Techies

Squee, Spleen, and Spoon, the Techies, are a trio of ranged Intelligence heroes, known for laying deadly traps around the field with a wide array of mines.

Having little direct combat ability, the Techies have an unorthodox, if effective, method of dealing damage to the enemy team in the form of powerful laid explosive mines and stasis traps that enable other heroes to set up a gank or retreat. Their mines, set across key points of the map -and even less conventional locations- are an effective method of denying area and guaranteeing damage if enemies dare to initiate.

They have an even more bizarre ability in the form of their Suicide Squad, Attack! which causes them to violently explode and die but deal massive damage (at early - mid game) in a moderate area of effect.

The unique mechanics of the mines mean that the Techies utilise mechanics not used by any other hero, including preemptive mine concaves and such strong area denial that they actively play a large role in securing the area controlled by friendly heroes.

The Techies have statistics aligned to those of semi-carries, but play a largely passive, defensive role throughout the game. Since their Remote Mines have a large sight range and last longer, they can act as substitute Observer Wards, allowing the rest of the team to save money.

Trivia

 * Before their release, Techies were showcased All-Star match of The International 2014, used by Artour "Arteezy" Babaev.
 * Some of Techies' lines, such as tech_rival_11.mp3 "They're going to have to glue you back together! Yeah, in Hell!" and tech_lose_06.mp3 "We're a sorry buncha losers. You said it" reference lines spoken by the Demoman from Team Fortress 2, another title by Valve.
 * Many of their lines also reference Counter-Strike, such as tech_lose_03.mp3 "Counter-Techies Win", Tech_remotemines_01.mp3 "Bomb has been planted" or tech_failure_02.mp3 "Bomb has been defused. Darn!".
 * One of the Techies' potential lines upon attacking tech_attack_09.mp3 "See! Fore!" is a pun on the plastic explosive C4.
 * The line tech_rare_05.mp3 "Who said we couldn't count to three, huh?" is a reference to a joke about the fact that Valve has not released a single game with the number three in the title (Half-Life 3, Left 4 Dead 3, Portal 3 etc.).
 * The line tech_lasthit_02.mp3 "Continue testing." seems to be a reference to GLaDOS, a character of Valve's Portal series.
 * The gag about Spoon being hidden in a barrel without the other two knowing is a reference to DotA, where only some time after Techies were released did people realize that there were actually three of them instead of two; the third one's feet could barely be seen under the barrel behind the other two (Techies used to be named "Squee and Spleen" and eventually became "Squee, Spleen and Spoon").
 * The line tech_items_15.mp3 "Claymore! But not that kind of claymore" is a reference to a Claymore mine used by the U.S. military.
 * The names of the original two Techies most likely came from Magic the Gathering. Squee is a legendary goblin from Magic the Gathering lore, while Spleen was probably named after the flavor text on the Goblin Soothsayer card ("I see a great victory and rivers of blood. And . . . hmm, looks like a spleen.")