people on fire, chances are you'll be dead before you can draw that axe. Unless it's one on one. Otherwise, one pyro sprays, then 3 come in to hack the rest to death.

 

[Czar]

what screws the pyro the most is the crit shots from the soldier and demo

 

[PepePeru]

Originally posted by: Daverino
As a soldier, I know that if I catch on fire, and I don't see a pyro, he's right behind me. It's almost a reflex to do a 180 and fire at my feet and it kills a lot of pyros.

As a pyro, I know exactly what I would do if I were a soldier, and if I come up behind a soldier I will hit him with my axe (I am faster) and then start burning him off to his left or right. Or I will light him on fire and immediately back away and see how he reacts.

The biggest issue with the pyro is that the 'skill cap' is very low. Because of the limitations of his weapons, there's only so much 'better' you can get with him once you get good. With a soldier, scout, demo or sniper, there's always the ability to improve your aiming skill through practice. Aiming with a pyro is rudimentary and the only real 'skill' that you need is circle-strafing. Once you have that down, the only thing you can improve on is tactics. And tactics will never save you against soldiers or demos with competition level pinpoint accuracy.

it took me a few hours to get the pyro down.
i initially hated the class, now its top 3 or 4 played. i dont know ive logged 24 hours or so on pyro (off the top of my head). once i finally got that 'break through', got behind enemy lines and burned some people, is when i really started having fun playing pyro.

sure, aiming isnt really an issue w/ the FT. however, since I can aim, i usually get a few shotgun kills, either shooting those i've set on fire, or just popping around a corner and firing some shots, while waiting for teammates.

the main i've found when playing pyro is use non-standard routes and counter-intuitive routes...also, i am not discounting luck and just getting into the flow of the game.

and finally, follow other ubers into SGs or battle. you'll likely get lost in the fray and help get some NG and his buildings down, and score some points.

 

[ivan2]

Originally posted by: G Wizard
i initially hated the class, now its top 3 or 4 played. i dont know ive logged 24 hours or so on pyro (off the top of my head). once i finally got that 'break through', got behind enemy lines and burned some people, is when i really started having fun playing pyro.

and that's why i only use pyro on the second map of dustbowl... spawn kill ftw =)

 

[imported_Imp]

Originally posted by: ivan2

Originally posted by: G Wizard
i initially hated the class, now its top 3 or 4 played. i dont know ive logged 24 hours or so on pyro (off the top of my head). once i finally got that 'break through', got behind enemy lines and burned some people, is when i really started having fun playing pyro.

and that's why i only use pyro on the second map of dustbowl... spawn kill ftw =)

The second map is actually pretty 'meh' for pyro. The third map, now THAT is tailor made for pyro-rapage. I think I got over 30 kills once with the help of a medic. Blue likes to cram behind the building right outside the spawn, perfect for pyro to harass from the window. The alley is also pretty nice for hit and runs.

 

[Canai]

Originally posted by: Czar
what screws the pyro the most is the crit shots from the soldier and demo

It doesn't even have to be a crit. One rocket or nade will kill a pyro.

I, for some weird reason, get craaazy crits with the flamethrower. I usually get two or three crit sprays per 200 ammo, sometimes as many as five.

 

[JoLLyRoGer]

Just for grins I loaded up HL1 again and went back to playing Team Fortress Classic. I had forgotten just how much better the gameplay was in TFC. The snipers were way more efficient with the hold and release trigger method vs. now where everytime you take a shot the scope drops off. Hell you could take sniper shots without even using the scope in TFC. Sniper class got ruined in TF2.

Conc-grenade jumping with the scouts and NG's was another favorite move. Those needle grenades that soldiers had were great for taking down SGs

BRING BACK THE FRIGGIN GRENADES!!!

 

[40Hands]

Originally posted by: Canai

Originally posted by: Czar
what screws the pyro the most is the crit shots from the soldier and demo

It doesn't even have to be a crit. One rocket or nade will kill a pyro.

I, for some weird reason, get craaazy crits with the flamethrower. I usually get two or three crit sprays per 200 ammo, sometimes as many as five.

Nope. A pyro with full heath can take a direct hit from a rocket or nade. If you're being killed, your either getting hit by more then one person, did not having full heath or it was a crit.

Originally posted by: JoLLyRoGer
Just for grins I loaded up HL1 again and went back to playing Team Fortress Classic. I had forgotten just how much better the gameplay was in TFC. The snipers were way more efficient with the hold and release trigger method vs. now where everytime you take a shot the scope drops off. Hell you could take sniper shots without even using the scope in TFC. Sniper class got ruined in TF2.

Conc-grenade jumping with the scouts and NG's was another favorite move. Those needle grenades that soldiers had were great for taking down SGs

BRING BACK THE FRIGGIN GRENADES!!!

No way. As much as I did like the nades in the original and TFC, this game would be too unbalanced with nades in it. I really like the rock paper scissors aspect of this version quite a bit. Each class has its specific purpose and if they play right they can kick ass. I remember how in the old game people would play assault medics with conc jumping. I thought that was pretty dumb. The medic actually plays their role in TF2.

Critical hits are the one thing I really do not care for in the game. As much fun as they are when you get a string of them, they suck when someone gets a super lucky shot on you.


As for the Pyro, I really enjoy playing it and I can't wait for the new achievements/weapons. I probably already have quite a few of them if they count what I've done so far. As for strategies? Pick your battles carefully. Find choke points and use them. USE YOUR SHOTGUN! I can't stress that one enough. I probably use it as much if not more then my flame. Especially when fighting another pyro. Unless they are good, they will most likely try to rush you with fire. Just back off and a few good shotty hits will destroy them.

 

[Robert Munch]

Originally posted by: JoLLyRoGer
Just for grins I loaded up HL1 again and went back to playing Team Fortress Classic. I had forgotten just how much better the gameplay was in TFC. The snipers were way more efficient with the hold and release trigger method vs. now where everytime you take a shot the scope drops off. Hell you could take sniper shots without even using the scope in TFC. Sniper class got ruined in TF2.

Conc-grenade jumping with the scouts and NG's was another favorite move. Those needle grenades that soldiers had were great for taking down SGs

BRING BACK THE FRIGGIN GRENADES!!!

disagree about the sniper class in TF2, the class can be extremely effective and i'm glad the scope view is forced to get rid of the easy snap shot kills while unzoomed from TF1 and crappy TFC

 

[ViviTheMage]

yesssssssssssssssssssss

 

[potato28]

Originally posted by: ViviTheMage
yesssssssssssssssssssss

 

[GundamSonicZeroX]

Are these unlockable weapons going to turn the game into a time>skill deal, or these going to be jsut different weapons?

 

[Fenixgoon]

Originally posted by: GundamSonicZeroX
Are these unlockable weapons going to turn the game into a time>skill deal, or these going to be jsut different weapons?

i think valve is going for variation rather than giving people a legup on one another

 

[ivan2]

the achievements are still not there. damn the hype.

 

[BlueAcolyte]

There was an update today too...

I don't think that new weapons are really that much more powerful than the old ones. The Axtinguisher really needs a team to use it effectively, and the more powerful syringe guns are still wielded by a MEDIC.