BRIGITTE. Shield Bash forces his Wraith and cancels Death Blossom. Whip Shot gets teammates out of Reaper’s Range. Rally and Repair Packs give teammates armor and Reaper’s shotguns deal half damage against armor
He gets completely destroyed by cc abilities because he has really short range. If you damage him enough to bait out his wraith form, you have rendered him unable to properly engage because he has no escape. I love playing lucio against reapers because they can’t hurt you and you can blast him away every 4 seconds.
The only rule to play against Reaper: Keep track of him at all times, if he sneaks on you there is very little you can do as not many heroes can have even a chance of fighting back in close range, the few who do need instant reaction as well.
Play with things like McCree, Junkrat, Mei, Soldier or even Phara so you can keep your distance or stop him from getting too close.
If you’re a tanker, the best thing you can do is sit near other team-mate so he doesn’t have a chance to 1v1 you, because outside of Orisa and Rog (if he doesn’t dodge your hook with wraith) you can’t really beat him in a 1v1.
If you’re playing with a tanker you also have to be mindful of who’s he’s targeting as most tankers can mitigate what he does, espcially D.va, she can save support from him better them anyone.
If you’re a support player, consider using Moira so you can dash away with ease or if you play mainly Ana, ask if someone wants to play Brig and stay with her or if you have a McCree stick with him, though this depends on good positioning from your DPS player.
Overall, if there is no coordination on your team, at least stay near people so its never a 1v1.
I recommend playing Pharah against Reaper.
Well OP, strap down, I hope you’re ready for a HUGE post 
.
Like actually, this is 3,000 words. Even my end-of-semester paper was NOT this long.
I’m a Reaper main with >325 hours in the hero and have climbed from 1700 SR to 2900 SR, despite Brigitte being in the meta for a while. Hopefully these advice will prove useful to you in some way.
It might be important to state that this is only my own experience, so take it with a grain of salt or doubt or whatever you have.
General tip
First off, let’s put this out there. Tip Zero would be:
Keep an eye and ear on where Reaper is at all times.
If you see a Reaper when you press tab but you haven’t seen one around for a little while, it might be a good idea to start looking around. Awareness of a problem is the first step to dealing with the problem, as preachy as that might sound. Reaper has no mobility option to get into his point blank range, so they will mostly rely on ambushes. If you keep an eye out for that, half the trouble is dealt with.
Reaper's weaknesses
Generally, Reaper sucks in 3 kinds of engagements:
- Range
- Mobility
- Anything that can instantly turn a CQC fight around
Reaper’s lack of range and ability to get INTO his optimal range is his greatest weakness. An outranged Reaper is a useless Reaper. Reaper also sucks exceptionally against anything that reduces damage taken (mostly armor, and to a lesser extent, good barrier placement). Unless he is being pocketed by a Mercy, Reaper is very vulnerable due to the fact that his sustain is maintained by his damage output, that is, anything that reduces damage nullifies his sustain as well.
So these are the kinds of heroes you want to look for:
-You want to take the fight long before Reaper reaches you.
-You want to be able to run away when he reaches you.
-You want to stop the Reaper’s momentum by denying his sustain or forcing out his wraith form early, such as stuns, knockbacks, shields, armor, and so on.
-Optimally, you can go for heroes that outright burst him down.
DPS picks:
Best counter: Hanzo, Widowmaker
Good counters: Junkrat, McCree, Pharah
Decent counters: Tracer, 76, Mei
(Tracer, 76 and Mei are okay counters depending on your skill level and the Reaper’s ability.)
Don’t play these: Doomfist, Bastion, Torbjorn
Hanzo & Widowmaker
HANZO is by far the best counter to Reaper. He has excellent range, highly adequate mobility (pounce will deny any ambush), a skill in CQC fights (Storm arrows), as well as amazing burst damage (250 headshot). He also has the benefit of a tiny hitbox for Reaper’s spread, and a 125 bodyshot will most likely discourage any Reaper from approaching as another shot will mean death.
WIDOWMAKER alone can completely shut down Reaper thanks to her range, but she is relatively more susceptible to ambushes compared to Hanzo due to scope. Nevertheless, she’s THE pick once you master her.
Junkrat
JUNKRAT is a very good choice if you find Hanzo and Widow too hard to master. His damage is unaffected by range and can be spammed endlessly in any direction. Trap can deny flanking Reapers while his burst damage of nade+mine (240) will immediately force out wraith form, assuming the Reaper survives. His mine also discourages any Reaper head-on fights, as it damages Reaper while enabling Junkrat to escape.
However, Junkrat’s hitbox is less forgiving, and against skilled Reapers who get the jump on you, you might not even have time to jump away. Even if you do, your trajectory is extremely easy to predict.
McCree
MCCREE is a great Reaper counter. You outrange Reaper significantly, and Flashbang-2 tap or Flashbang-FTH is THE combo that denies ALL CQC fights. As expected, Reaper suffers immense grief under this combo. As long as you keep an eye out for Reaper, you simply can’t lose to him.
However, it is important to note that McCree has a positively huge hitbox, and Combat roll will NOT save you if Reaper gets the ambush on you.
Pharah
PHARAH is a good counter if you master how to fly indefinitely as well as projectile prediction. If you are pocketed by a Mercy, Reaper literally cannot do anything. A damage boosted rocket will also 2-shot Reaper, who loses his greatest advantage–250 hp usually means he can survive two 120-damage explosives.
Keep in mind that you need to keep your horizontal and vertical range AT ALL TIMES. Pharah’s hitbox is huge up close, and Reapers can still shoot you down if you give him the opportunity. Also, do NOT chase Reapers into small rooms or enclosed areas, and keep an eye for high ground teleports. You will immediately lose your greatest advantage if this happens, and you WILL die. I have killed countless Pharahs this way before.
Tracer
TRACER is good against most heroes, and can spot Reapers along the flanks. She can also kite Reaper and will usually win the 1v1 due to her small hitbox.
However, her low hp also means that Reaper will take her down with a lucky headshot. Moreover, unless you have excellent aim, Tracer will likely give Reaper enough time to wraith away to safety
Soldier 76
SOLDIER 76 is a good pick in most scenarios. His ranged damage and bursty Helix rockets do well to suppress a Reaper. Conversely, his normal rifle damage is not bursty enough to force a Reaper back, and 76’s big hitbox will allow an easy takedown in the case of an ambush. It might be worth noting that if you DO get ambushed, don’t even think about fighting. Dropping heals and staying in point blank range against a Reaper is a VERY poor decision. Instead, hold down shift and run what your mum gave you. You will have a decent chance of escaping thanks to his spread and your mobility.
Mei
MEI is an okay counter once you master her icicle. She deals good damage at range and is tanky enough to withstand ambushes. Her freeze can force out wraith form, and ice wall can deny Reaper escapes. The reason why she isn’t a great pick is because in ambushes, Mei has no mobility option to escape, and getting trapped in point blank range against a Reaper who can aim well will generally not end well.
Support picks:
Best counter: Brigitte
Good counters: Ana, Zenyatta, Lucio
Don’t play these: Moira
Brigitte
BRIGITTE is possibly the most solid Reaper counter you can find. She is tanky enough with a small hitbox, self-regen and 600 hp shield, and will drag fights on endlessly. She also has an excellent stun, and provides armor to nullify Reaper’s heal, not only inherently on herself, but also on her teammates. Assuming her shield bash in on cooldown, she can knock Reaper back and essentially deny his attack completely. She also has a very handy combo that can easily burst down a Reaper, as follows:
LMB-Bash-LMB-LMB-Shift
Yes, there is enough time to land TWO LMBs during the stun. This combo equates to 35+50+35+35+70= 225, which is horrifically broken enough to completely deny or even kill Reaper straight away.
Lucio
LUCIO is the simplest counter to Reaper there is.
If he walks over, boop him away.
If he ambushes you, boop him away.
If he is near a cliff, boop him away.
If he is pressuring your tanks, boop him away.
If he blossoms, DO NOT BOOP HIM INTO YOUR TEAM.
Alternatively, you can speed yourself and your team away from a Reaper since Reaper walks like an old man and will not catch a DJ on steroids and roller skates.
That’s all there is. A single Lucio can completely deny a Reaper from advancing, and his small hitbox enables him to survive most ambushes. The reason why Lucio isn’t considered the best counter is because
- You aren’t killing a Reaper, you are just infinitely delaying him
- Sound barrier is a poor choice against death blossom
Ana
ANA is also a great pick against Reaper since her hitbox is so small. More snipey Ana players will also find themselves less commonly picked on by Reaper since they are just too far to bother with (it takes an insane amount of time to walk all the way to the backline and then back again). Sleep dart is very effective against Reaper, whose hitbox is positively huge, and can safely deny death blossom.
However, since the wraith form QoL change, biotic grenade is no longer as effective against Reaper. Moreover, Ana struggles to kill Reaper on her own due to his higher hp pool, and will have to rely on her teammates more. Nevertheless, Ana remains the BEST pick if you are trying to save your tanks from a Reaper due to her healing burst.
Zenyatta
ZENYATTA is a good pick in general. Against Reaper, discord orb will allow you to keep tabs on flanking Reapers as well as enable quick bursts against them. You yourself also deal an absolute crapton a lot of damage, especially on headshots, and have no fall-off. As expected, transcendence is THE pick against death blossom and most offensive ults, and is reliable as ever.
However, lacking both small hitboxes and mobility options, an ambushed Zenyatta is a dead Zenyatta in 90% of cases, so you will have to be extra vigilant.
Owing to the fact that you appear to enjoy playing tanks the most, I’ll try to be a bit more detailed here
TANKS
3/7 tanks have insane mobility and can easily outrun Reaper. However, this will be written under the assumption that you HAVE to hold a position and fleeing is not an option.
Roadhog
ROADHOG himself is a Reaper counter despite his categorisation as a tank. Boasting a shotgun that does more single-shot damage than Reaper (150 vs 140), as well as a 300 hp burst heal, any accomplished Roadhog will take down Reaper 9 times out of 10.
if you see a Reaper approaching, spam RMB at him as long as he remains within sight to whittle him down.
When Reaper closes in, STAY CALM. Even if Reaper scores full pellets, he will need at least 5 shots to kill you (ignoring headshots). Factoring healing, he will need 7 shots to take you down. During this time, you will be able to fire 3 to 5 shots back at him, dealing a maximum of 750 damage on a target that has 250 hp.
The fight is blatantly in your favour, so don’t fret. Aim your shots carefully and make sure they hit.
Of course, just to let Reaper players suffer more grief you also have your hook combo. Remember that hook itself deals 30 damage and you are free to combo in a shot and a quick melee (30 damage again). In other words, just a simple hook+melee combo will leave Reaper at 190 hp, against your shotgun that does 150 damage. Aim generally in the neck area and you WILL oneshot Reaper.
As long as you stay calm as Roadhog and ignore the little voice telling you that Reaper is a tank buster (he really isn’t) and you are a tank (you aren’t really either), you won’t just survive a Reaper, you will outright win him and make his day.
Winston
WINSTON doesn’t have a lot of flashy stuff against Reaper. If the enemy has a Reaper, be more conservative about diving.
If the Reaper presses you, put down your bubble and play around the edges. Your 600hp bubble combined with your 500 hp self will mean almost 1000 effective hp for Reaper to bust through. Although he can do that, it will leave plenty of time for you and your team to focus him down.
Two handy tricks against Reaper for you.
- Jump+melee does 80 damage under a split second. Use it to initiate the fight on Reaper if you have to, and then bubble dance. You will be able to gain a decent advantage early on. If Reaper wraiths out your jump combo, bubble dance plus a bit of team effort WILL kill Reaper since he has expended his wraith form
- When diving, holding down spacebar as you land will allow you to perform a little skip like a skipping stone. This way, you will end up near the boundaries of your bubble to begin with instead of right in the center. This enables bubble dancing and diving much more effectively and safely in the presence of an enemy Reaper.
Zarya
ZARYA is okay if you have high enough charge. She also has the smallest hitbox of all tanks, which is a definite bonus. However, if you are caught with <60 charge and without a shield, you will most likely die.
The key to this is just general Zarya tips about bubble conservation, which I’m not one to give considering my Zarya ability. However, 3 little tips I can give would be:
- You can freely fit in quick melee between all RMBs without ANY loss in dps. It is COMPLETELY FREE extra 30 damage, which is exceptionally handy if you are poor at close range aiming. Simply RMB the general ground where Reaper is and mash that quick melee button, and you can perform an easy burst damage. At 100 charge, this combo does 120 damage, which is nothing to shrug off
- Don’t bother aiming for the head. This is really basic but I still see Zaryas doing this all the time. Aiming at the bodymass will do.
- Time your bubble to the next Reaper shot, and do not instantly bubble once you take damage. Reaper fires at 1 shot per 0.5 second, so if you instantly bubble, Reaper will wait out the bubble and reengage with a fully reloaded clip. Instead, wait for a short moment before popping bubble, thus getting around 30 charge and giving you a chance to fight back.
If you are good at tracking and have high charge, burn down that Reaper. Zarya at 100% charge does 190 dps with her LMB, and will easily melt Reaper (or any hero, for that matter)
Orisa
ORISA is very effective against Reaper albeit having one of the largest head hitboxes in the game. She can bubble dance with her shield just as Winston can, trading a larger hitbox for a tougher shield. In addition, her primary weapon has NO damage falloff whatsoever along with a huge clip, meaning she can spray at Reaper as he attempts to approach. Approaching Orisa head-on is just not doable for Reaper.
Halt is an excellent tool in displacing Reapers, which is very detrimental to them–Reaper’s lack of in-combat mobility forces him to either retreat completely, or bear the brunt of your gun as he attempts to reengage.
Fortify is the last panic button for Orisa, and it is very effective. Considering armor already halves Reaper’s damage, coupling with Fortify means a normal 140 shot will only deal around 35 damage, barely more than a quick melee. This buys you precious seconds to readjust to the situation and for your team to come to your aid, while these same seconds means Reaper has to take a LOT more damage.
In short, as long as you are aware of Reaper’s position at all times, Orisa is an excellent pick against Reaper. Make no mistake, however–if you are caught on your own or ambushed by a Reaper who aims well, he WILL make short work of you.
Reinhardt
REINHARDT is my second main and not at all a bad play against Reaper either. There are three tips I would give in the Reaper-Reinhardt matchup.
-
Master the jump-shield technique, where you jump in one direction, deploy your shield, and then hide your shield and jump forward again. Bunny jumping like this is a good way to push forward while also providing protection, but it is also essential to defending yourself against Reaper.
Most Reapers will attempt to walk past your shield to shoot you. In order to do this and avoid a potential counter charge, they will usually strafe left and right. In this case, jump-shield STRAIGHT BACK. This will distance you from the Reaper much more effectively than trying to stand your ground and squirming around with your shield. -
Get used to using firestrike right after a melee strike. I believe they removed the animation cancel, but nevertheless, this is a quick and painful burst of 175 damage. Reaper will be left with 75 hp, just enough for another hammer hit to finish him. Of course, factoring his self heal, it will usually require two extra hits, but the fight will generally be in your favour at this point.
-
Take the fight with Reaper EARLY. You have 200 armor which takes half damage from Reaper. In other words, you have 200hp worth of time where Reaper heals for half his normal rate. Make good use of this period instead of being caught hesitating whether to engage or not.
D.Va
D.Va is one hero I do not feel eligible to comment on. I have exactly 2 hours of D.VA in total in comparison to 320 hours of Reaper, so all I can say is Defense Matrix when Reaper is pressuring hard or using ult. Don’t know what else to say.
Wrecking Ball
Wrecking Ball is another one where I do not have enough experience playing as or against to comment. However, most of the time you will be rolling around and swinging, and Reaper with his spread and pitiful mobility will struggle to hit you.
If you actually read through all that, I’m impressed! It took around 2 hours,
and I hope it helps. All the best in your future endeavours against the Edgelord
TL;DR
Play Brigitte. LEL.
3 Likes
learn mccree and stun the edgy kid
As a DPS swap to Mcree, or Tracer Mcree’s flashbang almost always wins vs reaper and tracer can avoid him and take out the healers.
As Support Brig is the best option (as she can actually dual him) Mercy, Moira and Lucio can also gain ground against him *Ana can manage against reaper if you’re good with sleep darts, otherwise don’t play her or zen.
As a Tank Zarya, and Orisa are very strong, Zarya’s bubble gives her great 1v1 potential vs reaper and Orisa can use both her shield and halt abilities to keep him at a range. Once your armor is gone as Orisa use Reinforce, its not ideal but staying alive keeps reaper off your healers.
You really didn’t have to do this. Thank you!
Seriously. Thank you.
1 Like
The best counter is obviously range, as Reaper’s effective range is less than 10 meters. Any hero with an effective range of over 10 meters and the ability to stay at that range should win that engagement.
For melee range heroes, the one I’ve actually found to be most effective is Mei. Generally speaking I’ve been able to freeze Reaper before he can finish me off with his shotguns, and if things go south quickly Mei has the tools in her kit disengage and get away safely.
Is that confirmed?
I just always assumed it did an even amount of damage in all directions.
No, I can confirm that, I’ve tested it with freinds.
What a weird design decision.
That’s completely unintuitive and absolutely not apparent from the animation ^^
Will have to try that out now though ![:slight_smile:](https://d74zh8edaijub.cloudfront.net/en/overwatch/images/emoji/twitter/slight_smile.png?v=5" ":slight_smile:")
Shoot him in the face?
DVA can be a hard counter too him, I haven’t played comp in a long time but I play vs ppl that are in general from master to t500 and dva works wonders when he tries to get close, ofc that means you need your team to kill him so I guess i lower elo that will not work
Might be a bug, who knows?
Hard-Counters:
- Brigitte
- McCree
- Pharah
- Widow
- Hanzo
Loose-Counters:
- Sombra
- Roadhog [I put him on here because 1.) hooks put Reaper in a fight or flight situation and 2.) One-shot potential]
- Mei [He either kills fast or he’s frozen. You can wall off his escape route if he tries it.]
- Tracer
- Doomfist [One shot potential and serious displacement; Makes Reaper’s ult trickier to use, but Doomfist’s hitbox size makes him easier to hit.]
[[Side Note: Sticking with your allies will help as well. Unless you’re with someone else or playing as the aforementioned counters, 1v1ing him in CQC is a death-wish.]]
It’s not a bug. In fact, it’s a relatively recently-added feature. Before you could stand behind a Roadhog and he could just tank it and you wouldn’t be hurt. They made it where Death Blossom targets the people behind other people/barriers and will deal the damage to what ever is in front, so now that Roadhog is taking 340 DPS instead of the original 170 just because you’re behind him. It was a nice QoL change, albeit his ult usually doesn’t last long enough to make a difference.
Ahh… Makes perfect sense when you put it like that, thank you.
Thats wrong i played Reaper more then 40 hours on two profiles this season and i can say the hardest tank to kill is defenitely Orisa because of halt, fortify and the shield dance. Roadhog is the easiest to kill from all tanks even more easy than Winston. Also if Roadhog hooks a full life Reaper, Roadhog is dead 90% of the time so he do you a favor if he hooks you,
Dont know but i think Mcgree is bad vs a good Reaper. I cant tell you how many time i predict the flash bang and after that Mcgree is gone I also reconized that if a McGree hit me with flash and then fan the hammer i want die most of the time but kill him with one shot while hes faning the hammer.