The game receives new content periodically, but this is only a small amount compared to the support the game had a few years ago when over 100 people were actively working on HotS.
- HOTS Tier List (January 2022) Heroes of the Storm Characters
- Heroes of the Storm (HOTS) – A Quick Introduction
- Is Heroes of the Storm a good and fun game?
- Is HotS dead or still alive in 2022?
- Heroes of the Storm roles
- Best Heroes of the Storm Warrior: Johanna
- Strong (Tier S)
- Decent (Tier 2)
- The Calm Before the Storm
- Like the Good Old Days
- Adjust to League’s pacing, power spikes, and objectives
- The three phases
- Early game (typically up to around 15 minutes)
- Mid game (typically occurs between 15-30 minutes)
- Late game (typically occurs after 30 minutes)
- Johanna
- Raynor
HOTS Tier List (January 2022) Heroes of the Storm Characters
Heroes of the Storm is an online team-based multiplayer game where two teams of five players face each other in a battle to destroy the core of an enemy team. It is one of the more unique MOBA games as it offers many different maps and heroes. In this article, we will discuss the Heroes of the Storm tier list.
A tier list is a list of items, people, or entities ranked by their relative quality. Heroes of the Storm has had many different heroes over the years, and while each of them brings something unique to the game, not every hero is created equal. While some are definitely better than others, each has a role to play in the game.
However, figuring out which heroes are the best to play can be tricky. This is especially true if you are new to the game. The HOTS tier list will help you understand which characters are the best and which should be avoided.
This roster lists the heroes from the best to the worst in Heroes of the Storm, based on their current state. As new versions of the game become available, each hero will be reviewed and updated accordingly. So keep your eyes peeled for future updates!
Now let’s start this article with a bit of information about the game.
Heroes of the Storm (HOTS) – A Quick Introduction
Heroes of the Storm is a MOBA-style game that was released in June 2015. The game was developed and published by Blizzard Entertainment, which also publishes World of Warcraft, StarCraft II, Diablo III, Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft, and Overwatch.
HOTS gameplay is very similar to other popular MOBAs such as League of Legends and Dota II. Players are placed in five-on-five matches where they have to work together to destroy the enemy base.
Each hero has a set of different skills that they can use to help their team or harm the other team. There are three lanes on each map, and it’s important for players to know where enemy lane heroes are headed, and where allied heroes should go if they want optimal experience.
A unique mechanic in HOTS is the talent system. Each hero has different talents to choose from in levels one, four, and seven. A player has to spend gold to buy these new skills, and it’s important for players to be strategic about what they choose, otherwise their character could become very weak.
Currently, there are over ninety different heroes in Heroes of the Storm, each with unique skills and playstyle. Thus, it is difficult for the player to choose the right hero for the job. That’s why we’ve compiled the Heroes of the Storm tier list.
Now, without further ado, here is the Heroes of the Storm tier list.
Tank: Their job is to protect their allies and absorb damage. Heroes in this category usually have a lot of health and skills that can help them survive longer in team fights.
Is Heroes of the Storm a good and fun game?
Heroes of the Storm offers fast-paced, action-packed games where both micro and macro are important. (Photo: Blizzard)
One of the major criticisms you often hear from MOBA purists when they talk about HotS is that Heroes of the Storm is “a simple and casual MOBA game,” but the truth is, HotS is just a different kind of MOBA.
Unlike Dota 2 and LoL, where one good player can “move” the entire team, HotS is heavily focused on team play and coordination as there is a shared experience across the team rather than individual leveling for each hero.
Also, unlike all other MOBA games, Heroes of the Storm has not one but 15 unique battlegrounds with different objectives, layouts, camps, tricks, cores, and more!
Combined with the unique and well-designed heroes, it makes every match different and you’ll never feel like you’re doing the same thing over and over again.
Simply put, Heroes of the Storm is a fun, dynamic and addictive MOBA game, with endless hectic action and very little downtime, but with equally important micro and macro gameplay.
Ultimately, you’ll have to try the game yourself to see if you like what it has to offer, but we assure you that you will most likely have a lot of fun learning about the new heroes and maps.
Is HotS dead or still alive in 2022?
Many people interested in starting a game of Heroes of the Storm are concerned that the game is dead and no one is playing it anymore. It couldn’t be further from the truth.
While it’s not as popular in Heroes of the Storm as it was at its peak, it is still played by a lot of people, and if you play in large regions like North America or Europe, you’ll be able to find a quick match in less than a minute at almost any time day.
The same goes for ARAM (all random, all averages) where finding matches is almost instantaneous, while with ranked you will usually have to queue for a few minutes or longer depending on your rank.
All in all, the player base is still huge and healthy as HotS has dedicated fans who are playing the game no matter what is currently going on with the game or with Blizzard. One of the biggest advantages of HotS is the fact that Blizzard fans get the chance to play with all the characters they grew up with, which is why countless Diablo, Warcraft, Overwatch, and Starcraft fans still play it.
At its peak in 2017, HotS was almost as popular as Dota 2, and while those times are long gone, HotS would still easily be among the 20 most played games on Steam if the game were available there.
Combined with the unique and well-designed heroes, it makes every match different and you’ll never feel like you’re doing the same thing over and over again.
Heroes of the Storm roles
There are four primary roles in HOTS: Warrior, Assassin, Support, and Specialist.
Warriors are brutes who can last a long time in combat. They often lack damage, which they make up for with enormous health pools and abilities that control fights; attacks that can stun, slow down or move enemies. Having at least one of these is crucial for your team, although many teams will take two.
The killers, on the other hand, are quite the opposite. They lack health, but deal enormous damage. Some are ranged fighters, like Valla or Kael’thas, while others are melee fighters and need to be at the center of the fight to do their job. You will often need two Assassins.
Supporters by doing exactly what their name implies enable allied champions to perform at their best by healing and abilities to keep them safe. A good team always needs one support, and they usually stick with the Killer to keep their health pool topped up.
The names of champions that do not fit into any of the above categories are Specialists. They can really be anyone. These heroes are often weird or somehow unique with abilities focused on one particular niche. If you want to fill this gap, HOTS specialists can do so.
To really understand what each of these roles do, let’s take a look at some of the best HOTS heroes for beginners.
Best Heroes of the Storm Warrior: Johanna
Derived from Diablo, Johanna is quite easy to learn. She has a lot of innate resilience, her talents are quite strong, and she can do a little of everything. With its Punishment and Shield Glare abilities, it makes it harder for enemies to escape and can deal a lot of damage, while Damnation offers a great way to kill enemy minions or relocate a large portion of the enemy team during fights.
Her trait is a good “Get out of jail for free” card: Iron Skin makes her unstoppable (immune to stuns, slows, etc.) and gives Johanna a thick shield that can withstand the oncoming damage.
Melee Assassin: These champions deal massive damage and want to get close to other enemy champions so they can deal massive damage to them.
Strong (Tier S)
At this level, we have a list of strong heroes to pick in front of the enemy team or get banned at the start of the draft.
Johanna is a juggernaut who can protect allied heroes in a variety of ways, control a crowd of enemy heroes, and deal decent damage for her role.
While it’s not easy to play, Dehaka can be a great addition to most team lineups, especially on large maps. Provides wave cleaning, crowd control, and global presence.
Brightwing is doing great in the metagame, largely thanks to her incredibly good single target healing, being global, and strong crowd control.
Thanks to the short cooldown of Purge, Rehgar can often save his companions from enemy crowd control, which is extremely useful at high levels of the game. Overall we think he is a strong healer.
Annoying crowd control and the powerful healing he has at his disposal make Stukov one of the best healers in the game. Combine it with a tank that can set enemy heroes for it and watch it wreak havoc.
Decent (Tier 2)
At this tier, we have a list of decent champions whose effectiveness is highly dependent on the situation they’re in, so think twice before choosing them.
Even though he’s labeled Tank in the game, we consider Cho to be a solid melee Killer for your squad, as he can do some solid damage but can’t really commit and / or choose for his squad. Pull it out along with Tank, Solo Laner and Healer for maximum value.
Right now, the best way to play Deathwing is to have him in number four as the Ranged Assassin. You can play him occasionally as a Solo Laner and sometimes even as a melee assassin, but these ways of playing with him are much easier to counter.
Even though it was officially designated Tank, Blaze’s main role was a Solo Laner for a long time, thanks to its rock-solid self-support and high wave cleaning ability, even when double-immersion is needed.
Uther is currently the most flexible hero in the game as he can be put into completely different roles (tank, healer or support), making him an interesting choice in a large number of drafts.
If your team has enough macro tools and / or the battlefield you’re playing doesn’t require many, you can play a secondary healer (usually Uther) to be stronger in team fights.
Moving on to the characters from Warcraft, Malfurion is a great support for learning Heroes of the Storm as it is simply hard to get confused. His abilities are very simple: point-and-click healing, AoE damage ability, AoE Root and two always-effective heroics.
The Calm Before the Storm
As a backdrop for less experienced players, Heroes of the Storm is essentially Blizzard’s answer to League of Legends mixed with a Super Smash Bros style squad. Using iconic characters from Blizzard’s award-winning titles such as Diablo, Overwatch, and Starcraft, you jump into iconic locations from these universes and fight your way to destroy the enemy base. Each map helps you achieve that goal, with individual goals bringing you closer and closer to victory, with teamwork taking center stage.
When Heroes of the Storm was released it saw somewhat favorable reviews from critics and gamers alike, but also a lot of criticism. Much of this has been earned in their defense. It lacked many of the difficulties other games had, removing as an example the idea of last-hit hitting creatures. Obviously, this was not a huge amount available to a rival community, especially compared to its competitors. And the idea of talent, while intriguing as it was, didn’t have that heightened sense of agency that League of Legends items brought to the game. While the rival crowd was, and still is, a tight-knit community (albeit very passionate) that Blizzard drew from was a community of players who liked the idea of League of Legends but not so much focus on the hyper-competitive nature.
I first entered Heroes of the Storm at the end of 2016, when the game was still in its infancy (relatively speaking). Few will remember this, but it was around a time when the game hosted the “Nexus Challenge” event that rewarded those who played a few games with the Oni Genji skin in Overwatch. To say that I was an Overwatch fan at the time would be an understatement, so getting this skin was a must. While playing these five required games, my comrades and I quickly grew tired of it and logged out in order to probably never play it again. However, I jumped back in on my own, hoping to give the game a second chance without the main target hanging over my head (it was really good skin). Surprisingly, I got interested quickly. There was something particularly intriguing about the game’s focus on the ordinary crowd.
Like the Good Old Days
Fast forward a few years and about every six months I was hopping back on tons of games for the week, only to stop for another six months and repeat the process. It finally stopped after a few years and I moved on to other endeavors. But since it came in early June this year and I broke free from League’s shackles for quite a long time, my desire for a fun MOBA game came back. And that reminded me of a game I used to play, even after taking a close friend of mine for a ride. So, I reinstalled Battlenet and Heroes of the Storm to see how much the game has evolved over time.
To my surprise, not much has changed, although it did not bother me. You see, Blizzard came under fire from Heroes of the Storm a few years ago as the game went into maintenance mode. This was unheard of before the entire Activision-Blizzard partnership, and as we now know, it was a sign of a drastic shift in the company’s policy from gamers to pockets first. In fact, the first article I wrote was about this change (although I’m not proud of what I wrote back then). As a result, HotS has only seen a few champions, and there have been major changes in the following years, with a balance update coming out once a month at best. With that in mind, you can say “well, the game must be dead at this point.” To my actual surprise, this time it does not seem to be true. It’s not as alive as it used to be).
Talent builds can never accommodate all scenarios, and Cleanup is a good example of where you need to think on your feet with HOTS talents. If you are afraid of these negative effects, take Cleanse.
Adjust to League’s pacing, power spikes, and objectives
A typical Heroes of the Storm game usually takes around 20 minutes – the action takes place right from the start and the targets you have to face activate within minutes. League has a completely different rhythm and pace. While there may be times when a match lasts 20 minutes or less, don’t be surprised if you sometimes hit a match that is 45 minutes or longer.
Another big difference to League is that goals are completely optional. They are definitely worth fighting for when the opportunity presents itself as they can help you establish your edge or secure your means of victory, but you can and will win games without taking a single one.
In this section, we’ll cover the three “phases” that generally dictate the pace and state of the game, and we’ll also discuss the various goals for Summoner’s Rift.
The three phases
A typical League of Legends match goes through the phases known as Early, Mid, and Late. Let’s break them down:
Early game (typically up to around 15 minutes)
- This is the most “organized” phase of the game as you will have a general idea of where everyone is going. The top players will go to the top, the middle players will go to the middle and the leading and supporters will go to the bot. You may have a general idea of where the Jungler will be and where he will go, but you won’t know for sure without proper eye control.
- This is when skills such as farming, 1v1 combat and trading are crucial. Try to farm as much as possible while staying alive. Killing an opponent is great, but can be very risky and rewarding. One mistake could mean death and possible line loss.
- The early game usually continues until the first turrets start falling and the map begins to open as the lines begin to wander.
Mid game (typically occurs between 15-30 minutes)
- All turret platings are removed after 14 minutes. This makes it much easier to destroy the first turrets in each lane.
- When a tower is destroyed, Lans often farm and push the line across the river and begin to question targets such as the Dragon and Herald (more info below) or besiege another tower.
- This is the most unpredictable phase of the game, so be careful where you step. If you give yourself good eye control and coordinate with your allies, you can often surprise and kill opponents who rotate.
Late game (typically occurs after 30 minutes)
- At this point, most of the turrets should be destroyed, except maybe a few in the team’s base. The heroes who derive the greatest benefit from breeding the most expensive and powerful items will be in the spotlight.
- At this point, the death times become quite long. One fight or mistake can make the difference between the game here, so be sure to choose your moments wisely.
- At this point, goals are crucial, but don’t target them too hard. If you’re not careful, the enemy can sneak in through the “back door” and push the line through your base to destroy your Nexus before you can return to base.
Lane stalkers tend to pick up pace early in the game and try to use the snow advantage to end the game. If they fail early or lose momentum, it can be difficult for them to finish the game.
Johanna
“The crusade is calling.”
Johanna, a Zakarum crusader, bears the legacy of many women who brought the crusade cause and passed on the name of Johann and the legendary crusader gear. Represents the Crusader class from the Diablo universe. One of her gag quotes: “Oh Akarat, bless it, your holy flail, let it shatter your enemies into tiny, tiny, unfathomable little pieces. In Your mercy, so be it ”refers to a line from Monty Python and the Holy Grail. Johanna is an exceptionally strong fighter for beginner characters. Since almost all of her abilities are area of effect, you can play well with her before you can develop your accuracy. Johanna is especially good at disrupting and blinding the enemy team, and also provides a fantastic escape in Iron Skin,which makes her indestructible and allows her to walk away safely without taking any injuries. Johanna finds and destroys evil wherever she can find it, and is especially opposed to darker Diablo characters such as Butcher, Diablo, and Azmodan.
Raynor
“Whenever you’re ready.”
Jim Raynor is a seasoned veteran of the original StarCraft. During countless wars, betrayals and defeats, he continues to fight for justice. He was one of the original 18 heroes featured in Heroes of the Storm. Raynor has a strong auto attack and is a hero that each player guides through the Heroes of the Storm tutorial, making him a good choice for the first assassin you meet. Its Advanced Optics trait gives it greater range and vision than other ranged heroes, giving you greater battlefield awareness and allowing you to attack from behind your fighter. Raynor’s self-healing ability, Adrenaline Rush, activates a large dose of self-healing to keep you alive when caught in a sticky spot. As a StarCraft hero, Raynor trusts no Protoss and Zerg.such as Artanis and Stukov, and will do anything to beat them!
10. Li Li
Li Li Stormstout is an enthusiastic and adventurous World Wanderer from the Warcraft universe. She is Chen’s niece and together are the only Panderan characters in Heroes of the Storm. Li Li is usually considered the most user-friendly hero in Heroes of the Storm. Every four seconds, he can use Healing Brew to automatically heal the hero with the lowest health in range. Quick Feet grants her increased movement speed each time she takes damage, allowing her to escape quickly. She is also able to deal good damage to a support hero with Blinding Wind and Cloud Serpent. Li Li is great for beginners as it requires no skill to be successful. He is also good at supporting his party and keeping his team safe, while dealing damage to the enemy.Because it has good usability and a strong skill set.
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