Pharah and Mercy, often referred to as PharMercy in OW2, can be a big problem in matches. Because both can fly, they consistently knock down enemies from above, often taking you by surprise. They have an almost perfect synergy with each other, but it’s not impossible to break it. Here’s how to counter Pharah Mercy in Overwatch 2.
How to counter Pharah’s Mercy in Overwatch 2
Here are the counters for Pharah + Mercy (PharMercy) to get kills in Overwatch 2:
If you have flying FarMercys, you can destroy them if you have Soldier 76 and/or Widowmaker on your team. When Soldier goes to Farrah and Widowmaker kills Mercy with a headshot (or vice versa), you can break their lineup. The soldier’s ultimate will also come in handy.
One strategy to weaken them is to quickly take out the other healer on the opposing team, which will force Mercy to choose who to heal. This can break their synergy, during which you can go after Pharah and Mercy separately. To do this, you will need good teamwork and seamless communication via voice chat. Many players are also advised to avoid trying to kill PharMercy (and not get killed by them) and just constantly destroy the enemy team on the ground. When you do this, the match can be dominated.
But this does not mean that only heroes with hitscan can defeat them. If Pharah makes the mistake of flying closer to the ground, Roadhog (Tank) can use his Chain Hook ability to get her closer and shoot her with scrap metal. Check the range of your chain hook at training distance to find out when you can pull it out to attack Pharah/Mercy.
Don’t forget to also watch the opposing team’s heroes and make changes to your team in the next round as needed. There is a chance that the enemy team has perfect coordination, which can make PharMercy untouchable. Find out the weaknesses and chips of the heroes and choose your characters according to this.
In the end, it depends on your skills and the skills of your team as a whole. If you have a close to perfect target, you can one-shot this duo, but if your opponents have better skills, they may keep moving too much for you to aim at.
Of course, the map you play on also plays a big role. If your opponents are naive enough to choose PharMercy in a closed area with a roof, defeating them can be a cakewalk. But in open areas, when fighting on the ground is difficult in itself, constantly healing an enemy in the sky can become a headache. Hopefully the tricks mentioned above will help break them down and ultimately lead your team to victory.
For more on Overwatch 2, check out our Overwatch 2 section.