Heroes Of The Storm Balance Patch Released: Whitemane Buffed, Azmodan and Li Li Nerfed

On Wednesday, Blizzard released the latest balance patch for Heroes of the Storm. The patch brings in some bug fixes and hero changes.

In terms of bug fixes, the main change is that the development team fixed the issue of Boss mercenaries being slowed. A change to the UI and the collection menu has added an icon that shows Limited-Time Offers.

The biggest change is to the heroes, with some getting buffed and others getting nerfed.

Azmodan, for example, has had the damage scaling of his Globe of Annihilation lowered to 2.5 percent from 3 percent. The Level 1 Greed Talent now increases the All Shall Burn range by 25 percent, with Demon Warriors getting an increase in Movement and Attack Speed by 20 percent. Level 20 Talent Trample also got a buff, with cooldown now at 20 seconds.

Lowering the scaling damage of Globe of Annihilation means that Azmodan will not have that much of an impact on the late-game. That some of his existing talents have been adjusted means that the developers want to see a different build for this hero. Low rank play of Azmodan will be affected, with the possibility of the hero not being chosen for high rank play.

The popular Li Li is also received a nerf. Unlike Azmodan, Li Li gets nerfed across the board. Health has been lowered to 1500 from 1534 with health regeneration being reduced to 3.1 from 3.2. The healing of her Healing Brew ability has been lowered as well from 181 to 175. Level 16 talent Blessings of Yu'lon was reduced as well, with the talent now healing 1 percent of max health rather than 1.25 percent of max health.

Li LI is a hero that is easy to play and is popular with a lot of players. These changes might impact her dominance, particularly in the early to mid-game. This could result in Li Li being unplayable in high rank games, though her popularity in low rank games could continue.

Whitemane, another support hero, is getting a buff. While her attack period has been lower to 0.85 from 0.75, her attack damage has been increased to 60 from 45. Simply put, Whitemane will have a slower attack, but will deal more damage. Her Searing Lash damage has been increased with the healing of her Self-Righteous talent also experiencing an increase. Whitemane should do well in high rank games, though competitive play is a different story.

Full details of the February 27 Balance Patch Notes can be accessed here.