Many players know of what actions a real teammate can perform, but enemy Spies can not:

• They are unable to walk through your teammates or friendly machines.
  
• They are unable to fire or swing the weapons displayed by their disguise.
  
• They are unable to taunt as the class they are disguised as.
  
• They are unable to help capture/block an objective.
  
• They are not immune to your teammates' gunfire, melee weapons, explosives, and of course, fire.

And, chances are, you are aware of the simplest ways of finding Spies:

• You see a dim glimpse of a class's outline of the other team’s color.
  
• You are unable to move in any direction within an open area with no visible enemies, as if something is blocking your movements.
  
• You have seen multiple of the same person wandering around (including yourself).
  
• Your teammate is on fire and the fire is glowing the opposite team’s color.
  
• Your teammate is failing to walk through you or your teammates.
  
• Your teammate is affected by friendly airblasts.
  
• Your teammate is running by several enemies and the enemies have no interest in shooting them.

These are all situations that will lead to finding an enemy Spy.



But how else could you possibly tell? Are there any other dead(ringer) giveaways for determining whether or not someone is an opposing Spy?



Well...for the most part, yes.

Spies tend to exhibit certain "behaviors" during gameplay; they will act strangely in comparison to other teammates, and simply by spending time in Team Fortress 2, it will become easy for you to spot these oddities and notice when something is amiss.

There is a secret to learning the unusual characteristics of enemy Spies on your own. One of the best methods of determining whether someone is a Spy, is to ask a single question:

"If I were in their position, what would I be doing?"

A simple comparison to yourself or your teammates is the best way to take notice of such behavior, and will be the reasoning behind why the upcoming actions are so telling.

Please note, however, that while most of these observations can be used to find those deadly lurkers, they will not necessarily mean that any player in question really is a Spy. The little ammo it would take to check, however, is almost always worth your time and effort. After all, there is nothing worse than seeing someone you thought was a teammate un-cloak-and-dagger a real teammate, and realizing that you could have prevented it.

So, let’s go over some of these situations that just seem to scream, “That _____ is a Spy!”

Let’s start ourselves off with one of the most overlooked, yet obvious giveaways an opposing Spy has: they are "unwilling" to fire/swing their weapon. Simply put, it is likely because they can not.

Now, yes, that does not automatically mean they are actually a Spy. However, many other situations involve this one in particular. Not to mention, it makes your team wonder: what are they doing?

All classes have certain behaviors to assume, and there are questions any player could reasonably ask about a teammate's intentions, assuming that the teammate in question knows the basics of how to play Team Fortress 2 and is not just standing completely still.

• "Why is our Medic not healing anybody?"
  
• "Why is that Soldier/Demoman not explosive jumping to the front lines?"
  
• "Why is our teammate chasing after our other teammates?"

This also applies to Medics and Engineers who aren’t holding their Mediguns and Wrenches, respectively. Think about it: if you are a Medic or Engineer, and you are not firing it, let alone have anyone to shoot at, then why would you ever have your Syringe Gun or Shotgun at the ready? Unless you believed you saw a Spy nearby and are waiting for any sudden movements, then chances are you would not have your primary weapon on standby.

On top of all this, many TF2 players tend to just randomly shoot bullets, spray fire, or swing their melee weapons as a sign to teammates that they are not Spies. Always keep this in mind whenever searching for a Spy within your team.

Every class in Team Fortress 2 has a "job," if you will. Medics heal teammates. Engineers build machines. Snipers snipe, Scouts scout, and Soldiers...soldier on.

But there's more to it than that.

While Snipers can certainly shoot opponents up close, they tend to hang around the outskirts of the battlefield, firing from a safe distance and maintaining an advantage from the other short-ranged classes. It's rather odd for a Sniper to be running around maniacally in the middle of a fight, especially if they have their Sniper Rifle out. While they certainly can throw around Jarate and Bushwacka the enemies down, unless they are swinging their melee weapon constantly, chances are that you may actually have an enemy Spy on your hands.

Meanwhile, classes such as the Spy tend to be behind the enemy. Spies are most useful behind enemy lines, messing with equipment and backstabbing enemies, so it is a strong possibility you may have a traitor in your midst if one is wandering around your own base.



Also worth noting, enemy Spies that disguise as Spies on your team will always be shown as disguised, with a paper mask over their face and labeled as what they are disguised as. A Spy on your team that is not wearing a disguise is, without a doubt, a friendly Spy. The same can not be said otherwise.

Scouts that are moving slower than normal are not as suspicious as they used to be, as the introduction of the Baby Face Blaster has made the occurrence quite possible, but even then it is important to take notice of the primary weapon the Scout has. Simply looking at your teammate is often a giveaway, for if they have the Scattergun or any other primary weapon equipped, then their slow speed is due to being an enemy Spy. However, even if they have the Baby Face Blaster equipped, playing it safe never hurts.



Soldiers and Demomen with full health, that decide to take the long way around to an area they could easily reach by explosive jumping, are also worth examining (unless it's a Demoman with a shield equipped, who are less suspicious).

Medics want to get their Ubercharge meter filled up as quickly as possible, so one that isn't constantly healing is a suspicious player. The same goes for Engineers with broken equipment, or none anywhere in the vicinity, and seem uninterested in making new buildings or replacing their current ones.

Pretend, for a moment, that you are in the middle of battle. You have taken several hits and are low on health, and know that you can't continue to fight any longer without a huge risk of death. So, you decide to retreat. Ask yourself: what would you do while running away from the fight if it is still going on?

Well, you would do one of two things:

1) You stay focused on your enemies, either while running to the side or backwards, and continue to shoot at them (or, if you're not a battle Medic, face your teammates and heal them).



2) You turn away from the fight, and start to reload your weapon(s).

If you see a teammate running away from a fight, and they are not doing either of these things, then chances are it is really a Spy. Why? To put it simply, it is because players perform these actions majority of the time out of instinct (unless you run out of ammo, of course).



You naturally tend to focus your attention on your opponents, to deal a tiny bit of extra damage and ensure you do not get hit by a stray projectile, or turn away to maximize your running speed for a slightly quicker getaway. Either way, there is no reason why you should not be firing your weapon at your opponents, or at the very least reloading, while running away (unless it can not reach them or you have to spin it up first). If a player is not doing so, then chances are, it is because that player can not.

And yes, while enemy Spies do show a reloading animation for their shown weapon while disguised, majority of Spies will always reload while putting on a new disguise. Very rarely do Spies reload while disguised, for reloading a weapon for any class should be a natural instinct as soon as you stop firing. If you are a Spy that just stopped firing your weapon, then you obviously do not have a disguise anymore seeing as how it would have vanished from shooting your revolver. Good Spies will reload their revolver during the intermission required for a new disguise to fully activate. A reloading teammate, majority of the time, is a real teammate.

Many players are accustomed to noticing an uncloaked, disguised Spy who has been running around for a long period of time, but why? What makes your team suddenly become more and more suspicious at a teammate?

Is it because they have not visibly fired their gun? Could be. Maybe it is the fact that they are not interested in the nearby fighting going on, and are unwilling to help out their teammates.

But one reason in particular stands out more than anything: the fact that they are so much more interested in your own team. Whether heading straight for a teammate that is out of the way, or just having their eyes turned to your side of the field, it is quite telling once you wonder why they would be doing so in the first place.



Think on it for a moment. When a Spy is wanting to backstab someone, where are his eyes turned? Naturally, towards the person he is aiming for.

When going for a group of machines, a Spy will constantly be fixated on the location of the Sentry, Teleporters, and any nearby Engineers and their movements.



There is always something fishy about a teammate that is around the center of battle, and for some reason, is more focused on your own team's side rather than the opponents'. They don't have to worry about dying from their own team, so why should they face that way? The real danger is a stray rocket or burst of fire hitting them from your side of the field, so they find it far more important to face their opponents, and chances are they will.

Taking damage may cause an enemy Spy to react as well. A stray shot, just like with any other enemy player, could cause a Spy to turn around to see what was dealing the damage, which could give away the Spy's position. Other Spies may ignore the damage, in the hopes that the opposing player gives up and takes the lack of a reaction to the shots as a sign that the Spy really is a teammate. In order to counter this, make sure that you shoot multiple times into someone you believe is an enemy Spy to cause a feigned death or, hopefully, a real death.

Even when a teammate is heading for you, it becomes easy to tell whether they are a Spy. Majority of the time, a teammate will remain focused on the area where they are going. But a Spy? A Spy may slowly be rotating towards you, so that you are always within eyesight. This is why good Spies tend to use the corner of their eyes to watch you; the more attentive a player is towards you, the more attentive you will be towards them, and that is the last thing they want.

Spies can not walk through enemy players: this is well known. So, in order to make sure that they will not alert an opponent, what will they do? Simple, they will walk around them and avoid contact.

But a teammate would not do that, would they? No, of course not.

Again, a teammate that is approaching you gives off a few warning signs if they are really an enemy Spy. If a real teammate is walking directly towards you, with you also heading in their direction, then what would they do?

They would just walk right on through you. All because you both can, and it is the quickest and easiest route.

A Spy, however, will not. All because they can not.



So if you are ever in this sort of situation, and your teammate is moving off to your side as if to "let you pass on by" without bumping into one another, then be sure to fill them full of bullets in order to "repay their common courtesy."

The only thing you should really be wary of is a teammate who is standing at the top of a staircase, while you are climbing upwards. If they suddenly decide to jump over you, then it is very likely that they are a Spy trying to surprise you with a "stairstab." Just make sure that you are always facing them, and you should be fine.



Unless you happen to get facestabbed in the process. In which case, apologies in advance.

There are occasions when Spies refuse to remain uncloaked. Why?

Well, cloaked Spies are the best Spies. Experienced Spies know that remaining cloaked for as long as possible is one of the best strategies to maintain, as it is extremely difficult to find something you cannot see.

So how do you combat this? How does a player fight something that is unseen?

What do you do after seeing this?

Well, for starters, know that all of the Spy's watches have a limited amount of cloak, meaning that Spies will have to uncloak sooner or later. If a Spy has the Cloak and Dagger then the possibility exists for unlimited cloak, but the Spy will have to stay in the same area in order to get it back. If you are facing a Cloak and Dagger Spy, then simply check the surrounding area; if not uncloaked, the Spy will be somewhere nearby.

For other watches, however, the methods to finding a Spy are a bit more difficult. One must follow a Spy's trail, and know where Spies will tend to go in order to find and dispatch of them. Hearing the sound of a Spy uncloaking is an obvious giveaway, but you will often need to rely on more than just that. Unless a Spy is very close on low on cloak, you will need other ways of following a Spy's scent.

Again, imagining yourself as a Spy is one of the best ways to find out where an enemy Spy would go in any situation.

Pretend that you have just run a long distance while cloaked, and you scored a backstab or two. Your cloak meter is low, and any nearby enemies will know of your position if you remain in the area for any longer than necessary; what do you do, and where do you go?

Instinct tells you to reload your weapon (if it was fired) and don a new disguise. You are low on cloak, however, so what is your next move? Getting it back, of course.

Chances are you will likely move straight towards the nearest ammo pack spawn, in order to regain your lost cloak from reaching your destination. Whether low on Invis Watch cloak or needing another use with the Dead Ringer, Spies love to gravitate towards stocks of ammo, as well as health if they have sustained damage (which tend to be near one another, making it even more likely to find Spies there).

This is where you may have noticed something else that Spies tend to do: leaving a health and ammo respawn barren while leaving. If you notice a lack of players around a health and/or ammo spawn, and also a lack of health and/or ammo, then chances are a Spy is hanging around, or at the very least you are on the track of one. Obviously, this also goes for when you see the health/ammo vanish right in front of you, or if you see a dropped weapon lying on the ground and it suddenly disappears (unless the game itself made it vanish after too much time passed, of course). After all, if you are a Spy and are walking up to a Sentry nest, and see a nearby ammo pick-up, then would you go ahead and pick it up? Why, of course.

Another giveaway for a Spy is hearing a teammate crying out in agony. Many team players, upon hearing their teammates taking damage, tend to turn and see what all the fuss is about. Paying attention to teammates that are getting hurt/killed allows you to lend a hand, or at the very least, warns you of danger.

If you hear a death cry, however, and see that a teammate is going through their backstab animation, then know that you could very well be next. Keep your eye on the top-right corner of your screen, as it often displays how any of your teammates were killed (so long as it was not with the Eternal Reward or another silent-kill knife). Seeing the death avatar that indicates a backstab is never a pleasing sight of what is likely to come, so know of your teammates' locations, especially in comparison to your own. Pressing Tab to see your scoreboard is also handy, as it displays who on your team is alive or dead.

On top of all of this, learn of the locations that Spies tend to head towards after pulling off a successful mission. Either the Spy will leave to recuperate, or begin a new objective immediately afterwards.

For example, let us say that your teammate was recently backstabbed, and you notice an ammo pack missing from the area. Meanwhile, a few feet away, one of your Engineers has finally built a level 3 Sentry to watch over the objective.

Can you figure out what the Spy will likely target next?

Imagine coming through this area a few seconds later. Would your first instinct be to head towards the Engineer and his Sentry?

It becomes especially obvious if you find a fallen teammate's corpse and missing health/ammo lying inbetween a possible target and the enemy Spy's base. Engineers are a very high priority for Spies to take out, as well as Medics or unattentive Snipers, so always keep watch of your backlines and any suspicious activity.

Just like any other player, a Spy will take the quickest route to reach an objective. However, if the quickest path is unsafe, then the path of least resistance will be taken. Spies wish to avoid contact with enemies after all, so an area full of enemies and gunfire is likely not the favorable one. A Spy will always prioritize speed and safety over all else, so if you are looking for a Spy and notice a group of your teammates nestled in an area, chances are the Spy did not wander through there (unless it was the only path to take or the Spy is really hopeful in getting some backstabs). The path least taken, however, is very probable. If no one travels down a certain path, then uncloaking there would likely be safe, correct?

This Spy just made a great escape. Would you have guessed to check down here after thinking you took him out?

If you are trailing Spies, always check spawns of health and ammo, look for teammates in order to assume the path of least resistance, and know where their next targets are likely located. Seeing other enemies in an area is a probable place for a Spy to head as well, but if you know you can not take on the enemy, then perhaps waiting out the Spy is the best course of action. Just keep on trying; you will find them eventually.

This Pyro was on the right track of a Dead Ringer Spy, but unfortunately, he reached his team first.

Players are always capable of viewing their teammates' health, correct? While the health bar used to be a fairly telltale sign of finding Spies, as Spies always had half-full health whenever initially disguised, there is still something very suspicious about seeing a teammate running out of an area where tons of enemies are with almost entirely full health and no enemies chasing after them.



This especially goes for areas with any nearby sentries. If you see teammates running around a corner from a group of enemies, and they are not disguised Spies themselves, then they are certainly each worth a few of your bullets. As in, inserted into their bodies. Forcefully.

The better a player is at paying attention to their surroundings in pretty much any first-person shooter, the better the player will do. Any player who wishes to succeed in Team Fortress 2 should learn this as quickly as possible.

So if you are running around an area with no one else around, and one of your teammates suddenly appears from out of the blue, then you might want to "softly poke them" a few times. Just in case.

Not much else to say. Pay attention to your surroundings, and a little caution never hurt anyone.

Well, anyone on your team, anyway.

A bit on the odd side, but still very valid. A year or so ago, tiny icons were introduced into the game in order to signify that a player was being healed, was overhealed, or had picked up a health container. This icon is a tiny cross, about the size of any class's head. While being healed or while overhealed, the player will have several crosses around them, and if just a health pick-up, it appears for a brief second and vanishes as quickly as it came.

A Spy, picking up a health pack.

Examples of an overhealed Spy. Icons are the opposite color.

One important fact, however: the icon is color-coded. As in, it will be red for REDs and blue for BLUs. So if a teammate goes to pick up a health pack, and the icon that appears is of the wrong color, then you know the reason for it.

However, it may also appear as the wrong color when a friendly Spy is overhealed or picks up health as well. It seems to occur randomly, but still, be wary of your teammate's class. And even then, playing it safe would not be a bad idea.

This rule is no longer valid. Valve has made an update to fix this issue, and it works perfectly.

Do not worry about this rule anymore, as it is no longer applies to finding Spies.

Most players understand the concept that Spies can not move through enemy buildings. However, you would be amazed at how many seem to not question why a teammate is suddenly capable of standing on top of them. If you see a teammate standing on a Sentry or Dispenser, then shoot them (anyone can stand on Teleporters). Even if it is the Engineer that built the machines standing on top, it might be worthwhile to double check if it really is them.

If one of these Engineers bumps into this Spy, then the Spy is pretty much a goner.

Do not forget, seeing one of your teammates running through enemy machines is an obvious enemy Spy as well. Also, Spies can heal themselves and regain ammo with dispensers made by either team so long as they are disguised. Even a teammate that seems to avoid direct contact with machines is suspicious, especially when no other teammates of yours appear to be around. Keep an eye out, and use your head.

If you already pay attention to your surroundings, then chances are you have figured this one out on your own. When any player gets a kill, assists in a kill or dies, the player's name will appear in the top-right corner of your screen. If you have a nearby teammate, though, and up in the corner you notice that something has occurred that is improbable or downright impossible, then that teammate is, without a doubt, a Spy.

If they were not trying to score a kill during that time, that player is an enemy Spy. If they should currently be dead, then they are a Spy.

Do not forget to use the scoreboard as well (Tab key by default), as even if the kill/death markers lie (for example, a Spy using the Eternal Reward), the scoreboard never will. If the scoreboard displays a skull next to a player, then that player is either feigning death or actually dead.

End of story.

Other signs exist that you should look for, but many are minor. Examples include that Spies can not disguise Unusual effects for hats and miscellaneous gear, and that on rare occasions, the disguise will show an impossible weapon combination, such as a Sniper with both the Darwin's Danger Shield and an SMG.

Of course, there are other issues entirely when it comes to Spy-checking. Enemy Spies can also disguises themselves as other classes of their own team, making them both harder to find and a bit harder to recognize, especially when they feign death in order to try and get around your team.

The Dead Ringer is another issue. A class model tends to fall differently when a Spy is faking death, and anything that dies a bit too quickly is always worth taking note of. However, one sentence can sum up a Dead Ringer Spy entirely:

If you think someone is a Dead Ringer Spy, they probably are.

Stay vigilant, keep your ears and eyes open, and go to where you would go if you were a cloaked Spy.

And if all else fails...go Pyro. That tends to work.



Happy Spy hunting! Stay paranoid!