Being aware of who’s aware of you!

When you are moving into a new area, pushing the last point on Granary for example, take in who is aware of your presence. Sometimes you can come in on the opposite side of the main team a few seconds after they push, and no one will notice you come in because they are so occupied with the push on the other side. If this happens it is going to change how you play considerably, compared to if you’re spotted right away and the opposition is prepared for your approach.

If I come in and haven’t been spotted (e.g. Soldiers are pre-occupied), that is a great time to try and jump on the Medic and force uber early/take him out. If on the other hand the enemy soldiers are aware of you, jumping straight at the Medic would be a decidedly bad idea.

That is just one highly simplified example of how being aware of who is aware of YOU, can and should influence your play. Just take a second to look around you and take in who’s spotted you and who hasn’t.

I would be genuinely interested to hear some comments back on this one. Is this something you do all the time anyway? You tried it and you do, or maybe you don’t find it opens up any opportunities you didn’t see before?

I wish a happy Christmas and New Year to all,

nub out.

Sometimes you’re useless

I see many players who have a certain restlessness, an idea or feeling they should be doing something all the time. On Granary capture point four for example, when your team is building uber getting ready to push last. It’s at these times I see scouts taking unnecessary risks like peeking round corners or checking the top entrance to last which is just a death trap. In these kind of situations peeking round corners can sometimes gain you a quick kill, but more often than not it’s a quick kill for the other team. That isn’t to say you should totally change your game and become a passive player, sometimes doing something a little risky like taking out the player who comes too close can help change the game.

As scouts we are fast, agile, cap double speed and have the ability to deal a lot of damage. This means we’re capable of seizing opportunities no other class can. An opening the opposing team leave when pushing we can take advantage of, get behind and win an entire round singlehandedly. But to take advantage of opportunities like this we have to be alive!

There is no hard fast rule for when you should or should not just sit and wait patiently, as with everything it’s ultimately situational. Nevertheless, I believe you can really improve your game if at certain times you learn to accept the fact you are useless, and focus on staying safe and alive. You can then be comfortable in the knowledge that in thirty seconds from now a beautiful opportunity will likely present itself to you and you will be alive and ready to seize it – rather than dead and looking on helplessly as your re-spawn timer counts down.

It’s something to think on at least.