Medic

The Medic is a maniacal German scientist who is capable of healing his teammates and making them invulnerable for short periods of time. In 6v6, the Medic makes up a key component of the combo, along with the pocket Soldier. In Highlander, the combo usually consists of a Medic, Heavy, and Demoman. As the Medic does not need to focus on aim, Medics generally act as callers for their teams. However, in higher-level play, Medics who maincall aren't as common, mostly because they aren't as aware of the other team's position. A Demoman or Heavy may serve as a more accurate caller. Medic duties generally include keeping the team fully buffed, timing and leading pushes, and tracking enemy Übers. Skills required from a Medic differ from division to division. Generally, Medics are expected to die less, heal hurt teammates, and Über at the appropriate times. At higher levels, Medics who can surf, position themselves well, and defend themselves with their primary and melee are more common.

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The Medic is a vital part of any 6v6 team, with his ability to use ÜberCharges or KritzCharges on teammates for pushes from point to point or for saving teammates. Due to this, he is usually the most targeted player by the enemy team. If a team loses a Medic they are posed with a large disadvantage of no heals, and may be pushed back to another point or even lose the game. As the Medics ÜberCharge is an important part of a match, they will usually be protected well by the pocket Soldier - In some cases, the Medic may have to leave his teammates while he gets a health pack. Medics will usually communicate their ÜberCharge percentage as well as their position to their team so they can prepare pushes and defenses, and be ready for an enemy push. Because of the importance of the ÜberCharge, the common phrase 'Pop it, don't drop it' is used.

In 6v6 the more commonly used Medi Guns are the stock Medigun and the Kritzkrieg, but in ESEA the Vaccinator is also allowed. Most Medics usually use the default Medi Gun or the Kritzkrieg. The Quick-Fix was occasionally used before the July 11, 2013 patch which buffed it. As a result of the buff, it has been banned in ESEA since Season 15. The Vaccinator is rarely used. Some Medics will switch Medi Gun depending on the situation, sometimes surprising enemies with a KritzCharge usually done with the Demoman for maximum damage output.

The Medic has nearly the same role as he does in 6v6; healing his teammates and using his ÜberCharges to turn the tide of a match. Instead of a soldier, the medic has a heavy and/or Demoman as his pocket.

The Syringe Gun is the Medic's default primary, shooting syringes, or "needles" at it's target. The syringes fired are projectiles, which means that the player will have to lead their target in order to hit them consistently. The Syringe Gun is a mediocre self-defense weapon, with each syringe doing 5-12 damage, and should only be used when absolutely necessary.

The Overdose is an alternate primary for the Medic, and functions similarly to the default Syringe Gun. The Overdose's needles do 15% less damage compared to that of the default and likewise, should only be used in very extreme situations. The upside to the Overdose is that it grants an active (the player needs to have the Overdose out) movement speed bonus based on how much ÜberCharge the Medic has. For every 10% of ÜberCharge that the Medic has, the Overdose will grant a 2% movement bonus. At full ÜberCharge, the medic moves at 127% movement speed, which is second only to the Scout, moving at 133%.

The Crusader's Crossbow is an alternate primary weapon for the Medic, and functions completely different from any of the other primaries. It shoots a large syringe, and only one at a time. It is the worst option for self-defense and as such should almost never be used in life or death situations, and the Medic should instead resort to his melee. The large syringes that the Crusader's Crossbow fires, however, are very unique and can allow for very clutch moments if the Medic knows how to aim properly. The large syringes do damage based on distance traveled (reverse falloff), up to 75 damage at maximum range. However, if the Medic hits a teammate, the damage that would have been dealt will turn into health. The health scale is much larger, however, with the minimum health able to be received is 75, and the maximum 150. The healing mechanic can provide teammates with instant healing, and often times can save a teammates life. Healing a teammate with the Crusader's Crossbow builds ÜberCharge upon hit. The Crusader's Crossbow eventually got buffed so that it passively reloads, even if you instantly switch to another weapon.

The Blutsauger is an unlockable primary for the Medic. Its damage, ammunition, and firing speed are all identical to the default Syringe Gun. However, whenever a player is hit with a Blutsauger needle, the Medic will get 3 additional health. The drawback is that the Medic's passive regen is decreased by 2 HP/second. This means that, instead of regenerating 3 health after being damaged, the Medic will only be given 1 health back, up to a maximum of 4 HP/second, instead of the default maximum of 6 HP/second.

The Medi Gun is the Medic's default primary that heals damage dealt to teammates and can heal a player to 150% of their health. This extra 50% is known as overheal or buff. The Medi Gun heals at 24 health per second. If a patient has not taken damage for 10 seconds, the heal rate will increase linearly with time up to a maximum of 72 heal per second at 15 seconds. Newly spawned teammates will also be healed at 72 health per second. The ÜberCharge will be fully charged in 40 seconds at maximum (healing damaged teammates, not at 150% health) and 80 seconds at the minimum (healing only buffed teammates).

The Kritzkrieg is an unlockable secondary for the Medic. Its healing rate is identical to the default Medi Gun. However, the Kritzkrieg charges 25% faster than the default Medi Gun, or in 32 seconds at maximum rate rather than 40 seconds. The invulnerability ÜberCharge is replaced by a charge bestowing the patient with a 100% critical chance. Due to this fast charge rate, the Kritzkrieg is usually used when both Medics die within close timing (to get an advantage in ÜberCharge) or on small maps, such as King of the Hill.

The Quick-Fix is a very unique secondary for the Medic. It not only has a faster healing rate but a very unique ÜberCharge. Its ÜberCharge prevents movement-altering attacks and increases the rate of healing on any selected healtarget. The Quick-Fix can only heal teammates to 125% of their health. The Quick-Fix isn't used very often in competitive play. It's mostly used in times where the server's map time is too low to build a normal ÜberCharge. It is most commonly used on King of the Hill maps when the team is pinched for time, and the Medic needs to deliver heals to the point quickly. It can no longer be used on Payload and Capture Point maps for clutch last-minute plays to fling the Medic toward the desired capture point to stall for time or capture a point due to the Tough Break Update.

The Vaccinator is one of the most interesting secondaries for the Medic. It gives an incredibly slow overheal (66% slower), with three distinct Übers that each last two seconds. You can access one, two, or three, Übers at once, ÜberCharging the Medic and his patient for two, four, six, or the full eight seconds. With The Vaccinator, you can build Über in just ten seconds. Its Über allows the Medic and his healtarget to block 75% of any incoming damage of the selected damage type as well as substantially less damage from crits. If the patient takes damage from the selected type of attack, a small percentage of health will go to the Medic during the Über, healing him for the duration of the Über. Matching the type of incoming damage will also build über faster. The Vaccinator has been used mostly on Control Point maps and is perfect for blocking and withstanding an enemy Medic's Über while defending the last Control Point. After blocking the enemy Medic's incoming Über, the Medic can then go back into spawn and switch out for a different Medigun, and begin building for a more even Über advantage. The Vaccinator is used very rarely even in comparison to the Quick-Fix.

The Ubersaw is the most widely used medic melee in competitive TF2, because it allows medics to gain 25% uber from each saw. This puts their team at an immediate build advantage for their uber. It is often featured in fragmovies, as it is possible to save last by getting a kill with it and blocking the point with uber.

The Amputator was once a direct upgrade of the bonesaw, but has been patched and now has a 20% damage penalty. It gives +3 health per second when active and it also has a special taunt, which is an area-of-effect heal, which is useful when large numbers of teammates require heals. However, the taunt heals quite slowly. Of course, when taunting the Medic is left with no movement for a number of seconds and the healing does build ubercharge.

Running the Vita-Saw means that the medic sacrifices 10 points of his max health in exchange for the ability to keep uber upon death if he has hit an enemy with a melee swing. Each successful swing will let him retain 15% of his uber meter in his next life up to a total of 60% if the medic lands 4 successful swings and has at least 60% uber filled when dying. The successful swings the medic has hit are counted on the screen as organs. The damage output and swing speed are identical to the stock Bonesaw.

Due to the Solemn Vow's ability to view the enemy health points and ubercharge percentage, it is banned from most 6v6 leagues. In highlander, the role it plays is not as important, as all information obtained could easily be discovered by a spy. Not only that, but it promotes the Medic being in the sightline of the other Medic. Not only is this dangerous, but promotes individual aggressive behavior, which often leads to death. The Solemn Vow has -10% swing speed.