Soldier weapons (competitive)

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Intro?

Good start. Again, avoid "recommending" things; focus on usage and game impact. I'll probably add detailed stat stuff to these later (just noting for ya). I've added notes and marks to the text for feedback.

Slot 1

The Soldier’s versatility is built into his Rocket Launcher, so for any Soldier, the first slot loadout choice will be the most important one. Important uses of the Soldier’s primary weapon include rocket jumping, spam, and juggling foes.

The general vibe from this section should be that RL is the most common and flexible pick, and that DH is for focused damage in specific plays.

Rocket Launcher

Rocket launcher.png

The standard Rocket Launcher is an incredibly useful and versatile weapon. It is effective against Scouts, who can dodge rockets but cannot dodge splash damage at close range, and will knock back enemies on a direct hit, reducing their ability to dodge a second rocket. The Rocket Launcher also allows Soldiers to perform rocket jumps to reach areas quickly and make up for the Soldier’s poor mobility (not specific to RL; should be talked about for the slot in general). One of the Rocket Launcher’s key strengths is the ability to damage many enemies at once, which is crucial in many situations (dubious; it's helpful for general spam, but very rarely is the ability to hit a multitude of targets a specific goal with a rocket, nor a game changer--in fact, the weapon is very unreliable for hitting multiple enemies, as bodies tend to block its splash unless the first target dies). The Rocket Launcher’s damage output is quite high, but it cannot kill any enemy in one shot.

The Direct Hit

Directhittransparent.png

The Direct Hit is the alternative to the Rocket Launcher. Its usefulness lies in its increased damage and rocket speed. The Direct Hit’s rockets cause significantly greater knockback than the standard Rocket Launcher (I would just note that the increased damage means increased knockback, cause otherwise it might sound like the DH has a specific knockback buff or something). While the Direct Hit is certainly powerful and it is more effective when performing aerials against rocket-jumping foes than its counterpart, it is severely lacking in certain situations. The Direct Hit contributes poorly to spam, due to the decreased slash radius of its rockets, and despite being capable of killing Scouts in one hit at close ranges, it is usually less effective against them because missed shots will rarely inflict any damage.

Recommended (poor word choice)

Soldiers will (why future tense?) usually take the Rocket Launcher over the Direct Hit. The Direct Hit’s main weaknesses, the inability to spam effectively or defend against enemy Scouts, limit its usefulness in many situations. Pocket Soldiers in particular would do well to take the standard Rocket Launcher (rephrase), as defending the team’s Medic from Scouts is a significant part of the Pocket Soldier’s job.

Slot 2

While a Soldier’s most important weapon is the Rocket Launcher or Direct Hit, the secondary weapon slot is also very significant. Soldier have three choices for their secondary weapon, and all three have noticeable impacts on the Soldier’s playstyle.

The general vibe from this section should be that shotgun is the most common choice with the most straightforward usefulness, especially for pockets, but that gunboats can be very useful on 5cp maps, especially for roamers, and that buff banner has yet to mature in the meta to make its usefulness clear.

Shotgun

Shotgun IMG.png

The Shotgun is a reliable sidearm for the Soldier. It deals significant damage at medium range and almost as much damage as the Rocket Launcher at close ranges. The shotgun is highly effective at finishing off wounded foes, and can be useful against scouts, who can dodge rockets but cannot dodge hitscan weapons like the Shotgun. Switching to the Shotgun immediately after the Rocket Launcher’s clip is depleted can be very helpful, as it allows the Soldier to inflict significant damage to nearby enemies without waiting to reload the Rocket Launcher. (Most soldiers with shotgun will use it much sooner than when rockets are totally depleted; usually only one or two rockets are fired before switching to shotgun, so as to maintain a reserve for additional enemies.)

The Buff Banner

Buff Banner Bugle.png

Note: The Buff Banner is banned or restricted in some leagues.

The Gunboats

Gunboats.png

The Gunboats reduce damage from rocketjumps to insignificant amounts (rephrase), allowing Soldier to quickly traverse a map with a quick overheal from their medics. However, Soldiers using the Gunboats will experience a significant disadvantage in combat due to the lack of a Shotgun (starting with a better position/more health is part of the tradeoff and makes combat status less straightforward; "damage output" would be more appropriate). Due to the difficulties arising from this disadvantage, the Gunboats are most effective when used as a surprise (rephrase; they're more for fast positioning advantages, which aren't usually surprises). At the start of 5-CP maps, a Roaming soldier with the Gunboats can quickly reach the middle point and obtain a height advantage (not really a surprise). Such a tactic can provide the Soldier with relative safety from enemy Scouts, and put pressure on the enemy Demoman early on. (I would elaborate more. Gunboats allow soldiers to arrive at mid before any other class in many maps, allowing fast medkit grabs, choke/route punishment/denial spam, or a plain numbers advantage during the initial scout/demo midfight encounter.)

Recommended

Slot 3

Melee combat is rarely significant, as players rushing forth while wielding a melee weapon are usually doomed, but in the case of the Soldier, the melee slot is highly significant.

The general vibe from this section should be that Equalizer is the most common choice because of the survivability it adds, but that pain train can be useful for plays or general point capturing.

The Shovel

Shovel IMG.png

The Shovel is the Soldier’s standard melee weapons. Like other standard melee weapons, it deals moderate damage, but because most weapons are far more effective than the shovel, the Shovel is only good as a novelty or a weapon of last resort.

The Equalizer

Equalizer.png

Due to the “last resort” nature of melee weapons, the Equalizer can actually be put to good use in combat. At low health, a single strike with the Equalizer can deal upwards of 100 damage. More importantly, the Equalizer’s speed boost can be used to escape situations that would normally result in a Soldier’s death. Although Soldiers wielding the Equalizer cannot be healed by their Medics, this is rarely a concern (well, the timing of the switch can be quite concerning when the soldier is running for his life for heals and is approaching his medic).

The Pain Train

Paintrain.png

The double capture speed allows Soldiers to perform back-caps on unguarded capture points more effectively, (period or semicolon) this can be useful in forcing enemies to abandon a push in order to save their besieged point. Soldiers using the Pain Train must be wary, however, as they become slightly more vulnerable to enemy Scouts.

Recommended

The Equalizer is by far the best choice for any Soldier. The Equalizer is generally superior in melee combat, and it provides the important advantage of allowing the Soldier to escape death quickly. This advantage greatly outweighs any benefits the other two melee weapons confer. (Again, not the best phrasing. Equalizer is the most common choice because of the survivability it adds to soldiers when they are retreating. While consensus would agree that shovel is a bad choice, Pain Train is not that weird of a choice, particularly if the team has a specific play in mind or has reason to believe opposing scouts will not be a problem.