Team Fortress 2: Updated

I've gotten back into TF2 lately. Not as much as I used to, but I found a nice CTF rotation server. Now, some time ago I posted a guide on how to play pyro. I went into great detail about how you play with other classes and the weapons available to the pyro. Well, the game has changed a little since I was last big into the game.

I still attest that the pyro is a women.

A big change was that they have gotten rid of ALL item set bonuses. I guess they did this to take care of "Pay to Win" allegations. So now the polycount pyro set isn't valuable at all and feel free to ignore the hat. There have also been new weapons added and some changes to others

1. Rainblower and Lolichop: With the release of the Meet the pyro video, these weapons were added. They are a simple reskin of the flamethrower and the fire ax. They are mildly amusing, but I don't like the rainblower. Its funny, but the rainbow effect gives you a really bad feed back on whether you are hitting people.
2. Phlogistinator, Degreaser and Backburner: These items got a damage hit. They all now do 10% less damage, bringing the Phlog and Degreaser below standard and Backburner has the same damage as the base. The Degreaser has been brought into a more balanced position, but I can't see any reason you would want Phlog any more; its just way too gimicky. I don't like the loss of damage on the Backburner, but it still has its valuable flanking use. 
3. Scorch Shot: The newest Flare gun. I don't personally like it. It does less damage than basic flares and gets no bonus damage on flaming targets. What it does do is knock back targets and leaves flare on the ground that will ignite people who touch it. This is an interesting idea, but I cannot justify losing the shear damage of crit flares.
4. Neon Annihilator: An interesting new melee weapon for the pyro. It gives guaranteed crits under water, but does less damage out of the water. BUT, in an interesting twist, this item also removes sappers. A strange mix up of the axtinguisher and the homewrecker. If you are on a map with a lot of water, this can be surprisingly effective choice.  

Now, this is nothing big in terms of pyro itemization. You have to be a bit choosier when it comes to your specialty Now there has been some VERY interesting changes to OTHER CLASSES. So let me discuss how it has gotten so much harder to be pyro in this game. 

1. The DemoKnight: The demoknight has gotten a lot scarier for the pyro. Now, the chargin' targe gives ignite INVULNERABILITY. This makes targe knights IMPOSSIBLE for you to deal with without the shotgun. You can't crit flare them, you can't axtinguish them. You can't deal with them. On top of this, there is a new, far more annoying grenade launcher. The loose cannon has a lot of different feature, but the most annoying is that it allows the user to shorten the flare, meaning the damn thing can blow up before you even get a chance to reflect them. Demo's, especially smart ones, are now a huge potential threath. 
2. Spy: The spy hasn't gotten much new. But the spy-cicle is specifically designed to counter act the pyro. If held when ignited, the spy will extinguish themselves and become invulnerable to fire damage for 2 seconds. Combined with the dead ringer, a properly decked out spy can actually effectively run from a pyro. There is a counter technique. Even though the spy can't be ignited, there will still be a sizzle sound as long as they are in the fire cone. So if you know the probable escape route, you might be able to keep track of the spy for 2 seconds. 

I have to say that the community, even with all the Free people, can still be very good; as long as you like derping. Serious players better get some like minded friends on a private server.