I think I saw a post like this YEARS ago but whether you ship sniperscout or sniperspy depends on how old you perceive Sniper as

I like both, but my perception of Sniper's age bounces back and forth in both. I'm more partial to Sniperscout because in my mind they're closer in age.

I'm completely unsure of his cannon age because I cannot tell if the "Sniper is actually in his late 20s" posts are jokes are not

Hi i get really passionate about Sniper's age so sorry in advance about the rant.

I got so worked up seeing discourse over it some time ago i wrote a whole personal essay about it so I'd like to point out the key points.

First of all, it was actually never explicitly said in the comics NZ sunk 10 years ago. It was said Bill-Bel WARNED the ministers about Earth a decade ago, and unless they planned everything and built that dome in a day, you can already add some years on Sniper's estimated age 30. And since the TF2 universe runs on nonsense logic, and how you take Bill-Bel's comment, all sorts of interpretations can be plausible, including his popular young age, but it's not explicit. The rest of the years mentioned about NZ are all just ambiguously "many years" so take that as you will.

Secondly, there are way too many inconsistencies in the comics that the fandom cherry-picks trivia infos all the time, so there's no reason to take Sniper's age at face value. Which color(red or blue) is which Scout's ma, Which color spy is which's Scout's ma's lover, what happened with the red/blu teams in the comics, did they merge or is it just red, stairs shown before it was said they were invented, contradictions of where Soldier lived and the team vanguard/ajax thing and so on. Like you said, Sniper's age seems to fluctuate based on the ship, and that's also probably why. Personally, I think it could've been a mistake on the writers' part that they wanted to make Sniper's age 40, but forgot to consider the rest of the timeline, but we don't know the truth so we make the loose canon ours.

Lastly, and I can't stress this enough, the character design DOES matter. If TF2 were any other media then sure, whatever, but it is in the end a game firstmost, and TF2 character designs are literally well known and praised for being direct and easy to understand the characters at a glance, so why would Sniper be the only exception?? If they're really young they're gonna look objectively young(Scout), and if they're significantly older than that they will also look the part. Even their postures are crucial to the game and their personalities, how old they look on the surface adds to the understanding of the characters.

Don't get me wrong I love the "younger than he looks because the Australian sun baked his skin" jokes, and it's fun to lean into the memes, but that's popular fanon, not canon. Maybe Valve actually considered the outback sun aging his skin and maybe it IS the joke that Sniper's younger than he looks, who knows, but they're quite clear about presenting the characters being as they are (Sniper being "professional assasin with experience and proper skills") so I sort of doubt they were like "And Sniper will be basically the same age as Scout" during development.

TLDR: I don't care about Sniper's explicit age bc there's way too many stuff that can contradict the 26-30 thing, i make him in his 20s when i do sniperscout, 40s when i do sniperspy, younger than that if i want to do the "i'm actually really young" joke. Just let him be, he's Schrödinger's age.

does this count?

If you ask them how they got there…it’s the other’s fault.

headcanons ig?

MY FELLOW SNIPER LOVERS!

IT'S TIME TO PLAY CUPID AND MAKE SNIPER KISS EVERYONE!

(Or just your OTP, if you prefer ;p)

Art, writing, whatever else creative you can think of, IT ALL GOES!

If you're interested, more info below the cut! :D

I wanna do this but i fear i'll be doing this in may (damn you midterms)

Fusions! :D ✨

< part one >

Description of the fusions:

Citrine is the perfect blend of calculated genius and unhinged ambition. With the cold precision of engineer and the fervor of medic, and his many mechanical arms that move with precise accuracy, he is as captivating as he is terrifying

charming yet unsettling, he likes pushing the boundaries of science and logic. Citrine speaks with a smooth, calculated confidence, always one step ahead, never not prepared

Weapon: The Shock Therapy (one of Medic’s melee weapons from TF2 classic) he can shoot little capsules to heal his teammates (just like Crusaders Crossbow/ Rescue Ranger) and give shocks to who ever he punches. whether he id building, healing, or “improving” those around him, one thing is certain: with Citrine in the lab, science is never boring

Sugilite, yes he is entirely inspired by the artist Prince, it started accidentally, whenever i work on his design it will always lean into Prince’s purple rain outfit, so i simply took it xD

he is the embodiment of chaos wrapped in velvet and mixed with stardust. He moves with the grace of a performer, every step a dance, every word is dripping with charm

He speaks in a voice as rich as a glass of wine, but his mind is full of mischief and unpredictable power. he’ll sweep you off your feet with a silver tongued compliment, only to forget about you the next second. He treats war more like an extravagant party where he is both the host and grand finale

Weapons: disco-ball bombs/ smoke bombs. he uses his bombs and when he wants to make a dramatic exit, he’ll toss one of his disco bombs at the ground and a burst of sparkling smoke fills the battlefield, letting him vanish in a cloud of colors and dust

Kunzite is silence, just like a ghost in the night, a presence felt but never seen. moving with grace, he is as precise as he is elusive, striking his blade only when the moment is right. his piercing purple eyes sees every weakness, every flaw, every opportunity, his long cape drifts behind him like smoke, his steps lighter than a whisper

Kunzite does not talk. he can, but prefers not to. A single look from him speaks more than an entire conversation, and his presence alone is enough to make even the most hardened gems uneasy. he is neither cruel nor kind, neither merciful nor sadistic, he is simply exists in the quiet. by the time you realize he’s there, it’s already too late

Weapon: darts + hidden blades. The darts he carries, are launched with the precise accuracy of a huntsman. And when the distance closes, the hidden blades beneath his wrists strike with the speed of an assassin, no hesitation, no excess force, just cold, calculated efficiency

Rainbow Quartz (kind of takes the place of Stevonnie) they are a ball of both energy and strategy, they lay between calculated precision and impulsive enthusiasm. They are loyal, affectionate and very clumsy. They often feel insecure and constantly have the need to prove themselves. but beneath their playful personality lies a sharp mind, constantly adjusting, and planning their next move, even if their feet sometimes move faster than their brain

They follows orders with lots of enthusiasm, sometimes a little too much, leading to moments of clumsiness. they’ll execute a plan flawlessly then right up trip over their own momentum, sending themselves (and sometimes their enemies) tumbling in a chaotic mess. but give them a goal, and they’ll chase it with relentless determination, never backing down until the job is done.

Weapon: the Flying Guillotine, its fast, unpredictable, and devastating in the right hands. just like them, it can be unpredictable, but when it hits, it hits hard

Agarra lo agarra tu hombre ugly ass man get him out of my sight

(IRL ref is James Nelson Joyce— Watch A Thousand Blows on Hulu, fantastic show)

is there a reason as to why red sniper and blu spy are pictured together so often in tf2’s promotional content? I mean

poster from the official Facebook page

meet your match update

catch-up comic

do they just look good next next to each other? forever rivals since the sniper vs spy update? are they lowkey a secondary face of the game? why

you’re right this is the answer I was looking for

So i did some half hearted coloring and im so devastated bc they look better without lineart. If i polish them properly its gonna look better🥲 NO MY LINEART

Good news i saved the lineart(i think)