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Hello and welcome to Arson and You! This is a series Wizard and I will be doing on various Pyro-related gameplay topics, with the hope that we can help anyone looking to improve as a Pyro!

But before we dive into the gritty gameplay stuff, there's one phenomena I've seen a lot of players complaining of here on Tumblr and have experienced myself, and I think it's an important one to address for the sanity of Pyro players everywhere.

So there I was, minding my own business, killing time and people on Harvest. As you do, right?

Then, this happens:

What happened above, while not something you'll encounter 24/7, is a fairly frequent occurrence. Something you will find out very quickly if you play as a Pyro for any amount of time is that everyone hates you.

You can be the very littlest newbie pyro who gets three lucky kills the whole game, or a projectile-reflecting, team-extinguishing monster who consistently murders everyone who gets near, and people will hate you. Even people on your own team, especially if you happen to have 19 ammo left and can't extinguish the guy who just ran at the enemy Pyro!

This largely seems to be due to the perception that the Pyro class is an easy one reserved for new players only, while classes like Soldier, Spy, and Scout are for people with real skill. Now, is Pyro an easy class for new players to pick up? I absolutely think so. The sweeping effect of the flamethrower and the existence of afterburn makes it easier for a new player to get kills, which is confidence-boosting and satisfying.

But like any other class, good Pyro play requires time and effort. I'm a good Pyro because I've put over 200 hours into the class, not because it's inherently easy. I'd be good, or at least moderately good, at anything if I put that much time into it.

— W+M1

A short note on the existence of the phrase "W+M1":

Like several other classes, Pyro has its derogatory nickname. (See also: Scunts, Cuntsman/Piss Sniper, "fucking minisentries," etc). For Pyro, this is W+M1, the implication being that you do nothing but walk forward and hold down the fire button.

No matter how you play Pyro, you will be called a W+M1 by someone eventually, usually directly after you've killed them. Note that the method of death does not actually matter. Take this anecdote from Wizard's misspent youth:

(Calling the victim's attention to the mode of death will probably only result in more rage.)

— Mann-ing Up, or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Butthurt

Step one? Step one is accepting it. Or:

The best revenge is living well. When people on mic or chat start bitching about how bullshit/OP/W+M1 Pyro is, I always chuckle to myself and keep going. At most I will point out that they seem to be upset, and perhaps they should calm down, which is almost always good for a laugh. They've just gotten mad about a virtual hat simulator. Their opinion has invalidated itself by virtue of existing. Naturally, this advice extends to any class or multiplayer game: if you are getting mad, why are you playing?

Whatever I do, I don't get mad back. There's already enough angry people in this game. If I can feel myself getting riled up over a particularly good Soldier or that one Sniper who seems to bag every headshot he takes at me or HOLY FUCKING SHIT HOW DOES THAT PYRO KEEP AIRBLASTING ME SO WELL, I do my best to calm down, or leave the server if I have to. A ragequit is always preferable to making an idiot of myself in chat.

In closing, people who play video games get mad. There's nothing you can do about this, and it's no use getting upset about it. Instead, roll with the punches, laugh it off, and do your best to have fun.

And it's not all bad! Be a Pybro, and you'll be the golden boy of your team: put out your teammates, reflect projectiles, keep your engies safe. People will notice, and they'll thank you.

(A note to any Soldier players: sorry if it seems like we're targeting you here! Nothing against you, but you seem to have a lot of really angry people in your ranks.)

#tf2 #team fortress 2 #pyro #chief draws