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Heroes of the Storm PTR patch 49.0 update welcomes Deathwing

Deathwing has arrived and is ready to rain down desolation and destruction on the Nexus in the latest Heroes of the Storm PTR patch.

Ozzie Mejia

November 25, 2019 11:50 AM

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Prior to BlizzCon 2019, Blizzard revealed that Heroes of the Storm's next character would be one of the biggest additions to its MOBA in many years. The names don't really come much bigger than Deathwing if you're a fan of Warcraft lore. It's been almost a month of waiting, but the Worldbreaker is now officially making his debut in the latest Heroes of the Storm PTR update.

Deathwing is exactly as powerful as one would expect him to be. In fact, The Aspect of Death makes him "permanently unstoppable" by grabting him multiple armor plates and allowing him to deal double damage to Heroes. So then is there any downside to this character at all? The sole negative appears to be that in exchange for nigh-omnipotence, Deathwing cannot be healed or buffed by ally abilities at all. Deathwing comes with Form Shift, which allows him to switch back and forth between his Destroyer form and his Worldbreaker form, which changes up his abilities. Deathwing can recharge his armor if he uses Dragonflight, which lets him oversee the map from the air.

Here are Deathwing's abilities:

• (Q) Molten Flame: Deathwing is a dragon. Dragons breathe fire. Watch your opponents melt, as they incur 192 damage per second. On top of that, Deathwing heals himself for a percentage of damage inflicted on Heroes.
• (W - Destroyer) Incinerate: Deathwing flaps his wing and deals 100 damage to surrounding enemies.
• (W - Worldbreaker) Lava Burst: Deathwing will form a pool of magma a short distance away. Enemies inside the lava pool will take damage over time and be Slowed.
• (E - Destroyer) Onslaught: Deathwing lunges at his enemies, dealing damage and inflicting Slow for two seconds. He'll also bite at the end of his lunge for more damage.
• (E - Worldbreaker) Earth Shatter: Deathwing pounds the ground, creating a seismic crack in front of him in a conical pattern. Enemies caught in this attack take damage and are briefly stunned.
• (R) Cataclysm: Deathwing flies in a targeted direction, dealing 100 damage on impact. The affected area will remain scorched for a brief period, dealing additional damage to anyone standing on it.

I'll say this much, if Heroes of the Storm is on its last legs, then it feels like a good time to enjoy what appears to be a wildly broken (and crazy fun) character. Other changes implemented in the latest PTR patch include new Nexus Anomalies, the first of which will see Experience Globes drop onto the battlefield; the start of the Storm League; new bundles; and adjustments to the game's AI.

Learn more about Deathwing and all of the PTR changes over on the Heroes of the Storm website. Look for these changes to hit the full game in the weeks ahead. And remember, if you picked up the BlizzCon Virtual Ticket, Deathwing is yours to own.

Ozzie Mejia

Senior Editor

Ozzie has been playing video games since picking up his first NES controller at age 5. He has been into games ever since, only briefly stepping away during his college years. But he was pulled back in after spending years in QA circles for both THQ and Activision, mostly spending time helping to push forward the Guitar Hero series at its peak. Ozzie has become a big fan of platformers, puzzle games, shooters, and RPGs, just to name a few genres, but he’s also a huge sucker for anything with a good, compelling narrative behind it. Because what are video games if you can't enjoy a good story with a fresh Cherry Coke?