Team Fortress 2/Engineer

Engineers build various buildings to help the team. Engineers are great on defense but also good offensively if played correctly.
 * Health: 125
 * Speed: 100%
 * Type: [[Image:TF2_achievement_impossible_defense.jpg||20px]] Defense

Weapons
The engineer is not well suited for combat. Your weapons won't do enough damage to kill before you're killed, but paired with a sentry you can kill almost anything.

Primary Weapons
Just like the shotgun of other classes, only instead of using it as a backup weapon this is your primary. You'll have to get good with it if you want to try offensive engineering.
 * Shotgun - Clip Size: 6 - Reserve Ammo: 32 - Reloaded one at a time

Secondary Weapons
The engineer's pistol is useful for irritating enemies at a distance and serves as a good backup when your shotgun needs reloading. It is very difficult to run out of ammo with this gun, so fire away.
 * Pistol - Clip Size: 12 - Reserve Ammo: 200

Melee Weapons
Unlike other classes, you will be using this all the time. Hitting a damaged building will repair it and give it ammo (if applicable). Hitting an undamaged sentry will give it ammo and upgrade it (if it isn't level 3). Hitting a building that is still assembling will speed up the build time and hitting a fully repaired, fully loaded, fully upgraded building will do nothing. If a building gets sapped, hitting it twice will knock the sapper off. Oh, and if needed you can hit enemies with it too.
 * Wrench

Other
Not really a weapon at all, but a tool. Once you have it out, press 1 to build a sentry, 2 to build a dispenser, 3 to build a teleporter entrance or 4 to build a teleporter exit. You can also press Q to cancel. If you had enough metal, you will now be in build mode. In build mode, you can move around normally and right click to rotate your building. When you've found a good spot for your building, left click to place it.
 * Build PDA

Again, not really a weapon at all. Once you have it out pressing 1, 2, 3 or 4 will destroy the corrosponding building. If you got this out by accident, pressing Q will cancel.
 * Destroy PDA

Buildings
Engineers build things using metal. Engineers start with 200 metal, but use some as they repair or build things. You can replenish your metal by using the resupply, picking up fallen weapons, picking up ammo packs, or by using a Dispenser. Once you have placed a building you can leave it alone to assemble by itself or you can hit it with the wrench to speed up the process.

When a building is destroyed, it drops scrap metal. Each piece of scrap replenishes half of your ammo reserve and a small amount of metal

Sentry Gun
Health: 150 (level 1), 180 (level 2), 216 (level 3) Metal Cost: 130 Dropped Metal: 60 Upgrade Cost: 200 Metal per level

The sentry gun is your main method of dealing with attacks. It will automatically fire at enemies within its range. When you are placing the sentry, you should see 2 lines that extend outward to make a cone. While the sentry can fire out of this cone, it will take much longer to lock on and turn. You can rotate your sentry to give it a better view of where you are trying to defend. If you have your settings turned high enough, you can also see a large blue globe (you might not see it indoors). This is your sentry's maximum range. Enemies outside of this range will not be targeted, meaning they can bombard your sentry with impunity. Good sentry placement is the key to surviving as an engineer.

The sentry can be upgraded by hitting it with the wrench. Each hit puts 25 metal into the sentry, once it has 200 it will upgrade to the next level. Sentries cannot be upgraded once they reach level 3. Level 1 sentries are fairly weak and can be taken out by almost any class if noticed. Level 2 sentries are much stronger and you can safely start building other structures once it's done and level 3 sentries kill enemies almost instantly.

Remember though: Any level of sentry can be taken out by an experienced player if you are not there to protect it. An unmanned sentry is little more than a speedbump.

Dispenser
Health: 150 Metal Cost: 100 Dropped Metal: 50

The dispenser is a useful little building which gives health and ammo to friendlies and gives metal to you and your fellow engineers. When it is first built, the dispenser will hold 25 metal and it will generate 40 metal every 5 seconds automatically. Metal in the dispenser is automatically distributed to nearby engineers. Replenishing ammo and health does not deplete the dispenser's metal supply.

You can upgrade the dispenser to level 3 just like the sentry gun. Each level will increase the metal and health output of the dispenser.

On offense, this building is almost as important as the sentry gun, if not more so.

Teleporter Entrance
Health: 150 Metal Cost: 125 Dropped Metal: 60

One half of a teleporter system. Even if you don't plan on placing an exit (which you should), plop this thing down outside your spawn anyway and resupply. It only takes up 5 seconds of your time. Once both entrance and exit have been built, this building will start glowing and a yellow arrow will point in the direction of the exit. Standing on the teleporter briefly will instantly move you to the exit. Once used, a teleporter takes 10 seconds to recharge. After using a teleporter, a team colored glow will be visible at your feet. This can give away the location of a secret teleporter, so be careful.

This can be upgraded like a dispenser or a sentry gun at 200 metal a level. It doesn't matter if you upgrade the entrance or the exit, they will both be upgraded at the same time. If either the entrance or the exit is destroyed the other one's level is reduced back to one making it more vital to protect both ends. Before a match starts it can be helpful to go engineer and upgrade other engineer's entrances so they can concentrate on other things.

The teleporter on offense can be the key to taking an enemy point as it helps you get to the front lines faster. It can also be helpful on some maps for defense if your spawn is far away from the area that needs defending.

Teleporter Exit
Health: 150 Metal Cost: 125 Dropped Metal: 60

The other half of a teleporter system. You can place this with your sentry where it will be protected or somewhere where the enemy won't find it. On defense, the sentry method is usually better, but on offense either method can work. Placing your teleporter behind enemy lines can help turn the tide of battle.

When you are placing a teleporter exit, a small yellow arrow will be visible on the blueprint (another one will float in the air). This indicates which way a player will be facing once teleported. Right click to rotate the exit, try to place it so that it is pointing in the right direction.

This can be upgraded like a dispenser or a sentry gun at 200 metal a level. It doesn't matter if you upgrade the entrance or the exit, they will both be upgraded at the same time. If either the entrance or the exit is destroyed the other one's level is reduced back to one making it more vital to protect both ends. Before a match starts it can be helpful to go engineer and upgrade other engineer's entrances so they can concentrate on other things.

The teleporter on offense can be the key to taking an enimy point as it helps you get to the front lines faster. It can also be helpful on some maps for defense if your spawn is far away from the area that needs defending.

Using the Engineer
Engineers are a versatile class. Usually 1 will suffice on offense, but on defense you can have up to 4 without hindering your team. While you don't need to be good with the shotgun to defend well, on offense you will need good aim with all your weapons. Against spies you will usually want to use the wrench, but sometimes the shotgun is needed. If a spy hangs around your stuff after sapping, he will probably resap once you knock off a sapper. You will need to kill him or chase him off before you try to repair your stuff. Teleporters are easy to replace, but a level 3 sentry will take a long time, as will a full dispenser. Unsap your sentry first, then your dispenser, then your teleporters.

On defense, there are 2 main ways to place a sentry. You can put it somewhere behind the front line so your team can fall back when things go bad (if you do this you can help with your shotgun) or you can put it on the frontline, where it will need constant repair and some protection while you set up. Generally, you'll want to put your dispenser next to your sentry so you have a constant stream of metal.

On offense, there are also 2 ways to place a sentry. You can use it to defend your outpost, or you can place it behind enemy lines where it'll hopefully get a kill or two before being destroyed. If you choose the second method, it helps to have a steady source of metal nearby so you can place the sentry over and over. Never put a sentry in the same place twice in a row.

On defense, you'll generally want to put your dispenser next to your sentry so you have a constant stream of metal.

On offense, you can either place it in your outpost or put use it as a constant stream of metal used to set up ninja sentries. You can also place ninja sentries and just leave the dispenser with your teleporter exit, if you do this you'll need your team to defend it.

On defense, the front line is typically somewhere far from the spawn, so the simplest way to place a teleporter is to put the entrance at your spawn and the exit somewhere near enough to the front to be useful, but far enough away to be out of danger. Alternatively, you can put it near your sentry and dispenser. Be careful about that, because sentry guns tend to attract a lot of fire and if a grenade hits you'll have 3 structures to repair instead of 2.

On offense, teleporters can be placed behind your front line or behind the enemy line, your choice. Teleporters behind enemy lines tend to be destroyed fairly quickly as the sparkles around your teammates feet give it away, but it's usually well worth it. If you think your sentry and dispenser can survive when you take the time to replace your exit, this is a good method of teleporter placement. Otherwise, just place your teleporter in the same spot as the rest of your buildings.

Defeating the Engineer
Any class can take out an engineer in direct combat. Taking out sentries, however, is harder. The standard method is edging, which is peeking around a corner until you can see a tiny bit of the sentry but it can't see you, then shooting it from there. Edging leaves you vulnerable, however, so it is usually not viable in heavily congested spots.


 * 1) As a scout, your only hope is to edge it while the engineer isn't looking. By standing still long enough to edge it, you negate your main advantage, speed, so you should usually just try to avoid sentries outright. Bonk energy drink can also be used to help get past it.
 * 2) Soldiers are well equipped to take out sentries in most positions. If the engineer isn't babysitting it, 3 rockets will take down a level 3 sentry and 2 rockets will take out anything else. If the engineer is repairing his sentry, try to take either him or his dispenser out first with splash damage.
 * 3) Pyros are not usually good against sentries, however, in some positions you can edge with the flamethrower and kill the sentry very quickly. Even if the engi is repairing it, you can usually damage faster than he repairs and you may even kill the engineer in the process.
 * 4) Demomen are the best sentry killers in the game. Just put 3 stickies next to a sentry, detonate and kaboom. If the engineer doesn't die, you can finish him easily with your grenade launcher.
 * 5) Heavies can go toe to toe with sentries in some cases. Otherwise, if a pyro can edge a sentry, chance are the heavy can too.
 * 6) Engineers have about the same chance as a scout. Avoid.
 * 7) Medics aren't good against sentries on their own, but their ubercharge is a guarenteed way to kill any level of sentry. Best uber canditates for sentry killing are demomen and pyros. Soldiers and heavies can also work, but others are better.
 * 8) Snipers slightly better at edging than scouts. If you can see the engineer's head you can snipe that then move on to the sentry, or you can snipe his dispenser. If he's repairing his sentry you won't be able to kill it, but otherwise you are in with a good shot. Two snipers that fire fully charged shots at the same time can instantly eliminate a level 3 sentry.
 * 9) As a spy you are the second best standalone sentry killer in the game. The methods for dealing with a sentry are numerous, but most of them are negated when there are multiple sentries covering each other. When it comes to sentry nests you might serve your team best you suicidally sapping everything while your team blasts the enemy buildings to bits. If you encounter a lone engineer with his sentry, you can try stab'n'sap, sap'n'stab or just plain sap to take it out.

Overall though, the best answer is teamwork. Even scouts can kill sentries if there's enough of them.