Team Fortress 2 Gold Rush Beginner Guide

Gold Rush runs on an older style of TF2 gameplay, so it might feel unfamiliar at first. Movement, damage pacing, item unlocks, and even the UI lean closer to the classic era. That’s part of the charm, but it also means your first few matches go much smoother if you clean up your settings beforehand.

Think of it like dusting off an old machine—you want it tuned before you fire it up.

Team Fortress 2 Gold Rush Beginner Guide – Weapons, Items

Weapons and Hats

Gold Rush doesn’t use random drops. Everything is achievement-based, just like the old days.

How to get weapons

Complete each class’s achievement milestones.
Every milestone unlocks that class’s weapons.
A few special weapons require you to already own them in your normal TF2 inventory. These include:

Gunboats
Homewrecker
Loch-n-Load
Ullapool Caber
Your Eternal Reward

Once you complete the milestones, the weapons show up automatically in Gold Rush.

How to get hats

Hats only work in Gold Rush if you already own them in your main TF2 inventory.
Paint and quality don’t matter because they aren’t visible here.
There are 18 hats in total and you can only equip one.

Balance & Mechanics

Gold Rush isn’t a one-to-one copy of modern TF2. Weapons behave closer to their old versions, some buffs and nerfs are reverted, and mobility is slightly toned down.

Here’s the important stuff you’ll actually feel while playing:

Scout

Sandman can stun (except Uber targets)
Bonk has no slowdown during invulnerability
Force-A-Nature is basically unchanged

Soldier

Direct Hit bonus damage doesn’t affect buildings
Gunboats and Buff Banner feel normal
Equalizer behaves just like the current version

Pyro

Flamethrowers work like post-Jungle Inferno flames but with old visuals
Backburner has +15% damage, crits from behind, and no airblast
Axtinguisher deals full crits to burning players

Demoman

Loch-n-Load has -50% clip size, higher damage, and breaks sentries faster
Scottish Resistance uses its very slow release version
Ullapool Caber deals 126 damage

Heavy

Natascha is the early version
Sandvich works the same
KGB unchanged

Engineer

Frontier Justice unchanged
Wrangler has no shield, but your sentry reactivates faster after wrangling

Medic

Classic versions of Blutsauger, Kritzkrieg, and Übersaw

Sniper

Huntsman and Jarate unchanged
Razorback never recharges

Spy

Ambassador can headshot at all ranges and deals 102 HS damage
Dead Ringer has older mechanics but can’t recharge from ammo packs
YER has no cloak penalty or disguise kit
Cloak & Dagger behaves normally

Global changes:

Slightly slower reloads
Slightly slower weapon switch
Spy moves slower overall

These tweaks make the game feel punchier and more deliberate—closer to 2009 TF2.

If you’re coming from modern TF2, the biggest adjustment is how honest the game feels. You aren’t juggling a thousand weapon gimmicks. You aren’t worried about insane powercreep items. Most fights are determined entirely by positioning, aim, and timing.

A few quick first-match tips:

Don’t overextend—the slightly slower reloads punish greedy pushes
Stay with your team; old-school maps reward groups rather than lone-wolf plays
Keep an eye on Medics; their Über/Kritz timings define pushes more than anything
Scout and Soldier feel extremely strong since the movement isn’t as cluttered with modern mobility tools
Always expect classic tactics—sticky traps, corner heavy holds, ambushes, and sentry nests are common

Once you get used to the flow, the simplicity becomes addictive. Gold Rush feels like TF2 boiled down to the fun core.

Team Fortress 2 Gold Rush Beginner Guide – Weapons, Items