Kel'thuzad by NFatcheese

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Kel'thuzad

By: NFatcheese
Last Updated: Apr 3, 2017
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Kel'thuzad

Archlich of Naxxramas

THE ARCHLICH OF NAXXRAMAS, ESTEEMED LICH LORD OF THE PLAGUELANDS, COMMANDER OF THE DREAD NECROPOLIS, MASTER AND FOUNDER OF THE CULT OF THE DAMNED, FORMERLY OF THE COUNCIL OF THE SIX, CREATOR OF THE ABOMINATION, SUMMONER OF ARCHIMONDE THE DEFILER, BETRAYER OF HUMANITY, HEARTHSTONE ENTHUSIAST, AND MAJORDOMO TO THE LICH KING HIMSELF, KEL'THUZAD!

Kel'thuzad is a squishy ranged specialist that can siege lanes incredibly well and relies almost entirely on his minions to deal damage. The main "fantasy," as Blizzard likes to say, theme for Kel'thuzad is raising the armies of the Scourge to do your bidding. His unique elements emerge from his reliance almost entirely on minions to deal damage and his Shadow of the Necropolis zone. The Necropolis is like Molten Core, but where Molten Core is an active ability, Necropolis is a passive affect that can be very powerful in siege. With the power of the Necropolis and the armies of the Scourge at his command, Kel'thuzad has the potential to be one of the strongest siege Heroes in the game.

Please note that all numbers are about what they should be, not exactly, and are subject to change. They are mostly there for a reference.

The biggest problems I can see with this Hero are:
- Soldiers may be too similar to Azmodan, Xul, and Sylvannas (Possession).
- Since there is no cap on maximum minions, there may be too many minions, which Blizzard seems to shy away from.
EDIT: WAAAAAAAAAAAAY too many minions.
- Necropolis may be too similar to Molten Core for Blizzard's liking.
- Talent tree kinda sucks, I'm no good at talent trees. That's less of a problem with the Hero and more a problem with me being unable to make it. Someone who can make a proper talent tree would fix that right up.

Combat Trait

1
Dread Necropolis
Cooldown: 100s
Summon a Necropolis over an allied or destroyed fort or keep. In a very large area (roughly the size of Moletn Core's range) around the Necropolis, a zone known as the Shadow of the Necropolis is created. Kel'thuzad's abilities are empowered while within the Shadow of the Necropolis.

Additionally, when a Hero, ally or enemy, dies within the Shadow of the Necropolis, raise a Champion of the Scourge from their corpse. If the Hero was a ranged Hero, the Champion of the Scourge will have ranged attacks. If it was a melee Hero, the Champion of the Scourge will have melee attacks and 25% more health. Champions of the Scourge have high health, deal 85 (+4%/level) damage, and last until killed. Champions of the Scourge will follow Kel'thuzad and assist him in battle.

Similar to Molten Core but more passive. Where Molten Core is used as a very active skill, Dread Necropolis is something passive that Kel'thuzad benefits greatly from. It creates an area that Kel'thuzad should fight in in order to be more powerful. The Champions of the Scourge are like Xul's passive, but for Heroes. They're very powerful, and are important to Kel'thuzad's ability to deal damage since he has almost no offensive damage abilities. The Necropolis also looks really cool and turns the Healing Fountains green.

Primary Abilities

1
Raise Dead
Charge Cooldown: 10s
Mana: 15
Holds 3 Charges
Instantly kill a minion, transforming it into a Scourge Soldier. Scourge Soldiers have moderate health, deal 35 (+4%/level) damage, and last until killed. Scourge Soldiers will travel down the nearest lane or assist Kel'thuzad if ordered.
Shadow of the Necropolis:
Raise Dead is passively cast by the Necropolis on minions in its lane, with a separate cooldown 10 seconds greater than Kel'thuzad's.

Effectively the same strength as an Azmodan Demon Warrior. Very similar to Possession on Sylvannas since the Soldiers are about the same power as a lane minion (though Possession gets the catapults while this just gets a regular Soldier). The cooldown is 20s for the autocast so that it doesn't get out of hand. Passively casting Possession on a lane for free seems really really strong.
2
Undead Plague
Cooldown: 10s
Mana: 60
Deal 320 (+4%/level) damage over 6 seconds to all enemies in an area.
Shadow of the Necropolis:
If a minion dies under the effect of Undead Plague, raise a Scourge Soldier from its corpse. Maximum of 3 Scourge Soldiers can be raised per cast.

The only basic ability in Kel'thuzad's kit that does damage directly, and it's not even a ton. It can be used to deal moderate aoe poison in team fights or clear waves and push them harder if you're within the Shadow. Only 3 Soldiers per cast though, don't want this getting too out of hand or making Raise Dead superfluous.
3
Frenzied Onslaught
Cooldown: 16s
Mana: 70
Raise 2 Ravenous Ghouls which immediately leap to the target dealing 200 (+4%/level) damage. Ravenous Ghouls deal very high damage (100 +4%/level) but have low health. Ravenous Ghouls last 8 seconds and will only attack their target until it is slain or unable to be attacked. If this happens, the Ravenous Ghouls will attack the nearest enemy, preferring Heroes.
Shadow of the Necropolis:
Ravenous Ghouls will obey Wrath of the Scourge and may be re-targeted. They also persist until death and follow Kel'thuzad. Maximum of 6 Ravenous Ghouls may be following Kel'thuzad at a time.

To make up for previous lack of being able to do anything outside of lane, these Ghouls will provide single target damage. The idea is that they're a pair of mindless, starving ghouls that blindly attack the target and then anything else they find. They won't even listen to the Wrath of the Scourge. They deal high damage, but have low health and only last 8 seconds, making them disposable damage sources and little more. Casting the ability in the Shadow allows them to be permanent and controllable via Wrath of the Scourge. Only 6 at a time though, we gotta stem the minion clutter at least a little.

Secondary Abilities

1
Wrath of the Scourge
Cause all Champions of the Scourge and nearby Scourge Soldiers to attack the target. If cast at a location, all Champions of the Scourge will move to the location. Self cast to return the Champions of the Scourge to Kel'thuzad and order nearby Scourge Soldiers to follow Kel'thuzad.
Shadow of the Necropolis:
Kel'thuzad's minions deal 25% increased damage while within the Shadow of the Necropolis.

Heroic Abilities

1
Mass Reanimate
Cooldown: 100s
Mana: 100
Deal 250(+4%/level) damage in a large area and summon a Champion of the Scourge for each Hero hit. Champions of the Scourge deal 100% increased damage to enemies damaged by Mass Reanimate.
Shadow of the Necropolis:
Also summons a Scourge Soldier for each minion, monster, mercenary, or summon hit, up to 10 Scourge Soldiers per cast.

Large aoe damage and a powerful way to gain more minions without having to kill anything. The Champions lasting permanently like normal ones might be a bit powerful, but it ensures Kel'thuzad has a good host of Champions post 10. The Soldiers from the Shadow bonus are really just an annoyance for the enemies and siege after the fight. They can also do a lot of damage if they're stacked up real good.
2
March of the Dead
Cooldown: 40s
Mana: 80
Spawn a wave of Scourge Minions in each lane at your Core. Scourge Minions are similar to regular minions but they are slightly more powerful, gain benefits from talents affecting Scourge Soldiers, and will obey Wrath of the Scourge if near to Kel'thuzad. Scourge Minions do not soak XP.
Shadow of the Necropolis:
Spawn Scourge Minions in the lane the Necropolis is in instead of regular minions. Each wave of Scourge Minions spawned this way also raises a Champion of the Scourge at Kel'thuzad's location.

This is the true army of the Scourge Heroic. The Scourge Minions are not much more powerful than lane minions, but the fact they benefit from talents buffing Scourge Soldiers (including the Shadow of the Necropolis bonus damage) and can be called in to deal extra damage for Kel'thuzad makes them powerful. It could also be an idea to not make the mages drop health globes, but I'm not entirely sure about that. This really gets the siege benefit from your Necropolis going, but it has no use in team fights outside the steady supply of Champions (unless you're fighting in a lane with Scourge Minions in it). I also freaking love the idea of an army of Scourge marching down the lanes.

Talents

Level 1


(!) Grim Harvest - Quest: Raise a Scourge Soldier for every 10 Regen Globes gathered when you gather a Regen Globe, up to 20 Globes.
Reward: Corpse Shield
Cooldown: 60s
Activate to sacrifice all nearby Scourge Soldiers and gain a shield equal to 5% your max health for each Scourge Soldier sacrificed, up to 50%.

(Q) Cemetery Recruitment - Raise Dead gains an extra charge and all charge cooldowns are reset when a nearby enemy structure is destroyed.

(W)Crippling Blight - Undead Plague slows enemy Heroes by 30% for 3 seconds.

(E) Rending Claws - Ravenous Ghouls cleave for 50% damage.

Level 4


(Trait) Scourge Recruitment - Friendly non-Mercenaries within the Shadow of the Necropolis deal 35% more damage.
50% like Merc Lord seemed too strong since you don't have to be present.

(Q) Flesh of the Master - Scourge Soldiers heal Kel'thuzad 15% of the damage they deal when nearby.

(W) Plague of Undeath - Undead Plague can now raise up to 2 Scourge Soldiers per cast when outside the Shadow of the Necropolis. Up to 5 can be raised when within the Shadow of the Necropolis.

(E) Unstable Ghouls - Ravenous Ghouls explode upon death, dealing 200 (+4%/level) damage over 3 seconds to nearby enemies.

Level 7


(Passive) Vile Rebirth - Kel'thuzad's summons heal themselves for 30% of the damage they deal.

(W) Corrosion - Undead Plague deals 50% extra damage over 6 seconds if cast within the Shadow of the Necropolis.

(Active) Ruthless Disposal - Cooldown: 30 seconds
Sacrifice a Champion of the Scourge and deal 300 (+4%/level) damage to target enemy Hero, slowing them by 40% for 2 seconds.

(Active) Cannibalize - Cooldown: 60 seconds
Destroy a minion and heal all Champions of the Scourge for 50% of their max health over 5 seconds.

Level 10


(R1) Mass Reanimate - Deal damage and raise Champions of the Scourge for Heroes hit.

(R2) March of the Dead - Send Scourge Minions down all lanes.

Level 13


(Trait) Death's Gaze - Enemy Heroes within the Shadow of the Necropolis are revealed for 4 seconds after they would leave vision.

(Trait) Unholy Renewal - Allied Heroes within the Shadow of the Necropolis regenerate 1% of their max health and 0.5% of their max mana every second.

(Trait) Blighted Land - Auto attacks slow enemies by 15% for 3 seconds if Kel'thuzad is within the Shadow of the Necropolis.

Level 16


(Trait) Immortal Servitude - Takedowns summon an extra Champion of the Scourge for each one that died in the last 90 seconds. If the Takedown was within the Shadow of the Necropolis, raise 2 Scourge Soldiers for each Champion of the Scourge raised.

(Passive) Terror - Destroying an enemy structure raises 5 Scourge Soldiers and 1 Champion of the Scourge.

(W) Domination - Undead Plague deals extra damage to enemy Heroes equal to 6% of their max health over 6 seconds.

(E) Feeding Frenzy - Frenzied Onslaught summons an additional Ravenous Ghoul. Up to 9 Ravenous Ghouls may follow Kel'thuzad at a time.

Level 20


(R1) Black Plague - Mass Reanimate deals an extra 100% damage over 10 seconds. Enemy Heroes slain while this effect is active raise an extra Champion of the Scourge. Enemy minions, monsters, mercenaries, and summons in the Shadow of the Necropolis that die while this effect is active raise a Scourge Soldier.

(R2) Army of the Scourge - All lanes now spawn Scourge Minions instead of regular minions. Scourge Minions have an additional 50% health and damage.

(Trait) Plaguelands - Dread Necropolis gains 2 additional charges. Up to 3 Necropolises may exist at a time. Reduce the cooldown of Dread Necropolis by 40 seconds.

(Passive) Phylactery - Every 90 seconds, Kel'thuzad may respawn after 3 seconds at his Necropolis when killed. If Kel'thuzad dies within the Shadow of the Necropolis while this ability is active, he only grants half the XP for his death.

Base Stats

Health - 1500
Health Regen - 3
Mana - 500
Mana Regen - 4.5
Speed - 4
Attack Speed - 1.1
Attack Range - 5.5
Attack Damage - 65

Change Log

Update: 3/1
Based on feedback, I made a few changes.
- Moved Wrath of the Scourge to a numbered ability and made it able to target locations. Think Misha's controls. Self casting it also makes nearby Soldiers follow you, so that they can be used outside of lane like Zagara and Azmodan, but you still have to prep for that in lane.
- Replaced his E with a pair of mindless Ghouls that deal damage and last a short time. This helps make up for previous lack of team fight potential. The talent tree has also been updated accordingly.
- Made March of the Dead spawn a Champion when autocast by the Necropolis, allowing Kel'thuzad to get a constant flow of Champions for team fighting. Also lowered the cooldown significantly to boost the lane pressure in exchange for being useless in team fights. The Scourge Minions also no longer soak XP, I forgot that summons do that meaning KT would get ridiculous soak from March. Both ults now supply KT with additional Champions: Mass Reanimate more quickly for burst, March more steadily with minion waves. March seems it will always be the weaker ult because of its design, but it may have niche uses. And I like it way too much.
- Made Champions deal double damage to enemies hit by Mass Reanimate, to make it more powerful outside the Shadow. Also increased its damage a bit, now it does about the same damage as a Spectral Scythe on Xul.
- Buffed damage of Champions so that they are more useful since they're pretty hard to come by sometimes, especially pre 10.

Update 4/3
Small changes, mostly to Necropolis to make it less like Molten Core:
- Dread Necropolis now summons a Necropolis over an allied or destroyed fort or keep instead of replacing it. The Necropolis cannot be targeted or destroyed. The Necropolis is so critical to KT's play style that getting it killed would ruin him. I might need to nerf the bonus of the Necropolis since it's no longer able to be killed, but we'll see.
- Changed the Plaguelands talent at 20 from covering half the battlefield in the Shadow to adding 2 extra charges for Dread Necropolis and allowing for up to 3 Necropolises. The talent doesn't increase the range anymore, but lets you re-position the Necropolises more often.
- Mass Reanimate can now only raise up to 10 Scourge Soldiers per cast while cast within the Shadow.

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