Spy is one of the nine playable classes in Team Fortress 2 and can constantly harass other players and be a menace to the other team thanks to his invis watch. Spy can not only disguise himself as a member of the enemy team but can also instantly kill any player with his melee weapon when striking from the back.

Although Spy has low health and can’t take a lot of damage before he dies, this class offers so much utility, that every team composition can benefit from at least one Spy. This is basically a must-have, as Spy is capable of disabling engineer turrets, which otherwise kill everything on sight.

And although the invis watch is the most signature feature of the Spy, players have a chance to change the regular watch into a stylish pocket watch with a different invisibility effect. Here’s everything you need to know about the Dead Ringer.

What Is The Dead Ringer?

Dead Ringer is an alternative invis watch for the Spy, which completely changes how the character works and how you can play him. While the normal invis watches allow you to simply pop invisibility with a single button, the gold plated pocket watch known as the Dead Ringer works completely differently.

When you try to cloak yourself with the Dead Ringer equipped, what happens instead is that your Spy simply redies the Dead Ringer in his hand. You’re the only person who can see yourself holding it, so there’s no chance that your enemies might have a chance to react when you pull it out. You can also use all other items with your other free hand, meaning that you can still shoot, stab and have Dead Ringer ready for action.

When you have the Dead Ringer pulled out, whenever you get hit, instead of taking damage you will become immediately cloaked, leaving behind a fake dead body. From the perspective of your enemy, this change is seamless and they will only see themselves killing you. You, however, will remain cloaked in your position. All you have to do is wait for your enemy to turn around, remove the cloak and stab.

Like other invis watches, you must first remove your cloak if you want to attack. Because of this, using the Dead Ringer requires good positioning and generally a bit more skill than other invis watches. The Dead Ringer invisibility lasts as long as all the other invis watches and you won’t be able to ready the Dead Ringer if it’s charging. Unlike the normal default Spy invis watch, which you can use without it’s energy bar fully charged, to use the Dead Ringer you’ll have to wait.

In addition, you have to remember that environmental and fall damage will also pop the dead ringer. While this can be problematic, good Spy players will use this to their advantage, as taking damage from a short fall will let you activate your Dead Ringer at will.

How To Use The Dead Ringer?

Getting good with Dead Ringer is a bit more difficult than just using other invis watches. The fact that you can’t just pop your cloak whenever you feel like you might need it can severely impact your game and make you a liability to your team. Likewise, every player on the other team will probably expect that when a SPy just randomly runs up to them and pretends to get gunned down, they just feign death and are waiting to strike.

Using the Dead Ringer effectively requires a lot of skill and good positioning, as well as beneficial circumstances. Otherwise, you’re just giving up the main class mechanic of the Spy and become a liability to your own team.

To succeed with the Dead Ringer, keep these tips in mind:

1. Watch Out For Ledges And Fall Damage

One of the most important things you have to remember is to watch out for potential fall damage. This can ruin any plans you might have, as it can trigger your Dead Ringer too early. This can be very bad and ruin your whole play, as you can’t use the Dead Ringer until it recharges. If you’re using ledge and fall damage to pop the Dead Ringer invis, keep in mind that most players on the enemy team will know that if you disappear right after hitting the ground you probably went invis.

2. Don’t Stop Moving When The Invisibility Activates

When it activates, Dead Ringer gives you a slight speed boost. It’s important to capitalize on this, as the enemy might keep checking if you’re really dead. It’s important to keep moving outside of the firing range for a short while, otherwise, you’ll get exposed as soon as the Dead Ringer pops, making it effectively useless. If you want to score a Dead Ringer kill, run away as soon as it pops,

3. Pay Attention To Your Surroundings When Removing Cloak

Remember that when using the Dead Ringer you only get one shot with the invisibility, until it recharges. This means that if an enemy pops your Dead Ringer, you really have to make it worth their attack. Uncloaking at a bad moment can mean a certain death. Remember to pay attention to what’s happening and always take any chance you can get to backstab the enemy.

How To Get The Dead Ringer?

Dead Ringer is a very common item and there are many ways that allow you to get the invis watch very easily. The three most important ones are:

1. Complete 17 Spy Achievements

You can actually get the Dead Ringer simply for playing as the spy. If you manage to successfully complete 17 achievements by this class, you will be immediately presented with a Dead Ringer of your own, no strings attached.

2. Purchase Or Trade

If you really want to play around with the Dead Ringer, the easiest way is to simply purchase it or trade for it with other players. Since the item is so common, you can purchase it for super cheap on the Steam marketplace without any problems.

3. Crafting

This last method is probably the worst one, if you want your own Dead Ringer. However, if for some reason you might want to try and craft one, you can combine a Spy class token, PDA slot token and two crap metals to have a chance to craft one of the three different invis watches available in the game.

To Sum Up

Here’s everything you have to know about the Dead Ringer. If you want to buy one of your own, head over to OPmarket where you can get the Dead Ringer, as well as all other Spy items, for the cheapest price available.