PTR

Published on September 17, 2018

Heroes of the Storm PTR Patch Notes – September 17, 2018

Our next Heroes of the Storm patch has just hit the Public Test Realm and will be available for playtesting until September 24.

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Heroes:

Hero Balance Updates (2)

Kerrigan

Hero Balance Adjustments

Stats Builds Impact

Developer Comment

** Kerrigan is receiving an update to increase the tactical depth of using her abilities and increase the impact that her Talents have on her playstyle. We've reduced the range on Ravage but added a second charge so that smart Kerrigan players can use it to maneuver on the battlefield, as well as utilize a lot of her Talents to get the most out of the ability. We've added a secondary explosion to Primal Grasp so that Kerrigan will want to continue to worry about her positioning after her initial engagement occurs, as well as provide the opportunity for new Talent interactions. We've also added a skillshot component to Ultralisk so that the Heroic can feel like it has a big moment when it is first unleashed. Overall, Kerrigan should play mostly the same, but have increased room for mastery and playstyle specific builds. Return ### Support

Base Abilities & Stats

Ravage (Q)

Charges increased from 1 to 2
Range reduced from 8 to 6
Mana cost reduced from 40 to 20
Damage reduced from 210 to 130
Added functionality:
Now also refunds 20 Mana when used on an enemy that dies within 1.5 seconds

Impaling Blades (W)

Damage reduced from 261 to 180

Primal Grasp (E)

Pull damage reduced from 114 to 25
Added functionality:
2.5 seconds after using Primal Grasp, Kerrigan damages all nearby enemies for 180 damage

Summon Ultralisk (R)

Splash radius increased from 1.5 to 2
The initial cast of Ultralisk is now directional skill shot that causes the Ultralisk to charge in the targeted direction until impacting an enemy Hero. It deals 250 damage and stuns for .5 seconds to the first Hero it hits.

Assimilation (Trait)

Shield amount increased from 10 to 15% of damage dealt

Talent Changes

Level 1

General

Siphoning Impact (Q)
New functionality:
Using Ravage on an enemy Hero grants an additional 90 Assimilation Shield
Assimilation Mastery (Trait)
No longer increases the duration of Assimilation Shield
In addition to increasing Kerrigan’s Health and Mana Regeneration by 100% while Assimilation is active, now also causes Regeneration Globes to grant 40 Assimilation Shield per second while active
Fury of the Swarm (Passive)
New functionality:
Kerrigan gains 10% more Assimilation Shields from Basic Attacks. Casting Ravage causes Kerrigan’s next 2 Basic Attacks within 3 seconds to splash for 100% damage around the target
Sharpened Blades (W)
Removed
Block (Passive)
Removed

Level 4

New Talent - Sharpened Blades (Q)

!Quest: Every time an enemy Minion or Hero dies within 1.5 seconds of being damaged by Ravage, increase Ravage's damage by .5 (5 for Heroes), up to 50
!Reward: After reaching 50 damage, gain an additional 50 damage

New Talent - Kinetic Fulmination (W)

Damaging an enemy increases the damage of Kerrigan's next Impaling Blades by 15%. Stacks up to 150%. Lasts 10 seconds.
Psionic Pulse (E)
New functionality:
Primal Grasp deals damage a second time 2.5 seconds after the initial burst
Clean Kill (Q)
Removed
Envenom (Active)
Removed

Level 7

New Talent - Queen of Blades (Q)

Every time Primal Grasp's pull or explosion hits an enemy Hero, reduce the cooldown of Ravage by 4 seconds

New Talent - Boundless Fury (Q)

Casting Ravage on an enemy Hero grants a charge of Ravage. Can only occur on each Hero once every 10 seconds
Bladed Momentum (Passive)
Now only triggers when attacking enemy Heroes
Now works with splash damage from Fury of the Swarm
Blade Torrent (W)
Removed

Level 13

New Talent - Psionic Barrier (E)

Kerrigan gains 15 Spell Armor for 4 seconds for every enemy Hero she hits with Primal Grasp's pull or explosion

New Talent - Volatile Power (Trait)

Increase the base Shield amount gained from Assimilation by 15%, but reduce the duration of Assimilation Shields from 6 to 3 seconds

New Talent - Chrysalis (Active)

Activate to place Kerrigan in a chrysalis with 550 Health for 5 seconds. Kerrigan regenerates 5% Health per second while inside the chrysalis. 90 second cooldown.
Eviscerate (Q)
Removed
Double Strike (Q)
Removed
Queen’s Rush (Active)
Removed

Level 16

New Talent - Mounting Potency (Q)

Casting Ravage on an enemy increases Kerrigan's Spell Power by 5% for 4 seconds, stacking up to 40%

New Talent - Painful Spikes (W)

After stunning an enemy with Impale, Kerrigan deals an additional 75 damage the next 6 times she damages them within the next 5 seconds

New Talent - Unbridled Energy (R)

When Kerrigan damages a Hero with a Heroic Ability she gains 30% Spell Power for 4 seconds
Aggressive Defense (Trait)
Removed
Essence for Essence (Active)
Removed
Overdrive (Active)
Removed
Omegastorm (R)
New Functionality:
Maelstrom's duration is increased by .125 seconds every time it damages an enemy Hero

Level 20

New Talent - Assimilation Blades (Trait)

Damaging an enemy increases Kerrigan's Basic Attack damage by 4%, up to 40%, for 5 seconds
Psionic Shift (Active)
Shield amount is now doubled when damaging enemy Heroes
Nexus Blades (Passive)
Removed

Brightwing

Hero Balance Adjustments

Stats Builds Impact

Developer Comment

** Late last year we decided that we wanted to add a fun mini-game to Brightwing utilizing her Arcane Flare as the focal point. As it often happens, while making the initial changes we started diving in deeper and deeper. Nearly a year later, we are excited to showcase a fully updated talent tree alongside some fundamental game-play changes to our resident Faerie Dragon. With a baseline AoE cleanse-type effect and added healing potential to her Arcane Flare, Brightwing should bring some new major play-making abilities to her team. Return ### Collection New Bundles

Base Abilities & Stats

Arcane Flare (Q)

Outer damage from 87 to 75
Inner damage from 260 to 180
Missile speed increased ~30%
Added functionality:
If an enemy Hero is hit by the center of Arcane Flare, instantly pulse a free Soothing Mist

Polymorph (W)

Duration from 1.25 to 1.5 seconds
Cooldown from 10 to 12 seconds

Pixie Dust (E)

Range from 8 to 7

Phase Shift (Z)

Cooldown from 55 to 60 seconds
Added functionality:
Heals the target for 20% of their maximum health

Soothing Mist (D)

Heal amount reduced from 115 to 105
Added functionality:
Activate to instantly pulse a calming wave, clearing all Stun, Root, Slow, and Silence effects from nearby allies
120 second cooldown

Emerald Wind (R)

No longer grants passive healing to Soothing Mist
Damage reduced from 303 to 225
Cooldown reduced from 60 to 50 seconds

Talent Changes

Level 1

General

Greater Polymorph (W)
New functionality:
Increase the cast range of Polymorph by 30%. Anytime a nearby enemy Hero is killed, reset the Cooldown of Polymorph
Hyper Shift (Z)
New functionality:
Increase the heal amount of Phase Shift to 30% of targets max Health
Every Minion killed near you lowers the cooldown of Phase Shift by 2 seconds
Pixie Charm (1)
New functionality:
Every Minion killed near you grants you a Bribe Stack. Hitting an enemy with the center portion of Arcane Flare grants you 5 Bribe Stacks
Manic Pixie (E)
Removed
Unstable Anomaly (W)
New functionality:
Increase the slow amount of Polymorph to 40%. When it expires, it explodes dealing 2% of all nearby enemy Heroes max Health in damage
Dream Shot (Q)
New functionality:
Increase the range of Arcane Flare by 50%. If it hits an enemy Hero, lower the cooldown to 2 seconds.

New Talent – Magic Spit (D)

Increase your Basic Attack range by 20%. Attacks against Heroes reduce the cooldown of Soothing Mist’s active by 5 seconds
Mistified (D)
Removed
Cleanse (Active)
Removed
Phase Shield (Z)
Removed
Sticky Flare (Q)
New functionality:
Arcane Flare slows Heroes by 20% for 3 seconds, or 40% if hit by the center of Arcane Flare
Peekaboo! (Z)
Added functionality:
Also grants the you and your target a temporary health Shield

Level 4

New Talent – Critical Mist (D)

If Calming Mist removes a status effect from an ally, instantly heal them for 200
Ice Block (Active)
Removed
Shield Dust (E)
Removed
Pixie Boost (E)
Movement Speed decay duration increased from 1.5 to 3 seconds
Movement Speed bonus reduced to 40%

Level 13

New Talent – Safety Dust (E)

Increase the duration of Pixie Dust by 1 second. Healing dealt by Brightwing is increased by 25% on targets with Pixie Dust

New Talent – Pixie Power (E)

Lower the cooldown of Pixie Dust by 3 seconds and increase the Spell Armor it grants to 50
Bouncy Dust (E)
Removed
Hardened Focus (Passive)
Removed

Level 16

New Talent – Phase Out (Active)

Activate to phase out and become invulnerable for .5 seconds
20 second cooldown

New Talent – Hush (Q)

Enemy Heroes hit with the center of Arcane Flare are Silenced for 1 second and deal 25% less damage for 3 seconds.
Double Wyrmhole (R)
Removed
Continuous Winds (R)
Removed
Revitalizing Mist (D)
Removed
Storm Shield (Active)
Removed

Level 20

New Talent – Invisible Friends (R)

Blink Heal grants you and the target stealth. They are unrevealable for .5 seconds. While under this effect, they regenerate 20 Health Per Second

New Talent – Intensive Winds (R)

Lower the cooldown of Emerald Wind to 3 seconds. It now costs 200 Mana

New Talent – Faerie Protector (Active)

Activate to instantly cast Pixie Dust on all nearby allied Heroes
60 second cooldown

New Talent – Speedy Dragon (Passive)

Gain 20% permanent movement speed
The following new bundles are available for a limited time:
Fall of King’s Crest Bundle
Spectral Wyrm Alextrasza Skin Pack
Spider Warden Maiev Skin Pack
Cursed Witch Whitemane Skin Pack
Phantom Knight Zarya Skin Pack
Queen Nightshade
Blackheart
Lady of Thorns

Alexstrasza

Spectral Wyrm Alexstrasza
Infernal Wyrm Alexstrasza
Phantom Wyrm Alexstrasza

Brightwing

Spectral Bewitching Brightwing

Kerrigan

Spectral Countess Kerrigan

Maiev

Spider Warden Maiev
Forgotten Spider Warden Maiev
Night Spider Warden Maiev

Whitemane

Cursed Witch Whitemane
Forgotten Witch Whitemane
Court Witch Whitemane

Zarya

Phantom Knight Zarya
Infernal Knight Zarya
Geist Knight Zarya
Redeemed Tombstone
Corrupted Tombstone
Copper Money Pig
Pumpkin Eye Pad
Sunny Side Eye Pad
Several new emoji packs and portraits have also been added to the Heroes of the Storm Collection tab.

Bug Fixes

General

Fixed several confusing or incorrect tooltips across all parts of the game.
Drag Scroll: Fixed an issue that could occasionally cause the camera to jump in the direction of the cursor when using the drag scroll feature.
Reconnect: Fixed an issue that could cause players to lose control of their Hero if they reconnect while piloting a vehicle.
AI: A number of improvements have been made to AI Hero behavior.

Art

Chromie: Fixed an issue that caused Chromie’s hourglass to go missing during her Hearthstone animation.

Heroes, Abilities, and Talents

Abathur: Fixed an issue preventing Monstrosity from gaining damage when nearby enemy minions die.
Alarak & Gazlowe: Fixed an issue that allowed Gazlowe and Alarak to cast charged abilities while time stopped.
Ana: Fixed an issue that allowed Ana to used Eye of Horus shots between mine levels on Haunted Mines.
Lúcio: Fixed an issue preventing Lúcio from issuing attack commands while silenced.
Mephisto: Fixed an issue preventing the Static Barrier talent from granting Mephisto shields if damage was dealt to Shields or Protected Heroes.
Raynor: Raynor’s Raider will now clear attack or move order when entering or exiting the mines on Haunted Mines.
Stealth: Fixed an issue that prevented Ping markers from being visible on clones if the clones were created after the ping was initiated.

User Interface

Fixed an issue that caused Garrosh’s Groundbreaker splat to appear under the wrong team color in observer mode.
Fixed an issue that could cause Heroes to fail to play stun animations and effects if stunned twice in quick succession.
Lúcio: Fixed an issue causing the UI displaying the number of allies in range of crossfade to stop working after Lúcio exits a vehicle.