Phase Field is his main defining characteristic, taken directly from LotV. Karax summons Protoss buildings and units and must power/buff them with his power filed, and that mostly defines his playstyle. I also think that the trait should give a small bonus not related to powering his other abilities, so that’s why the field also buffs allied minions (and, with talents, structures, mercenaries and/or heroes), so that it's not too much one-dimensional.
Being so vital to his playstyle, I think it would create very strategical opportunities if, through some talent choices, power fields could be generated from additional ways. That’s why he has the Warp Pylon (touching to the Protoss fantasy), Phase Scarab, and Strong Heart talents. By the way, the Pylon talent allows it to be warped in at any point in the map you have vision, and since building photon cannons has unlimited range (as long as it is warped inside a phase field), it allows for some interesting strategies, keeping in mind the Pylon’s warp delay.
Photon Cannon, his [Q], has a similar role than Gazlowe’s turrents. Karax can build up to 4 (more with talents) but they must be powered by a phase field in order to keep attacking, and there is a brief warp in time (around 1 sec). Because of these downsides, the cannons lasts longer and are a little bit more impactful (DPS-wise).
It wouldn’t make sense to me to have a Hero designed around building and powering structures, but only having one structure that follow this concept. So, Karax can also warp in a Shield Battery, which grants a stacking shield over time to himself and allies. Karax can target and re-target, by pressing E again, the hero to gain the shield, otherwise the battery shields the closest hero. The battery has a very long duration, enough to make the shield worth as a basic ability, but must also be powered by a phase field to work. Oh, and by the way, neither the Battery nor the Cannons are destroyed if not powered, they just stop working, only re-activating when powered again.
The [E] ability is a support-like ability, not enough to make Karax a true Support hero but making him more versatile (like Lunara’s Wisp ability). It also helps to differentiate him better from Gazlowe, while making sense with the rest of his kit. I also thought it would be interesting to see this support-likeness being helped with some talent choices, so there are some talent builds to improve this ability and make Karax kind of a secondary Support (for instance, Observatory, a Karax-specific version of Clairvoyance).
Keystone, one of his level 20 talents, references the ancient and powerful artifact used by the Protoss in the campaign. Being such an important, mysterious and powerful artifact in the story, I felt it could be implemented as a Storm Talent. It is another structure that must be powered by a phase field to work, and creates a new playstyle, almost a new way of winning the game, consisting of defending the Keystone while the artifact does damage to enemy structures and minions. This playstyle also references the last episode of the LotV mission (protect the artifact) and synergizes with Karax kit, as he can turtle up a defense to protect the Keystone. The area of effect of the artifact is very huge, like Illidan’s The Hunt (untalented), and lasts until destroyed, so it must be dealt with by enemies. Of course, it’s a small damage over time, not enough to destroy the Core in a couple of seconds, but can lose the enemy team the game if left unchecked, and the Keystone area appears on the minimap to enemies as well.
All these three structures – Photon Cannon, Shield Battery, and Keystone – can be warped anywhere on the map that you have vision, as long as within a Phase Field.
I wanted to include a basic ability that didn’t depend on power fields, so that he can have some flexibility, and that’s where Scarab enters. Yes, I know, Karax doesn’t get to build scarabs in the LotV campaign, he’s not a Reaver (Starcraft 1 unit, Scarabs where the ammo that Reavers shoot). But it’s not impossible to imagine that Karax, being a Master Phase-Smith, cannot build Scarabs on his own. This ability, in my opinion, fits perfectly because: a) is an ability that serves his playstyle while being free from the phase field mechanic; b) fits the fantasy of Protoss, since Reavers needed to build scarabs before shooting them; c) fits the fantasy of an engineer / artisan, where he must first build the scarab and then use them.
Building Scarabs require a small channeling time, while Karax remains immobile, but he can cancel the channeling. If he is interrupted (stun, push, etc.), he keeps the scarab already built (1 scarab per second channeling). Shooting Scarabs serves as an AoE skillshot that deals heavy damage. He can only start building more Scarabs after he shoots all carried ones, and after the cooldown.
His first heroic ability, Carrier Has Arrived, fits the character for two reasons: a) as a phasesmith, he has a great understanding of ships (specially since he’s responsible for technical operations on the Spear of Adun); and b) in the episode where Carriers become playable, it’s Karax who lead the Carrier fleet in the mission. When summoned, players only see the shadow of the Carrier flying in the skies (similar to Raynor’s Hyperion), but the ability feels more like Kael’s Phoenix. It’s a huge AoE that Karax can move (very slowly) by using R again, and the Carrier slowly builds Interceptors that attack enemies in the area. Interceptors can be destroyed by enemies, but not the Carrier itself.
The level 20 talent to improve Carrier, Graviton Catapult, is the name of the Carrier upgrade in Starcraft 2.
His other heroic is Deploy Talandar. Now, there are some that think Talandar should be a Hero itself in the game, and not reduced to just a heroic ability. In my opinion, however, Talandar didn’t bring anything new – both in terms of characteristics and personality, and in gameplay – to give him the status of Hero. I think Fenix – the true Fenix – would make an awesome addition to the Nexus, but not Talandar. Also, in LotV, that’s how he would act on the battlefield – being deployed and attacking enemies on his own, and that’s the spirit this heroic ability tries to capture.
I think Talandar is a good heroic for Karax because, in the campaign, they have some sort of cool relationship. They are always together in the same section of the Spear of Adun; Karax and Talandar fight together during the mission to retake Aiur; and on the last episode of the campaign, it’s Karax who leads the Purifier army while protecting the Keystone.
Gameplay-wise, Talandar functions as a heroic version of Azmodan’s General of Hell – you summon Talandar by targeting a lane minion, and he marches along the lane. However, Talandar doesn’t buff minions, but is way stronger in terms of damage (and it also functions similar to how he is deployed in LotV campaign). Talandar’s interaction with Phase Field serves two purposes: a) synergy with the rest of the kit; b) strategic options – Karax can either push together with Talandar, increasing his survivability, or use him to split push but without the field (or, at most, with a Pylon’s field).
Lastly, I decided to include a modified version of the Calldown: MULE talent – Warp Probe. It makes complete sense based on the lore of the character. The Probe doesn’t require a power field to be summoned (it works similar to the MULE).
Heroes of the Storm Build Guides
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