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Adjusting the Meta: Patch 54.4 Recap

Forum Index > Heroes of the Storm
3 CommentsPost a Reply

Adjusting the Meta: Patch 54.4 Recap

Text byTL.net ESPORTS
September 29th, 2021 16:33 GMT




Adjusting the Meta


Patch 54.4 Recap


Written by: Koznarov




Balance patch 54.4 has just arrived at the Nexus. Unlike many other patches, most of its adjustments are very subtle, trying to slightly alter the meta and some heroes’ builds. On the front-lane side we can find buffs to E.T.C and Thrall. Though still being somehow popular, these Horde characters were far from their peak performances, so these changes might be just what they needed. We’ll see how the Warchief and the Chieftain evolve with these improvements, which should help them overcome their worse matchups. Speaking of tanks and bruisers, Gazlowe has been slightly nerfed. Since the goblin got his new role as a bruiser, he has been one of the most contested picks in that role. Gazlowe mains should start thinking about more heroes to play, because the devs comment this may not be his last nerf.

One of the targets of patch 54.4 has been shuffling the healer meta. Stukov and Brightwing used to perform much better than their counterparts. Malfurion also had his good share of competitive games, but the druid’s numbers in ranked games were—and still are—much worse. The meta might change drastically, as both Stukov and Brightwing have been nerfed and other unsung heroes have received some buffs. Li Li’s healings are based on proyectiles, and the speed of those proyectiles has been increased. This change makes her much more reliable and allows the panda to adopt a safer positioning in teamfights. Ana’s talents have received a few new functionalities, trying to improve her build diversity. We’ll need to keep an eye on the Overwatch sniper, as these new features could have unpredictable results. Apart from the healers, Zarya has received some great power-ups. Her basic attacks and energy generation have been remarkably improved. With a higher damage output, the support from Overwatch may now become a really serious threat.





Survivability of the Immobile


The last changes of this patch affect the assassins, especially some ranged ones. Valla’s W, Multishot, has been nerfed by reducing its damage and increasing its cooldown. Her gambit talent has been buffed, as it was the least popular level 1 choice. Nazeebo’s spiders have been nerfed, while his toads received small buffs. Zagara, after being hit by some of the toughest nerfs ever, has gained some base health and health regeneration. Those health buffs have also been applied to two other immobile heroes: Kel’Thuzad and Kael’thas. And they've also received a couple more improvements. The lich’s Glacial Spike now hits harder, as its damage has risen from 60 to 70. The Sunstrider has also improved his damage output with a more deadly Phoenix.

Will these KT & KT buffs bring a meta of mages? Probably not, as one of their natural predators has also received some improvements. Maiev’s D, Vault of the Wardens, now has an additional charge at level 20. This extra leap turns the Warcraft warden into a late game threat. Some of her talents have also been buffed for the sake of talent diversity. Though they weren’t the most popular choices, most of them were already viable, so there's a chance they now become too strong. The dev team acknowledges this situation, as Associate Game Designer Josh Kofalt explained on Reddit:

“Most of her changes were not focused on increasing Maiev's overall strength, and instead were about rising weaker and under-picked talents to be on par with the popular choice. At higher skill levels of play, buffs to weak talents often have a minor impact on a Hero's overall strength, as these players were not picking the weaker talents. That said, there are high-skilled Maiev players who picked some of these talents and are now going to be stronger.

So why the new baseline functionality? Simply because her 20 talents are weaker than her fellow Melee Assassins, and it's visible when comparing level 20 talent win rates. More popular Melee Assassins at Master Storm League include Heroes like Zeratul and Alarak, who have incredibly strong options such as Shadow Stride and Hasty Bargain. Maiev's level 20 talents have a wide range of effects with decent parity, which we like, but they don't help her secure wins as often.

Going forward, we are confident that if Maiev does become over dominant that we can address it. It wouldn't surprise us if some of these buffed talents were already strong enough to be a competitive option and they were just simply undervalued. We don't believe any of these recent changes affect Maiev's core identity, so we can easily reduce them or revert them if needed.”





Are you enjoying the buffs? Are you dealing with the nerfs? Let us know what you think of patch 54.4!





If you enjoyed this piece, check out our latest articles:

Heroes of the Summer: Storm League & X-Cup
The Zagara Case: Analysis of Patch 54.3
The NGS Update: Storm Division & HCI
CCL Season 2 Finals: A Sudden Patch
Masters Clash Championship Recap




Writer(s): Samuel Fuentes
Editor(s): Samuel Fuentes
Formatting: Samuel Fuentes
Design: shiroiusagi
Art Credit: Blizzard

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TL+ Member
mcmartini
Profile Blog Joined December 2010
Australia1972 Posts
September 30 2021 09:58 GMT
#2
Meant to be on HOTS forum?
I just want to say I have 370 APM - Liquid'Tyler SotG 14-12-2011 "I mean it's too bad you can't be paid to be, you know, a chicken shit fucking whiny bitch on the internet or we would have lots of rich community members" Nick "Tasteless" Plott
Beelzebub1
Profile Joined May 2015
1004 Posts
September 30 2021 13:47 GMT
#3
Amazing that they still actively patch this game (which I'm grateful for HOTS is still a very solid MOBA) but they won't even comment on Starcraft 2 meta or balance.
WombaT
Profile Blog Joined May 2010
Northern Ireland25090 Posts
October 03 2021 10:05 GMT
#4
On September 30 2021 22:47 Beelzebub1 wrote:
Amazing that they still actively patch this game (which I'm grateful for HOTS is still a very solid MOBA) but they won't even comment on Starcraft 2 meta or balance.

Yeah it seems odd to me but hey can’t begrudge at least one title getting a little love.
'You'll always be the cuddly marsupial of my heart, despite the inherent flaws of your ancestry' - Squat
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