Walk the Line

 

HotS is hard. Ranked games are hard even though most are trying to move up. The greatest part about MOBAs is their complexity but this also makes them challenging. HotS is a combination of mastering hero mechanics (abilities, skill shots, muscle memory) and knowledge of how your hero works with your team and against the opponents (micro). On top of all this we can’t forget playing for camps, objectives, and staying up on XP, usually called “macro.” It goes without saying these aren’t isolated. They’re fundamentally connected and work off one another. Because they’re reciprocal the “little things” in each realm add up to big wins, getting stomped, and those games right on the edge. From watching and playing HotS there’re a few lines I see players walk, for better or worse.

Patience and Hesitation: I see this gray area mainly in micro play. I’ve been playing a lot of Fenix lately and I get super excited when I see Diablo, Mei, or the cow drafted for my team. The “Dream” is all I can think about. The mosh, apoc, or avalanche catches multiple heroes as I “fire the laser” deleting half their team. Planet cracker has a pretty long cooldown so I’m really hoping the tank sees my ping that it’s not ready for another 15 seconds. Even if they do see it they take half their health bar in spell damage during those 15 seconds and then try to make the play. It’s not the dream.

 The flip side of patience here is hesitation. Ults are all up, I ping it’s ready, the tank loses half their health looking for the absolute perfect set up. They’ve hesitated so long that their play is telegraphed and evaded. I find hesitation more frustrating than impatience (I feel this as a tank too, like, where is the follow up, did you not see my play coming?) but navigating that balance seems to be something better players have down.

 Playing With Your Team and Playing As A Team: Again a thin line here. By with I mean following your teams’ frantic pings to be somewhere or do something regardless of what is going on elsewhere. Playing as a team means your decisions are guided by goals beyond what your team has tunnel visioned on. You recognize you’d gain value from a different course; value you see higher than the value you’d bring to playing with your team in that situation. You’ll then have to face the inevitable criticism that follows.

 Individual quests are ripe for this issue. Getting 100 Naz stacks for thing of the deep on ToSQ takes precedence over a 4v5 at bottom camp. Especially if I can sneak getting their top wall with my zombies and frogs (macro value). We lose the camp. One teammate dies. A couple enemies are low and have to back. We picked up the gems from our fallen comrade or maybe we lost those gems. At what point did my decision to play as a team become more costly than playing with my team? Sometimes I may just have to show up to the brawl, regardless. The line gets pretty blurry but game knowledge, confidence, and weathering the rage for playing as a team seems to set players apart.

 Main and Train: For this point we’re going to limit it to ranked mode and the character draft. We all have heroes that we “main,” that we’ve played a ton of matches with, and really enjoy. Probably a role too. Then there’s those heroes we’re comfortable on and of course our 30% win rate Alaraks. The two schools of thought when it comes to drafting would be to pick your main despite what others want to play or to flex into a role or character you’re less familiar with. If you’re 100% playing a hero, role, or not that role it can put pressure on your team to draft around you.

 Artanis is my main. I got to Plat 3 last season (yeah, I’m proud, whatever) by picking him literally every game. I learned who he trades into, what builds when, and of course God swaps. I dunno why I gave up on it but maybe just felt guilty. My thinking is that figuring out other heroes could help me get an even better grasp on Art. Muradin is gonna’ jump here, stupid Anduin gonna’ pull, and Murky gonna’ murk that camp; cause’ that’s what I do when I play them. Maive is gonna’ I have no idea because I’ve never played them.

Of these lines, these teeter-totters, these gray areas, the jury is still out on the last one, for me. With patience and hesitation I can at least see why something did or didn’t work. Team play and macro are probably my favorite aspects in HotS. Different maps and comps come with their own nuances, complexity. There’s always more to learn though.