How To Play Spy Tutorial Video
Spotted this one linked from the Steam TF2 forums.
Its an excellently produced video, and is a great overview of spy tactics and techniques by Daedalus. Must see viewing for anyone wanting to pick up the sneaky arts.
Stumble it!
THE quiet file clerk responded on 23 Oct 2007 at 3:07 pm #
truly truly awsome little tutorial
Zarathustra responded on 23 Oct 2007 at 7:20 pm #
This is great. I hope they plan on a whole series of these. I especially liked the damage stats and the tip to kill the Engineer then sap the turret while it turns around to shoot ya.
Matt responded on 25 Oct 2007 at 7:23 am #
Spy is an alright class, but only when you’re playing against people as bad as those in this video.
If you see someone die to a backstab on the scoreboard, look around. There’s no way a remotely intelligent person would allow a Spy to land 2-3 backstabs in a row.
Heavies, Soldiers, Pyros, and Scout all do well against the spy.
The only reason a Spy can do well is if his opponents are bad and because the awful feedback given when firing on a disguised enemy Spy. You have to do enough damage to kill him to even know if he’s a Spy which makes it a hassle to detect them. With the inaudible footsteps it’s easy for a Spy to sneak up on you.
Spy isn’t a class you’ll ever see used in any matches due to how easy it is to communicate position and class, making them extremely easy to spot.
Of course, this is TF2. Nothing about the game was designed with anything but pub play in mind.
Zass responded on 17 Nov 2007 at 8:40 am #
you have to understand, a good spy is a good spy, and it’s not just because the team ignores a backstab that they are bad. What if they are preoccupied? Timing is essential to a spy, when to cloak, when to attack, and this game was not built with only pub play in mind. It is called team fortress, and pubs don’t often have teamwork. Maybe a medic and a heavy at most, but a spy can be good in any game.
madlep responded on 18 Nov 2007 at 6:43 pm #
Yeah totally agree Zass. Its not the kind of class where you charge in disguised expecting to own everyone without resistance.
Good spies take the time to cloak right past the enemy defenses, the only use disguises once they have fully blended in.
One of the best uses for spies I’ve seen is in disabling sentries just as a rush is coming in (not necessarily destroying them). If they are sapped, then they are disabled till the engie repairs them. If you do that just as your team mates start an attack it can make all the difference as they won’t have to worry about them opening fire on them and should be able to finish them off before the engie does his repair job.
Muffin responded on 02 Jan 2008 at 7:18 am #
i suck at spy (with a maximum amount of points = 12) but i still play it because i enjoy it, this video has helped so hopefully i will be a little better when i practice this stuff… thanks
P_R_O_Z_A_C responded on 02 Jan 2008 at 1:11 pm #
Matt I think you’ve grocely underestimated how devastating a spy can be to the enemy. I used to think that spy was just a novelty, mainly because I sucked at using him, but after forcing myself to use him I understood how easy it is to get kills, regardless of how good the communication and skill of the enemy is. As for not being able to get any more than 2-3 kills? Try 5 kills in 5 seconds! I know it sounds unbelievable, but I got lucky playing the other night and caught 5 enemies in a narrow corridoor in dustbowl – and these were far from inept players. I came at them from being just before their rush for the point and none of them saw me coming – I knifed them all in the back one after another, hitting the fire button as fast as I could. The only times I have ever been on top of the leaderboard has been with the spy – I think mainly because you get a full 2 points for each kill, unlike other classes where you get a lot of assists. Being an awesome spy isn’t about hand-eye co-ordination, it’s about cunning and trickery – which can make it difficult for people who are used to the ’simpler’ classes such as the soldier and heavy.
PS – Heavies are my No#1 victim, being that they are slow and it’s easy to take their back, similar to the soldier. Also the snipers, being that they move very slow when looking through the scope. Pyros are the biggest burden of course, followed by scout who are hard to catch and hunt you down when you’re spotted.
PPS LONG LIVE SPIES!!!!
:] responded on 14 Mar 2008 at 8:25 am #
Matt i used to think the EXACT same thing
but you are right, for the most part, spys are actually used in matches but not much at all, mainly for distractions, as in purposely cloak touching somone so they shout it in vent and everyone looks around for the spy and then the team moves in and they are surprised
plus the spy is used for cloak touches on the intel
but thats mainly it not really for sentries or backstabbing;maybe medics. Thats about it for matches though
Havoc responded on 27 Apr 2008 at 4:50 am #
Random spy-checks negate pretty much any pro-spy argument. Team members spy-check eachother all the time, and they WILL find you no matter how good you think you are. The game mechanics make playing this class an exercise in futility.
P_R_O_Z_A_C responded on 14 May 2008 at 12:18 pm #
Here a little guide for those getting into Spying!
Engy / Sentry – stab engy in back, immediately change to sapper, sap sentry, followed by teleporter and dispenser. Works 4/5 times. Sometimes the sentry turns on you too quickly. Engy hiding in a corner? Jump on his head and stab him top-down! Believe me it works! By the way – it’s pointless sapping a sentry unless you kill the engy protecting it first. Kill him first you get all his structures… sapp while he’s nearby you normally get nothing… maybe a teleporter… unless you can coax him into a sapping/repairing war, which you will win eventually (if his buddies don’t take care of you before that happens).
Random spy checking – only seems a major problem when you have a VERY annoyed pyro, who was probably another class that got backstabbed too many times… which means that a spy is doing his job! Most the time you only get spy checked if you’re acting suspiciously eg. running the wrong way! Looking directly at and constantly at enemy ‘teammates’. Usually people will leave you alone if you act right… if you play like the class you’re disguised as should be playing.
Medic / Heavy combo – juicy opportunity. Harder if the medic is constantly turning around looking for spies… Usually best timing is when they’re engaged in combat and their attention is forward. I once back-stabbed a heavy while he was be healed by 3 medics at once… they looked so disappointed! Go for the medic then the Heavy. If the medic suspects you as a spy, just hit the heavy and run, leaving the medic undefended
Full 24 player maps are harder for spies than 16 player maps, more players = harder to get behind enemy lines. Then less players, the easier it is to dominate… unless they’re all scout or pyros… in that case don’t use Spy!
A futile class you say HAVOC? Maybe for a noob… An experience spy is often the number #1 point scorer on the team! “Team members spy-check each other all the time, and they WILL find you no matter how good you think you are.” – Not to blow my own horn HAVOC, but I’m often #1 point scorer for the level…normally I’m only spotted after it’s too late. Sometimes, yes, you get spy checked. Maybe 1/10 respawns, depending on how good you are / aren’t. 2/3 if you suck. My record number of backstabs (backstabs NOT just kills) without dying is 9.
Sniper – easy – the have tunnel vision while looking down the scope. Best timing is to hit them when they’re lining up a shot. If they’re standing in a corner, either jump on their head’s, or use your pistol – 3 shots point blank is all it takes to kill one.
The pistol – underrated weapon. Rather accurate at mid range, and does a significant amount of damage. I’ve killed heavies with the Spy’s pistol before. Especially good when running away while being pursued, you can often get extra kills this way, cos nobody can catch you except for a scout. Great in long corridors, such as the sewers in 2Fort. Pistol is great for shooting a sapped sentry too, to speed up it’s demise significantly. Remember – the damage is distance-dependent.
Bottlenecks – juicy opportunities. Find a narrow spot where the enemy is condensed, where their focus is in one direction. If you can get behind them, you can get a magnificent run – hit the back first, work your way to the front, then run back to your frontline for re-disguising. My personal record is 5 in 5 seconds. Yesterday I got 3 in 2 seconds on Gold Rush.
Scouts – a bane if they see you stab someone. Don’t waste your time trying to backstab them… unless you have a chance too! Very satisfying… any self respecting Scout ill be very embarrassed to be backstabbed by a Spy!
Other Spies! – “Takes one to know one” is a very true statement. If you’re good at playing Spy, you’re good at spotting a Spy… especially noobies! Looks for the guy running to the enemy’s frontlines wearing the wrong coloured clothes.
When respawning / running to frontline – Disguise as a pyro of your own team (on the disguise menu hit ‘-’ then choose your disguise). Why? Spies attract a lot of attention when in plain sight… Especially enemy spies. Disguise as a pyro of your own team, and enemy spies will leave you alone… trust me! Also, it tends to save your cloak until you need it. When disguised as pyro teammate, no-one will suspect a spy coming. Leave it till late as possible to disguise as an enemy, then cloak to get behind enemy lines – you’ll get deeper than being forced to cloak early because you’re already in enemy disguise.
Demomen – Rather easy… they’re normally either waiting for some to walk into their mines to they can detonate, or they’re placing mines… wait for either.
Soldier – Make sure you kill first stab! Usually it’s easiest to just follow them as they’re running to the front, since they’re easy to catch up with.
Fall in behind them – when cloaking to get behind enemy line, put yourself in a spot where the enemy will run past you on their way to the front, but will only see you hiding if they look behind them. Great way to choose your targets as they run past, and to join their ranks without suspicion. When a Heavy or soldier runs past, just fall in and stab the slowies! or follow them to a bottleneck at the frontline an see how many you can get!
Like MADLEP said – sap sentries just before your buddies start attacking it – gauranteed to take it out!
Teleporter stabbing – want to be cheeky? Find an enemy teleporter and stab them as they come through – they never expect it!
Cloaking – by far the BIGGEST mistake people make here is they his the right mouse button to cloak, and run out strait away, only to be seen by the enemy as a silhouette of your teams colour. It take a good 2 seconds to cloak. Cloak, count to 2, then run out.
Exit strategy – always plan ahead… After you stab, when are you running to? Will you have enough cloak to get away under fire? Are any of the victim’s teammates going to see and pursue you? Will you hide again behind enemy lines for a second run rather than running to the safety of your teammates? Or are you planning an all out assault on the enemies front lines which you do not expect to survive?
Spy… the thinking man’s class. I think that’s why people think they’re useless, they forget the thinking part when they play as one. By far, the Spy is the most in-depth class in TF2… can’t wait for the new weapons and achievements – hope the Spy is next in line!
Cheers,
P_R_O_Z_A_C
madlep responded on 14 May 2008 at 3:36 pm #
Wow, nice spy tips P_R_O_Z_A_C
I posted them in their own article
http://www.ubercharged.net/2008/05/14/p_r_o_z_a_cs-spy-tips/
twotwothree responded on 16 May 2008 at 5:04 am #
Excellent rundown on spy tactics.
Just thought I’d touch on a few things
- Use enemy dispensers. Seriously, nothing screams ‘I’m not a spy.’ like a burning demo man saving his butt on a friendly dispenser.
- This ones for the medics out there. Do NOT heal spys when they are traveling into enemy territory. Nothings worse than running into a front line and then having a bright blue beam healing a red demo man while he’s making a beeline towards a heavy.
- Do not stand on any enemy buildings if your trying to act natural. Friendlies can clip through friendly sentrys / dispensers. If you climb onto one, it screams ‘I’m a spy’. Don’t do it UNLESS (situational) you are disguised as an Engineer. This is the only time you can get away with it ( looks like your buildings ).
- If your on fire with nowhere to run. Uncloak ( your caught ) and if your a pyro change your disguise to something else. Burning pyro’s are a dead give away. Change to a demo man, heavy or soldier while yelling ‘medic’ in hopes that a stupid medic will save you or use an enemy dispenser.
- You can see your ‘cloaked’ status by the image down the bottom left of your screen. If you can see a faint image then your enemys can see a faint image. If you can’t, your good to go.
- ‘Quick Cloaking’ is something I do often on things like 2fort. Before jumping off the fort, cloak prior to jumping off, then uncloak as you reach the cover of the bridge. This prevents enemy snipers ‘predictive headshot’ing you.
- Be aware of your surroundings. If your jumping off 2Fort and theres a friendly sniper right behind where your about to jump off. Stop, think. Chances are that sniper is being watched or may be shot. Nothing is worse than eating a fully charged up sniper shot ment for someone behind you.
- Do not be afraid to run away. If you are running into a choke point and theres a pyro / soldier / heavy comming at you, turn around. Too many times I’ve seen cloaked spys just run in anyway.
- Learn to act like the crew. This means hanging around looking like a sniper on sniper posts, running around straffing randomly as a pyro, circling sentrys as an engineer, hanging around near demo man charges as a demo man. Don’t disguise as a pyro and make a bee line for a sniper for instance. Its just a dead give away.
- If your spotted, change your disguise. Pyro is NOT the be all, end all of disguises. Too many spys are Demo / Pyro abusers. Theres plenty of disguises to use. And when your in the thick of it just about anything works. Get creative.
- Pick your target, the first person to run past isn’t always the best choice of targets. If your disguised and a heavy / medic runs past. Position yourself, scope it out before you rush in gun-ho stabbity stab. There could be more comming to back them up. Why not take out the whole team.
- If your caught, and you manage to stealth. Be creative, get out of there, do a U-Turn and run back past the person thats randomly spraying hoping to hit you. Too many spys hide in a corner, or stand next to a doorway. If your caught get out of there or be creative.
Ok so it was more of a rant but eh .. =)
P_R_O_Z_A_C responded on 19 May 2008 at 1:58 pm #
Very nice work twotwothree – great to hear from a fellow Spy
“Cheer up little Timmy, you’ll be a Spy some day…”: oldmeme’s lenghty Spy tips and tricks guide | ubercharged.net responded on 26 Aug 2008 at 8:23 am #
[...] could easily be you, Billy! Now there are plenty of fantastic tutorials on how to be a good Spy out there, but I am here to help you, the person who is feeling the Spy blues and simply cannot get [...]
touren responded on 15 Sep 2008 at 8:06 am #
Hmm im currently playing spy class, its a lot of fun.
I have found that i can completely change the outcome of all PL maps by simply killing the pillion. Its a tactic that has won me and my team countless pcw’s.
This video is win
no matter how old, all those tips are very valid.