Runnin' and Gunnin' by XanderJJ

Runnin' and Gunnin'

By: XanderJJ
Last Updated: Mar 4, 2015
6 Votes
Build Guides Discussion (6) More Guides
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Tychus

Build: Standard

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Level 20

Threats to Tychus with this build

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Threat Hero Notes
1
 Abathur Has no way to interrupt Q Overkill. He can do a decent amount of damage so beware if you see that zerg thing on top of an opponent’s head.
1
 Li Li She is pretty easy to deal with. Her heals can be annoying. She can’t interrupt your Q Overkill. Watch out for her E Blinding Wind as this will make your auto-attacks miss. If she does blind you just use your Q Overkill as this will still hit. You can interrupt her R Jug of 1,000 Cups with you W Frag Grenade.
1
 Murky He is pretty easy to deal with, but he is innately an annoying champ. Try to find his D Spawn Egg. He can only interrupt Q Overkill with R Octo-Grab. A good Murky will push the crap out of a lane so try to get some strong additional wave clear.
2
 Azmodan I think this is a pretty easy matchup. He can’t interrupt your Q Overkill channel while you can interrupt his E All shall Burn channel with W Frag Grenade. You have the aoe to deal with his minions and the mobility to dodge his Q Globe of Annihilation.
2
 Malfurion He is a very strong healer. Not too hard to deal with as his only way to interrupt your Q Overkill is if he gets his worse R Twilight Dream. Use your E Run and Gun to avoid his E Entangling Roots, or just walk away as the outer circle takes a while to activate.
2
 Rehgar Rehgar is pretty easy to deal with. You can kite him well. Just watch out for his R Ancestral Healing as it will undo all the damage you have done to one person. He has no way to interrupt your Q Overkill.
2
 Sonya This is an easy matchup. She can interrupt your Q Overkill with her Q Ancient Spear, but it’s pretty easy to dodge, especially with E Run and Gun. If you save your W Frag Grenade for her E Whirlwind her damage and sustain are destroyed.
3
 Arthas He can’t interrupt Q Overkill. He can root you with his W Howling Blast. Just try to kite. Use your E Run and Gun to dodge his W Howling Blast and stay out of range of his E Frozen Tempest which slows around him.
3
 Chen Not too hard to deal with. You can kite him for days. Either W Frag Grenade or E Run and Gun away if he Q Flying Kicks onto you. I prefer to use E Run and Gun to get away because you can use your W Frag Grenade to interrupt his trait D Fortifying Brew. He can only interrupt your Q Overkill with his R Wandering Keg.
3
 Gazlowe Don’t fight on his turrets. He has to charge up his W Deth Lazor so try to save your dash to avoid it. His E Xplodium Charge and R Grav-O-Bomb 3000 can interrupt your Q Overkill but are pretty easy to avoid especially with your E Run and Gun.
3
 Tassadar He is a very strong support. He lacks a way to directly interrupt your Q Overkill, but if Q Overkill onto him and he uses his E Dimensional Shift it will cancel it. Place your Q Overkill on another target and let the splash hit him. Try to save your W Frag Grenade and Q Overkill for after he uses his E Dimensional Shift for two reasons: so he can’t escape after and because he can dodge it with his E Dimensional Shift.
4
 Diablo He can interrupt your Q Overkill with his Q Shadow Charge, his E Overpower] or his R Apocalypse. You can usually kite him so he can’t Q Shadow Charge or E Overpower you. Just watch the ground and if you see a giant pentagram, and weird coloration, under you dash out of the circle with E Run and Gun. As long as you kite him he is pretty easy to deal with.
4
 Jaina This matchup is not too bad. Its kiter vs kiter. Try to avoid her spells with your E Run and Gun. She can only root you and slow you. You can displace her. I give the edge to Tychus because your Q Overkill is on target and all her moves are skill shots.
4
 Thrall Thrall is pretty easy to deal with. You can kite him for days. He can only interrupt Q Overkill with his R Sundering. When he uses E Windfury knock him back with W Frag Grenade. Juke his W Feral Spirit with your E Run and Gun. Just do not let him get on you as he will sustain for days, especially late game.
4
 Tyrande She is not too hard to deal with. She can interrupt Q Overkill with her E Lunar Flare, but it is easy to dodge especially with your E Run and Gun. Watch out for her D Hunter’s Mark, a broken shield will appear over your head when you have the debuff. You will take a lot of damage from everyone.
4
 Zagara As long as you're not on her creep you can out kite her. You can use your Frag Grenade to kill her tumors and put her in a bad position. Just watch out for her W Hunter Killer as those do a lot of damage. In lane she does more damage than you but in a team fight you do a lot more than her.
5
 Anub'arak He has 2 ways to interrupt Overkill, Q Impale and E Burrow Charge. Try to save your E Run and Gun to dodge those abilities, especially his Q Impale. You can often avoid his E Burrow Charge with good movement.
5
 Falstad Honestly they have pretty similar kits. You both have a dashes. Your Q Overkill out damages his Q Hammerang overtime. Try to use your dash to disengage when uses his W Lightning Rod, if you did not get far enough away or he followed with his E Barrel Roll you can then use your W Frag Grenade to knock him away. R Commandeer Odin puts out a lot more damage than Hinterland Blast if used properly. He can only interrupt your Q Overkill if he gets R Mighty Gust or the lvl 16 talent Hammer Time.
5
 Illidan Early game you can rock him. Your Q Overkill still damages him while his E Evasion is up. Late game even with your W Frag Grenade and E Run and Gun he can stick to you like glue with his W Sweeping Strike and Q Dive, combined with his Trait Betrayer’s Thirst. Ask your team to peel as Illidan is very susceptible to CC. He can only interrupt your Q Overkill with his R The Hunt.
5
 The Lost Vikings These fools are annoying no matter who you are. Tychus has the aoe to deal with them effectively when they group up, but they can send one to two seperate lanes and just soak xp while still contesting objectives with one. They have no way to interrupt your Q Overkill so the standard build is pretty good against them, especially if they group up. If they are split try to setup picks so they can’t absorb more xp than your team.
5
 Valla Definitely a skill matchup. You have similar kits. She has E Vault where you have E Run and Gun. You can actually interrupt R Strafe with a W Frag Grenade. She has the edge in early duels but your R Commandeer Odin is stronger than her ultimates in my opinion. I like the kiting attack speed build against her, although standard is nice for the slow and range on Q Overkill. She out damages you early but Odin is better than either of her ults in my opinion.
6
 E.T.C. E.T.C can be pretty annoying. He can interrupt your Q Overkill with his Q Powerslide or W Face Melt. He can be hard to kite if he upgrades his trait D Rockstar to also give movement speed, and because he can dash in with his Q Powerslide. Try to kite. Tell your team to help peel.
7
   No Threat
8
 Brightwing I hate when the other team has a Brightwing. Even after the nerfs he is still strong. He has 2 ways to interrupt your Q Overkill. His W Polymorph has a similar cooldown to your Q Overkill so good Brightwings will just use it the second you pop Q Overkill. Try to bait out his W Polymorph or wait until he uses it on someone else in a team fight before you use Q Overkill. He can also knock you back and stop your Q Overkill with his ultimate Emerald Wind. Brightwing can additionally teleport to any teammate instead of mounting so be careful if you think you have a pick on lock.
8
 Sgt. Hammer This is a tricky matchup. She out ranges you. She can interrupt your Q Overkill with her W Concussive Blast, and knock you back. She has comparable hero damage and better siege damage. Basically you want to try to put her in a bad position while she is sieged up with your W Frag Grenade, but even then she can Siege Thrusters away. Try to setup a pick on her with your team if she is split pushing a lane.
8
 Uther I hate when the other team has an Uther. Similar to Brightwing, although not as bad, he can interrupt your Q Overkill on target with his E Hammer of Justice. He can also interrupt your Q Overkill with his R Divine Storm. On top of all that his heals are very strong making it hard to burst anyone down, and he has an aoe heal to negate a lot of your aoe damage. Try to kite him and do not let him get close to you. Save your Q Overkill for after he stuns you or someone else.
9
 Nazeebo This is a hard matchup. He can out trade you in a duel. He pushes lanes harder than you do. Watch out for the poison damage on his trait Voodoo Ritual, it does more damage than you would expect. You can E Run and Gun out of his W Zombie Wall. I recommend getting the lvl 7 talent Quarterback so you can interrupt his R Ravenous Spirit from farther away as good Nazeebos will position themselves at a distance when using R Ravenous Spirit. The bright side is he can’t interrupt your Q Overkill. Sometimes I even go full Frag Grenade upgrades against a good Nazeebo, although I still almost always take Armor Piercing Rounds in the lvl 1 talents.
9
 Nova This is a tough matchup especially in the late game. She can burst you so fast, and from stealth. I recommend going a tankier build if the Nova is good. She has no way to interrupt your Q Overkill and you can interrupt her R Precision Strike with your W Frag Grenade. Watch for the shimmer on your screen and try to juke her Q Snipe with your E Run and Gun. You have better wave clear than her, but again she can burst you hard in a team fight. Positioning is key here. Try to keep a tank between you and her.
9
 Tyrael Tyrael is one of the tougher warriors to deal with. He can stick to you with Q El’Druin’s Might and E Smite. He can shield a lot of your aoe damage with W Righteousness. Also he can interrupt your Q Overkill and get onto you with his R Judgment. I would recommend a kite heavy build and asking your team to peel.
10
 Kerrigan She is pretty strong against Tychus. She can close on you with her Q Ravage. Her W Impaling Blades and E Primal Grasp both can interrupt Q Overkill. If you time it just right you can avoid her E Primal Grasp with your E Run and Gun. Good Kerrigans will combo their W Impaling Blades and E Primal Grasp together to pull then stun so be careful against her.
10
 Muradin He is annoying as hell. He can interrupt Q Overkill with Q Stormbolt, R Avatar, R Haymaker, and E Dwarf Toss and basic attacks if he gets the talents Heavy Impact and Skullcracker respectively. A good Muradin will be all over you ccing you and making sure your Q Overkill channel is interrupted. Try to get some peel. I suggest going the aa anti-cc build. Relentless is crucial against him.
10
 Raynor Raynor is one of the stronger “counters” to Tychus. He can interrupt your Q Overkill with his Q Penetrating Round. He can keep up with you with his W Inspire if he gets the lvl 7 talent Revolution Overdrive. He is innately tankier than you because of his E Adrenaline Rush. He also out ranges you. I recommend going an aa build, but grab First Aid] and Stoneskin. On the other hand, your R Commandeer Odin is stronger than either of his but it is harder to use properly than his point and click ultimates.
10
 Stitches This is a pretty brutal matchup. Stitches is probably the strongest hero in the game at the moment. He can Q Hook you and R Gorge you to create situations where you have no way to escape. Try to use your E Run and Gun to dodge his Q Hooks. He can also interrupt your Q Overkill with his Q Hook or W Slam if he gets the lvl 16 talent Pulverize.
10
 Tychus Of course the biggest threat of all is yourself. Whoever interrupts the other’s Q Overkill with their W Frag Grenade wins. Odin vs Odin gets pretty silly.
10
 Zeratul Zeratul is annoying as hell. He can only interrupt your Q Overkill with his R Void Prison, but he is still the anti-assassin, assassin. He can burst most of them down easily. Try to kite him but he can slow you with his W Singularity Spike and follow you with his E Blink. Ask for peel, knock him back after he jumps in. Go a tankier build. You should get First Aid and Stoneskin.

Tychus

Build: High CC Enemy Team/Getting Focused

Level 1
Level 4
Level 7
Level 10
Level 13
Level 16
Level 20

Tychus

Build: Hero Shredding Kite Machine

Level 1
Level 4
Level 7
Level 10
Level 13
Level 16
Level 20

About the Author Top

Hello, my handles are XanderJJ and Mojjin. I am a Hardcore gamer and game design major. I mostly play games with friends, so I do not get a lot of ranked in, but I still managed to get Gold 3 in LoL. I love to teach. I plan to grind up the ladder for HotS. Come watch me play Tychus and all the other heroes at http://www.twitch.tv/xanderjj. Any comments or questions are welcome and appreciated.

Phrases and Abbreviations Top

Orbwalking = shoot and scoot, auto canceling, etc.
aa = auto-attack
cc = crowd control
aoe = area of effect
cd = cooldown

Introduction Top

Tychus is a powerful ranged assassin. He has a great kit with mobility, displacement, and high damage. The main Tychus build revolves around his Q Overkill and Ultimate Commandeer Odin. Tychus is very susceptible to cc because his Q Overkill channel can be interrupted. Because of this I have two other builds. I have the Tanky Tychus, which is best when the enemy has large amounts of cc and when you are getting focused. I also have the Hero Shredding Kite Machine, which can be good for solo que as you will not always have good peels or a dedicated healer. All three builds are good but should be tweaked based on your team comp, the enemy team comp, and both teams play styles. One of the keys to Tychus is the versatility of his builds. Mix and match the talents based on what your team needs and what the enemy team is doing to you. I will go into detail about every talent and when/if they are viable. I put all the matchups under the standard build. Remember you can use your W Frag Grenade and E Run and Gun while your Q Overkill is channeling.

Ability Breakdown Top

D Minigun
I am a big fan of this trait. It helps you orbwalk. Great synergy with Vampiric Assault. Stacking attack speed is very strong. The wind up time can take some getting used to.

Q Overkill
Tychus bread and butter ability. This is a great move that allows you to kite well and use your W Frag Grenade and E Run and Gun while channeling. While this ability is very strong for single target and aoe damage it is interruptible by CC.

W Frag Grenade
Great displacement ability. Does more damage than you think. Super fun to dunk people with. Try to use it to interrupt peoples channels like Sonyas Whirlwind, Nazeebos ultimate Ravenous Spirit, or Azmodans [All Shall Burn]].

E Run and Gun
A good dash. Has great synergy with his trait, Minigun. Not having to deal with the wind up time on Minigun is really nice especially at the start of the fight. Although I usually save E Run and Gun in team fights for escaping and kiting.

R Commandeer Odin or R Drakken Laser Drill

I just want to clarify some misinformation I read elsewhere. Commandeer Odin takes 3 seconds to activate. Shields do transfer over, ie. you can use Stoneskin before or after you activate Commandeer Odin to get the shield. After the activation Tychus begins piloting an Odin and gains new abilities. His Q becomes Annihilate his W becomes Ragnarok Missiles and his E remains a dash. The lvl 20 talent Big Red Button makes the Odin stronger and last longer. Nuclear Blast (Deprecated) is tacked onto W Ragnarok Missiles doing even greater aoe damage. This is one of my favorite ultimates in the game. It allows you to put out massive aoe damage from a safe distance. It also greatly increases your basic attack range. The only downside is the activation time. You have to have good planning and foresight to use it most effectively. You never want to activate it when you are in a position where the enemy team can easily blow you up. You will be stuck there taking damage and have wasted your ultimate. The Odin had its own health pool before the February 12th, 2015 patch but that was too OP.

Drakken Laser Drill is not as good as Commandeer Odin. It can be used to trap enemy (or allied) players and that is pretty satisfying. Drakken Laser Drill requires almost as much foresight as Commandeer Odin and does not do as much damage. Drakken Laser Drill is good for objective control and body blocking people. The damage, especially aoe, does come close that of Commandeer Odin. Placing the Drakken Laser Drill on a choke point or shrine can be very fun and interesting but again it is the inferior ultimate choice

Build 1 Standard Top

Tanky but lacks sustain. I do find myself needing to back more often. Dedicated on target cc really messes with this build. Champions like Brightwing and Uther can always interrupt your Q Overkill channel, and good ones will. Q Overkill has a long cool down. If you ever feel like you need to be tankier, or the enemy is focusing you hard, you should grab First Aid, Relentless, and Stoneskin.

Build 2 High CC Enemy Team/Getting Focused Top

This build has better sustain and is stronger against high cc comps as they will try to interrupt your Q Overkill every time. It is less reliant on Q Overkill, but Q Overkill is still your bread and butter move. If you ever feel like you need to be tankier, or the enemy is focusing you hard, you should grab First Aid, Relentless, and Stoneskin. At lvl 20 I will decide on Big Red Button, Nexus Frenzy, or Bolt of the Storm based on the situation and what the enemy team is doing. If I am getting dove super hard I would get Bolt of the Storm. If I can kite well and the fights are super frequent I would get Nexus Frenzy. If my team needs more damage, especially aoe I would go with Big Red Button.

Build 3 Hero Shredding Kite Machine Top

This is my personal favorite build, if I can get away with it. I will often go this build or a slight variation of it. If the enemy team lacks CC this build will wreck their day. I have put up some pretty crazy hero damage numbers with this build, and it is still less susceptible to CC than the standard build because it is less Q dependent. Basically you have crazy attack speed and pretty decent sustain because of Vampiric Assault. You can also get Focused Attack for more damage or Stim Pack for more kiting.

Level 1 Talents Top

Armor Piercing Rounds
The best in this tier. I get this on all three builds and 99.9% of the time.

Shredder Grenade
Alright if you have trouble landing your grenades. Will build bad habits.

Dash
Ok if you need more mobility. Not really viable.

Regeneration Master
If you really need to be tankier you could consider getting this but it hurts your damage output so much I almost never do.

Scouting Drone
You think in a MOBA where vision is so scarce this ability would be better. Unlike other MOBAs the drone is not cloaked so enemies can easily wipe it out. Could be okay if you are really smart about how you use it. I still say Armor Piercing Rounds is by far the best talent here.

Level 4 Talents Top

Vampiric Assault
I love life steal in video games, especially MOBAs. If you can stand there and auto you can regain a lot of health. This really helps with sustain. Not necessarily the best on Tychus because you are using your Q Overkill a lot and the health returned only comes from basic attacks.

Focused Attack
This is decent on Tychus because your attack speed is so high. Although I prefer Vampiric Assault or Spray 'n' Pray.

Spray 'n' Pray
This adds more range to your main ability allowing you to do damage from safer positions and kite better.

Melting Point
Good for clearing minion waves and mercenary camps. I prefer the sustain from Vampiric Assault or the range from Spray 'n' Pray.

Level 7 Talents Top

Quarterback
Can be useful for interrupting long range channels like Nazeebos ultimate Ravenous Spirit. I prefer Rapid Fire or First Aid most of the time.

Rapid Fire
I only get this if I got Vampiric Assault or Focused Attack in the previous tier. I really like this ability for more sustained damage and more sustained healing if you have Vampiric Assault. I get this over First Aid if I am not being focused or bursted too hard.

First Aid
Very strong talent. Viable in basically all Tychus builds. I would grab this if you feel you ever need more survivability. Being tankier on Tychus is very powerful, will help you output more damage over time (because you stayed alive), and annoy your opponents.

Searing Attacks
Does not seem to be taken on most ranged assassins. Not as good on Tychus as other assassins because he attacks so many times even though it is scaled to 5 mana.

Level 10 Talents Top

Commandeer Odin
3 seconds after you press R you get to become a giant killing machine, literally. This is one of my favorite ultimates in the game. Commandeer Odin changes his abilities. His Q becomes Annihilate. His W becomes Ragnarok Missiles. His E remains a dash. Commandeer Odin allows you to put out massive aoe damage from a safe distance. It also greatly increases your basic attack range. The only downside is the activation time. You have to have good planning and foresight to use it effectively. You never want to activate it when you are in a position where the enemy team can easily blow you up because you will be stuck there taking damage and have wasted your ultimate. The best time to use this ultimate is right before a team fight is about to happen. Try and active Commandeer Odin in a nearby bush a couple of seconds before your team engages. You can also use Commandeer Odin to zone people off of objectives and poke them down, but be careful it does have a 100 second cooldown.

Drakken Laser Drill
Not as good as Commandeer Odin. Can be used to trap enemy (or allied) players and that is pretty satisfying. Requires almost as much foresight as Odin and does not do as much damage. Drakken Laser Drill is good for objective control and body blocking people. Although Drakken Laser Drill has good single target damage the aoe does not come close that of Commandeer Odin. Placing the Drakken Laser Drill on a choke point or shrine can be very fun and interesting but again it is the inferior ultimate choice.

Level 13 Talents Top

Giant Killer
Viable with the aa builds if their team does not have a lot of CC. I have put some pretty crazy Hero Damage numbers when I use this in my build instead of Relentless.

Lead Rain
Adds a slow to your main move Overkill. This greatly improves your ability to kite, but if your Q Overkill is interrupted then you lose out on this cc.

Stim Pack
Good for chasing. Viable in the aa builds if the enemy team lacks cc. Great synergy with Lock and Load.

Relentless
Really good on Tychus as people will try to cc you a lot. Really helps him kite but you have to sacrifice

Lead Rain which is not as good for the caster build. If you are stunned or polymorphed you cannot do damage and are much more likely to get killed. This greatly helps you escape some risky situations, as well as continue to output damage.

Level 16 Talents Top

Executioner
Only applies to basic attacks. Can be good if your team has a lot of CC.

Lock and Load
One of my personal favorites. Really helps him orb walk. Great for chasing and kiting. Great synergy with Run and Gun.

Concussion Grenade
I almost never get this. Can be good against people that you need to displace like Sgt. Hammer or Nazeebo. Stoneskin and Lock and Load are just much better.

Stoneskin
Probably the best talent in the tier. Helps a lot with survivability and not getting burst down. Really good if the enemy team has a hero like Nova or a Zeratul.

Level 20 Talents Top

Big Red Button
The lvl 20 talent Big Red Button makes the Odin stronger and last longer. Nuclear Blast (Deprecated) is tacked onto W Ragnarok Missiles doing even greater aoe damage. Basically it allows you to put out more aoe and single target damage for a greater amount of time.

Focusing Diodes
This makes the Drakken Laser Drill a lot stronger, especially if you can get someone cced or stuck within range because of the stacking damage. I just prefer the other talents in this tier and rarely get the drill anyways.

Nexus Frenzy
I love this talent on ranged assassins. Really helps for kiting, positioning, and orb walking. If you get Vampiric Assault it has even more synergy (can you tell I love using this word) with the kit. Works really well with his passive by winding up the chain gun faster.

Bolt of the Storm
Good if your team lacks peel and you are getting dove a lot. It is always nice to have two escapes. You can make some pretty flashy plays if you combine this with Run and Gun and Frag Grenade.

Conclusion Top

Tychus is a strong assassin. He has a powerful kit and a beautiful talent tree. Practice your positioning. Kite like mad. Mix and match talents. And have some fun. I appreciate all comments.

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