So in the past few days, we covered the OW 101: How do you Support and How do you Tank, its finally time for DPS… so, beyond “melt faces and plink heads”, how does one effectively approach DPS in a team? What makes a good DPS, vs. one that doesn’t?
Just click their heads, it’s not rocket science
2 Likes
Interesting answer… what about positioning for instance? Where should a DPS be? Diving, or near a tank or support?
Within head clicking distance
2 Likes
So I am curious - does the DPS character you chose then fall into a specific category - so is Mei a diver or space creating DPS? Genji, Tracer for instance are clear divers… then we have say Soldier or Ashe… back-line? Where would you put your favorite DPS character(s) - Diver, tank peeler, or back-line?
Got to break it down first:
Snipers, Mid-range, and Flankers.
Snipers are good if they are able to force 2+ members of the enemy team to come chase them.
Mid-range are good if they can follow-up on their tanks to push back the enemy team.
Flankers are good if they can cause the enemy team to stagger.
And above all else, they can win 1v1s against most supports in a fair fight.
4 Likes
So is it fair you would think to put some characters in dual roles? Beyond that, what makes a good DPS (beyond just elims/damage) to being a good one adding value to the team?
Trying to break DPS down into categories would be convenient, but not especially useful. Someone like Hanzo is going to have completely different positioning than Widowmaker.
Press Q and hold M1 … or was that how to Genji? 
Good point - so a key value for a DPS is in positioning… how should generally speaking a DPS decide on where to be then?
Step 1: Pick a tank
No more steps
lol my first thought too.
I play mainly Mei/Sombra as my dps and my playstyle can range drastically based on my team comp and enemy’s comp.
Overall I will generally lurk around my MT doing what I can to support them while at the same time keeping an eye out for flankers. I rarely push past a tank unless I go on a flank missing to stagger the enemy team (after I know those players are returning from spawn)
As a tank player I basically play like I wish other dps players would when I tank.
I will provide wall support if barriers break early, separate enemy team for easy engagements for tanks, or freeze/hack flankers/tanks.
Not gonna lie…
When im tilted, i SPAMZO.
THAT makes a bad DPS
Don’t take my word for it but.
- Capitalizing on the opportunities given to you by your teammates
- Making decisions that will improve your team’s chances of victory during a team fight
- Coordination
Yeah… That’s all I got.
Timing mostly, especially in the flankers.
Funny, I too do a lot of Me and Sombra, and mix in some others notably Ashe. Your comment about being near the tank I think is key - where he is roots the team, it seems to me a DPS is from a positioning standpoint should be in position near the tank or healer or in relation to both unless diving… in which case they need to be diving the right target for the team… either on advance or bottled up…
One who has game sense and positioning and one who thinks it’s just clicking heads.
DPS requires game sense and positioning that are more complex than tanks and supports, it’s hard to say how to effectively dps without knowing which hero you are talking about, as each dps hero has their own unique positioning and game sense
Thanks - can you give an example of say a non-flanker, non-sniper role…?
Soldier may be a good example as he often wants to grab the high ground to pressure the enemy team. This of course depends on what map (pointless to take high ground if no one is fighting at that spot) and enemy team comp. Taking the high ground as soldier (often away from your barrier tank) is a big no-no vs snipers.
At low elos you can get away with something like that but in higher ones it’s a death wish. But say the enemy is running a Junk+ Tracer then high ground is a 100% must as you can easily cover your tanks/supports from a distance while being relatively difficult to contest.
If they have snipers you want to position yourself so your Reins/Orisa’s barrier covers you from the snipers favorable angles. However you don’t want to be so close to your barrier tank that you can sniff his farts. You want to cover his back not be in it.
Usually based on their escapes. Genji has a large range of movement and a powerful ability, so they can escape from pretty much anywhere. Hanzo has a little hop, but his main defense is his ability to use climb walls and abuse high ground. McCree doesn’t have either luxury, so he tends to stay with the team and close angles using the sides of walls. Looking at a characters escapes will tell you how to position yourself.