Identifying spies is too difficult

[BumGravy]

But "rampant paranoia" is exactly what you want when you play spy. When the enemy team are spychecking every single person, the best thing to do is attack with a team mate and take advantage of the confusion and paranoia. Another under-used tactic is disguising as your own team - say a scout. When it kicks off hit a cloak and it looks like just another scout fatality, much easier to get away with. Mixing it up like this usually has good results.

[Kanadwen]

Originally Posted by BumGravy

"rampant paranoia"

Yup, I'm constantly looking behind me whenever I know there is a spy aboot. And half the damn time I still don't see them because they are cloaked and sneaking sneaking sneaking and backstab me and I cry.

[SuicideChicken]

cloaks are easy as hell to see. i have yet to see a spy escape me when i'm sniping. i see the distortion, estimate where they are at their speed, and shoot. normally i find them and kill them.

the other times their cloak fails and someone else finishes them

[Dr.Uudge]

Originally Posted by Kanadwen

Yup, I'm constantly looking behind me whenever I know there is a spy aboot. And half the damn time I still don't see them because they are cloaked and sneaking sneaking sneaking and backstab me and I cry.

LOL.

Originally Posted by SuicideChicken

cloaks are easy as hell to see. i have yet to see a spy escape me when i'm sniping. i see the distortion, estimate where they are at their speed, and shoot. normally i find them and kill them.

I think it depends on what dxlevel is being used. And the grafix card. There was another thread talking about dxlevels and i think the lower ones were more difficult to see the spy.

[TurboWolf]

-Staring at a buildable: Spy.
-Roaming around base doing nothing: Spy.
-Stalking teammates: Spy.
-Not shooting at enemies, running away or simply ignoring them: Spy.

Seriously, it ain't that hard to spot those spies.

[lollerskates]

Originally Posted by BumGravy

Another under-used tactic is disguising as your own team - say a scout. When it kicks off hit a cloak and it looks like just another scout fatality, much easier to get away with. Mixing it up like this usually has good results.

Never thought of that strategy. I'll have to try it.

Originally Posted by TurboWolf

-Staring at a buildable: Spy.
-Roaming around base doing nothing: Spy.
-Stalking teammates: Spy.
-Not shooting at enemies, running away or simply ignoring them: Spy.

Seriously, it ain't that hard to spot those spies.

But it just isn't always that simple.


Anyway, I think I was too hasty with this thread. Now that I've played a lot more I don't find it that bothersome anymore, and I've learned to use the cloak a lot better.

[mervaka]

cloak was designed to be visible if you weren't preoccupied with something else. it wasnt designed to replace disguises, but compliment.

[lollerskates]

Originally Posted by mervaka

cloak was designed to be visible if you weren't preoccupied with something else. it wasnt designed to replace disguises, but compliment.

I know.

I think the best way to avoid a backstab is to keep your back to a wall. I haven't been able to back stab anyone who has had their backs directly against a wall, i usually end up stabbing at them and then getting shot to death.

[bl3h]

A lot of spies are obvious its hilarious. First off i never trust anyone who has their back to the action. If theyre not engaging enemy or have their back to the enemy its something to worry about. Spies tend to look at you, stare. face you, while your teamates hardly pay attention at all. Especially around sentries. I figure out a lot of people who try to sabatoge my sentries because theyre looking at me as if theyre watching to see if im figuring it out or not.

[lollerskates]

Originally Posted by bl3h

A lot of spies are obvious its hilarious. First off i never trust anyone who has their back to the action. If theyre not engaging enemy or have their back to the enemy its something to worry about. Spies tend to look at you, stare. face you, while your teamates hardly pay attention at all. Especially around sentries. I figure out a lot of people who try to sabatoge my sentries because theyre looking at me as if theyre watching to see if im figuring it out or not.

I've tried simply walking the past the sentry as if it doesn't interest me, and then coming back moments later (if it's located in a corridor or something). Of course, the safest option is to wait until the sentry gun's owner is away.

I'm currently practising the art of assuming somebody's identity (engineer exits room, I go in etc.).

[mervaka]

yeah, thats what i'm hoping the spy will be all about. being a clever dick!

[richard nixon]

I kinda thought it was too easy to spot a spy. If I notice a spy always coming in and ruining things I'll start shooting every team mate until either their HP goes down or they make that grunt, then I waste away.

And to the spies that are too difficult to spot and always seem to own you, well that's them doing their job. Usually only happens if I'm sniping and distracted or if I'm with another engineer near the same area. I always think hey what a nice guy helping me out, then he sabotages my sg and I learn my lesson.

[Mapex]

Originally Posted by Ihmhi

Ways to detect a Spy

Red ones only work with FF off.

• Hit 'em with the flamethrower, he'll catch fire if he's an enemy.
• Hit 'em with the medkit.
• Hit 'em with the spanner.
• Have a Spy touch him.
• Have a Scout touch him.
• Tell him to shoot his weapon.
• Keep an eye on team doors, elevators, etc. - see if he opens them.
• Listen for the grunt if you damage him.

I think eight ways to detect a Spy is plenty.

Pretty much sums it up.

On any server I go on, spies get spychecked so badly it makes the class almost pointless.

I do very well with the spy, but when the paranoia is upped quite a few notches, even new players who are asking "why is my own SG shooting at me?" learn quickly to spy check. Even new players gun me down with their rail and shotguns before I can do anything. So I switch it up and start fighting in the battlefield, following enemies leaving their base and stabbing their backs and taking their identities to clear paths for my team to get to the enemy base. But if I go back to Mr. Newbie Engineer 15 to 20 minutes later, he still knows to spy check. It's ridiculously easy to spy check.

I'm more of a Q3F than a TFC player personally, but I've always felt that spy checking should be independent of whether or not FF is on or off. Doing damage to an enemy Spy with FF off should not trigger any different sound effects than should doing damage to a teammate.

In Q3F, spanners (called wrenches :P) REMOVED ENEMY SPY (Agent :P) disguises. Also, only Paramedics could see teammate health values and only Engineers could see teammate armor values - these two values were not available to all teammates (so if you shot at a disguised enemy Spy as say a Soldier, you wouldn't know that it did damage to them unless it killed them).

I know the Spy is a much deadlier class in FF than in TFC and Q3F, but I also feel it is fairly easily nullified even in the hands of a smart player. I myself don't let any Spies pass me if I'm on defense, especially if I'm an Engineer. I use my Spanner in FF alone for spy checking more than I've ever used my Crowbar in HL and HL2 and my Wrench in BioShock combined.

Before you make a crack at my skill level (I think the internet's forums like to do this all the time), when I'm playing a Spy I can do fairly well, even when the paranoia level hits the ceiling. But when some really anal people start connecting, I'm pretty much made null and void except if I want to kill the enemy offense on the battlefield, which only works on certain maps such as Well.

Done with my rambling.

[beans]

Can a spy still only display the primary weapon of the class they are disguised as?

[Thormier]

Doesnt the spy have the same name as you ?

[Iggy]

Unless something has changed, the spy displays a random playername of someone on the disguised team playing the class you are disguised as. If no one is playing as that class, it will show up with the name of the player looking at you.

[SuicideChicken]

i find its effective to hold walk, and back into the enemy base as a sniper. its highly acceptable and normal behaviour for a sniper. i just take a quick look behind me form time to time so i dont accidentially walk into a spawn gun or off a cliff.

[Wile E Coyote]

I feel the need to put my 2 cents in.

I'm torn on this. Yes in the past technically it was ridiculously easy to check for spies. But yet also they somehow STILL managed to wreak havoc on public servers. It really required some insight on the spies' part to be cunning and devious, figure out what the team was shooting at and what he/she ccould get away with, etc.

Now, well heck, I love the additions to the spy. Sabotage was a brilliant idea. And the instant disguise stealing with a backstab. But on a pub server, the spy is just too easy. Too many n00bs do NOT talk to their teammates let alone have ANY FRIGGIN CLUE why their teammates are shooting at them, what the spy does, etc, etc, etc. What ens up happening is that those who actually KNOW what they are doing end up shooting EVERYONE about 5000 times.

Having said all that, I can also relate that I've been pretty successful at identifying and killing spies in this game. I know what targets spies go for. But then again I was a severely seasoned veteran of TFC and could play TFC darn near blindfolded. There are good arguments both pro and con for teammates bleeding when you shoot them with ff off, but push come to shove I'd have to say............

Remove it.


If someone wants to make things difficult for identifying spies, they can just turn FF on. Just like before.

[Jeroi]

One thing that I hate because spys cant be identified properly is, no loudspeaker image on top of their head when your teammate spy speaks dont shoot me in to the voice. In a fast combat situation. somebody is yelling but in tfc I could see who is speaking because that image on top of the player.

Other is even this with voicecoms that you cannot even understand who is speaking as it is not told you any way on the screan, but you just hear somebody talking, nothing happening on the screen tho.

Spy cloack is too powerfull tho, offy will be in clanplay like 2 medics and 2 spys now.