[Dingobloo]

HOTS Balance Update #11

Blizzard are back. After a much needed Christmas break they have released another Heart of the Swarm Beta Balance Update with changes to the reaper, siege tank and more that are sure to raise some eyebrows:

Terran

• Barracks
  • Train Reaper no longer requires a Tech Lab Addon.
• Hellbat
  • Attack speed changed from 1.9 to 2.
  • The Infernal Pre-Igniter upgrade no longer increases Hellbat weapon damage.
  • Napalm Spray weapon damage increased from 10 +9 vs. light to 18 +12 vs. light.
  • Splash damage radius decreased from 110 to 45.
• Medivac
  • Caduceus Reactor
    • No longer improves the healing rate of Medivacs.
    • Upgrade cost decreased from 150/150 and 110 seconds to 100/100 and 80 seconds.
    • Emergency Thrusters ability renamed Ignite Afterburners.
• Raven
  • Seeker missile
    • Energy cost decreased from 125 to 75.
    • Primary target damage reverted from 300 to 100.
    • Seeker Missile once again deals splash damage.
    • The delay time prior to firing has been increased from 3 to 5 seconds.
• Reaper
  • The Battlefield Awareness passive ability has been removed from the game.
  • Movement speed increased from 3.38 to 3.75.
  • The Nitro Packs upgrade has been removed from the game.
  • P-45 Gauss Pistol weapon damage decreased from 4 +5 vs. Light to 4.
• Siege Tank
  • Siege Tanks no longer require an upgrade in order to enter Siege Mode.

Protoss

• Mothership
  • The Vortex ability has been removed from the game.
• Mothership Core
  • The Envision ability has been moved to Oracle.
• Oracle
  • The Time Warp ability has been moved to the Mothership Core and the Mothership.

Zerg

• Infestor
  • Fungal Growth damage decreased from 30 +10 vs. Armored to 30.
• Mutalisk
  • Mutalisk Regeneration passive ability renamed Tissue Regeneration and its tooltip has been updated to improve clarity.
    

Learn More:

BETA BALANCE UPDATE #11 – JANUARY 9, 2013
THOUGHTS ON BALANCE UPDATE #11

[ROOTPetraeus]

Wow big changes! Looks pretty good... except for the siege mode change. Terran will never lose to all ins now =/

[TAHawkeye]

So what does the Caduceus Reactor upgrade do? Does it provide the boost ability?

Nvm energy reduction


Dat siege tank change is nice

Quick Comments

DUCKVILLELOL:

It improves the cost efficiency, but doesn't improve HPS

[DUCKVILLELOL]

One of the interesting parts about the "thoughts on changes" thingo:

We feel that the most necessary, core use of this ability is: fighting against Mutalisks. So we're trying a general downgrade against all Armored units to see how that goes.

The core use of fungal is anti-muta? Obviously it's a part of it but core?

Anyway cool patch, I am now scared to play HOTS Terran because I know when I play in SEACL as Terran I'll forget siege and look like a moron

[Thoth]

^ they should change that statement to mean "fungals core use was stopping high mobility units from getting the better of zerg"

[SLCN.NXZ]

Originally Posted by DUCKVILLELOL

One of the interesting parts about the "thoughts on changes" thingo:



The core use of fungal is anti-muta? Obviously it's a part of it but core?

Anyway cool patch, I am now scared to play HOTS Terran because I know when I play in SEACL as Terran I'll forget siege and look like a moron

It is the core reason, no one made infestors before they were buffed UNLESS it was ZvMuta. Zerg pretty much needed fungal to deal with mutas. Now mutas got buffed and infestors nerfed so mutas are imba good.

[Dingobloo]

Originally Posted by DUCKVILLELOL

One of the interesting parts about the "thoughts on changes" thingo:



The core use of fungal is anti-muta? Obviously it's a part of it but core?

Anyway cool patch, I am now scared to play HOTS Terran because I know when I play in SEACL as Terran I'll forget siege and look like a moron

It's weird phrasing I agree but part of the reasons they couldn't keep the slow projectiles or remove the ability for fungal to hit air (which was in a balance map a while back) was because it's one of the only ways to break muta vs muta, most of the other functions of fungal can be moved or replicated to other units, but providing asymmetry in ZvZ can almost only be performed by the infestor.

[jayaiwhy]

Originally Posted by aLtNXZ

It is the core reason, no one made infestors before they were buffed UNLESS it was ZvMuta. Zerg pretty much needed fungal to deal with mutas. Now mutas got buffed and infestors nerfed so mutas are imba good.

People say Mutas are better in HotS in ZvZ, but I've yet to understand that concept yet :\

How are Mutas "imba" good?

Sure they move faster and have better health regen, but once you get them fungal'd, they'll be chain fungal'd and still die won't they?

Quick Comments

ROOTPetraeus:

harder to land fungals

[DUCKVILLELOL]

Originally Posted by Dingobloo

It's weird phrasing I agree but part of the reasons they couldn't keep slow projectiles or remove the ability for fungal to hit air (which was in a balance map a while back) was because it's one of the only ways to break muta vs muta, most of the other functions of fungal can be moved or replicated to other units, but providing asymmetry in ZvZ can almost only be performed by the infestor.

Ohhh I see I see, fair enough!

[Malice]

Time warp from oracle to mothership core. I don't understand that at all.....

Quick Comments

SLCN.Kez:

time warp was too good vs bio

[mGGDrGooSe]

So if terrans are complaing about late game strength, and zergs are complaining about mid game strength and tech pidgeonholing, why did we get this as a patch?

Quick Comments

	ROOTPetraeus:	blizzard only listens to protoss QQ!
	ToRLuneth:	4 protoss gsl.

[SLCN.Kez]

How did this patch pidgeonhole tech? Terran now has a much more viable opener in all m/u's, mech is a lot more viable in tvp now, infestors are still possible to use zvt, and zvz/zvp to supplement, mutas more viable all mu/s, hydras are actually pretty good, protoss can open robo/stargate no problems. Late game strength is dependent on early game strength which this patch helps. They might have to tone down reapers slighty and we'll see how the siege tank buff works out, but i think its a pretty cool patch overall

[nirvAnA]

Mothership

The Vortex ability has been removed from the game.

What!

Is there now a way to fight bl / infestor?

Quick Comments

	ROOTPetraeus:	its called mass air
	Dox:	make 4 tempests and win the game
	DUCKVILLELOL:	It's hots not WOL silly nirv ^_^ <3

[syfMightyKiwi]

Inb4 Mass reaper openings is the new Meta x.X

Quick Comments

Dox:

that was the previous patch, mass reapers are garbage now

[FaDeBadger]

Originally Posted by nirvAnA

What!

Is there now a way to fight bl / infestor?

I hear tempest are pretty good against brood lords.

[TCPKerO]

Mass reaper runbys to pew pew dem probes

Quick Comments

breadfan:

loss of bonus vs light makes this not a prob

[DUCKVILLELOL]

Reactor reapers is just silly haha. Perhaps not overly "omg wow" but funny none-the-less.

[NvJazBas]

Is this balance change really a balance change for a game that's only 2 month away from its release..?

....

[ToRLuneth]

This....is an interesting development.
Mainly because I think getting rid of siege is a good and logical thing to do (IMO) but I cannot understand the reaper change at all as it seems too major to balance along with everything else in 2 months.

[ROOT`iaguz]

Originally Posted by NvJazBas

Is this balance change really a balance change for a game that's only 2 month away from its release..?

....

It's a beta they can do what they want and if it turns out to be ******* retarded as shit then they'll hopefully change it again. Are you playing the beta?

Siege tech removed biggest change for me in that patch. Holy **** that's so huge. Tanks are kinda bad to open TvP/Z (and T to an extent) because you either they attack into them or you have to do a dopey timing, but now greedy behind a tank or two might actually be kinda viable.