Overwatch: Thread of the Game

[The_Jackal]

Soldier is a good hitscan character for those who dislike hitscan. Automatic weapons are pretty forgiving on that, and even with meh accuracy he puts a lot of damage downrange.

I play Soldier when I'm having a bad day and can't aim too good but want to win.

True. Also, Sombra is pretty good for a 'new' hitscan player, as she's much more about game-sense and positioning, and her gun has a pretty wide spread, so she's not going to be a hero who really rewards precise aim, nor is she particularly dependent on it. You can do a fine job as Sombra just by hosing an enemy blob from a flank, building ultimate charge, and translocating back to safety before they can turn and put you down.

However, learning to command the mouse pointer to go where you want is just a rote practice thing. There's nothing for it but to do it.

[Velaryon]

True. Also, Sombra is pretty good for a 'new' hitscan player, as she's much more about game-sense and positioning, and her gun has a pretty wide spread, so she's not going to be a hero who really rewards precise aim, nor is she particularly dependent on it. You can do a fine job as Sombra just by hosing an enemy blob from a flank, building ultimate charge, and translocating back to safety before they can turn and put you down.

However, learning to command the mouse pointer to go where you want is just a rote practice thing. There's nothing for it but to do it.

Good point, though the tradeoff with Sombra is that her wide firing spread means she has a much shorter range than other hitscan characters. On the other hand, if you get the drop on somebody via invisibility, you can do a whole lot of damage in a hurry at point-blank range with her.

[Manticoran]

True. Also, Sombra is pretty good for a 'new' hitscan player, as she's much more about game-sense and positioning, and her gun has a pretty wide spread, so she's not going to be a hero who really rewards precise aim, nor is she particularly dependent on it. You can do a fine job as Sombra just by hosing an enemy blob from a flank, building ultimate charge, and translocating back to safety before they can turn and put you down.

However, learning to command the mouse pointer to go where you want is just a rote practice thing. There's nothing for it but to do it.

I'm going to be the weird guy and recommend you learn to play hitscan with Zarya or Ana.

Zarya is a strong tank, but the way they deal damage is actually a continuous hitscan, and with practice she can put out tremendous damage. That said, when you're not feeling up to it, or you just don't trust yourself in that moment, her right click also can do a bunch of damage.

Ana has a fairly forgiving hurtbox on her left click, and like Zarya, doesn't actually care about headshots. Additionally, you can practice hitting people not just on your enemy, but also on your allies!

Both characters bring strong things to the team that aren't just MOAR DAMAGE, while still requiring either good tracking for Zarya(Tracer/Soldier/Bastion type hitscan) or good flick on Ana(McCree/Widowmaker hitscan), so even if your aim isn't the best, you can still feel pretty useful!

The other thing I'll recommend for rank climbing is just play tanks a lot. A good tank can enable 2-3 DPS to actually hurt people, while on average you're no better than any other DPS, and when I'm playing D.Va, Zarya, or Roadhog, I'm often close to topping chart for damage myself anyway.

[Rising Phoenix]

I probably would not bother with Ana in her current iteration and the current meta. Dive cucks her unforgivably and Winston D.va shut down all the healing she can do. Mind you I play at low Masters/High Diamond so people have an idea what they are doing for.

Zenyatta I hear does amazingly well in bronze. Yes he is unforgiving and very vulnerable with his positioning but if the enemy lacks focus fire and is not good at dodging your projectiles? They're toast.

[The_Jackal]

I probably would not bother with Ana in her current iteration and the current meta. Dive cucks her unforgivably and Winston D.va shut down all the healing she can do. Mind you I play at low Masters/High Diamond so people have an idea what they are doing for.

Zenyatta I hear does amazingly well in bronze. Yes he is unforgiving and very vulnerable with his positioning but if the enemy lacks focus fire and is not good at dodging your projectiles? They're toast.

I would also throw shade on Ana as a practice for aiming. She's got no mobility, no personal damage, and relies exclusively on her sleep dart for personal protection, which is very unforgiving. A single projectile with a weird trajectory (different from her gun) and on a 12 second cooldown is not what I'd call 'newb friendly'. Zarya might be easier, but I find her primary fire spam doesn't actually encourage learning, since the engagement range is so short (15m) that your lack of precision doesn't matter so much. She's a fine Hero to learn, but getting the most out of her is about timing your barriers, not firing your gun.

Make no mistake, I'm not saying 'don't use these toons'. I think they're both fun and cool, but I wouldn't describe either one as a good 'first hitscan'.

Zen, on the other hand, I think is really good in any tier. Yes, he's not mobile, but he also doesn't need to be. He can discord and harmony at any range, and his fire is withering. He's a meta pick even at the top-end, because of how discord can help bring down focus fire targets, and how harmony can give Genji and Tracer the sustain they need to thrive. Sure, he's not the 'flank your team' guy, but he's great if you simply use sensible positioning, behind your tanks and DPS, and have the awareness to run forward when you are attacked by a flanker.

[Silverraptor]

I can't believe I forgot about this thread on the forum! When I posted my overwatch personal funny moments highlight video on my youtube channel, I didn't think to share it all with you. Well, let me see if I can correct that now! Better late then never!

[Rising Phoenix]

Alright the game believes I belong in GM CTF. Sure...I'll take 1000 free comp points

[gomipile]

When I look at what I am capable of, and the sorts of situations I can deal with now that frustrated me before, it feels as though I have improved a lot in the past year or so I've been playing Overwatch. Especially when playing D.Va, my most-played character. I feel like I have improved my mastery of abilities, aim, and control of situations while tanking over the past months. My actions feel impactful, and I feel like I have a strong hand in my teams' wins and losses.

However, my SR has consistently dropped every season. I started playing competitive in Season 4, and placed at 1844. My season 8 placements put me at 1104.


I'm not really asking a question here, it's just very frustrating and I wanted to vent a bit.

[Mutazoia]

When I look at what I am capable of, and the sorts of situations I can deal with now that frustrated me before, it feels as though I have improved a lot in the past year or so I've been playing Overwatch. Especially when playing D.Va, my most-played character. I feel like I have improved my mastery of abilities, aim, and control of situations while tanking over the past months. My actions feel impactful, and I feel like I have a strong hand in my teams' wins and losses.

However, my SR has consistently dropped every season. I started playing competitive in Season 4, and placed at 1844. My season 8 placements put me at 1104.


I'm not really asking a question here, it's just very frustrating and I wanted to vent a bit.

I think comp is rated on a bell curve. You are improving your game, but so is everybody else, to some degree or other...the good players are getting even better, and they are pushing that curve. So while you are making improvements, it doesn't feel like it's as good as it actually is....the target just keeps moving.

[The_Jackal]

When I look at what I am capable of, and the sorts of situations I can deal with now that frustrated me before, it feels as though I have improved a lot in the past year or so I've been playing Overwatch. Especially when playing D.Va, my most-played character. I feel like I have improved my mastery of abilities, aim, and control of situations while tanking over the past months. My actions feel impactful, and I feel like I have a strong hand in my teams' wins and losses.

However, my SR has consistently dropped every season. I started playing competitive in Season 4, and placed at 1844. My season 8 placements put me at 1104.

I'm not really asking a question here, it's just very frustrating and I wanted to vent a bit.

Honestly, I wouldn't worry about it. Pretty much everyone has acknowledged that competitive is a sewer, and most matches are decided in the spawn room, rather than in regular play. The other thing you need to consider is that D.va, while very effective, is not easy to excel with. What do I mean? Well, as you may be aware, sub-diamond players have their SR gains and losses informed by statistics. As Jeff pointed out this week, Diamond and above includes only the top 14% of the (competitive) player base. For the remaining 86%, what numbers you get out of your character matter a great deal more than whether you win or lose. So, why does D.va bad to climb with? Because she so easy to be good with. In your average Gold level zoo, tanks are usually the last ones to die, so they tend to monopolize medals, and D.va, with her extra life, and high mobility, can play a conservative game where she stays alive and farms damage and kills. In the Gold/Silver meta, nobody has the aim to reliably de-suit her with crits, so she's especially dominant. She's got the second-highest pick rate overall, second only to Moira (the new queen of no skill, dethroning Symmetra). My point is that as D.va you've got a lot of competition in the 'stat-padding' that is the sub-Diamond competitive scene, and I suspect that, if you're like me, you actually do responsible things like wait to group up and push the objective, in lieu of farming kills and teabagging back-line heroes on the enemy team. Well, doing that can actually hurt your stats, if your teammates are running past you to their deaths, and you're dying alone stalling the payload.

[gomipile]

I think comp is rated on a bell curve. You are improving your game, but so is everybody else, to some degree or other...the good players are getting even better, and they are pushing that curve. So while you are making improvements, it doesn't feel like it's as good as it actually is....the target just keeps moving.

Honestly, I wouldn't worry about it. Pretty much everyone has acknowledged that competitive is a sewer, and most matches are decided in the spawn room, rather than in regular play. The other thing you need to consider is that D.va, while very effective, is not easy to excel with. What do I mean? Well, as you may be aware, sub-diamond players have their SR gains and losses informed by statistics. As Jeff pointed out this week, Diamond and above includes only the top 14% of the (competitive) player base. For the remaining 86%, what numbers you get out of your character matter a great deal more than whether you win or lose. So, why does D.va bad to climb with? Because she so easy to be good with. In your average Gold level zoo, tanks are usually the last ones to die, so they tend to monopolize medals, and D.va, with her extra life, and high mobility, can play a conservative game where she stays alive and farms damage and kills. In the Gold/Silver meta, nobody has the aim to reliably de-suit her with crits, so she's especially dominant. She's got the second-highest pick rate overall, second only to Moira (the new queen of no skill, dethroning Symmetra). My point is that as D.va you've got a lot of competition in the 'stat-padding' that is the sub-Diamond competitive scene, and I suspect that, if you're like me, you actually do responsible things like wait to group up and push the objective, in lieu of farming kills and teabagging back-line heroes on the enemy team. Well, doing that can actually hurt your stats, if your teammates are running past you to their deaths, and you're dying alone stalling the payload.

I placed with mostly D.Va most seasons.


Is it possible that some frustrated people in bronze and silver have been emotionally driven out of the Competitive ladder, or out of the game entirely? Disproportionately more in the lower ranks than those who abandon the ladder at all ranks, I mean.


Speaking to my situation, I just don't know what to do if I decide I want to climb, then. I only feel solidly proficient at D.Va, and marginally proficient at Moira, Lúcio, Junkrat, Sombra, and Torbjörn. I wouldn't want to inflict myself on a ladder team with any other characters without learning a lot more first.


That being said, which tank or support could I play closes to the "optimal" style and still climb sub diamond? By "optimal" I mean always playing for the win and the team, not consciously paying attention to that pad my stats in the moment.

Anything that's not a tank or support is not morally worth learning for me right now, since I can't even remember a game where fewer than two DPS slots were instalocked.

[Mutazoia]

I placed with mostly D.Va most seasons.


Is it possible that some frustrated people in bronze and silver have been emotionally driven out of the Competitive ladder, or out of the game entirely? Disproportionately more in the lower ranks than those who abandon the ladder at all ranks, I mean.


Speaking to my situation, I just don't know what to do if I decide I want to climb, then. I only feel solidly proficient at D.Va, and marginally proficient at Moira, Lúcio, Junkrat, Sombra, and Torbjörn. I wouldn't want to inflict myself on a ladder team with any other characters without learning a lot more first.


That being said, which tank or support could I play closes to the "optimal" style and still climb sub diamond? By "optimal" I mean always playing for the win and the team, not consciously paying attention to that pad my stats in the moment.

Anything that's not a tank or support is not morally worth learning for me right now, since I can't even remember a game where fewer than two DPS slots were instalocked.

Personally, I would suggest getting familiar with Orisa. I've had pretty solid results with her, both on attack and defense. Her gun is pretty much a scaled down version of Bastion, and her shield can be launched ahead of her, so you can use it to creep up on attack, and still be able to lay down the suppressing fire. Her Alt attack is great for pulling people out of a peek, or into the line of fire for someone like Phara (not as good as Zarya's, but then, you can use it more often), or even off a ledge (got a quadruple kill on Ilios: Lighthouse that way). Her hardening boosts her armor a bit, and makes her immune to Mei's freeze, and Rein's charge (or any other attack that restricts movement, or forces it on you), and as long as you have decent support, can even save your ass when a Tracer gets behind you.

She is a bit slow, and her shield doesn't last nearly as long as Rein's, but the curved shape gets better protection from a flank, and from an overhead shot. It re-pop's fairly frequently, so you can re-new it when needed (unless you're getting focused) or, as I said, use it to advance under cover, while still firing. Plus, it's not connected to you, so you can drop it to cover a Bastion (or anybody else) and still move about if needed.

[gomipile]

Personally, I would suggest getting familiar with Orisa. I've had pretty solid results with her, both on attack and defense. Her gun is pretty much a scaled down version of Bastion, and her shield can be launched ahead of her, so you can use it to creep up on attack, and still be able to lay down the suppressing fire. Her Alt attack is great for pulling people out of a peek, or into the line of fire for someone like Phara (not as good as Zarya's, but then, you can use it more often), or even off a ledge (got a quadruple kill on Ilios: Lighthouse that way). Her hardening boosts her armor a bit, and makes her immune to Mei's freeze, and Rein's charge (or any other attack that restricts movement, or forces it on you), and as long as you have decent support, can even save your ass when a Tracer gets behind you.

She is a bit slow, and her shield doesn't last nearly as long as Rein's, but the curved shape gets better protection from a flank, and from an overhead shot. It re-pop's fairly frequently, so you can re-new it when needed (unless you're getting focused) or, as I said, use it to advance under cover, while still firing. Plus, it's not connected to you, so you can drop it to cover a Bastion (or anybody else) and still move about if needed.

I like what Orisa can do when she's in a fight, but I hate the feeling of not ever being able to get back to the fight quickly after being eliminated, especially as a tank. I'm not rejecting your suggestion, just stating my impression.

[CarpeGuitarrem]

While her shield doesn't last as long as Rein's, the cooldown is short enough that it's usually up 100% of the time.

[The_Jackal]

While her shield doesn't last as long as Rein's, the cooldown is short enough that it's usually up 100% of the time.

The main thing is that Orisa's barrier is recharging while her barrier is up. Reinhardt's barrier only recharges while it is down. If your team can procure a teamwipe, that doesn't matter, but in the all DPS clownfiesta meta, that winds up being a real drawback. Orisa's big weakness is flankers. Rein's shield can turn.

Personally, I would suggest getting familiar with Orisa.

I wouldn't bother. To be honest, you're already running a good off-tank, playing Rein or Orisa or Winston might let you slot into a slightly different role, but won't necessarily translate into SR gains. Look, you're in Bronze. That means that the caliber of player you're playing with is, to be frank, dumpster tier. They won't cooperate, they won't communicate, and they won't support you. None of these things are going to happen. Bronze players have either a) terrible game sense, b) terrible aim, or c) both. Fix these issues in yourself, and punish them in your opponents.

Orisa is a hero that's very team dependent for success. She's the weakest tank, with low health and a giant hitbox, and utterly reliant on her teammates to protect her flanks. Comparing her to Bastion is somewhat accurate, but since Bastion is generally regarded as a throw pick, I don't think that actually reflects well on her. Plus, Bastion is hitscan. Orisa is a projectile hero, so her effective range is much, much shorter against anything that isn't a giant barrier.

She's strong in defense scenarios, and on maps where she can boop fools into a pit, but in other circumstances, I can't recommend her. I certainly can't recommend her as a Hero who's likely to post good numbers in Bronze.

[gomipile]

So, Brigitte looks badass.

https://playoverwatch.com/en-us/heroes/brigitte/

The futuristic steampunk cleric look is great.

[The_Jackal]

So, Brigitte looks badass.

https://playoverwatch.com/en-us/heroes/brigitte/

The futuristic steampunk cleric look is great.

Interesting. She looks plenty cool. I'll have to see how she plays. I am concerned about the continued proliferation of barrier heroes.

[chainer1216]

She sounds like everything ive ever wanted out of a character, her addition might be enough to bring me back into the game.

[Kitten Champion]

As someone who excels at tanks but also wants to play support when the composition needs one, she's everything I wanted.

Hope they give her a Johanna skin.

[CarpeGuitarrem]

As someone who excels at tanks but also wants play support when the composition needs one, she's everything I wanted.

Hope they give her a Johanna skin.

oh man, that would've been perfect for the Blizzard World skins.

I'm happy that we'll be getting a support hybrid to round out comps. Single tank, Brigitte, second support is a solid combo. Though, I'll probably keep Moira as my fill of choice, given her hybrid DPS/healer focus.

[Kitten Champion]

oh man, that would've been perfect for the Blizzard World skins.

I'm happy that we'll be getting a support hybrid to round out comps. Single tank, Brigitte, second support is a solid combo. Though, I'll probably keep Moira as my fill of choice, given her hybrid DPS/healer focus.

They can still do it, I mean, that doesn't have to be end of Blizzard x-over skins forever. The other option is Starcraft Medic, though Johanna is the best fit. I still want a Hydralisk-Mech/Infested D.Va.

I'm someone who loves playing cleric-y type characters, so as a Hero fantasy this works for me completely. I think it's quite possible that she'll be more under-tuned with her kit rather than the opposite, which could make playing her hard for a while after she's implemented in a few weeks. Her kit is pretty non-cancerous in its design, which should make her healthier for the meta when she's eventually balanced.

Hope they give her another cinematic-type thing on release.

[The_Jackal]

I will say one thing about Brigitte, I like that she's got a 'come get it yourself, fool' healing mechanism, in lieu of being constantly focused on filling friendly health bars. Not quite as high quality of life as Zenyatta, but still decent.

[Geno9999]

Her kit is pretty non-cancerous in its design, which should make her healthier for the meta when she's eventually balanced.

You SAY that, but I just thought of a probably cancerous comp: Torbjörn, Symmetra, Bridgitte. Just give EVERYONE on the team about 200 extra HP all together, without taking into account the DR from the Armor itself. Extra potent on the likes of Zarya or Zenyatta, who have natural shields so will have more buffer before the armor takes a hit.

The Comp would be tanky as all get out, but would be a bit slow going since it needs Sym to get the Shield Gen up ASAP. But after that? Prepare to fight Team "Everyone is a Tank now."

[Kitten Champion]

You SAY that, but I just thought of a probably cancerous comp: Torbjörn, Symmetra, Bridgitte. Just give EVERYONE on the team about 200 extra HP all together, without taking into account the DR from the Armor itself. Extra potent on the likes of Zarya or Zenyatta, who have natural shields so will have more buffer before the armor takes a hit.

The Comp would be tanky as all get out, but would be a bit slow going since it needs Sym to get the Shield Gen up ASAP. But after that? Prepare to fight Team "Everyone is a Tank now."

You wouldn't have much in the way of anything but damage soak though, The opposing team could take a spam-rat with Pharamercy and just lob damage-boosted attacks at you from safety, until their damage overcomes your sustain. Brigitte's healing is pretty low and if the other team attacks from far enough away that she can't flail them in their stupid faces she'll get no trait value at all, so you'll need a main healer as well just to live. That doesn't leave your comp up for much in the way of DPS.

That being said, I think Roadhog/Brigitte is going to be frustrating to melt down without coordinated focus-fire. Aside from just giving him even more sustain that can last through Sombra's hack, Brigitte's CC can help set up for a hook - on say a Tracer or Genji - or chain the CC afterwards on higher health targets, and would proc her healing aura at the same time if it wasn't on already.

She can also Shield Bash a Reinhardt while he's advancing to stun him, which - timed with your own Rein's Earth Shatter - is most likely going to be a near auto-win for that team fight.

What's interesting about her kit though is the Ultimate, in that you have no reason not to use Rally the moment it pops up -- at least not so long as your team is alive to benefit from it. The armour doesn't fade away of its own accord. Also its mechanics make it so it applies itself slowly over time, so there's no point in waiting to pop it in the middle of a team fight like a Sound Barrier. You could take Brigitte early til you get her ultimate up, wait for a convenient time between engagements, use Rally, then run back to spawn and swap off her using her increased movement speed.

[Mutazoia]

The main thing is that Orisa's barrier is recharging while her barrier is up. Reinhardt's barrier only recharges while it is down. If your team can procure a teamwipe, that doesn't matter, but in the all DPS clownfiesta meta, that winds up being a real drawback. Orisa's big weakness is flankers. Rein's shield can turn..

Yes, but....

While Rein's shield can turn, Rein is an either/or situation. Either you have your shield up, OR you do damage. You can't do both. Orisa can.

Let's say I'm playing Rein, and a flanker get's behind me. I can turn and try to keep my shield between us as they shoot the **** out of me, or I can drop the shield and hope I can do enough damage to finish them off, before they finish me.

Let's say I'm playing Orisa. My shield is up and I'm sending rounds down range when a flanker gets behind me. I take a few steps forward, as I turn, placing my shield between the flanker and my self, while shooting at the flanker. The flanker moves to get around (through, whatever) my sheild...I take a step or two and put the shield between us again...all while I am hosing sir (or lady) flanker with bullets. I can pop hardening for some extra damage resistance, and throw an orb out to pull the flanker a little further back, all while keeping the shield between us as much as possible. I'm still doing damage, while taking advantage of the shield. Rein can't do that.

[Rynjin]

You SAY that, but I just thought of a probably cancerous comp: Torbjörn, Symmetra, Bridgitte. Just give EVERYONE on the team about 200 extra HP all together, without taking into account the DR from the Armor itself. Extra potent on the likes of Zarya or Zenyatta, who have natural shields so will have more buffer before the armor takes a hit.

The Comp would be tanky as all get out, but would be a bit slow going since it needs Sym to get the Shield Gen up ASAP. But after that? Prepare to fight Team "Everyone is a Tank now."

Does armor stack? I assumed Torb's and Brgitte's armors would simply be "take the higher", just like if you try to pick up multiple armor packs.

[The_Jackal]

Does armor stack? I assumed Torb's and Brgitte's armors would simply be "take the higher", just like if you try to pick up multiple armor packs.

I imagine the cap will be per-character, so yes, you can get double benefit from stacking Torb and Brig. I certainly wouldn't design it so that taking Torb or Brig would occlude parts of each others' kits. But I honestly wouldn't be worried about Brigitte at all.

So here's her problem: She's a hybrid of Lucio and Doomfist, without the mobility. This game is already DOMINATED by mobility, because of how ubiquitous and powerful barriers are. Brig's only mobility power is her ultimate, which may be good, but isn't going to make her effective at actually building her ultimate charge.

Now it's possible that there's someone out there that's smarter than I am, but I don't see any composition that can spare space for a hybrid healer with no mobility, no range, and low damage. Her healing is bursty, but on a long cooldown. 150 health is a nice bump, but it's only 25 per second, that compares unfavorably with Zenyatta, and the armor given for overcapping is only half rate.

[BRC]

I imagine the cap will be per-character, so yes, you can get double benefit from stacking Torb and Brig. I certainly wouldn't design it so that taking Torb or Brig would occlude parts of each others' kits. But I honestly wouldn't be worried about Brigitte at all.

So here's her problem: She's a hybrid of Lucio and Doomfist, without the mobility. This game is already DOMINATED by mobility, because of how ubiquitous and powerful barriers are. Brig's only mobility power is her ultimate, which may be good, but isn't going to make her effective at actually building her ultimate charge.

Now it's possible that there's someone out there that's smarter than I am, but I don't see any composition that can spare space for a hybrid healer with no mobility, no range, and low damage. Her healing is bursty, but on a long cooldown. 150 health is a nice bump, but it's only 25 per second, that compares unfavorably with Zenyatta, and the armor given for overcapping is only half rate.

She's a situational Character, designed for Brawling, (Doomfist is, ironically, not much of a brawler).

She technically has a dash in the form of Shield Slam, which does move her pretty far, but I'm not going to count that as Mobility.


I think about Overwatch engagements in three forms: Skirmishes, Firefights, and Brawls.

Skirmishes are pretty rare, and usually mean one or both teams isn't doing very well. That's where people are running around trying to find opportunities to flank or get kills solo or in small groups. The idea is usually that Offense will get a few kills, weaken the Defense team enough to make a Push for the objective. This rarely works.

Firefights are where the Offensive team is collectively engaging at range, intending to kill a few Defenders in preparation for a Push. This is where Reinhardt and Orisa shine. This is also where Flankers come in, trying to get into the defense team's backline and take out the supports to clear the way for Offense to Push onto the objective.

Brawls are what happens after a push, with everybody fighting in close quarters (usually) on the Objective. If the "Standard" strategy is for Offense to use the Firefight to get an advantage in the Brawl (By killing a few defenders beforehand), "Dive" just means focusing on winning the Brawl/making sure the offense team can reach the point without taking too much damage.

Brigitte is possibly the best defensive brawler in the game. Her lack of mobility means that she's not going to be very good at reaching the point under fire. She can't do that much during Firefights, but she's pretty hard to kill. Her Shield protects her from snipers, and her kit makes her a nightmare for Flankers. She doesn't have good mobility, because she operates under the assumption that she's going to be waiting wherever her enemies are trying to get.

Her job is to survive the firefight, and then help Defense win the ensuing Brawl. She might also be workable as offense on payload escorts, where she doesn't need to move any faster than the Payload does.


As for Team Comps, I don't think she'll be a primary tank or healer, but she could do very well alongside tanks like Roadhog and Zarya, or Healers like Zenyatta and Moira, who are somewhat hybridized themselves. She might be able to go solo-support on a team that includes S76 and Sombra, who can provide a bit of supplemental healing on their own, but I wouldn't expect to see that showing up as a meta comp, maybe as a thing in QP.


edit: also, from what I hear, her Ult charges quickly enough that it can be considered a standard part of her kit to be used basically whenever, rather than something that needs to be saved for an Opportune Moment.

[The_Jackal]

She's a situational Character, designed for Brawling, (Doomfist is, ironically, not much of a brawler).

Allow me to disagree. She's a support. Her damage output is dismally low, with little range. The range on her dash is pitifully short, and her more reliable reach out and touch you ability is her whip shot, which is basically a faster anti-hook, pushing enemies away and doing a touch of burst damage. Between a whipshot/charge/melee cancel, she might be able to string together 165 damage, but her low mobility and reach will make that a 'if you get close, I might punish you' kind of affair. Her most impactful ability is her repair pack, a massive 150 health heal on a 6 second cooldown. Bad for sustain, but great to save a teammate who's being focused down by dive. In fact, between her dash, whip shot, and repair pack, she's basically entirely built around peeling.

As for Team Comps, I don't think she'll be a primary tank or healer, but she could do very well alongside tanks like Roadhog and Zarya, or Healers like Zenyatta and Moira, who are somewhat hybridized themselves. She might be able to go solo-support on a team that includes S76 and Sombra, who can provide a bit of supplemental healing on their own, but I wouldn't expect to see that showing up as a meta comp, maybe as a thing in QP.

I can only see her working in a Reinhardt- or Orisa-anchored deathball comp, or maybe even a triple support comp, with Moira and Zen. Roadhog will definitely feature heavily, with maybe the new Sombra to shut down Pharah dashing overhead, and generally trying to disrupt the enemy and win the ult charge war. The problem I see, however, is that comp just loses to spam comp. Junkrat plus another long-ranged, high damage hero, and pound your team as they plod toward you.

Maybe a caculating Zarya/Rein/Brigitte combo can soak up spam to get Zarya to maximum energy ASAP. Zarya bubbles Rein, That gives her tons of Energy, and Brigitte throws a repair pack, topping him back up. More Zarya energy means faster-charging Grav, and Grav is definitely a game-winner. I dunno.

[NeoVid]

What's interesting about her kit though is the Ultimate, in that you have no reason not to use Rally the moment it pops up -- at least not so long as your team is alive to benefit from it.

There is a good reason to hang onto it: Since it generates 300 armor total over the duration, but the armor caps at 150, it'll absorb more damage overall if you use it while your teammates are getting attacked. I think it'll be used in a lot of the same situations as Sound Barrier, from the look of it as of now.