Junker Queen is like a crowbar. She is perfectly designed to tear through enemy lines in full frontal assaults, hacking and gunning down everyone foolish enough to get close to her. She can be a menace in group brawls, easily taking on five enemies simultaneously and emerging on top. To play Junker Queen effectively, however, can be a challenge. This raw Australian powerhouse has a few glaring weaknesses that enemies will be very eager to exploit. So in this Overwatch 2 guide, you can learn all about how to play Junker Queen, when to play her, and the kinds of situations that let her get the most out of her talents and abilities.
While you’re here, don’t forget to check out our guides on other tanks like Zarya or Doomfist!
Weapon
Junker Queen’s primary fire is her devastating scattergun. Although it’s one of Junker Queen’s few consistent long-range options, the weapon shines as a medium- to close-range damage cannon.
Scattergun
- Default Keybind: Left Mouse Button
- Damage: Max. 80 per shot
- Falloff Range: 15 – 25 Meters
- Ammo: 6
- Reload Time: 1.5 seconds
The Scattergun is about as straightforward as a weapon in Overwatch 2 can be. It’s a pump-action shotgun – great at medium- to close-range, but very mediocre at longer ranges. And that’s putting it mildly.
Old reliable! But devastating at close- to medium-range.
The weapon is Junker Queen’s main means of attack, but it’s also a crucial defensive tool. When the enemy gets close, you don’t want to have to spend 1.5 seconds reloading the most powerful tool in your arsenal. As a brawling tank, you have to have your weapons ready when the brawl erupts. So avoid having to reload when enemies are close – always be ready to kill everyone foolish enough to get within the 15 Meters where your shotgun is most effective. Two shots from this beast can take care of most low-health heroes.
Abilities
The Scattergun may facilitate Junker Queen’s role as a devastating close-combat brawling tank. But it’s her abilities that can lead her to a team kill with relative ease. With her access to self-heal and so-called “wound infliction,” her kit revels in chaos and can win almost any brawl of attrition.
Role Passive: Adrenaline Rush
- Healing: 125% of wound damage dealt
With the right wound upkeep, you’ll be a real menace!
Like Reaper, Junker Queen regains health the more damage she inflicts. Unlike Reaper, however, not all damage sources are restorative. Only wound damage gives Junker Queen some health back. To use this passive ability optimally, make sure to inflict a lot of wounds. Junker Queen has three ways to do so: either by hitting enemies with her Jagged Blade, brutally slashing enemies with a Carnage attack, or unleashing her devastating ultimate attack, Rampage.
Jagged Blade
The Jagged Blade is Junker Queen’s most potent means of attack. It’s also a bit of a complicated weapon since you can either use it for stabbing or throwing. And when it comes to throwing, the blade can deal damage either by directly hitting a foe or by slashing one as Junker Queen retrieves her blade.
- Default Keybind: Right Mouse Button
- Thrown Impact: 50
- Stab Impact: 30
- Wound Impact (thrown): 30 over 3 seconds
- Wound Impact (melee & return) 5 over 3 seconds
- Projectile Speed: 30 Meters per second
- Cooldown: 6 seconds
The main use of the weapon is for throwing. You can throw the Jagged Blade every 6 seconds. If it hits an enemy, it will deal 50 impact damage and do some serious wound damage, up to 30 seconds.
Alternatively, you can use the blade to stab, with a melee attack. It’s mostly just a regular melee attack, but thanks to the bleeding and Junker Queen’s passive, it makes her melee one of the best in the game. Do be aware that if you don’t have your blade with you, you’ll just do a regular punch.
Junker Queen’s melee is one of the best in the game. Use it often!
The last major use of the Jagged Blade is to recall it. You may have missed your target, or you just want it back for stabbing. Because let’s be real, the knife is one of the most important assets you have. Being without it stinks. You can recall it any time, just by pressing the right mouse button a second time. Recalling the Blade has the additional advantage of inflicting wounds on anyone it happens to hit on its way back to you.
Commanding Shout
- Max. Health: +200 (Self) / 50 (Allies)
- Movement Speed: +30%
- Range: 15 Meters
- Duration: 5 seconds (Self) / 3 seconds (Allies)
- Cooldown: 14 seconds
This ability is really what turns Junker Queen from a brawler to a berserker. Out of nothing, she can revitalize herself with a serious health and speed buff. It’s worth noting that the health is not healing, but increased total health pool for 5 full seconds. Especially in Open Queue mode, where Junker Queen’s health is only 300 compared to the regular 450, this boost is crucial when a brawl erupts.
Use it to give yourself an edge in a one-on-one, or when starting a brawl.
This ability also means that Junker Queen shouldn’t stray too far from her team. She isn’t an adventurer or a flanker, but a charge-leading hero. When a full team is under the effect of a Commanding Shout, the enemy team has to be extremely focused to counter it. But in most situations, using a Commanding Shout at the right time can make Junker Queen the easiest hero to force a breakthrough through a well-entrenched team.
Carnage
- Impact Damage: 90
- Wound Damage: 40 over 3 seconds
- Max. Range: 5 Meters
- Cooldown: 8 seconds
With the swing of an axe, Junker Queen can eliminate about anyone close enough.
Similar to the Jagged Blade, Carnage inflicts a large wound on enemies foolish enough to get close to Junker Queen. Yielding 40 wound damage over 3 seconds, it’s a great attack to have ready in close-combat team fights. Its sheer impact of 90 means it can devastate fragile heroes in a single hit. So if you’re faced with a Junker Queen in close combat, a speedy, but low-health hero like Tracer, it’s best to stay away when she seems ready to unleash this powerful swing with her mighty axe.
Ultimate Ability: Rampage
- Damage: 100 over 4.5 seconds
- Max. Range: 25 meters
- Area of Effect: 5 meters
- Duration: 4,5 seconds
Junker Queen’s Ultimate neatly fits into the rest of her abilities. Aggressive, Offensive, and Violent. She charges forward, wounding enemies and, perhaps more importantly, preventing them from being healed. This makes them easy pickings for any damage dealers that may be supporting you, like Reaper, Soldier:76, Genji, Pharah, or Sojourn.
Rampage prevents healing, making even Roadhogs easy pickings.
With a range of 25 meters, a rampage can decimate a well-entrenched defense in seconds. Combined with Carnage and a well-placed Jagged Blade, Junker Queen’s berserker mode is put on full display. Be the crowbar that devastates the enemy team, and get your teammates to plug the gaps your rampaging leaves behind.
Playstyle & Strategy
Aggression
As a brawling berserker, Junker Queen is meant to be played pretty aggressively. You have to lead the charge. You’ve got to be in the fray – whether that’s attacking a strong point or ferociously defending it.
1 v 3? I like those odds!
Junker Queen’s buffs exist to boost her attack. Especially her passive life-steal ability makes aggressive moves rewarding. So don’t stay back, but lead your pack to glory!
Close Combat
If I’d have to tell you how to play Junker Queen in a single phrase, it’d be Close Combat. She shines when she’s in melee range, especially with her brutal carnage attack, powerful shotgun, and quick melee Jagged Blade.
When you’ve let Junker Queen come this close to you, it’s already too late.
Compared to many tanks, she’s pretty mobile and able to dodge slow-moving projectiles. Given that Junker Queen’s most effective way to regain health, Carnage, only works on a range of 5 Meters, it’s hardly surprising that she shines when she’s standing directly next to her cowering foes.
Hit and Run, or the Art of Attrition
Junker Queen is a 1 on 1 menace. By regaining health when she inflicts wounds, and with access to the Commanding Shout ability, she can be near invincible for a while.
The occasional tactical retreat isn’t such a foolish idea!
Keyword: near. As these buffs come, they go. Health regain from wounds lasts only a few seconds, and Commanding Shout is active for just 5 seconds. So although beating Junker Queen can come down to being a war of attrition, her endless breath is only temporary. It’s important to adapt your playstyle based on this. Make your action, and regroup. Junker Queen is pretty vulnerable when all her abilities are on cooldown.
Don’t Get Carried Away
It’s easy to get carried away with Junker Queen’s abilities. After all, she’s made to rampage. Unfortunately, her relentless violence also easily becomes her undoing. Junker Queen becomes pretty vulnerable when all her abilities are on cooldown, so she relies on bursts. She’s not a Roadhog or a Zarya, so she shouldn’t behave like one. Use your abilities sparingly, wait for the right opportunity when the enemy is in range, and unleash your fury!
Before you know it, you’re out of position. Easy prey for a well-organized enemy attack!
When Should I Swap?
Junker Queen is almighty at close range. But when the enemy has a competent long-range counter, you may be a pretty pointless tank. As a tank, you’re the defensive backbone of the team. Your team may require the shielding of Reinhardt or the crowd control of Winston instead.
Especially long-range counters can lead to Junker Queen’s untimely demise.
More importantly, some heroes wall Junker Queen hard. Ana’s Biotic Grenades can completely prevent you from healing, showing how fragile you can be. Widowmaker, Torbjörn, and Pharah can all easily damage you while you can’t do much to them, simply because you lack range. Even fast DPS heroes like Tracer can be threats. They are in range, sure, but you’re not the fastest hero. So a Tracer flashing all around you may wear you down before you know it.
Conclusion
With all that, you should now have a much stronger understanding of how to play Junker Queen. She’s not the simplest hero to pick up, but her berserker nature makes her crazy fun and rewarding in all the chaos she brings to the battlefield.
With her combo and combat potential, she’s a blast to play!
Check out Junker Queen’s origin story, detailing the tale behind the ruthless ruler of Junkertown. I hope this Overwatch 2 guide has been useful to you! Check out our review and download the game, for free, on all major platforms.
Check out this video by Mightyy, detailing the raw power of Junker Queen and how to best use it!
