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Heroes of the Storm |OT2| Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery

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Maledict

Member
Im pretty hesitant to bring wr into this, i dont think valla is s tier either but it feels pretty clear to me that she sees a lower wr because ppl are playing her and getting blown up instead of positioning correctly. I feel the same way about varian dual wield's higher win rate

I think that when the win rate disparity is SO high though it need some further explanations, if only to validate the list because otherwise people are going to look at it, pick Valla, and then wonder why they aren't crushing noobs every game.

I'd also say that if a hero is listed at S tier and the reason she isn't dominating is because she's easy to blow up, then she isn't really S tier. I mean, we've had objectively overpowered, S tier heroes in the game before - li-Ming, Xul, Samuro. They really *were* S tier, and the reason they were overpowered was because despite their weaknesses they were so strong they were still winning games more often than not. Does anyone really think Valla is near that state right now?

(Also to say, I don't think EU or Kor teams are valuing Valla that high from what I've seen).
 

brian!

Member
Yeah s tier is definitely overrating her imo

Even if you consider her a "fits all" type of ranged dps there are a slew of picks that can outperform depending on the map like guldan or falstad
 

Alur

Member
I agree with you Maledict.

For me, S tier should not only fit most any situation but it should also be an auto-lock first pick or ban. Kind of like how Zarya and Malfurion were in HL about a month and a half ago. You banned one and tried to get the other if they didn't ban the second.

That's S tier to me. Pure power. Not really sure there's an actual S tier hero out there right now.

He has Chen and Valla but I don't think either fits that criteria, though I do think they are both strong heroes. Certainly haven't seen them picked or banned that way in my games. Malfurion is still treated like he's S tier, FWIW, though he's definitely been toned down.
 

scoobs

Member
ya that is a really shitty tier list, why should anyone care what this guy thinks anyways? Just looking at this list alone should prove he has no idea what he's talking about.

Holy shit I have a 70% win rate on Samuro this month, and I'm approaching master skin status... very happy with him right now :)

My S tier is Chromie, Nova.
 

Alur

Member
You mean shit tier, right? huehuehue

I have 75% winrate from milking that Samuro train after he dropped. Feels good man. Dunno if I'll ever play him again, but was good while it lasted.

Muradin is another hero like Valla. Probably quite strong in favorable conditions (and obviously considered very strong in the pro scene by his pickrate and stuff), but he doesn't quite bear out in pleb play. It's been a while since he was both considered strong and also had a high winrate.
 

brian!

Member
In general pro tier lists will get a poor reception if they don't conform to ppls expectations (they rarely do), especially the ones from srey and mc, but admittedly they don't really frame it as "here are some thoughts from my position" when that is what they mean
 

scoobs

Member
Except they usally frame them as "Hero League Tier list" when they really mean "Pro players are favoring these heroes over these ones"
 

Alur

Member
That's because they don't base their tier lists very much on the actual games they play on the ladder. They base it on what they know from scrims and try to translate to ladder -- which often results in them getting salty af or frustrated because their teammates can't match that level of cohesion.

If you're gonna publicly put out a tier list and say it's for anything but pro players, you have to base it in the reality of ladder. What works on paper doesn't necessarily work when you have 5 people pulling in different directions.

Just because it should be good doesn't mean it's good.
 

brian!

Member
Im pretty intrigued by the tier 2 karl though, hope to see him in some of the qualifier games

Personally tho while they can def frame these lists in a way that doesnt incite ppl to salt, i greatly enjoy lists from their perspective, it really seems that the only actual tier list ppl would accept w/r/t hero league are hotslogs stats, but these stats always reveal little about whether a hero is being played properly or not
 

Alur

Member
So has anyone checked out the (new?) Amove TV podcast Heroes Forge? It's on Garrett's podcast network thing.

Basically two dudes picking one hero from Blizzard lore each week and theorycrafting a kit and talents around them, including skins. Sounds fun as that's what they used to do on THH back in the day, but I haven't listened yet.
 

Maledict

Member
I think Kael saw play in one euro qualifier. He definitely has a role on certain maps, and I'm still playing him where it's viable (he also prospers in a heavy melee environment as it's easy to land an empowered stun and living bomb does a *lot* of work).

Muradin is a good case in point actually. At the pro level, he's a fucking monster. Heck, even in hero league if a good pYer gets their hands on him he's a terror with the right build. One of the tankless heroes and ridiculous damage and cc. Yet even at the plat / diamond level, he's one of the lower win rate heroes and at the same level as Diablo.
 

scoobs

Member
Ya i've listened to a few, and its not two dudes, its a dude and a lady ;)

Their personalities are ... a bit much. They always sound so happy and energetic that it comes off as disingenuous and annoying which makes it real difficult to sit through. They do come up with some interesting hero ideas so its kind of fun if you can get passed them always soundin' like "OH MY GOSH THAT IS THE BEST IDEA YOU ARE SO AMAZING! HOW WAS YOUR DAY? MINE WAS AMAZING! THIS IS AMAZING!!! EVERYTHING IS SO AMAZING!"

I seriously hate these two people if you didn't catch my drift.
 

Alur

Member
Personally tho while they can def frame these lists in a way that doesnt incite ppl to salt, i greatly enjoy lists from their perspective, it really seems that the only actual tier list ppl would accept w/r/t hero league are hotslogs stats, but these stats always reveal little about whether a hero is being played properly or not

I both agree and disagree with that.

I disagree because for the most part, 90% of the heroes barely have any real separation in winrate so it's hard for me to accept that the bm they get is simply about hotdogs being different than their opinions. Most heroes have minor differences in winrate.

I agree in the fact that the 10% which are outliers are often massively over or underrated by these pros because they can't unbind their brains from the competitive mindset. What they see as easy to shutdown isn't so easy when it's 5 random strangers together. What they see as easy to enable is sometimes like pulling teeth. Regular players naturally get their hackles up because this doesn't reflect the stats nor their experience.

I know you're always willy nilly af about hotdogs winrates, but there's a fuckton of data there and it says what it says for a reason. If any hero is cresting above 55% with significant games played, that should be reflected in a tier list. That goes for individual builds and for overall winrate.

When you try to sell me the tank build is the best but it has a 39% winrate and say the dual wield build is gimmicky when it's 53% (and 45% to 60% in QM), I'm going to call bullshit on that. That's just clearly not seeing the forest for the trees and thinking about it from a perspective that is not reflected in the every day play of regular players...whom, supposedly, your tier list is catered to help.

I seriously hate these two people if you didn't catch my drift.

scoobs hates happiness and fun confirmed. I bet you really dislike Trikslyr too then? Cause he's the same way.
 

brian!

Member
Right that's where the wr stuff starts coming in, like to me i always want tier lists to consider the hero base kit, but what many ppl want is a confirmation of the material w/r/t hero league, which you can get to a certain extent just by printing out hero league stats. An article considering why the winrates are where they are at and the state of hl would be a great read, but it's not what i personally look for in tier lists. Like i dont want to hear that muradin is a bad pick because he's not successful in hl when his kit is very good for example, that's not a valuable insight to me
 

scoobs

Member
I both agree and disagree with that.

I disagree because for the most part, 90% of the heroes barely have any real separation in winrate so it's hard for me to accept that the bm they get is simply about hotdogs being different than their opinions. Most heroes have minor differences in winrate.

I agree in the fact that the 10% which are outliers are often massively over or underrated by these pros because they can't unbind their brains from the competitive mindset. What they see as easy to shutdown isn't so easy when it's 5 random strangers together. What they see as easy to enable is sometimes like pulling teeth. Regular players naturally get their hackles up because this doesn't reflect the stats nor their experience.

I know you're always willy nilly af about hotdogs winrates, but there's a fuckton of data there and it says what it says for a reason. If any hero is cresting above 55% with significant games played, that should be reflected in a tier list. That goes for individual builds and for overall winrate.

When you try to sell me the tank build is the best but it has a 39% winrate and say the dual wield build is gimmicky when it's 53% (and 45% to 60% in QM), I'm going to call bullshit on that. That's just clearly not seeing the forest for the trees and thinking about it from a perspective that is not reflected in the every day play of regular players...whom, supposedly, your tier list is catered to help.



scoobs hates happiness and fun confirmed. I bet you really dislike Trikslyr too then? Cause he's the same way.
I don't hate him, he's a good player and somewhat fun to watch. But ya, he has little quirks that are a little annoying to me... like his fake laugh, and how he is constantly singing "badababababa" over and over. Its not even a song. He's just singing "badabababa." Okay ya I hate him.
 

Maledict

Member
I don't think a tier list should reflect hotslogs, but I do think it needs a hell of a lot more work and input for it to actually be of any use beyond 'here is another random pro-scrubs list' that doesn't mean anything or add anything.

Like I said above - if Srey outlined *why* Valla was so good, where she should be played, what her weaknesses are and most importantly why people are playing her wrong that would be great. But just slapping her on a list as S tier with no context, and no reference at all to her win rate just doesn't help anyone. It's a waste of his time and ours.

(I mean, his lost doesn't even reflect pro play right now).
 

Alur

Member
Like i dont want to hear that muradin is a bad pick because he's not successful in hl when his kit is very good for example, that's not a valuable insight to me

But why is that not valuable? It potentially saved you from throwing a game by picking a hero that performs less optimally in uncoordinated conditions over one who performs better solo.

That's the basic function of a tier list. To inform you on what is best to pick to win games. Just because a kit is strong doesn't mean it's good for solo players.
 

Maledict

Member
Right that's where the wr stuff starts coming in, like to me i always want tier lists to consider the hero base kit, but what many ppl want is a confirmation of the material w/r/t hero league, which you can get to a certain extent just by printing out hero league stats. An article considering why the winrates are where they are at and the state of hl would be a great read, but it's not what i personally look for in tier lists. Like i dont want to hear that muradin is a bad pick because he's not successful in hl when his kit is very good for example, that's not a valuable insight to me

What would you want to see? What valuable insights are you looking for?

(Not being snarky, honestly curious).
 

brian!

Member
Yeah i agree, at least mc tries (usually fails tho lol) to explain his picks, but nah johanna has a higher winrate and is tanky!

To make myself more clear w/r/t muradin, i find that the explanations regarding his high pick rate even just from casters is valuable, they will describe the reasons his kit is good, they will talk about how tychus bumps up in pickability when hes picked, like those are all good things that are grounded with talk about hero kits. When you are talking about an environment that fails to use a hero's kit efficiently and try to cater discussion towards failed use i lose interest. Case in point varian dual wield build; it sure is effective when you are slamming ur face on the keyboard and running into his range and dueling him but outside of that particular instance (and getting camps i guess) how can we rationalize it? With the introduction of wrates into the conversation...it's like a conversation ender, there is no discussion, dual posts a high winrate and thus it's da best. Like to generalize, insight to me is hero related but pertinent hero league discussion focuses too much about the population using it and i dont care about those ppl, they have little to do with the existing game at a base level, we arent talking about the game as it exists at it's core.

Like if i hear a comparison of etc and muradin i wanna hear arguments w/ words like split pushing, atspd slow, durability, playmaking, early game, late game, but im tired of "yeah ive never seen a good muradin in my games" as an example of rational discussion, imo pro tier lists are more interested in aspects of the former even if i dont necesarily agree all the time, but i mean it is actual food for thought. I think winrates are useful for outliers, that's it
 

Alur

Member
I feel like your derision of people's reactions to tier lists is more rooted in your incredulity that they need them to begin with than anything.

Your understanding of the game is > 99% of the population. As is Srey's and Mc's. It's hard for any of you to relate to a regular player who struggles with timings and rotations and how to optimally use even the most basic heroes. I think that's reflected in these lists they give us, and also in your "smh" at people's reaction to them lol

EDIT: To be clear, as a player who doesn't understand the nuances as well as others in this thread but still plays at the same MMR range, seeing a tier list like this is just like a slap in the face. It's more of a "here's what you should do to git gud or if you were gud" instead of "here's what will help you move up the ladder". Some of it is so outside of the reality of the games we play that it's fucking laughable that he would even attempt to pass it off as something players should use a guide in their games.
 

brian!

Member
I think the reaction to these lists make sense, im just saying i appreciate the perspective these lists bring thats all. I can totally understand why a person would get mad that mac had johanna at tier 3, and why mac would feel defensive against someone like that. Also i hope im not coming off too hard w/ the derision, like in the end my thing is ppl should play with whatever works for them, i just dont think that this is a meaningful rubric when discussing the game and that if you want to see what is working for ppl you can just look at hotslogs
 

Maledict

Member
I feel like your derision of people's reactions to tier lists is more rooted in your incredulity that they need them to begin with than anything.

Your understanding of the game is > 99% of the population. As is Srey's and Mc's. It's hard for any of you to relate to a regular player who struggles with timings and rotations and how to optimally use even the most basic heroes. I think that's reflected in these lists they give us, and also in your "smh" at people's reaction to them lol

EDIT: To be clear, as a player who doesn't understand the nuances as well as others in this thread but still plays at the same MMR range, seeing a tier list like this is just like a slap in the face. It's more of a "here's what you should do to git gud or if you were gud" instead of "here's what will help you move up the ladder". Some of it is so outside of the reality of the games we play that it's fucking laughable that he would even attempt to pass it off as something players should use a guide in their games.

To be fair, in Sreys case I think his tier list is garbage even for pro level people... ;-).
 

Alur

Member
Like if i hear a comparison of etc and muradin i wanna hear arguments w/ words like split pushing, atspd slow, durability, playmaking, early game, late game, but im tired of "yeah ive never seen a good muradin in my games" as an example of rational discussion, imo pro tier lists are more interested in aspects of the former even if i dont necesarily agree all the time, but i mean it is actual food for thought. I think winrates are useful for outliers, that's it

I think you're looking for a level of discourse that just doesn't exist in this particular MOBA. Not in streams. Not in podcasts. Not on reddit or here. Not in tier lists. Sometimes we see something get that in depth, but for the most part it's much less and more curt and to the point.

It would be nice to have that level of detail, particularly for a player like me, but it's not very often people provide it.

Why don't you give it a go? You can fill the void and we can upvote you to glory.
 

Maledict

Member
It did in State of the Nexus, and to be fair some casters do touch on it in games. But yes, it's a big hole in my opinion as to what content is produced and available out there.

(Like build lists - compare a hots build to a dota build and look at the level of detail. Yes, obviously dota has a lot more moving parts, but Hots builds are basically talent lists with no context or detail. Ran into someone using an absolutely garbage Alarak build last night, and he had pulled that off the web as a top tier build and it said nothing about when to play it or how to play it).
 

brian!

Member
I think you're looking for a level of discourse that just doesn't exist in this particular MOBA. Not in streams. Not in podcasts. Not on reddit or here. Not in tier lists. Sometimes we see something get that in depth, but for the most part it's much less and more curt and to the point.

It would be nice to have that level of detail, particularly for a player like me, but it's not very often people provide it.

Why don't you give it a go? You can fill the void and we can upvote you to glory.

I mean anyone watching a casted game receives this in very easy to understand fashion. Even if the casters are off they are framing thought around comparable elements, things you can actually grab hold of and compare. Like this isnt a particularly nuanced thing...

Jake used to be a good example of someone who brought in very impertinent info from his own experiences until someone in the back told him "yo no one wants to hear that shit, it has nothing to do with the actual game, i really dont care that you cant make illidan work, that's you not illidan".

I dunno it seems so basic to me that after you declare that something is good or bad you should be able to provide non-anecdotal reasoning, like maybe that's not where hots is at but cmon, it doesnt have to be accurate or correct but say why something is, not just that it is

Using mc vs. da haters as an example, he puts jo tier 3, jo main gets upset and talks about how he has great success with her and so do other ppl according to wr, mc tries to explain that he values her lower because he thinks shes not good at making plays and able to be played around more easily compared to other tanks, dude says no not in my experience and ur elitist, conversation ends
 

Alur

Member
Using mc vs. da haters as an example, he puts jo tier 3, jo main gets upset and talks about how he has great success with her and so do other ppl according to wr, mc tries to explain that he values her lower because he thinks shes not good at making plays and able to be played around more easily compared to other tanks, dude says no not in my experience and ur elitist, conversation ends

Sounds like the internet to me, not just HOTS.
 

brian!

Member
Ur not wrong plus the game has a casual slant, it totally makes sense that discourse is where it's at to some degree... I actually really suspect that haunted mines being taken out for a while exacerbated things too, and ofc roles didnt help either. And ofc i gotta mention again like i have in the past when we discuss this that misuse of stats really gets a rise out of me, even more now what w/ the election just now, but that's a similar thing where i cant really expect ppl to not get manipulated by things like that, that's what it's for
 

Maledict

Member
I still don't get the mourning for haunted mines. I mean Christ, on SO many levels that map was broken. They rebuilt it the times and it still didn't work. Between Sylvannas and Tassadar at the draft screen, to the insane snowballing, to the dumb interactions between ground and ground it was just a mess and yet lots of people miss it.

I'm just confused - did they never see what Sylvanas did on that map (or to a lesser extend any good push hero).
 

Alur

Member
In other news...had a HL game last night. I first picked Chen because our dude banned Malfurion for some reason. Last two picks went Abathur/Illidan. We also had Brightwing. For unknown reasons, they loaded up on auto attack heroes.

Elusive Brawler plus Evasion plus Pixie Dust = riparino other team-o. Haven't had a beatdown that thorough in hero league in quite a while.

I really need to learn how to properly use Panda Pals though. I use it to escape, but beyond that I just mash buttons haha

EDIT: I hated Haunted Mines period. The Sylv/Tass cheese. The bleak/unappealing palette. Everything. If it never returns I'll be a-okay. The only time I liked it was in Alpha when it had a ton of merc camps and people were just figuring out that you could skip first phase and go all-in on mercs. Was the first real strategy I ever saw in the game that ran counter to "GET THE OBJECTIVE".
 

brian!

Member
I still don't get the mourning for haunted mines. I mean Christ, on SO many levels that map was broken. They rebuilt it the times and it still didn't work. Between Sylvannas and Tassadar at the draft screen, to the insane snowballing, to the dumb interactions between ground and ground it was just a mess and yet lots of people miss it.

I'm just confused - did they never see what Sylvanas did on that map (or to a lesser extend any good push hero).

Taking it off was the right move, im just lamenting the loss of the only map where ppl across all skill levels were timing camp captures. Plus on a personal level i like the door fights and baits, that shit was fun as hell for me when i started the game
 

Maledict

Member
That was utterly hilarious, and so dumb. I remember the first time I ran into it - we grabbed all the skulls and thought ourselves really clever, only to re-Emerge with 8 giants and 4 knights pushing in on both keeps already.
 

Alur

Member
I've begun to see camp timings more regularly on Sky Temple and BoE now which is nice. Hell, sometimes I still forget myself.
 

Dice

Pokémon Parentage Conspiracy Theorist
Almost had a perfect game on towers. They got the last altar when we had all 6 forts so we ended with 39 points.
 

Alur

Member
That feel when you achieve perfect synergy through lack of games played:

j2wu1Gl.jpg
 
In other news...had a HL game last night. I first picked Chen because our dude banned Malfurion for some reason. Last two picks went Abathur/Illidan. We also had Brightwing. For unknown reasons, they loaded up on auto attack heroes.

Elusive Brawler plus Evasion plus Pixie Dust = riparino other team-o. Haven't had a beatdown that thorough in hero league in quite a while.

I really need to learn how to properly use Panda Pals though. I use it to escape, but beyond that I just mash buttons haha
.

How do you build your Chen ? I'm a warrior main and i think i'm going to learn him next.
 

Alur

Member
How do you build your Chen ? I'm a warrior main and i think i'm going to learn him next.

The build from Srey's tier list is a good start. Here's the link: http://www.heroesfire.com/hots/talent-calculator/chen#sedB

The main variations you have to use/encounter are:

1) Elusive Brawler is amazing, but sometimes they have little to no AA. Grounding Brew can be really good against mage heavy comps.
4) Breath of Fire is awesome for ticking up the damage + even faster wave clear. Keg Toss can also be fun if you want to go from annoying POS to the most annoying POS.
7) I almost always go Bolder Flavor, but have seen others swear by Brewmaster's Balance for the move speed/regen bonuses. I think the insta-shield is too strong to pass up though.
10) YOLO
13) Same
16) Same
20) Same

Bringing pandas from critically endangered to just endangered gud shit

What's funny is before I got my second win with Chen, the HL hero it showed was Lili with 1 win. Panda-monium!
 

brian!

Member
brackets for tonight's games here: https://battlefy.com/blizzard-enter...7ff14/stage/5832833250355447036cfde4/bracket/

i forget that denial already qualify, so I guess this means mc gets a free ride? tho I feel that this should only be the case w/ a locked roster pre-blizzcon

w/r/t chen the nice thing about his rework is that he has good maneuverability with his talents, the biggest choice you have to make is probably at level 4 between deadly strike and ring of fire
also I think accumulating glame is really good, but at higher levels you might need to shell out for a defensive lvl 1 talent
 
Hello strangers

I played again for the first time in like 6 months last night, what a clusterfuck

And that nerf where Locust Nest and mines share cooldowns took me by surprise

I see Abby is 2nd to last in wins on hotslogs now, not that that's terribly surprising but damn

Will probably dabble again for a while, I like Brawl because it's over fast

I almost fell out of my chair laughing when the MVP screen came up
 
The build from Srey's tier list is a good start. Here's the link: http://www.heroesfire.com/hots/talent-calculator/chen#sedB

The main variations you have to use/encounter are:

1) Elusive Brawler is amazing, but sometimes they have little to no AA. Grounding Brew can be really good against mage heavy comps.
4) Breath of Fire is awesome for ticking up the damage + even faster wave clear. Keg Toss can also be fun if you want to go from annoying POS to the most annoying POS.
7) I almost always go Bolder Flavor, but have seen others swear by Brewmaster's Balance for the move speed/regen bonuses. I think the insta-shield is too strong to pass up though.
10) YOLO
13) Same
16) Same
20) Same



What's funny is before I got my second win with Chen, the HL hero it showed was Lili with 1 win. Panda-monium!

I will try breath of fire. I have so much fun with him maybe he will replace ETC in my heart, well maybe. I'm gonna try hard Chen and Zarya these future weeks.
 
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