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[enzo_gt]

What do you think the Team Fortress 2 beta is for?

So why aren't these items in the beta first? Did we really need another sword that's just a variation of the Demo melee weapon? At that, did the Demo *REALLY* need another melee weapon?

I'm all for new shit, and I started playing TF2 when the Heavy update hit, so I'm not complaining, but this last update has weapons that feel a bit more of +1 this trait, -1 this trait, call it a new weapon and give it a different model. The Medic weapons only stick out to me as some properly though out ones.

 

[Forkball]

i don't think an item being thematically consistent as well as being quirky and fun is impossible. other unlocks like the equalizer, bonk, jarate do it well without resorting to abandoning the original theme. i realise valve is already passed the point of no return (probably with the eyelander) and im sorry about ranting so much, its just disappointing as a player to see a game's art style, one of the reasons i love tf2, just fall by the wayside

I think pretty much every weapon and hat fits in thematically with the aesthetic style and character personalities. Demo carrying a sword may sound weird, but he is from Scotland which is famous for massive swords, and his backstory hints that he may be royalty (the new map is named after his family). As for the Medic's new medieval stuff, medieval doctors are famous for their brutal "cures" and medical procedures, so it fits the Medic's personality. The only hat that I really find bizarre and inappropriate for the character is the Dr. Seuss hat for the Soldier, but originally it was going to look like an Uncle Sam hat. Also why does the Demoman have so many "American" style hats?

 

[n0b]

i don't think an item being thematically consistent as well as being quirky and fun is impossible. other unlocks like the equalizer, bonk, jarate do it well without resorting to abandoning the original theme. i realise valve is already passed the point of no return (probably with the eyelander) and im sorry about ranting so much, its just disappointing as a player to see a game's art style, one of the reasons i love tf2, just fall by the wayside

I dunno maybe its just because I used to play so much heavy, but I think everything was fucked as far back as the heavy update. The boxing gloves are so dumb and ugly and its a pain to see them on screen, and natascha/sandvich for the most part made heavies even worse at the game than they already were.

The kritzkrieg is the only new item that I have ever liked as an addition to the old game I loved. After that the game was different to the point that I didn't care what they did anymore.

 

[Liu Kang Baking A Pie]

You guys are taking this cart pushing game too seriously.

 

[Oreoleo]

I think pretty much every weapon and hat fits in thematically with the aesthetic style and character personalities. Demo carrying a sword may sound weird, but he is from Scotland which is famous for massive swords, and his backstory hints that he may be royalty (the new map is named after his family).

Fair enough, but justify the FRYING PAN with that same logic. The aesthetic consistency of the game has gone out the fucking window since 2007.

 

[Blizzard]

Really, aesthetics have been totally shot ever since they let vulgar Scottish demomen and hick American cowboy engineers into the game, along with obnoxious scouts, crazy New Zealand/Australian snipers, weird muffled crazed people with flamethrowers, killing-obsessed soldiers with rocket launchers.

Big, hulking Russian strongmen, German-accented evil doctors, and suave spies in suits fit the spytech decor of the game and can stay, however. Everything else must go, especially the dirt-style maps such as gold rush and dustbowl. Spytech fortresses aren't build with wood, don't you know.

 

[Yasae]

Really, aesthetics have been totally shot ever since they let vulgar Scottish demomen and hick American cowboy engineers into the game, along with obnoxious scouts, crazy New Zealand/Australian snipers, weird muffled crazed people with flamethrowers, killing-obsessed soldiers with rocket launchers.

Big, hulking Russian strongmen, German-accented evil doctors, and suave spies in suits fit the spytech decor of the game and can stay, however. Everything else must go, especially the dirt-style maps such as gold rush and dustbowl. Spytech fortresses aren't build with wood, don't you know.

HEY! Who you callin' a hick!!!

Oh, right. Carry on then...

 

[Forkball]

To be fair, I don't think so many hicks have PhDs.

 

[Blizzard]

To be fair, I don't think so many hicks have PhDs.

Valve may have lied about that. They claimed he invented the guns, and then later the TRUE TF2 history revealed that his ancestor actually invented them! Or maybe the ancestor invented the blueprints and he later just improved on them.

At any rate, I like the engineer and I'm an engineer myself, I was just saying that it doesn't quite fit the super 50s spytech theme (especially with the guitar and beer bottles in that picture) in my opinion, if that's what's bothering people, but what do I know.

 

[rar]

I think pretty much every weapon and hat fits in thematically with the aesthetic style and character personalities. Demo carrying a sword may sound weird, but he is from Scotland which is famous for massive swords, and his backstory hints that he may be royalty (the new map is named after his family). As for the Medic's new medieval stuff, medieval doctors are famous for their brutal "cures" and medical procedures, so it fits the Medic's personality. The only hat that I really find bizarre and inappropriate for the character is the Dr. Seuss hat for the Soldier, but originally it was going to look like an Uncle Sam hat. Also why does the Demoman have so many "American" style hats?

the theme i was talking about is the sort of 1950s advertising norman rockwell-inspired vibe. the medic weapons don't fit the period in which tf2 is set

i don't really like the idea of basing a class's weapons based more on their character backstory than what the class actually is. in some cases it's ok, because a class like a sniper wouldn't necessarily use anything other than a sniper rifle. but a demolitions man with a sword just seems to distort the whole idea of a classes in team fortress, and it seems like a slippery slope

 

[Liu Kang Baking A Pie]

but a demolitions man with a sword just seems to distort the whole idea of a classes in team fortress, and it seems like a slippery slope

To what, every class having a melee weapon?

 

[Twig]

I would prefer stock TF2 with nothing else added.

I wouldn't even WANT to play TF2 anymore if it was still the same as it was in the beginning (ignoring balance patches, 'cause those would've happened regardless).

 

[Hylian7]

I have a Supply Crate from Series #4. Does anyone have a Crusader's Crossbow they want to trade for it?

 

[Stallion Free]

I have a Supply Crate from Series #4. Does anyone have a Crusader's Crossbow they want to trade for it?

:lol

 

[Hylian7]

:lol

Obviously I'm asking for too much then, I don't trade very often, I just can't be bothered to buy the key and I want to trade it for preferably a weapon I don't have.

 

[Drkirby]

Crates are not worth much at all, since no one really wants to buy keys. Just try scrap metal for the weapon, though the thing is new so it likely has a decent price on it.

 

[Jangaroo]

I've seen people asking for a refined for one of the new weapons. Do not give in to those kind of demands.

 

[enzo_gt]

Crates other than festives and say Crate #9 are only worth about a scrap. Sometimes less, though really try to make the most of what you have. Anyways, I might as well put it out there that I'm looking to trade my Brigade Helm and V. Blutsauger to whatever offers. And, I'll trade a Festive Crate for one of the new weapons. Already traded 3 festives for the new pryo, heavy and demo melee weapons.

I've seen people asking for a refined for one of the new weapons. Do not give in to those kind of demands.

A refined? Damn that's pretty cheap, most people are asking 2+ refined. Which is even more B.S.

EDIT: nevermind I get refined and reclaimed mixed up. A refined is ridiculous, and the current price I see is about 2 reclaimed.

 

[Hylian7]

Would I be better off asking for something I crafted away during the Engineer update attempting for the Golden Wrench and never got back?

If so, how about a Kritzkrieg (I don't care if Vintage or not) for the Crate in Series #4?

 

[Drkirby]

You really don't play much...

Yes, you should be fine. Heck, you could likely find someone who will just give you a Kritzkrieg, they aren't particularly rare or sought after.

It is going to take a while for me to get the new weapons, I still need an item from the Polycount set, the Mad Milk.

Edit: Bad news every one, Steel is broken. The game has to many models for it it be able to load

 

[Forkball]

I beat my record for most backstabs, but I think the game crashed a few minutes later and for some reason it didn't save it. TF2 crashed twice for me tonight and there's noticeable lag in a lot of servers. Gotta love big updates.

 

[snack]

I finally got my hands on the "Festive Tree" hat. Are these only available in the festive crates or can you get them through random drops too? I traded for mine, and I payed a pretty steep price.

 

[dragonlife]

Man, I suck at this game. How the hell do Spies work? I go invisible and walk behind enemies but I can't stab them for some reason. Is there a delay between uncloaking and being able to attack? I guess it takes skill :lol

And when should I decide to mimic a player? What's the point of mimicking teammates? This is all incredibly overwhelming. I guess I should read some guides.

One of my favorite things to do is going invisible and bumping into everyone -_- Surprise! Ugh :lol And I suck at changing weapons quickly

Still, lacking skill aside, this game is incredibly fun.

 

[Wolf Akela]

Man, I suck at this game. How the hell do Spies work? I go invisible and walk behind enemies but I can't stab them for some reason. Is there a delay between uncloaking and being able to attack? I guess it takes skill

You can't attack while cloaked.
It takes one second to cloak and decloak.

Disguises will at best just give you 1-2 seconds of cover time. People are already well-trained to check every teammate for spies, so you should rely on cloaks (or Dead Ringer) to actually hide from enemies.

Also, if you bump into someone while invisible, your silhouette will be momentarily visible. Enemies can't go through you. If you took a dive into a water then go back up the land, you'll be slightly visible even when you're cloaked.

 

[Lumine]

You can't stab people when you're invisible. That's what the disguise is for. Use the cloak to get behind enemy lines. Then uncloak somewhere hidden and disguise as one of their team (you can do this before uncloaking as well) and run with the enemy team looking like you're one of them. Walk up to someone's back and stab them. You'll see your dagger switch animation to let you know you can do a backstab. Stab more if enemy teammates don't react otherwise cloak and hide again quickly. Repeat all steps. Watch out for spy checkers. Honestly playing Spy can be hard, but mostly because it takes a lot of patience. So it might not be one of the first classes you want to learn.

 

[balladofwindfishes]

Okay, so I wake up this morning, and my brother is playing TF2. He's got this grin on his face a mile wide

So, something is up

The kid spent the morning trading... oh boy...

He started the morning with an extra Glengarry Bonnet, a Steak and a Christmas crate. By the time I woke up he had

-Traded our Steak for the Stock Broker's tie (!!!!)
-Traded our Glengarry bonnet for a rake, another candy cane and a claymore
-Traded a christmas crate for a Jag and a candy cane
-Found a drill seargent's hat in a random drop (2 hats in 2 days, wow)

So I lost the steak and the bonnet but gained half of the update weapons (plus 2 candy canes), a stock broker's tie, and a drill hat. He is now trying to offload the Candy Cane for the caber and the brass beast (2 for 1 lol)

I don't have any idea how he did this. He couldn't have been playing more than an hour

He is 11

...


In other news, here's what I was talking about with the Candy Cane and poor textures

Something isn't right there

 

[Yeef]

Man, I suck at this game. How the hell do Spies work? I go invisible and walk behind enemies but I can't stab them for some reason. Is there a delay between uncloaking and being able to attack? I guess it takes skill :lol

And when should I decide to mimic a player? What's the point of mimicking teammates? This is all incredibly overwhelming. I guess I should read some guides.

One of my favorite things to do is going invisible and bumping into everyone -_- Surprise! Ugh :lol And I suck at changing weapons quickly

Still, lacking skill aside, this game is incredibly fun.

Never decloak with enemies around if you can avoid it. The decloaking sound is pretty unique and f someone hears it they'll be on the look out for spies. A bad habit new spies fall into is reusing the same disguise over and over again. Always make sure to switch up your disguise when possible.

Disguising as teammates is great for scaring opponents (i.e. if you cloak as a sniper and stand in a sniping nest opponents are going to avoid going in your line of sight, if you're disguised as a pyro they're going to avoid getting close to you, etc.). It's also a good idea to disguise as a friendly during setup time so that the other team doesn't even realize your team has a spy. Works especially well with the dead ringer.

Changing weapons shouldn't give you any difficulty. Make sure you have quick switch on. Other than that, Q toggles between your current weapon and your last weapon. B (default) will redisguise you as your last disguise (or change your disguise weapon if you're already disguised).

 

[Wolf Akela]

I don't have any idea how he did this. He couldn't have been playing more than an hour

He is 11

Your brother is a marketing prodigy. You should get him into the stock market ASAP.

 

[Yasae]

To be fair, I don't think so many hicks have PhDs.

Well you're not going to get a PhD until you (re)write up that 49 page recommendation for TF2. No BSing it, mister.

-Thanks,

Gabe Newell
Valve Overlord
PO BOX 1688
Bellevue, WA 98009

Never decloak with enemies around if you can avoid it. The decloaking sound is pretty unique and f someone hears it they'll be on the look out for spies. A bad habit new spies fall into is reusing the same disguise over and over again. Always make sure to switch up your disguise when possible.

Disguising as teammates is great for scaring opponents (i.e. if you cloak as a sniper and stand in a sniping nest opponents are going to avoid going in your line of sight, if you're disguised as a pyro they're going to avoid getting close to you, etc.). It's also a good idea to disguise as a friendly during setup time so that the other team doesn't even realize your team has a spy. Works especially well with the dead ringer.

Changing weapons shouldn't give you any difficulty. Make sure you have quick switch on. Other than that, Q toggles between your current weapon and your last weapon. B (default) will redisguise you as your last disguise (or change your disguise weapon if you're already disguised).

Unless you use the Eternal Reward. Then you can decloak right on top of somebody and they'll never hear you.

 

[Drkirby]

I finally got my hands on the "Festive Tree" hat. Are these only available in the festive crates or can you get them through random drops too? I traded for mine, and I payed a pretty steep price.

I think they can only be had in festive crates, but I am hoping their value drops in a week or so. I am going to be waiting till the last day to buy any festive keys in case Valve pulls a fast one and gives some away free on Christmas.

Disguising as teammates is great for scaring opponents (i.e. if you cloak as a sniper and stand in a sniping nest opponents are going to avoid going in your line of sight, if you're disguised as a pyro they're going to avoid getting close to you, etc.). It's also a good idea to disguise as a friendly during setup time so that the other team doesn't even realize your team has a spy. Works especially well with the dead ringer.

I think the Scout is the best class to try and disguise as during start up, try to get hit by a rocket so it looks more real.

 

[Forkball]

Man, I suck at this game. How the hell do Spies work? I go invisible and walk behind enemies but I can't stab them for some reason. Is there a delay between uncloaking and being able to attack? I guess it takes skill :lol

And when should I decide to mimic a player? What's the point of mimicking teammates? This is all incredibly overwhelming. I guess I should read some guides.

One of my favorite things to do is going invisible and bumping into everyone -_- Surprise! Ugh :lol And I suck at changing weapons quickly

Still, lacking skill aside, this game is incredibly fun.

Spies are a ton of fun, but it takes some time to use them effectively. Basically, your role as a spy is to sabotage enemy buildings, recon behind enemy lines, and kill enemies without being noticed. Here are a few basic tips:

- Rely on your cloak more than your disguise. You may think that when you're disguised as an enemy, they won't bother you at all. Wrong. People spycheck constantly, especially Pyros who run down their own teammates to make sure they aren't spies. One early mistake a lot of spies make is disguising, then running against the enemy team. That immediately attracts attention, especially at full health. If you want to get behind them, use your cloak to sneak past them. They won't be able to see you at all unless you run out or bump into them.

- Know the map. The great things about maps is that they have many different paths. Try to find a path no one is taking, or one that can get you behind enemy lines without being noticed. Know the nooks and crannies where you can hide. You may be thinking, "but wouldn't everyone know all the favorite spy hangouts?" To be honest, spychecking is not really a priority for most players unless the spy is becoming a hassle, and maps get hectic so people don't have time to think about checking every little area for spies. There are so many places on many maps where I've hid and never ever been randomly spychecked.

- Sap buildings. Yes, backstabbing people is fun, but sapping buildings with your electrosapper is extremely important. This can turn the tide of battle, as you could eliminate that pesky sentry, or cut off their route by destroying the teleporters. In fact, destroying teles is extremely important. Teles take a while to set up for Engineers, and without them, people waste time traversing the map. Making the other team waste time is one of the best things you can do in Team Fortress.


If you don't know about the TF2 Wiki, go there. It gives you useful info on strategies and items.

 

[cooljeanius]

The only hat that I really find bizarre and inappropriate for the character is the Dr. Seuss hat for the Soldier, but originally it was going to look like an Uncle Sam hat.

Dr. Seuss drew propaganda for World War II, so maybe that's where the makers of the hat were coming from?

 

[The Technomancer]

Dr. Seuss drew propaganda for World War II, so maybe that's where the makers of the hat were coming from?

Yeah but it still looks...garish and out of tone.

 

[balladofwindfishes]

Dr. Seuss drew propaganda for World War II, so maybe that's where the makers of the hat were coming from?

the hat was actually an uncle sam hat. That's what the creator submitted.

Valve thought that having both red and blue on the same hat was confusing, so they changed it to the Doctor Seuss hat

 

[rar]

To what, every class having a melee weapon?

to classes having weapons that don't fit the idea of their class. the sniper is australian, let's give him a boomerang and a pet kangaroo, that sort of stuff. the class system is pretty simple and is the core of what team fortress is. if valve wants to add a charging swordsman to the game i would just make a 'knight' class instead of stretching the demo into it

 

[Hylian7]

You really don't play much...

Yes, you should be fine. Heck, you could likely find someone who will just give you a Kritzkrieg, they aren't particularly rare or sought after.

It is going to take a while for me to get the new weapons, I still need an item from the Polycount set, the Mad Milk.

Edit: Bad news every one, Steel is broken. The game has to many models for it it be able to load

I actually do play a lot, I just don't spend the whole time trading. In fact, trading is something I very rarely do, so I'm not up to date on different items' street values.

 

[cooljeanius]

Yeah but it still looks...garish and out of tone.

I wasn't really making any comment about the aesthetics of it, I was just positing a possible reason for its existence (which apparently was wrong, according to balladofwindfishes).

 

[Liu Kang Baking A Pie]

to classes having weapons that don't fit the idea of their class. the sniper is australian, let's give him a boomerang and a pet kangaroo, that sort of stuff. the class system is pretty simple and is the core of what team fortress is. if valve wants to add a charging swordsman to the game i would just make a 'knight' class instead of stretching the demo into it

He's Scottish.

 

[The Technomancer]

He's Scottish.

No, what he's saying is that the Eyelander/Targe effectivly almost makes the Demoman into two separate classes. I kind of agree, all of the other weapons preserve the class roles, they just provide alternative options.

 

[enzo_gt]

No, what he's saying is that the Eyelander/Targe effectivly almost makes the Demoman into two separate classes. I kind of agree, all of the other weapons preserve the class roles, they just provide alternative options.

Yeah, DemoKnight is pretty annoying. And the Chargin Targe is one of my least favourite additions to the game.

Alternative options is one thing, but the inexplicable "doesn't feel right" feeling is one that I have when I see people use the Chargin Targe. The charge just looks so odd in game as well. This is looking at it from a gameplay perspective, I care less about aesthetics and keeping consistent themes (A RAKE FOR THE PYRO? SAY WHAT?).

 

[Yasae]

Spychecking is not a problem unless you're up against several players at once. Then they always have the advantage, so even mediocre spies can grab many kills. I purposely retrace steps, swing around for no reason at all, and flow against team movement to prevent this as much as possible, to stagger respawns as much as possible. Having them follow you (and knowing they're following you) is as much a trap.

Frankly the effort to spycheck isn't worth it unless you know there's a spy around in the first place. They're just going to camp or sideswipe you (i.e. not a backstab but somehow a backstab) via disguise then get two, sometimes three lives with a dead ringer. It's not hard to cheese your way through enemy lines.

 

[The Technomancer]

Spychecking is not a problem unless you're up against several players at once. Then they always have the advantage, so even mediocre spies can grab many kills. I purposely retrace steps, swing around for no reason at all, and flow against team movement to prevent this as much as possible, to stagger respawns as much as possible. Having them follow you (and knowing they're following you) is as much a trap.

Frankly the effort to spycheck isn't worth it unless you know there's a spy around in the first place. They're just going to camp or sideswipe you (i.e. not a backstab but somehow a backstab) via disguise then get two, sometimes three lives with a dead ringer. It's not hard to cheese your way through enemy lines.

Also if I can't sneak behind enemy lines then the next best thing is to disguise and then run backwards like you're retreating from the battlefront. For some reason they're suspicious if you're running forward into the team, but some part of the mind doesn't notice you as odd if you're running backwards. At least in my experience.

 

[balladofwindfishes]

Just use the DR and brute force your way to behind the enemy lines.

Most people ignore a casual bump into them, since TF2 lags sometimes and produces a similar effect when it does so. So as long as you don't block a person for more than maybe half a second, they generally won't notice.

 

[Twig]

Sword 'n' Board is the best thing to happen to the game and more weapons should be like it instead of shitty stat modifiers, and anyone who disagrees is objectively WRONG.

 

[enzo_gt]

Sword 'n' Board is the best thing to happen to the game and more weapons should be like it instead of shitty stat modifiers, and anyone who disagrees is objectively WRONG.

you must be that asshole that runs around with the eyelander and chargin targe.

GET OUT OF MY SERVERS.

 

[Blizzard]

Sword 'n' Board is the best thing to happen to the game and more weapons should be like it instead of shitty stat modifiers, and anyone who disagrees is objectively WRONG.

I agree, playing ubercharged, charge and target, frying-pan-wielding demoman is fun, especially if you dominate people and occasionally kill sentries with your pipe bombs as well.

 

[Twig]

you must be that asshole that runs around with the eyelander and chargin targe.

GET OUT OF MY SERVERS.

 

[balladofwindfishes]

We need more weapons like the Eyelander, Shortstop, Hunstman and Flaregun and less weapons like the Direct Hit, Scot Res and Natasha.

Totally different animations, and a totally different way of playing the class.

 

[Blizzard]

We need more weapons like the Eyelander, Shortstop, Hunstman and Flaregun and less weapons like the Direct Hit, Scot Res and Natasha.

Totally different animations, and a totally different way of playing the class.

The shortstop has a slowing effect though. If you're going to get rid of natascha at least convince boonoo to ban shortstops as well.

 

[balladofwindfishes]

The shortstop has a slowing effect though. If you're going to get rid of natascha at least convince boonoo to ban shortstops as well.

Shortstop's slowdown was buggy and didn't work

As of the Christmas update, the Shortstop no longer even attempts to slow down. It's not in the weapon's attributes anymore.