Ultitrio

Logo of the Offical Ultitrio Format (Artist: Lil' Boneless Pizza)

Ultitrio is a competitive format intended for small roster competitive play. It features a three vs three (3v3) game-type, Soldier and Medic pairs, along with a Scout for added support. Most maps have the 3 player team battling over a King of the Hill game type. As opposed to 6v6, Highlander or even Ultiduo, Ultitrio is more focused on your DM skill and coordinated attacks with your team, since winning a 2v3 or especially a 1v3 isn't very likely; it's important to move as a group. This gamemode is played on small KOTH maps that are specifically made for it or other Ultiduo maps that are more open, but with many ways to regain high ground as any class, even Medic.

Gameplay

The success of an Ultitrio team heavily hinges on the team's coordination skills and on the inclusion of Scout.The addition of Scout is to add more dynamic gameplay for both teams in comparison to Ultiduo's stagnant Soldier and Medic pairs. While having a slightly larger team size, Ultitrio still houses the common core elements of Ultiduo. That being gaining an Über advantage, health and ammo conservation, and immaculate communication and then execution skills based on a given plan. Ultitrio features a small map with a single control point in the King of the Hill style, with 5 minutes needed to win. The two teams are limited to one Scout, one Soldier, and one Medic, with most easy upper hand unlocks being banned. It's possible to split up your team to perform pincer maneuvers with Soldier and Medic pushing on one side and a fully buffed Scout pushing on the other, which is a common tactic when pushing. This would not be possible in Ultiduo because of the two-person team limit and stricter weapon bans. With the addition of Scout, it allows for more strategic gameplay because of Scout's added dynamic play styles with weapons like the Fan O' War and Wrap Assassin, leaving Soldier to be more of a "clean up" class after a Scout marks someone or hits that player with a Wrap Assassin ball. Not only that

Maps

There are two main Ultitrio maps, both of which feature strong high ground and low ground differences, along with little to no pickups like health or ammo packs. Going along with high ground advantage, it's much easier in Ultitrio maps to gain the high ground if you lose it as any class if executed right because of the less punishing environment when getting knocked off of the KotH point.

• ulti_fira_b1
• ultiduo_grove_b4

Weapons

The official Ultitrio Github has a whitelist for Ultitrio. This whitelist allows the default loadout for Scout, Soldier, and Medic with few unlocks for both.
Naturally reskins of stock weapons (e.g. strange weapons, festive weapons, botkiller weapons, the Frying Pan, Conscientious Objector, ...) are allowed.

Example of an Ultitrio Class Lineup. Names From Left to Right: FountainMann, Coolstuff, and Muddy.

Scout

The Shortstop
Baby Face's Blaster
The Backscatter
The Winger
The Sun-on-a-Stick
The Candy Cane
The Fan O' War
The Wrap Assassin
The Sandman

Soldier

The Liberty Launcher
The Gunboats
The Righteous Bison
The Panic Attack
The Disciplinary Action
The Equalizer
The Escape Plan
The Half Zatoichi

Medic

The Blutsauger
The Overdose
The Ubersaw
The Crusader's Crossbow
The Krizkrieg

In general, the loadouts are designed to be a lot more customizable than Ultiduos because of the addition of Scout, allowing for more dynamic playstyles.

Competitions

Ultitrio tournaments are often held by community members. As each team requires only 3 players these small tournaments are usually easy to set-up, making it a viable option for offseason competition.

Ultiduo is often used by players as a source of practice for Scout, Soldier, and Medic deathmatching, and consistently sees play through those small-scale tournaments, usually for fun. It sees no offical league play and isn't played by most players as their main competitive mode.

Development

Before the finalization of the roster, Demoman was considered in place of Scout, but being as most Ultitrio/duo maps have 2 exits and close quarters, Demoman would be able to lock down every inch of a map for free and subsequently deny everyone, so Scout was chosen for his flexibility and high mobility.

Gallery

• Fira.jpeg

  Ulti_Fira_b1

• Grove.jpeg

  Ultiduo_Grove_b4