The Roof Engie: A Fun and Somewhat Effective Doublecross Strategy

A strategy guide for a particular class on a particular map that is somewhat impractical but nonetheless fun when pulled off right.

Introduction

In playing TF2 for 3+ years, I've mostly been a fan of sandbox-style CTF matches, with one of my particular favorites being Doublecross for the satisfying aesthetic and mobility (very fun for a player of Scout.) I'm not sure when, but I came up with this strategy as Engineer in which you place yourself on a roof and defend your base from both directions, as well as provide a great advancing point for your team with your teleporters. Although it is vulnerable to some other classes, a decently reliable team willing to take them down leaves the nest nearly unbreakable.

Disclaimer

Frankly, this isn't a totally practical strategy for a highly serious match, you'll probably be destroyed by good coordination. This is really only effective on pub matches, and even then you'll need a bit of luck to get the whole thing set up without being run over.

Anyways, here's how to do it!

Before Setting Up

Loadout

The only requirement needed for this strategy is the Wrangler. However, the best primary to use would be the Rescue Ranger, for keeping your buildings safe and dealing with long-range opponents. The best wrench would be either the Eureka Effect for being able to quickly return to your base and get teleporters up faster, or the Jag for being able to repair quicker after an emergency.

Predisposition

A bit of practice goes a long way for this strategy, but not a whole lot is required. Usually, you'll have the rollout memorized after the 2nd or 3rd attempt.

Admittedly, you might get shut down once or twice in setup. Sometimes the entire team will rush your base and you won't be able to defend yourself. It may be discouraging. It's usually a good idea to either requeue, switch class, or just take a break at this point, because they'll know when you try to set up again.

With that out of the way, here's how to get on that darn roof.

Setup

First thing's first, place down all your buildings except for your tele exit outside of spawn as fast as possible. You can place down a tele with the Eureka Effect and quickly switch to the Jag to make tele construction much faster.


Once everything is at level 3, pick up the sentry and place it around battlements, where the line of sight is peeking out but not the sentry itself.


Wrangle it and hop up on the roof with the sentry jump. In midair, take out your PDA, select the tele exit, spin it 180 degrees, and place it on the far corner of the roof as soon as you land.


Now, go back down and grab your sentry again and bring it to the tele entrance at spawn, standing next to the dispenser to heal the sentry jumping damage as the exit finishes building. Teleport through, and place the sentry near the edge of the roof for optimal coverage.


Once you're certain the sentry is safe for 5-10 seconds, run back to spawn and grab the dispenser to place it next to the teleporter exit.


Now that you have your nest all set up, it should look something like this

Defense

This area is a bit of a tricky one to defend. Your main concerns are soldiers, demomen, snipers, and pocketed heavies. Sometimes you will have to rely on teammates that happen to take your teleporters.

VS Soldiers/Demomen

When you have either of the explosive classes bearing down on you, your best choice is to call for help and back down. Sometimes you will have to move your buildings out of harms way if you can't handle their fire. However, at a distance and especially if they're explosive jumping, the Wrangler can pick them off or scare them away.

VS Snipers

Snipers from enemy battlements aiming at your head can quickly lead to your death and your nest's destruction. Usually, however, you can scare the cowards away with some Wrangler fire. Be sure to always stay moving unpredictably, since you are in the line of sight of the most common sniping spots.

VS Pocketed Heavies

If you don't have a pocketed heavy or another class that can take on the heavy near you, kill the medic as fast as possible with the Wrangler. If they uber, however, run. Grab your buildings and bring them back to spawn and wait for them to be dealt with before setting up again.

VS Spies

Although not as much of a concern due to the one-way entrance, it's still a good idea to spycheck whoever comes through your teleporter. Often, a spy will be trapped between the dispenser and an angry texan swinging their wrench at their head.

Other Classes

Against scouts and pyros, usually their best option is to weakly attack your buildings from afar. Pick them off with the Wrangler.

Outro

Thanks for reading my first guide, hope you have fun with the strategy if you try it out. Credits to Engie Man for making the thumbnail. Have a nice day.