It's a new week and that means new free-to-play rotation! Here's who you should look into based on your skill level:
Novice
Muradin – If Cloud 9’s handling of this beastly man didn’t make you immediately want to play him, then you clearly did not watch this weekend’s tournament. Muradin is a tank’s tank. He’s got a crazy good stun, ridiculous amounts of health, an escape and a slow. More importantly, Muradin is the tank that really gives you a great introduction to how the tank is supposed to control a fight in terms of stuns and engagements.
Raynor – He’s got two buttons – three if you count his ult. He’s the Hero Blizzard decided you should learn to play with. Complete with the highest range of any Hero in the game on top of a buff and heal, Raynor is the king of assassin positioning lessons. For his ult, start with Hyperion then graduate to the banshees once you know the enemies a bit better.
Intermediate
Thrall – Like Butcher, Thrall is all about patience and timing. Run in too early and you get blown to pieces. Run in too late and the fight is already lost. He’s a bit more forgiving than Butcher, though, since he has a ranged root, ranged damage and a heal that comes from using his abilities.
Tyrael – Tyrael generally makes up what’s known as a dive comp. This is when the team picks Heroes with the abilities to focus and immediately dive on one target or into the middle of a team without suffering front line damage. In that regard, he is amazing for learning when to engage. With his buffs, he is one of the few tanks that is really only as good as his ability to bolster his teammates.
Kharazim – The monk is easy to play, hard to master. While he definitely fulfills the itch of those that want to be totally bad*ss when protecting their team members, he requires a bit of finesse that can take time to learn. His healing radius is much smaller than players assume, meaning he needs to be all over the place during team fights. Choose him if you’re on the market for learning soft focus.
Expert
Tyrande – Tyrande gets eye rolls in League not because she’s a bad Hero to have but because people don’t really know how to use her. When you play a great Tyrande, you are continually doing things be it shooting your owl or applying your Hunter’s Mark to sway team fights. Map and Hero knowledge are required in addition to landing that stun with 90% accuracy.
Gazlowe – The fact that this Hero is melee but does most of his damage through ranged attacks definitely creates an immediate disconnect. What’s even worse, however, are the long countdowns of his bombs. Though not a problem for laning, it certainly becomes challenging during team fights. This coupled with collecting scrap and aiming lazers can lead to a tough nut to crack.
Dear DrmDestryr,
Do you chat in game?
-Polly
Dear Polly,
In general, I make a note to be silent, however being silent isn’t exactly good for the team. Communication, after all, is a huge factor as to our development as a society. If you still retain an aversion to chatting, just be sure you are vocal on a few points.
OOM
From tank to support, typing out “out of mana” is an absolute must. It lets your teammates know to not pursue any further and to retreat to a defensive position until you can rejoin. Be it the beginning of the game or in the middle of a team fight, I cannot stress the importance of typing and sending these three simple letters.
I’m b
Much like oom, this alerts your team that you are heading all the way back to base, again notifying them that they need to play defensively until your return. It also tells others to hold a lane for you to gather XP until you can take up your position once more.
Bot/Mid/Top Miss
Though you should be forever glancing at your minimap to keep tabs on enemy Heroes, it is appreciated when team members alert everyone else to a potential rogue enemy. It can be easy to get cocky pushing a lane, and this text pulls everyone back into the reality of the situation by raising awareness.
Omw
As a specialist, this is a phrase you should master well. Since it is your responsibility to take care of clean up and merc grabs, there will be many times where you are separated from your teammates. This phrase assures them that you are aware of their plans and will be there in time to either capture an objective, team fight or top off a boss.
-DrmDestryr
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