How to take Heavy play to the next level?

So I'm a pretty decent Heavy. I'm good with:

• Defending medics from scouts
• Knowing when to retreat and when to push
• Target prioritisation
• Shotgun
• Escaping ubers
• Using ubers effectively
• Ambushing
• Playing without a medic
• Jump-rev
• Ammo management
• Heavy-on-Heavy duels

The situations I struggle with are:

• When my team isn't pushing (nothing I can do here, I think)
• Vs. soldiers when there's an object nearby such as a pillar

At the same time, I'm aware that there are Heavies here who are better than I am (Chad and Echo come immediately to mind) - but I'm not sure what they're doing that I'm not!

So, good Heavy players - what do I need to take my play to the next level? Extra props if you've played with me and can point out something I'm missing.

Not much you can do when the team isn't pushing along with you. This is a team game, so if your team is bad, it hinders even the good players. Its not like CS where one player can just carry. Scouts and Snipers can do it a to some extent, but a bad team keeps EVERYONE down.

1) Play other classes and see what it takes to kill heavies (this applies to pretty much any class matchup you're having trouble with).

2) Aim better. The REALLY good heavies practically look like they're aimbotting, and there's no substitute for simply hitting the enemy more than they hit you.

3) Heavy is a pretty weak class against good players because he's so immobile. I know this isn't advice but I felt like saying it anyways.

I really think a heavy has no chance against a soldier or demoman unless he has a medic with him, simply because there are so many easy ways to use the map to kill the heavy while barely being hit.

I'd say for the soldier you should take out your shotty and run at him. Even if you are slow it will be better than sitting there revving and dieing. You could also retreat by this method, but seeing as he's faster, and can rocket jump, you'd be in trouble. Intimidation is the key. Most soldiers wouldn't expect you to rush them.

Quote:

Tell then to push, thats all you can do. Drive it into their skulls. Unless ofcourse, it really isnt a time for pushing i.e. defending.

 Go shot gun only.

When against Soldiers, try to use the shotgun whilst jumping around. OR if you get a really good chance, punch them!

He's never going to punch a soldier and get away with it...

I think train summed it up, you can kill a soldier with a medic faster than he can shoot 4 rockets at you but you must hit him with every shot.

Yay my post got deleted. Let's try again:

I usually make the call to retreat if I'm fighting a soldier in an obstacle-rich environment. If I'm playing correctly, I should have teammates to back me up. Even if that isn't the case, I don't often have a problem with soldiers catching me -- they only move 3% faster on the ground and have to hurt themselves if they RJ (which often exposes them to Sasha).

Playing as if you're low on HP (call medic when full health) will embolden some soldiers, and doing the opposite can work to make them retreat.