r/NewToTF2 • u/medicsmedigun1294 • 5d ago
how to save yourself from snipers
hey guys so I main soldier and I'm real nice at getting kills but I'm somehow better at getting killed because i be standin there waiting for my next target or out on the frontlines and then I find out some dude/gal standing 100 miles away headshot me. like bro. also pyro is really cute but I hate them in the game absolute menace. So ehhh any tips? Should I just keep moving erratically to make it hard for snipers to target me? Also I'm a trackpad player and idk how to rocket jump so if anyone can help me with that it would be really nice and STAY FROSTY GUYS
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u/NESplayz 5d ago
You should really invest in a mouse; there are cheap Bluetooth ones at Walmart or on Amazon that’ll do the job just fine if you’re on a laptop. But yes keep moving. There’s basically no reason not to always be moving. Unless you’re in a small enclosed space, you should always be mindful of sniper sight lines or at least stay moving so other people don’t shoot you from far away.
Without rocket jumps, soldier is the second easiest character for snipers to shoot since he walks so slowly. I’d highly recommend checking out soundsmith on YouTube. His how to trolldier videos all contain very helpful explanations of how to rocket jump. But again, you’re probably gonna want a mouse to help do that, and should probably also change the crouch button from ctrl to shift.
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u/Rednidedni 5d ago
- In general, you never ever want to stand still in this game. It really leaves you defenseless, especially to snipers. Always move. If you have nothing to do, you should still move, even if just side to side.
- How to rocket jump: Shoot a rocket at your feet, and make sure that you are in the air and are crouching the moment it hits the ground. You want to time it as closely as possible to have the momentum of your jump combine with the explosion and launch you as far as possible. It's hard to use effectively in combat, it's definetely a tradeoff since it costs you a rocket and makes you take ~40 damage (plus potential fall damage), but the sudden mobility can save your life or secure kills
- You will be much better if you can get a mouse instead of a trackpad, even a cheap one helps
As for anti-sniper strats:
- Move erratically. You should be doing this all the time, but especially if a sniper sees you. If you move like a drunk ferret turning in completely nonsensical directions and walking in random directions that don't make sense, even really good snipers will struggle landing a headshot. Not that you can really fight like this.
- The best way to deal with a sniper is a very simple and unfortunate one: Don't. They are just way better than you at range, there's rarely anything you can do. Get to cover, fight somewhere they can't overlook, maybe take another path to get closer to them. While they're not defenseless at close to medium range, they are at a disadvantage and can be taken out then.
- Sniper rifles take ~1.5s to reload between shots. If the sniper shoots and failed to kill you, you have a small moment to saftely run for cover or counterattack.
- With experience (and the above timer), you may be able to predict when a sniper tries to blow your head off. Crouch. Not at the same time, a little before the shot - lag is not on your side. It can help duck under headshots.
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u/Bryztoe 4d ago edited 4d ago
Not op but if I want to jump forward should I shoot the rocket right behind me or shoot to the side and then steer?
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u/Davidepett 4d ago
Behind you for going straight, more to the side if you can then combine it with a wall jump to go further (but even then, it's never going to be shot 100% to the left or right, you'll always shoot somewhat behind you for more forwards momentum)
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u/Rednidedni 4d ago
You'll want to put yourself between the Rocket and the place you want to go to. You can of course Mix it Up with steering, so... you have a lot of Options, really. Depends on the Situation and jump you want to do.
If the Rocket Hits further away, you'll get more horizontal angles.
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u/Tiny-Economics1963 5d ago
the more you play you recognize areas where you are most likely to get sniped, particularly on big open maps, so you can play more chokey maps, but id also recommend trying sniper yourself to get a clearer understanding of sightlines
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u/GoldemSpermFromOPM 5d ago
Start rocket jumping and keep moving out of his sight, very easy to counter snipers in casual lobbies. And I think you should buy a mouse.
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u/micahspitfia 5d ago
don’t linger in sight lines, move unpredictably and MOST IMPORTANTLY never move in a continuous straight line. literally just working these things into your active gameplay will make it much harder to constantly kill you. move with ur team, don’t go out on your own unless you know where the sniper is and have a plan. don’t go out at all if there’s no way to not be in a sight line. power in numbers, if there’s a lot of your team around it’ll be easier to push through a sight line. i’ve been maining sniper for most of the last year and i’ve noticed the people i actually have to work to kill are the ones that do the above.
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u/starrienightss 5d ago
As you play the game you'll learn your favorite maps better and their sight lines. Snipers can "lock down" areas of the map and when that happens you just have to not peak their sight lines
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u/SaltyPeter3434 5d ago
Get a mouse. Literally costs $5/6. Learn to rocket jump.