How to Play Doomfist: a Detailed Guide
Doomfist is a Damage hero from Overwatch, notorious for his high DPS and maneuverability. Learning how to play Doomfist well is rewarding, because he is difficult enough to master. When you do, though, it’ll be a constant source of happiness in your Overwatch sessions.
He can wreak havoc on individual strays, as well as on entire teams. The former is especially satisfying, because most of his skills are precise and devastating. They can drop almost any cast member in seconds. The man is a living cannon, and if he hits you, you’re probably already dead.
Background
The character was added in summer 2017, but it was already well-known that a powerful hero with many control skills is on his way. And Doomfist’s moves are able to one-shot much of the cast, as promised.
When it comes to lore, Doomfist is a bad guy. The list of his colleagues include Widowmaker, Reaper and Sombra, which are, quite frankly, terrorists. He’s cynical, ruthless and somewhat of a legend. He’s able to punch a whole through anything with the help of his martial skill and a cybernetic gauntlet, at least in the lore.
Doomfist Abilities
Doomfist is excellently positioned to initiate fights. His abilities allow him to be a frontline fighter, but a lot of DF mains prefer catching weaker heroes unaware to perform devastating combos on them. Either approach is acceptable, but a damage dealer such as Fist is better positioned being in the thick of a battle.
There are two sides to most of Doomfist’s mechanics. The first one is the damage-dealing aspect. These combos are capable of high DPS numbers. The other side is movement. As DF, you’re able to move fast in virtually any direction. It’s perfect for jumping into action and for quick escapes.
HAND CANNON
Hand Cannon is a ranged skill, activated by a primary attack button. Upon clicking, the character will release several pellet shots from his left arm in the direction the player’s looking. It’s essentially a shotgun: a short-range gun with a moderate spread and severe fall-off. Even this ranged option requires you to be close to the target.
The Cannon isn’t permanent. It has 4 shots, which may be released one-by-one but need to be reloaded. The reloading happens over time for each individual quarter. The skill deals 264 points, if you manage to connect all the pellets. The output decreases with distance, which makes you want to conserve ammo until close-up finishing actions.
THE BEST DEFENSE…
The Best Defense… is a passive ability, which provides you with a shield buff after each successful ability hit. Shields enable players to absorb more attacks. If you keep landing your abilities, you may extend your life with this passive long enough to massively hurt the other team.
A hit with any skill will provide 30 shield points, and these stack up to 400 actual health (HP + shield). A typical Doomfist guide advises players to use flanking players to beef themselves up with this passive before creating mayhem in the main teamfight.
RISING UPPERCUT
Rising Uppercut is a close-proximity move, which propels the hero into the air. If there is an opponent in front of the player at the time, it’ll knock them up, dealing a modest amount of damage in the process. The Uppercut incapacitates the enemies, but it likewise leaves himself vulnerable to attacks.
It’s the first instance of the hero’s additional perk, present in most of his abilities — the high mobility of Doomfist. Not only does Rising Uppercut enable players to assume a higher position in the environment, but it’s also designed to work with other skills, as you’ll see soon.
ROCKET PUNCH
Rocket Punch is a charge-up skill. Upon pressing the secondary attack button, it’ll launch you forward. The longer you hold, the further you travel forward. Likewise, the Doomfist’s Rocket Punch damage output increases with the charge’s duration, up to 100 points. Upon contact with an enemy, DF will stun and knock them back.
A secondary characteristic provides extra damage for hitting players with a Rocket Punch right in front of the wall. Realistically, you don’t want to save the skill for such scenarios, because it cools down faster than you line up for a wall. However, using it indoors is very rewarding, as there are walls everywhere.
SEISMIC SLAM
Seismic Slam allows the character to jump forth and create a long, straight area of effect in front of him. This trail does 2 things: deals modest damage and pulls opponents closer. It’s an ultimate skill for catching stray opponents on the map and dealing sizeable damage (up to 125).
The knock-up effect doesn’t incapacitate the enemies, but it does place them in Doomfist’s short hit range. As hits deal 30 damage, you can punch the weakest or wounded heroes to death or use Uppercut. In short, Seismic Slam is ideal for picking off individual targets, granting the hero control of whom to kill.
METEOR STRIKE
Meteor Strike is the Doomfist’s ultimate skill. After activating the Strike, he jumps up in the air, and the player is given 4 seconds to choose, where the hero lands. The place is highlighted in a big blue ring with a small epicenter. The area of effect can be moved some distance from the hero’s initial location.
Upon landing, the character deals massive damage (up to 300) in the landing’s epicenter and gradually smaller numbers closer to the edges. Meteor Strike is often utilized to place Fist in the thick of battle or break up clusters of hostiles.
Doomfist Strategy
Doomfist gameplay strategies revolve around constant ability combos. His skills have fast enough cooldowns, making fast-sequence attacks a common threat when matched up against this character. Nevertheless, it’s important to activate skills in effective combos, with proper timing and under optimal circumstances.
An effective Doomfist combo includes a speedy entrance, precise hits and lightning exit in case things go sour. To him, an unaware enemy is a dead enemy. That’s why fight initiation, ambushes, and finishing opponents are where this hero peaks. You must do enough damage before enemies focus you down.
Because of the precise nature of DF’s attacks, he’s considered a difficult to play. Only the ultimate truly focuses on several enemies, making it harder for him to tackle several aware opponents. The key to winning as Doomfist in Overwatch is efficient combos, once again.
Efficient Ability Combos
There are a number of outstanding combos that you can utilize in battle. It’s a versatile character, and it’s up to you to decide, when the time comes to use these attacks, but it’ll be most useful in the scenarios mentioned above. Here are some Doomfist tips about popular combos.
RISING UPPERCUT + SEISMIC SLAM
Don’t forget, pressing Rising Uppercut moves you up even if there’s no enemy. Plus, he falls down a little longer than his target, which is a design choice, meant as an opening move before some of his dirtier follow-ups.
By clicking Seismic Slam in the air, you may choose to land in a specific place on the ground, with all additional perks of the ability. Spending time airborne increases the ability damage by up to 125. Moreover, you can travel further from an airborne position.
SEISMIC SLAM/ROCKET PUNCH + HAND CANNON
Among the many Doomfist one shot moves, this one is the easiest and most obnoxious. Select a target, use a Slam on them and release all 4 shots. It can take a maximum of 389 health points and less, if done from the ground. It’s enough to kill many sturdy roster members, but only if you connect everything perfectly.
The same goes for the Rocket Punch combo. It’s slightly easier, thanks to the short knock back after the hit, but slightly harder, if the opponent notices your charge-up and avoids it.
ROCKET PUNCH + SEISMIC SLAM
It’s a utility option for getting someplace very fast (in the beginning of the match or as an escape method). Together, they cover 35 meters in a matter of seconds. If you want to flee in such a way, make sure to plan it prematurely, as you need enough health to charge up first.
Who does Doomfist Counter?
Who does Doomfist counter? In 1v1 matchups, he is efficient against heroes that can’t negate the knockback and pull effects of their abilities, can reliably be hit with a combo (remember, his attacks are precise) and generally have a low health pool. For instance:
- Genji. Although many of his attacks are ranged, Genji has to be close to his opponents to deal reliable damage. This gives you a chance to launch towards him, pull him with a Slam and use the Hand Cannon against his modest health pool.
- Symmetra. Hitting Symmetra with one of your skills should not be a challenge, as she’s notoriously not a mobile character. She can be killed quickly if you land a Rocket Punch on her, since she can’t do much after that.
- Torbjorn. An unaware Torbjorn is an easy prey for a lurking DF. His unremarkable health pool and lack of mobility create optimal conditions for a Rocket Punch attack, with all subsequent actions. Just be wary of an Overloaded Torbjorn or when he’s in close proximity to his turret.
Really, the secret is to pick enemies that can’t move. Pinning them down with Slam or Rocket Punch guarantees that you can finish them off with a Hand Cannon or a Rising Uppercut immediately after.
Who is Doomfist Underpowered Against?
Vice versa, Doomfist is underpowered in fights against mobile enemies, far-away opponents and negating effects. Big health pools aren’t really a challenge, since it is a Damage hero, but it’s not a good idea to enter a 1v1 matchup against anyone who can outlast you.
- Roadhog. Although not mobile, Roadhog is an efficient tank with a powerful close-proximity weapon. Fighting him one-on-one will likely result in Fist’s defeat, as the former usually outlasts the latter with his healing and larger health reserves. Doomfist’s shield can provide him with extra HP, but not as much as Roadhog’s abilities.
- Hanzo. Powerful long-range enemies such as Hanzo are a general nuisance to DF. He can’t avoid a Rocket Punch easily, while his health pool is negligible. Even so, capturing Hanzo is a rare feat as DF.
- Widowmaker. Fist doesn’t compete well with mobile characters with strong long-range abilities and attacks. Widowmaker incorporates all these perks. Widowmaker’s positioning typically puts Fist in her sights, while a Grappling Hook is a sure way to avoid the trajectory of a Rocket Punch.
If you manage to get a jump on either of these strong matchups, it’s going to be a much easier fight. Without a surprise advantage or a flanking maneuver, catching such opponents is hard. The question «is Doomfist good or bad» depends on his positioning on the map, really.
Written by Boo.
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