Quicknotes:

Hey all, this is Heisenberg, thanks for checking out my new Artanis guide, I'll be adding stuff as patches come out, comments and ideas are welcome. I'm finally sporting an Artanis master skin today, and really love how cool this new hero looks and feels, so hope this guide brings you as much fun as I've been having with the toon. Meanwhile, you will become the focus so expect to tread carefully for a bit... As with any new hero, people want to see how easy you are to kill xD

So far, I've measured the DPS output of quite a few heroes on the dummy, and Artanis output is on par with Falstad in a dps build, even higher sustained dps than Falstad. In reality, Artanis is often topping the parse. Mostly because he isn't so squishy that he can land most of his attacks and stay in the fight. That says a lot right there.

He has a huge amount of survivability, with amazing dps output. Tankiness can be okay with the right talents to augment shield cd. Bear in mind, you'll get a lot out of being at half health if you choose the talents to support it. Templar's Zeal and Psionic Synergy synergies well together and will bring your shield cd to 6s or less. Once you get to half health you go into overdrive. Merc camps at half health, no problem, boss or golems at half health, not a problem either.

At lvl16, there really is no substitute for Psionic Wound it is soo OP, basically like having a tyrand or Critterize on your team, only every 4s with your (W) Twin Blades. It also only works on Heroes, but it does melt them if everyone focuses them. I've seen teams with Tyrande and Artanis using vulnerability in tandem and the results are explosive. Zealot Charge is also an amazing gap closing talent as it is like having a Shadow Assault full time.

You will miss the skillshot (E) Phase Prism quite a lot to begin with. It has a bit of a short range, and is slow so at lvl1, it may be worth taking Khaydarian Resonance but you will end up sacrificing your block or marksman stacks if you do. Learn to hit the skillshot and you won't have to think about this. Play Video

Artanis is a legend class, powerful, Protoss Zealot bruiser, whom is going to be one of those heroes who is always banned in tournaments and always picked in HL or TL. He is a definite "Must OWN" bruiser class tank. He often tops the DPS parse and he has a very flexible talent tree aimed at providing a high degree of granularity between defensive and offensive talents. You can tell Blizzard really put the polish on Artanis. The talents, the graphics, and sounds of this hero are wicked cool.

He is the highest DPS to Highest health ratio hero that has yet been released, by far (factoring in his shield). His HP pool on it's own isn't that tanky in comparison, but if you can get his shield proc-ing frequently, which is an art in itself, it becomes epic. With Artanis play you'll always be riding the line below 50% health to put your talent infused abilities into overdrive with the builds that I've included here. It will be tempting to go all dmg build but if you are the only tank, please save a loss and don't do that. Even as a secondary tank, it helps to have some shields CD.

Artanis damage output can be quite devastating indeed, and a surprise to the enemy. His primary DMG output is his auto which speeds up with Twin Blades, and his Blade Dash. His ULTs are equally as fearsome as they can be cast from anywhere on the battlefield. Hypothetically, He could be off doing boss simultaneously casting his ULT on a team fight at a objective. This is hugely powerful in and of itself.

His shield comes online below 50% health only when you are damaged, and you can hear it if you have your bass turned up. Shield cool down is 20s, but your auto attacks and Twin Blades reduce it by 4s each attack. There are a few talents that bring this cool down to almost nothing. We'll be discussing those in the guide.

Pros

[*] Awesome in team fights
[*] Awesome duelist - Will beat anyone 1v1.
[*] Good Waveclear with Blade Dash
[*] Wicked Siege and Merc clear with Amateur Opponent
[*] Excellent at taking out low health runners
[*] Can dash and dmg the backline.
[*] High AOE and single target dmg
[*] High HP pool with shields
[*] Can remove divers from the backline
[*] Can conversely put an overextended squishy into your dps range.
[*] Very hard to land a skillshot on while Blade Dashing.
[*] Can periodically escape abilities and Ults with his Blade Dash
[*] Global range on Ults
[*] Can wipe a team with upgraded purifier beam.
[*] Can interrupt channeled abilities with Phase Prism and escape.

Cons

[*] Gets focused in most team fights.
[*] Very little CC compared to most tanks, good with a Jo.
[*] No permanent escape till lvl 16 with Zealot Charge on a passing by enemy minion. You can use prism though to get back.
[*] Purifier Beam ULT1 can be outwalked as it travels slowly, needs CC, this can be a plus though as it will keep one enemy out of a fight for 8s..
[*] Can be put in harms way with phase-prims easily.

(Q) Blade Dash - This is kind of like E.T.C. Powerslide but it does not stun and you fling back like a rubber band, damaging both ways. In that sense, don't use it for a running perma escape or you will be unpleasantly surprised. It can be useful at escaping quick enemy abilities. It doles out quite a lot of dmg and can be configured to dole out 150% more dmg on the first swipe forward. This will be your wave clear, and it's very useful for knocking out low health enemies circling the backline waiting for a heal. It will also knock off 4s for every enemy hero hit by it off your shield CD if you are specced with Psionic Synergy talent. It may seem counterintuitive when low health to use it right into an enemy team, but it will help you survive sometimes by bringing your shield up quicker. It will put you in unstoppable against a Dragon Knight trying to kick you.



(W) Twin Blades Keep this ability going non-stop as it incredibly adds to your DPS, and reduces the CD of your shield/block if you are specced for block with Reactive Parry. This ability can be activated while you are on a mount in preparation for use, just like Kharazim's Deadly Reach. The second you actually hit something, it will fire it off. At lvl 16 with the addition of Psionic Wound, heroes will melt if your team focuses them. Spam this baby!


(E) Phase Prism This is a tricky game changer. It works by hitting the first enemy hero in it's line range and flip flops them with you. The skill part comes from being able to hit a moving target with a very slow moving, short range, cool pyramid projectile. It's harder than it sounds.

As a tank, your first use of this defensively is to take divers who dive into your backline and put them back where they belong. But as an offensive, you'll want to grab overextended squishies and put them into the cauldron of friendly dps you have to melt them. You can also phase escapees with some skill. If you are using it defensively, you may wish to enhance it with Graviton Vortex later game if you have more than one diver it will bring both of them back. You will miss often at first just getting used to it's range. It will interrupt channeled abilities and Ults like Mosh Pit so keep that in mind. Enemies to keep it reserved for are definitely The Butcher right after a charge, E.T.C. during Mosh Pit, lili during her thousand brews ult. Hammer to bring her nearer to your team to focus. Illidan to keep him away from your squishes.


(R1) Purifier Beam The first time I cast this, it worked sooo well. After a few games, it seemed people started running away from it, which still keeps one nasty dps out of a fight for 8s running. The best time to cast it is simultaneously with E.T.C. Mosh Pit, Jaina's ULT (Work out which one she is going, either elemental, or if she is ring, or Rexxars slow ult. or after a Leoric Entomb. Great for getting an enemy Zeratul or Nova off your shoulders and keeps them from cloaking if they get near it at all. Wait till at least 2/3rd health on the enemy b4 casting it and don't waste it on a tank unless they are below 40% health at least


(R2) Suppression Pulse This is an awesome ult! It is much like Jo's Shield Glare except in a much larger area, and for 4s long. It will also store 2 charges later game with the lvl 20 upgrade, which is extremely handy. What makes it OP is that it has no range, so you can cast it at the Hearth if you have died and your team is still fighting.


(Trait) Shield Overload Below half health is the key to this trait. Just when you think you've killed an Artanis, the shield pops up. That is just one of many cool things about him. Basic attacks and other talents will lower the CD of the trait considerably. There have been several instances where this shield proced at just the right time and the enemy hung around too long chasing me. Much like Sonja in that regard.

I've included 5 builds for 5 different roles.

or
Bruiser - Protoss Purifier Build
This is my main build for balance and to keep the shields and dmg rolling fairly evenly. Purifier beam is easy to walk out of, true, but if your team has CC, it can work, you can cast it on a healer and it till keep them running around for 8s which makes them unable to heal effectively. Keeping one player occupied and out of a fight for 8s is not a bad thing even if it doesn't destroy them. If you are taking a lot of ability dmg vs melee, use Phase Bulwark instead of Triple Strike at lvl 13.


Balanced DPS build with Suppresion - Dubstep Suppression pulse build.
This is more of a dmg build with suppression pulse ULT for auto attacking heroes.


Tank Build - Main Tank Build
This is the build good for main tanking, solo tank. Lots of Shielding. If you are taking more auto attack dmg then ability or spell dmg, then use Triple Strike at 13 over Phase Bulwark as it will give you quicker shields instead of a Spell Shield.

or
Low Defence Full DPS - The Flinger - Full Metal DPS Protoss
This is a pure DPS role with maximum fling, all DMG no Shield enhance, not great if you are the only tank. Pretty good as a second or third tank.


Artanizul - Ridiculous Auto Attack Build, packed with 4 punch Siege killer, and a charge for runners. I wouldn't use this if you are the only tank. This is a fun one for duelist situations. So far I've had 100% success against other Artanis using Titan Killer at same lvl in QM with this build. Great for Dragon Shire and Mines where you find a lot of spread out heroes, and have Knights, golems, to kill.

With Artanis you want to be on the front line diving as far back through to the backline of the enemy with your dash as you can. Mow over them relentlessly. Come from a diagonal, or straight on if it works out that way, to land as successful a dash as you can. You need to warn your team not to rush in running after you, as they will often think you are actually rushing in when all you are actually doing is dashing in to dash back. This causes bunch up, and clustering and overextending of your team.

When you dash back, use your Twin Blades and as soon as you hear your shield go up, you know you need to be careful and back off a sec or two till your dash comes up and you can do it all over again. Since and repeat.

The added

good Khaydarian Resonance To begin with, you may wish to take this so you don't waste your skillshot by missing, till you get used to it. It has a relatively short range so it can be fairly easy to miss. Once you get the hang of it though, this talent will become mute.

really good Reactive Parry A standard issue 2 charge block, except you must use your Twin Blades in order for it to be reset again. This sounds easier than it is sometimes. If you are up against a lot of auto attackers, definitely take this and spam your Twin Blades often.

really good Amateur Opponent This is actually a brilliant talent which brings your siege dmg away up, as well as signifigantly speeding up merc and boss camps. Synergies well with Triple Strike and Follow Through. This makes you a hard hitting mofo with nexxus-blades where a core assault will go quick as butcher with this. Great on blackhearts, cursed hollow, infernal shrines, anywhere there are many merc camps.

good seasoned-marksman Toward the end game, this can really up your dmg percentages. Your auto and blades attack can be amplified by this. Usually at end game, I'm up to 30 stacks or so depending not he map. Spiders is a good map for this as youre always killing minions. If you are doing maps with a lot of merc camps, then AO is better because you won't be lining as much.

Situational Shield Battery This would be great if during battle you didn't plow right through your shield, but until people stop focusing the new Protoss, this one just doesn't do much in battle.

Good Lethal Alacrity This is actually pretty good with LVL 7 Solarite Reaper as it flings you away into the backline. But you will lose the frequency that templar's-zeal will give you.

Good Chrono Surge Not a bad buff, also helps your shield CD a bit and dps.

Great Templar's Zeal Really good as at 50% health your dash will be up every 5 seconds from the time you return. Synergies really well with [[psionic-synergy], where dashing into enemies will lower your shield cd. You basically have a choice of whether to dash further and quicker or more often.

Situational Warp Sickness This is a situational talent, if you don't have any CC in your comp, which would be really bad to begin with, then it can help. When I first started with Artanis, I started going this route but found that there were better talents in this tier for the builds that I have been using. Still, it does work well on keeping a runner unable to run for enough time to kill them.

Good Solarite Reaper This is awesome for a dmg build as it makes the first part of your dash nearly equal in dmg to the last half of your dash. At lvl 7 your dash will go from 60/180 to 150/180. Thats 320 DMG in total across a line of enemies, this adds up very fast. Your dash, if used on several heroes is a devastating AOE. If at lvl 7 you find that you are managing your shield well enough, and are ahead, go with this. To put this in perspective, at this stage Follow Through gives 160/114 with your Twin Blades on a single target.

Good Psionic Synergy This talent has saved my arse countless times. Such an awesome talent! this brings your shield up nearly right after you Blade Dash over an enemy hero, so long as you are under 50% health, which is where your shield procs anyhow. You'll want to get the rhythm of dashing then Twin Blades as it keeps ur shield into overdrive. This will lower the shield CD 4s each way too. It can be quite deceiving to the enemy, who thinks you are nearly dead, or your shield has run out as they start chasing you.

Good Follow Through If you are going more of a single target assassin build, this works astonishingly well as your auto attacks are insane dmg as they are and your short cool downs on Twin Blades makes this talent pay massive dividends. To add 40% more every 2-4 seconds is insane. Paired with seasoned-marksman or Nexus Blades it has massive siege and single target dmg potential.

R1. Purifier Beam, sends a global beam out that chases one enemy hero for 8s, it will keep going even if they die and affect anyone who crosses it. This can be used offensively, or defensively to keep a diver or healer out of a fight, so keep that in mind. No one will dive to your backline if they have a beam chasing them. It basically can be avoided if the subject keeps running for 8s or if Uther uses his Divine Shield, or if Tyrael uses Sanctification. lili can almost heal through it with her 1000 cups. It would be too easy if this was just an insta-kill one enemy ult. So as long as there is some CC, it can be really good at eliminating one nasty target. There is a very high chance that with just a bit of coordination, you can take out someone with it.


R2. Suppression Pulse renders any auto-attacks in a large area completely mute for 4seconds. It also reveals a large area for 4s, so it has a built in Clairvoyance. It can really be effective if you aim for the auto-attackers like The Butcher, Kerrigan, Raynor, Sgt. Hammer. It's a huge circle so it usually encompasses a whole team with no problem. Don't pre-emptively cast it, as that is usually a waste, it runs out before you've had a chance to hit anyone. Wait till the battle is going and your team is there to capitalise on the blind.

Good Defensive Phase BulwarkWhen you get your shield turned on, to have this negates quite a bit of ability damage. It's like Spell Shield but activates more frequently. If you figure that your shield procs every 5-6 seconds or less depending on your talents, that is quite a lot of spell ability mitigation and it falls within most ability cool downs. If the enemy team has more ability dmg dealers like KT or Jaina, definitely take this.

Good Offensive/aa defensive Triple Strike This would probably be my go to talent VS an auto-attacking team, as it has a hidden defensive component, in that it also takes an additional 4s off your shield CD. So this, plus 1 basic attack, plus one talented Blade Dash below 50% health, your shield can be up non-stop. If you are taking more auto attack dmg then spell dmg, then take this.

Situational Graviton Vortex Situational and can be dangerous if used offensively front on, as it puts you smack in the middle of an enemy team. But it can be very disruptive to the enemy. It will split the enemy team if used flanking and synergies well with lvl 16 Zealot Charge as an escape mechanism. I can definitely see huge potential in using this in that way. If the enemy's backline is away to well guarded, take this and drag 2 of them out, then start dashing/charging backwards.

Burning Rage As a tank I'd normally say go for this but one added strike from Triple Strike will easily output the cumulated dmg from Burning Rage plus reduce your shield cd. Perhaps in a future nerf, this might become viable, I hope not.

As usual, the most useful talents other than the ULTS are on lvl16. Depending on what is going on, this choice can turn around a losing game. Maps like Blackhearts Bay, Dragon Knight, you will have a lot of pairs roaming and running from you, so Zealot Charge can pay dividends. In team fights, Psionic Wound is outrageous vulnerability, while if you are getting focused quickly, you may need defence in shields. Really does depend on what's going on at this important stage of the game.

Good Defensive Shield Surge The shield from this is insane. It's basically a Tassadar class shield every 4s if talented right, and makes killing Artanis extremely difficult. It does decay over 3s, but if you are taking heavy damage then 3s is a long time for it to get used up, considering it will refresh in about 2-4s total. Definitely awesome for main tank build.

Good Offensive Zealot Charge AMAZING gap closer and charge, awesome counter to hammer, synergies well with an offensive Phase Prism manoeuvre as it will bring you right back to whom you Phase Prismed into your team or out of your team. Alternatively, this is so much fun to use as a way to gap close on runners, or peeps circling out to the backline. You stick to them like Zeratul Shadow Assault so I've built a special build which is particularly fun to use if you are finding yourself chasing down runners a lot. This talent is awesome on Dragon Knight and Blackhearts where there are always solo peeps running around the map.

Good Multi-tank Titan Killer If you are up against high health heroes or a predominately tank team, this talent will spiral your dps numbers upward, however, Psionic Wound with a bit of team focus will explode a tank faster. Situational talent.

EPIC Team Focus Psionic Wound IMO there is no better a talent on Artanis than this as it is a 2second long Critterize(without the disable) or Hunter's Mark with a 4s cool down (as opposed to 15s on Polymorph. That is HUGE! If you have team focus, this will literally explode whomever is marked with it. In the end, if killing the enemy faster is more important than individual dps, go with this.

Awesome with CC Target Purified The upgrade to Purifier Beam can wipe an entire team if they are all low health enough and don't/can't run from it. Especially, when people aren't as familiar with how to avoid the beam in the first place. The key to the upgrade is to be patient, and cast it more toward the mid-end of a fight to push it over the edge. The more I play though, it is becoming increasingly difficult to kill the first enemy with the beam in the first place. However, this will synergize well with a Thrall Earthquake and if you can coordinate a Wombo with a Thrall then this would definitely be the way to go, even frost-ring, or Rexxars Unleash the Boars ult could make this a team wiper.

Must Have Orbital Bombardment If you took Suppression Pulse, this is a required upgrade as it gives you another charge of it 10s later. Pretty amazing considering that the ULT is already on a low CD.

Situational Defensive Force of Will This will keep your shield CD nonexistent with your autos, especially with Triple Strike. But if you aren't doing any auto's because you are running too often, then this won't help much. Kind of a catch 22, which renders this talent not as good as the upgrades to the Ults.

Really Good Nexus Blades Trusty blades on a Protoss zealot, yes please! If you take Purifier Beam and it isn't ending up killing enemy's take this as your lvl 20 upgrade and watch your dps shoot through the roof. It won't speed up your attack but it will make your Twin Blades hit like a truck. Your DPS will definitely skyrocket with this.

Synergies with Artanis

• E.T.C. - Mosh Pit and stuns epic with Purifier Beam and Target Purified also Rockstar keeps shield and dmg rockin!
• Lt. Morales - Stim Drone used on Artanis will land more devastating blows and procs his shield nonstop.
• Leoric - Entomb works great with Purifier Beam as does Paralyzing Rage, keeps enemies clumped up to mow over with a dash.
• Rexxar - Unleash the Boars ult will keep targets slowed and rooted long enough to wipe a team who is low health with the beam.
• Abathur - great target for Symbiote with Adrenal Overload, will get Spike Burst way off into the backline and keep artanis shields up.
• Jaina - Awesome to beam with water-elemental, plus your 2 vulnerabilities at 16 will slow and melt exponentially.
• Raynor - Inspire will help proc your shields quicker as well as keep the dmg from autos.
• stiches - Putrid Bile is an 8s slow that will keep the beam killing. If with Artanis careful who you Gorge
• Tassadar - shields on top of shields, plus the heal from Leeching Plasma will go into overdrive with blades.
• Diablo - Overpower Charge with Phase Prism will help throw an enemy way toward your base.
• Sylvanas - Wailing Arrow ult before or after a Suppression Pulse = 6.5second of drastically mitigated dmg.
• Tyrande - Hunter's Mark will stack with Psionic Wound for 45% vulnerability which will melt an enemy instantly with team focus.
• Brightwing - criterize with Psionic Wound will also melt with team focus.
• Thrall - Earthquake will team wipe with upgraded Target Purified and a low health team.
• Arthas - Howling Blast Frozen Tempestsummon-sindragossa all really good with beam.
• Johanna - Blessed Shield with a Punish and Condemn will keep someone still long enough for purifier to kill them. Wait to cast your Suppression Pulse after a Shield Glare for an additional 1.5s of blinding.

10-21-15 Added 3 builds, made some edits, started intros. added lvl 1 & 4 talents. More tomorrow.
10-22-15 Adding Graphics, and 4th build - more talents, and moved ults from intro discussion to LVL 10 talents. More to come today. Still to do: adding talent Icons.
10-23-15 Added Artani-zul single target assassin build. Cleaning up typos and adding more icons.
10-24-15 adding more visual polish. Changed Artanizul build lvl 4 talent to Chrono Surge, change dubstep lvl1 to Amateur Opponent.
10-25-15 Added synergies section. Added rest of icons. Visual Polish, edits to typos.
10-26-15 Added Artanis intro video.
10-28-15 Artanis full release - changed Artanizul STA build to use Lethal Alacrity instead of chrono surge for last second runner dash kills. Chrono surge is good, but still real hard to land.