Sniping 101: A Giude to Head Clicking

I hear you thinking, 'A guide to sniping? There are, like, six million of those things out there already.' And although that may may be true, this guide is different. Why? I wrote it. This guide will give general tips as well as a more in-depth look at some of the ways to send a bullet speeding through someone's cranium.

The Basics

Before I dive in too deep, I think it is important that I establish the ground rules for sniping. A lot of this guide wont help you if your only sniping talent is to put a lot of bullet holes in the ground next to player's feet.

Let's start with heads. You all probably know that sniper rifles crit on headshot. If you don't, I advise downloading the game before reading this guide, OK? Anyway, the best way to kill people with the sniper rifles is via headshot. The head hitbox can be a little weird, so the forehead is probably one of the best places to aim for. Keep in mind, however, that headshots are not an instant kill. If you barely charge up before getting a headshot, then the shot will dish out 150 damage. This is enough to kill Medics, Scouts, Spies, Snipers, and Engis at full health. Keep in mind that snipers with the Darwin's Danger Shield will be able to withstand this, and will be left with seven health. You don't need to worry about headshotting them again, as pretty much anything will kill them.
A fully charged headshot will deal 450 damage, enough to kill a fully overhealed Heavy. This is an instant kill against any class with any loadout, exept for spies that have the dead ringer out.
Also something to note: You cannot headshot unless you are scoped in.

Ok, so now you know what headshots can do. But they're not too helpful if you can't manage to hit your target, are they? That's what I'm going to try to fix.
First off, it is a lot easier to hit people if they walk into your crosshairs instead of you trying to move onto them. Position the sniper in front of where people are walking, and make only minor adjustments to get the headshot. If you are moving your mouse too much, you WILL miss.
Sometimes it's best not to try to get a headshot. If there is a scout strafing and jumping around a lot, you may just want to body shot them. Getting a body shot is a lot better than going for the head and missing, and a fully charged body shot will do as much damage as a quick-scoped headshot. Even if the shot isn't charged that much, if the target is at low health you could still get the kill.

Positioning & close quarter combat

Rule number one of tf2 in general: Don't stand still. That rule applies to sniping, too. Never just stand completely still in the battlements, trying to stay alive. It won't work. If a spy backstabs you, change positions to confuse him. Don't stay in one place for too long; after getting a few kills in the battlements, drop down and move to another spot. You'll get better over time at sniping while on the move- taking shots while still moving in the desired direction, and being able know when melee would be a better option. Now, I'm not saying going to the front lines is the best idea. Instead, go to some obscure place where the main fight isn't currently happening, and you will only have to deal with the occasional straggler. Don't be afraid of fighting multiple people. If you have good aim, you might be able to take one down with a quick headshot, and then go in with the melee. A lot of people underestimate melee, but you can easily kill several people if you get lucky. Melee attacks have a 33% chance to crit, and that will do 195 damage. Good luck surviving that!

The Dreaded Sniper Battle

You sit by the window, your gaze drifting over the barren landscape. The corpses of those you killed are the only things of interest to be seen. After what you've just done, nobody dares challenge you. But wait... What is that? An enemy sniper? OH NOES! You panic, and in your anxiety, you are careless, missing every shot. It is only a matter of time before you get killed by this rival assassin.

Every good sniper dreads the situation outlined above. Here are some tips on how to avoid, and deal with, this undesirable conflict.

1: Shoot first
When nobody is actively trying to kill you, your primary target should always be enemy snipers. It is a lot easier to deal with them if they haven't seen you yet.

2: Screw around, then quickscope
Chances are, you don't need to charge up to kill this guy. Most snipers tend to treat sniper battles by slowly walking sideways out of cover while scoped in, and taking the first opportunity to headshot them. This works, but not if the enemy is expecting it. instead, try jumping around and strafing, trying to move your head around as much as possible. They will probably miss you. As soon as you see an opportunity (maybe after they just fired, or if they are doing the sneaking-sideways-from-behind-cover tactic), simply scope and shoot them in the head as quickly as you can. Only snipers that have the Darwin's Danger Shield and have taken less than 7 points of damage can survive this, but then they are a perfect target for a quick body shot. Keep in mind that I'm not saying that taking cover doesn't help- it definetly does. If you miss the initial shot, then ducking behind cover to reload may keep your head on your shoulders.

3: The Shoot & Jump
This one's really simple. Just after you take a shot, jump. I suggest getting in the habbit of doing this, even when it isn't a sniper battle. The point of this is to throw off the aim of anyone trying to kill you. Snipers, if they don't miss you completely, will body shot you instead of getting the killing headshot. Soilders rockets may not hit you directly, and thus do less damage. You may dodge projectiles such as flares, arrows, and grenades. It's just generally a good idea.

The Sniper's Arsenal

The Sniper has quite a few guns, so let's go through them.



The stock Sniper Rifle. This is your most reliable weapon. No drawbacks, no weird and confusing mechanics. Just click to shoot, and that's all you need to know.




The Machina. This is for camping. It can't fire unscoped, so you'll have to rely on your secondy and melee weapons to deal with enemies up close. It's bonuses, in my opinion, only come into play in certain circumstances. When fully charged, it will pierce one enemie, as well as do extra damage. The piercing hardly ever comes into play, though I must admit it is incredibly satisfying when you get a piercing kill. As for the extra damage, it won't do anything except on body shots, since a fully charged headshot kills everything instantly already.



The Hitman's Heatmaker. This thing's interesting. It's downside is that is does less damage on body shot, although this is partially made up for by the fact that it charges up quicker. The main effect of the Heatmaker, however, is it's activatable charge meter. It gains charge on kills and assists, and needs three kills or three kills worth of assists to charge completely. The charge is activated when you take your next shot, causing you to be able to reload while scoped in. This is extremely helpful, as your fire rate improves drastically, and it is much easier to aim. Also, the rifle will charge while you are reloading, giving you a gauranteed bit of charge. The amount of time this ability lasts can be extended by getting kills, as each kill will fill it up a third of the way again. Hypothetically, if there were enough enemies, this ability could last forever.



The Bazaar Bargain. This weapon is best used by confident, experienced players that know they can click heads consistantly. It starts out with a slower charge speed, but the charge gets faster by 7.5% increments every time you get a headshot. However, a scoped body shot or missing will reduce the bonus by 7.5%, negating the previous headshot. The head counter caps at six heads, or a 45% increase in charge compared to the default sniper rifle. No-scope engineer buildings and unsure shots as to avoid recieving the decrease to charge.



The Sydney Sleeper. This sniper is widely considered the worst one, because of its major downside- it can't headshot. Headshots are the main point of sniping, so this is a very crippling downside. This is slightly helped by a generous boost to charge time, but not enough to make up for the downside. Its main specialty, however, is that when charged up roughly halfway it will apply jarate to targets. It can serve as a long distance support, allowing your teammates to win more fights. However, if it were any other rifle, you could probably headshot the target and kill it, which would probably help our teammates out more.


The Huntsman. The most differing varient on the original sniper rifle, the huntsman shoots arrows instead of bullets. It cannot scope in, but still has a charge mechanic- the longer you hold back the drawstring, the more damage it does, at a cap of 360 damage on a headshot (So less max damage than the sniper rifle). However, if you hold the bow back for too long past the max damage point, the accuracy of the arrow will start dropping. You may point straight and it will shoot out to the left. Arrows function differently from bullets for a couple of reasons: They have travel time and projectile drop. You will need to aim above and ahead of your target for a hit. The huntsman also has a few other abilities:
-Mouse 2 will cause the sniper to stop pulling on the draw string
-Pyros can light arrow on fire, which will cause hit enemies to burst into flames
-It has the fastest taunt kill in the game


Well, that's all there is on weapons.

The Fine Assassination of 9 Specific People

In case you couldn't decipher the title of this section, this is about how to deal with each of the nine classes when they get up close and personal.

1. The Scout

Scouts like messing with snipers. If they get to you with out you seeing, your as good as dead- one meat shot from their scattergun will kill you, unless you have a darwins danger shield, or maybe if you have full health. But even if you do survive, you will only have 10 or so health left. If you know they are coming, or are near you, try to throw off their aim by jumping and strafing a lot. If you're good, you can try to quickscope them, but mainly you will want to get them with your SMG or melee. Scouts like getting close to people, so you should be able to melee them. If you have the jarate + bushwaka combo, that will work wonders.

2. The Soldier

Soldiers will be able to kill you very quickly. If you can run, do so, then turn and headshot them. Otherwise, jump towards them whilst strafing.The rockets will do less damage if they hit the floor while you are in the air, and most soldiers aim at the floor to hit people. Getting close to them will cause them t ohit themselves, or be unsure about whether they should switch to melee or secondary, destracting them. If you have an SMG equipped, you can also just run backwards while shooting and dodging.

3. The Pyro

Try to stay away and kill it with your rifle or SMG. If you really need to, and there is health nearby, you can try to melee the pyro, although that may not work out so well. Good luck.

4. The Demo

It is pretty easy to dodge grenades that the demo shoots, and out-melee him, if you are good. Just be careful of his stickies, as they will make short work of you. Take the opportunity to headshot him while he is reloading, and you might be able to kill him. As always, the SMG is good for this situation.

4.5. The Demoknight

Your best bet is to take one shot with the sniper if you can, then switch to melee and go in for the kill. If you're good, you can out-melee him. Also, if you have jarate/bushwaka, that will make the fight a whole lot easier.

5. The Heavy

First let the heavy see you and spin up. Then, duck behind an corner and charge up the sniper rifle. You will most likely have enough time to do so, since the heavy probably wont want to spin down if he knows you are right there. When he rounds the corner, shoot him before he kills you.

6. The Engi

Headshotting or meleeing engis isn't hard, and you can probably take him out. However, sentries are not as easy to deal with. If it is a mini sentry, ducking behind cover until the rifle is fully charged and then peeking out and shooting the mini will one-shot it. For other sentries, see if you can find a position where you can see it but it can't see you. Then just shoot at it until it dies.


7. The Medic

Medics are easy. dodge around while shooting or slashing, and they should die pretty soon.

8. The Sniper

In close quarters, go for melee, no-scoping, or the SMG. If he pulls out melee, you should as well. If he is using a gun, do whatever you are best at, or you think would work at the moment.

9. The Spy

Always face spies, as they can trick stab you if they are good. melee is probably your best bet here, but you can also use the SMG or no-scope him. I would not reccomend scoping in to fight a spy, as they could easily backstab you when you do.

Conclusion

Thanks for reading my guide! I hope it helped you. Make sure to rate it what you feel it deserves, favourite it if it was one of your favourites, and share it if you think others would benefit from it. You can check out my other guide on my profile; it is about how to eat the sandvich. Thanks again, and happy sniping!

-Slimer509

[staff]

Noice