Playing the Spy in TF2

France is often belittled because of their military history. In the Second World War, their army was quickly defeated by the Germans – and thus perceived as both weak and cowardice.

Some would say the same thing about the Spy, but in an attempt to not spite any French readers out there, I’d rather call him clever and adaptable. Just like the French resistance – famous for their many successful bombings – he uses the environment to cover his tracks, while maintaining a certain level of class.

The Spy has a wide array of toys at his disposal, as any self-respecting spy would. His most trusted weapon is a simple knife. In an era with machine guns, flame throwers and snipers this is quite an unorthodox weapon, but despite its simplicity, it’s one of the most effective.

First, it’s the only weapon that can kill an enemy in one swing. By sneaking behind the enemy and sticking the knife in his back, you can secure both vital points and create a commotion in the enemy encampments.

If he manages to infiltrate the enemy base the zapper might come in handy. With this device the spy can destroy enemy engineer buildings. To actually get inside the base, his invisibility watch is a convenient little gadget. If you’re feeling extra ballsy, you might even use his make-up kit and disguise as one of the opponents.

Even though the spy has a lot of cards up his sleeve, using them right can be a real hassle. In order to improve, you’ll need proper guidance. Below you’ll find a few pointers hopefully steering you in the right direction:

- Your main target is the engineer. He’ll be held up in a corner somewhere, working on setting up both sentries and teleporters. It might be tempting to destroy these support-structures, but you should never zap them when the engineer is still alive. Always, and I mean always kill the engineer first. This prevents him from fixing the zapped target, and keeps you alive a lot longer.

For best results kill the engineer then quickly zap the sentry. It will take practice, and you’ll most likely be killed the first few times.
- Think like your enemy. If you’re disguised as a pyro but keep standing behind an enemy sniper, he’ll realize that you don’t want to just cuddle. Playing a spy doesn’t call for a Broadway-performance, but it does require more thinking than most classes.
Stay away from the pyro. He’s your worst nightmare, as his flame-thrower sets you on fire – rendering your invisibility/disguise useless.

If you already know all the basic principles of playing the spy,  here are some additional techniques.
- If you’re discovered – and trust me, you will be discovered – try finding some stairs. If the opponent chases after you, turn around quickly and jump right over them. While doing this, you might be able to stab him in the back and thus ending the chase.
- Never use the knife in close-combat unless you’re backstabbing the opponent. It’s utterly useless and your pistol will do much more damage.
- When you’re disguised you can see how much health an enemy has. If his life is already on a string, fire a shot or two to finish him off.
- If you’ve unlocked the ambassador (gun), you’ll be able to do a lot more than just stabbing and zapping. If you spot an engineer with a sentry, keep yourself at a distance and make sure the sentry can’t shoot you. With the full strength of the ambassador, plus the bonus damage from a head shot, you’ll be able to snipe the engineer from a safe location. Furthermore, the ambassador is great when facing a sniper with the razorback-shield (a shield which really makes stabbing a no-no).

Overall playing the spy takes a lot of practice but when you get it down to a science you will net TONS of kills!