Introduction:

Let’s face it, if you’ve played Overwatch, you have most likely been hit by the stubbornly annoying wall of turrets that is Symmetra. Whether it's around that corner, in that doorway, or hidden by that health pack; they linger out of sight and always seem to find you before you know they are there. If it’s not the turrets slowly killing your teammates, it’s then her teleporter that is the bane of your existence, wreaking havoc on your advance and stopping you from securing objectives.

This frustration is Symmetra’s weapon, and lends her to be one of the most impactful defensive character present on Overwatch’s current roster. It’s not to say that she is useless on attack, though she does really falls short in that area, but Symmetra’s skills truly do lean heavily towards defensive momentum. With her deadly orbs flying through chokepoints, or her Photon Projector up in your face, you’re always going to want to watch what lies ahead when facing off against Symmetra.

Skills:

- Photon Projector: Symmetra’s Photon Projector is her main skill (left mouse button on PC). This is a constant track beam that has a short range hold on an enemy. Her Photon Projector has 3 different levels of damage. While holding down her primary fire each second goes up a level. Level 3 does 4 times more damage than level 1. If you break the bond between your gun and your enemy however, this resets back to level 1. Your gun actually has an indicator showing you the level at which you are firing. Damage on this is 30-60-90 (depending on level) and has a 5 metre range.

- Photon Projector Orbs: Photon Projector Orbs are Symmetra’s secondary fire (right mouse button on PC). This is a charge type of attack that slowly gains power as you hold down the secondary fire button. On top of increasing the impact damage of the orb, charging also increase the size of the projectile. This is very beneficial for spamming on chokes and doorways while your team is holding down objectives, as the huge hit box is hard to dodge. A full orb takes two seconds to charge and can hit for 125 damage maximum. Symmetra’s orbs can also pass through shields and barriers, so use this to your advantage! Fire directly at Reinhardt's shield and send your orbs back into their front line. The more the better!

- Sentry Turret: The most iconic skill in Symmetra's rotation, the Sentry Turret is a small mounted sphere that can be placed on almost surface in the game. This includes any wall or ceiling, as well as a variety of in game objects, such as payloads. Once established, a single turret will fire a continuous beam of energy at the first available enemy within 10 metres for 25 DPS. In total, Symmetra can have 6 of these bad boys out at any given time and typically will. On the bottom of your HUD there is an indicator showing how many active turrets you have currently deployed, as well as a charge indicator. This charge indicator lets you know how many turrets are stored up, and how long till you receive another charge. Unlike her projector orbs, the beam that is fired from the Sentry Turret does not go through shields, so place them wisely! Your turrets will stay up a lot long if you place them in hard to shoot place, or on the flanks. This will force the enemy to specifically deal with them, rather than diving you. Lastly, spread them out! All it takes it one good Reaper shotty or Reinhardt hammer to take out all your precious damage should you stack them all in one tight area. Having space between your turrets will increase the face time you enemy will have with them as well as force them to take them out 1 by 1.

- Photon Shield: This is Symmetra’s only true support skill, and it’s her weakest. Photon Shields provide your teammates with a small bonus shield of 25 hit points. You can throw shields on your teammates very easily and without cool down and is usually a set it and forget it kind of thing. Teammate without shields are highlighted with a diamond bracket and the skill cast button. Simply run around and spread some photon love! Though this shield may seem almost redundant, it can mean the difference between life and death for some of the squishier ones on your team, these shield can also help the longevity of your team's flankers (i.e. Tracer, Genji, Reaper). Cast range for this is 20 metres.

- Teleporter: The Teleporter (Q on PC) is Symmetra’s ultimate ability. Once this ability is charged, it can be deployed anywhere the player wishes. The Teleporter will give Symmetra's teammates the upper hand by allowing them to skip the walk back to battle should they die. The Teleporter can be placed pretty much anywhere you desire but beware, your enemies are notified when this happens and will be on the lookout to destroy it. Genji and Tracer especially, as they both excel at finding and destroying it very quickly. When making your initial approach to the point you should always be on the lookout for advantageous locations for Teleporter. Hard to find, or easily defendable are the most desirable traits! Too close to the front line and it will pop in second, too far and you might add confusion to those who use your tele. A total of six teammates can pass through your Teleporter before it powers down. Once it is used up a new one must be placed.


Location Location Location!

With Symmetra, one of the most rewarding skills to have is map awareness. Being a hero who excels in defensive situations, it pays to know where to set up and where the enemy could potentially be lurking from. Identifying these positions and locking them down before they can be abused is your job. You are the anti-flanker whose job is to make getting through that side room on the choke a living hell (Hanumura, Hollywood). If you fail to recognize and capitalize on these routes, you will find Symmetra struggling to make an impact.

Listed below are a few links for Turret and Teleporter placement on Numbani, Hanamura, and Hollywood thankfully provided by reddit.com/user/Etherstratus. Once you go through these guides, you can extrapolate the positions for others such as Temple of Anubis, Volskiya, and Kings Row.

• Numbani: http://imgur.com/a/FfYvb
• Hanamura: http://imgur.com/a/nVCBv
• Hollywood: http://imgur.com/a/gbGUk
  
  

Random Fire:

I find that when playing with Symmetra, half of the eliminations I get are almost by fluke. Use your secondary fire to charge her orbs and fire them at the direction of the enemy. These go in a straight line and can surprise an enemy turning a corner or running back into the battle. They are impossible to go around in tight spaces so make sure you fire them as often as you can towards chokepoints. This combined with your Sentry Turrets will prove to be a deadly combination for any defensive Symmetra.

Stay Back:

I can’t stress this one enough. You have to stay back! Symmetra is classified as a back/mid line defensive player. Although her turrets are the star of the show upfront with the tanks, due to her lack of health she needs to stay behind her fellow teammates for protection. When you are faced with a straggler from the enemy team who got through your wall of turrets, make sure you try to pull them back into turret range while holding down your primary fire. Aiming really isn’t a thing at such close range, just keep your cursor tracking!

Symmetra Pros/Cons:

Pros:

- Turrets, if placed with some thought, can do some serious damage when grouped
- Very effective up close with her Photon Projector or in the distance with its secondary fire.
- Teleporter can mean the difference between winning and losing by transporting teammates to control point quickly
- Excels at holding positions and securing flanks

Cons:

- Not being able to maintain a connection with her Photon Projector means that you will primarily stay at low level of damage, making it harder to eliminate anyone.
- With a health bar of 200 and no healing capability, a lot of flankers will drop you easily if you’re not prepared. Stay Alert.
- Low Mobility. She can suffer vs. Tracer and Genji as they can blink in and out of close to midrange which will break the connection.
- Struggles with offensive objectives as her kit is tailored for defense.

Final Thoughts:

Symmetra is classified as a moderately difficult character to use because her damage is primarily done up close and doing well requires strategic placement of her turrets. Try using her in a few Quick Play games with your friends or with people who don't mind you experimenting with her. All in all, make sure to have fun playing as Symmetra, who knows. She may become your go-to character.

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