How do I pistol?

[[ λ³ ] nob]

Hi, I am a scout main but I can't use the damn pistol. I can easily 2-shot most classes and rarely die but whatever I do, I can't use the pistol, it just seems so lame to me.

I just feel like it's inacurrate as heck outside scattergun range, and I usually hit about 2 bullets out of the full clip. I run out of ammo fast and can only use it within the same effective range as the scattergun, making it completely useless.

Is it me or the gun that's broken? Any fix?

[Conga Lyne]

It's you. Learn and practice with it. The pistol has hreat accruacy

[Divided]

The pistol is almost completely useless, especially if you got scattergun. Scattergun just does more damage, even if it takes you time to reload and get close to the target.

I suggest you to use pretty boys pocket pistol (passive hp bonus is a huge thing) or a mad milk if the other team got a lot of pyros, or if it just works better for you.

[sick duck]

you point at them and shoot. simple.

when you're scout you're likely at a long-ish distance when using pistol. This means that you can afford to relax your defenses by keeping your movement patterns simple. Simple movement makes aim a lot easier. Can probably get away with barely ever moving.

as for scattergun, a tip that can help you aim better is to twitch less and aim by moving. I've observed that a lot of the best scouts don't move the crosshairs a lot in battle, and they certainly don't jerk it around like I would out of sheer bad habit. Just don't try to blast people away until you can see your xhair on them.

[Gilbert]

Well, you need 3 basic things in order to use it well: 1: Swag, 2: A hat, 3: Don't use pistol. Seriously.

[[ λ³ ] nob]

Originally posted by wheres waldo:

you point at them and shoot. simple.

It has massive spread outside scatter range.

Originally posted by wheres waldo:

as for scattergun

I know how to scattergun, don't need help with that.

[Joshua Kurayami]

Pistol is mostly used to finish off people if they took lots of damage.. not really the best weapon for the scout since the scattergun literally does most of the work. On an engineer it feels much better, since you don't run alot and it's easier to aim with.

[bar]

Pistols are used to finish people off. You're gonna need a good accuracy to actually take down people when your scattergun clip is out in an intense battle with another scout or a combo. It is not built for far range, but can be used to dish out some damage at medium range to distract enemies.

[Counter-Life]

Must be you, the Pistol is actually awesome to finish off people.

[[ λ³ ] nob]

Originally posted by GER Counter-Life™:

Must be you, the Pistol is actually awesome to finish off people.

I don't really need finish-offs when I have 133% speed.

[Counter-Life]

Originally posted by {λ³} EU is the fourth reich:

Originally posted by GER Counter-Life™:

Must be you, the Pistol is actually awesome to finish off people.

I don't really need finish-offs when I have 133% speed.

if you can`t play with it then you should probably use mad-Milk etc.

But I can`t tell how many times I've picked Medics thanks to my Pistol, it's really great if you know how to use it.

And believe it or not, the Pistol can deal more damage in a second than the Scattergun.

[Soldier wants that scrumpy]

The pistol has horrible accuracy and low ammo, but it has its uses.

1. Spam 8 damage ticks on long distances ( your scatter does 3 so pistol is better for it )

2. Use against distant buildings ( Buildings are big so pretty much every pistol shot hits, has fast reload so it deals consistent damage, and you don't want to get caught when your scattergun's empty )

3. Use it on chaotic scout battles, where the opponent has low health but refuses to get hit. ( pistol's horrid accuracy allows you to land shots even when the enemy properly dodges. )

4. Use it on mid to long range. ( If you use your scatter on distant enemies, one problem is that your main weapon is constantly reloading, and you might lose your chance to fight back on close combat. Pistol makes sure your primary is full. )

5. Extra firepower when your scatter is empty, but you need that extra bullet.

6. Spam it on groups of enemies ( horrible accuracy doesn't matter when there are bunch of enemies clustered together. )

However, the reasons I stated above are pretty minor, and those can be covered with enough skill. I personally don't find any problems with soloing with the scatter, and utilites like mad milk, winger and pocket pistol are my choice. It's just personal preference.

[I am alive!!]

Scattergun is for the close range shots
Pistol is for when you're retreating, or if an enemy that you absolutely know has low health is running away from you
Never use it with the shortstop, because they use the same ammo pool and they have the same role (long range pick-offs)

[noname]

Frankly, I only use a pistol with the FaN in case I miss my shots or to knock someone away and finish them with like two pistol shots. With the Scatter I use Bonk or Milk; it already does good enough damage on its own.

[JarateKing (very rusty)]

2 shots is usually all you should need if you're using the pistol.

To actually aim better, try to focus on your crosshair and keep it on the center of their upper torso at all times. This is where the spread is least effected. Tracking isn't easy to get good at but it's not a problem with the weapon, with good tracking the spread will stop all your shots from hitting (unless it's very long range) but you'll still be able to hit most in a clip, beyond enough to justify using it.

[Spude]

Don´t just go M1 down with pistol, it got such a low fire-rate that tracking is very tricky with it. Rather than firing continuously fire in small burst or one shot at time when using it.
And remember it´s for finishing enemies.
One good way to practice I do sometimes is to go to trade server and practice there since the maps are usually quite open and large there is room to just run around.
You could also go to some 24/7 KotH server and practice there - maps are quite small so getting into action does not take long + KotH maps are good for Scout to begin with.