TF2: Pyro - Engineer's Midwife

We've all had it happen to us. Pushed back to the last point with 10 minutes remaining, and the only thing standing in the enemy's way is your Level 3 Sentry Gun. The minutes drawl by, you relentlessly wrenching the sentry gun. By darn gosh, you think, we might just hold out. Then he appears.

The smell of croissants fill the air. In the midst of the battle, no one notices his disguise as he approaches your sentry gun. With a slight of hand, he attaches the Electro Sapper to your Sentry Gun, disabling it and marking it for destruction.

"Spy's sappin' mah sentry!"



You look around, but no one else has taken notice, not even the other engineers. The Sentry Gun begins to bellow smoke. You begin to remove the Electro Sapper, but it's too late.

As you pull out the blueprint for another Sentry Gun, you see the enemy Spy again, sapping another fellow Engineer's buildings. So what do you do?

You change to Pyro, and become the Engie Midwife.

What is the "Engie Midwife" Pyro? The purpose of the Pyro in this situation is completely defensive. Rather than meeting the enemies at the front lines, one stays near the team's Engineers and assists them should the battle (or Spies) reach them. The Pyro is excellent at protecting the Engineer's buildings due to his available weapons. The following is a brief rundown on the most often used Pyro weapons in this playstyle.

Primary Weapons

Flamethrower
The Flamethrower is a good all around weapon when protecting Engineer buildings. This is especially useful for rooting out spies, as enemy spies will ignite and glow with their team color, while allies will not. The airblast just as important, it can repel disguised spies, as well as reflect projectiles away from the buildings.

Backburner
The Backburner can still function well on defense, despite being designed as an "ambush" weapon. The Backburner deals critical damage when igniting enemies from the rear, quickly killing fleeing spies. The increased airblast cost is negligible as one can stop by a friendly Engie's dispenser to refill on ammo.

Secondary Weapons

All of the Pyro's available secondary weapons work well, the decision ultimately comes down to one's preference between hitscan (Shotgun and Reserve Shooter), and projectile (Detonator, Flaregun, Manmelter) weapons.

Melee Weapons

Homewrecker
The Homewrecker is the badge of the Engie Midwife. With it's ability to knock off Electro Sappers from friendly buildings in a single hit, a dedicated Pyro can shut down the opposing team's Spies. The Homewrecker's reduced damage against players is negligible, as it's main purpose is to allow another player to remove Electro Sappers.

Axtinguisher/Postal Pummeler
The Axtinguisher/PP is the next best choice when the Homewrecker is not available. The weapon deals critical damage to enemies on fire, allowing you to take out ignited spies, or other close range threats. This is best paired with the Degreaser.

Playstyle
The main role of the Engie Midwife is a defensive one, the player should never be running out of the base to seek kills. Rather, the player should being patrolling the areas around existing Engineer buildings for spies and other threats, as well as spychecking allies. Constantly listen for audio cues from allies and enemies, such as Engineers crying out that their building is being sapped, or the death cry of a backstabbed ally. Aside from Spies, Demomen are the next biggest threat to an Engineer's building. Remove Stickybombs by either shooting them out with a hitscan weapon, or reflect them (and Pipebombs) with airblasts.