TF2 Newbs (Team Fortress 2) Blog

When TF2 suddenly introduced their casual and competitive modes and removed quickplay, a lot of problems became immediately apparent. Two weeks have passed since the launch, and I can say that both modes have much improved. Let’s dig into what has changed now that quickplay no longer exists–and see what else is going on:

1. Heavy vs. Pyro ends Sunday, August 14th. Pyro is winning, 55% to 45%, at this time.
2. {N} Olse has a signup on the forums for his next Newbs XCom 2 write-up.
3. Terraria patched
4. Short tutorial on TF2 Matchmaking
5. Full patch notes from July 28

 

XCom 2: Newbs Edition!

It’s that time again: {N} Olse will write up an account of how us Newblets will save the world in 2038! Just sign up on the forums by creating a character according to his guidelines. Olse will play thru the game with characters designed by Newbs’ specifications, and then fictionalize that outcomes for a story for you to read!

 

Terraria Patch 1.3.2 is now Live

So what’s new in Terraria? Here you go:

• Having a Party Girl in your town will occasionally cause town members to throw a Party. Party Girl and Clothier sells different stuff during a Party, including a piñata that looks like a pig.
• You can now choose what kind of evil corruption is in your world during world creation, as long as you have a world savefile that has unlocked Hardmode.
• A lot of bugfixes.

This isn’t much of an update, but developer ReLogic says that a future patch will create a biome out of the Underground Desert, and its hallow/corrupt/crimson hardmode variants, so there’s that to look forward to.

Also, they have been hard at work on Terraria: Otherworld for some time. The game is going to be a more RPG-centric game with more concrete goals, skill trees, NPCs with deep personalities, etc. They’ve hired a new art director and have decided to rework much of the game, so I don’t think you’ll see it enter beta in the next two years.

I continue to mention Terraria news because a lot of Newbs players own and play Terraria.

 

A Short Tutorial on the New TF2 Matchmaking

Helpful links:

• My TF2Newbs Guide on the Items of TF2 is great for beginners.
• In case you missed it, I wrote up A Close Look at TF2 Class Rebalances and all of the item changes.

Note that the option “Quickplay” no longer exists. Now, you can choose from the following options when you hit “Find a Game”:

• Casual: After a short wait, you’ll join a game (occasionally in-progress) randomly selected from the map options you’ve checkmarked.
  • No penalties for leaving in the middle of a match.
  • A typical match tends to take 10-30 minutes.
  • You can level up your Casual Rank by scoring points and winning matches.
• Competitive: After a short wait, you’ll join a 6-on-6 match on a randomly selected control point map.
  • Big penalties (in Rank, cooldown before joining next match) for leaving in the middle of a match.
  • A typical match tends to take 5-20 minutes.
  • Your Competitive Rank can go up or down depending on the match results.
• Mann vs. Machine: After a short wait, you’ll join a team of players that fight a bunch of computer-controlled robots.
  • Boot Camp is free-to-play, and some servers allow more than 6 players.
  • Mann Up requires tickets, limits the party to 6 players, and provides rewards for completing missions.
• Community Servers: Opens the Server Selection window so you can select a Favorited server, one you’ve played in your History, or search for one on the Internet.
  • This is how you can find our TF2Newbs servers!
• Training: Complete solo practice missions to learn how to play TF2.
• Create Server: Launch your own server, choosing any map that you have preloaded into your TF2 files. You can have players join and/or bots can play as well.

Casual Play

Casual Play replaced Quickplay for the following reasons:

• You will typically (but not always) join a game before the match has begun. A Valve server identifies 24 players (or up to 32, depending on the server) currently searching for a game, then starts the game by pulling them all in at the same time.
  • I’m not sure if Casual Rank is a variable in which players will join you in a match, so players of all levels of Casual Rank may be lumped together in a server.
• The server will attempt to pull in players a little while after a player abandons the server or disconnects.
• Autobalancing is disabled, but votekicking was enabled once more after the July 28th patch. So you can complete an entire match (each team gets to attack and defend once, or best two-out-of-three rounds on symmetrical control point maps, for example) with the same team of players.
• If you want to play with your friends, you can Create a Party beforehand. Your entire party will then be on the same team.
  • If you invite them to a game after the match has begun, there is no guarantee that they will join your side–they cannot join Spectator, and will be assigned a team when they arrive.
• There is NO penalty for leaving a Casual match. You can join another match at any time, and you get credit to your rank, based on your play up to the point of leaving/disconnection.

Oh, and you do get to choose the map and game modes you wish to play! Under each play format, you can click open a window to enable/disable specific maps. Use this function when you want to play on a specific map right now, or you only want to play on a list of your favorities. Note that only official Valve maps, unlike the beta map Asteroid, are available.

(In the above picture, slightly fewer players are searching to play Hoodoo than Borneo. If I begin the search, I may ended up at a Hoodoo or Borneo map, but not an Upward map, and never at a Payload Race map.)

 

Competitive Play

This has come around because serious TF2 players have wanted this option for years. Valve’s Comp Play is still quite different than the competitive leagues out there, but they are much more accessible, since you don’t have to join a team, organize practices, discuss strategies, or work around item restrictions. So consider it Comp Play Lite if you wish. But here are the features:

• TF2 Comp Play still revolves mostly around 5CP maps, so only the following maps are available (randomly selected for the match):
  • Badlands 5CP (not KOTH)
  • Foundry (just added!)
  • Gorge CP (not 5CP)
  • Granary (just added!)
  • Gullywash
  • Metalworks
  • Process
  • Snakewater
  • Sunshine
  • Swiftwater (just added!)
  • Vanguard (just added!)
  • Viaduct KOTH
• You can Create a Party–and it is recommended that you do so–but you can also jump in with solo or with a partial party.
  • There are no class limits, no item restrictions, and no votekicking or autobalancing. But if you choose Sniper, you better be good, or you’re going to hear about it from your party.
  • Currently only 6v6 is supported, but other modes such as 9v9 may be supported in the future.
  • You don’t get to choose your map.
• Random critical hits are disabled. You only get critical hits when a buff or uber grants them to you; this is typical of most comp leagues out there.
• This is Ranked Play: your party will face a party of similar average Rank.
  • Your Rank can go up or down after a match depending on match won/loss, points scored, and other elements of your play.
  • There is a hidden ELO in the game, which is represented by your Rank. If you were to always play at the same relative skill level, your Rank will rise to that level and then stay roughly the same.
• There are penalties for abandoning a match.
  • You will receive a greater loss of Rank than if you had merely lost the game (since the July 28th patch).
  • A “cooldown timer”, which won’t let you join another match after an Abandon, is enforced.
    • If you have played only a few games, the cooldown timer is much greater (hours’ and days’ cooldown).
    • Each Abandon increases this cooldown timer before you can play the next match.
    • All of this is designed to prevent the player who tries to leave a match in order to avoid incurring a loss. A player with lots of losses has an accurate Rank; a player with lots of Abandons is not a team player that ruins the game for everyone.

Community Servers

Don’t want to play on a Valve server? Join a community server for any of the following reasons:

• You want to play on our TF2Newbs servers! Of course you do.
  • To join server #04, a 2Fort server: open your console, and type the following:

    • connect server4.tf2newbs.com

  • Then, Favorite us so you can find us again quickly!

• You want to play on a server with alltalk, class limits, randomizer, or other options
• You want to be able to join spectate, change sides, vote for an autobalance, or just wander around exploring
• You want to play on a server with admins that can help when there is a problem, or you want a family-friendly server
• You want to find a trade server, a Sniper-friendly server, a jump server, or an MGE server
• You like to play on a server that has regulars that frequent the same playing space, and can chat with while gaming

Playing games is a social act, and so it makes sense to build and support a community where people can gather to play their favorite games.

 

Create a Server

Can’t find any active server to play on the Asteroid map? Feel like practicing your Soldier skills against a bunch of Engineer bots on Dustbowl? Do you want to invite your friends to a map you’ve made yourself? Use “Create a Server” to do all of these and more.

It is necessary to be familiar with console commands to load bots, use cheats, and otherwise make changes to the server. Hit the tilde (~) key to open the console, where you can type in commands.

Bots need a navigation mesh to be able to play a map; without one, they stay in spawn. If you’re using a map other than one of these, then you will need to generate a mesh for the bots with a command, which may require several minutes and will restart the server.

 

Full Patch Notes: July 28, 2016

• Matchmaking
  • Competitive Mode
    • Abandon penalty times are now longer for first-time abandoners with a low number of games played
    • Abandoning a game now results in significant rank loss. This loss is always greater than losing a given match.
    • Fixed an issue where players could drop and reconnect too many times before triggering an abandon
  • Casual Mode
    • Matches can now start with fewer than 24 players when there are not enough compatible players in queue
      • The match will still add additional players (up to 24) as they become available
      • This should improve queue times for low-population regions and game modes
    • Added maps cp_gullywash, cp_snakewater, and koth_probed
    • Fixed not being able to cycle between spectator modes
• Weapon viewmodels
  • The field-of-view slider has been re-added to Adv. Options menu (range: 54 to 70 degrees)
    • This feature is now allowed in Competitive Mode
  • Improved and fixed many animations when using a higher viewmodel field-of-view
  • Removed custom animations from the sv_pure whitelist because it was being exploited
  • Adjusted The Cow Mangler^(sic) and Black Box reload animations to be slightly faster (they now match the default rocket launcher)
• Your class portrait will now always be the innermost in the match status HUD (top center) and will have a slightly brighter background
• Added the Prinny promo items to the Mann Co. Store
• Added the Florida LAN 2016 community medal
• PASS Time update
  • Fixed achievement items (e.g. Civilian Grade JACK Hat) not cloaking with the Spy
  • Tweaks and fixes for all maps
  • Fix pack speed not being updated sometimes
  • Aiming players will no longer receive pack speed bonus
  • Some adjustments to reduce average round length
    • Overtime will end immediately if the winning team touches the ball
    • Overtime won’t happen if it’s impossible for the losing team to win
• Fixed players being able to avoid a vote-kick by reconnecting to the server at the right time
• Fixed the pd_watergate HUD not drawing
• Fixed Engineer teleporter exits sometimes detonating when used due to invisible geometry
• Fixed getting a black screen if the chat window was open when the match stats were being shown
• Fixed weapons not being hidden during some taunts for the Engineer, Medic, and Soldier
• Fixed Spy cloak causing the HUD 3D Character to cloak for the player the Spy is disguised as
• Fixed a client crash related to the animation system
• Fixed a bug where players in looping taunts could sometimes cause other clients to drop from the server
• Fixed not seeing particle effects for Unusual versions of Baseball Bill’s Sports Shine, Ritzy Rick’s Hair Fixative, and Texas Slim’s Dome Shine
• Fixed hearing the “team wipe” Announcer audio at the incorrect times

Undocumented changes

• Fixed Rocket Jumper viewmodel not being affected by Use minimized viewmodels option
• Updated the localization files.

[N] Obey

Suddenly, TF2 wouldn’t let you choose a map unless you joined a community server! And you got punished for leaving a casual game! And TF2 got a bit more crashy! Never fear–patches are here! Here’s the summary:

• Casual Mode got a bunch of bugfixes and quality-of-life changes, incl:
  • Games with open slots will now receive new players normally
  • Added Vote Kick option: Kicked players will still receive partial experience
  • You can toggle on/off which maps you are willing to play on; game remembers your settings
• Re-added Create Server option
• MvM: Fixed sentry buster sounds from repeating after destruction

 

If you still want to play on servers with players of all skill levels, instead of players at your Rank, that’s what community servers are for, like TF2Newbs! We are here to promote a Newb-friendly playing environment free of slurs and hackers.

Speaking of Ranks, note that your Casual Rank and your Competitive Rank are separate! Your Comp Rank can go up and down as you play, but your Casual Rank can only go up. Ranks aren’t a factor in community servers at all.

 

16 July 2016 Patch Notes: Patch 1

• Updated Casual Mode
  • Fixed a problem where in-progress games with open slots would not receive new players
  • Fixed a case where players would sometimes not receive experience (when playing a match to completion)
  • Fixed not getting domination/revenge events
  • Added a feature to the game mode selection screen that allows players to play on specific maps
  • Added the Vote Kick option
    • Players that are kicked will receive partial experience after the match ends
  • Maps previously using the stopwatch timer will now play to completion, regardless of the first team’s time
• Added a “Create Server” button to the “Find a Game” menu
• Fixed the party chat window sometimes not drawing
• Fixed Australium weapons not drawing correctly in the character loadout screen
• Updated the Dr’s Dapper Topper to fix a material issue
• Thanks to Justin G., aka sigsegv, for these reports:
  • Fixed sentry buster^(sic) sounds not being cleaned up properly after detonating
  • Fixed a bug related to bot death detection
• Updated Taunt: The Balloonibounce to end the taunt if the player is moved
• Fixed a regression in the Pyro’s flamethrower where flames could sometimes damage players behind obstacles and walls
• PASS Time update
  • Updated several HUD materials to support mat_picmip
  • Fixed seeing the wrong cap limit in the win panel

Undocumented changes

• Updated loading tips.
• Updated the localization files.

Patch 2

• Fixed a common client crash that prevented the game from starting

9 July 2016 Patch Notes

• Fixed the Strange Filter: Competitive tool not describing itself properly after being applied to an item
• Fixed the Jackpot! PASS Time achievement not tracking wins
• Updated Mannpower Mode to use 7 captures per round on matchmaking servers (was 3)
• Updated ConVar zoom_sensitivity_ratio so its value is saved across sessions and it can be adjusted in Competitive Mode

[N] Obey

Hey all. The TF2 community has changed radically over the past two years. A lot of the hardcore players have left to pursue other games or responsibilities, yet the game continues to attract more casual players than ever. A minor adjustment to the TF2 Quickplay — defaulting the “Play Now!” button to search only for Valve servers, as opposed to community servers or both — has poisoned the well with longtime players, as well as doing harm to the population of community servers.

The TF2Newbs servers haven’t been very active of late. But the blog continues to draw traffic, although much of it is from hits from search engines.

Overall, the blog has passed 275,000 lifetime hits!!

 

http://www.tf2newbs.com/newbs_blog/2014/07/04/itemfaq/

The “TF2Newbs’ Guide to More and Better Items” has passed 15,000 hits, and continues to grow!  Team Fortress 2 continues to attract new players that then use their search engines to learn more about basic TF2 facts, such as earning achievement items and what refined metal is for.

 

http://www.tf2newbs.com/newbs_blog/2014/01/06/a-tf2newbs-guide-to-mvm-item-hunting/

My first FAQ, “A TF2Newbs Guide to MvM Item Hunting”, has also passed 15,000 hits! I don’t think the Mann vs. Machine horde mode is as popular as it once was, but there continues to be demand for Australian weapons, so somebody’s got to keep killing those robots. Golden Frying Pans still drop once in a while as well; as of this posting, currently 107 exist in the game.

 

http://www.tf2newbs.com/forum/index.php/topic,14017.0.html

(Sorry, hyperlinks are busted.)

I just started a thread asking Where (and What) You’re Playing on Steam Lately. Log in and tell us, so we can meet up and play together.

 

By the way, Valve’s updates have been few and far between for a while now. Methinks Valve is finally hard at work on their next game. They’ve already polished their next Source engine; so they could be making the next incarnations of their franchises, such as an overhaul of TF2, that mythical Half Life 3, or even some new game. They’ve sold hardware, launched an OS, made a new engine; it’s about time they actually publish a new game. Oh wait–it very well could be Left For Dead 3….

 

[N] Obey

NFL and elite soccer leagues everywhere are horrified: a new challenger has appeared! Finally, a sport where YOU CAN KILL THE OTHER TEAM without having to join a player’s union. The patch summary:

1. New game mode “PASS Time” substitutes a ball and goals to standard CTF play.
   • Pass the ball to allies or throw the ball with primary fire button; steal the ball with a melee hit.
2. “Gun Mettle” map Suijin updated to improve play around its central point.
3. New hat, “The Finder’s Fee”, awarded to users that report major exploits and bugs to Valve.
4. Bugfixes, including:
   • The Loadout Screen now shows the animation of any equipped Unusual Effects.
   • Demoman gained some missing voice lines when laughing.
   • MvM medigun shield will recreate when switching away, then back to medigun, while medigun shield is engaged.
   • Map voting now enabled with Workshop maps.

 

Don’t forget: “Gun Mettle” Season runs through September 30th, so you can be completing contracts while playing the new game mode.

 

1. Are You Ready For Some… Football? WTF?!

“Soccer? Is that you?” Actually, PASS Time is more of a capture-the-flag remake, with a single flag that spawns over a neutral point, and to be thrown into the opposing goal as the objective. And when you don’t have the ball (or “jack” as they call it), you’ll fight for it in typical TF2 fashion: destroying the enemy with your weapons. Official blog post here.

It’s a simple variation on the familiar CTF theme. All you have to learn is how to throw and pass the ball, and that’s simple: hold the primary fire button for a targeting cursor, then aim and release to chuck it. You can also pass it to allies in the same manner, and you can call out for passes as well.

Steal the ball from the enemy by killing the player and/or applying a melee hit. Stealing the ball (or being the first to recover it) will grant you a moment of invulnerability, health regeneration and a small speed boost. The game’s center of action will constantly be moving with the ballcarrier, so speed and mobility will be very important. Note that many of the recent weapon tweaks had this game mode in mind when they were launched.

PASS Time is currently in a live beta, similar to rd_asteroid has been for the last year. Currently there is just one map, pass_warehouse: a long, narrow map with plenty of rusty trailers to jump around, air lifts shooting you into the sky, and speed boost zones. Because of the beta, expect changes to be applied to maps and gameplay alike.

One difference: you have to take the ball to the enemy’s zone to score, not your own! You’ll be closer to enemy respawns when nearer their goal than not. You’ll definitely need teammates to respond to respawning enemies and goaltending sentries. There are also few ammo and health pickups, so don’t get killed too quickly or you’ll be scored on while waiting to respawn.

Joining a PASS Time Game

There are Valve Beta servers running Warehouse now, but they may not come up in Quickplay. Search for them in your Servers menu, and bookmark a Valve server, as it will probably be 24/7 for a while.

Early Meta and Strategies

Essentially, half of the team will try to attack or chase the ball, and the other half ends up defending (probably because some players don’t want to chase all over the map). These are the roles I’m seeing so far:

Scout: Right away, a lot of players will play Scout, just for the increased movement speed and jumping ability. Grab the Atomizer and Soda Popper for extra jump, and possibly Bonk! for your secondary, but a skilled Scout player will shine in a killing role also. This game could devolve into everyone playing Scouts, until you run into a goal-camping Engineer.

Pyro: When the enemy all goes Scout, naturally you’ll want to go Pyro so you can harass them with fire. But without water or cliffs to airblast them, Pyro is a little out of his/her element. Consider a Powerjack for speed and the Reserve Shooter.

Soldier: Rocketjumping really helps you get around, and you’re needed to destroy sentries and discourage campers. Your various buffs and the Disciplinary Action are necessary, since a single attacker usually fails to score. Try to convince your Scout to help you keep up. The Rocket Jumper may even be preferable, but then you can’t carry the ball.

Demoman: Although your role is defense, you’ll usually be chasing the ball and harassing the opposing team. Your stickies are needed to remove sentries, but you’ll shine as a demoman, charging ahead of others and stealing the ball with melee.

Heavy: You’re likely to spend most of your time between your goal and midfield, killing those who would take the ball, or guarding positions that would attack your sentries.

– THIS PART UNDER CONSTRUCTION–

 

2. Suijin: Waking Up From a Sniper’s Dream

Did you enjoy being able to take three steps out of spawn, scope up your sniper rifle of choice, and be able to cover both the enemy’s spawn and the map’s single point in the same view? Did you enjoy getting headshot every time you took a step to the left after you respawned from the last headshot? Well, koth_suijin has changed all of that.

As you can see in my screenshot above, two decorative, apocalypse-immune Japanese blinds has been placed horizontally on each side of the central point, preventing snipers from having an unobstructed view of the point or enemy spawn from their own. However, the blinds are not tall enough to protect against well-placed sentries on the top level above the point.

Also, note the fencing in the screenshot. It has been altered to allow easier passage around the spawn-side stairs on each side. The bridge on the neutral center, however, was not given this increased access.

Moreover, health and ammo pickups have moved around. There is a convenient walkway under the blindside wall’s bridge along the cliff, with a newly placed medium health kit that scouts and spies will surely appreciate.

 

3. Be a Bug Killer = Earn an Exclusive Hat.

In an effort to further encourage TF2 players to be on the lookout for game-ruining, economy-crashing game exploits, a standing bounty has been named by Valve for those who forgo the urge to be a profiteering haxz0r butthead and do the right thing in the first place: the Finder’s Fee is an all-class hat given by Valve when you self-report such bugs and exploits to Valve, such as a recent hack that allowed someone to create impossible items (like MvM robot weapons) with a Name Tag and an exploit. If you do earn this hat, you’ll probably Win the Internet for that day as well, so there’s that, too.

Hey, it’s not an unusual Cheater’s Lament, but people will recognize your contribution to the game. And the TF2Newbs community no-likey cheaters.

Full Patch Notes

As usual, full patch notes taken from The Official TF2 Wiki.

Patch 1

• Added new game mode ‘PASS Time‘ to the TF2 Beta
  • Check out the blog post for more information
• Fixed a crash caused by a client sending malformed network data to the server (thanks to Nathaniel Theis for this report and test case)
• Added a new hat ‘The Finder’s Fee‘
  • Will be awarded going forward on a case-by-case basis to those who report major economy-breaking bugs or remote-code-execution bugs, and provide detailed information and steps to reproduce
  • Well deserved congratulations to the first recipient, Nathaniel Theis
• Fixed visual bugs caused by picking up weapons with special attributes
• Fixed the Mann vs. Machine Medigun shield not being re-created after switching away from the Medigun and back while the charge is draining
• Fixed some alignment issues in the HUD meters for the Mann vs. Machine rage knockback and Medigun shield
• Fixed left-hand view models not displaying Stat Clocks correctly
• Fixed being able to use the tournament_readystate client command when using per-player ready status mode
• Fixed seeing a HUD mp_timelimit timer for maps that don’t end the round when the map timelimit runs out
• Fixed some missing VO sounds for the Demoman when laughing
• Fixed being able to use the Restore action on Killstreak Kits
• Fixed character loadout menus so they display the particle effects for all equipped Unusual items
• The Huo-Long Heater can now accept Posthumous Kills strange parts
• Updated the Australium Grenade Launcher to fix the wood material being shiny
• Updated the backpack images for the Gun Mettle Campaign Coin
• Updated LODs for several weapons and the sentry gun
• Updated Mann Co. Store prices for foreign currencies to current USD equivalents
• Updated the localization files
• Updated Koth_Suijin with the latest changes from the authors
  • Added cover around the point preventing cross-point sight line
  • Opened second window in point building
  • Tweaked pickup amounts and positions
  • Widened space between stairs to point and bridge railing to allow easier movement
  • Clipping improvements
  • Improved lighting in dark areas
  • Fixed an issue where engineers could build on outlying islands
  • Fixed an issue where engineers could trap teammates by building teleporters in spaces with restricted movement
  • Fixed an issue where the spawn room doors could be held open by an opposing team member
  • Optimization improvements
• Maps Workshop Beta
  • Fixed a common crash when loading some compressed maps
  • Fixed various issues running workshop maps on listen servers
  • Listen servers no longer unnecessarily fetch a second copy of the map
  • Listen servers no longer cause the client to crash upon the second load of the same workshop map
  • Added -ugcpath parameter for dedicated servers to control location of downloaded workshop content
  • Defaults to steamapps/workshop
  • Multiple servers sharing the same UGC directory is currently not supported, and will not go well
  • Added server command tf_workshop_map_status to view currently tracked maps and their status
  • Enhanced handling of updated maps to ensure the newest available version of the map is always used on level change
  • Improved handling of workshop maps in a server’s map cycle
  • Workshop maps in the map cycle will be automatically fetched and updated in the background
  • Workshop maps in the map cycle will have their names updated to the canonical name once known
  • Map votes now work with workshop maps
  • A known issue is that the full workshop map name is currently shown instead of the friendly name
  • Community request: Updated the FindMap and CanProvideLevel API for server-side mods. These functions now always expose the full workshop names for maps when known, even if not the map is not yet installed.

Patch 2

• Updated LODs for the revolver
• PASS Time update
  • Fixed a client crash related to the HUD
  • Fixed the Short Circuit being used to remove the Jack from the game
  • Fixed players being able to pick-up the Jack while they have weapons deployed that cannot be holstered
  • Updated pass_warehouse
    • Fixed players getting into enemy spawn rooms
    • Fixed the Jack being thrown into spawn rooms
    • Fixed being able to build in the goals

Patch 3

Fixed a PASS Time sound bug related to carrying the Jack

[N] Obey

Merry Smissmass! Team Fortress 2 is on a roll with new content! This update is HUGE in terms of affecting your gameplay. Demoman’s grenade launchers, stickybomb launchers, and charging-attack items have all been reworked/tweaked, stemming from last summer’s temporary changes. As usual, the summary is above, and the full patch notes are below.

TF2 Newbs ICYMI’s (In Case You Missed It news items):

1. TF2 Newbs’ Server Rules have been modified/clarified in regards to dodging autobalance on December 15th.
2. The “End of the Line” related duck drops and duck-related statistics will continue until January 5, 2015.
3. If you haven’t read them lately, here are some links you’ll want to bookmark:
   • “TF2 Newbs Guide to Halloween Events and Maps”
   • What the heck do “commodities” and “Buy Orders” have to do with TF2?
   • “TF2 Newbs Guide to Getting More and Better Items”
   • “TF2 Newbs Guide to MvM Item Hunting”
4. Server Keys Contest
5. Steam Holiday Sale–vote on Flash Sales and earn Holiday Cards!

Smissmas 2014 Update Summary:

1. Just log in to TF2 and get a Stuffed Stocking. Identical to last year’s Gift-Stuffed Stocking, you can Use it to get items:
   • A Giftapult
   • A Backpack Expander
   • A Name Tag
   • A Description Tag
   • A Tour of Duty Ticket
   • Two or three random drops (weapon or rarely a cosmetic).
   • You can’t market or trade these Stockings.
2. If you’re Premium, you also get one Secret Saxton. You can Use it to give one random person on your current server a single random item drop.
3. Demoman got 3 new weapons, and many existing Demoman weapons were modified.  See below at 1. for more info.
4. Nice 2014 Crate Keys and Naughty 2014 Crate Keys have been added.
   • Just like previous years, Nice Crates have 29 new, Limited community-designed cosmetics, and Naughty Crates have new, Limited Festive and Festive Strange weapons.
   • See below at 2. for more info.
   • Longer expiration window: They can be opened until February 16, 2015 (or just after Valentine’s Day).
5. A new game mode and mode-variant maps: Mannpower!
   • This is a variant capture-the-flag game with specific changes (no random crits, instant respawn with 6-second invulnerability) and new Mannpower-specific powerups. See 3. below for specifics.
   • Employs a new default, stock Action Slot item: the Grappling Hook.  Only used on Mannpower-enabled servers.
   • Currently supports ctf_gorge and ctf_foundry.
6. Now all Advanced and Expert MvM Tours of Duty have a (~2%) chance to drop an existing Australium weapon.
   • Previously, only the “Two Cities” Advanced Tour granted Australium weapons.
   • Now, the following Tours also grant a chance at an Aussie:
     • “Operation Steel Trap”: Advanced — two Decoy missions, two Coal Town missions, two Mannworks missions
     • “Operation Mecha Engine”: Advanced — one Decoy mission, two Big Rock missions
     • “Operation Gear Grinder”: Expert — one Decoy mission, one Coal Town mission, one Mannworks mission
   • No new Australium weapons are available.  The same pool of ten items are currently possible; there are now four different Tours that can be undertaken to try to earn them.
   • Killstreak Kits and Fabricators of the three new weapons are available to drop after completing a Two Cities Tour.
7. Bugfix: Crafting while consuming an item that is “temporarily untradable” will yield a “temporarily untradable” output, instead of a permanently Not Tradable output.

 

1. Major Demoman Changes

If you can recall the Love and War patch (and subsequent repatch), Demoman changes have been in the works for some time.  Welp, here they come!  A few seemingly minor nerfs will affect the one-eyed wonder’s ability to do quite as much damage, despite the apparent buffs given to his many weapons. Lemme explain….

First, the changes to the existing Demoman items:

Charging and Movement

• Bootlegger, Ali Baba’s Wee Booties, and Claidheamh Mor now grant +25% Charge meter on a charging kill. (The Claidheamh Mor stacks with either of the boots, refilling half of your Charge meter.) These items lengthen your current Charge, not reducing the delay of your next Charge!
• Scotsman’s Skullcutter now only reduces your movement speed when the weapon is active, instead of constantly when equipped.
• The Tide Turner has two tweaks:
  • Charging kills now give only 75% of your Charge meter, instead of 100%, forcing you to pause briefly between charges.
  • Taking damage during your Charge reduces your remaining Charge meter, relative to the damage dealt.

So Tide Turner Demoknights will have shorter charges than before, even when they are successful at going from kill to kill. Damaging them between Charges should not prevent them from Charging again very soon, but now they won’t be one continual blur as frequently.

However, the two boots items and the *Claymore can lengthen the current charge, so that Splendid Shield/Chargin’ Targe Demoknights can replicate some of the Tide Turner’s cleaving-from-kill-to-kill fun.  But use the Claidheamh Mor with the Tide Turner, and your current Charge can really stretch long, helping you reach your next victim before the Charge ends.

Projectile Damage

• ALL grenades and stickybombs now have their damage variance reduced to +/- 2% base damage, from +/- 10% damage.

If anything, the damage dealt by both projectiles have become more reliable on a direct hit, not less. Grenade base damage went from 100 (variance 90-110) on a direct hit to 100 (variance 98-102). Stickybomb base damage on a direct hit or close-range blast went from 120 (variance 103-138) to 120 (variance 118-122). Enemies with about 110 health, such as barely wounded Spies/Snipers/Engies/Scouts and most Soldier loadouts struck by your first direct projectile, will survive less often. But that’s not all of the changes….

• Direct-hit grenades (not stickies) now deal full damage to the target regardless of where it struck the enemy.  Previously, full damage would only occur when exploded closest to the target’s feet or legs.

So you no longer have to play like a Soldier and “aim for the feet” or guesstimate where a jumper will land; direct hits should be easier to land, eh? But wait, there’s more:

• ALL grenades and stickybombs now have their blast radius reduced by about 10% (from 159 Hammer Units to 146 HU), which is identical to rockets’ blast radius.

Demomen are now a bit more reliant on using direct hits to inflict full damage.  A ten-percent reduction sounds small, but in live play, that will relegate many more hits as partial bursts. Your sticky placement and detting will need to be more exact, and a stray grenade is less likely to deal a chance direct hit.

All stickybombs have further changes:

• Stickybombs now have a more visible trail when traveling through the air.
• Armed stickybomb particles are easier to see.
• Stickybombs detonated midair now have a blast radius rampup, starting from 85% base radius at the moment they arm (0.8 sec after firing), increasing to 100% base radius after 1.2 seconds in midair (2 sec after firing). Stickybombs that touch the world instantly revert to full blast radius.

Valve has been trying to nerf an arguably-OP stickybomb launcher that can be used both as a zone-denial, reactionary defense weapon (hence the Demoman’s assignment as a Defense unit), as well as a reliable offensive weapon. With greater blast radius and damage than a Soldier, higher damage-per-second than a medium-range Heavy, and less reliance on actually hitting the target with the projectile directly to deal full damage, some (including myself) felt that there was little reason for a Demoman to forgo the stickybomb launcher in favor of… well, just about anything else. Grenades and stickies also do not suffer from damage falloff due to range, unlike a Soldier’s rockets. A skilled sticky-wielding Demoman has been absolutely essential in competitive play, MvM Tour, and pubs with Engineers that place sentries guarding 90-degree angle chokepoints.

Previously, Valve tried to apply a damage rampup during the Love and War Update, and Demoman mains’ opinions were largely negative. Valve decided to revert those changes and continue testing. That rampup seriously nerfed the damage of a sticky, doing something like 35% of its base damage the moment it was armed, making midair detonation largely unaffective, and granting enemies too much opportunity to remove or evade them before they could become lethal.  It was too severe of a change.

Valve seems to have settled on not nerfing the base damage it deals, but rather making it harder to land a direct hit, by slightly reducing its blast radius. Fewer direct hits may lead to many more partial hits, nerfing the Demoman’s damage less substantially than before. This simply increases the skill required to play an effective Demoman, without substantially reducing the effectiveness of detting defensive sticky traps. In the same manner, it is possible to play an aggressive, offensive Sniper–you just have to be a crack shot with your primary to do so.

Launching a single sticky and detting it is still effective, and its direct damage output has less variance than before; you just have to detonate them closer to your target’s body. Note that stickybombs still only have a rocket-sized full blast radius, so midair stickybombs have up to 15% small radius than that (125 HU upon arming in midair, from previous 159). That’s a significantly smaller blast radius to aim and det a midair explosive. You may find yourself waiting to det the projectile the instant it touches the world, effectively increasing its blast radius a bit by the delay.

• Loose Cannon: A successful double donk now automatically deals full blast radius damage to the target with the secondary explosion. Previously the damage was reduced by radius distance from the explosion.
• Removed a hidden penalty where cannonballs that touched the world received a 50% damage penalty before applying regular grenade damage reduction.

The Loose Cannon will no longer be penalized if you double donk a target away from the center/legs of the hitbox; simply timing the projectile to achieve a partial blast will deal full explosion damage.

• Loch-n-Load:
  • Old damage output: base 120 (direct hit variance 103-147)
  • New damage output: base 120 (direct hit variance 116-124)
  • Clip size increased to 3 (from 2).
  • Removed the +25% self-damage penalty. Added a -25% blast radius penalty.

The Loch-n-Load is now less effective on tightly clustered enemies. It still fires +25% faster projectiles, and still deals +20% more damage. And now it gets a third grenade per clip (which is a little silly on a double-barrel)! However, it can’t do more than 124 damage on a non-critical hit, so the 125 health squishies (stock Scout, Spy, Engineer and Sniper) cannot die in a single hit if they have full health. That makes it very difficult to kill more than one enemy unit before reloading, despite having a third grenade per clip. Loch-n-Load is now more effective at taking out a single target with repeated direct hits before reloading.

• Scottish Resistance: Increased range check for stickybomb jumping (146 HU, previously 100 HU).

 

Weren’t there new weapons? Here they are:

The Iron Bomber is for Demomen who want their grenades to land hard and not roll and bounce around before exploding. It launches a sphere-like grenade that barely moves when it touches the world. Projectiles do not stick; they just seem heavy and drop and stop quickly. They deal slightly less damage (direct hit variance 89-111) if they explode 2.3 seconds after fire. They also have a -20% explosion radius, slightly larger than the Loch-n-Load’s new radius adjustment, so the Iron Bomber is also intended for single-target killing.

Why have a grenade launcher that can’t execute angular bounces, but doesn’t defuse its grenades when coming in contact with the world?  Players who keep having their grenades bounce back at them or rolling where they don’t want them now have a third choice. This launcher drops the grenade at its impact point with little risk of it bouncing or rolling away from its intended impact spot. The radius is smaller and the damage is marginally less, but can be used for a few seconds of zone control. Also, demoman trying to pepper an area (such as a sentry) can keep their projectiles close when they land near their target even if they don’t hit directly, and can continually have pills detonating in an area without fear of them bouncing away and without having to switch to a stickybomb launcher for tight zone control. Players who hate the way grenades take silly bounces may learn to love this weapon.

Crafting: Iron Bomber = two recalimed metal + Air Strike

 

The Quickiebomb Launcher is for the Demoman that wants to use stickybombs chiefly for midair or short-duration detonations, much like a grenade launcher. They still don’t explode on a direct hit like a grenade, but you can detonate them in midair like normal stickies. They arm 0.2 seconds sooner (at 0.5 seconds after launch), so they’re more effective for medium-range combat. They deal -15% less damage: base 102 damage (variance 100-104). The Quickie stickies do not suffer the blast radius rampup penalty!  Players wanting to avoid this penalty can switch to the Quickiebomb Launcher and still enjoy most of the original AoE radius (Quickie stickies still have a rocket-sized blast radius).

These stickiebombs can also remove enemy stickies on detonation, rather than merely knocking them around. They are faster to charge for long-range shots, but they fizzle without detonating only 2 seconds after launch if you haven’t detonated them yet. So you give up the ability to leave stickies in defensive locations in order to keep the offensive properties of the original weapon. And you gain the ability to have useless stickies fizzle so they don’t harm you, and the ability to defuse enemy stickies.  They have slightly less blast range and slightly less damage than the original weapon, and have a clip of 6 instead of the original 8, but you’ll be able to det stickies at 0.5 seconds unlike before.  It’s hard to say if the weapon is weaker or stronger than before, for pure offensive might.

Crafting: Quickiebomb Launcher = two reclaimed metal + Tide Turner

 

The Panic Attack is a shotgun (primary: Engineer; secondary: Soldier, Heavy, Pyro) that behaves in combat like the Beggar’s Bazooka: the player holds down the primary fire button to load up to 4 shells (34% faster than stock Shotgun; 0.66 sec for first shell and .33 sec for each additional shell, 2 seconds for a full clip). Release the primary fire to shoot each shell in turn automatically. As your health decreases, the Panic Attack fires faster but fires a more erratic bullet spread.

If you overload the Panic Attack, it will not harm you like the Beggar’s; it will simply fire off its four shells. The stock shotgun is deceptively powerful at close range, so this weapon could deal some incredible burst damage if you can ensure the bullets will hit; if you can sneak up on an opponent while loading, you should be able to kill them quickly, like a Scout’s scattergun.

Crafting: Panic Attack =  two reclaimed metal + Back Scatter

 

2. Nice and Naughty 2014 Crates

Nice 2014 Crates drop list

These cosmetic items will drop in Limited quality, with the usual 1% chance of getting an Unusual accessory instead (probably from this item list and with unknown effects). These crates can’t be opened after Feb 16, 2015.

• Scout: Co-Pilot, Courtier’s Collar, Harlequin’s Hooves, Mountebank’s Masque
• Soldier: Skullcap
• Pyro: Black Knight’s Bascinet, Charred Chainmail, Pyromancer’s Hood, Pyromancer’s Raiments, Torcher’s Tabard
• Demoman: Scot Bonnet, Valhalla Helm,
• Heavy: Old Man Frost, Siberian Facehugger
• Engineer: Clubsy The Seal, Conagher’s Combover, Cop Caller, Holstered Heaters, Thermal Insulation Layer
• Medic: Surgeon’s Shako, Unknown Mann,
• Sniper: Bushman’s Bristles, Marksman’s Mohair, Professional’s Ushanka, Wally Pocket,
• Spy:  Pocket Momma, Puffy Provocateur, Stealthy Scarf

 

Naughty 2014 Crates drop list

Items have a roughly 50% chance of being Strange Festive, and 50% chance of being Festive. All of these are limited, as the crate can’t be opened after Feb 16, 2015.

• Festive Bonk! Atomic Punch
• Festive Backburner
• Festive Chargin’ Targe
• Festive Bonesaw
• Festive SMG
• Festive Revolver
• Festive Shotgun

 

3. Mannpower CTF Mode

You know what? I’m tired… I will add this in later.

UNDER CONSTRUCTION

 

Full Patch Notes — 12/22/14

• All Players who play TF2 during the event will receive a Gift: a Stuffed Stocking! Stockings contain goodies for good little Mercenaries.
• Added 29 Limited community-contributed winter items to the Nice crate.
• Added new Limited Festive weapons to the Naughty crate.
• Limited time items can only be found during a limited window of time. The Naughty and Nice crate items will no longer be available after February 16, 2015.
• Added Naughty and Nice winter keys to the Mann Co. Store.
• Naughty and Nice winter crates cannot be opened after February 16, 2015.
• Premium Players will receive a Secret Saxton to give to another player.
• Item grants from previous events (including the Spirit of Giving and the Winter Holiday noise maker) have been re-enabled for all players, including those who deleted their earlier grants.

Weapons

Added The Iron Bomber

• Demoman Grenade Launcher
• Grenades do not bounce or roll
• Damage radius reduced by 20%
• Grenades that self-detonate deal 10% less damage
• Added The Iron Bomber to the Mann Co. Store, craft list, and item drop list

Added The Quickiebomb Launcher

• Demoman Stickybomb Launcher
• Stickybomb arm time reduced by 0.2 seconds
• Stickybombs can destroy enemy stickybombs
• Charge time decreased by 50%
• Stickybombs fizzle after 2 seconds
• -15% damage penalty
• -25% clip size
• Added The Quickiebomb Launcher to the Mann Co. Store, craft list, and item drop list

Added The Panic Attack

• Multiclass Shotgun
• 34% Faster reload time
• Hold fire to load up to 4 shells
• Fire rate increases as health decreases
• Weapon spread increases as health decreases
• Added The Panic Attack to the Mann Co. Store, craft list, and item drop list

Demoman Changes

• Damage variance on grenades and stickybombs reduced from +/- 10% damage to +/-2%.
• Grenades and Stickybombs now have the same base blast radius as rockets. Changed to 146 from 159.

Grenade Launcher

• Direct hit grenades now deal full damage to target regardless of where it struck the enemy. Previously full damage would only occur when grenades exploded closer to the targets feet.

Stickybomb Launcher

• Stickybombs that detonate in the air now have a radius ramp up, starting at 85% at base arm time (0.8s) going back to 100% over 2 seconds. Stickybombs that touch the world will have full radius.
• Stickybombs now have a more visible trail while traveling through the air
• Stickybombs arm particle is slightly more visible

Loose Cannon

• Double donk explosive damage now deal full radius damage to victims. Previously double donk explosive damage was reduced by radius distance from the explosion.
• Removed a hidden penalty where Cannonballs that touched the world would deal 50% less damage in addition to regular grenade damage reduction on world touch.

Loch-n-Load

• Changes to base grenade damage variance now ensure the Loch-n-Load does not exceed 124 damage on a single hit.
• Removed +25% self-damage penalty
• Added -25% radius penalty
• Changed clipsize penalty to -25% (3 grenades per clip) from -50% (2 grenades per clip)
• Loch-n-load grenades no longer visually tumble when fired

Bootlegger / Ali Baba’s Wee Booties

• Added +25% Demo Charge meter on charge kill

Tide Turner

• Added Penalty: Taking damage while shield charging reduces remaining charging time
• Kills while charging now only add 75% meter on charge kills instead of 100%

Scottish Resistance

• It is now slightly easier to do sticky jumps with the Scottish Resistance. Increased range check for stickybomb jumping to sticky damage radius of 146 from 100.

Scotsman’s Skullcutter

• Movement speed penalty now only applies when weapon is active

Claidheamh Mor

• Added +25% Demo Charge meter on charge kill

Added new game mode Mannpower to the TF2 Beta

Mannpower Mode

• To Play. Click on Play Multiplayer, enable Play Beta Maps checkbox, and then choose Mannpower Mode.
• The Following is a list of features in the initial launch of Mannpower and is subject to changes in future updates. Feedback is highly encouraged
• Contains 8 permanent power ups players can find in the map.
• Players can only hold 1 permanent power up at a time.
• Killing a player with a permanent power up forces the power up to drop.
• Contains 1 temporary power that can be found in the map.
• Use the ‘dropitem’ command to drop the currently held permanent power up
• Added new Default Stock Action Item Grappling Hook. Grappling hooks are usable in Mannpower mode and servers that enable it. Once equipped, press and hold the action key to use it. Use to move the player toward the hooked object.
• Mannpower Beta plays a modified version of Capture the Flag that requires your team’s flag to be at base in order to capture the enemy flag.
• Touching your flag will instantly return it to base.
• Currently supported on maps ctf_foundry and a modified ctf_gorge.
• Instant respawns enabled
• Random critical attacks disabled
• Players spawn with 6 seconds of invulnerability

General

• MvM : Added chance to find Australiaum Weapon rewards to all Advanced and Expert Mann vs. Machine tours. Previously only available on Two Cities tour
• MvM : Added Killstreak kits for Quickiebomb Launcher, Iron Bomber and Panic Attack in to Two Cities MannUp loot tables
• Crafting items that are marked as temporarily untradable will now yield temporarily untradable items instead of permanent
• Fixed a client crash related to the material system
• Removed the Giftapult from the store and added a crafting recipe for it
• Updated the equip_region for The Beastly Bonnet
• Updated the localization files
• Removed the map restriction on players in karts respawning ghost teammates when they touch them

[N] Obey