Why Should I Choose Ragnaros? Top
So why should you play Ragnaros, the Firelord? Ragnaros feels almost like a Multiclass Hero except that he is both an Assassin and a Specialist at the same time. He can deal tons of damage, even from afar, to multiple enemies but also take over a Fort or Keep to prevent all damage to it for the duration while also becoming an improved form of himself. Lava Wave and Molten Core can stop enemy pushes quickly and Empower Sulfuras and Living Meteor can shred multiple enemies at once. He is almost the best of both roles. However he does lack survivability, and while the healing from Empower Sulfuras helps he needs to be fighting for the healing to happen. This downside does not detract from Ragnaros's viability though, as Supports usually cover these weaknesses and Warriors can take the brunt of the damage. So if you want to play a high damage dealing Assassin with Specialist-like push control, then Ragnaros is the perfect pick for you!
Pros and Cons Top
Pros
+ Very high damage output.
+ Great wave-clear.
+ Great zoning capability.
+ Powerful when fighting near allied or destroyed Forts or Keeps.
+ Excellent choice on many Battlegrounds.
Cons
- Low survivability.
- Mana intensive.
- Susceptible to ganks.
- Blast Wave.
- No hard crowd control until Level 10.
Ability Breakdown Top
Trait [D]
Molten Core
Cooldown: 100 seconds
Channel on an allied or destroyed Fort or Keep to replace it with Ragnaros's ultimate form, temporarily gaining new Abilities, having 4155.84 (+4% per level) Health that burns away over 18.72 (+4% per level) seconds.
Ragnaros returns to his normal form upon losing all Health in Molten Core.
A nice Trait for defending a lane or pushing very aggressively in a lane. All damage taken while in Molten Core does not apply to your Hero's Health or the taken over Fort's or Keep's - like an improved Void Prison.
Molten Core Ability 1 [Q]
Molten Swing
Cooldown: 6 seconds
Swing Sulfuras in a wide arc, dealing 371 damage (at level 20) and Stunning enemies for 1 second.
Damage increased by 25% versus Minions, Mercenaries, and Monsters.
Very nice Ability to stave off an advance from the enemy team and give your team an opportunity to get the jump on them. Sets up the other Molten Core Abilities if you land the Stun.
Molten Core Ability 2 [W]
Meteor Shower
Cooldown: 2.5 seconds
Vector Targeting
Summon 3 meteors at the target point that fall in the target direction. Each meteor deal 349 damage (at Level 20) and Slows enemies by 25% for 2 seconds.
Damage increased by 25% versus Minions, Mercenaries, and Monsters.
The Slow is nice, once again to help your team turn the tide of a fight near an allied or destroyed Fort or Keep. Also helps line up the final Molten Core Ability that is the real damage dealer of the this Trait's kit.
Molten Core Ability 3 [E]
Explosive Rune
Cooldown: 4 seconds
Create a rune that deals 658 damage (at Level 20) to non-Structure enemies after 1.5 seconds.
Damage increased by 25% versus Minions, Mercenaries, and Monsters.
The killer Ability in Molten Core form. With the 1 second Stun from Molten Swing and the added 25% Slow from Meteor Shower, landing this Ability will be no problem.
Ability 1 [Q]
Empower Sulfuras
Mana: 25
Cooldown: 4 seconds
Ragnaros's next Basic Attack is instant, dealing 230.88 (+4% per level) Ability Damage in an area, and heals for 20% of the damage dealt. Healing doubled versus Heroes.
Nice splash damage to a cluster of enemies and the healing it provides is not that bad. Really good against multiple melee Heroes. Activating the Ability also resets your swing timer, so use it right after a Basic Attack to maximize your damage output.
Ability 2 [W]
Living Meteor
Mana: 60
Cooldown: 12 seconds
Vector Targeting
Summon a meteor at the target point that deals 78 (+4% per level) damage, then rolls in the target direction dealing 312 (+4% per level) damage per second for 1.75 seconds.
While the impact damage is weak, the damage done by the roll is amazing especially if you can hit Heroes multiple times with it. Really good in tight places where enemies cannot get out of its way.
Ability 3 [E]
Blast Wave
Mana: 50
Cooldown: 10 seconds
Ignite Ragnaros or an ally, granting 25% Movement Speed for 1.5 seconds before exploding dealing 108.16 (+4% per level) damage to nearby enemies.
I have mixed feelings about this Ability. The Movement Speed is nice and the fact you can place it on other Heroes to give them a helping hand is cool, but the damage and radius are just too... low that it is not that useful as a damage source. I mainly use it for the Movement Speed to engage/disengage or help a teammate do the same.
Heroic 1 [R]
Sulfuras Smash
Mana: 75
Cooldown: 60 seconds
Hurl Sulfuras at the target area, landing after 0.75 seconds, dealing 205.92 (+4% per level) damage. Enemies in the center take 617.76 (+4% per level) damage instead and are Stunned for 0.5 seconds.
Short delay makes landing the hammer just right easy for the extra damage and Stun. Really good Heroic for skirmishes and teamfights.
Heroic 2 [R]
Lava Wave
Mana: 80
Cooldown: 100 seconds
Release a wave of lava from Ragnaros's Core that travels down the targeted lane, dealing 357.76 (+4% per level) damage per second to non-Structure enemies in its path and instantly killing enemy Minions. Damage increased by 100% versus Heroes.
Do not underestimate this Heroic. The damage output on Heroes is huge if they do not get out of the way. Also great at clearing lanes either being pushed hard by the enemy team or giving your team an easier time to push down a lane. Can secure kills too if your team can keep the enemy team in the lane long enough - the wave has a decent travel speed to it.
Hammer Time Build Discussion Top
Meatballs of Death Build Discussion Top
This build focuses on Ragnaros's Living Meteor Ability, and picks Talents to maximize its damage output.
Talents Discussion
Level 1
Shifting Meteor
Shifting Meteor's Quest Reward helps with the one downfall of Living Meteor: the roll. Most players have the sense to move out of its path, however the reward grants you the ability to change the roll direction once while its rolling. This helps against targets who change direction or are stationary. The ability to change the roll direction will also come in handy with a few Talents further down in the build.
Level 4
Catching Fire
Catching Fire is my default choice here as the increased Health Regeneration and the rewarded activated Resistance is really great. Fire Ward is also a decent option when facing multiple Mage Heroes and need the Spell Block Charges. The Slow on Blast Wave from Slow Burn could potential be good, but I prefer more survivability than a Slow that actually makes landing a full Meteor roll harder.
Level 7
Molten Power
Here comes the high damage. Hitting even one enemy Hero with a Living Meteor will increase its damage output by 15%, and in teamfights this is where your damage ramps up. The ability to change direction of the Meteor also ensures you hit as many enemy Heroes as you can each cast.
Level 10
Lava Wave
The main deciding factor between Sulfuras Smash and Lava Wave is the type of Battleground you are playing on. Focus on wave-clearing and pushing? Lava Wave clears a lane of enemy Minions and forces enemy Heroes out of the way or die in its path. Focus on skirmishes and teamfights out of lanes? Sulfuras Smash deals quite a bit of damage and can Stun priority Heroes.
Level 13
Cauterize Wounds
Once again, no damage increase Talents to choose from but instead another survivability tier but this time with none affecting Living Meteor. Cauterize Wounds is the default choice for additional healing. The Shields granted from Tempered Flame is too weak since Blast Wave's damage was not increased earlier in the build and the Resistant bonus from Resilient Flame only applies while Stunned. Neither are good choices.
Level 16
Meteor Bomb
Another Talent that benefits from Shifting Meteors at Level 1. Extra damage at the end of the Meteor's roll while being able to change its direction means almost no one can escape the meatball of death! Unfortunately the explosion damage does not benefit from Molten Power, mainly because then nothing could compete with this build - the Meteor would steamroll over everyone!
Level 20
Heroic Difficulty
I usually tend to take the Heroic Talent at Level 20, however Heroic Difficulty adds a large bonus to Molten Core and since near the end of games the outcome is decided by one team's push, increasing your Health while in Molten Core while also making it more readily available helps ensure a won teamfight at the end of the game and a push to the Victory screen. Take over an allied Keep to wipe the enemy team at your Core then push for the win. By the time the enemy players start to respawn, Molten Core will be off cooldown and ready to burn away more insects! However if you prefer more open teamfight potential or there seems to never be a teamfight near an allied or destroyed Fort or Keep, then Flames of Sulfuron is a much better choice. And while two charges of Lava Wave is nice, it is not as helpful as a Heroic Ragnaros.
Play-Style and Strategy
Section coming soon(TM)!
Gameplay
Feedback Top
I would love to hear your thoughts and feedback, so if you have any questions, comments, concerns, or etc. please feel free to leave them in a reply below. I will make sure to get back to each and every one of you as soon as I am able.
Author's Note Top
[Dec 15th] Hopefully soon I will have the time to sit down and finish this Guide.
Heroes of the Storm Build Guides
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