Deathwing Build Guide : Deathwing [Xul Patch] :: Heroes of the Storm (HotS) Strategy Builds

Deathwing

Build: W Dive

Level 1

Level 4

Level 7

Level 10

Level 13

Level 16

Level 20

Threats to Deathwing with this build

Threat

Low

High

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Threat		Notes
1		No Threat
2	Blaze	The matchup of "Waveclear laner who ignores duels VS. Waveclear laner who ignores duels"
3	Arthas	The attack speed slow is annoying to say the least, but aside from him stacking trait, you waveclear faster and don't need to worry about him.
3	Chen	Personally haven't fought this matchup too often, but he can be annoying- not threatening. W build should take care of any prolonged fights. In teamfights, you also love getting free damage with his ultimate bodies.
4	Artanis	Artanis can't do a whole lot to you in lane as long as you go W build. Later on though, he becomes a nuisance with access to Purifier Beam and Titan Killer.
4	Dehaka	Not much happens in lane, but Dehaka's usually able to rotate faster to fights than you can.
4	Qhira	Being unstoppable has its perks, just make sure to not take free bleed stacks and to punish her back when the opportunity arises.
5	Gazlowe	Not gaining bonus damage against his turrets will suck, as well as Gazlowe having generally better waveclear and point control. In the case you get rid of his turrets easily, then it should go your way.
5	Rexxar	The bear's another free target for your W build antics. Don't let him poke you down too much, and you'll be fine. Maybe except on point control.
5	Sonya	With Block, she usually ignores you and spins through the wave to match your waveclear and to heal up. Sometimes you can Q the wave and zone her from healing, but she'll be able to hit you for free too. Just wreck face in teamfights after you get past the initial laning phase.
5	Thrall	He's a bit rough to deal with if he takes the correct talents. You still win the 1 v 1 trade generally speaking, but he becomes more annoying in teamfights when he can just pop Ancestral Wrath on you.
5	Varian	Anti-Armor, parrying, and tons of sustain in a sustained duel help him out a bit. You can still waveclear and W him since he can't answer that, but just be careful about those hyper aggressive Varians.
6	Falstad	He'll kite you for a bit, but landing a good E charge into autoattack will chunk him and force him to retreat. Otherwise, be careful of Giant Killer at 13.
6	Illidan	Annoying especially at 16, but generally speaking his early laning isn't the strongest if you kite him a bit, and you won't be the primary target for him in teamfights. Usually. W and Fear Ult help a lot against him.
6	Ragnaros	Ragnaros in lane isn't tough unless he manages to constantly outplay you, otherwise it favors you slightly for fighting 1 v 1. He still has amazing macro and waveclear though. In the case he goes Q build with that percent damage, be careful later on in the game to not get hit by that.
6	Yrel	Usually it's impossible to win trades against Yrel here, but you can both waveclear and go about your business later in the game.
6	Fenix	[DPS] An annoying person to deal with at 16 since he shreds you from that moment on. Bearable earlier in the game though.
6	Kael'thas	[DPS] He'll use you to get Living Bomb to spread to your allies, since you're a huge orange hued target already. Pyroblast onto you is also annoying.
6	Li-Ming	[DPS] She'll try to poke you out all day, but some quick dodging and hiding behind your tank will minimize the threat.
6	Sylvanas	[DPS] She gets access to anti-armor later, and you can end up as free W stack fodder if you're not careful.
7	Samuro	This 100% depends on how good the Samuro player is. Against a regular run-of-the-mill Samuro, you win this hands down. Against a good Samuro, you lose lane almost all the time. Your W has a slight animation before casting, and the Samuro player can opt to Q or Trait at the right time to deny you both sustain and dueling damage. That anti-armor at 1 doesn't help your case either. In teamfights, it's not as practical to have Samuro on Deathwing and to save both of those for the W. That'll be your chance to punish the Samuro pick, and get free damage on everything.
7	Hanzo	[DPS] Anti Armor, Giant Killer, and long range all in one kit makes Hanzo a more consistent threat to deal with. He's still fairly squishy, and most of the time you won't have to worry about him in Worldbreaker Form.
7	Mephisto	[DPS] You're a huge target for him to get cooldown resets off of, but you can try to punish him back when he teleports. Be wary of that percent damage at 16.
7	Nazeebo	[DPS] He pokes you all day long, and getting caught by Zombie Wall means you're rooted for a couple seconds.
7	Tracer	[DPS] Percent damage at 10 alongside being impossible to hit with Deathwing is not a fun combo. You might be able to catch her out and punish her with a stray ability though.
7	Valla	[DPS] In a true hypercarry Valla team, it'll be nearly impossible to punish her or her team. Otherwise, she'll still lay down the hurt on you especially at 16 with Manticore, but you'll be able to fight back early on with zoning and all.
7	Zul'jin	[DPS] Zul'Jin stacks where he pleases, and he'll ignore your armor at 16. Regular rules apply here: don't let him stack autoattacks for free, and zone him out.
8	Imperius	Innate percent damage at 1 is a pain to deal with, as well as sustain and being able to freeze you easily. Avoid this matchup if you can, otherwise just play for teamfights later on.
8	Orphea	You're actually screwed if she can land hits against you. Not a common matchup at all, but it's one of those weird counters like Junkrat VS. Illidan.
8	Xul	He pushes you in and he does not CARE if you try and hit him. He's a hard pusher to keep in check, and he'll double soak and outrotate you all day. If he goes W build and Nova, you're an extra heal target. Just hold your lane as best you can, and hope that your team can keep up in the rest of the soak.
8	Lunara	[DPS] She's annoying.
8	Tychus	[DPS] He's annoying. However, he can't focus two beefy targets at the same time, and that short range of his can prove to be detrimental. In a 1 v 1 fight, you can win that early as long as you fight back immediately. Otherwise, just be wary if he gets to hit you for free.
9	Leoric	It's impossible to properly outdamage him in a 1 v 1 if he lands Drain. If he doesn't hit you with Drain, the fights goes your way for a while! It's not very reasonable considering you have a huge hitbox and stand still to channel skills so often, but it's a possibility to consider. Be careful of getting caught in Entomb. Either E charge through him, or Cataclysm out ASAP.
9	Malthael	It's rough, but not impossible to deal with. Malthael's damage ramps up over time, meaning shorter engages/fights can end in a stalemate with neither hero losing much HP. In the long run, Malthael sustains easier than you can though. It's a matchup where if you have to waveclear, it's not as big of a problem if you avoid getting hit. In a point control matchup, don't pick Deathwing for that. Otherwise, just focus on waveclearing as fast as you can without having to fight Malthael. Later on, be careful about being low on Health due to Last Rites. Elementium Plating can lessen the blow of the ult, but not completely.
9	Greymane	[DPS] The #1 DPS to worry about from 10 onwards. You can't land without taking a bullet, so your best bet is to have someone bodyblock it on the ground or to win the 4-Man earlier in the game. You can still hit him back for meaningful damage in Worgen Form, at least.
10		No Threat

Deathwing

Build: W Safe

Level 1

Level 4

Level 7

Level 10

Level 13

Level 16

Level 20

Threats to Deathwing with this build

Threat

Low

High

Show all

Threat		Notes
1	Abathur	Same matchups for Dive build.
2		No Threat
3		No Threat
4		No Threat
5		No Threat
6		No Threat
7		No Threat
8		No Threat
9		No Threat
10		No Threat

How's Deathwing Now? Top

At the moment, Deathwing isn't as much of a menace as he was on release. The myriad of nerfs have pushed him into flexing the DPS role for the 4-Man, but he still remains as a viable Solo Laner based on the matchup.

4-Man Deathwing is a nice DPS to have on some maps, with efficient waveclear and strong fights in certain chokepoints.

Pros
+ Provides ample zoning with Worldbreaker on control points and Fort Walls
+ Damage is threatening, even more so against comps that can't answer a Deathwing pick
+ Doesn't need to act as a frontline as often, thanks to an additional Solo Laner
+ Gets poked down less through the entire game as a result
+ Healer has one less target to worry about
+ Baits the enemy Solo Laner pick to come out early, and potentially allow you to counter it
+ Clears waves decently fast and can rotate fast on some maps with global, e.g. Alterac or Cursed

Cons
- Being in the 4-Man makes Deathwing susceptible to poke depending on the enemy DPS, like
- Some healers are more efficient when they have another heal target to work with, e.g. ,
- Limits choices for 2nd DPS slot since Deathwing does not have good/safe single target damage
- Camp clear isn't that good
- Adding in another bulky hero to the team lets some enemies thrive, like Malthael

Solo Laner Deathwing can be an oppressive opponent to fight in the right matchup, and frees up another DPS slot for your team to grab.

Pros
+ Decent sustain through W build, and later dueling potential with Lv 4
+ Waveclears efficiently, and can rotate with global Z on maps like Hanamura, Volskaya, Infernal
+ Decently free lane against good matchups
+ Bad matchups often end up being skill matchups if the opponent misplays, except on point control maps
+ These points in tandem usually allow you to ignore the matchup and primarily focus on waveclear and rotating to the team

Cons
- Much riskier to pick early compared to 4-Man Deathwing, as the lane can go wrong for you in so many ways
- Impossible to win point control in some matchups
- Some enemy heroes can opt to freeze the wave against you in an oppressive matchup, denying you XP and rendering you useless for a bit
- Requires more favorable factors to pick him as a Solo Laner compared to being in the 4-Man
- Siege is pretty meh in the case you win a matchup
- You have to have Z up in order to make any rotations that are remotely fast compared to mounting normally

The Builds Explained Top

Level 1
Dragon Soul gives you the most consistent sustain options, as you can either sustain through Destroyer or Worldbreaker W, let alone it hitting multiple enemies.
Molten Blood doesn't sustain as well as Dragon Soul even in a 1 v 1 fight, and the effect is lost upon going under 50% HP. Not to say it's bad, but you may as well go for the other talents.
Draconic Might has more healing than Molten Blood, but it still has less than Dragon Soul. The main use for it is the Protected buff, extending your stay in a teamfight for a couple more seconds in the case you get bursted down. It also has a niche use in preventing some high damage abilities like Last Rites, but it's nowhere near consistent enough for that. It also does not block damage before the Protected goes up, like the damage from Cursed Bullet.

Level 4
Infernus can be a good pick if you prefer to fight from range compared to up close.
Heat Wave is a must pick if you plan on dueling the enemy solo laner or if it's an option to dive into the enemy team semi-safely.
Dragon's Ire got nerfed heavily, and only ends up as a 12.5% damage buff in PvP combat. It's more useful in clearing waves, but even then you're better off taking one of the other two.

Level 7
Firestorm is inconsistent, but you theoretically could get a free Z reset.
Death Drop allows you to act almost ASAP upon landing, allowing you to get abilities off two seconds sooner. Must have for W build playstyle.
Skyfall lets you land sooner and technically rotate faster through global. It's also useful for stalling objectives on maps like Cursed Hollow, or Towers of Doom.

Level 10
Burn Beneath My Shadow is immensely strong if you're able to time the destruction of a fort. Useful on maps with objectives that push down forts, like Infernal Shrines or Alterac Pass.
Bellowing Roar is a useful peeling tool against engage heavy comps, and can provide some much needed disruption if you dive onto a a team or if they dive onto you.

Level 13
Wicked Inferno makes Q spammable, and increases your zoning potential twofold.
Ruination is only okay. The other two talents are generally better and yield more impact.
Fire and Fury goes well with a W Dive playstyle, which technically gives you more damage and sustain.

Level 16
Conflagration is a good talent to pair with Wicked Inferno, and it's a good tool to punish teams that don't respect Deathwing's Q.
Gaze Unto Destruction is an insanely strong talent if you're able to land on the enemy team. With that being said, it can be unreliable, but the benefits are still strong nonetheless.
Elementium Plating provides out of combat healing if you get poked down, or an emergency shield if you're bursted down. Useful for all playstyles.

Level 20
Stood in the Fire is decent, but the value goes up more with Burn Beneath My Shadow. Personally, I prefer the air and would opt for the other two talents.
Arrival of a God provides a lot of general benefits if you don't happen to take W talents, and can be useful if you regret your Level 7 talent.
Destroyer's Rampage provides insane value for a fight, and makes you nigh unstoppable if the enemy lacks a good answer for Deathwing. Not like you're already unstoppable, that's just semantics.

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