After teasing fans on Twitter, the developers of Blizzard’s MOBA Heroes of the Storm have unveiled the latest update coming to the game. Called the Nexus Anomaly, it will be revamping some of the gameplay features such as cannon towers, forts, keeps and cores and much more. The team aims to make defending players feel more protected by the nearby friendly structures.
As it stands at the moment, enemy units can hold a structure’s attention for so long that defending players feel that they’re offered no additional protection when taking refuge by their base. In addition to making buildings stronger against Heroes and updating their targeting logic, the team is also adding them abilities to non-ARAM battlegrounds as a part of Nexus Anomaly:
- Battlefield of Eternity – Every 8 seconds, the Core will spawn 2 volleys of Frozen Orbs that explode, dealing 5% maximum Health as damage and Rooting enemy Heroes hit for 1.5 seconds.
- Blackheart’s Bay – Every 4 seconds, the Core will shoot a cannonball at 2 nearby enemy Heroes, dealing 5% maximum Health as damage, slowing them by 70% for 1.5 seconds, and knocking them back.
- Braxis Holdout – Every 4 seconds, the Core will shoot 5 missiles at a nearby enemy Hero, dealing 5% maximum Health as damage per missile.
- Cursed Hollow – Every 3 seconds, the Core will spawn a Curse under a nearby enemy Hero. If they are Cursed, they take 5% maximum Health as damage and their Armor is reduced by 75 for 4 seconds.
- Dragonshire – Every 6 seconds, the Core will throw 2 boulders at a nearby enemy Hero. Heroes hit are turned to stone, damaged for 5% of their maximum Health, and Stunned for 1.75 seconds.
- Garden of Terror – Every 5 seconds, the Core shoots a seed under a nearby enemy Hero. When the seed explodes, Heroes inside are Polymorphed for 3 seconds.
- Hanamura – Every 8 seconds, the Core fires 2 volleys of missiles around it, dealing 5% maximum Health to enemy Heroes and slowing them by 70% for 1.25 seconds.
- Infernal Shrines – Every 8 seconds, the Core will spawn 2 volleys of Frozen Orbs that explode, dealing 5% maximum Health as damage and Rooting enemy Heroes hit for 1.5 seconds.
- Sky Temple – Every 23 seconds, the Core will spawn 2 sets of 6 tornadoes which swirl around it, dealing 25 damage to enemy Heroes and knocking them back.
- Tomb of the Spider Queen – Every 5 seconds, the Core will shoot a Death Wave, dealing 5% maximum Health as damage to enemy Heroes and slowing them by 70% for 1.25 seconds.
- Volskaya – Every 6 seconds, the Core shoots 3 Rocket Fists at nearby enemy Heroes, dealing 150 damage and knocking them back.
- Warhead Junction – Every 18 seconds, the Core launches a Nuke at a nearby enemy Hero, dealing 30% maximum health to enemy Heroes hit.
The update also includes:
- Get ready to show off your dedication to your favorite Heroes with the next level of Hero Mastery Rings! These new rings become purchasable once a Hero reaches level 50 and you already own the first and second rings for that Hero.
- A.I. has been updated and retooled
- Creating favorite talent builds. Players can create up to 3 builds per each Hero and can activate one build at a time.
- Matchmaking changes are coming for GM & Masters
- Floating Combat Text for experience earned from killing blows now has a unique purple color and displays at the position of the killed unit.
- The long-awaited Tassadar rework
- Xul nerf
- Bug fixes
Last but not least is the return of the Dark Nexus and the related skins, mounts, and other collectible cosmetics.
The following skins will be available for a limited time:
- Dark Nexus Deathwing
- Dark Nexus Fenix
- Dark Nexus Tassadar
- Dark Nexus Gul’dan
- Dark Nexus Alarak
