Community Gold Rush strategy

Community Gold Rush strategy
Basic Information
Developer(s):	{{{map-developer}}}
Map Info
Environment:	Desert
Setting:	Daylight, sunny
Map Photos

This article is about Community Gold Rush strategy.

Note: It is recommended to read the main Gold Rush article first to become familiar with the names of key map locations used in this article.

General strategy

Offense

Stage 1, Checkpoint A

• The Blu team has three exits to choose from in order to exit their spawn: the left exit, the middle one, and the one on the right side. In general, its a good idea for the majority of the team to push out of the left exit since it provides minimal Sniper risk and puts the Blu team in a good position to immediately take the position out of their spawn and push out to the edge of the cliff. Flanking classes such as Scout and Spy should take the right most exit since it gives them the ability to flank much of the Red team which will usually be positioned on the elevated tracks up the left side of the map.

• When the round begins the Blu team should aggressively push out of their spawn from the left exit and try and take the space outside their spawn and secure it as fast as possible. The Red team and their Sentry Guns will often be positioned on the elevated tracks on the left side of the map so the main focus of the Blu team should be to push the Red team of those elevated tracks by either taking a couple of Soldiers who will take the right exit out of spawn and spam out the Reds on the tracks or simply taking a Übercharged heavy or demo through the left exit and letting them destroy/kill everything on the tracks. After securing the elevated tracks, the Blu team can easily proceed to push to the edge of the cliff beneath which often lie more Red sentry nests and hostile enemies. However, since the Blu team is on top of the cliff and has Height advantage it can easily destroy and kill anything below the cliff thus paving the way for the Cart to be pushed through the small gap in the cliff.

• After destroying the defensive holdouts on the elevated tracks and beneath the cliff only one more common Red holdout remains, and that is the one in the hut. At first glance, the hut may seem like a good defensive position but it really isn't. It can be easily surrounded and the Red team members who are stuck inside can slowly be killed by spamming explosives from all directions or by simply taking a Übercharged Pyro or Soldier into the hut to kill and destroy everything in it while the rest of the Blu team is surrounding the hut preventing any Red stranglers from escaping. After the hut is cleared out, the Blu team may cap the first checkpoint and proceed to the tunnel.

Stage 1, Checkpoint B

• The Blu strategy for point two is really simple, take the attic. The attic is really important, simply because in order to reach the checkpoint 2, the cart needs to run right beneath the attic. This allows Red players who are up on the attic to easily bombard any Blu players below them who will be trying to push cart to the second checkpoint.

• The Attic is often very well defended by Sentry Guns and Red players and there is really only one way to get to it. In order for Blu to take it, they will almost always require an Übercharge to get through. After capturing the first point, a small portion of the Blu players should stay on the left to push the cart through the tunnel while the majority of the Blu team accompanied by a Medic with full Über will make their way up the small staircase in the middle and proceed to the attic. The best way to clear out the attic is to take an Übercharged Demoman up in the attic to clear it out, but an Übercharged Heavy can work as well.

• After the attic is secured the Blu players can easily push the cart from the tunnel to the final checkpoint on this stage without much interference from the enemy team.

Stage 2, Checkpoint A

• On this stage, the Blu team has two ways to exit their spawn. The left exit and the right exit. The left exit opens up flanking opportunity's for the Scouts and Spies to sneak under the house and get to the snipers ledge. which will threaten the enemy Snipers who will most likely be positioned there. On the other hand, the majority of the Blu team should push out of the right exit with an Übercharge, allowing themselves to establish a small foothold outside of their spawn for further advances.

• As the Blu team is pushing out of the right exit, they should be looking to take over the watchtower. The watchtower is a group of elevated structures stretching on the right side of the map with a watchtower in the middle of them, this is where the majority of Red team members is likely to be located, and just like the attic on stage 1, the watchtower is very important since it gives the Red a height advantage over Blu and a direct line of sight of the cart tracks, which will allow them to bombard the Blu members who will be trying to push the cart. So its imperative for the Blu to take over the watchtower before they can make any further advances. There is often a Sentry Gun on the watchtower so the Blu should Über right out of the spawn and destroy the Sentry Gun. After the sentry is destroyed and the Über fades away for the Blu team, Blu Soldiers and Demomen should Rocket jump and Sticky jump onto the watchtower and clear out remaining Red players who are up there now that the sentry is gone. Alternatively, the Blu team can choose to go out the left exit and spam out the Sentry Gun from outside of this range and then go out of the right exit. This way, Blu Medics can save their Über although this strategy takes more time and can be a lot more difficult.

• After the watchtower is secured, the remaining Red defensive holdout is usually in the house on the left side of the map. However, just like the hut on stage 1, the house can be easily surrounded and cleared out. Usually there is a Sentry Gun positioned on the perch of the house but that Sentry Gun can be easily spammed out if the Blu team has control over the watchtower. Destroying this Sentry will usually push remaining defenders further in the house which is even more cramped then the hut and only has one exit. Which in turn allows the Blu Demomen and Soldiers to fire at the house and destroy everything inside while the rest of the Blu team pushes the cart to the first control point.

Stage 2, Checkpoint B

• We can start the strategy for the checkpoint B by first splitting the area leading to the checkpoint in two major areas. The choke area and the final area. The choke area is an area right outside the exit of the tunnel , it is defined by the walls of the battlements which are situated above the tunnel through which the cart passes and the main buildings which are situated right across the tunnel. The area in between the battlements and the main buildings is called the choke area. The final area is the area situated behind the main buildings and in between them and the Red spawn, you could say that the main buildings are in between the choke area and the finale area. The final area contains the last stretch of tracks leading to the second point while the choke area contains the tracks exiting the tunnel and leading to the final area.

• Now that we got that out of the way we can start talking about strategy. Since the choke area precedes the final area, the Blu team is obviously going to have to capture the choke area first. There are two ways to do this. Simply push right through the tunnel with the cart and capture the choke area that way. However, since the tunnel is very ˝chokey˝ and there are countless good sentry spots for Red Engineers to set up in the choke area pushing through the tunnel is very dangerous and almost always requires an Über to execute a successful push, but this method is the quickest and the simplest one to do. However, if your team doesn't have a Medic with Über then the other method is a better option. The other method involves occupying the battlements (which should be a relatively easy task to do since the gates to the battlements don't open till the first point is capped meaning that there shouldn't be any Red team members up there) and then attacking the choke area from both the battlements and the tunnel. This way the Reds in the choke area are getting pummeled from the high ground of the battlements and the tunnel. This method of attack doesn't require an Über to successfully execute but it does take more time and some coordination to pull off.

• After capturing and securing the choke area the Blu team now needs to push in the finale area to capture the final checkpoint and win the stage 2. The easiest and the quickest way to do this is to go in to the main buildings and jump out of the main buildings into the final area with an Übercharged Heavy who will practically land right on top of the two most common sentry spots allowing him to destroy them quickly and then mow down any Red players thus securing the final area and consequently the capture point. However, if the Blu team once again doesn't have an Übercharge, then the alternative way to win this area is to do a massive flank on the left. On the left side of the choke area there is a wide open area which leads right into final area. Majority of this area is outside the range of the most common sentry spots since Sentry Guns will usually be positioned on the right side of the map. This allows the Blu Soldiers to take this left flank and spam out the Sentry Guns allowing the remaining Blu team members to also start pushing in from the left overwhelming the defenders.

Stage 3, Checkpoint A

• Blu team has three options to choose from if they want to exit their spawn. The left exit, the middle exit and the right exit. Once again, the left exit opens up some flanking opportunity's allowing Scouts,Spies or anyone else who want to flank to sneak under the house and potentially get behind the Red team which will be up on the platform or in the truck house. The middle exit leads directly to the basin, however, the middle exit is also a part of a huge Sniper sightline so be ready to expect a bullet in your head as soon as the gates open plus, the middle exit is also on the low ground so don't be surprised when an onslaught of rockets and grenades greet you when those gates lift up. And then there is the left exit which leads directly to the platform where the majority of Red team will be situated.

• Now, running alongside the cart are the platform and the truck house. Both of these two locations are elevated pieces of terrain which run parallel to the cart tracks from either side. Players standing on these two locations have direct line of sight to the cart and its tracks leading to the first checkpoint and also have a height advantage compared to the players standing in the basin AKA the cart tracks. Since at the beginning of the round Red has the control of these two locations allowing them to stay on the high ground and bombard the Blu players trying to push the trucks, Blu will first have to clear out these two locations before they can push the cart up the basin to the first checkpoint.

• Blu should start by first taking control of the platform. Luckily for the Blu, the left exit leads directly to the platform allowing players who will be dropping from it to quickly take control of the platform and push any Red players back. Doing this shouldn't be hard considering that the left exit provides a slight height advantage to the Blu players enabling them to "flush out" Reds of the platform by spamming them out. After taking control of the platform the Blu now needs to turn their attention to the truck house, another elevation overlooking the basin. To secure the truck house the Blu team needs to send a couple of Soldiers and Scouts or Demomen to blast/double jump over the basin to reach the truck house. At the truck house there usually isn't much resistance except an occasional sentry positioned on truck so be vary of that. After capturing both the truck house and the platform the Blu team can safely push the cart up the basin and capture the first checkpoint

Stage 3, Checkpoint B

• In order to reach the second checkpoint, Blu team will need to first push the cart through a long narrow hallway which stretches all the way from checkpoint one to checkpoint two. There is no flanking here, no alternative routes, its just a long hallway with no way around it.

• The hallways if often extremely well defended with multiple Sentry Gun's and Red members spamming down it, since there is no way around this hallway due to the lack of flank routes the Blu team will have to just brute force their way through it. Übercharge is a must for the Blu team here. If the hallway is defended you aren't going to push through it without an Über.

Stage 3, Checkpoint C

• The Blu team has three ways to enter and thus capture the final checkpoint: Entering through the chokepoint, entering through the dropdown in the house, and finally, dropping down the chute, going through the tunnels, sneaking by the valley, and ending up on the snipers deck on Reds left flank.

• Entering through the chokepoint: Since the chokepoint is a chokepoint, it is constantly getting spammed meaning that it is very dangerous to pass through it with out and Übercharge. In addition to that, chokepoint sits right across the battlements which is a common Sniper spot making an Übercharge all that more necessary. The chokepoint is also quit long meaning that its going to take a few seconds to just pass through it, by the time you finally go through it the Über you popped few seconds ago just so that you can safely pass the chokepoint has by now drained to at least 50% giving you limited time to deal with all the Sentry Gun's and Red player's. Plus there's no way to surprise anyone with this Über. The Red team can see you coming miles away allowing them to safely retreat back to their yard, and then when your Über is over they can return back and demolish you. In general, going through the choke point is a bad idea. It requires an Übercharge to go through it and due to its length you can't achieve much with your Uber.

• Entering through the house: Going through the house is a bit more sneakier. The house lies on the right flank of the Red team (from Red's perspective its the left flank), meaning that when you go through it there's an opportunity to flank the whole Red team. Also, while your exiting the house into the Red's yard the Red team can't see you for a good while due to the fact that that there is a truck in between the house exit and the Red yard. Overall, if you have an Über ready, this is where you want to take it. You can sneak through the house and exit it behind a truck. When your ready you can suddenly pop up from the truck and surprise the whole Red team.

• Dropping down the chute and going up to the snipers deck: This is another sneaky strategy, the best class which can utilize this route is the Engineer. A single Blu Engineer can drop down from the chute, sneak past the valley and set up a base on the snipers deck, a small building on the left flank of the Red yard. This building is often unchecked and forgotten by the Red team allowing Blu Engineer to safely set up a sentry nest. After a setting up a Teleporter, Engineers team mates can start teleporting to the snipers deck. After enough team mates get teleported and a big enough force is assembled, the Blu team can go for an massive attack from the flank often times overwhelming and surprising defenders which usually completely forget about the snipers ledge. In addition to that, Blu Soldiers in the snipers deck can safely spam out all common sentry spots while out of their range removing the need for an Übercharge to execute this flank successfully.

• In general, the best way to win the finale is to take either of the flanking routes (the snipers deck or the house), Going through the chokepoint can work but it usually doesn't even with an Über.

Defense

Stage 1, Checkpoint A

• The Red strategy on the first point of Stage 1 is simple, don't overcommit and don't be afraid to retreat. The first point is extremely easy to lose and even if you try really hard, even an average team with any kind of problem solving skills will be able to overcome your defenses and capture the point. As a general rule of thumb, as soon as the Blu team pushes out of spawn and starts peeking over cliff and threatening anything below it, you can safely conclude that the point is already lost and you should start considering your retreat. This is because when the Blu team takes control of the cliff the only remaining ˝viable˝ defensive holdout is the hut which, as discussed earlier is is a terrible defensive holdout. So, excluding the hut there is nothing else there to stop the Blu team for pushing the cart and capturing the point. The reason why the hut is so bad is because the hut doesn't actually stay in the way of the cart and the Blu team. It merely stays on the side of the map not defending anything significant, this allows the Blu team to easily push up to the area in front of the tunnel thus effectively cutting of the hut and anyone in it from the rest of the Red team and allowing Blu team to surround the hut and take there sweet time in clearing it out. So generally, as a Red team member, when the cliff is lost, stay in front of the tunnel and and be ready to retreat to the second point as soon as the Blu team makes and pushes to capture the point. Remember, its a lot better to save your life allowing yourself to organize a defense on second point which is a lot more easily defendable then to lose your life on first point for no reason.

Stage 1, Checkpoint B

• The Red strategy is also very simple, hold control of the attic. As discussed earlier the attic is very important as it does a good job of preventing the Blu team pushing the cart from the tunnel to the final. Luckily for the Red team, attic is pretty easily defendable. Positioning some Sentry Guns and Red players up there will make it hard for the Blu team to capture it without an Übercharge. However, once the Blu team has an Übercharge it is very easy for them to kill/destroy everything in the attic with a single Demoman due to its cramped nature. So to prevent this from happening, a small group of Red players, consisting of a: Medic, Heavy and a Soldier or a Demoman, should stay below the attic right in front of the tunnel exit blocking the way for Blu players who will be making their way from the first point to the attic in hopes of capturing it. If that small group of players makes them selves a big enough threat they can force the Blu Medic to use their Übercharge to try and clear them out making the Blu team waste their Über which could have been employed a lot better in clearing out the attic.

• If the attic is captured there isn't a lot the Red team can do to hold onto the final point except try and spam out the attic or retake it for them selves by using an Über of their own.

Stage 2, Checkpoint A

• The Red strategy on this place revolves around holding the watchtower due to its importance. So the majority of the Red team should be up on it with the sentry nests. After the Blu team ÜberCharges out of the right exit the Sentry Guns should be temporarily moved back while the Über is going on so that the Blu Solders and Demomen who will be blast jumping onto the watchtower expecting that the Sentry got destroyed in the Über will be met with a surprise. Another power full thing the Red team can do is to Über right after the Blu Über fades away, preferably taking an Übered Pyro right to the Blu spawn usually temporarily spawn camping them. This wastes time for the Blu team and can even undo all the work the Blu Über achieved.

• Until the Blu gets another Über, the Red team should continue to stay up on the watchtower with only few exceptions, mainly Heavy and Scout and Pyro who should be playing below the watchtower on the cart tracks to either stop ÜberCharges, block the cart or just be another layer of defense.

• After the watchtower is lost the Red team can safely conclude that the point is lost and can start retreating to the second point since except the watchtower there is no other viable defensive holdouts on this checkpoint.

Stage 2, Checkpoint B

• The Red strategy for the second checkpoint is to try and hold on to the choke area as long as possible since its a lot easier to defend then the final area. To do this, Red Engineers can set up sentry positions in the main buildings which will be overlooking the choke area as well as the tunnel. From time to time, Red Soldiers and Demomen should occasionally blast jump there way up to the battlements to disrupt any Blu Engineers and/or other Blu team members from setting up in there. If the Blu team is in the process of pushing the cart through the tunnel Red Medics can Über a Pyro or Kritz a Soldier to quickly wipe out the entire Blu team in the tunnel.

• If the choke area is lost and the Red team is pushed back to the final area then defending gets exponentially more difficult. The first big danger the Red team needs to watch out for is Übered Heavies or Demomen jumping out of the main buildings right into the final area often times destroying everything and wiping out the whole Red team. For that reason the Red team should always have a Pyro on standby to airblast away any Übered combos jumping out of the main buildings. The other big threat the Red team needs to watch out for is that massive flank on the right (from Blu's perspective left) which can be devastating. The right flank is pretty open which makes Scouts and Heavies the ideal classes to operate so if you have some players watching that flank then things usually shouldn't spiral out of control for Red.

Stage 3, Checkpoint A

• The strategy of the Red team for the first checkpoint is pretty simple. Hold control over the platform and the truck house thus denying the Blu players in pushing the cart up the basin. However, doing this is easier said then done.

• Holding control over the truck house is relatively easy, the Blu team has no viable routes to get up the truck house right at the beginning of the match except blast jumping up there which can be easily denied by placing a sentry there to punish Soldiers or Demomen who will try to get to the truck house. Meanwhile, holding control over platform is a different story. The left exit (the right one from the Blu's perspective) leads directly to the platform giving Blu's direct access to it. To make matters worst, the left exit is slightly more elevated then the platform giving Blu players a height advantage allowing them to rather easily spam out the Reds at the platform. For all of these reasons standing at the platform is very dangerous for Reds, however, despite being hard to defend, there is still a way to hold on to the platform (to a certain degree at least) using a bit of coordination. For example: Red players standing on the platform should play very passively, almost acting as a bait to the Blu players. When Blu players inevitably take control of the platform the Reds who are positioned at the truck house should start shooting the Blu's at the platform. At the same time the Reds who have retreated off the platform can now start pushing up again thus putting Blu's in a sort of a crossfire between the Red team members standing on the truck house and the Red team members who would be retaking the platform.

• However, if the Blu team is fast enough, they can take the platform and then quickly capture truck house before any sort of crossfire can be established by the Red. If this happens, the Red should slowly start retreating to defend the second point.

Stage 3, Checkpoint B

• There is unfortunately not much to be said about defending this checkpoint. As said earlier, the entire route from the first checkpoint to the second checkpoint is just one huge hallway with practically no flank routes. Since there is only one point for the Blu team members to come from, you don't have much to do. Simply spamming down the hallway and airblasting away Blu ÜberCharges which will try and push their way through the hallway will do the trick and preventing the Blu from capturing the second checkpoint.

Stage 3, Checkpoint C

• The Red strategy is quit simple, just watch out for the flanks since that is where the main threat can often come, its a good idea to have a Heavy positioned somewhere around the house near the truck so that he can keep an eye on the house and have a direct line of sight on the chokepoint. As for dealing with potential flank attacks from the snipers deck, its best to send a Soldier or another close range class every once and awhile to check out the snipers deck and make sure there aren't any Blu Engineers setting up. Spamming down the chokepoint is also more then enough to deter and players from going that way.

Class-specific strategy

 Scout

• Playing Scout on this map is all about choosing your battles. Gold rush is filled with lots of chokepoints, corridors and tight hallways. This environment is not ideal for Scout, however there are certainly open parts of the map where you can shine, those would be: (On Stage 1) the entire first checkpoint and around the ditch area on the second checkpoint, (On Stage 2) the majority of the first checkpoint, the choke and the final area, (On stage 3), the first checkpoint and the Red yard.

• Like said earlier, choose your battles, don't engage enemies in the tight, chokey and cramped areas, lure your enemies into more open spaces where you have the advantage.

• As a member of the Blu team, your main job should be trying to constantly flank the defenders. On stage 2 and 3, choosing to go through the left exit, upon leaving the spawn as the round starts, will provide you with a relatively concealed flanking route which leads right to the Red Snipers usual position and consequently the Reds back line. On stage 1 if your team has captured attic you can go through it and the go to through the small tunnel on the right side of the Red spawn. Additionally, on stage 2, when your team is fighting for the choke area you can go to the battlements and drop down from them to relatively easily sneak into the Reds back line. On stage 3 last point, you can either drop down the chute and end up in the valley which leads to Reds yard or go through the house, climb up the Red battlements and kill their Snipers. If you find yourself in a situation where there is no way to get to the Red's back line with out going through heavy fire (example: stage 3, the hallway leading to the second checkpoint) you can use the Bonk! Atomic Punch to break through the Red's defense.

• While on the Red team, your main focus should be baiting out the Blu team to follow you to more open areas where you can easily duel them or also going for flanking plays yourself to try and eliminate Blu's Snipers. On stage 1, using the Boston Basher, Atomizer or Soda Poppers hype you can jump up to the imperial building which is positioned above the ditch and where often Blu Snipers reside. You can also use your area of effect the Mad Milk to douse the enemies who will be pushing through the chokepoints,

 Soldier

• Soldier is a good choice for Gold rush. There are lots of tight corridors and chokepoints which you can use to you advantage, but there is also plenty of open areas for rocket jumping too. Soldier can on this map be played almost as a flanking class or and ambush class. There are plenty of ledges you can rocket jump on and wait for the enemy to come.

• When on Blu, you don't have to worry about pushing the Cart or capturing checkpoints to much, best contribution you can do for your team is to use your Rocket Jumping ability to get to and occupy certain positions which other classes don't have immediate access to but have enormous strategic value for the Blu team. On stage 1, first point, once the cliff has been secured you can rocket jump to the balcony of the hut threatening everything in it, on second point, you can rocket jump from the attic to the Red deck to harass their Snipers and get and angle on their spawn. On stage 2, first point, you should be looking to jump up to the watchtower and possibly occupy it (Capturing watchtower in this case is extremely important for the Blu team). On stage 3, you can choose to rocket jump up to the truck house thus capturing a very important position but also having ability to fire upon the Red on the platform who will also be taking fire from your team mates. You should also work in conjunction with your Demoman to destroy Red's Sentry Guns allowing you and your team to push forward. In general, just try and take the high ground from the Red.

• On Red, you should occupy the high ground and spam down the chokepoints and Blu's pushing the cart, but you can also be useful in rocket jumping to unexpected positions and surprising the Blu team. For example. On stage 1, checkpoint A, you can rocket jump up to a small roof overhang in between the Blu's middle spawn exit and their right spawn exit. On stage 3, checkpoint A, there is a small set of wooden ledges right above the middle spawn of the Blu team, you can jump up to these ledges and wait for the Blu team to exit the middle exit below you with out even noticing you. You also work as a great "flank watcher" on the Red team. On the first stage, checkpoint B, occasionally jumping to the imperial building to harass the enemy Snipers and disrupt any Engineer sentry nests being made will do a big favour to your team. On stage 2, checkpoint B, simply blast jumping your way onto the battlements (A great holding area for the Blu to launch their attacks), a place which the majority of your team doesn't have access, will occasionally reward you with a group of clueless players who weren't even thinking about a Soldier suddenly poping up from behind them while they were focused on trying to destroy your team's Sentry Guns.

 Pyro

• Pyro has quit a big potential on Gold Rush. Pyro can make use of the overall cramped nature of this map to quickly close the distance and ambush enemy players. This map is also Soldier and Demomen heaven so there will be plenty of rockets and grenades to reflect. Combine that with the fact that except Pyro, only other class which excels at close range combat is the Soldier which gets countered by Pyro and you can see the potential Pyro brings to the table for this map.

• Although this map is almost perfect Pyro, on offense Pyro doesn't have a lot of potential simply because the Blu team will have to fight a lot of Sentry Guns which are Pyro's natural counter. So for that reason Pyro should take a more supportive role while playing offensively such as checking for Spies, air blasting away projectiles, pushing the cart etc... Pyro's should take note of the common Spy hiding spots. These include but aren't limited to: (Stage 1) Checkpoint one: Under the elevated tracks, behind the boxes on the right side of the map, elevated tracks themselves, in between the cliff and the rock also on the right side of the map in front of the hut. Checkpoint 2: The ditch and the ladders which lead out of the ditch. (Stage 2) checkpoint one: A "indent" in the rocks which serve as a wall for your spawn, in the ditch usually under the bridge. Checkpoint two: Right beneath the window of the battlements. Stage 3, checkpoint one: Right beneath the right exit, on a small ledge right above the middle exit, on top of the boxes on the platform, somewhere on the truck house over looking the basin, and on a stack of tires on the corner of the platforms shack. Checkpoint two: under the main deck, right across the main deck in a small indent in the building where there are two wooden barrels. However, a Pyro on Blu doesn't always have to support his team, equipping the Flare Gun, Scorch Shot or even the Detonator can give the Pyro a decent medium range capabilities to deal with enemies from a safe distance without putting himself in harms way of Sentry Guns. On certain stages, a Pyro can use his Thermal Thruster to either jump over the Red defenses to get to their back line or get himself in a more advantageous position to deny it from the Red, allowing his team to focus on pushing the cart.

• On defense Pyro's can take up a lot more aggressive approach now that there isn't as many Sentry Guns to deal with. A recommend thing to do is to use the Phlogistinator as there are many corners and nooks where a Pyro can hide in and then pop up from and quickly close the gap between his enemies and burn the entire Blu team with crits. However, Pyro's can also take a supportive role here if they wish to. The most important thing a Pyro can do for the Red team is to deny Blu's ÜberCharges. Since this map contains a lot of chokepoints and not much flank routes, breaking through the Red's defense can be hard for the Blu team. Often times, pushing through a chokepoint can only be achieved with an Über. So for that reason, Red Pyro's should always be ready to Airblast away Blu ÜberCharges. This is especially important on stage 2, second checkpoint where there is a long narrow hallway which leads to the checkpoint. If well defended, only way for the Blu to push through this hallway is with an Über, so having a Pyro be ready to push away any Blu ÜberCharges thus denying the only way for the Blu to break through the checkpoint's two defense is very powerful and can win the round for the Red team. Another important thing a Pyro can do is airblast away the various projectile from Red Engineers Sentry Guns. On stage 1 checkpoint two, once the attic has been taken by the Blu team, only remaining viable defensive spot for the Red is on the Red deck where Sentry Guns are often set up. However, since the Sentry Guns on the Red deck don't cover the entire attic, they can often be spammed out from outside of their range and destroyed. For that reason, having a Pyro airblasting away the projectiles coming from the attic can often times save the Red's last line of defense. Same goes for Sentry Guns positioned in the Red's yard on stage 3 which can be spammed out from the snipers deck or the common Sentry position on the on the sentry ledge of stage 2. All of these Sentry Gun positions are powerful as they deny a lot of area from the Blu team but have a weakness of getting destroyed by projectiles from outside of their range, but having a single Pyro protecting them can counter that weakness.

 Demoman

This map is Demomans heaven. With abundance of chokepoints, a single good Demoman can make all the difference in the world.

• On Blu, Demomen should mostly focus on on taking out sentry nests, for that reason it might be a good idea to bring the Loch-n-Load due to the sheer amount of Sentry Guns you will be facing. You should take note of all the common sentry spots to be able to react to them quickly, they are as following. Stage 1: Up on the elevated tracks, below the cliff and in the hut, also in the attic, up on the Red decks and in the ditch. Stage 2: Up on the watchtower, in the house, in the main buildings on the sentry ledge and in the alcove'. Stage 3: Up on the platform, on the main deck and the sentry decks, on the truck and right in the small alcove exiting the chokepoint.

• On Red, Demomen should take full advantage for all the chokepoints to stop the Blu team right in their tracks. There are also many corners on Gold rush where Demomen can lay down sticky traps to surprise Blu team members who will be coming around the corner.

 Heavy

• Heavy isn't exactly the best class on Gold rush simply because of the fact that on this close-quarters map explosive classes and Scout can easily surprise you and kill you before you even get a chance to rev up your gun, however if you have a few team mates near you (especially Medics you can become a formidable force.

• On Blu your main job should be pushing the cart, generally speaking you should never rev down while pushing to be able to quickly deal with any threats which can easily pop from the many corners of Gold Rush. Since you will be spending much of your time revved up and have a cart at disposal to push a good choice for your primary would be the Brass Beast. It provides more damage and a 25°% damage resistance. Its downside's off slower movements speed while revved up can be countered by having the Cart push you around.

• As a member of the Red team, your main concern should be blocking the Cart and Blu team's movement by taking advantage of you massive health. On every stage there are a few positions you can stand on to watch all the possible routes the Blu team can take. On stage 1 you can stand right in front of the exit of the tunnel thus watching over the tunnel the imperial building behind you and the small drop down on the right of you. This position is particularly power full since you can watch over all routes which lead from the first checkpoint to the second one. Other such positions include standing on top of the small wooden fence on Stage 2, checkpoint one. This position puts you right in between the two exits Blu can take when leaving spawn. And the final such position would be on the very edge of the truck house on stage 3. This location gives you overview of the basin the platform' and you can even catch a glimpse of the Blu's right spawn exit.

 Engineer

• At first glance, the Engineer doesn't seem like the best choice for Gold Rush. His main tool, the Sentry Gun works poorly in small, cramped and "chokey" areas. Plus, Gold Rush tends to attract a lot of Soldiers and Demomen who are a natural counter to the Engineer. Despite this, Engineer is still and important asset and can have great influence on the outcome of the battle. His Sentry Gun can cover the relatively small amount of open areas which are still strategically important. Due to the linear and very long map design, his Teleporter is a god sent for his team mates while his Dispenser is always helpful in healtpack starved stage 1.

• On Blu team, the main focus of the Engineer should be providing supportive assets to his team, such as Dispensers and Teleporters while guarding the team's flank with his Sentry Gun. Teleporters are extremely important for the Blu team as due to the linear map design and the fact that the Blu team never gets any forward spawn, the distances the Blu team often has to travel to reach the front lines are very large (For example the stage 3). Dispensers are also very important since Gold Rush isn't exactly known for its abundance of health packs. Engineer on Blu won't often be presented with an opportunity to move up his sentry in a lot more offensive spots beyond just sitting behind the team's back and guarding their back. But if such a possibility were to arise Blu Engineers should definitely take it.

• On Red, he take advantage of multiple sentry spots which are listed above in the Demomen guide or below in the gallery. Using the Wrangler is almost necessary simply because of the fact that they are many spots from which the Sentry Gun can be spammed out from outside of his range.

• Gallery of all the common Red Engineer building spots

• GoldrushStageA.jpg
• Goldrush StageB.png
• Goldrush StageC.png

 Medic

• Medics are usually very important on every map, but they are especially important on this one (For the Blu). Due to sheer amount of chokepoint and a lack of flanking routes there are many times when you simply need a Medic's Übercharge to push through the Red's defense.

• As described earlier, on Blu you invaluable to the team as your Medi Guns Übercharge is often times the only way to push through certain chokepoints (For example: Stage 3, the hallway to checkpoint two). So for that reason it is very important that you do everything you can to stay alive. On stage 1 first checkpoint, be aware of Snipers standing on the balcony of the hut, use cliffs in front of you as cover and don't peek over them until your team starts threatening the hut forcing the Sniper to retreat, also, there is usually no need to use an Über on this point, it is very easy to capture and unless your team is very incompetent or there is an enemy Medic with an Kritzkrieg there is no need for an Übercharge, save you Über for checkpoint two where it is a lot more valuable. On checkpoint two you need to use the Über you saved to push into the attic and capture it. Attic is often time very defended so pushing into it without an Übercharge is very hard. On stage 2, first checkpoint, your main goal should be to allow your team to capture the watchtower, use an Über when exiting the right exit to destroy the Sentry Guns on Watchtower and allow you Soldiers and Demomen to blast jump up there. Watch out for the Snipers sitting on the Snipers ledge, on stage 3 your Über is invaluable when the Blu team is coming up against the hallway so try and save it for then.

• On Red it is advisable that you take the Kritzkrieg, due to the tight nature of the map it is possible to catch the entire team in a single place such as when they are pushing the cart through one of many tunnels.

 Sniper

• Sniper can be pretty powerful Gold Rush. The linear map design can produce some very long sightlines which can be easily exploited by a good Sniper, and a general lack of flank routes means that for the most part, the Sniper usually doesn't have to worry about someone sneaking behind him and surprising him.

• On Blu you should slowly move up with your team occupying certain positions as you move forward.
  • On the first stage, checkpoint A, as you're leaving spawn your obviously going to try and kill the enemy Sniper positioned on the balcony. After that, you can move up with your team to the edge of the cliff. Here, you have a sightline of the tunnel and the checkpoint A. This position is pretty powerful as once your Team pushes up to the hut, unintelligent Reds will stay in the attic and get surrounded while the smart Red members will panic realizing that they are about to be cut of and will attempt to escape via the tunnel. Your position looking directly at the tunnel allows you to pick off escaping Reds who will be trying to evacuate from the hut to the checkpoint B. When your team starts pushing through the tunnel to the second checkpoint your going to want to make your way to the imperial building. From there you will have a huge sightline overlooking the entire ditch. After your team captures the attic, you should drop down from the imperial building and make your way to the attic where you will be able to overlook the entire Red decks.
  • On stage 2, first checkpoint, you have two options. Exit through the right exit or the left exit. When exiting through the right exit you have can kill the Red Sniper standing on the Snipers ledge right across you. This way you can instantly get rid of a huge problem for your team but other then killing the enemy Sniper you can't do much when exiting the right exit. Majority of the enemies will be positioned up on the watchtower and when you exit through the right side you will be right next to the watchtower which isn't good considering that your a long range class . So, to snipe out the Reds sitting on the watchtower your going to exit through the left most exit to get and angle on the watchtower from a decent range. After your team has captured the first checkpoint you should head to the battlements and start taking out the Reds in the choke area. When your team has captured the choke area your going drop from the battlements and move to the left flank. On this flank you can be quit devastating since in front of you now lies a huge open area (The finale area) where the Red team is all bungled up and has nowhere to hide from you.
  • On the finale stage, checkpoint A, your primarily going to want choose the right exit when making your way out spawn. This way, your going to get an entire view of the platform and will be immune to Spies as they won't be able to reach you. Also, when your team pushes all the way to the end of the Platform, the Red team will try and escape to the second checkpoint by crossing your sightlines giving you an opportunity to pick them off. On the final checkpoint, you can drop down the chute and get to the snipers deck. Standing on the Sniper deck gives you an entire view of the Red yard and best of all, the Red team usually doesn't even know your there.

• Here are all viable Sniper positions on the Red team.
  • On stage 1, checkpoint A, standing on the hut's balcony is a pretty safe bet to get a load of kills. From the balcony you have a great point of view and can see pretty much everything, from the Blu spawn to all the way down to the checkpoint itself. Plus, until Blu members reach the hut they won't have much objects for taking cover behind to hide from you except the Payload cart and one single big rock sticking out of the cliffs. Excluding that, everything in front of the hut is just open ground guaranteeing that no one can escape your sight. However, this spot does have its weakness, since you can see everything at all times, everyone can see you at all times as well, so watch out for Blu Snipers. Also, as discussed in the general strategy for Gold Rush, this point tends to fall really fast. As soon as the Blu team members get to the edge of the cliff and start pushing the cart through the gap in the cliff, it is recommend that you retreat from the balcony to the entrance to the tunnel. This is because once the enemy pushes over the cliff they can rather easily threaten you by either blast jumping onto the balcony or spamming at you from below the hut, also, by staying in the hut you are running a risk of being encircled by the Blu team so its better to retreat from it to the tunnel entrance, or even in the tunnel itself. From the tunnel, you don't have as good as an overview of the map as you would have if you were positioned on the balcony, but now you at least have an escape route to the second checkpoint. Once the Blu team starts pushing the cart through the tunnel you can either retreat to the Red decks or the exit to the mine shaft. Placing your self near the exit of the 'mine shaft gives you a sightline deep into the tunnel from which the Blu's will be coming out from and also gives you a view of the imperial building and the ditch. However, if the Blu team takes the attic expect Soldiers and flanking classes bombarding you from your right as that is where the attic will be in relationship to you. So for that reason, its a better idea to move over to the Red decks once your team losses the attic. From the decks you can have a much clearer view of the attic and the cart tracks but you do lose the view of the ditch and the imperial building. Just be aware of the Soldiers and Demomen blast jumping from the attic to the Red decks.
  • On stage 2,checkpoint A the best position would be on the Snipers ledge. As the name indicates, this position is made just for you. From here you get a long sightline staring right down the Blu team's exit and the overview of the Payload tracks. Just beware of the Scouts and Spies sneaking under the house and flanking you from your right. When defending checkpoint B you should stay in the finale area and Sniper enemies who will be exiting the tunnel or peeking out of the battlements.
  • On stage 3, checkpoint A, the best Sniper position is right where the basin reaches the same ground height as the platform next to it, or right on the end of the basin. From there, you can see the left and middle Blu spawn exit including the cart tracks, and if you were to move slightly to the right you could also see the right Blu exit. Basically, this spot grants you the entire control of all the possible routes the Blu can take when exiting there spawn, but this power does come with a price. Just like with the hut balcony on the first stage, using this basin spot means that just as you can see everything, so can everyone see you. You will have to watch out for Blu Snipers exiting on the left exit, deal with the power classes exiting the middle exit and slowly crawling their way up the basin and take care of the flanking classes such as the Scout and the Spy coming at you from the right direction. If you fell that this is too overwhelming for you then you could retreat even further back to the second checkpoint, where a small wooden ledge is awaiting you. From this ledge you will be protected by your friendly Engineer's Sentry Gun and will be able to maintain sightlines on the basin and the platform but won't have eyes on the right flank. When your team losses the checkpoint A and retreats to the checkpoint B then you should head all the way to the end of the hallway to snipe anyone heading through the hallway. And finally, when defending the last checkpoint, you should just climb up to the battlements. From there you will be practically safe from anyone except the enemy Snipers and will be able to look at he chokepoint and the house exit.

 Spy

• On each stage it's a good idea to take out Teleporters either on BLU or RED, as most stages in this map are very large and require a long time to get to the front lines for either team without a Teleporter. At the start of the stage, the priority target should be Engineer buildings.

• On BLU and at the final checkpoint of the last stage, there is a pathway under the map that leads behind the enemy, this is a very good path to take that puts you in a prime position for backstabbing the RED team.

• On RED and at the very first stage you can go through the building, onto the balcony, and onto a ledge that leads above and across the battlefield. This path can be useful for when the enemies have their area on lockdown.