Intelligent Weapon Discussion #2: Sniper's secondary

Which weapon do you prefer to use in the Sniper's secondary slot?

  • SMG

    Points: 31 34.4%

  • Jarate

    Points: 40 44.4%

  • Razorback

    Points: 19 21.1%
  • Total voters
    90
D

Dreadmaker

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Hey folks. This is the second edition of intelligent weapon discussion; The first one, along with the surprisingly even results, can be found here.


This time, we're talking about the sniper's secondary weapons. Do you prefer the Razorback, the SMG, or Jarate? Why?


Quick refresher on the unlockable's stats:

Jarate:
  • When thrown at friends, puts out fires
  • When thrown at enemies, makes them suffer minicrits for a relatively long time
  • When thrown on enemy spies, reveals them even while cloaked


Razorback:

  • Stops ONE backstab attempt, stunning the spy who did it for a few seconds.



Thoughts? Go nuts!
 
Jarate all the way. It does the job better than what the SMG and Razorback try to do, IMO.
It puts out fires, gives mini-crits that anyone else on your team can benefit from, and reveals enemy spies. You can do all of that in one throw!

If you're worried about spies backstabbing you, check your area often with Kukuri/Shiv. If there is one, Jarate him then go for the melee.

If you're going for midrange weapon with SMG, then just Jarate and no-scope/Kukuri or Jarate and let your friends take care of it.

I've been inspired by the Sniper to carry around a jar of pee everywhere IRL.
 
SMG all the way, if you are accurate with it it is a ridiculously powerful weapon, and while I like the idea of jaratee-ing an enemy and letting my teammates take care of it, oftentimes my teammates won't even notice my plight or would much rather run some other direction, meaning I fend for myself. Usually what I'll do is fire a no-scope shot with my Sniper Rifle (50 damage or so if it connects), then whip out my SMG and unload (each round can do 10-15 damage if memory serves, so be accurate) and if that doesn't finish them off go for another no scope shot with your rifle before reloading the SMG. You can dish out upwards of 200 damage in just a couple seconds.
 
Kevimaster said:
SMG all the way, if you are accurate with it it is a ridiculously powerful weapon, and while I like the idea of jaratee-ing an enemy and letting my teammates take care of it, oftentimes my teammates won't even notice my plight or would much rather run some other direction, meaning I fend for myself. Usually what I'll do is fire a no-scope shot with my Sniper Rifle (50 damage or so if it connects), then whip out my SMG and unload (each round can do 10-15 damage if memory serves, so be accurate) and if that doesn't finish them off go for another no scope shot with your rifle before reloading the SMG. You can dish out upwards of 200 damage in just a couple seconds.
Click to expand...

I was gonna recommend Jarate X SMG, but then I facepalmed.
 
Though the Jarate and smg are technically much better, I prefer to use the Razorback. The reason is the somewhat psychological feeling it gives most enemy spies I meet. Though good spies will still kill me via shooting, most leave me alone, letting me focus on doing my job, sniping. If people come close, its time to either run or melee them.
 
when i was first starting the game, i played a lot of sniper.
I had yet to unlock any of his extra weapons, and i got a lot of kills with the SMG, even though it's not used that much.
it was my trusty sidekick weapon, and the Razorback and Jarate i hardly ever have a chance to use.


and i suck at throwing the Jarate also.
 
pros use smg
casue scouts rush me i go for quick scope and if i miss i usualy hit body so a single clip of smg can kill him its the most underrated gun in the game at this point
 
It really depends on what im doing, the SMG is a good weapon to be good with but most of the time, if you hear lots of spies, you can be a coward [Razorback] or save everyone [Jarate]
 
SMG, if you are accurate it absolutely destroys. A full clip can easily take down a full health soldier. I have seen some snipers where every SMG bullet connects with the target and it is terrifying.
 
431px-Peejar.jpg
 
I rarely play sniper, so i will just put in my opinion for what works best in a competitive stand point.

In competition, razor back is out of the question, cause rarely does another run a spy, if they do its to get 1 surprise kill, and he isn't going to waste the on a sniper. The smg CAN be useful, but generally the sniper rarely goes rouge and is surrounded by atleast on teammate, so protecting himself from mid range enemy's is usually not a problem.

For the jarate though, as i said earlier, its hardly ever used for spies. When it comes in Handy is if a sniper can get jarate on 2, 3, or ever 4 othe ther other teams players, it gives his team a HUGE advantage. For though of you that don't know, there are no random crits in competition, so you can only do extra damage from the kritskreig, arieal (direct hit) or, the jarate. (i may hava left out something else, but its something rarely used i comp)

so all in all, from a competitive stand point, jarate is the best.
 
Generally, if someone gets close enough to have a good chance of killing me before I snipe them, I already have made enough mistakes that I deserve dying. The only exception is with spies, therefore I go with the razorback. Yes, most intelligent spies whip out the ambassador or revolver, but a quick descope and jump forward and to the side after the first shot usually throws off their aim enough for me to get out the kukuri or run away.
Even with intelligent spies, they often still make the mistake of decloaking too close to me. With my headphones on, I can hear a spy decloaking with enough time to descope and confront them before they can have a chance of shooting me.
 
Last edited:
SMG

It helps me push them away

Especially since most people expect me to carrying jarate or razorback it's really unexpected.
 
I'm going to make a bit of a devil's advocate suggestion here that was reinforced by some things on mesa earlier this morning:


I think the razorback goes beyond it's one-time spy defense; it's a psychological deterrent as well. It isn't really going to make a difference for good spies, as they'll shoot you twice and it'll be over, but for mediocre spies, something different happens.

I was talking with a few spies today who said, quote 'you don't know how many times that razorback has saved your life'. Now, those spies weren't really the top of the barrel, obviously; otherwise I would have been shot. However, it prevents spies from nailing you on the way past you as a bonus kill. They see it and think 'eh, too much work' and run by, going to some other objective. This isn't to say I support the razorback wholeheartedly, I just think it's more powerful than most people give it credit for.

That said, it's a defense against one class, and one class only. I think that if it were to function more like the demo's targe, in that it gave you incidental defense against explosives or fire, it might be more viable. However, I do tend to use the SMG or jarate. But, if there are a lot of spies around and I'm not being harassed by much else, I'll swap to the RB.
 
I use jarate. Only because if I use the razorback I won't ever get that consolation prize achievement. Personally, I never remember to use the SMG or jarate in a fight, but at least with jarate I can help out my medic or follow around a heavy for the lulz.
 
crazyrockets said:
Generally, if someone gets close enough to have a good chance of killing me before I snipe them, I already have made enough mistakes that I deserve dying. The only exception is with spies, therefore I go with the razorback. Yes, most intelligent spies whip out the ambassador or revolver, but a quick descope and jump forward and to the side after the first shot usually throws off their aim enough for me to get out the kukuri or run away.
Even with intelligent spies, they often still make the mistake of descoping too close to me. With my headphones on, I can hear a spy decloaking with enough time to descope and confront them before they can have a chance of shooting me.
Click to expand...

Crazyrockets said exactly what I was thinking. +1 for Razorback
 
usually jarate for me jsut because i can help out the team more than just killing off people on the other team+ self defense i rarly even encounter spies because i am paranoid when i snipe and kill them or scare them off at the very least when i snipe half the time i shoot look around shoot again XD i do use the smg on occasion and it is a powerful weapon when used correctly but like crazy rockets i don't plan on people getting close enough to me for me to justify using smg

Also jarate has its own little psychological effect many times you cover someone in jarate they retreat because whos gonna charge into battle knowing they are more vulnerable? i have encountered many spies try and run away and not fight, scouts get covered and keep there distance, usually only people who don;t run are soldiers because they have enough health and fire power for the advantage to not matter much
 
Depends on the level. I have a hard time deciding between jarate and SMG. I don't use the razorback because if a spy wants to kill me, he'll just take out his ambassador/pistol. It's too much to lose for defense against just one class. Besides, if you look around, there's less of a chance of you getting surprised by someone behind you.

I'll take the SMG when I'm on 2Fort or if I can't trust my teammates. Even if I were better at shooting without scoping, the SMG is powerful enough that I don't want to lose it.

I use jarate most of the time, but I have to admit I want the jarate achievements. It's a lot more useful when you're playing as a team because you can put out fires, potentially saving your teammates, and it gives mini crits, which also helps your teammates.

As for the argument for using the RB for psychological purposes--I suggest that jarate does a better job of that. It's startling to have your screen turn yellow, and when I get hit with a jarate I try to hide a bit or retreat if I'm pushing forward because I expect the other team to have a better shot of killing me. Jarate is a deterrent against all classes, but RB is a deterrent against one.
 
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