Sniper

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Revision as of 02:43, 16 October 2023 by SciF1Qizard (talk | contribs) (Made the lead 80% less subjective.)
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Sniper
Sniper RED.png
Sniper BLU.png
Sniper GRN.png
Sniper YLW.png
Basic Information
Icon Leaderboard class sniper.png
Type Support
Health 125 (185 with overheal)
Speed 100%

The Sniper is a support class that specializes in long-range combat, and can assassinate any enemy that crosses his sightline. He has 125 health and 100% speed, making him fragile with average speed. His Sniper Rifle is one of the game's most powerful weapons, able to kill any class with a headshot while fully charged, and is uncontestable at range. His ability to hold a single position and punish enemies who cross it with instant death is unmatched, and the inability for enemies to mount a response means he has free reign over wherever he looks. Far from a sitting duck, his ability to move around and get sightlines from obscure map angles can lead to surprising deaths outside the standard Sniper spots, and the first sign of a skilled Sniper is usually in the post-death screenshot. He can also deal unexpectedly high damage from close up, simply by quickscoping and clicking on the enemy's head, which is enough to kill or severely wound all classes. This makes him the game's premier pick class, and a skilled shot can end an engagement before it even begins.

The Sniper's downsides are his mediocrity in direct combat, reliance on his teammate's front line, inability to contribute to objectives, constant threat from enemy Snipers, and high skill floor. The Sniper Rifle deals very poor sustained damage, and the SMG, while a good self-defense weapon is a relatively weak sidearm. Combined with the Sniper's fragility, this means he cannot defend himself unless he gets extremely lucky scoped shots, and prefers to stay in the back lines, far behind his teammates. If his team's united front suddenly collapses, the Sniper is usually the first to die. This issue is compounded by the Sniper's difficulties in capturing objectives, since his fragility and long-range specialization means he is terrible when exposed and isn't built for for the frontline. This is compounded by attacks from enemy Snipers, who are locked in constant duels for sightline supremacy, and failing to keep track of their positions will lead to your unexpected death. Finally, the Sniper is no class for players who cannot aim. This also means that having an "off day" has significantly more impact on Sniper than on other classes. Other classes such as Soldier have splash damage and shotguns have bullet spread, making them more forgiving. On Sniper, if you miss, you miss.

Despite these downsides, they are mitigated by running really far away and shooting people in the head. As he is the only class in the game that can deal meaningful damage at long range, the only appropriate counter to him is to not get seen at all, which makes him disproportionately powerful compared to every other class. However moving in an unpredictable pattern can throw off a Sniper's aim. On offense, he can peek around corners and get risky kills off enemies who leave the comfort of their base, including destroying exposed Sentry Guns, as well as the necessary counter-sniping. On defense, he can snuff out Medics and their patients before they have a chance to run in, neutralizing the imbalance of power and creating a more favourable defensive line. While the Sniper is dominant on wide-open maps, he is still usable with sufficient skill even on cramped maps, and his skill ceiling is practically infinite. He rewards independent play, smart positioning, quick thinking, and technical practice with unmatched power, and is the perfect class for aim-monster loner types who just want to rack up kills.

Bio

Country of Origin: Australia

Job: Precision Elimination

Motto: "Pink Cloud of Death"

In his former life as a tracker of dangerous game in the unforgiving Australian outback, the Sniper would spend months by himself. Prolonged isolation taught him a valuable lesson: You don't have to rely on other people if you never miss.

Weapons

Primary

Weapon Kill icon
Backpack Sniper Rifle.png
Sniper Rifle
Killicon sniperrifle.png
Backpack Huntsman.png
Huntsman
Killicon huntsman.png
Backpack Hunting Revolver.png
Hunting Revolver
Killicon hunterrifle.png

Secondary

Weapon Kill icon
Backpack SMG.png
SMG
Killicon smg.png

Melee

Weapon Kill icon
Backpack Kukri.png
Kukri
Killicon club.png
Backpack Fishwhacker.png
Fishwhacker
Killicon fishwhacker.png

Tips

As a Sniper…

  • …the longer you spend zoomed in the scope, the more damage the shot will do.
  • …aim for the head to do critical damage.
  • …a fully charged sniper rifle head shot can kill most classes instantly.
  • …zoom with the sniper rifle by hitting MOUSE2.
  • …use your submachine gun to deal with nearby enemies.
  • …the Huntsman can be used for more reliable close-range combat, at the cost of accuracy.
  • …your shot will usually miss if the Huntsman is pulled back longer than five seconds. Reset it by hitting MOUSE2.
  • …movement speed while scoped in with the hunting revolver is higher than with the sniper rifle. Move around while aiming to be a harder target to hit.
  • …the hunting revolver is a great mid-range option. Use it to deal damage while quickly moving in and out of the frontline.
  • …the Fishwhacker will cause bleeding damage to the enemy being hit. Use it to fight cloaked Spies!

Names in other languages

Language Name Meaning
Bulgarian Снайпер Sniper
Spanish Sniper -
English Sniper -
French Sniper -
German Sniper -
Hungarian Mesterlövész Sniper
Italian Cecchino Sniper
Polish Snajper Sniper
Brazilian Portuguese Sniper -
Romanian Sniper -
Russian Снайпер Sniper
Turkish Sniper -
Ukrainian Снайпер Sniper

Trivia

  • In Team Fortress 2 Classic, Sniper's first person hand models now correctly show only one glove on his left hand, compared to Team Fortress 2 where both of his hands had gloves.