The Ultimate Guide To Battle Engineer

-- What happens when you pour about 5,000 hours of your life into playing a specific class in a specific way within a specific video game? You get this video! Worth it.
Too slow! The ABC shirt is gone! Better luck next time, bud.
My discord, socials, TF2 servers, merch, information about my in-game settings, and video credits (such as the music used in my videos) can be found on my website at uncledane.com
The majority of music in this video is from this ~quality rip~ • Character Select (Exte...
Sound editing and mixing by @SoundSmithTF2
Thumbnail SFM made by @T0TEN
Always Be Constructing artwork by / kateshep.art
TF2 Best Settings Guide: • TF2 Beginners Guide: B...
Uncle Dane's Broken Binds: • Uncle Dane's BROKEN Binds
= CHAPTERS =
0:00 - Intro
2:46 - Learning Your ABCs
6:02 - Playing “Defensively Offensive”
9:11 - Medic Relations
14:41 - Positioning & Flanking
20:13 - Combat Construction
22:47 - Creating Your Own Advantages
27:51 - Worthwhile Trades
29:41 - Surfing Damage
32:02 - Useful Settings, Binds, & Scripts
38:20 - Melee Weapons
45:43 - Secondary Weapons
53:49 - Primary Weapons
1:05:35 - Loadout Combinations
1:11:21 - Miscellaneous Tips
1:13:23 - Conclusion

[@SilverMontegiu]

Uncle Dane just singlehandedly unleashed a flood of battle engineers on every single server for months to cone

[@sebastianherrera6514]

Cone Edit: what have i cone

[@foodaah]

Cone

[@DahsThePigeon]

Cone

[@bawower8905]

Cone

[@v.i.pflame7607]

Cone

[@SH4WNATR0N]

As a medic main, I am terrified of the amount of battle engineers I'm going to have to face in the next month or so

[@Waaz732]

Pls pocket engineers

[@stop8388]

I feel your pain, brother

[@SH4WNATR0N]

@@Waaz732 well I won't pocket (because I prefer not to pocket anyone) but I'll be sure to heal you guys :)

[@nightram6164]

@@SH4WNATR0N Thank you, we battle engies will sacrifice our life for you.

[@OhNoTheFace]

Well it depends if you were one of the medics seen in this video during part 3

[@lemono5954]

Fun fact the way an engie holds his toolbox from third person depends on if the building is new or not, if it’s on his shoulder it’s one he has prebuilt, but if it’s in front of him it’s a brand spankin new building

[@718vox]

Oh, never knew that!

[@Green24152]

huh

[@spunkyfunkymonke]

​@@718voxGotta move that gear up

[@biggusrichard1721]

@@Green24152if he is moving a building its on his sholder. If he placing a new building (not built yet) he holds it infront of him. Hope this helps

[@Daniel-wu6pl]

neat!

[@stratigangames508]

As a Medic main, to all other medics, KEEP EVERYONE OVERHEALED! Dont just focus on your pocket and healing damage. Be active in buffing your team and ubering whoever is most effective in any scenario. If the battle Engi is your best option in that moment, use him. A decent uber now is better than none at all.

[@techwizsmith7963]

After trying to actually learn medic, it really surprises me just how inefficient it is to pocket

[@stratigangames508]

@@techwizsmith7963 I've learned that a pocket isn't the guy you only heal for the entire game, it's the guy you're trusting to keep you alive so that you can keep buffing the team. Your body guard if you will.

[@grimmsoul3096]

understood, as long as they don't scream *MEDIC* the second the medic stops healing them

[@isenokami7810]

Always been my medic philosophy, which is why it irks me when the med beam itself works against me. “Why won’t it lock on the guy in the red!? Get out of here, Heavy, you’re already overhealed!”

[@doodlebug47]

i couldnt hit the broad side of a barn if i tried, so i play medic to keep everyone else alive, because they can probably shoot gooder than i can.

[@thescoundrel4058]

It hasn't been 24 hours and I have already seen a full team of engies terrorising everyone. Truly the pinnacle of mankind.

[@stoneforest2639]

I can confirm. There are some very chaotic engineers. I expect their population to increase exponentially.

[@organicleaf]

@@stoneforest2639 engineers will take over tf2 YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

[@johnanderson3559]

@@organicleaf Big Joey’s yeti heavies will fight back

[@HazelsGraveyard]

Same lmao

[@roetemeteor]

@@organicleaf 💥💥💥💥

[@JacintoshPLUS]

1 hour of dane? this is something every human being needs

[@plushdadumb8860]

heck yeah

[@Annex_canada]

I cannot handle this much dane

[@othila9902]

I don't think so No hate intended, save those salty comments for yourself

[@deviserdude3409]

heck yeah

[@td3pa837]

Ankle Dan is a veri gud Santa man

[@Captain_Ford]

Every time I watch Uncle Dane, I get the urge to hop onto TF2 and put his explanations into practice. And then I start playing, realize I'm not nearly as good as him, get stomped, and boot up Minecraft.

[@masonkay7024]

So I guess screw them you’re going to go play Minecraft

[@lar2841]

then you lose your hardcore world to 3 baby zombies with iron swords, and boot up TF2 again

[@KingKablooie]

@@masonkay7024 I love this.

[@ArbieLyvias]

​@@lar2841and the cycle never stops

[@squidbacon7397]

AMEN this is literally me but with Splatoon

[@micahnightwolf]

I tried this to improve my ninjaneering plays in my matches last night, and kept getting comments in the chat like "troll engi" or "engineer jumpscare" or "why is there always a level 2 sentry behind us." It's brilliant. And the best part is, after like 10 matches of me doing the same shenanigans over and over, not one single person figured out where my teleporter was. They did build a sentry at their spawn specifically to keep me from destroying their teleporters and making them walk thru my toxic gas cloud though.

[@greyscarclawcloud863]

Niceee lmao

[@retrodarktrooper6372]

You should name your Eureka effect "Engineer Jumpscare"

[@cyanideytandcuriousseadogg4160]

Well that is Value if the enemy engie found it worth it to use their sentry to keep you from using a personal spawn point to use your sentry to ambush the enemy team

[@Fatmagic]

I thought this was the only way to play Engineer

[@dothedotxom]

Anything other than aggressive engineer is boring

[@daenderman9715]

@@dothedotxom true

[@wezz-t812]

im surprised you havent gone insane after all the rabbithole shit that happened between you and venusian

[@Fatmagic]

​@@wezz-t812 Nothing I haven't seen or dealt with before haha

[@wezz-t812]

@@Fatmagic holy fuck you answered my shitty reply, thanks.

[@mrcomp1971]

Engineer will never be boring. Unless you play CTF, you're the infrastructure of your team.

[@michaellyga4726]

And if you do play CTF, the game turns into a glorified chatroom so complain about the homework you're not doing and reminisce about becoming a TF2 engineer rather than a real engineer. Totally not from experience btw

[@RedactedGentleman]

Cheeseburger

[@engineergaming5989]

@@RedactedGentleman apocalypse

[@RedactedGentleman]

@@engineergaming5989 what

[@gjota1371]

Ooooh boy It does, when your team doesn't help, your buildings keep getting destroyed, It does get boring

[@Fluxuation]

“…but then he dies to the mini sentry” is basically just battle engie in one sentence

[@Halberds6]

I LOVE Mini sentries

[@Halberds6]

Fun fact: it autocorrected to Mimi wtf is wrong with it.

[@arcshadowstorm]

As a medic main, I have had exquisite glee by ubering a battle engineer and forcing back a defensive zone on a payload map. It was so much fun

[@agrro_krysia3244]

I've read it with the Medic voice, ngl

[@aq_ua]

The thing about medic is... Just heal your team in general. Doesn't matter if they're not playing well, or they're a certain class. They're still your teammate and they can help with the game- "You're playing engineer" my left nut. Heal 'em anyways, they're playing the game and winning it for you!

[@daddysempaichan]

Just as buffing the Sniper might let him survive long enough to save your ass from, say, a market garden, buffing the Engi might let him survive, letting him keep his building up for longer, and letting either your team to respawn and push back the enemies, or hold the line long enough for you to safely get away. Like hell, buff the Spy, that'll let him live through more damage and let him fool enemies because "he didn't die to 2 rockets so he must be good" in before getting backstabbed. Like, just buff people if no one's actively being killed. It's not that hard. Unless your'e trying to go for crit heals like a tryhard, but at least tell us if you're doing that.

[@aq_ua]

@@daddysempaichan I agree with everything you said except Spy because the enemies can actually see the overheal particles, I've had spies tell me off for that before so it might not be the best idea? Not too sure.

[@xgcsurreal2608]

@@aq_ua it depends on when you healed him if the spy is about to go in then don't heal him, if he has yet to push forward towards the enemy then healing him before he disguises is usually a good call to make

[@thefirstprimariscatosicari6870]

I never understood the pocketing mindset, at least when applied to chokes and payload. Load a crossbow, quickfix and amputator, flash heal everything that moves, and your team sheer bodycount and blood will drown the other faster than with a stock, kritz or vac (especially the vac). It's basically the same as two level three teles. Of course, on CP or other more expansive gamemodes, pocketing is necessary, because your team will tend to spread out and so you'll need to follow at least one other player, else you end up scout or spy next meal.

[@roadhoundd.]

Overheating a fresh spawn takes all of half - one second. Always do it.

[@astralterra2906]

How does this man never run out of things to say about one class in one game

[@buttnutt]

Cos it's more a complex and interesting game than fnaf or something.

[@Aflay1]

It's funny how people still talk about Tf2 to this day Talk about it...as if it is brand new.

[@shieloop]

@@buttnutt wdym, there are so many hours of fnaf theory's lmao

[@DyslexicGamer]

That's because team fortress 2 is basically the greatest multiplayer game ever made and hasn't been remotely touched by anything else and probably won't ever be until someone with as much passion and skill makes a sequel

[@bolson42]

@@shieloop quality over quantity, and also depth of gameplay is the main differences

[@are.why.aye.n]

I remember watching this whole video before I even downloaded or played any gameplay of TF2 and it got me extremely hyped for "being a battle engie". I doubt I need to explain how that went for me with zero experience in the game but now with my modest 200 hours of gameplay (which isn't anything to rant about) I've rewatched this video and found some good tips on my already aggressive "bait" gameplay that I love to play with engineer. I will 200% rebind my "destroy" and "build" options though, I always wondered how you were able to destroy and build so quickly... thought you had some *very* quick fingers. Love what you do dude

[@SaiIorChips]

I started playing last march (I have been an engineer main I think 2 Months after I started playing TF2) before this video I would always be playing like a dumbass as battle engie, when this video came out, now I was a lot better. I'm glad to see a newer player like me learning something from uncle Dane lol. Good luck fragging!

[@Geario123]

Did you try to battle engie with stock wrench?

[@plastiktuten3866]

how are you going now?

[@Jiub_SN]

Yeah cuz dude uses cheats

[@floorpizza8074]

So your comment is ten months old now. Are you still playing TF2?

[@enchanted_end9395]

Fun fact, i used to think battle engineer was just dying over and over. Now that i ACTUALLY PLAY IT, its become my favorite class

[@Monuver]

Something that Dane didn't mention in the section about trading that I wish he did: if you kill (let's say) a demoman and die in the process, *you aren't as dead as they are.* While the demo is respawning, they're coping. While you're respawning, your teleporter is still teleporting, your dispenser is still dispensing, and your sentry is still denying area. You are an extension of your buildings, and they are an extension of you.

[@dannerhoinowski9520]

I hadn’t thought of it that way. Thank you

[@thomasguay4157]

Poetic

[@LiterallyInternet]

​@@thomasguay4157very poetic

[@zichenghan7585]

Facts

[@yahyagd5637]

​@@LiterallyInternetvery very poetic

[@iliketoplaygames1516]

I cannot tell you how happy I am to hear ANYONE, not just Dane talking about using the Frontier Justice with the Jag. I exclusively play engineer with the Pistol and the Jag yet I always play very aggressive. I've always felt like a huge exception stomping Powerhouse servers with 200 points blasting people in their front yard. Hearing that Dane enjoys it too feels really validating as a texan serving crit burgers at the enemy spawn.

[@allet8107]

I'm right there with you. FJ, Pistol, Jag has been my #1 favorite Engy loadout for years. I'm elated to see it getting the attention it deserves (and also slightly miffed now that I'm gonna get a lot more people calling me an Uncle Dane wannabe now)

[@ShinziiArt]

People didn't like the fj with the jag? Wtf.... I've used that combo since I first started playin the game all those years ago 👀

[@bac0ntoast]

such an underrated combo. wont be until now

[@Gatorz_Gaming]

@@ShinziiArt Jag is a direct upgrade in any case outside of refilling ammo, people have been dum not to, I am right here with you guys lol

[@liyifenn]

@@Gatorz_Gaming Jag can't tank buildings as well. The ammo isn't that big a deal

[@zeugmaflowers]

On Combat Construction Any experienced player with their team and the objective in mind is going to take every possible opportunity to destroy Engineer buildings, especially sentries, which is another reason that tactics such as the distraction sentry are so powerful. A player in combat with an Engineer will often switch their priority mid-fight if a sentry is placed, thinking that the best contribution they can make in the moment is to destroy the sentry for their team. While the Engineer is chipping away at their health, all the enemy can focus on is the sentry, thinking that they need to destroy it at all costs before they die, completely forgetting the fact that the Engineer can simply build another one once he has the metal required.

[@lyandrissteele2521]

Hey Dane. With your videos, you offered hundreds of hours of fun in TF2. I had personally given up on the game, burned out on getting trashtalked as a med/engi even when doing everything right, but you showed me the light. Thank you for your videos, knowledge and tips. I hope you'll keep them coming for a while.

[@ZomBro_BOSS]

We've been severely missing Dane, and now he might have overcompensated

[@Niiue]

You can't overcompensate with uncle dane videos

[@ZomBro_BOSS]

@@Niiue true

[@TheLambdaGuy]

44:16 Going Sun-on-a-stick against a gunslinger engi with his mini sentry, what a gamer

[@DinnerForkTongue]

I'm getting flashbacks to Bat.

[@imabird1566]

Uncle Dane getting KZbin bots? We finally hit the big times boys

[@Illitha]

@@imabird1566 hell yeah

[@vivelespatat2670]

@@imabird1566 After joining Casual, they joined KZbin

[@dr.tacophd1239]

The most Chad player in this video.

[@Emerald16028]

This play style is so fun once you learn it but can also be the most stressful thing in the world when the entire opposite team wants you and your sentry dead

[@kibecawest9867]

Dane actually hits on a real world thing in combat, the ones who win between near-peer forces is usually the one who spots their opponent first. Example: In WWII, many tank duels were decided by who spotted who first.

[@Le-cp9tr]

Dane is one of those KZbinrs you won’t see for months, before randomly he drops an unexpected well edited and researched video before disappearing

[@magicmanscott40k]

Editing takes forever

[@yoshi7530]

Sam’o’nella but with longer videos

[@xx_killerbeasts_xx8227]

Right back into the void he popped out of

[@apairofsteeltoedboots4729]

@@xx_killerbeasts_xx8227 hopefully lazypurple will also return

[@GameyRaccoon]

Everyone says this about almost every youtuber

[@Say-What]

Can't wait to have 5 engineers in every game trying this after.

[@gibusmibus9468]

5 engineers? MAKE IT 6 BABY

[@CHRIS-wm8vp]

MAKE THAT SEVEN MA BOI

[@mrgoose8983]

7 is not enough... 8 ENGIES IS BETTER

[@lelmorelel8972]

9.

[@ffwast]

Wishful thinking, it seems like I have to play the engineer just to have one in the team half the time.

[@emilyturpin6156]

I know you're a pyro main now, but your videos on the playstyles on how to play engineer and other engineer related topics have been extremely helpful for me as an engineer main. I'm not a great tf2 player, but I've certainly improved, and I thank you for your unknowingly integral contributions to my journey, Dane.

[@MrRoboto-nl3gs]

What?! Reading this felt like he switched gender or something. Of course he's an engineer main and don't you dare saying otherwise!

[@monke234A]

The pyro main thing was just an april fools

[@taterthedunce]

"Hey nieces and nephews, your home security is great!.. or is it?"

[@Redacted_Ruler]

1 hour 16 minutes and 55 seconds of Dane trying to convince us that 90 damage is the same as 108.

[@strangejune]

Funny, but in all seriousness I find it hard to justify using the Panic Attack because the damage it does outside point blank is so much lower. Sometimes on tighter maps where I know I won't spend much time in wider areas I'll run it, but outside of that I usually miss the medium range damage of the Shotgun. Maybe that's a sign that I don't use the pistol enough though, I dunno.

[@ansenren1508]

Wait I thought this was a scout guide

[@Redacted_Ruler]

@@strangejune Being able to reliably two shot a soldier or three shot heavy is pretty dam good though.

[@_Epidemic_]

@@Redacted_Rulerif you’re in breath smelling distance

[@Redacted_Ruler]

@@_Epidemic_ heavy’s the slowest class in the game which makes it much easier

[@ekans9193]

Hearing Uncle Dane say "On sight no cap" is definitely one of the moments of all time

[@yazidefirenze]

Not just any moment... A good moment.

[@tristanmand4569]

the bruh moment of all time

[@blueh4t880]

I love when ankle dan said "It's uncle Dane-ing time" and uncle Daned the entire enemy team. Truly one of the moments of all gaming. I hate myself

[@edq3]

bravo dane!

[@ItsHeartstruck]

I love how the entire video has Target Practice BUT also uses it with different melodies from other songs so it doesn't get repetitive.

[@MSCDonkeyKong]

Actually, it's the character select screen theme from smash 64. Siivagunner has more videos like those, particularly Wario World Pause Screen (Beta Mix) or Mega Man 3 character select screen (full version). This one is Character Select (Extended Version)

[@theperfectburger9892]

9:32 the prove you need to show that classism is real

[@SolarLight]

At last, a voice of reason! Trying to define the word "subclass" has always been a bit rocky, but I've had a similar take for a long time. As long as the Engineer still does his primary role of building sentries, dispensers and teleporters, we're still talking about the Engineer, and not an entirely new "class" or "subclass". An "actual" subclass needs to change the class in a drastic enough way, usually by completely replacing their most important weapon or tool. Shields replace stickies, which are often considered Demoman's actual primary weapon. The Huntsman replaces the rifle. The Rocket Jumper deals no damage. Your tools are completely replaced with new ones. Demoknight goes beyond everything else in the game when it comes to this sort of thing. A prime example of what an "actual" subclass is. Demoknight not only has a larger arsenal than some of the game's "actual" classes, the Boots also technically create a subclass within a subclass, since removing all of your ranged options makes yet another extreme difference. A sub-subclass?

[@ED-gw9rg]

Would be nice to see more Classes get their own Subclass-y "Weapons"

[@thefirstprimariscatosicari6870]

@@ED-gw9rg Some wouldn't even need brand new weapons. Like, fatscout could straight up be viable, if heavy could equip his lunchboxes in the primary slot too. And maybe get a speed boost for doing so. But that's optional.

[@bmv0746]

@@thefirstprimariscatosicari6870 Lmao no, no one who isn't memeing around would use a shotgun over any of the miniguns. Maybe heavy should have a seperate slot for shotgun and lunchbox

[@icicle_ai]

solarlight not trying to bring up demoknight at every conversation be like

[@punishedwhispers1218]

And the mini replaces the actual sentry, you know, something that fulfills an ENTIRELY different niche

[@lykosourliachto6185]

"I'm not a scout with less movement speed, you're a battle engi with no support buildings." -Uncle Dane to Scout mains

[@scotterboi9]

L

[@pon9670]

@@scotterboi9 no

[@robertogrigoras9171]

@@scotterboi9 You must be a scout main.

[@cyanideytandcuriousseadogg4160]

At least scout has a scattergun and a cocaine track instead of a blood track

[@rocketlaunchingshotgunguy4377]

Watching you calmly gun people down with your steady aim is so soothing to the soul

[@BanermanArthropide]

15:18 False, if an enemy is not aware of your presence they gain godlike dodging skills

[@fbrz20]

When I started playing TF2 at 2020 I didn't understand why everyone loved this game so much until a random frontier justice landed on my inventory. Since that point I fell in love with the diversity of play styles that the engineer could create with his crazy loadouts. Love your vids.

[@sigi10.]

Chad moment

[@robloxplayer0003]

49:31 That man saw 3 crockets and still had perfect reaction time. Incredible.

[@rainboi5920]

He saved the entire frontlines

[@Totas_funnynumber]

Here's an interesting (if not gimmicky) loadout I thought up. The Metal Magician -Widowmaker -Short Circuit -Gunslinger or Eureka Effect You can save metal on your buildings and use that on your primary and secondary. Think of it almost like your a wizard with a mana pool for your spells, hence the name. The idea of this loadout is to make your buildings weaker (and thus less important for success), while making yourself stronger

[@Gamingforlife70]

Thanks bro I tried it and it's very fun and unique in playstyle :)

[@Totas_funnynumber]

​@@Gamingforlife70I'm glad you like it

[@Gamingforlife70]

@@Totas_funnynumber :)

[@cyanideytandcuriousseadogg4160]

Texan wizard gaming

[@Totas_funnynumber]

@@cyanideytandcuriousseadogg4160 that's a lot cooler sounding

[@hope-mania]

I love how every soundtrack in this video is a remix of the Smash 64 character select screen

[@LazyPurple]

The biggest paradigm shift I got from this video is to think of battle engie as a Scout that "levels up" as he fights and collects metal from the battlefield. I never wanted to switch to Engie because I assumed "set up every support building to level 3" was engie's first and foremost obligation. Setting up level 1s, fragging, and then upgrading in-between sounds way more enjoyable. P.S. using a high-quality siivagunner rip for the background of a long video is actually genius, can't wait to use "Wario World - Pause Screen" for my next vid >:] P.P.S. 1:05:54 might be the funniest ragdoll of all time, it almost looks like a a gmod insert lmao

[@armoredg1497]

Literally 1984

[@Darth1218]

I wonder what kind of defense this is?

[@Brawlatron]

Thank god someone else noticed the music!!!

[@ikillstupidcomments]

Purp, this is one of the main reasons to take Gunslinger even beyond the mechanical benefits. It kills most of the impulse to sit at spawn whacking buildings.

[@AB0BA_69]

>next vid Stop teasing us, Lazy. You're never putting out another vid :(

[@jacobredfield5079]

It is so surprising that Dane almost never uses the cosmetics that he is quite literally known best for.

[@burritoman2k]

He'd get recognized constantly and I'm sure he probably just wants to play the game in peace most of the time

[@Zhasper]

He's rich and have a lot of cosmetics so why use only one

[@aronbaron1746]

@@ZhasperThey have the most drip, let’s be honest.

[@astrius22]

6:01 i don’t know what’s weirder, the fact that you are playing a remix of some obscure earthbound song or the fact i recognized it.

[@edq3]

13:54 that heavy slowly turning before firing lmao

[@718vox]

dude’s a machine lol

[@balintkurucz7245]

I don't remember you mentioning this, but mini sentries have 50 health at the moment you start building it, whereas normal sentries start building from 0. This makes minis much better as a quick and easy bullet sponge for emergency escapes

[@parkermarker742]

Also pyros destroy everything else before they even get blocked

[@acg8161]

Also if you’re unable to use the Disguise kit after setting up the Engie cfg, just make a spy cfg and type in bind 4 “slot4” This was posted by the Spy Main Gang.

[@balintkurucz7245]

@@acg8161 That's smart, but I usually just switch to knife, and select "next weapon" with a button4 on my mouse, or switch to revolver, and select "previous weapon" with button5. Takes a bit of getting used to, end definitely not as elegant, but I don't play that much spy, that it would bother me too much

[@alex_zetsu]

Level 1 sentries are useless as blockers because of this. Minis are a counter to Scout. If you drop a Mini Sentry and start shooting him, there is no way for him to kill both the gun and you if you have at least 125 HP. Uncle Dane wonders why Scouts keep dying to minis when he drops them, but unless he misses his meat shot, this is an engagement he can't lose.

[@georgevan]

wow, magyarok

[@darienb1127]

The way you describe Battle Engineer makes me think of how puppet characters work in fighting games. By yourself you're pretty weak, but your strength comes in the fact that you have two characters at once, making your pressure so much bigger. In this case the puppet would be the Sentry.

[@atomnum9]

I’d say the Engi is more akin to summoners than puppeteers as his sentry acts on its own

[@nicholaserickson4851]

My thoughts exactly! A defensive puppet character.

[@bearclaw5764]

17:38 pretty much Engineer "Oh hey whats up?" Enemy team "What the- why- how?"

[@R451Ns]

im a big fan of the Gunslinger when playing supportively while still roaming, get your teleporter and dispenser established and roam on the flank with your minis and Panic Attack. its a lotta fun, probably my favorite way to play engie

[@donutstand]

watching the scout at 4:11 completely shift focus to the sentry to the point of you being point blank at 1 shot health and able to stand completely still while you just kill him blew my mind

[@cgkase6210]

I feel like the mentality is a lesser of two evils. He has to kill the sentry or be gunned down without fail, or kill the engineer and be gunned down by the now built sentry. Juking an engineer is a whole lot easier than juking a sentry, so he probably was trying to rely on his speed to remove the biggest threat, being the building sentry.

[@tbone2416]

To be fair,when you see one of your hard counters about to set up his main way to counter you,your mind goes into monkey mode

[@alex_zetsu]

I feel Mini sentries are too powerful against Scouts. You basically need to get right up into the Mini Sentry as it is being constructed to one shot one being constructed. If you chase the Engineer you die. If you take 2 shots to kill the Mini Sentry, you're exposed for some time. If you want to one shot it with any primary, you have to run into melee range of that thing or bullet spread will cause you to 2 shot it. I suppose fair enough if the Mini Sentry is already up, but I feel that a Scout should not be put at a disadvantage if the Engineer just plops one down regardless of if it is hauled or a new one.

[@potatoesandducks958]

@@cgkase6210 I think the better choice would've been to kill the engi, then run away before the sentry kills you. Leave it to the team to fight sentries, scouts aren't built for that.

[@ME0WMERE]

@@alex_zetsu if you're a scout and meet an engineer who immediately puts down a mini sentry, you can kill the engineer in less than two seconds (even taking 3 shots is fine) and then kill the mini before it's even fully deployed

[@eloquence_4143]

25:48 the “Toxic Gas Cloud” analogy is actually very interesting, since many characters in other games with similar playstyles to Battle Engi are usually designed to literally have toxic gas clouds (examples include Caustic in Apex Legends or Viper in Valorant). These characters, like Battle Engi, specialize in Area Denial and are heavily underutilized if you choose to play them entirely defensively - they’re often at their best when you exert your bubble of influence more aggressively.

[@priyapepsi]

One class in tf2 can have the same amount of playstyles and archetypes that 2-3 classes in other games would need. It shows the true versatility of tf2's emergent mechanics

[@CorpseHuggerKos]

I've been watching your videos since I first started playing and seeing this video (albeit four months late) at a bad time in my life genuinely made me so happy. I hope you keep making content Uncle

[@iitzKJ]

Guide to playing battle engineer as a viable playstyle, not just a loadout. Mindset and strategies discussed. [00:03 Battle Engineer is a viable playstyle that requires utilizing all of your buildings. [06:09] Playing defensively offensive as an engineer [16:24] Effective flanking and map knowledge are key to success as a battle engineer [20:59 Use buildings to block enemies and gain an advantage [30:37] Learn to surf and improve your survivability as a battle engineer [35:24] Implementing destruction and loadout binds are important for effective battle engineer playstyle [44:14] Gunslinger is a useful choice for fast and cheap replacements [49:04 Short Circuit and Pistol are great options for Battle Engineer [58:51] The Engineer's primary weapons are the Revenge Crits, Panic Attack, and Widowmaker. [1:03:40] Different Loadouts for Battle Engineers [1:13:44] Battle engineer is a choice you make --------------------------------- Detailed Summary for [The Ultimate Guide To Battle Engineer] [00:03] Battle Engineer is a viable playstyle that requires utilizing all of your buildings. - Do not neglect your buildings as they make the engineer considerably stronger and greatly help your team. - Always be building and constructing. - Be present on the front lines while maintaining your buildings. - Understand that Battle Engineer is a playstyle and mindset, not just a loadout or subclass. [06:09] Playing defensively offensive as an engineer - Defensively offensive means constantly moving your bubble of influence to assist your team - Using your sentry gun to make space for yourself while you wreak havoc within that space - Medics should heal, buff, and even Uber charge battle engineers when they see them putting work on the front lines [16:24] Effective flanking and map knowledge are key to success as a battle engineer - Flanking involves recognizing main choke points and taking alternate routes to set up your own bubble of influence - Map knowledge is important for using terrain to your advantage and finding spots that others wouldn't expect you to be in - Building boosts can also increase your mobility and help you reach new heights [20:59]Use buildings to block enemies and gain an advantage - Physically block enemies from walking through tight spaces - Deploy buildings as damage sponges or body blockers - Use distraction sentries to redirect enemy attention - Building destruction can alert you to enemy location - Create your own advantages through game knowledge and baiting - Choose fights wisely and retreat when necessary [30:37] Learn to surf and improve your survivability as a battle engineer - Short circuit jumping can help you escape unpredictable melee hits - Surfing can be used to both confuse enemies and close distances - Customizing your settings can improve your gameplay experience - The PDA bypass script can make constructing and destroying buildings seamless - Tactical destruction can confuse enemies and give you an advantage [35:24] Implementing destruction and loadout binds are important for effective battle engineer playstyle - Using destruction bind can prevent your buildings from being camped and deny approaching spies from sapping. - Loadout bind is useful to change loadout presets quickly to fit moment-to-moment situations. - All of the engineer's weapons are pretty good, and there isn't necessarily a choice that will guarantee success or failure. - Melee weapons are almost entirely utility for building construction. [44:14] Gunslinger is a useful choice for fast and cheap replacements - Melee hit registration is beneficial against heavy players - The Wrangler is a defensive item and Short Circuit is useful for projectile deleting [49:04 Short Circuit and Pistol are great options for Battle Engineer - Short Circuit can give you a Fighting Chance against soldiers and help escape - Pistol provides medium range damage and covers Engineer's weakness in close quarters combat [58:51] The Engineer's primary weapons are the Revenge Crits, Panic Attack, and Widowmaker. - The Panic Attack is the perfect all-around option for Engineer and excels in close quarters combat. - The Widowmaker is a punishing weapon that requires good Metal Management and aim, but it provides infinite sustain if used accurately. - The stock shotgun is a reliable staple in any Engineer Loadout with no downsides. [1:03:40] Different Loadouts for Battle Engineers - Rollout Roamer Loadout for flexibility and teleportation - Death Match Man Loadout for high damage output - Choke Point Warrior Loadout for survivability against projectile spam - Defense Loadout for aggressive playstyle with support from a Medic - Battle Druid Loadout for utility and consistent medium to long range damage [1:13:44] Battle engineer is a choice you make - Loadout is more important than play style in defining a subclass - Battle engineer can be played aggressively without the Gunslinger or Eureka Effect

[@Small_child_punter]

13:36 I wonder how that sniper felt learning that THIS is how he ended up in an uncle dane video.

[@gryphonkingbros847]

Considering how toxic he was being, I doubt he has the attention span to watch an hour-long guide about Engineer, so he probably will never know lol

[@Muttskii1985]

​@@gryphonkingbros847damn you landed a crit on that sniper's feelings XD lul

[@retroterro]

That was a shotgun tho,uncle was goofy

[@Grenadier_Guardsman]

​​@@gryphonkingbros847 Ironic considering that patience is supposed to be a snipers main focus.

[@Humanresouces]

This reply section is just cutting this sniper's heart out and roasting it til' it's medium well. AWESOME.

[@Tekni]

Using Toxic's signature melody when talking about the 'toxic gas cloud' (26:27), and using another melody from later in the song that's literally the same line but reversed when talking about the 'reverse toxic gas cloud' (26:36) is genius. Damn.

[@jonasz294]

the score in this video is amazing, earlier he uses a synth along with the backing track to highlights moments where he had to make decisions in the gameplay. It’s fucking incredible for a youtube video.

[@jonasz294]

Sound Smith did the sound editing for this video which makes a huge amount of sense

[@LanderKoenig]

I love this, once i get back into tf2 and actually start properly instead of just piggybacking off my little brothers old account. I want to do it myself and get everything myself. I hope this goes well

[@dimitrizradulov7006]

Great video, good editing, a detailed, yet not cluttered guide, which is easily implementable in-game. Also loving the long-form content !

[@wuketuke6601]

As a medic main, engineers often have crit heals, and buffing them to max overheal is basically free

[@DEWILL]

"Oh, a video" - 1 hours 17 minutes

[@leafofyume7838]

i love how the engineer mainly locks down an area while supporting your team in many ways. it just feels rly nice to be able to provide an not that easy to remove area your team can fall back to. i also mainly like to play tank and support characters in hero shooters.i never expected so much offensive potential trough. when i played engineer i just poked down enemies around my area and only left it when good reasons for it piled up. i knew that engineer can be stressful (what is the reason why i barely play him, i just cant handle it), but hearing someone that played him for ages, has atleast a bit of knowledge about most the engineer can do, is probably comfortable whit playing him and is rly skilled saying that playing engineer alone can be one of the most stressful thing you have ever done just makes me a bit scared to play engineer and makes me respect engineer mains even more. especially on maps like harvest that sound like they add extra difficulty to engineer. there is no way that someone cant get a pro by learning from this channel, just look at how he even supplies us whit very advanced and some overlooked knowledge you only get by either hearing about it or just being dedicated and smart about this character. he singlehandedly gives us enough knowledge to stomp alot of players in the frontline whit a class that was designed for the backline. of course its always nice to collect second and third opinions but uncle dane is still all you need. i didint notice this video until now. now it makes sense why suddenly almost every round i played had an engineer. was fun learning this much.

[@emirwattabor6991]

An extra tip for building-boosting; If you time your jump right, you can pick up the building you're boosting off of right as you jump, allowing you to take the high ground and take your building with you. It's especially effective on Snakewater mid, where you can jump off of your sentry to get up to the logs, taking it with you so you can redeploy it up on the high ground

[@anunusualstoutshako728]

Amazing video! i especially love the fact that you also used non-flattering video clips of yourself missing shots, it's nice to have a reminder that no one's perfect, not even our favorite Engineer Uncle.

[@yasho437]

Wha da you mean! He killed that medic, we all saw that. ...right? (referencing the clip of him on swiftwater where he "definitely killed that medic and didn't miss a shot", that i now can't find in this over an hour long video) Edit: i found it: 31:33

[@Samwiz1]

Having spent a lot of time stewing over how we won those later games in B4nny's Pros vs. KZbinrs 3v3v3v3 events, I think That maybe Just maybe Your teleporters absolutely carried us to victory Thanks, Uncle Dane.

[@aVeryAngryMoth]

As dane himself said: Sentries get kills Dispensers save lives And teleporters win games Edit: spelling

[@agoofyredprotogen5648]

samwiz your here?

[@Fofenho]

shut up, transphobe

[@thespicyjim8954]

Hey Dane, just wanna say that this video is AWESOME and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Thanks for putting so much time into it

[@hittingwater4639]

the best part about this video is all the music references in the background

[@PlasmaAsthmaOG]

Not even halfway through the video and i've already cackled out loud like 5 times Dane is literally a godsend.

[@matthewschram1100]

For real it was so funny

[@herb_2]

The writing and editing is absolutely on point this video. Dude is good at what he does.

[@henryambrose8607]

I forcefully exhaled through my nose a few times during this video.

[@ElwindMage]

Whenever Dane posts, he reminds me of how much fun and potential this game has and I always come crawling back to it like an addiction

[@arcionek]

Dane is actually a crack dealer who offers "freebies", whenever their clients start going clean. Source? Dane, and I got 5 grams to back that up.

[@audiovisualcringe]

bro underwent tf2 relapse 💀

[@texastacoss]

same 😔

[@kanutastar]

i never noticed until now how much health that spy has at 25:07 thats one powerful shotgun

[@pigpiggster2458]

I've been using... about 50% of these tips to the battle engi mindset, and i gotta say: it works like a charm! Most of these situations come very often and this video singlehandedly solved each issue i had with engi. Tbh, im going to use more than 90% of these tips, amazing!

[@glacier_10_years_ago]

24 hours later and the matchmaking is full of beer-drinking, bacon-consuming, yeehaw-calling mad lads placing ministries where ever they go! truly magnificent, thank you ankle dane!

[@Rended_]

Ankle dane i cant XD

[@Shmey]

I'll have to rename my Gunslinger to "Ministry of Gun" now. Thanks for that.

[@michaelw6277]

As someone who purchased The Orange Box it absolutely blows my mind that TF2 content can still pull a million views on KZbin after nearly 15 years. My main was always the engineer, and while it was fun to turtle up in the normal spots I always thought it was great fun to try and set up a turret in completely unexpected spots... like dropping a level 3 turret around a corner along a common path out of spawn, while I just sort of dance around out in the open shooting things from long range with my shotgun to get their attention so they don't even think to look left or right around the corner and get popped. Huge fun.

[@condorX2]

The million of views and thousands of likes are from farm accounts. You paid money for professionals farmers to raise your views and likes. The top comments are probably from farm accounts. Do you remember those convincing investment trading post? Followed by multiple trading comments including their contact info.

[@michaelw6277]

@@condorX2 the volume of TF2 content suggests that the game is still popular. it's not just the number of likes and views, it's that there's a considerable amount of content being uploaded for this game that's highly suggestive that this game is still really popular.

[@SergeantDoorknob13]

@@condorX2 nobody is agreeing with you, stop

[@condorX2]

@@SergeantDoorknob13 nobody ask

[@aperks]

L orange box W valve pack

[@deskslam4232]

6:13 The Demo literally dropped EVERYTHING he was doing because he saw the mini go up.

[@BryantVonMiller]

Unrelated to your comment, I adore your pfp!

[@wr3nche5]

i appreciate you using Metal Fortress' final More Gun remix at 2:36 . that remix is a JAM and i'm happy that uncle D himself used it

[@ikhwananimationsbeyondweeb4528]

"Lazy, what kind of defense is this!?" "I am 1:08:07!"

[@sneakysileny]

They turned Lazy into a loadout, funniest shit I've ever seen

[@ShiddyKong]

Engineer mains freely admitting spy’s weakness is a pretty good judge of character

[@alex.g7317]

how?

[@ShiddyKong]

@@alex.g7317 It shows some integrity considering the fact that spy was designed to counted engineer and can often feel cheap

[@alex.g7317]

@@ShiddyKong cheap? I can understand him being bad at countering engineer, but wdym by cheap?

[@ShiddyKong]

@@alex.g7317 Some people feel robbed by the face stab and stuff like that

[@alex.g7317]

@@ShiddyKong oh, i see lmao

[@Hugo-xr1mg]

i love engineer, it reminds me of maintaining a steam locomotive you have to keep an eye on Pressure, which also makes you have to keep an eye on certain stuff such as a Fire consumption from your firebox, or the Management of your water, there's also the Tractive Effor that is constantly changing each "Chuff" the engine is performing, You need to take care of your Water, but you also need to maintain your Fire, as such, Regulate your Air, to then tame the Earth. which is hella cool

[@kabooki22]

This video is what influenced me to really delve into battle engineer, and I thank you for that Dane!

[@karynbrunton3218]

23:21 My mum heard this out of context and bursted out laughing, she chose probably the worst time to waltz in lol

[@liamatte]

Tips from one seasoned medic to another: 1. Keep the medi beam at max range and stay behind cover whenever possible. It forces the opponent to either fight the person who is buffed or run past them to get to you. 2. Save pocketing someone circumstantially. In most scenarios, you want to bounce you beam between as many people as you can to make sure they don't die. Pocket usually when someone dives you, you are about to uber, or you are making a big push with a teammate. 3. UBERCHAIN!!! When you uber, don't just stick it one guy. Bounce it around to a bunch of people who are there! The uber lasts long enough so that they take minimal damage, essentially meaning that with stock uber you can uber as many people as you want provided they are in your general vicinity. Heed my words well younguns, and you too can have a shitty ratio in pubs.

[@enigmabureau]

Well, until you get market pardner’d by the flying Texans

[@ozvoid1245]

The main problem with uberchains is the uber penalty for switching teammate.

[@Z3R0Steam]

i've run by these rules for years, very helpful for helping me live as a medic and also making sure the entirety of the pick and support classes on my team don't fucking explode from a random crit rocket that the 2-hour F2P soldier accidentally shot

[@thundercclap3963]

Doesn’t uberchaining now have a Uber duration penalty?

[@liamatte]

@@thundercclap3963 yes, but saving multiple teammates is still better than a slightly longer uber

[@minecraftperson8412]

27:40 did he just did he just airblast an exclusively hitscan class

[@jamjon6616]

Gotta get that critical airblast

[@s0biektywnie]

Exclusively? What about pompson or rr?

[@minecraftperson8412]

@@s0biektywnie That pyro knew damn well he wasn't using either

[@s0biektywnie]

@@minecraftperson8412 idk maybe he simply wanted to airblast an engineer

[@bread496]

great video,bbut the heavy slowly turning at 13:58 like a living statue,in a oddly smooth way broke me SO MUCH

[@peacock653]

With dane’s new uploads life becomes like 20% more enjoyable. Thank you, sir

[@charlesqiu137]

4:55 "Always Be Crapping" - Uncle Dane

[@Anarqism]

cooming

[@WetSweatySocks]

Uncledane, you have single handily changed the way i play engineer, I've never had so much fun playing engineer before, Thanks!

[@bork5268]

Just noticed, after a few watches, in the stand still scene at 25:00, in the spy pov he has 999999 health, just thought it was a funny visual gag and made me exhale through my nose loudly, good job dane

[@Kris18]

12:56 WHY IS YOUR TIMING AND EDITING SO GOOD Your editing and humor is ALWAYS on point, but I wanted to highlight this moment. Somehow you made this video not only incredibly informative but entertaining and funny, too. Thank you for this behemoth of a video, Dancle Ane!

[@coltont8316]

I hope so he had 5 months to prepare it

[@Kris18]

@@coltont8316 Feel free to step in and do better, bud. Uncle Dane doesn't owe you shit.

[@shallex5744]

@@coltont8316 he only had 5 months? wow

[@sneakyboi9598]

21:17 that "dispensir" just fucken killed me

[@UncleSarge]

I have been coming back to this video to try and absorb as much as I can for actual in-game play and I gotta say, the destroy-build binds are insanely helpful. I would like to see a video of you using the normal construction PDA binds compared to gameplay of you using the build and destroy scripts you've got and see if it heavily impacts your overall speed or efficiency. Also I am begging you to consider making a tutorial on your HUD settings on here or the second channel to explain how you edited the different options to get it set up the way you wanted, especially your metal count being centered just below your crosshair. Legitimately the best generalist video I've seen on KZbin in regards to how to play Engineer more effectively and with more consistent pressure and presence.

[@Maddox_San]

Ayyy!! Didn't think I'd be in an Uncle Dane Vid! *38:28*

[@718vox]

Nice :0

[@azztopia]

When the world needed him most.. he returned.

[@SocknessMonster]

generic comment moment

[@Small_child_punter]

This is said entirely too often. Why does the world need him more now than we did 5 months ago?

[@CricetoFunni]

youtube commenters when a creator doesn't upload for 5 f*cking minutes

[@RottenBensen]

it's only been a few months

[@demoman5864]

@@CricetoFunni true

[@sourceeee]

I've played this game for 11 years and did not know about the instant build or instant loadout swap binds. There were so many opportunities I could have used them in. I genuinely appreciate the length and usefulness of this video, in a both a practical and educational sense.

[@manwiththeplan27]

The time youve played this game is almost as old as me!

[@appalacha7278]

​@@manwiththeplan27 ouch

[@svshhsbs]

i have never seen anything more mesmerizing than danes aiming

[@WTZWBlaze]

26:37 Gotta be the single best music-related joke I’ve heard all month

[@mov7526]

13:57 The heavy blair witching in the corner then slowly turn around right after the engineer died is probably the funniest thing I've seen all week

[@Limeskin]

Considering the fact I have had to watch this video in three parts throughout three days, makes it feel like it's one of those tapes someone plays for when they go to sleep. And the more they listen to it, they become some fighting champion or something. (Hopefully y'all understand what I mean when I say this.) Excellent video.

[@PioterRArmia]

i watched this lime 5 times already

[@ianwise2457]

@@PioterRArmia citrus often requires care and attention 👍

[@tappajaav]

@@ianwise2457 I'm more of an orange(box) man

[@Kasslim11]

Very impressive. I had my aprehensions about watching a 1.25h video about a game I don't play all that much anymore, but ANKLE DAN doesn't disappoint ^^

[@pseudonymgaming3541]

A strategy I love is playing engi on a ctf map, building a lvl 3 sentry, using the Widowmaker and going ham and suicidally grabbing the intel

[@steelbaron6343]

Not only is it an Uncle Dane video, but its a GOOD one, the editing and the flow kept me engaged the entire time.

[@StickMaster500]

Uncle Dane has finally awaken from his months long hibernation

[@neeevirus]

First Well not first in the comment section, but first in this guy's reply section Which is probably the same thing

[@squidhgf9997]

This is an amazing video, very informative and one of the few videos that has actually made me laugh in the last week

[@peterkershaw11]

Another tip I've found incredibly useful for both turtle and battle engie: if your tele isn't level 3 and some of your team is about respawn all at the same time, hold on the last wrench swing to upgrade it until a teammate uses it. Doing so *instantly* refreshes the teleporter's cooldown (sometimes, thanks Valve spaghet code). Additionally, if you built your tele with the eureka effect, you can teleport three teammates in about seven seconds, compared to the fifteen seconds a level 3 takes. I have saved games by getting a medic combo back to the front lines a few seconds faster. It is very much a situational tech, but a useful one if you can capitalize on it!