Uploaded March 2020 | Updated September 2026, 2 hours ago

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This video explains some ways in which the cloaked spy interacts with the game.
Mainly meant as a tool for spies to learn what to do and what to avoid.
I am by no means commenting on if they are bugs or intended, if/how they should be fixed etc, I am merely documenting things that may or may not have gotten you killed if you did not know about them.
Discuss the intentionality of these in the comments if you want. I read.

Audio in cloak (all cloaks)

- Footsteps, especially on specific surfaces
- (koth_baleofhay grating, koth_harvest wood)
Practically: Don't worry about this, aside from certain surfaces against certain players

- Cratering
- Footnote on edgebugging and slides to reduce audio output (also helps avoid damage)
Practically: Either learn how to edgebug (practice it offline etc) and/or learn where you can use slides to avoid damage

- Voice Lines, zxc-menus if disguised they also show in their chat
- Bug where it shows your name to enemy team in stead of disuise name
Practically: Don't use voice lines unless you are undisguised near teammates (or you're trying your luck with acting)

- Automated Voice Callouts (WHY IS THE CART NOT MOVING), can only start when not-cloaked (presumably heard mention of this breaking, but cannot confirm after testing)
- Uncloaking/Recloaking on cart might trigger the spy to start yelling, longer lines are the most problematic
Practically: This sucks because in competetive you are often expected to jump on cart for a split second, stalling the roll-back of cart.

- AP-SAP, addendum to AVC mentioned above, as it works in a similair manner.
- Initiating a sap and cloaking instantly will almost always give you away as it initiates a set of lines audible to everyone.
Practically: Means using the AP-SAP is almost bad. Would avoid it all together in a serious environment.

- DR/Flamethrower interaction, flamethrower makes a sound when it first ignites, DR is afterburn immune so every particle that hits is considered a first ignition.
Practically: Pyros can use audio to track you in DR
Footnote: Using commands to hide your flames can make tracking DR spies a lot easier as well (to the point of making this audio trick nigh useless)

Visual/Visible Particles:
- Disguise Smoke, disguising before cloak makes you trackable for a little bit. All cloaks.
Practically: Very common knowledge, but just cloak before you disguise.

- Overheal (includes Kunai), cloaking while overhealed will show an overheal-particle trail for a short while after going invis. All cloaks.

Practically: Don't get overheal, don't cloak while overhealed or keep it in mind with moving after cloaking.

- Cart glow, maybe you spotted it in the AVC segment
- When touching the cart, you are healed by a healbeam-type-glow. If you cloak, this glow can follow you around a bit.
Practically: This sucks because un-/recloaking on cart to stop rollback is your job as the spy.

- Heal Beam / Dispenser Healing works in a similair fashion as the Cart Glow.

- Vaccinator is broken
- If a medic uses a vaccinator uber and switches teams, the resistance element will stay floating above their head.
- Can happen to a patient as well, even both can have it stuck (in competitive configs where both switch team on round end in stopwatch)
- Can get all elements stuck above head, these do not go invisible when the spy cloaks
- Bonus: Switching team (and sometimes killbinding) when under vaccinator uber can cause other bugs, like floating bubbles that track you or even prolonged (and stretched?), bassy sounds that would normally only play during the uber.
Practically: Avoid Vaccinator medics like the plague when nearing the round's end in comp. (retry in console fixes it)

- Misc. particle effects (avoid these)
- Crit/Mini-Crit
- Ball Confetti
- Water (and the more obvious Jarate/Afterburn/Milk/Bleeding)
- Blood-/Hitparticles (trivial but mentioned anyway)
- Bombonomicon (if gibs enabled) with DR
- All-Talk Bubble
- Achievements

- Noisemakers
- These festive action-slot items create both particles and sound where you activate them.
Practically: Noisemakers are banned in comp. Maybe troll gibus snipers with it in pubs


Special Mentions, these seemed too inconsistent to reproduce.
- Spy-cicle smokebug, when holding a stock knife, disguising as enemy spy could get the smoke to trail you always (listed on wiki, couldn't reproduce, some say it was patched around MyM)
- Shadows can break
- Unusual / Earbuds Particle effects might sometimes linger

- Also tested (but seemed to work fine):
- Snack Attack
- Marked for Death (Fan o War)
- 'Medic' Icon
- Tele Trails
Special Thanks to:
- Grip & Lusty for helping me test
- Woolen's Discord, and the folks in it, for adding to the list (and giving more things to test)
- Spy Academy Discord, or more specifically, those that responded when I asked questions and giving me more to work with. (DRMJ, specifically, for the feedback)