Introduction:
Unlike most of our other primary unlocks, the force-a-nature is a drastically different from the Scattergun. The Kritz, Natascha and Backburner all basically function in the same way as their orginal counterparts and if you know how to use the orginal you can use the sidegrade. A lot of people who are scout fans have been treating the Force-a-Nature in the same light, which is understandable, but has lead to them to toss it aside and label it as useless. I am a multi-classer and have found that to use the Force-a-nature you need to draw from lots of different aspects that you may or may not have learned from other classes and they aren't as simple as ambushing vs not ambushing.
To use the Force-a-nature, you'll have to relearn your twitch sense, learn a couple tricks and in general be creative. But once you do learn, you'll end with a gun that's much more powerful then the scattergun indoors and during ambushs.
The Basics
While with the Scattergun, you want to make every shot count, it's even more important here because you only got 2 shots. The trick here is, to make the first one count and to be as close as possible, if you get one good hit with one of the shots, the other one becomes a freebee. This means you need to take much more time lining up the first shot at any skill level which is hard to get used to. Most new FAN scouts make the mistake of firing the 2 shots as fast as possible and while they may hit, they may not do maximum damage which is bad for the FAN. As you get more skilled the time you take to fire the first shot will become smaller and smaller and soon you will find that you can defeat most 125HP classes in the blink of an eye if you run into them around the corner which is very satisfying.
It's basically juggling, only you can do it with a scattergun. You'll want to immediately shot your enemy in the air after they are up but but thankfully, mastering the scout's equivalent of an airshot after successfully getting off a first shot is easy and you just need to know where the enemy will pop up and you need to move as close as you can while they are still in the air. You basically follow the same rule as the first shot only it's easier.
Using the FAN won't insure that you 2-shot every enemy even if you think you had a perfect shot and you'll need to know when to use the pistol and when to reload. Basically if you think you can finish him with the pistol then do it (possibly while retreating), if not reload and try the above again. If you are reloading, then you may want to try peeking or quick-covering which I'll explain later in the tricks section.
Also try to stay on the ground when using the FAN unless you plan to use the knockback to your benefit,
Ambushing
I'm not gonna go too much into detail about this because every class learns this in some form or another and the fan isn't much different even if it benefits from enemies that don't know your there. Basically approach the enemy and do all of the above basics. The great thing about FAN scouts if they excel at killing medics in a crowd.
While everyone is distracted (including the medic) run straight up to him and get as close as possible and unleash you 2 shots, then run like hell when everyone realizes what you just did. It's easy to pull off if you get a good angle to work from just be warned that you probably won't be able to deal with the backlash after and you should probably use a FAN jump to escape.
Tricks and Tips
Here a couple vital tricks you'll need when carrying the FAN.
Peeking: Like all classes, the scout can peak by firing both barrels then moving back into cover to reload, the FAN complements this. You can knock a heavy in the air and wound him and go back into cover before he can turn around. This works great against high HP enemies and groups of enemies.
Quick Cover*
*: or QC for short. QC is like peeking in reverse. Instead of firing quickly and going back into cover and reloading, QC is firing both shots and using something temporarily as cover for the duration of the reload and coming back to the fight with a new clip. ANYTHING can be used for QC, walls, bricks in the middle of the battlefield, trees, allies, even other enemies; just as long as you can't see the enemy shooting at you for the duration of the reload (which isn't too long actually). You can use this technique to easily make up for FAN's weakness and even clear groups with it.FAN jumps: Fan jumping is at it's easiest, simply aiming down and firing to get a little upward boost. It's nothing amazing but you'll be surprised what that little height will get you to. It's also worth noting that while the FAN does get you everywhere the double jump will with the Sandman equipped, it won't replace it during actual combat.
Shoving: You can shove enemies using the FAN in a similar fashion to the airblast. If an enemy starts rushing towards a control point your trying to capture, push him away with the fan, the extra second could come in handy. It's also useful for knocking back enemies while retreating to give some extra time (especially against heavies). There are all kinds of uses for the knockback including pushing enemies down cliffs, into walls, into allies, away from allies, away after rocket/sticky jumping. Basically if a situation comes across where you can use it, feel free
.Vs specific classes.
- FAN scouts: It comes down to who can land a good first shot first.
- Scatter Scouts: This is a difficult enemy in the open. In close-quarters-combat, you'll win most of the time, but outside if you can't get a good shot in time he'll destroy you. Best to avoid if your not confident you can hit him.
- Soldier: MAGGOTS!!! This is your primary enemy due to the fact that you can't jump to avoid splash damage now. You might be able to jump over his head with the double jump, fire 2 shots and run away finishing him off with the pistol but that's about it. Most of the time shove him away with the FAN and run away.
- Pyros: Your much better then your Scattergun brothers at killing this enemy. Even if it means going into flamerthrower range for a second blast him twice with the FAN, finish him with the pistol if you land 2 good blows, laugh and run to a health kit. Even in CQC it should be easy if you don't stay in the flames too long.
- Heavy: If you can peek or attack him when he's not looking, you can unload a few clips into him and destroy him (this works surprisingly well indoors) otherwise don't bother. Shove and run away. If your trapped within Natascha's deathgrip at medium range your only hope is a sandman stun or a helpful ally. Otherwise not much of a difference.
- Demoman: Easy as always. Should die after 2 shots, if not after a few pistol shots. As long as you can make it close to this enemy you should be able to kill him provided he isn't god with nades.
- Medic: Your main target as always. If you can ambush them, you'll be able to kill and run before the patient can understand what's going on. If they pull the Blutz on you then back up and use your pistol, it actually hurts up close. Again not much difference.
- Engineer: Same as always, if he's behind his sentry don't bother if not kill him
- Snipers: Like every 125hp class, he'll go down in a flash if you can get to him. Same techniques used, rush him, zig-zag and use the pistol and finish him quick. Only thing you need to worry about is that knife if you get too cocky.
- Spies: You can spycheck with the FAN
. If he is knocked back if you blast him, he's a spy, if not he's an ally. Easy pickings if he's found out. Just watch you back if your standing still for some reason >.>
Other Sidegrades:
Pistol vs Bonk!
Use Pistol, no exceptions. If you want to use the bonk use the Scattergun because you NEED the pistol if your holding onto the FAN.
Metal Bat vs Sandman
This is more of an interesting choice. On one hand, the Sandman does go nicely with the FAN since you can pull off double jump OUTSIDE of combat but on the other hand the double jump is a heavy price to pay for the Sandman's stun. The Sandman is more of a get-away tool now and it is useful against ubers. Overall go with your favorite and ask questions based on the situation (do I know a specific fan jump I wanna be able to do? Do I need to be able to stun ubers?)
Final words
Thanks for reading this guide and I hope you can use it if you want to give the FAN another try. It's a difficult weapon to master but in some situations it can be more deadly then it's counterpart while giving you a bit more mobility and a cool knockback.
if your mouse sensitivity is high, this will be fairly easy to pull off and allows you to round corners while airborne.
RIP TW 1954 - 2008
