Junkrat: Tips, Maps, Counters, Abilities, and Ultimate

Key Takeaways

• Due to his slow-moving ground-based projectiles, Junkrat’s best maps feature tight hallways where Junkrat can overwhelm enemy players with his explosives.
• Junkrat struggles on maps with open spaces due to his lack of ranged damage output and mobility tools needed to close the gap between himself and enemy players.
• Junkrat’s potentially massive short-range damage output counters almost every other hero in tight spaces, even other short-range heroes like Reaper and Mei. 
• Junkrat is countered by almost every other hero with ranged weapons, assuming the enemy player is able to catch him out in the open. Junkrat can also be overwhelmed by short-range heroes, but only if they catch him by surprise in an enclosed space.

Junkrat Quick Tips

• Junkrat has 200 total health, with no shields or armor.
• Though Junkrat cannot technically one-shot enemies like Hanzo and Widowmaker can, his combination of his primary fire and Concussion Mines can deal 200 damage nearly instantly, allowing him to quickly kill damage (DPS) and support heroes, assuming he can land both shots.
• Junkrat is able to spam choke points to apply pressure and do damage to the enemy team, but skilled Junkrat players frequently play him closer to a dive hero, using his Concussion Mines to get around the map and find angles on unsuspecting enemy players.
• Download the Z League app to team up with players who enjoy having a Junkrat on their team and will enable you to make the most of your kit. 

Junkrat Abilities Explained

Img via Blizzard Entertainment

Frag Launcher

Frag Launcher shoots a very slow projectile which takes a significant arc while in midair. A direct hit inflicts 120 damage, and enemy players can take between 10 and 80 damage from splash damage (but no more than 120 total). 

Since Frag Launcher projectiles bounce off walls and along floors until they detonate, skilled Junkrat players can sometimes get two shots to explode at the same time in the same area, potentially dealing more than 120 damage quickly. Due to the significant arc of the projectiles, Junkrat can easily use Frag Launcher to shoot over walls—but the weapon is very inaccurate except for at very close range.

Concussion Mine

Junkrat can throw Concussion Mines which damage enemy players when they explode and propel Junkrat into the air (Junkrat takes no damage from his own Concussion Mines). Junkrat will usually use Concussion Mines to reposition, deal followup damage from his Frag Launcher, or add damage to players caught in his Steel Trap. Since two Concussion Mines can be thrown in rapid succession, skilled Junkrat players know when to use one of their Concussion Mines, and when to save them to allow for more intricate plays by using both of them quickly. 

Steep Trap

Junkrat’s Steel Trap is a buildable that can be placed on any flat surface. When enemy players walk into the trap, they take 100 damage and cannot move for 2.5 seconds, making them very easy to finish off. Junkrat can also place a Concussion Mine near his Steel Trap and detonate the mine after the trap goes off to instantly kill heroes with 200 health (most damage (DPS) and support heroes). 

RIP-Tire (Ultimate)

RIP-Tire causes Junkrat to remain stationary and use a remote control to move a tire around the map. The tire has 100 health, moves quickly, and can climb up walls, similar to heroes like Hanzo who have the Wall Climb passive ability. When detonated, RIP-Tire does between 50 and 600 damage, depending on how close the enemy player is to the center of the blast. Due to its low health but high damage output, skilled Junkrat players seek to keep RIP-Tire protected behind cover until it’s ready to explore—the ability is simply too easy to shut down by most of the roster if it remains out in the open, and especially if it simply rolls along the ground in a straight line instead of taking advantage of its Wall Climb capabilities.