I played a good bit of Xul for the first time yesterday after playing him a bunch when he was released and dropping him. That master skin sogood.gif. I can't tell much difference between his launch form and post nerf, to be honest, though I know his winrate went down. I guess that means they did a good job there.
Anyway, one observation about Xul I have made across my games with him both times is how strange he is as a character. Specifically, what a huge impact he can have in some teamfights and how brutally useless he can be in others. Sometimes I'll play against/with a Xul and they will murderize the enemy with Poison Nova. Other times it seems like the most ineffectual ult in existence...and he really doesn't have much going on beyond that and his root. Without the range on Q, it's just not a very good skill in a team fight. Cursed Strikes or whatever it's called is great for wave clear and for those times when an Illidan/Thrall/whoever gets on you, but most team fights you can't quite use it. The root though...Kreygasm. It secures kills for your team (or safety), and those times you get to combo it with your Q + W or Poison Nova are glorious.
Skeleton Mages has the higher winrate, but I've honestly never been quite sure what is good about them. When I use them they seem completely ineffectual, and when I face them they are just an annoyance that typically makes my team back away to safety instead of trap anyone in/secure a kill. I know I must be missing something, but I've yet to find them impressive in the least.
His play style is so damn weird, really. I dig it, but it's a strange kit with the mix of melee and range and the range of his abilities only kind of being in an in between spot of "safe" and "you're fucked". Milly recently got me playing Marvel Heroes a bit and he kind of reminds me of some of those heroes there who have a base ability that is range but then melee abilities in their tree, or vice versa.
/end Xul thoughts. He's fun, but different.
