Finally!
Once again, huge changes are coming to the very much alive Heroes of the Storm.
Amid reworks for D.va and Gazlowe, the game is also eliminating Heroes Brawl (RIP and replacing it with ARAM (All Random All Middle). In case you forgot, Heroes of the Storm introduced “Brawl” (in the same vein as Hearthstone) several years ago. While it was decently received at first it never really stuck, as Blizzard seemingly ran out of resources to support it; over time, it stopped producing new Brawls and just recycled old ones.
ARAM, on the other hand, has been thriving. Up until this month it hasn’t been an official mode, so folks have either been waiting for it to randomly arrive in that week’s Brawl or play it unofficially via private games, using Discord servers to meet up. Now all you need to do is click a mode and go: just like several other high-profile MOBAs.
The game itself is also getting a huge mechanical shakeup with the Nexus Anomaly “Gladiator’s Medallion.” Taken from the classic WoW item nomenclature, the idea is that everyone (except Deathwing and Gall) now have a baseline item that can be activated to provide unstoppable (a self-cleanse): countering things like roots and stuns. This powerful ability will run on a 300 second cooldown for balance purposes.
The ripple of this anomaly will be felt throughout the game. Players have been complaining for a long while that certain supports don’t have a cleanse and that the game is too stun/crowd-control (CC) heavy; but the jury is out on whether or not this is a long, or even short-term solution.
You can take a look at the full patch notes for the alterations below. In other balance news, Alarak is getting a small buff, Cassia is getting a small level seven talent nerf, Chromie is getting a small nerf, Deckard’s Ruby ability is being toned down (the cooldown is now 20 seconds), Stitches will gain a small buff for slam (10% more bonus damage to minions and mercenaries) and E.T.C., Imperius, Orphea, Tassadar and Yrel are all getting small nerfs. You can find those changes here.
Nexus Anomaly
New Nexus Anomaly – Gladiator’s Medallion
- Heroes now start the game with a new item on their action bar, the Gladiator’s Medallion.
- The Gladiator’s Medallion can be activated to become Unstoppable for 1 second.
- The cooldown is 300 seconds (5 minutes).
- Deathwing and Gall do not start with a Gladiator’s Medallion.
- All 3 of The Lost Vikings gain the effect of the Medallion when activated.
Developer Comment: Our goal for the Gladiator’s Medallion is to give players more opportunities to commit to aggressive plays and relieve some of the helplessness felt when players get stuck in long CC chains.
Introducing ARAM Mode
With the Patch H.52, we are replacing Heroes Brawl mode with the new ARAM – All Random All Mid mode.
ARAM mode key features:
- The map pool for ARAM mode consists of four one-lane maps.
- There are no additional objectives on the ARAM maps: destroy the enemy Core to win.
- As match starts, every player must pick one out of three randomly selected heroes. Think fast: you have only 30 seconds!
- Hearthstones are disabled, and starting area does not regenerate health.
- Unlike Heroes Brawl, there’s no dedicated Weekly Quest exclusive to this mode. Instead,
- ARAM games contribute to Daily Quests and Special Event Quests progress.
Collection
Many seasonal items will be returning to the collection, and will be available for crafting and in Loot Chests for a limited time!
New Bundles
- Worlds Collide Bundle
- Interdimensional Fusion Bundle
- Terran Alliance Bundle
- Draenei Executor Artanis Skin Pack
- King of Blades Arthas Skin Pack
- Mineral Harvester Gazlowe Skin Pack
- Necrotoplogist Mei Skin Pack
- Invincilisk Bundle
Returning Bundles
- Baby-Face Orphea Bundle
- Big Shot Sgt. Hammer Bundle
- Getaway Sidecar Bundle
- Raccoon Bundle
- Showstopper Whitemane Bundle
- Wiseguy Junkrat Bundle
New Skins
- King of Blades Arthas
- Venomous King of Blades Arthas
- Lavawrought King of Blades Arthas
- Draenei Executor Artanis
- Royal Draenei Executor Artanis
- Darksteel Draenei Executor Artanis
- Emperor of the Dominion Anduin
- Glorious Emperor of the Dominion Anduin
- Studious Emperor of the Dominion Anduin
- Necrotopologist Mei
- Frostbitten Necrotopologist Mei
- Devilish Necrotopologist Mei
- Mineral Harvester Gazlowe
- Firebat Mineral Harvester Gazlowe
- Rich Mineral Harvester Gazlowe
- Galvanic Fel Reaver Blaze
- Angelic Medic Uther
- Angelic Raider Rexxar
- Acid Apothecary Morales
- Earthy Grunty Murky
- Scorch Spectre Illidan
- Shining D.Va
New Mounts
- Invincilisk
- Slimeheart Invincilisk
- Sulphurous Invincilisk
- Iron Kite
- Stormgarde Iron Kite
- Kul Tiras Iron Kite
New Content
- Several new Portraits, Sprays and other items have been added to the Collection!
Storm League
- Seasonal Quest Line wins requirements have been reduced in Season 4.
- Steps and Rewards in Season 4 of 2020
- 5 Wins: Craft Wars Chest
- 10 Wins: Rare Craft Wars Chest
- 20 Wins: Epic Craft Wars Chest
- 35 Wins: Tamed Ravasaur Mount
- 35 Wins: Eligibility for End of Season 4 Rewards and Grand Master Leaderboards
- Storm League Reward Mounts
- The final reward of the 2020 Season 4 Questline will be the Tamed Ravasaur Mount, which will be awarded after winning 35 games in Ranked Play.
