Through this guide we'll be looking at Overwatch's most unique support. Symmetra, while being classed primarily a support, fits the defensive role as well. Her arsenal of abilities grant her team shields, zone control and map mobility. Combining elements of both the defense and support role, Symmetra has a unique playstyle which is game type dependent. I'll discuss and demonstrate Symmetra's potential in this article and hopefully help you understand what Symmetra brings to Overwatch.

Photon Projector

The Photon Projector is Symmetra's weapon of choice. It has 2 fire modes which can be used through the left and right mouse button. Using the left click option sends out a short ranged photon beam that latches onto to the closest enemy and does damage for as long as it's attached. This beam is not to be underestimated by a foe, as it can deal surprisingly high damage. Not only does it apply consistent damage, the damage numbers amplify the longer you're connected to them. Starting at just 3 DPR (damage per round), it eventually scales to 7 then 15. It doesn't bring high burst damage, but it gives her a way to deal with all types of targets, squishes or tanks.

The right click is a charged base ability that grows larger and deals more damage the longer you charge it. Starting at just 25 damage, it scales up to 125 on hit when fully charged and goes through multiple foes. It doesn't kill any hero outright as all heroes have equal or more than 150 collected HP. The projectile is very slow though so don't expect it to land often. Try and use it on stationery targets like Widowmaker and Bastion or heroes with big hit boxes like Reinhardt and Roadhog. A small hint when playing Symmetra: the charged ability goes through barriers like Reinhardt's, so you're a hero that can help get through the front line with well-aimed skill shots.

Sentry Turret

Like Bastion and Tolbjorn, Symmetra is a builder hero who has access to small Sentry Turrets which deal damage to enemies when near. She can place a maximum of 6 at a time, starting with 3 at spawn and there is a 10 second cooldown for another to become ready to deploy. These have a set damage of 25 DPS per Turret and have the miniscule health of just 1. Literally anything will kill them in one hit, so hiding them in positions where they aren't easily killed is important. The damage on the sentries doesn't scale up like her projector, but it does slow the enemy when it connects to them. The slows do stack with each other, so the more there are, the better the slow on the target is. All Turrets have a small indicator over them which can help you control and understand the movement of the enemy. Symmetra can use the Turrets on an alternative route to which she's on and use the indicators to tell you when enemies are approaching from that area.

The Sentry Turrets are what make Symmetra a hybrid defensive role hero. She can control specific locations easily with efficient placement of the Sentries. If you do a wider spread formation of the Turrets, you can cover a larger area but lose a little damage and utility, while if you focus your coverage in a fixed area, you bring more damage and slows but they're easily destroyed by oncoming enemies. So base your Sentry placements on your team's focus, your allies and the map. Maps which I've seen her Sentries flourish are maps in the "Assault" game mode. On Hanamura and Temple of Anubis, where the objectives are stationery and she has set-up time, Symmetra can dominate with her Turrets.

Here is an example of how you can use Symmetra's Sentries in a wide spread area to maximise defense on the Assault map, Hanamura.

Photon Shield

Symmetra's Photon Shield is a HP shield that she grants to her allies. Symmetra is one of 2 heroes that can give their allies extra HP. Tolbjorn gives you armour while Symmetra gives you shields. The difference between armour and shields is that you can't regenerate the armour back after it's lost. Symmetra's shields will regenerate after the HP has been lost, but they only give the ally 25 hit points. These 25 hit points become more relevant the lower the health of the ally. So an ally such as Reinhardt or Roadhog won't really feel the difference, while a Zenyatta and Tracer at 150 HP can really benefit from the increase to 175.

When the match has started, you have some free time so aim to shield all of your allies before the countdown ends. You can do it before you leave the spawn area normally. As the game progresses, you can try to remember who has died, but most of the time with all of the anarchy happening, you won't have that capability. So don't worry too much about keeping track on ally deaths. Just try to shield whoever you can when they have the icon option above their head.

Teleporter

Symmetra's ultimate ability is one of the strongest abilities in the game (if not the strongest). When available, Symmetra places a Teleporter in a location that links with another pad which automatically appears in your spawn area. When placed, the pad can be destroyed by an enemy so placing it in a safe location is vital. With only 200 HP, it won't take long for it to die if found. If you need to, place a few of your Sentries around to deter your opponents. The Teleporter has 6 charges which means the pad will go down when 6 allies (including yourself) go through the pad and use it.

Her ultimate can be game changing as, depending on placement, it can get you and your allies into the fight a lot quicker. Losing allies isn't as detrimental when you know their return won't take as long as it normally would. In clutch defenses, this can mean you keeping or losing the point. The value of Symmetra's Teleporter goes up the longer the map, examples like Volsyaka Industries on the defense. Your enemies are much closer to point A than you on spawn, so having the Teleporter is insanely efficient here.

Matchups and Synergies

Good Against

Symmetra has a good time when dueling Genji and Mercy. The reasoning behind the good matchup against Mercy is her weak attack potential. Mercy has one of the lowest kill threats in the game, so dueling her in a 1v1 situation should nearly always be a positive outcome for you. Mercy should never be travelling solo anyway so this should be a rare occasion but you can easily fight her.

If played correctly, you can easily win a duel against Genji. To do a high majority of Genji's damage, he has to get up close and personal. Being consistently agile with his double jump passive and dash ability to kite around enemies while pumping out the damage. One of his weaknesses is heroes that have lock on beams and sprays, like Mei, Winston, Zarya and Symmetra. Firstly, his Deflect ability can't bounce back non-projectiles. Secondly, if the damage locks on then his mobility counts for nothing. With Symmetra's self-amplifying damage beam, she can consistently pump out the damage and make his mobility naught.

Bad Against

Due to Symmetra's relatively low range and low health sentries, people who can easily keep a distance and kill her defenses quickly prosper against her. This is where the 2 explosive experts of the game shine. Junkrat, the land explosive expert has the ability to constantly pump out grenades that explode in a large AOE. With Symmetra's low HP Turrets, they won't survive the onslaught. His overall damage output and medium range abilities can easily keep Symmetra at a distance. With few ways for her to get close without dying, she has a hard time dealing with Junkrat's kit.

Pharah goes along the same lines as Junkrat with the main source of her damage being AOE and high damage. The only thing different for this matchup is that it gets a lot worse for Symmetra. Unlinke Junkrat, Pharah's explosives go off on contact while Junkrat's has a 3 bounce rule to the grenades. With this, Pharah can aim at sentry areas and teleporters directly and kill them quickly. Her ability to fly also makes it impossible for Symmetra to reach her. The ever growing distance that Pharah can create makes Symmetra's low range Photon Beams have no effect. If you're lucky, you can land a charged Photon Ball at her but with Pharah's speed, she can easily avoid them.

Good With

Symmetra, even though she's a support, has a lone wolf playstyle. Apart from her shielding and access to Teleporters, she doesn't really grant much to her team. Her impact comes from defending focal areas in the game and controlling how the enemies move around those points with aggressive utility and Sentry placing. Heroes who synergize with that flourish with Symmetra. For example, Bastion is a hero that needs a lot of babysitting to succeed. His stationery gameplay makes him an easy target for foes like Genji and Tracer who can use their mobility to destroy him. Symmetra can control how they move around him with her Sentries. Alerting them to the presence of enemies trying to flank and controlling their mobility is what Symmetra gives to Bastion as a support.

Unless close, Symmetra can have a hard time facing heroes due to her overall lack of ranged abilities. Allies who help her get close to her target help Symmetra have an offensive impact. Mei is a perfect example of this. As what seems to be Overwatch's CC bot, Mei has the ability to consistently slow and potentially stun enemies. Use Mei to help you get close with the Photon Beams and work together to kill any foe. With Symmetras amplifying damage beam and Mei's constant slow spray, the pair can control defense points with ease and utilise each other's strengths to kill any kind of foe.

Game Modes & Maps

As mentioned before, Symmetra flourishes on maps that focus around an attacking team that is trying to capture points which the opposing team are protecting. Focusing here on the Assault game mode and Hybrid game mode for the defense team. Symmetra can either defend a route that leads to the point or cover the point itself. Hanamura, Hollywood and Temple of Anubis are good examples of maps in which Symmetra can place efficient Sentries to defend her points from oncoming opponents.

Hollywood is a Hybrid map which starts off as Assault and afterwards, if the first point is caught, evolves into an Escort. To the sides of the car on the image below, you can use the bushes to place obscured Sentries that aren't viewable straight away. This deals with foes who plan to assault from the front and hinder their movement into the base. You can aim to place all your sentries here and focus on defending that entrance point but you then become weak to flanks from behind. Placing 1-2 sentries in the alley to the right shows you when enemies are coming from that direction. With that knowledge, you can then communicate with your team and deal with foes from all angles.

Point A on the Assault map, Temple of Anubis, has a few places for Symmetra to create Sentries and Teleporters that aren't viewable at first glance. The two window like structures next to the point in the above image, are hidden places for Symmetra to place 1-2 of her Sentries. This helps you deal consistent damage to all foes coming onto the point. Follow it up by allocating Sentries around the bridge to further deter enemies away from the point's main entrance. Then place some at the back to notify you of enemies who have the ability to slip past your main force. Use the terrain and objects around the point, such as the boxes in the image, so they aren't visible and killed before they have served their purpose.

Conclusion

Symmetra styles herself as a defensive support who brings unique abilities to a fight with supportive abilities in regenerative shields and slows, as well as being defensive with zone control and allied map mobility. You're mainly picking Symmetra for defensive play as set-up time for her Sentries is important. With that not apparent in offensive play, you lack any kind of impact. Use your Sentries in tactical and obscure ways to control zones and enemy movement. Give your allies shields to help them survive onslaughts for longer. Aim to replenish them after deaths have occurred, but don't concentrate too much of your attention on it. As well as your Sentries, try to hide your Teleporter as it's a game changing ability. Having access to a tool which can send allies across the map is staggeringly advantageous when used well. With regards to her main weapon, don't be afraid to get close in duels. As long as you're mobile while attached, you can kill practically any opponent due to the stacking damage beam. A support who helps her team through zoning is how I would describe Symmetra. She isn't a hard hero, she just requires hero and map knowledge to fully utilise her potential.

Hope this has helped and I hope I see you guys playing the photon support in Overwatch. Thanks!!!

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