Community Versus Saxton Hale strategy

Nucleus VSH

This article is about Community VS Saxton Hale strategy.

General strategy (as Saxton Hale)

Saxton Hale

• If you are facing off against a high health target (such as a Heavy or an overhealed Soldier) and it has been a while since you've used Saxton Punch!, it may be more beneficial to wait a little bit for the ability to recharge to deal extra damage.
• If there are multiple Engineer's buildings all built very close to each other, especially Sentry Guns, a Saxton Punch! can destroy their entire Sentry nest. This may also heavily damage the Engineer(s) if there are any nearby, and potentially other members of the RED team (if they were also close).

General strategy (against Saxton Hale)

• Try to stick together as a team, rather than going solo, as Saxton can easily pick off any players on their own. Make sure you are not too tight together so that Saxton can easily kill your whole team.
• Saxton Hale's left arm glows if Saxton Punch is ready. Spread apart to minimize any damage from a coming attack.
• If you are falling to your death, try hitting a surface with your melee to wall climb and negate all the fall damage.
• If you own the Rock, Paper, Scissors taunt and are the last remaining mercenary, ask Hale if he is willing to engage in a battle of hands. If you win, Hale dies. If you lose, you delayed the inevitable.

Class-specific strategy (against Saxton Hale)

 Scout

• The Baby Face's Blaster is a great primary choice, letting you escape from Saxton after a couple shots with your Boost meter full. Due to the overall lack of damage sources (such as the lack of Sentry Guns), there is not much to worry about losing your current amount of Boost either.
• The Force-A-Nature can be a useful tool to knock Hale back in close proximity, possibly into a hazard.
• Using the Bonk! Atomic Punch can be great to lure him out for the rest of your team to flank.
• Considering there is only one target to deal damage, the Mad Milk is an excellent choice. Letting all of your teammates heal lost health by just dealing damage on the target they were focusing already.
• Although risky, hitting with the Fan O'War marks Hale for death, letting you and the rest of your team to deal mini-crits for a short amount of time.
• The Crit-a-Cola can be a good damage booster, the downside of marking yourself for death can be mostly ignored, as Saxton can kill you in one hit regardless.

 Soldier

• Banners are effective in keeping your team alive or increasing the damage done against Hale.
  • Although risky, the Market Gardener can be used to instantly charge a banner.

 Pyro

• Airblasting is an effective tool to keep yourself and teammates away from Hale's attacks or to put him in an unfavourable position (such as a hazard or a corner). An airblast can prevent Saxton from landing a Mighty Slam attack entirely.
• The Flare Gun combos well with fellow Pyros dealing fire damage. It may be difficult to hit Saxton, but you are rewarded with critical damage more often than not, so consider using airblast to push Hale in a predictable direction and make it easier to hit him.
• The Thermal Thruster can be a good escape tool when you are out of ammo. Note that the increased deployment speed leaves you vulnerable for a while.
• The Axtinguisher bonus damage to burning targets stacks with critical hits, dealing up to 300+ damage.
• The Hot Hand's double hit can be used to wall climb faster.
• The Phlogistinator can get guaranteed crits on Saxton Hale, but removes your ability to airblast. Consider using this if you have another Pyro on your team or if your team is good at protecting you.
  • The alt-fire taunt's temporary Über can protect you from Saxton's damage. If timed right, you may be able to use his knockback to get to safety or deal crits early.

 Demoman

• Try to lure him into a hidden sticky trap to take a good chunk of his HP.
  • The Scottish Resistance is the most suitable weapon for this, as it allows Demo to set a sticky trap with up to 14 stickies.
• Consider equipping the Loose Cannon as your primary to knock him out if he starts focusing on you or is reaching too close to you.
• The Chargin' Targe, Splendid Screen, and Tide Turner can act as a one-hit immunity against Hale's primary attack or the death penalty of a Rock, Paper, Scissors match. Charging can still be utilized even after the shield is broken.
• The Half-Zatoichi heals the player for every successful hit against Hale, making it an excellent option for surviving close encounters.
• The Eyelander grants heads for each successful hit against Hale. The increased movement speed can be helpful for dodging Hale's attacks, or for chasing him around the map.

 Heavy

• All Miniguns have a 40% damage reduction to Saxton Hale.
• As the class with the highest health pool, you can always survive a normal punch at full health (two if fully overhealed).
• Keep an eye on your ammo counter, as you can run out of ammo very quickly. Make sure to find where your Engineer put his Dispenser for easy access to unlimited ammo. A voice response plays if you are low on ammo.
• Consider using the Shotgun or Tomislav to take advantage of the higher mobility they provide.
  • The Tomislav's quicker rev-up time and better accuracy is a great all-around primary for the Heavy, considering Saxton Hale's speed and your own speed.
• The Brass Beast is an ultimate damage dealer, especially when paired with a Kritzkrieg Medic, with its trade-off being the lack of mobility. Consider using it in high places where Hale might have difficulty reaching you.
• The Natascha's slowdown-on-hit ability has a 15% chance of applying against Hale, making it less viable to use in close proximity. Much like the Brass Beast, consider using it in spots where Hale is not able to easily reach you, especially on high places.
• The large knockback of melee weapons means that a skilled Heavy can use them to push Saxton back, while still gaining benefits from on-hit effects.
  • The Warrior's Spirit grants Heavies 50 health points for every hit against Hale, allowing for increased survivability.
  • The Killing Gloves of Boxing trigger a 5 second crit boost on every hit, allowing for a high risk, high reward playstyle. If paired with Mad Milk or a Medic, a Heavy can chew through Hale's health in a massive burst while still surviving his onslaught.
• The Eviction Notice's quicker firing speed lets Heavies wall climb faster and to higher places.
• Beware of Saxton Hale's Super Punch, as it can usually deal fatal damage, although a full overheal can just barely take the hit.
• The Fists of Steel are rather detrimental when fighting Saxton. Not only do they make you more vulnerable to Saxton's melee-heavy combat style whilst active, but the reduction to healing decreases your survivability even more.

 Engineer

• The Rescue Ranger is a great pick to pack up your Sentry Guns when Saxton is damaging it, as well to repair friendly Sentry Guns from other Engineers.
  • The Wrangler is a good tool to tank damage before teleporting your Sentry Gun.
• Try to hide your Dispenser out of sight or in places where Hale does not pass through, communicating to your team where you have placed it can be helpful to ensure they have a safe place to retreat.
• Place your Sentry Gun in clear view of where Saxton will likely be to maximize time spent dealing damage.
  • Sentry Guns are a very good deterrant that may take attention away from your teammates.
• Due to the lack of respawn, Teleporters can be used as an escape option rather than for quick reinforcements.
  • The Eureka Effect can let you hide Teleporters more easily, but beware of the long taunt animation.
• Dispensers, Teleporters, and Sentry Guns can be used to block Saxton's movement on the ground. This can slow him greatly in corridors or other areas of importance.
  • Teleporters are effective on ramps and inclines where the incline may prevent you from simply stepping over the teleporter.
  • Be careful however, an experienced Saxton can tear through your buildings with his charge attack.
• When using the Frontier Justice, remember that your Sentry Gun will be credited with one assist when it deals 200 damage to Saxton, giving you a Revenge Crit.

 Medic

• Medics take only 70% damage from Hale's fist, allowing you to survive a hit.
• All Mediguns have a quicker ÜberCharge rate with the Ubersaw equipped.
  • The Ubersaw also grants 50% uber per hit, needing only 2 hits to have full Über.
• Prioritize the classes closest to Saxton Hale, as they are the ones in the most danger.
• The stock Medi Gun's ÜberCharge is best used on teammates that can deal large amount of damage, either if they are about to die or if they are very close to Hale. This can force him away while dealing a lot of damage.
  • Changing targets during ÜberCharge is very important, considering the Saxton Hale player may focus other teammates close to him when he sees someone being ÜberCharged.
• Although risky, consider going off alone and baiting Saxton into following you, then use your ÜberCharge when he is near you. This can waste his time and allow your team to deal a lot of damage in the meantime.
• The Kritzkrieg is a great damage dealer, but as a trade off it makes you and other allies more vulnerable during Über. Considering equipping it only if there is another Medic running the default Medi Gun.

 Sniper

• High areas give a better vantage point on Saxton's head and have an escape route downward if he spots you.
• Sniper is an easy class to pick off due to his lone wolf playstyle. Avoid the attention of Saxton by hiding in low-visibility spots, frequently changing spots, or having a route to teammates that can protect you.
• The Sydney Sleeper is a great support tool to shoot Hale from far away and increase your team's damage output.
• The Bazaar Bargain is highly recommended, as its higher charge rate increases your damage output greatly.
• The Machina has the potential to deal large amounts of damage, but also has a larger chance of giving away your position to Hale.
• Although very risky, the Huntsman and the Fortified Compound taunt kill can be used to stun Hale, allowing your team to pile on some damage for free.
  • Saxton Hale can break out of a stun after 2 seconds, blasting everyone away from him.

 Spy

• Use the Dead Ringer to survive a hit from Saxton. Consider luring him away from your team first to buy more time for them to deal damage.
• The Kunai and the Big Earner on kill effects trigger on backstab, allowing you to escape more easily.
• Consider disguising as a friendly teammate with the Disguise Kit to conceal that you are a Spy or gain the Enforcer's damage bonus.