EPT
Rexxar, Champion of the Horde, is the first Ranged Warrior in Heroes of the Storm. Rexxar’s trait allows him to control Misha, his loyal bear, to stun and disrupt the enemy team. We set out to ask some professional players and streamers for their thoughts about Rexxar and they shared their opinion about his design, his viability, their experience with him so far and what would they change, if anything, from the hero. This is what they had to say.
Fury, Murloc Geniuses.
We want to know what do you think about his design?
I really like where Blizzard followed the story of how well Rexxar works with his companions, specially Misha.They really put focus where one cannot do anything without the other and I think putting that lore into gameplay is epic!
How viable you think he will be?
So far I can't see Rexxar and Misha being the only Warrior for the team, he would need a very specific role for the team if he was the only one. I can see him in a composition of two Warriors and having Rexxar solo a lane and safely gather XP for the team with the help of Misha, or have him group early with a healer and a Assassin/Specialist pushing a lane while Misha soaks a lot of the damage and can scout a gank for the group with Flare if taken at level 1.
What would you change from him if anything?
The first thing I noticed when his abilities were shown off is that Beast wrath doesn't enrage Rexxar alongside Misha. After playing World of Warcraft I felt that was the whole point of that ability, to see the man and beast become one and go ham together. Also I would like to have more commands and such to control Misha much smoother such as sending her off to scout a nearby brush and if she goes too far from Rexxar she will retreat until she engages an enemy.
What has been your experience with him so far?
When I played him I felt like I controlled the lane I was put in with Misha taking all the damage for me while I play safer behind her. In team fights it feels a bit odd when you set her to attack command, sometimes I find her very far away from the target I am trying to hunt down.
Last thing is I feel Misha's auto attack damage is very low and the beast wrath ultimate doesn't feel as strong as it should, specially when it only buffs Misha.
Grubby WarCraft III and StarCraft 2 legend
It's difficult to accurately predict what Rexxar's impact in the metagame will be, because he seems to have over 15 bugs affecting him currently. I don't know which of these will be partially intended features, and which of them will be changed. Right now it's possible to send Misha anywhere on the map that you want him to go. Is that intended? So I'll base my opinions on his current state.
- Design: Rexxar seems designed to appeal to people who like pets, and to create a new kind of Hero that doesn't fit the mold of standard Heroes. The pet creates a special interaction which is fun and different to learn. The pet gives 25% XP when it dies, which is fair enough. Deciding who to take out first creates a challenge for the opponent because Rexxar is higher value, weaker, but further back. Rexxar will tempt opponents to get pulled out of position and the Bear can protect Rexxar and the other backline, especially when used well.
- Q
His Spirit Swoop (Q) is comparable to the latest warrior's Johanna's Punish (Q) and Leoric's Skeletal Swing (Q) in that it damages and slows over a particular unique pattern. It's a good talent to have for Warriors, not much else to say. - W
Misha, Charge! (W) is like Power Slide (Q) for ETC, except it's a directional skill shot on your pet. This is the most powerful Rexxar ability and one of the main reasons you'd want to choose Rexxar. - E
Mend Pet (E) is not very interesting. It's something for you to do to keep it alive, but doesn't distinguish itself much from a situation where you can't use the ability but the Pet simply has more HP or more Regeneration. It adds up to a general higher survivability and can be talented in to, but... it's not very exciting. It's actually very similar to Guitar Hero (E) on ETC, except Guitar Hero also activates the trait (Rockstar).
- Q
- Viability: Rexxar can be talented as a great and safe PvE'r, adds a 1.25s stun on potentially multiple targets, without being out of position. You could have Misha be near an enemy Ravenous Spirit Nazeebo to cancel his Heroic, without risking overly much. The Bear is guaranteed to hit more targets against more enemy Melee targets. Level 7 "Bird of Prey" is fantastic at taking out enemy summoned creatures like Water Elemental, Ultralisk, Gargantuan or Hydralisks. There is a build diversity in Rexxar which is only limited by Rexxar's own vulnerability - I think this is on purpose. A tanky or extremely escapable Rexxar would be too powerful.
- Controls: There are his basic controls, then there's how you can positively abuse them, but there are also negative aspects where he feels clunky. It may be intended that he's not separately operable as a Lost Viking, as Misha might become too powerful. I don't enjoy the circumspect controls as much though, as I'd prefer more control for a compensated weaker Hero. Right now you can use Rexxar Misha to double soak, or scout somewhere, which is quite useful.
- Changes: I think Blizzard learnt a lot from their first set of 20+ Heroes, and are creating more interesting and diverse talent trees. Johanna, Rexxar and even Leoric have well diversified talent trees that are still changing in the meta. I just wish he was nicer to control. It seems quite random where the Bear goes sometimes. Sometimes I'm hiding in a bush and the Bear lopes out. More AI pls! :D
- Tier: As everyone will always be wondering... :D how strong is he?! Well, I think Rexxar is about Tier 3, useable or even strong in certain situations but not first-pick or always-pick material. I think Misha/Rexxar is pretty good against melee Assassins like Kerrigan, Thrall and Butcher, due to strong and safe CC.
Dunktrain, Captain of Cloud9
Overall, I like Rexxar pretty well. As far as Heroes goes his kit is pretty solid, if a bit boring for my taste in MOBAs overall. I think he plays well, but has some clunkiness issues that can make him a bit frustrating. When Rexxar, and specifically Misha, are behaving as expected it is very fun, and really hits the thematic elements of a pet character.
The things I would change are just a couple issues that stand out to me. The first is that Rexxar is un-impactful and feels weak relative to Misha, which makes it feel like Rexxar is the secondary character instead of the pet. That is a little bit frustrating, and I'd like the power to be a little more skewed in Rexxar's favor. Additionally, I think the character would really benefit from having a more direct control scheme for Misha. While the current system, bugs excluded, is rather elegant for allowing even novice players to access the character, it should not require workarounds like waypointing for experienced players to control Misha as they prefer. As far as actual power level and competitive viability, I think the character will be viable, but I'm not certain in which exact situations he excels yet.
Iakona, Main Support of COGnitive Gaming
I think his base kit overall is kind of weak and heavily relies on Misha, which has an inconsistent AI. Sometimes Misha is godly and goes and dismounts people, stops mercenary camps from being captured, but sometimes she body blocks your own teammates. Both of his heroics seem kind of meh, unleash the boars provides a little utility so it's the heroic usually chosen right now.
Even though Rexxar is a Warrior he seems to be pretty squishy, along the lines of Sonya, but he doesn't have the insane damage to back it up. He does have some good talents though like feign death and birds of prey.
From a Support perspective, generally I don't have to focus on healing Misha because Rexxar's ability Mend Pet is on such a short CD. The one thing to watch out for though is that Misha counts as a hero, so for clicking priority you will need to watch out to not divine shield her or what not. She probably also takes priority with jug of 1,000 cups so supports just need to take extra caution when they want to try to use their spells and Misha's around.
