Operation Canteen Crasher is a new community Mann vs. Machine contest hosted by the same folks that brought you Operation Titanium Tank! (The Titanium Tank event ends on May 31st, 2018 @ 11:59 PM ET)
Create new community Mann vs. Machine maps, new waves for existing community Mann vs. Machine maps, new weapons, and new cosmetics for this event! The deadline for all contest entries is July 31st, 2018 @ 11:59 PM ET.
On August 15th, 2018 (Mann vs. Machine's birthday), contest entries will be hosted on Potato's Custom Mann vs. Machine Servers! Players will be invited to complete the community-created Mann vs. Machine maps, waves, and objectives. But having fun playing the newly-created content is only half of the event! The main goal is to support content creators by promoting and showcasing their work to the community!
Players and content creators can earn multiple Canteen Crasher in-game medals for participating!
We've just released an update that includes matchmaking improvements, a new community cosmetic case, lots of bug fixes, and more! Click here to read all of the details!
An update to Team Fortress 2 has been released. The update will be applied automatically when you restart Team Fortress 2. The major changes include:
Matchmaking Changes
Competitive Revamp
The matchmaking system used for Competitive Mode has been overhauled. Players will now be ranked using a model based on the Glicko rating system used in CS:GO.
The old 18 Competitive ranks have been consolidated into 13 new ranks. You can view the new ranks on the updated Competitive FAQ page (http://www.teamfortress.com/meetyourmatch/faq/)
Competitive ranks have been reset and players must win 10 matches to earn a new Competitive rank
Note: The previous system started everyone at Rank 1, and required - in most cases - considerable time for players to reach a rank that properly reflected their performance. The new system - by way of placement matches - considerably shortens the time required to reach an appropriate rank
The requirements to access Competitive Mode have changed: If you do not own a Competitive Matchmaking Pass, you must now be at least Casual level 3 in addition to being a Premium user and having a valid phone number associated with your account.
Casual Improvements
Casual Mode now uses the Glicko skill rating system behind the scenes to better create balanced matches and group players by skill level
The maps listed in the Casual matchmaking screen are now sorted alphabetically
Added ctf_sawmill, ctf_well, cp_5gorge, ctf_2fort_invasion, and ctf_foundry to Casual Mode
Updated the match-end map voting to only vote on maps for the current game mode (if you are playing Payload, you will only vote on Payload maps)
Queue While Playing
You can now queue for a match while already in a Casual or Boot Camp match
While queued and in-game, queue status will be shown in the top right
Multi-Queue
You can now queue for multiple match types at the same time
Players can queue for all match types in parallel, but accepting a Competitive or Mann Up match will remove the player from other queues
Players who are in a party and not the party leader are now able to freely browse any of the matchmaking menus
Gameplay Changes
Flamethrowers
Flamethrowers were able to do full damage regardless of the spread of their flames, rewarding maximizing flame spread over focusing on a target. We've made changes geared toward preserving the current damage range of flamethrowers, but requiring better aim to do so.
Flame damage per second now ramps up based on density of flame encountered, up to 200%
Initial flame damage per second reduced by 50%, resulting in the max damage being unchanged
The Dragon's Fury
We are happy with the design of this weapon, and the playstyle it brings, but it should require tighter hit tolerances in order to reach the higher-end of the damage range
The size/radius of the fireball has been reduced by 25%
Bonus damage against a burning target now requires the fireball's center to make contact with the target's hitbox
The Gas Passer
We found a couple of issues with the Mann vs. Machine upgrade "Explode on Ignite" that resulted in it doing far more damage than intended. We've increased base damage to help offset some of the reduction in output these fixes bring about.
Changes to the "Explode On Ignite" upgrade in Mann vs. Machine
Damage from the upgrade no longer counts toward the refilling the item's charge meter
Fixed an issue where explosive damage could be reapplied for each target in the gas cloud
Fixed the triggering bot not taking explosion damage
Increased explosion damage to 350 (from 250)
The Axtinguisher
The slow deploy time -- which is there to help "pay" for the burst-damage this weapon is capable of -- hasn't been very well received, and we agree that it feels awkward. The design goal of this pass is to embrace the concept of a finishing-move weapon -- which requires planning, timing, and introduces opportunity for "combo" gameplay.
New design:
Attacks mini-crit and then extinguish burning targets
Receives a damage bonus based on the remaining duration of after-burn
Added: "Sketchek's Bequest: Killing blows on burning players grant a speed boost"
Base damage reduced by 33%
Holster speed 35% slower
No random critical hits
The Thermal Thruster
We erred on the side of conservative with the initial design -- as this item introduces a lot of mobility to a class that's typically lacked it -- but having watched players for a while, we think it is safe to make it easier for Pyros to switch back to their weapon
Holster time reduced to 0.8 seconds (from 1.1)
The Sydney Sleeper
Jarate is a powerful effect, and this weapon makes it too easy for one Sniper to substantially increase the damage potential of their team. And, unlike the Jarate jar, the infinite-range of the rifle means the Sniper can be far away from danger. These changes are designed to preserve the "Jarate Rifle" identity, but tone it down, add more reward for the Sniper's skill by allowing higher first-shot damage output, and offer a way for players who want to focus on providing area-of-effect Jarate to recharge their Jarate jar more quickly.
Fully-charged body shots and headshots no longer splash Jarate on players around the target
Reduced length of on-hit Jarate to 2 to 5 seconds (from 2 to 8 seconds)
Added: "Nature's Call: Scoped headshots always mini-crit and reduce the remaining cooldown of Jarate by 1 second"
The Short Circuit
The current design of zapping projectiles is interesting, but we're not happy with how much it can be done. While it would be easy to simply increase the metal cost (which we've done before), it would quickly push this weapon into the rarely, if ever, used category. Instead, we've changed the fundamental behavior of the weapon, such that it requires a bit more anticipation and positioning from the Engineer, has more skill depth, and increases the team support potential of this weapon.
Alt-fire attack changed to launch a medium-range, projectile-destroying energy ball. Requires 65 metal.
Pretty Boy's Pocket Pistol
We underestimated how much health high-skill players would be able to recover during combat.
Reduced maximum (close-range) per-hit heal amount to 3 (from 7)
The Panic Attack
The recent redesign left this weapon feeling a little weak close-in, so we've increased the damage potential at point-blank and close range.
Reduced worst-case shot pattern spread by 40%
Reduced damage penalty to -20% (from -30%)
The Atomizer
This is basically a bug fix. Players could perform a double-jump and then quickly switch to this item and eek out a third jump. The goal of the previous change was to require players to commit to this item in order to gain the extra jump.
The weapon must now be fully deployed before a triple jump can be performed
Gameplay Fixes
Fixed the "-40% health from healers" penalty on The Fists of Steel (it wasn't active)
Fixed an issue with The Gloves of Running Urgently and Eviction Notice where players that were missing health would not be properly restored when touching a resupply cabinet
Fixed the Cow Mangler 5000's charged shot so that afterburn lasts 6 seconds (instead of 10)
Fixed a case where Engineer buildings could be placed such that players would become stuck when exiting a teleporter (a.k.a. "teleporter trap")
Fixed Flamethrower particles sometimes failing to draw on the client
Fixed Flamethrower flames not colliding with tf_generic_bomb entities
Fixed being able to fire flames and then quickly switch teams to attack teammates
Fixed The Loose Cannon continuing to play the priming sound if the weapon is holstered while priming
Fixed projectiles from The Pomson 6000 and The Righteous Bison pushing players around
Fixed the Razorback shields not being preserved across round restarts
Fixed the Dragon's Fury not giving health when attacking an enemy under the effects of Mad Milk
Fixed being able to load the Beggar's Bazooka with rockets and then spam the inspect key to hold the loaded rockets until ready to fire them
Fixed the Heavy being able to attack with secondary and melee weapons while stunned
Fixed being able to collect organs with the Vita-Saw during a truce
Fixed not being Marked-for-Death when doing a melee attack while under the effects of Crit-A-Cola
Lag compensation system will now reliably restore pose parameters responsible for animation layering
This makes server-side hitboxes for lag compensated players better match client-side rendered models
Fixed stickybombs sometimes blocking explosive damage from other stickybombs
Fixed The Back Scatter not mini-crit'ing when the Scout was in the air and behind their target
Fixed the resistance-piercing property on The Enforcer not working against some items or effects (Wrangler shields, Battalion's BackUp, Fists of Steel, Spy invisibility passive resistance, The Dead Ringer, Brass Beast and Natascha)
Fixed The Sandman and The Wrap Assassin projectiles colliding with invisible objects in team spawn rooms
Fixed player movement speed sometimes being faster than intended while under the effect of a movement stun (i.e. Natascha, The Sandman's ranged attack, Bonk! Atomic Punch)
General
Added the Blue Moon Cosmetic Case and Blue Moon Cosmetic Key
New community cosmetics case with 19 items
Reduced the base price of the Competitive Mode Pass from $19.99 USD to $9.99 USD and left it on sale for 50% off the new base price
Added The Dragon's Fury and The Hot Hand to the list of weapons used when generating Killstreak Kits in Mann vs. Machine
The type of badge shown on the main menu can now be changed by clicking the gear button near the badge
The in-game action buttons (Call a vote, Request a coach, etc.) have been moved to the bottom center of the main menu
Sped up the main menu screen transitions. Controlled via the ConVar tf_dashboard_slide_time.
Party members will now have a status indicator on their Steam avatar when they are offline
Improved Steam rich presence integration based on the player's current status
Improved UI when certain match types, such as Mann vs. Machine, are unavailable for maintenance
Fixed Squad Surplus Vouchers only being usable by the party leader in Mann vs. Machine
Fixed the console, server browser and options menus sometimes going behind the main menu and becoming unclickable
Fixed a client crash related to the cycling ads in the main menu
Fixed a bug related to the ConTracker not displaying the correct number of earned contract points
Fixed not being able to move if you opened the ConTracker menu while dead and closed it after you respawned
Fixed Sniper ragdolls not displaying the correct state for the Razorback when the Sniper is killed (drawing when it should be hidden and vice-versa)
Fixed the match-end map vote menu drawing if you disconnect from a server during a vote and then connect to a new server
Fixed not using the initial observer point when first connecting to a Casual or Competitive server
Fixed not being able to spectate observer points or your own buildings in Casual Mode
Fixed not being able to inspect the Pain Train in-game
Fixed a visual artifact when inspecting the Panic Attack
Fixed The Thermal Thruster launch effects only being visible to the wearer
Fixed the Heavy fists not showing the Killstreak sheen
Fixed the Yeti Smash taunt not removing the Yeti prop if the taunt is ended before the animation is complete
Fixed Mann vs. Machine robots sometimes using human voices instead of their robot voices
Fixed Festivized items ignoring any other quality for their name (i.e. "Collector's")
Fixed Festivized Australium weapons not using the correct skins for players on the BLU team
Fixed Festivized Holy Mackerels, Soda Poppers, and Wingers not drawing the festive lights for the BLU team
Fixed the Steam Community Market icons for several Festivized weapons
Fixed training bots suiciding in the respawn room
Fixed the Prinny Hat and Prinny Pouch not displaying their painted areas when painted
Fixed The Hot Hand being hidden when the Pyro taunts
Fixed the Deflect Projectiles strange part not counting deflections
Fixed the Engineer's PDA not always honoring the "Use minimized viewmodels" option
Fixed missing display attribute for the Rescue Ranger (client display issue only)
Fixed seeing "Red Rock Roscoe War Paint" as a valid tool for all items in the context menu
Fixed the Community Sparkle particle effect not drawing on the viewmodel for players with Community and Self-Made weapons
Fixed the Wrangler's death notice icon being clipped
Fixed the Overtime label not being centered under the team status HUD
Fixed the Sap Auteur achievement not working with all types of sappers
Fixed the Krazy Ivan achievement not requiring the victim to be underwater
Added RGB sliders for Combat Text in the Advanced Options screen
Added a unique particle effect whenever a player performs a "Stomp" attack on another player with the Mantreads or The Thermal Thruster
Added the BLU skin to the Neo Tokyo War Paint
Added the ozfortress Season 21 tournament medals
Added the National Heavy Boxing League tournament medals
Added ETF2L Highlander Season 14 and 6v6 Season 29 tournament medals
Added the Ultimate Ultiduo tournament medals
Added RGL.gg Pick Ban Prolander Participant Season 2 tournament medal
Added the RGL.gg One Day Prolander Cup tournament medals
Added the Palaise tournament medals
Added the Newbie Prolander Cup tournament medals
Added the ESA Rewind II tournament medals
Added the Florida LAN 2018 community medals
Added the Journey to the East community medals
Added the Canteen Crasher community medals
Updated the Harvest Moon, Dead Presidents, and Circling Peace Sign unusual effects to fix display problems
Updated the autobalance feature to more quickly respond to team imbalances
Will select the best candidates to balance the teams then ask the candidates for volunteers
If no volunteers are found, candidates will be switched when they die
If no candidates die within a reasonable period of time, candidates will be forcibly switched to the other team
Updated past Saxxy and Memory Maker items to be Strange
Updated the Huntsman contract to give 5 points instead of 4 on the Expert objective to fix not being able to fully complete the contract
Updated The Jag to fix a problem with the Isotope unusual effect
Updated the team status HUD to be enabled by default when playing on Community servers (for game modes other than Mann vs. Machine)
Can be toggled via the Adv. Options menu
Updated the Thermal Thruster status icon in the HUD to match the actual model
Updated Titanium Tank Participant Medal 2017 so it can be used with name/description tags
Updated the description for the Skullpluggery achievement to clarify what needs to be done
Updated the equip_region for the Wally Pocket
Updated models/materials for The Patriot Peak, The Crit Cloak, and Special Snowflake 2016
Updated the localization files
Added a bot navigation file for ctf_turbine
Updated pl_badwater
Fixed a few cases where Pyros could shoot through spawn doors
Updated cp_dustbowl
Fixed Pyros shooting through the stage 3 doors
Updated some entities that were disabled but shouldn't have been (func_nobuilds, soundscapes, powerlines in the 3dskybox)
Updated ctf_foundry
Added func_noclip instances to the base areas for both BLU and RED to prevent nasty sentry locations
Updated cp_mercenarypark
Fixed RED being able to shoot through the roof of BLU's starting spawn
Changes to control point C
BLU's spawn time has been slightly lowered
The upper-mid route window now has a small opening for attackers to use
Players can no longer build on the very top of the crate stack overlooking the control point
Increased cover next to the control point
Increased the size of the metal supply next to the cover stack
Added a vent route that exits behind the new cover
Bullets no longer go through the chain fence wall at the ramp connecting lower and upper
Community requests
Fixed the Start Disabled logic in the func_nobuild entity
Added OnEat, OnEatRed, and OnEatBlue outputs and filter support in the func_croc entity
Added ConVar mp_tournament_prevent_team_switch_on_readyup (default 1) to prevent team switching on ready-up when using tournament mode
Missed note from a previous update:
Fixed security issue reported by 'Kristian N. (!AvastAntiPony 9445)'
Recharge Gaming League has crossed the pond. The very first season of Pick/Ban Prolander is coming to Europe! We're bringing with us a $1,000 prize pool! The league is completely free to play. This is the best time to try out this fast paced, fun and fresh competitive format.
New team registration ends on April 22nd, and the league will begin on April 24th. Players who are looking for a team can post in the looking for team section of the RGL website.
This weekend, let the siren sound of mermaids draw you into a different kind of slaughter, the Copenhagen Games! For the first time in living history, competitive teams representing both 6s and Highlander come together to find out who is the best in Europe. Esport United, the production team powering i61 and Community Rumble are lending their support for three days of TF2 action to KritzKast and EssentialsTF alike. No matter how you take your Team Fortress 2 esports, with a 6000 euro split prize pool, there's something here for you.
While we're saddened that the end of the Seventh Annual Saxxy Awards is here, we're thrilled to be handing out the golden Saxxy statuettes for the winners! We're also incredibly excited to be extending an invitation to the overall winners to visit us at Valve headquarters.
What can we tell you about this year's nominees for the Saxxy Awards that hasn't already been said a million times over in the international cinematic press? That these entries will make you laugh? Cry? Cry a lot? Will make you cry so much you'll have to go to a special hospital? Will move you to quit your job and give your life over to charity? Will actually literally make you a better person by watching them?
No, there's no point in telling you what you already know. The only thing left to do is check out the nominees!
TF2Maps is back at it again with a new community contest called Journey to the East! Create your best eastern-themed items for the TF2 Steam Workshop!
All participants will receive an in-game medal and there are prizes for the winners! But don't delay, the deadline for submissions is Saturday, June 30th at 11:59 PM EST.
It's time again for the Annual Saxxy Awards! Entries have been submitted, folks, so it's time to nurse your hangover with creative SFM videos all day long. Click here to watch and vote for your favorite entries. Laugh! Cry! Get absolutely nothing done at work or school! Voting ends 3PM PDT on Tuesday, March 13th, and nominees will be announced Wednesday, March 14th, so get to voting!
Denmark, literary home of fairytales and Vikings, is soon to play host to Team Fortress 2 at the 2018 Copenhagen Games. KritzKast, in cahoots with TeamSourceTF and r/sfm, are looking for your SFM stills to spice up the joint Highlander and 6v6 LAN. You have until March 19th to create the perfect picture, appealing to such eccentric categories as most fighters, most Danish thing and best depiction of damage. Full details can be found on Twitter, and by visiting TeamSourceTFs Discord.
Looking to play custom maps, test your current WIP project, or ask chat with us? Here's the links for all of that!
TF2Maps EU (Frankfurt) Testing Server:
31.186.251.51:27015
TF2Maps US (Dallas) Testing Server:
66.150.214.251:27015
We look forward to this every year, and now the time has come! Submissions are now open for The Seventh Annual Saxxy Awards!
Final submissions are due Thursday, March 8th, at 3:00PM PST, but we highly recommend you submit versions earlier in the week to guard against unforeseen networking or computer problems. We want to see those submissions, so get them in! Check out the guidelines to learn more.
Prolander is coming to Europe! RGL.gg is hosting a FREE one day cup for the European community. It's open to players of all skill levels! RGL will separate teams into divisions of eight teams of similar skill. Meaning if you're on a team of new competitive players, you don't have to worry about playing against the top players. On top of having fair divisions, 50% of the teams who enter will win keys! In each skill division, the top four teams will win keys.
The cup is on March 18th, starting at 3pm CET. Every team will play three matches, on payload and king of the hill maps. The cup will last about six hours. New team registration ends on March 15th. Players who are looking for a team can post in the LFT section of the RGL cup website. More information and registration is at the Cup.RGL.gg website.
LuckyLukeTF2 is back with the Top 12 special for 2017! Just like previous years, this edition features all the #1 comp TF2 plays of the month for the year of 2017! Check out the action above or on LuckyLukeTF2's YouTube channel here!
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