As a Demoman, how can I deal with ambush classes like the Pyro and Scout?

Question

Having had very little experience with the Demoman,I'm trying to practice with him in all situations (i.e. up close, medium-range, and from afar). I know that the Demoman is best from a medium range (using his sticky bombs and grenades), but I struggle when I am being ambushed (especially from behind) by a Scout and/or Pyro.

If my health is high, I usually fire a sticky bomb under my feet, and sticky jump, which either deters the Scouts/Pyros, or damages them, making them leave me alone. But what should I do if I'm on relatively low health, and a Scout/Pyro is attacking me?

Grenades and sticky bombs are generally a no-go, since they also cause damage to me, and Scouts normally cleverly run just outside my melee range (even if I've got the Eyelander equipped). Also, Pyros either do the same trick, or fire their flare gun.

Is there any way (offensive or defensive) of dealing with this?

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I know that this may depend on my loadout, so assume that I have the standard grenade launcher and sticky bomb launcher, and the Eyelander.

Answer 1

I know you said to assume you are using the default weapons, but I think that applying that limit is a mistake.

The Loch-and-Load is a great weapon to switch for in this situation due to its ability to one-shot scouts at close range, and a shield allows you to retreat using the charge ability to get away from a nearby pyro. Don't underestimate the usefulness of switching your loadout to something more appropriate for the enemy team.

Answer 2

The Scout and Pyro are designed to ambush. Being ambushed is pretty much the Demoman's main weak spot. So if that's your biggest problem, you're doing pretty good.

Scouts are arguably the Demo's main counterclass, with attributes and a preferred operating range that are a worst-case scenario for all of your weapons. However, this mainly depends on the Scout's skill. Low-level Scouts with subpar aim and more predictable movement will be easier to nail with grenades or outpredict with pre-placed stickies. High-level Scouts will wreck your face and there's not too much you can do about it; personally I would try to feed him a grenade so at least someone else on the team can slap him.

If a Pyro with full health shows up from nowhere and starts left-clicking you, there's not really anything you can do to win - you'll probably be dead by the time you can switch to your melee weapon, and it would take multiple grenades to get rid of him, with the first one probably simply making you die faster. But again, it's all about identifying his skill and strategy. If he ever uses the airblast, it'll push you away and stop damaging you for a bit, plus giving you a short interval to fire from outside self-damage range (unless you're against a wall). From there things probably turn into a game of "outguess the reflector". If he sets you on fire for a bit and backs away with the Flare Gun, you might as well just shoot him, because he can't reflect anything with it and should be far enough away to avoid self-damage.

Overall though, the best way to deal with ambushes is to have teammates nearby. They could notice the ambush before it happens, they could help you fight them off, or they could get hit instead with you as the bystander.