Agent_W
03-16-2008, 09:57 PM
Ever wonder what use spies are on your team? Well, wonder no more! I took the time to ask myself, "What kind of a class is the Spy?" and "What roles can he do?"
The Spy, as I like to describe it, is a multirole SUPPORT class. That's right, he is a support class. I also like to describe the Spy as the "Jack of all trades", who can do a little bit of anything and everything! Unfortunately, he is really the master of none as well...you can't expect to deliver a major punch on O or D with this class. The Spy doesn't have the proper armament to do it.
After much assessment, I have the following roles a spy can actually perform. There are four major roles on either Offense or Defense. First, I'll start with Offense.
Enemy Disruption-The spy has the ability to wreak havoc and cause chaos amongst the enemy. This role can include a variety of different actions such as pulling off subtle kills to sabotaging enemy sentries. Causing death and destruction is enough to make the enemy panic and they’ll divert their attention to spy-checking, which can put a strain on their objectives.
The main trick to keeping this role up is unpredictability. Keep your profile down as far as possible by being on your best behavior. Don’t try to repeat various actions, and learn to be discreet in them. It can take a really short time for the enemy to wise up to your antics, so keep them guessing if you are to sustain this role.
Enemy Reconnaissance-The spy can also relay information about the enemy to his/her teammates through team chat regarding the class makeup of a team, sentry gun positions, strengths and weaknesses in the base, etc. This can help to give your team a much more valuable advantage so that they’ll know what to expect for their Defense.
To excel in this role, keep your profile down. This is important as you still want to behave like the enemy the best you can.
Flag Running-The spy, providing that he is successful in his infiltration, can grab the flag to make a run for capturing it. Due to the medium speed of the spy, he is not the ideal flagrunner as a scout would be. The spy is best suited to escort a slower, heavier carrier of the flag, however in the right conditions, the spy can perform this role well if he can avoid enemy trouble and use alternate routes to head back to his base. The spy can also make an ideal secondary runner if the original flagrunner got killed in action.
To excel in this role, you have to be quite the escape artist and know how and when to seize opportunity. The more you can evade the enemy, the better off you'll be. Learning to use your tranq gun is also key as you would want to slow down chasers. Using nades are also helpful.
General Assist-Upon the spy’s discretion, or by request from the team, the spy can provide additional firepower with the armament he has to assist his team. The spy by himself is not well-equipped for deathmatch fighting but his skills in using the nailgun, shotgun, and tranq pistol can make the difference whether his team gains the upper hand in a fight or not. The spy can also lob his grenades to add a more serious punch in deathmatch situations as hallucination grenades can cloud the enemy’s vision and reverse the team colors they see.
To excel in this role, KNOW your weapons and learn how to use them! Also, leave the main fighting to the Offense classes. Keeping your profile down is also paramount if you expect to stick out for long. It also pay dividends if you had previous experience in a FPS multiplayer DM game, such as the Quake series or Unreal Tournament.
Now I have the four major Defense roles:
Flag Guard Sentinel-The spy has a tremendous ability to lie silently in wait with his cloaking abilities, and there can not be a much better use for this than to watch the team’s flag. In this role, the spy can serve to be the flag’s first(or last) line of defense against enemy flagrunners. The spy by himself cannot hold well against determined flagrunning teams of 3 or more and will need to work with the team's D in order to hold. Also, it is best that the spy waits in the chamber, cloaked and tranq gun at the ready. The spy must be able to tranq the first target that grabs the flag or the flagrunner may escape. This is especially true for scouts and medics, the two fastest classes in the game.
To excel in this role, patience and vigilance are good virtues to have. Also, you may have to be unpredictable, especially in places where you hide. Paying attention from the team's announcements are also handy so you can prepare yourself to take action.
Field Interceptor-The spy has the ability to remain out in the middle section of a map, often referred to as the “main yard”. This would always be referring to the main area that separates the two bases(for most maps). The spy can go into the field to dispatch advancing or withdrawing forces or stop enemy flagrunners(and vice versa, to support friendly flagrunners) using stealth tactics. This role is not recommended for the spy class as it is dangerous to the extreme. The spy can be vulnerable to many threats out in the open yard, but essentially, performing this role has a twofold purpose: to weaken the enemy offense, and to strengthen your team’s defense.
To excel in this role, exceptional skill with your weapons and experience of deathmatch situations are paramount to your success, and perhaps some luck and coordination from your team. But don't expect to survive too long in any situation...because anything can happen out there...
Counterspy-Because the spy can uncover enemy spies’ disguises, and by sharing a similar mindset, the spy can protect the team from enemy spies that would perform their respective Offense roles. A good spy can spot suspicious behavior often before others can, and can usually take the first actions to neutralize a spy’s threats. Using a friendly disguise and going on patrols and rounds around the base is an ideal action for this role. You can even get assistance from nearby friendly teammates when they discover that you uncovered a spy! Also, you have the possibility of working with engineers to make sure their equipment remain unmolested, or to stick around at the battlements to watch snipers’ backs. However, dealing with spies can be dangerous only as far as their unpredictability can go, because you can never know how the spy is going to fight back.
To excel in this role, taking initiative and having good skill with your weapons is key to performing well. You also need to have a keen sense of detection and be VERY suspicious!
General Assist-The spy, along with the above-mentioned roles, can still provide reliable support for other Defense classes. An extra gun should always be welcomed, especially if you are skilled in its use and have good aim. Demomen and engineers can always use a spy’s support because sometimes, it confuses the enemy so that he cannot determine which class is the greater threat, while getting bombarded by both. Thus, the spy makes for a great decoy...a distraction if you will, that will leave the enemy exhausted and dead by your teammates.
To excel in this role, you pretty much have to do the same thing as General O Assist. Leave the heavy D fighting with the main D classes, and if they don't manage to kill them, YOU WILL!
In summary, the spy can pretty much do ANYTHING, making him quite the "Generalist". But don't forget that it's a SUPPORT class, so don't get discouraged if you feel you can't be a spy. Just remember the limitations of the class and you should be fine with whatever roles you decide to fulfill.
The Spy, as I like to describe it, is a multirole SUPPORT class. That's right, he is a support class. I also like to describe the Spy as the "Jack of all trades", who can do a little bit of anything and everything! Unfortunately, he is really the master of none as well...you can't expect to deliver a major punch on O or D with this class. The Spy doesn't have the proper armament to do it.
After much assessment, I have the following roles a spy can actually perform. There are four major roles on either Offense or Defense. First, I'll start with Offense.
Enemy Disruption-The spy has the ability to wreak havoc and cause chaos amongst the enemy. This role can include a variety of different actions such as pulling off subtle kills to sabotaging enemy sentries. Causing death and destruction is enough to make the enemy panic and they’ll divert their attention to spy-checking, which can put a strain on their objectives.
The main trick to keeping this role up is unpredictability. Keep your profile down as far as possible by being on your best behavior. Don’t try to repeat various actions, and learn to be discreet in them. It can take a really short time for the enemy to wise up to your antics, so keep them guessing if you are to sustain this role.
Enemy Reconnaissance-The spy can also relay information about the enemy to his/her teammates through team chat regarding the class makeup of a team, sentry gun positions, strengths and weaknesses in the base, etc. This can help to give your team a much more valuable advantage so that they’ll know what to expect for their Defense.
To excel in this role, keep your profile down. This is important as you still want to behave like the enemy the best you can.
Flag Running-The spy, providing that he is successful in his infiltration, can grab the flag to make a run for capturing it. Due to the medium speed of the spy, he is not the ideal flagrunner as a scout would be. The spy is best suited to escort a slower, heavier carrier of the flag, however in the right conditions, the spy can perform this role well if he can avoid enemy trouble and use alternate routes to head back to his base. The spy can also make an ideal secondary runner if the original flagrunner got killed in action.
To excel in this role, you have to be quite the escape artist and know how and when to seize opportunity. The more you can evade the enemy, the better off you'll be. Learning to use your tranq gun is also key as you would want to slow down chasers. Using nades are also helpful.
General Assist-Upon the spy’s discretion, or by request from the team, the spy can provide additional firepower with the armament he has to assist his team. The spy by himself is not well-equipped for deathmatch fighting but his skills in using the nailgun, shotgun, and tranq pistol can make the difference whether his team gains the upper hand in a fight or not. The spy can also lob his grenades to add a more serious punch in deathmatch situations as hallucination grenades can cloud the enemy’s vision and reverse the team colors they see.
To excel in this role, KNOW your weapons and learn how to use them! Also, leave the main fighting to the Offense classes. Keeping your profile down is also paramount if you expect to stick out for long. It also pay dividends if you had previous experience in a FPS multiplayer DM game, such as the Quake series or Unreal Tournament.
Now I have the four major Defense roles:
Flag Guard Sentinel-The spy has a tremendous ability to lie silently in wait with his cloaking abilities, and there can not be a much better use for this than to watch the team’s flag. In this role, the spy can serve to be the flag’s first(or last) line of defense against enemy flagrunners. The spy by himself cannot hold well against determined flagrunning teams of 3 or more and will need to work with the team's D in order to hold. Also, it is best that the spy waits in the chamber, cloaked and tranq gun at the ready. The spy must be able to tranq the first target that grabs the flag or the flagrunner may escape. This is especially true for scouts and medics, the two fastest classes in the game.
To excel in this role, patience and vigilance are good virtues to have. Also, you may have to be unpredictable, especially in places where you hide. Paying attention from the team's announcements are also handy so you can prepare yourself to take action.
Field Interceptor-The spy has the ability to remain out in the middle section of a map, often referred to as the “main yard”. This would always be referring to the main area that separates the two bases(for most maps). The spy can go into the field to dispatch advancing or withdrawing forces or stop enemy flagrunners(and vice versa, to support friendly flagrunners) using stealth tactics. This role is not recommended for the spy class as it is dangerous to the extreme. The spy can be vulnerable to many threats out in the open yard, but essentially, performing this role has a twofold purpose: to weaken the enemy offense, and to strengthen your team’s defense.
To excel in this role, exceptional skill with your weapons and experience of deathmatch situations are paramount to your success, and perhaps some luck and coordination from your team. But don't expect to survive too long in any situation...because anything can happen out there...
Counterspy-Because the spy can uncover enemy spies’ disguises, and by sharing a similar mindset, the spy can protect the team from enemy spies that would perform their respective Offense roles. A good spy can spot suspicious behavior often before others can, and can usually take the first actions to neutralize a spy’s threats. Using a friendly disguise and going on patrols and rounds around the base is an ideal action for this role. You can even get assistance from nearby friendly teammates when they discover that you uncovered a spy! Also, you have the possibility of working with engineers to make sure their equipment remain unmolested, or to stick around at the battlements to watch snipers’ backs. However, dealing with spies can be dangerous only as far as their unpredictability can go, because you can never know how the spy is going to fight back.
To excel in this role, taking initiative and having good skill with your weapons is key to performing well. You also need to have a keen sense of detection and be VERY suspicious!
General Assist-The spy, along with the above-mentioned roles, can still provide reliable support for other Defense classes. An extra gun should always be welcomed, especially if you are skilled in its use and have good aim. Demomen and engineers can always use a spy’s support because sometimes, it confuses the enemy so that he cannot determine which class is the greater threat, while getting bombarded by both. Thus, the spy makes for a great decoy...a distraction if you will, that will leave the enemy exhausted and dead by your teammates.
To excel in this role, you pretty much have to do the same thing as General O Assist. Leave the heavy D fighting with the main D classes, and if they don't manage to kill them, YOU WILL!
In summary, the spy can pretty much do ANYTHING, making him quite the "Generalist". But don't forget that it's a SUPPORT class, so don't get discouraged if you feel you can't be a spy. Just remember the limitations of the class and you should be fine with whatever roles you decide to fulfill.