Camping

A "Camping" Engineer

“

You camped da whole time for DIS?! Click to listen — The Scout

”

Camping is the term for players that wait for enemies to pass through a certain area before attacking them. Often the camper will be poised in the same position, and often returns to the same position after killing an enemy. Players that camp will rarely leave the location in question, and usually do not actively seek out opponents outside their preferred area. Camping is not to be confused with ambushing, in which the ambusher usually travels to the enemy rather than waiting for the enemy to come to them.

Camping can be a legitimate strategy, as the player can hinder movement of enemy forces. A significant amount of players consider camping a frustrating tactic that can ruin the overall enjoyment of the game for others. This is because victims of camping rarely have time to adapt and counter, making it seem to be an unfair tactic. As such, camping is largely frowned upon.

Team Fortress 2 requires teamwork, coordinated pushes and organized defense. Camping may lead to a lack of participation in acquiring objectives and can often result in a loss or stalemate for the attacking side.

Tactics that constitute camping

• Staying in one specific doorway, dropdown, or corner for extended periods of time (several minutes), only killing those who take that passageway.
• Waiting at an enemy Teleporter exit or respawn area until someone comes through in hopes of catching them off-guard.
• Trapping people in spawn using camping tactics is known as spawn camping. This can be done by a variety of classes, often Demomen placing sticky bombs around the spawn exit, Pyros spraying fire at the doorway or Engineers who manage to build Sentry Guns facing the door. Many players consider spawn camping the worst kind of camping, and many servers ban it.
• Demomen laying sticky traps in low traffic areas and waiting for long periods.
• Turtling

Tactics that do not constitute camping

• Snipers staying in one position. (Unless this location is of little or no tactical importance, in which case it may be considered camping.)
• Demomen staying behind their sticky bomb carpets in strategic locations.
• Pyros waiting in ambush.
• Spies waiting in ambush, perhaps while recharging their Cloak.
• Heavies waiting in strategic positions as human Sentry Guns.
• Engineers guarding their Sentry Guns in strategic locations.
• Medics staying in one safe area to build up their ÜberCharge.