Liquid’s Sniper Guide ™ (a repost by Comanglia)

This is a copy paste of liquid's sniper guide from the BRBU forums. It's a bit dated but still relevant to a large degree. Dated too Mar 28, 2010
Sorry for using the #ss image if somebody gets pissy, just couldn't think of anything else for this.

Introduction

Sniper. My favorite class in TF2. With his potential to be very powerful at any range gives him an advantage over all classes in many situations. Each person’s play styles and opinions are different, but this guide caters towards my own style. But, if you and me are similar, than I’m sure this guide will give some helpful tips.

Hardware
Before I get into strategies and opinions, I have to state something first. When I hear people QQ about other snipers, they tend to say, “Oh, I just have a bad mouse/computer/internet/lag/etc.” For the longest time, I just sniped with a dell mouse, and I think most people know that I have both a bad computer and internet. You can really snipe just fine if you are smart about it. But that’s not to say that having some good hardware will not improve your game. As soon as I got my razer mouse, my aim has gotten considerably better. But you can still snipe just fine with a suck mouse.

Offensive sniper
In my opinion, they are two very big different types of sniping styles, the offensive and defensive sniper. I personally play an offensive sniper. The purpose with an offensive sniper is to turn the sniper from a normal support class to a battle class, classes that are used to turn the tides of battle. To do this, you need to learn how to quick scope, which we will cover later, dodging and observational skills, and to know the limits of a sniper. To play as a battle class with so little health compared to the other battle class can be challenging but with practice, even the most nub sniper can one day be a “level 4 sentry gun aim bots arms” sniper.

Defensive sniper
I don’t really play as a defensive sniper, so I can’t really comment on their play styles, but their main purpose is, like a sentry gun, area denial and crowd control. Defensive snipers like to stay in one solitary spot and take out the big health enemies quickly with fully charged headshots. This differs from an offensive sniper whose goal is to push ahead and take out key targets, like engies behind their guns or, more importantly, medics. This guide is understandably more sided to an offensive sniper style of gameplay.

General Info

Flat land
Snipers love flat land. Flat land makes the enemies movement patterns extremely predictable and easy to follow and the closer the ground is to a completely flat surface, the better. For example, when deciding whether to snipe on hill or the tunnel on defense in the first point in badwater, I would normally recommend if both are being pushed, the tunnel, because mostly the cart, but also it is quite a bit flatter than the hill above you making headshots much easier.

Corners
Corners can be very good, or very bad. The first look around is the hardest but if there’s just one guy to far away to hit you than it can be very easy picking on your part. Corners also offer good cover, which is very important when facing a large amount of enemies that, if all focused on you, could kill you very quickly. This goes for all cover as well. If you want to do some defensive sniping, the more cover you have the better it is for your safety.

Capture points and Carts
Oh sniping players that stand still. How fun. Heavies love to sit on top of that cart, scouts love to crouch on that capture point making extremely easy for a sniper to kill them as well as being a credit to team. However, don’t expose yourself for too long, or you could put yourself in a lot of danger.

DTF and CTF
You are the most important player in Deliver the Flag (IE Haarp, Snowdrift) in TF2. You can cover or kill intel carries extremely efficiently. Snipers are extremely versatile in these game modes. You just have to position yourself in the right area to be effective at defending your base, but able to push when the time is needed.

Quick scoping and no scoping
Quick scoping is when you headshot someone who is very close to you without taking the time to aim. I can’t really give you any other tips than to look what direction the person is moving and flick the mouse in the direction you think they would be if you would be if you zoomed. Quick scoping is what separates the good snipers from the pro snipers. No scoping on the other hand is just shooting without zooming first. It’s the easiest way to hit someone with the sniper rifle unfortunately with little damage.

Unlocks

Huntsman (demospam x direct hit = huntsman)
I normally just use the huntsman for fun but for srs play, the skill ceiling is very low as compared to the normal sniper rifle. I just use it when I want to warm up my regular sniping if I haven’t played for a while. What I recommended to my brother, Trick, when he wanted to become better at sniping was to use the huntsman to become familiar with aiming for the head hitbox. If you never play sniper, thinking about heads is very unnatural and does take some getting used to. I have heard people say that if you are going to use the huntsman you should just use the direct hit, but comparing the direct hit to huntsman, even though they are somewhat similar, is just not the same, so I would still just recommend the huntsman for practicing.

Smg
Although not an unlock, I thought I would just give my opinion. It’s one of the two good weapons for offensive snipers. Never pull out the smg if you don’t know for sure the enemy is wounded. If you do you are just nub and you will never become better at quick scoping. Whats normally a good strategy is to pull off a quick headshot (or charged bawdy shot if they come around the corner or something) and pull out the smg and finish them off.

Jarate
Jarate is the other good offensive sniper weapon. Jarate is just a fun weapon to use, however it does require quite a bit more skill than the smg for dealing with up close enemies. A good strategy is to throw it at that annoying scout and no scope him with just two nicely placed shots. Also you can be a team player and throw it into a large mass of enemies to earn yourself some nice assists points.

Razorback
The nub says, “OMG RAZORZ BACKZ ARE IS A WORTHLEZZ HURR DURR.” The important thing to remember is that he is a nub and doesn’t know what he is talking about. The Razorback is the ideal unlock for the defensive sniper and sure helps a lot when the nubz go spy so they can get a revenge on you only to be exploded by the sentry guns. But the nub comes again and say, “But liquid, you use the razorback and you are not a defensive sniper you hypocrite nub.” Then I say “silence nub” and tell him the most important reason why I use the razorback. It do not use it for what it gives, I use it for what it takes away, a weapon to deal with up close enemies. If all you have is your sniper rifle and your Kukuri, how can you deal against someone to close to aim and headshot but too far away to melee? Omg, quick scope. Having the razor back equipped forces you to become better at quick scoping and that is why I use it.

Kukri
Not an unlock but I wasn’t quite sure where else to put it. Its ok. Use it till you become a good enough sniper to attempt to quick scope. But besides that, I rarely ever use it.

Class strategies

This is the Tf2 wiki matchup. http://tf2wiki.net/wiki/Sniper_match-ups

It is decently helpful, but there are just some minor details that I don’t quite agree with. My strategies for each class follow:

Scout
The guy with the tinez head. Unpredictable scoots are one of the hardest classes to headshot. Their elastic scoot legs can move so fast. How I used to try to shoot them is by placing the cross hair a distance before their head, and when they run over it killing them. But as soon as you become skilled enough you can place the cross hair in front and quickly move the mouse towards them and then kill them. If the scoot is coming after you, they be very difficult to kill them. Really the most reliable strategy is to quick scope or no scope them to death.

Soldier
I don’t know why, but if the soldier isn’t in the air or standing still, I have so much trouble headshotting them. Their head hit box while they’re moving seems to be in the same place as if they were standing still so aim at about the neck level for them. Also their arms and big and soldier like so when shooting them from their sides, wait for the right moment to shoot as not to shoot their arms. If they are coming after you attempt a quick scope then smg or no scope them to death. Knifing them is usually doesn’t work unless you get a crit and if you cant quick scope then just no scope them and hope they have little health.

Pyro
The pyros is the hardest class to headshot. They can air blast your bullets and kill you instantly. Wat, never mind. The pyro is actually in my opinion easiest class to shoot, easier than the heavy. TF2 wiki states that they have weirdly shaped heads which they do but pyros love to run in straight lines all the time or look straight at you from across the map, for some reason, exposing the full front of their face making them so easy to head shot. A tip to pyros, if a sniper is looking at you and you want to retreat, look like a fool and jump away while rotating yourself 180 or even 360 degrees in the air. This way you can use your oddly shaped heads to an advantage and throw off the sniper’s aim. Best way to kill a pyro is to headshot once, then no scope.

Engie
Engies are the cute little dudes with their nice brightly colored hats. By far the easiest class to quick scope. You are also very helpful in taking out sentry guns. Remember, there is almost always a way to kill an engie behind his gun. Every time he whacks his junk durp he exposes a little part of his head over the top his gun. If that doesn’t work look at those feet and CSS-AWP style it and kill him by shooting him once in the foot. Also always look for those level ones, charge your shot and blast it. In my experience I’ve found this better than just no scoping it multiple times.

Heavy
Since heavies are sooooo fat, they produce their own gravitational orbit thus curving your bullets around their big heads. Wat. Heavies are just fun to headshot. So slow so easy. It can be somewhat harder to hit a heavy when he is moving so if you know he will, just wait till he revs up then it can be easy picking. When a smart heavy comes close, he will normally go for the sniper first if they aren’t too many other threats around. If they do hide till you have a fully charged shot, scoot around the corner and kill. I’ve found it better to charge your shot than shot multiple times due to the smart heavy retreating when he has low health. The heavy is really the only class you shouldn’t try to quick scope.

Demo
Demos can be somewhat hard to headshot due to their heads being somewhat recessed into their bawdy. But besides that, just use really the same tactics for demos as pyros. Headshot once, no scope second. Also be aware if they are a sticky only nub demo. If you know that there is a sticky behind/to the side/front of you don’t move in that direction when directly facing the demo. Make somewhat of a visual map in your head of your surroundings

Medic
One of the main duties as sniper is to kill the medic. Medics can be just as annoying as good scouts in their movement patterns. When you see a medic and you don’t feel that you can headshot him just charge that gun and proudly bawdy shot him. He might call you a nub but your team will call you the nub if you let him pop that kritz. Quick scoping medics is surprisingly easier than you would guess due to their heads not bobbing around too much when they move.

Sniper
Apparently he’s slept in the corpses of water buffalo tougher than you. But even though he might have strange fetishes, do not underestimate any sniper ever. Play against him as if he was the cheats. Even though I hate to say this, be a nub when facing another sniper better than you. Have a fellow player go around the corner to be headshot, then walk around with a fully charged bawdy shot and kill him. You might say, why liquid! That’s so not noble, but hey if you want to run out Rambo style and die and then have the five other people behind you after that die as well, while you wait to respawn and try unsuccessfully again that’s your choice. In this circumstance, the ends do justify the means. Also to add, bawdy shots are not always nub. If you get killed by a bawdy shot don’t rage, just readjust your strategy and try again for a new angle. Although, somewhat rare, having a sniper in close proximity can result in an interesting duel. You can try to quick scope, which can be risky if you miss, you could try to pull out your secondary and run away and risk being a nub, or you can switch to your kukri and go straight for the kill. What I normally do is try one quick quick scope and if that misses, I switch to my kukri, but really you just need to build a strategy on your own for this one.

Spy
The tf2 wiki explains how to deal with spy pretty well but I have to emphasize one of the most important strategies to do when play sniper. Always listen for footsteps. Always. I can not count the number of times I’ve been off on the sides of battle to hear some random footsteps coming up from behind me and it turning out to be a spy. Practice makes perfect here. Other things to listen for are of course decloaking, but that can be applied to all classes and, somewhat a strange one, the sound of voice commands done by the opposing team. I can remember hearing a few times, hearing a spy say, “Come on, who stopped pushing the cart!?” and then me searching them out and killing them. Another tip is to be aware of what classes you have on your team. If you see a pyro walking around with no pyros on your team, it has to be a spy.

General tips and tricks + Ending

A-D
The nub does not move when he snipes. The good sniper does. Never ever stop moving under any circumstances. A and D are two very important keys when sniping. They both make it harder for enemies to hit you as well it can be a very useful way to snipe. For example, there’s this dude that you just can’t hit, instead of moving your mouse in crazy directions, just set it level with his head and slide left or right with the A and D keys.

Headshottings peepz in the air
Headshottings peepz in the air is very easy and incredibly satisfying. Most people don’t know how to air strafe so they tend to follow a very predictable path in the air. Just follow the rocket jumping soldier in the air with your cross hair, and when he gets to the crest of his arc, he is practically standing still. Easy points ftw.

Medic or person they are healing
A big question I hear a lot is, “should I headshot the medic or the person that they are healing?” I’d say it depends on the class they are healing and if they have a charge ready. If they are healing any class besides a Heavy, go for the medic. But if they have a charge, you need to go for the medic right away, even if your very life is in danger irl.

In air sniping
You can’t get a headshot after you jump. Fact. You can’t get a headshot when you are in the air. False. The very hardest shots to pull off in tf2 are surprisingly not quick scopes, but headshots pulled off while you’re in the air. You can zoom at anytime when you are in the air, as long as you haven’t jumped. So that means if you are facing a pro sniper, you can slide, not jump, off an edge of an object and it will give you that few extra split seconds to get a headshot before you hit the ground. Also, surprise attack by a soldier. You have been juggled, what do you do!? You can turn around and headshot him while you are in the air. Wat. I’ve only done it once in my life, but it felt like I just beat tf2.

Orange Sniping – 2fort Sniping
The very best way to get better at sniping is hands down on orange. I really have no other comments to add. And omg never ever try sniping on 2fort. It is the most worthless sniping map ever in existence. No strategy, just how fast you can pull the trigger. It almost reminds me of a western shootout, completely pointless.

Be Polite. Be efficient. But most importantly, have a plan to kill everyone you meet.

[Kiowa]

this.....what....eehhhhhh.....

[Seaborgium]

im 11 and wat is this

[xb]

liquid goin big, rip best sniper to touch the game

[Fox! ϡpeace]

hw do i aim head pls help

[heiny :3]

Liquid is still a great sniper even if he has retired from comp play (for now)

[£1qµ1Ð]

shout out to cody

[£1qµ1Ð]

AH SUPER DOPE CHILL. SO HELPFUL. im sooo good now weeeee [27.media.tumblr.com]