"But Uncle Sicko, I've played in pubs for years. I know what my guns do. Needles hurt people, Mediguns help people, and my saw's random crits will almost always save me."

It's more common than you'd think.

Medic is somewhat counter- intuitive, especially when you're used to playing aggressive classes like soldier or scout. While, yes, well aimed needles can make you a force to be reckoned with, especially with the healing boost of the Blutsauger, it only works in pubs, and even then it's uncommon and inefficient.

Note- there are no random crits in competitive, so you have to plan your melee attacks, not just berserk and hope for the best.

With that said, let’s review the weapons.

Stock- Respectable damage paired with a high fire rate and large magazine capacity makes this a deceptively strong weapon. But if you find yourself in a scenario where you need to use it on a regular basis, you're probably being too aggressive, and need to reassess your job as Medic.

Blutsauger- Lowers your regeneration into oblivion in passive situations, but raises it to insane heights if you're capable of getting hits on your target. This is the gun you use when you don't trust your team mates to take care of you, thus either it's a pub gun only or you need to have a come-to-jeezus meeting with your pocket.

Overdose- The damage penalty is completely unfelt due to its fire rate, but its true power is in its little speed buff when you have some uber charged. This has saved me often because it makes a retreat just a little faster when my team goes down and I'm hanging around with a 90% uber.

Crossbow- Even before its recent buffs, this was the perfect medic weapon because it allowed you to heal targets at range, without having to dive into harm’s way. To use this weapon, not only do you have to practice hitting strafing targets, but train yourself to shoot your team mates instead of enemies. One arrow, at mid-range, can heal your target for around 90 hp. This is a game changer for Roamers and Demos who will engage over healed targets and take high amounts of damage. Aside from its arguably overpowered ability to heal targets beyond the range of your medigun, it can provide instant close range triage, healing around 50 hp quickly, instead of needing an extra couple seconds to cover the same ground. Sounds unnecessary, but it has saved matches before.

Personally, I use crossbow 90% of the time and Overdose the other 10%. The tactical advantages of these weapons far outweigh the lethal potential of the other two, as Medics were just not made for direct combat. If you're lagging more than usual, it'll be very difficult to land bolts to heal your team, so just switch to Overdose, and tell your team that you're not on crossbow

Stock- Slow charge, invulnerability. You know it, you love it, I won't bore you with the details. Just don't forget to flash team mates instead of just focusing on just one person.

Kritzkrieg- Faster charge, all crits. This sounds brilliant on paper, but when used improperly can lead to wasted charge time and missed opportunities. Typically, the demo will do best with kritz due to his naturally high damage output, and ability to make fast, powerful traps. Don't wait until you have 10hp to pop kritz and assume it'll save you, as you will die and you just wasted any amount of charge time that the enemy medic will happily use to gain uber advantage. I use kritz only when I know I can take uber advantage so my demo can kill the opposing medic before they negate it with a full uber. Done properly, it instantly picks up steam for a push. Done poorly, you will lose the point, if not the round.

Quick Fix- Great against individual opponents, but two or more opponents can out-damage the quick fix's regen and get you in a world of pain. While the Quick Fix is generally ill- advised since uber advantage can be taken easily enough with a kritz, there are two situations in which the Quick Fix has truly shined for me, and both are on the last point of a 5 point map. On offense, you and your pocket can capture while ubered, so barring a catastrophe, you can stay alive to cap while they are confused at your refusal to die. The other is on your last point, where they can move in to cap, and you pop and stand on the point while your team racks up frags. The Quick Fix also has a neat trick to follow explosive jumps, but without planning and practice, this will get you into more trouble than it saves you from.

Vaccinator- Done properly, it can completely shut down a Kritzkrieg. That said, I've never been in a situation with it where I didn't feel that a different medigun could have done a better job.

Note- More than once, an enemy team has noticed me getting an uber faster than them with a Quick Fix or kritz, they instantly switch to it to regain uber advantage. I respond to this usually by switching back to regular uber to walk right through them. Switch on a case- by- case basis, and never without the informed consent of your team.

Bone Saw- Fast, powerful, and good for direct combat, which you should be avoiding like the plague

Amputator- Only viable when countering fire or bleed damage, due to its regen buff. Aside from that, I don't recommend it because it loses damage on hit, and forces you to stand still to use its often negligible AoE healing that can't even provide an overheal.

Ubersaw- Powerful, but slow. Generally, you should never be close enough to directly engage in melee combat for more than one or two attacks. Take advantage of (individual) enemies who are distracted by your pocket to shave an instant 25% off your charge time.

Every other saw- More effective as Scrap.

It sounds intuitive to just say, but I'm into my fourth season and I still get my face blown off because I like to peek around corners to see the action.

Trust your callers. Trust your pocket. They will tell you when it's safe to push out, or when you should fall back.

Honestly, not following this has caused more losses in matches and scrims than any other one factor I can think of. Learn it, live it, love it.

If a Scout slips past your Pocket, you just became the main dish, a target they will attack with such tunnel vision that you can counter them relatively quickly, without much trouble.

I usually do this by combining two techniques-
The first is the Juke step. Basically strafing to avoid hitscan weapons can be enough, but I try to predict the enemies attacks while you back up to safety. Try not to turn around unless you need too because, while walking forward is faster than backpedaling, you need to be able to watch them to know where to strafe or surf.

The second is what I'm told is called, "The One- Two Punch". That is, sting them with a close range bolt for 40ish damage, and then hit them with your saw for around 65 damage. Assuming your team has taken down their overheal, the ol' one- two may not only save your uber, but give you 25% to get uber advantage.

Combined, basically you hit them with a bolt as they bum rush you, then you "flee" around your corner to surprise them with your saw. It works beautifully the first couple times, but you're playing against people who may out predict you, so don't assume they're stupid enough to get trapped every time.

Note- If you don't have a corner to hide around, you're probably in the wrong area and should be backing away quickly. They can smell your fear.

I look at uber advantage from two angles. One, understanding which Medic has the higher charge, and two, which Medic is using the more situationally appropriate medigun.

How to know who has advantage-
1- Listen to your callers.
- If they call, "Med down" then you have uber advantage, regardless of your percent.
- If they call, "Uber popped" then you know all you have to do is stay alive for the next ten seconds to have advantage.
- If they're close enough but can't get the pick, have them call the type of medigun. If it's a kritz, and you are close to an uber, you'll be able to counter- pop and maintain your advantage. A good Spy will also use his disguise kit to tell you what medigun they're using.

2- Watch the scoreboard.
- If a medic has been up for more than a minute, they probably have uber and can counter a poorly timed pop.

3- If you pop and they don't engage, they're biding their time to take uber advantage for a counter- push.

4- Use self- damaging team mates to help speed up your uber during a lull in combat. While this isn't always a good idea, using damage to speed up your uber can be a simple way to gain uber advantage.

While this seems as obvious as water being wet, it gets overlooked when a Medic gets tunnel vision on either his pocket or on dealing damage.

Your job is to keep your team alive, not just your pocket. If a scout is at 20 hp, he could run for a medkit and be fine, but he wastes valuable time making the run when you could have just spared a couple seconds to help him. Also note that since scouts are the fastest class, give them priority heals, because they're usually going to be on the front lines first, after the exception of demo and soldier rollouts.

Demos and Roamers need to be alive and in combat as much as possible. Don't ignore them and make them waste time going to medkits when you should be doing your job.

Note- Try to keep a weather eye out for returning teammates who just got a frag or two. Making them call medic several times before you notice and turn around is frustrating to them and may get them killed if they're being chased.

Another seemingly intuitive rule that can cost a team when not observed.
-Your pocket needs an overheal to protect you.
-Your roaming Soldier need an overheal so he doesn't die during bombs.
-Your demo needs an overheal because he walks around with a target on his chest as big as the one that's on the Medic, and he will take a lot of damage in combat.
-Your heavy is swiss cheese without an overheal, due to his slow, lumbering nature. If you're getting bombed a lot, keep you're heavy near. He can track jumpers easily and shred them before they're an issue.
-Your scouts need an overheal too, as they have the most offensive capability when they can survive long enough to get close to enemies.

Note- Sometimes you won't have time to fully overheal your team mates, especially during a hectic DM. Give them as much as you can, but move on to targets who are under their normal capacity quickly, because keeping people alive is the name of the game.Two players at full life can protect you better than one player with a full overheal, typically.

Simply put, the longer its been since a team mate has taken damage, the faster you can heal them. Try to focus on coms and keep in mind who's gone without taking damage the longest, as they're the ones you can heal the fastest, to get them into combat faster.

Note- Crit- heals are much easier to manage when your team mates call out when they haven't taken damage for ten or more seconds. Trying to manage it without their help will give you a headache.

Coms tend to clutter during pushes and in DM. You have to pay attention for people calling for heals, overheals, ubered pushes, a team mate telling you to run away, etc.

Detecting, let alone managing overlapping coms can be difficult, especially if people are having a side converstion.

As a Medic, it is your right to call for clear coms so you can listen for who needs help the most, or when you need to communicate with one teammate in particular. Don't abuse this, as you will look like an entitled, bossy jerk.

Self- damage is any damage that a teammate will do to themselves just so you can charge uber faster. This may include a scout using the Boston Basher, or a soldier damaging themselves with rocket AoE.

This is great when you're at a low charge and need to try to regain uber advantage, but there are two disadvantages that must be considered. The first is that hanging back to do a boosted charge removes their firepower and your heals from the fight. Doing this for more than about 20% means you're forcing your team to fight a whole team with two down, and without overheal or uber. The second is, despite your leash on them, they'll still have lower life. If you get surprised, they may die quickly, leaving you to die, and rendering the whole process moot.

The best boosts I've seen is when a self- damage occurs while the both of you are travelling to the front lines, such as; One or two swats from a basher can put you ahead around 10%, while making sure your scout is over bleed damage by the time you get to the point, or a pocket doing quick rocket jumps to keep pace with you.

Listening to your team will save your life. If they say run away and you choose to be an Ubersaw Rambo instead, you will lose uber advantage, they will lose heals, and you will look like a fool.

Your callouts will help them as well. These include; letting them know which section of the map you're at, you're life total, your ubercharge total, if everyone is so damaged that there will be a delay in their heals, how many seconds you have left until respawn, and which area you'll respawn in.

The more they know, the more relivant they can make their intel.

They ask a question, you answer in 5 words or less.
They say run, you ask how far.
They call for a crossbow heal, you put a needle in their bum.

As a Medic, it's you job to be as efficient as possible. This means finding the custom settings that work best for you.

You probably want a custom hud. You won't realize how poor the stock tf2 hud is until you've experienced the others. Shop around and see what fits you best. I change mine around fairly often.

Learn about binds, scripts, and .cfg's. For me, this was extremely difficult, as I'm not very computer literate. I was taking shots in the dark until I downloaded the .cfg's that other players used.

Note- While it may seem simple and easy to just download and install someone else’s .cfg's, remember that they were custom tailored to that individual. You may want to keep them as a template, but for best results, take the extra time to learn about what changes work best for you. As an example, I downloaded PYYYOUR's old .cfg's because they're unique, comprehensive, and brilliantly written, but I still failed because I was too lazy to tweak it and integrate my preferred settings. After several hours of research, and trial and error, I now have a setup that is 90% original, but tailored to my individual needs.

These may change depending on the map, or your chosen path, so discuss rollouts with your team before- hand, and make sure you practice it a few times, so you know where you need to finish out to provide the most healing while maintaining cover.

The rollout strategy that has generally been the most beneficial for me, though, is to focus on the demo first, as his will often be the one taking the most damage. Then focus the roamer who will also be taking quite a bit of damage.

It's been my experience that you shouldn't heal the pocket at the start of the rollout, since his will often involve damaging himself for the Escape Plan run. This is also handy towards the end of the rollout, since his low health will give you a slight boost to your ubercharge.

Any leftover time? Overheal your scouts.

If you have a flashy effect, you will stand out like a sore thumb. While it's true that you'll be a target anyway, it may not be in your best interest to further highlight yourself.

If you have a weather effect, you may want to set it lower in your loadout screen. It can be seen above crates that you're hiding behind, spoiling a seemingly benign situation that you wouldn't normally consider.

You know how long Uber lasts, as well as Quick and Kritz, but keep in mind that flashing any other team members besides the original target, will speed up the rate at which your charge drains. This means that unless flashing a team mate is a priority, keep your beam on the original to maximize your ubers duration.

There are two situations where I flash pretty freely. The first is to counter Kritz. The second is when I can coordinate my Scout and Demo. Once ubered, your Demo lays out heavy damage, and your scout has a free reign to mop up for him. I see this strategy more in 6vs6 than highlander, but be aware.

Aside from those moments, and some moments that naturally occur when you're ubered, try to restrain yourself to one uber target. Losing it too early can cause you to lose advantage for the moment, if not the whole round.

How do I install huds and .cfg's?
Google it. YouTube videos will educate you better than I could here.

What division are you?
I'm taking this season off. Not sure about next season.

In perspective, you're both somewhat new to competitive, and you don't play in a very high division.
That's not a question....

That said, why do you think you know enough about being a Medic to post a guide?
Like I said, this is closer to my own notes than a guide, I've just chosen to format it as such, and I don't think my current level plays into it's validity, unless there is a blatant error in the information or with my opinion.

This is clearly geared towards 6vs6, not Highlander. Why?
Because I have more experience in 6vs6. That said, I'm entering my second season in highlander, so I'll probably do a lot of updating later.

This sounds like you play a passive style. Why aren't you more aggressive?
Because aggressive gets me dead. There are times when aggression is the key to a win, but it has to be very well coordinated, and managing that is one of my weaker points. That said, more survival means more ubers. More ubers means more pushes, so it tends to even out without having to gamble so much.

Would you join my team?
Na, maybe next season.

What custom huds do you recommend for medic?
You kinda have to experement to see what fits your style. I'm using hudas iscarot for now, but I'm pretty fond of bx_hud and rayshud. Check out huds.tf for other options.

The Avatar for this guide has text that's too small for my baby eyes to read. What does it say?
"Remember my name, you'll be screaming it later."

I have an idea to improve this guide, can I comment my thoughts?
Yes, I definatly encourage you to do so. If you have something you'd like to discuss, feel free to add me.

I think you're dumb, can I comment on my thoughts?
Yes, but make it clever and memorable. If I have an emotional or visceral reaction, there might even be a reward in it for you.

2/10/2014
- Several sections added and/ or updated
- Several spelling and grammar fixes
- Visibility set from Friends Only to Public
2/11/2014
- Fixed two embarrassing failures; Posting this guide is the Borderlands 2 section and misspelling the word, “grammar”.
2/17/2014
- Added two sections
- Various spelling and grammar fixes
4/102014
- expanded Q&A
- Various spelling and continuity fixes.
7/19/2014
- expanded Q&A
- Various spelling and continuity fixes.
9/2/2014
- expanded guide and Q&A
- Various spelling and continuity fixes.