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[Heroes of the Storm 2.0] the softest of wet farts

milk ducksmilk ducks High Mucky MuckBig Tits TownRegistered User regular
edited May 2018 in Games and Technology
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What's new?
Heroes, in a nutshell, is a game in which two teams are trying to destroy the Core of the opposing team. The Core is similar to the Ancient in DotA or the Nexus in League. Each team has a base with Forts, Towers, Gates, Healing Wells, and Walls to help them defend their core.

At regular intervals waves of NPC Minions spawn in each base and march down pre-defined lanes to attack the enemy. It is the job of the players to help attack down these lanes and destroy the enemy team's base and ultimately their Core. To help with this, each of the maps has a special map objective that gives a big bonus of some sort to the team that completes the objective. Generally each objective will be completed 3-5 times per match before the core is destroyed.

Just like the waves of NPC Minions who spawn and march towards each other in battle, so too do the player characters respawn when they die and continue to fight. The amount of time it takes to respawn is directly related to how long the game has been running. In a new game that is only minutes old, a player will respawn almost immediately. In games over 15 minutes in length the spawn timers will reach a full 60 seconds.

Core: The first team to destroy their opponent's Core wins the map. The Core has a recharging shield which is worth about 15% of the total health of the Core. This shield regenerates very quickly when the Core is out of combat for 8 seconds. The Core also shoots a lightning blast at a target that will also damage enemies near that target. It follows the same targeting rules as Forts and Towers (see below), but is immune to many effect that shut down structures.

Tower: The first line of defense in each base. Towers have limited ammo which regenerates over time. Towers prioritize minions and summoned units and will ignore player characters as long as there is a minion or summoned unit within range. Unlike other MOBAs, the Towers in Heroes will not target a player character if that character attacks an enemy hero while within range.

Forts: Each lane has one Fort, which is located behind a wall and two towers. These Forts have a lot of HP and attack with ammo just like Towers do, but they also slow enemy movement and attack speed which makes them a decent place to defend from. Destroying a Fort yields a considerable XP payout, making them primary targets in the early game.

Keeps: After a Fort, the last line of a lane's defense before the Core are Keeps. These function similarly to Forts, and will also pay out big XP if destroyed. If a keep is destroyed, the opposing lane will start spawning long-range, high-damage catapults alongside the usual minions. Therefore, it's very important protect your keeps while destroying your opponents'.

Healing Wells: If you have played Warcraft 3 then you are probably familiar with the Healing Wells, as they operate similarly to the Moon Wells of the Night Elves. They are on a timer, and restore Health and Mana when you click them. The Health and Mana provided by these Wells is not instant, as the restoration happens over time.

Spawn Point: Each team spawns behind their Core in the safety of their base. There is a magical shield barrier that prevents the enemy team from entering the spawn location, and this shield stops all spells and attacks. Spawn Points also have instant-mounting while you are inside, and you regenerate Health and Mana at a very fast rate while standing in the spawn.

Minions spawn down the lane like merry lemmings just waiting to die to a tower or hero. They are...

1. Soldiers: Dudes with swords, they lead the minion waves. Tend to have higher-than-average HP and a weak melee attack.
2. Archers: Dudes with, get this, bows. They're in the back of the wave, boasting lower HP but a decent ranged attack.
3. Mages: Wizards that coast in the middle of the pack. They deal ranged damage, but the more important thing is that they drop a green orb on death that will give you and nearby teammates a little bit of HP and mana back. There's only one per minion wave, so try to get that orb!
4. Catapults: Beefy siege units that assault bases with a long-range attack. They only spawn when the enemy's final fort in that lane has fallen, giving you incentive to keep that damn fort alive. They can easily outrange towers/forts/cores, meaning they will slowly whittle down a base unless stopped.

Each map also contains a scattering of Mercenary Camps in the "jungle" area between the lanes. These Merc Camps are neutral NPCs that can be defeated by players and hired to fight for the team that captures them. To capture a Mercenary Camp, the players must defeat them in combat (or bribe them) and then stand within a capture circle for a few seconds to gain control of the camp. It is possible for the enemy team to steal the camps if they push you out of the circle or kill you before you can claim it.

1. Siege Camps: These camps contain two giant siege monsters which hurl large rocks at their enemies. They have long range and can out-range towers and forts, which make them very advantageous for lane pushing. These are the easiest camps to defeat and can be solo'd by most heroes by level 10.
2. Bruiser Camps: Formerly known as the "Knight Camps," these are squads of 4 soldiers (3 melee and 1 spellcaster) who possess a lot of HP and decent damage damage. These camps are more difficult to take and typically require 1-2 people to capture.
3. Boss Camps: These camps generally require 3+ heroes to kill, depending on team levels and what heroes are present. These are high HP / high Damage monsters that can do devastating amounts of damage in a lane. They ignore minions and other mercenaries and will only target enemy structures. They cast a Pound skill that can be avoided by moving out of the telegraphed smash circle. They also cast a targeted root spell on occasion against enemy heroes, telegraphed by a smaller circle.
4. Map-Specific Creeps: From pirates on Blackheart Bay to the plant monsters in the Garden of Terror, these mercs will NOT join your side, but instead drop objective-relevant items that help you win the game like skulls, coins, and so on. Difficulty and rewards vary by map.

So what else? There is no item shop. No in-game gold. No items to be bought. No shoes or rods of whatever. "Blasphemy!" you might say, but Heroes is feeling pretty heretical. Instead of items, you get talents roughly every 3-4 levels. These are anywhere from 2-5 choices that change how your character functions. It might be "killing minions gives you more damage" or "your auto-attacks now slow enemies." At level 10 you unlock your Heroic Ability (aka your ult), and even that has choices! Every character has two heroic abilities, so pick the one most suited for the current game.

If you have played other MOBAs and are accustomed to buying boots, this game doesn't have them. Instead it has Mounts (default Z key). Attacking or taking damage dismounts you, and re-mounting does have a brief cooldown. Not all characters can mount up, but instead have mobility skills that in most cases let them get to an area REALLY FAST but has a much longer cooldown.

milk ducks on
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Posts

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    milk ducksmilk ducks High Mucky Muck Big Tits TownRegistered User regular
    THERE'S A MECHA TYRAEL ANNOUNCER, TOO

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    The Escape GoatThe Escape Goat incorrigible ruminant they/themRegistered User regular
    edited January 2018
    I don't see Holy Ground as cheap. For one, it was a level 16 ability (13 now). For two, it takes skill to use for boss steals (you have to get in range, throw the Q dead center, and not die in the process). For three, generally Tyrael had to blow Sanctification to have any chance of not dying before the cap against a remotely competent team, which meant he was actually using a skill and an incredibly long ult timer in exchange for an attempted boss steal.

    Knowing how to play with and against point control are skills. And yes, in some cases that means you aren't going to make a boss attempt as long as you know a certain hero on the enemy team is alive.

    The problem is it only requires skill if your opponents are skilled. Mid-level games, where you're not going to get focus fired? Just wander up, press W, press Q, free boss. Doesn't even matter if you die afterward, the swing of -1 boss for them and +1 boss for you is absolutely worth it. And sure, you should generally balance around high-level play, but you also can't ignore glaring problems like this at lower levels of play, a la what the stealth changes were trying to accomplish.

    I'm 100% okay playing around point control skills like Gust and Leyline and the like, because you actually have a reasonable window to act on them and you know they're going to be used sooner rather than later so you can make your play. Tyrael having a practically non-existent cooldown (at least in terms of macro play) to his point control ability means, like you said, that you can't boss while he's alive. But I'd also posit that requiring you to hunt down and kill a highly mobile warrior before you can attempt to progress the game is bad gameplay, because you're effectively locked out of doing that if Tyrael plays safe (what are you going to do, just walk up to a keep and throw?)

    There's already maps like BoE where you reach points in the late-game where there's literally nothing you can do but stand around for a minute waiting for the objective fight, because there's no more map pressure you can safely add. That's bad gameplay. Tyrael means that happens even on maps like Cursed Hollow. It's a significantly less fun-to-play-against version of better-implemented abilities on other heroes, and that's why we say it's bullshit and should go away.

    The Escape Goat on
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    RonaldoTheGypsyRonaldoTheGypsy Yes, yes Registered User regular
    Chen Barrel boss steals were my favorite thing at launch.

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    The Escape GoatThe Escape Goat incorrigible ruminant they/themRegistered User regular
    Chen Barrel boss steals were my favorite thing at launch.

    At least that's a long-cooldown ult you can play around :P

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    RonaldoTheGypsyRonaldoTheGypsy Yes, yes Registered User regular
    True, but I still love stunlocking an enemy against a wall until they die.

    I really miss the old Barrel 20 talent.

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    milk ducksmilk ducks High Mucky Muck Big Tits TownRegistered User regular
    edited January 2018
    Hawkray out there, doin' his thing.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElmDmpWBOls

    milk ducks on
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    fortyforty Registered User regular
    milk ducks wrote: »
    THERE'S A MECHA TYRAEL ANNOUNCER, TOO
    Is that the first "non-default version" announcer?

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    morgan_cokemorgan_coke Registered User regular
    What the fuck. This game is such bullshit. I mean, look at this. LOOK AT THIS.

    1w6uggrlea0x.jpg

    And fucking Diablo gets the MVP?!?!?! Yeah, thanks for counting the fact that I did all that WHILE ALSO TAKING 11 FREAKING CAMPS against me game. God.

    XBL: Morgan Coke Yes, there is a space, not an underscore. I'm old school like that.
    Battle.net: morgancoke#1589

    Titan's Creed: Jump first, don't ask questions, punch everything
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    Inquisitor77Inquisitor77 2 x Penny Arcade Fight Club Champion A fixed point in space and timeRegistered User regular
    The award screen is literally meaningless. It's based on an incredibly simple algorithm and has no bearing on anything in the game.

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    JookieJookie Registered User regular
    Maybe Diablo played really well.

    butts
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    fortyforty Registered User regular
    What the fuck. This game is such bullshit. I mean, look at this. LOOK AT THIS.

    https://us.v-cdn.net/5018289/uploads/editor/z3/1w6uggrlea0x.jpg

    And fucking Diablo gets the MVP?!?!?! Yeah, thanks for counting the fact that I did all that WHILE ALSO TAKING 11 FREAKING CAMPS against me game. God.
    Like Inquisitor said, it really doesn't matter. I mean the game will never be able to account for an ETC that pulled off 3 5-man wipe Mosh Pits in a row or anything like that. But I mentioned recently that I'm pretty certain the MVP "calculation" doesn't even factor in merc captures at all. It's essentially wasted effort, as far as getting MVP goes. Which is just more evidence to validate the "don't give a shit about MVP" perspective.

    That said, just based on the score screen, I can see why the game thought Diablo did a good job.

    Congratulations on your win, as well! :D

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    NeurotikaNeurotika Registered User regular
    forty wrote: »
    milk ducks wrote: »
    THERE'S A MECHA TYRAEL ANNOUNCER, TOO
    Is that the first "non-default version" announcer?

    Yeah, it's the first "Nexus" announcer aside from the default

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    NobodyNobody Registered User regular
    I like that the fluff blurb for the Mecha-Tyrael skin nods to the Mecha-Tassadar one.

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    DibbyDibby I'll do my best! Registered User regular
    milk ducks wrote: »
    Hawkray out there, doin' his thing.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElmDmpWBOls

    nothing gets me more hype than a hawkray video

    :+1::+1::+1:

    DNiDlnb.png
    Battle.net Tag: Dibby#1582
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    JookieJookie Registered User regular
    Dibby wrote: »
    milk ducks wrote: »
    Hawkray out there, doin' his thing.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElmDmpWBOls

    nothing gets me more hype than a hawkray video

    :+1::+1::+1:
    Not even a game on a champ you haven't played in a while? Not even Tyrael buffs?

    butts
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    milk ducksmilk ducks High Mucky Muck Big Tits TownRegistered User regular
    Hawkray's a pretty cool guy, to be honest. Have you played with him? We've been on each other's friends list for a while now. But he mostly plays in the evenings, and you're on in the afternoons.

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    DibbyDibby I'll do my best! Registered User regular
    Jookie wrote: »
    Dibby wrote: »
    milk ducks wrote: »
    Hawkray out there, doin' his thing.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElmDmpWBOls

    nothing gets me more hype than a hawkray video

    :+1::+1::+1:
    Not even a game on a champ you haven't played in a while? Not even Tyrael buffs?

    nah dude i got MAD HYPE about tyrael:
    Dibby wrote: »
    http://us.battle.net/heroes/en/blog/21349578/heroes-of-the-storm-patch-notes-january-16-2018-1-16-2018

    IT'S MY BOY! IT'S MY BOY!!!!!!

    TYRAEL REWORK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    Y'ALL HE GETS HOLY GROUND AT 13 NOW, WHAT THE ABSOLUTE FUCK

    DNiDlnb.png
    Battle.net Tag: Dibby#1582
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    JookieJookie Registered User regular
    Yeah but where on the hype scale does Tyrael buffs stand and where does Hawkray video stand?

    Typing this made me realize that Dibby is basically a dog where THING is the most exciting thing to ever happen but suddenly OTHER THING and now that's the most exciting thing but ALSO OTHER THING just happened and MORE THING I MUST BARK.

    butts
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    kimekime Queen of Blades Registered User regular
    How have I never had Hawkray in my life before? That was amazing.

    Battle.net ID: kime#1822
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    Inquisitor77Inquisitor77 2 x Penny Arcade Fight Club Champion A fixed point in space and timeRegistered User regular
    kime?!??! Hawkray videos have been posted in this thread for like, the past year. :P

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    kimekime Queen of Blades Registered User regular
    kime?!??! Hawkray videos have been posted in this thread for like, the past year. :P

    I don't actually read most of what you all say.

    Battle.net ID: kime#1822
    3DS Friend Code: 3110-5393-4113
    Steam profile
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    kimekime Queen of Blades Registered User regular
    Blaze can solo tank, right? I don't play him, but I thought so. My team in draft disagreed with me this last game, though. (They were polite at least :) )

    We owned that game and then I think they made fun of themselves at the end? So I guess I am just right.

    Battle.net ID: kime#1822
    3DS Friend Code: 3110-5393-4113
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    Waffles or whateverWaffles or whatever Previously known as, I shit you not, "Waffen" Registered User regular
    Hanzo is sooooo easy to play. No wonder why everyone's playing him. -_-

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    The Escape GoatThe Escape Goat incorrigible ruminant they/themRegistered User regular
    milk ducks wrote: »
    Hawkray's a pretty cool guy, to be honest. Have you played with him? We've been on each other's friends list for a while now. But he mostly plays in the evenings, and you're on in the afternoons.

    I know we absolutely fuckin' crushed him once. He was feeding like crazy on Zul'jin, was fun.

    9uiytxaqj2j0.jpg
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    fortyforty Registered User regular
    Tyrael still shows up as having 15 spell armor on the hero select screen. Guess that display doesn't pull from the actual hero data!

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    Inquisitor77Inquisitor77 2 x Penny Arcade Fight Club Champion A fixed point in space and timeRegistered User regular
    Mecha Tyrael's Judgment animation is so badass.

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    NeurotikaNeurotika Registered User regular
    Haha, Valla has the old "it's good to see you Tyrael" line, but Mecha Tyrael says something about her needing to defrag her memory

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    GachnarGachnar Registered User regular
    milk ducks wrote: »
    Hawkray out there, doin' his thing.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElmDmpWBOls

    Those Valk plays!

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    MMMigMMMig Registered User regular
    Played 5 nova games.


    Only in the 5th game did I notice the new ghost protocol talent.
    yeah... that thing's useful!


    -_-'

    l4lGvOw.png
    Witty signature comment goes here...

    wra
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    MNC DoverMNC Dover Full-time Voice Actor Kirkland, WARegistered User regular
    I just bought Hanzo. Quck, someone teach me how to geometry. Or some talents and protips.

    Need a voice actor? Hire me at bengrayVO.com
    Legends of Runeterra: MNCdover #moc
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    Knight_Knight_ Dead Dead Dead Registered User regular
    First you press w on a wall and watch as the arrows behave in a way that makes little to no sense, shrug, and then hope for the best.

    aeNqQM9.jpg
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    Inquisitor77Inquisitor77 2 x Penny Arcade Fight Club Champion A fixed point in space and timeRegistered User regular
    Aim at their feet.

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    fortyforty Registered User regular
    Knight_ wrote: »
    First you press w on a wall and watch as the arrows behave in a way that makes little to no sense, shrug, and then hope for the best.
    Don't forget to curse all the places where walls change headings and totally fuck up your angles.

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    Knight_Knight_ Dead Dead Dead Registered User regular
    The actual tip is just cast it like you think it’s going to work, and it won’t work a lot, but it will work sometimes and there’s little to no opportunity cost so if you miss it that’s fine, and you slowly learn where the wonky bits are.

    aeNqQM9.jpg
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    ArcTangentArcTangent Registered User regular
    If you don't have quick cast on, then start swearing at how they still haven't fixed his fucking bugged movement.

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    DibbyDibby I'll do my best! Registered User regular
    My single biggest Hanzo tip: Take W off of Quick Cast. You can do On Release if you want, but I prefer just having it be on normal cast. You really, really need to see where the projectiles are going to go, and Quick Cast is of no help there.

    I also like playing with Q off of Quick Cast, but there's that movement bug, sooooo.

    DNiDlnb.png
    Battle.net Tag: Dibby#1582
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    fortyforty Registered User regular
    Does taking Q off quick cast make his movement different? Does it even have an on release option? Wouldn't that behave exactly the same as quick cast on?

    I've been playing with W on release. Maybe I should try off?

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    ArcTangentArcTangent Registered User regular
    edited January 2018
    forty wrote: »
    Does taking Q off quick cast make his movement different? Does it even have an on release option? Wouldn't that behave exactly the same as quick cast on?

    I've been playing with W on release. Maybe I should try off?

    Hold right-click to move gets complerely disabled if you use his Q and it's not on quick cast/on release.

    ArcTangent on
    ztrEPtD.gif
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    MNC DoverMNC Dover Full-time Voice Actor Kirkland, WARegistered User regular
    I figured I would put W "on-release" like most AoE stuff I play. Any talent builds I should look into or is there little variety?

    Need a voice actor? Hire me at bengrayVO.com
    Legends of Runeterra: MNCdover #moc
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    fortyforty Registered User regular
    ArcTangent wrote: »
    forty wrote: »
    Does taking Q off quick cast make his movement different? Does it even have an on release option? Wouldn't that behave exactly the same as quick cast on?

    I've been playing with W on release. Maybe I should try off?

    Hold right-click to move gets complerely disabled if you use his Q and it's not on quick cast/on release.
    It happens with quick cast on too though.

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