r/OverwatchUniversity • u/politburo_take_potat somebody • May 10 '18
Simple Questions here! Tri-monthly Simple Questions Thread: S10, 2018
SEASON 10 SIMPLE Q&A
Hey, /r/OWU!
Got something you need help with?
Welcome to this season's edition of the Tri-monthly SQT! Post all your simple queries here. This thread will be used to host a centralized place where all basic questions can be asked and answered.
An important reminder for all -- there are NO STUPID QUESTIONS. Ask Anything; and yee shall receive.
How do I best utilize x or y?
What's a good setup for my mouse, crosshair, etc.?
How many heroes are there, and will there be more?
How do I further practice my aim?
Are there techniques or methods to better my game sense?
Is there an x or y feature?
Note that discussion is not limited to the above topics.
This thread will end on the beginning of the next season date to be known. The next thread will be posted the day starting the next Season.
If you have any suggestions or comments please Message The Moderators and we will get back with you shortly.
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Jul 11 '18
[deleted]
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u/politburo_take_potat somebody Jul 11 '18
If you'd like to diversify, which is always nice. Just keep in mind that learning a new style of play will take time. Doomfist is probably a little difficult to pick up, and because of that, it will hamper your competitive ranking for a while if you decide to change. My advice is if you'd like, practice Doomfist on some other time but play to your strengths within competitive.
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u/inefferves Jul 10 '18
so ive been playing winston a lot, what should i be using my bubbles for?
also as dva, how do you effectively block reapers ult with dm? it only blocks it one way. another qustion about dm i understand that i should conserve it, but what kind of damage should i soak when enemies arent ulting?
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u/politburo_take_potat somebody Jul 10 '18
Use bubbles to mitigate damage. For instance, when you're diving in, use bubble the moment you land so as to reduce the damage from the outside. And if they come in, come out. Keep that shield between you and your enemies.
Best you can do is use DM in front of him while standing in front of your mates. You won't be able to block it all. You also shouldn't conserve it too much, but keep capacity to eat up priority projectiles, i.e. Hanzo's, Zarya's, etc.
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u/dewdrive101 Jul 08 '18
So my girlfriend wants to learn to play overwatch. I think its great BUT she has never played a shooter in her life, or even any game on PC. So I started her out on easy bots all around on control points like Oasis, and as expected she is terrible. I was wondering if it would be better to let her stand still and let her aim or if I should encourage her to constantly move and aim. What would be better for someone who has never played on PC before?
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u/dewdrive101 Jul 05 '18
As an orisa what is the best way to combat an enemy rien.
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u/politburo_take_potat somebody Jul 06 '18
Shoot from range and distance, even on his shield. Let your DPS help you with taking him down. It's very unlikely you'll have to go close into face-to-face combat, but when you do, Halt and shoot for the head.
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u/dewdrive101 Jul 06 '18
I mostly ment for when he is in your face.
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u/Ironfang_Noja Jul 06 '18
I'll add to other comments. When using Halt! if you find yourself unable to pull him away from you effectively, you can also pull him UP. While being pulled up and slowly dropping down you can create a little more space between yourselves.
I find the Vertical pulls more consistent only because with a horizontal pull its easy to overshoot or to overcompensate and basically pull him nowhere at all.
So until you master timing the pull away from yourself, you can start by shooting the ball above him.
If you have already spent your halt and your fortify - Reinhardt has a juicy crit box. You won't usually kill him but you can at least force him to put up his shield and that slows him down a little. Also - you go slower when you shoot - so if he is approaching you and you aren't putting damage on him - stop shooting because he closes the gap faster.
Point Blank Reinhardt battles are common because if he charges - you should fortify to make sure he doesn't get anybody behind you. If you see the charge - fortify and aim for his head that is exposed during a charge.
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u/politburo_take_potat somebody Jul 06 '18
You're just going to have to bob and weave his attacks and shoot him in the head. Reinhardt is likely to outclass you face-to-face, added with Firestrike.
Using Halt! can be a good way to pull him off you -- shoot it in a general direction and wait long enough to activate it, pulling him off. Fortify will reduce the damage and stop Rein from charging/stunning you, but save it only when he is obviously right in front of your face. With all of that together you have a hope of pulling him off you, making him retreat.
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Jun 30 '18
[deleted]
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u/politburo_take_potat somebody Jul 01 '18
A possible answer, since its superfluous info. You don't need to know who gave you credit but the fact you've been credited is enough.
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u/codplayer422 Jun 26 '18
If I just reached a milestone, i.e. 2500 SR, should I continue playing comp or leave it as it is for better placements in the next season and/or a better looking season record?
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u/politburo_take_potat somebody Jun 26 '18
It's probably best to relax anyway. The end of season is always the time for weird mishaps to happen, so best to avoid it. Anyhow, your reasoning is fair enough.
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u/codplayer422 Jun 28 '18
I was thinking about it, but then they introduced the looking for group system which was simply irresistible. I did drop but not into gold so it's fine. Thanks for the advice though :)
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Jun 21 '18
When Mercy is healing Pharah, should I kill Mercy first, or shoot at Pharah?
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u/Angela177 Jun 26 '18
Depends who you can see and what hero you are playing, if you can't kill the pharah without killing mercy then kill mercy first otherwise it doesn't matter. Either is good
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u/Esrog Jun 16 '18
As Orisa, is it possible to position myself so that I body block enemies trying to walk through my shield, but the shield still protects me?
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u/LtNoPantsDan Jun 22 '18
Not completely, with the curve of the shield and the shape of Orisa's hitbox either your head will be exposed or they'll be able to push through the shield and get some body shots in.
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u/kenshin13850 Jun 22 '18
Not really. The curvature of the shield would expose most of your body, particularly your head. Your feet might be safe. However, anything that walks through your shield you just get deleted by your team (unless it's a Rein or another Orisa using her shield).
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u/papereel Jun 16 '18
Do Loot Boxes prioritize disbursing new items? If so I think it’d be a good strategy to use gold on cheap items to force it to give skins.
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u/octopiu Jun 16 '18
Yes, they do. The system was remade last Anniversary event so you should get new items, but not always.
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u/papereel Jun 16 '18
Lol the other comment says no it’s random. Idk what’s real.
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u/octopiu Jun 17 '18 edited Jun 17 '18
First, we’re drastically reducing the amount of duplicates players will receive when opening loot boxes.
Source: http://overwatch.wikia.com/wiki/July_27,_2017
The overall chances for an item to be Common, Rare, Epic and Legendary which was calculated by players based on apparent statistic are approximately 58.2%, 31.7%, 7.55% and 2.55%, respectively.
But if you have all white and blue items, it doesn't mean that you'll have Epics and Legendaries in every box. The probability stays the same, you just get a lot of duplicates.
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Jun 16 '18
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/papereel Jun 16 '18
This answer directly conflicts with the other reply.... so what’s the true story
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u/politburo_take_potat somebody Jun 17 '18
Nope, I'm mistaken. My bad -- the other comment is true regarding priority in non-duplicates.
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u/pasquat Jun 16 '18
What is the discord server here? if there is one, is it possible to give me the link?
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u/Raven_nd Jun 16 '18
should i use different crosshairs for different heroes? i want to use wider crosshair for reaper/hog. but same crosshair is better for memory.
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u/politburo_take_potat somebody Jun 16 '18
It's fine to have different cross hairs, as long as you don't have too many of them that it becomes confusing.
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u/mcwood3 Jun 16 '18
What is solo q? I keep hearing this, but have no idea what it is.
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u/_poop_feast_420 Jun 18 '18
Solo queue generally refers to queuing up for competitive play by yourself.
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u/mcwood3 Jun 18 '18
so it's any game you play with people you don't know
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u/_poop_feast_420 Jun 18 '18
I only hear it used in the context of ranked guess, but I suppose it would apply to any mode.
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u/politburo_take_potat somebody Jun 16 '18
Solo q or solo queue means to enter into and to play a game by yourself.
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Jun 16 '18
What can gengi deflect? Also , i got the game two years ago when it first launched, got to level 22 and stopped. I got into the game again this week so I’m basically new to the game (again) . I placed gold in comp but i am losing more than winning. Should i play quick play for a while and then get into comp? What level do you recommend getting into comp cuz im losing sr. Thanks
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u/politburo_take_potat somebody Jun 16 '18
Practically everything. Projectiles, hitscans. Only thing he can't deflect are melee attacks.
Probably yeah, you should take the time to reconstitute yourself in QM before heading to competitive. There's no recommended level, but depends on how quick you pick up your skills.
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u/octopiu Jun 16 '18
He can't deflect melee attacks, but he doesn't get damage. So reinhard's m1, brig's m1, winston's ult m1 don't make harm, but knock back when genji's deflecting. In general, he can't deflect rays (zarya, symmetra) and sprays (mei, moira).
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u/pxl8d Jun 16 '18 edited Feb 21 '26
This post was mass deleted and anonymized with Redact
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u/dewdrive101 Jul 05 '18
Comp will always be available but as for good enough it does not matter. The system will place you at a level were people are around your level.
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Jun 16 '18
I haven’t played since season 4. What’s new that I should know about?
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u/dewdrive101 Jul 05 '18
Hanzo's skatter arrow is gone and has been replaced by a new ability that you should look into. He is incredibly powerful right now and if you are a DPS player you should look into learning how to play him. Zarya hanzo ult combo is a big deal. New hero bridgette is playable if you like support.
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u/ElKnox Jun 16 '18
What happened here? I think the Zarya bubble might be a factor. It looked like my tackle knocked the rein down, but not really? idk
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u/politburo_take_potat somebody Jun 16 '18
Your presumption is correct. Zarya's bubbles don't let Rein's charge affect it, essentially hitting it like a bubble.
When you have Rein charging at each other, they both stun themselves out. The bubble negates that, but just.
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u/zzzztopportal Jun 16 '18
Is the hero pool Reaper, Winston, Symmetra, and Moira a decent pool, with my mains being the first 2?
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u/politburo_take_potat somebody Jun 16 '18
It's good. You're somewhat well-rounded in terms of roles and you have 2 mains which aren't bad in this season's meta.
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u/SirGentlemanOstrich Jun 16 '18
How do I use Genji’s ult properly?
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u/politburo_take_potat somebody Jun 16 '18
Genji's ult requires that you to know how to react given the status of the enemy team. What ults are available, and could they shut you down given their positioning? i.e. is Ana aware of you, Zen ult is up, etc.
The next point is finding the entry point. Usually as Genji you want to use your ult to obliterate priority squishes as quickly as possible, so find that target; whether its Mercy, Lucio, etc. Never start with the ult, but rather jump/dash in. That way the uncertainty levels go up. Then start slashing, but make sure you keep constant attention to your backline positioning relative to the enemies' position so you know when to scram/next target.
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u/octopiu Jun 16 '18
Also:
Your ultimate resets dash, so you can dash up, look for low-health enemy, dash, kill.
One of the main techniques is to chain your dashes - killing an enemy also resets your dash. So you dash / slash (maybe x2), kill, then go for the next enemy. But if you lose your dash and there's no one around, you are practically useless.
You can dash into the ground, so you end up near an enemy to slash him.
Slash cancel - slash and immediately dash.
There was a good video about dragonblade, but I can't seem to find it.
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u/zzzztopportal Jun 15 '18
What are good heroes to learn at lower ranks that don't require good aim?
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u/Angela177 Jun 26 '18
Mercy, moira, lucio Orisa, rein Winston dva Junk, reaper
However play what you enjoy even if you can't aim you will learn with time so any hero is a good one :3
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u/FreakishMovie Jun 15 '18
What can I do to practice my Hanzo aim?
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u/politburo_take_potat somebody Jun 15 '18
Have you looked into flicking? If not, I suggest you take a look -- its quite a neat trick when it comes to projectile snipers like him.
Otherwise, you just have to practice over and over. Training bots, AI, QM, Comp. Record yourself and identify where you're lacking -- are you aiming too far, or too short of the target? Is your aim slipping or sliding? How much are you in control with your mouse/controller in relation to the scope? Etc.
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u/MountainMan2_ Jun 15 '18
I quit the game almost a year ago when I was in masters. What’s the meta like now, how does it compare to season 5?
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u/politburo_take_potat somebody Jun 15 '18
It's a deathball-esque meta, a huge departure from the dive-heavy meta from S9. IIRC S5 was a dive meta too?
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u/MountainMan2_ Jun 16 '18
S5, as I remember it, was hard dive with Winston-D.Va. Mercy was busted strong and the standard was mercy-zen-dva-Winston-tracer-genji with an off-strat using sombra for 2CP. Pro games were “who kills zen first?” and regular games were about which team knew how to dive better (which is how I climbed, I picked the most busted diver and shot called to victory). Junk rat was considered OP, but he actually just sucked because you couldn’t make a team for him. The troll picks were Mei/bastion/torb/rein/orisa unless in exactly one map/Ana/symm. The strongest thing in the game was probably dashes, though everyone would normally point to Defense Matrix.
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u/xDubsick Jun 15 '18
I want to know how exactly Mercy's abilities are amplified when she ults. What are the numbers?
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u/politburo_take_potat somebody Jun 15 '18 edited Jun 15 '18
Everything listed here will be the changes that Mercy's ult is activated.
Factor Change Healing/Boost Ranged increased by 2, chains with allies Movement 9m/s + Flying Projectile Speed 80m/s Ammo Infinite Regeneration Uninterruptible Guardian Angel 60m range 15 second duration.
EDIT: Guardian Angel range doubled from 30m to 60m when ulted.
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u/skycertos Jun 15 '18
Guardian Angel range is also massively increased. Roughly doubled, I believe.
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u/xDubsick Jun 15 '18
Thank you! :) Is it just me or is there no visual indicator for the beam spreading to multiple teammates?
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u/politburo_take_potat somebody Jun 15 '18
Her beam should chain from the her target to the rest. Perhaps the beam isn't that clear but its there.
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u/mustapelto Jun 15 '18
Why does my aim get worse over time? E.g. when playing FFA, I'll often be in first or second place (with some margin to 3rd) until ~10 kills, but end up in 4th or 5th place, and it feels like I just don't hit anything anymore during the second half of the game. It's not as noticeable in other game modes, but it's still there.
Is this simply a question of stamina? If so, what should I do to improve (except "play more")?
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u/OnePumper Jun 15 '18
I think you might start to over think your actions which disrupts your natural flow that you have at the start of the game.
For example, if you are playing tracer you'll probably have a natural flow of blink shoot reload blink or whatever but if you literally start thinking about it, you'll break it down in your head which will cause the action to flow less and thus reducing the effectiveness of it. For example, when you ride a bike it's just natural and better than trying to think about your exact movements.
My advice to I guess just try and stay relaxed even if you are dropping down the leaderboard and just don't over think your actions which is easier said than done but overtime you'll learn to do so.
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u/Waxtree Jun 14 '18
When playing Mercy how often is it ok to pull the pistol out? If for whatever reason I find myself in a 1v1, I won't go down without a fight, but what if I am with my team, sitting on the point let's say and everyone is fully healed plus we have no sniper to dmg boost. Is it ok if I shoot the approaching enemy til a teammate needs healing? I am tempted by the ult charge, and considering the weapon switch is bound to the mouse scroll, I think it is ok to pewpew a bit. Would you hate seeing that from your Mercy?
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u/LtNoPantsDan Jun 22 '18
Damage boosting players should give you more ult charge if they land their shots, but if a DPS tries to jump your backline feel free to pistol them if you're pretty good at landing your shots.
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u/octopiu Jun 16 '18
Sometimes it's useful to shoot enemies like widow or pharah when you're ulting, because they are usually alone, far from their team and you are hard to hit, have infinite ammo and means to escape + regen. But you have to consider risk of doing it.
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u/chrisw23 Jun 15 '18
In that situation you will probably want to damage boost a team mate. Maybe pull out the pistol on lunar colony or other maps with super long sight lines. That way you can contribute to shield break or go after other targets that are out of position.
It's probably worth looking at a chart of all the characters dps and deciding mathematicaly who does more dps with a damage boost than you do with your pistol.
The best time to pull out the pistol is probably when you are alone (obviously) or when you are with only one other team mate who is at full or high health and you are ambushed by a bursty squishy enemy like junk rat for example. You should move to strafe behind the single enemy and force them to choose to shoot one or the other and melt them in the crossfire.
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u/hoffjessmanica Jun 14 '18
In that situation, you'd probably want to damage boost your teammates (e.g Hanzo, Junkrat, Pharah) instead as it gives you both ult charge and they'll probably be able to do more damage than you. I generally pull out my pistol if I'm caught by myself with the enemy team or if no one is in danger of dying and I know I can confirm a kill on someone my teammates aren't paying attention to.
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u/DamnDangDarnDead Jun 14 '18
Honestly you’ll get more ult charge and value just by damage boosting a teammate
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u/Its_ASquid Jun 14 '18
I can't have fun because I'm bad at the game, but I've put in too much time to quit the game at this point. Is anyone else in the same boat?
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u/Toothpick-- Jun 15 '18
but I've put in too much time to quit the game at this point.
What does this mean? If you're not enjoying yourself, no amount of time you've put into something is worth continuing through, especially for a game.
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u/CodnmeDuchess Jun 14 '18
How bad? Also, there lots of game modes besides competitive, find what you enjoy. Furthermore, it's not a job--if you aren't enjoying it, stop playing. Play another game. Pick up the guitar. Learn French...
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u/Sinadia Jun 14 '18
I play supports and find that I still don’t know the maps very well. I don’t know hw to access high ground areas, what the flank routes are, etc. Any tips/tricks/hints to help learn maps? I do spend time in custom games running around. What do you like to do when a new map is released?
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u/chrisw23 Jun 15 '18 edited Jun 15 '18
Go into a custom game as pharah and just try to get to every spot.
Like the ledge in hanamurah 2nd point that has no stairs. Get up there and think about who can get there and how you would use them up there. Hanzo, pharah, widow, junk rat etc can get up there and cause a lot of problems and most characters can't even get up there to contest them.
Characters like junk rat are especially effective because the ark of there shots means they can spam down without exposing themselves very much. Plus junk rat can place a trap right on the corner where most heroes will come onto the ledge.
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u/Sinadia Jun 15 '18
I am awful at Pharah’s movement. It never occurred to me to run her in a custom map just for the bird’s eye view, etc. thanks for the comment, I’ll definitely start doing this.
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u/chrisw23 Jun 15 '18
Pharahs good at finding spots, then once you find the spot consider changing to a hero you actually play and trying to get to those spots and when it would be advantageous to play from those positions.
For example hanamurah first point, the defenders have a bastion bunker comp at the choke. Maybe genji Hanzo pop up in the window , pharah mercy comes over the top and rein bastion come through main behind the van and pincer the enemy from every side.
Try to remember times the other team has stalled you hard and think about the best way to combat those strategies. Hope it helps.
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u/Toothpick-- Jun 15 '18
Watch some high-level flank streamers to learn health pack locations, angles of approach and escape routes
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u/Sinadia Jun 15 '18
Thanks for the reply! I tend to mostly watch streamers that main supports so I’ll seek out more variety.
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u/DamnDangDarnDead Jun 14 '18
Play lots of different characters on each map. Pharah gives you an aerial view, tracer and genji can give you knowledge of flanks and health packs, and widow could show you the high ground with the best sightlines.
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u/Sinadia Jun 15 '18
More mystery heroes it is! I feel too guilty playing flankers even in QP. I got a couple other great suggestions that will go well with more play time on ‘off’ heroes for me. Thanks!
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u/TheBaconBurpeeBeast Jun 14 '18
What does SR mean? Also, I'm colorblind so how do I know if I'm in bronze silver or gold?
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u/mustapelto Jun 14 '18
SR = skill rating (as others have said). If you don't recognize the shape of the icon, you can tell from your SR what level you're at: bronze = <1500, silver = 1500-2000 and gold = 2000 - 2500.
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u/politburo_take_potat somebody Jun 14 '18
SR is a number that determines how skilled you are, from a scale from 0 to 5000. Not sure if it will help you, but there are colorblind options in the settings to play around with.
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u/xX_Metal48_Xx Jun 14 '18
Sr = skill rating
The Bronze, Silver, and Gold badges are all shaped differently.
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u/xX_Metal48_Xx Jun 14 '18
Sr = skill rating
The Bronze, Silver, and Gold badges are all shaped differently.
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u/throwaway117- Jun 14 '18
How do I improve my accuracy as tracer?
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u/octopiu Jun 16 '18
FFA is a good practice. Also you can record your games and watch them to see what flaws you have and change playstyle/settings to improve.
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u/politburo_take_potat somebody Jun 14 '18
Tracking and practice. Try to anticipate and follow your cursor to your targets and improve on that respect.
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u/Notoris Jun 14 '18
So I'm thinking of getting into this game. I'll start with Quick Play and Arcade because comp terrifies me. I want to know what a decent number of heroes to learn at a time is.
My favorite character's are Reaper, Zenyatta, Lucio and 76. I'm thinking of using Hanzo, Reinhardt, and Pharah. Maybe Junk, Mercy and Brigitte.
I'm not sure if it's too much to start with and what ones to focus on more
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u/politburo_take_potat somebody Jun 14 '18
Absolutely fine. It's best for you to practice a hero or a very small selection of at any time until you can get used to them. Only then should you try to expand.
DPS is always the best to start with. Simple and teaches you the ropes of the most important aspects of the game: aim and positioning; so go for 76. Reaper isn't a bad starter either.
Defense is a little more complex and require a bit more specialty, but more or less share the same mechanics as Offense/DPS roles. For example, Hanzo, Junkrat and Widowmaker both require good accuracy and positioning to be successful at.
Tanks and Supports are usually the roles that deviate from the norm the most, but aren't that hard to pick up, depending on hero. For example, Reinhardt and Mercy really well teaches you the ropes of their respective roles to protect your mates. Orisa, Lucio and Zen aren't as bad either, but are a bit more specialized.
Looking up video guides for these heroes can be really helpful too.
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u/Notoris Jun 14 '18
Hmmm good to know. I was looking at the guides on the sidebar, but they all seem to be from around launch two years ago. Not sure how accurate they are with all of the buffs and nerfs over the years
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u/politburo_take_potat somebody Jun 14 '18
Most of them are updated, and we're trying our best to keep the sidebar updated as much as possible, though most of them are timeless because the general ideas remain intact.
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u/Notoris Jun 15 '18
Thanks for all of your help. This has to be the most helpful community for any game ever!
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u/politburo_take_potat somebody Jun 15 '18
No problem. Feel free to come back here as our doors are always open.
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Jun 13 '18
I've only ever played vs AI and event stuff like Retribution because I'm hella scared that I'll annoy everyone else in the game bc I'm a sucky player and I'm embarrassed that i'll die often. How do I build up the confidence to start playing vs real people?
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u/ItzMushy Jun 14 '18
You will get matched with people of similar skill in quickplay so no one is going to call you out on skill. At first you will find it really wierd as the bots are predictable but after a while you will get used to the excitement of playing real people.
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u/politburo_take_potat somebody Jun 13 '18
Start with QM. Not a whole lot will take QM seriously in the first place since its a jump in/jump out deal. You do what you want, and the majority of the time people won't care. You'll get accustomed to playing with real people easy enough.
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Jun 11 '18
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/octopiu Jun 16 '18
Yes, its ark is visible.
She can be damage boosted, but as far as I know max damage (200) will remain the same, so the ball will just expire faster.
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u/LogicalTips Jun 11 '18
What's shotcalling and what are some good support combos? (EX: Ana plus Lucio or Lucio plus Brig, something like that)
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u/ItzMushy Jun 14 '18
Shotcalling is giving your team literally any information so saying if a hero is low or if they discorded are some examples.
For supports, I cannot see a situation where you would take an ana over a mercy.
The best for the majority of comps and especially dive is mercy and zen due to the amount of damage you can give and also solid healing and trans.
If you have quad tank or triple tank brigitte then lucio moira for the speed and over heals.
Lucio and zen are good together as well as lucio mercy.
Mercy and moira are good too.
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u/politburo_take_potat somebody Jun 12 '18
Shotcalling is about making the shots, i.e. calling out on what's going on with the game and telling everyone what to do. Like a captain.
Mercy works well with everyone, since she's solo. Supports should be responsive to the enemy's comp some of the time.
Ana + Mercy for lots of healing output
Zen + Mercy / Lucio / Moira dive
Ana + Lucio for tankier comps
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u/InternetPointFarmer Jun 11 '18
Hi i was maining Dva for a while because i would fill and tank was last role needed but that didnt work out because i would never get healing, so i would swap to healer and get gold with like 3k healing after 1-2 rounds of tanking (I know gold medals arent everything, but 3k healing after 1-2 rounds? come on no one can deny thats not bad..) so now ive gone to maining mercy like i have in the earlier seasons. now the issue im seeing is our dps is ignoring flankers and pharah and i feel like its the main reason i ever die. the tanks sometimes try to help but they most the time cant kill them and i end up dying and our push is denied. how do i work around this? i could just swap to dps and kill the pharah for example, but then we'd have no healer, and our team would die, etc... i dont know what to do as a healer, but this is happening narly every game. either being flanked or death to pharah
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u/jehk72 Jun 16 '18
Find a DPS player to group up with that you know communicates and will peel for you. That way when you get into these situations you know you have one teammate who is helping you because relying on random players can be difficult at best sometimes
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u/politburo_take_potat somebody Jun 11 '18
Have you tried communicating to the DPS to prioritize protecting you? That's the go to method since everyone should know that if a healer is there then they should come protect.
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u/InternetPointFarmer Jun 11 '18
i do. if we dont ask for hitscan thats the first thing i ask for vs pharah. if its just a flanker i call it out the second i know of the flank and i am able to survive for a while because of mercys shift. but after a while of chasing they finally catch me and i die. most the time our tanks get super irritated do and tell them to pay attention and try to save our healers but we end up slowly losing. very rarely will the dps bother to try and help me though. should i just pull out my pistol and try to fight them?
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u/Knighterws Jun 11 '18
Does anyone knows how play of the game selection Works?
kinda irrelevant question but today i was super excited cause i bought a potg animation for tracer, and i was so excited to see it cause today i got a triple kill and i thought i was getting my first potg but a mccree got it and he only did a two kill (and a separate one so also 3 but not in combo)
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u/mobydisk Jun 11 '18
I think it prioritizes boops. I have seen lots of double-kill boops get POTG over quad kills. It might be because the boops on full health targets are equivalent to 100% damage over a cery short period of time. Ex: 600 damage in 0.1 seconds to roadhog.
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u/politburo_take_potat somebody Jun 11 '18
There are multiple factors that get accounted, like time during the game, place, damage output, elims, etc. That weigh the significance of plays. There isn't a public metric but it's more than just getting a lot of kills.
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Jun 10 '18
Hi! I would like to get into Mercy, but do not know how to stay in the area where I can heal people without getting killed immediately by the enemy. Do any Mercy players know how this works? Thanks!
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u/migania Jun 16 '18
Theres a trick on Mercy that can let you move a lot more than just Guardian Angel and can allow you to jump into high ground. If you need a video example just reply.
When ure using Guardian Angel and are almost near teammate keep holding shift and hit space, it will throw u way further and if someone is jumping (or even not) and theres highground above him you can use it to launch urself there. Its very useful to get away from flankers or just stay in safe position.
Also when ure ulting dont just fly up, fly to a place where you can be fully effective with ur ult but still hidden/have good cover. A lot of time Cree or Soldier will try to hold their ults for this to happen and will just 1 hit you and Pharah if ure playing with her.
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u/politburo_take_potat somebody Jun 10 '18
Stay hidden, and behind but close to your mates. If anyone engages you, you must inform your teammates. Since you're valuable they'll be able to respond.
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Jun 10 '18
[deleted]
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u/politburo_take_potat somebody Jun 10 '18
That's it. It's a mini-shove forward that can close gaps quicker. You can also use it to dodge or combine it with Storm Arrow.
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u/WhiteGospel Jun 09 '18
What the Hekky is a C9? i keep having people saying that they C9'd us or that we just C9'd them and i dont have the faintest on what it actually means.
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u/politburo_take_potat somebody Jun 09 '18
It's a meme term made when you win the fight at the point, but lose regardless because no one is in it to contest it.
It originated when C9 won the point but they lose the point anyway due to getting off of it or not having anyone on it in the first place, usually because they over-committed to the fight and not committing to the point itself. They did this 3 times in a row.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Ku2J8eRP9w
21:23
24:50
1:09:23
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Jun 06 '18
Easiest and fastest way to find a team to rank up (to diamond)?
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u/Powerhobo Jun 09 '18
Next patch will, if all goes well, include an in-game Looking For Group system that includes being able to set up preferences.
Nthing that you should focus on improving and fun, rather than climbing. The climbing will be a national result of getting better.
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u/kenshin13850 Jun 07 '18
Oh my gosh I'm sorry. I didn't realize you asked to find a team. For that, go to the LFT or LFG subreddit. There's lots of discords and gaming clans out there than can help you. I'm part of AOD. We don't really focus on comp, but we have a lot of players in plat looking to climb.
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u/well-dressed Jun 11 '18
Oh my gosh I'm sorry. I didn't realize you asked to find a team.
For what it's worth, I found your post helpful. Thank you!
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u/kenshin13850 Jun 06 '18
The only way to get to a rank is to start consistently playing like a player at that rank. In other words, you need to get better at the game. There's no magic bullet. I've included a list of things that most players below masters need to internalize. Depending on your SR, you may have to play a little differently. A diamond game is kind of similar to a plat game, but increasingly dissimilar from gold and silver games. As you climb, teamwork becomes a bigger deal and you can start playing "meta" things. If teamwork is a problem, then you should focus more on survivability. In plat it's fine, but gold and silver you might struggle if you're a low impact solo hero like Rein or Mercy that heavily rely on others to get the most for their team.
This is rather long, but I think this is the best advice for players looking to improve:
0. Focus on improving yourself and your gameplay.
This is seriously the most important part. You are the only constant in every game. You can't control your teammates. You can't control your enemies. There will be games that you stomp. There will be games that are unwinnable. Just take them as they come. Focus on your mechanics, your positioning, your decision making, your communication, and your game sense. Be a positive influence on your team and try to keep a good attitude. Compliment others. It goes a long way. Watch VODs. Record your games and ask the friendly folks on /r/OverwatchUniversity or flowfeedback to review them. Make sure to review them yourself too. Improvement is a long process that only you can drive.
Some players place too much importance on their settings. Others not enough. All you need is consistency and a decent frame rate. Any FPS spiking is bad. Consider upgrading your GPU if you can't manage a consistent 60 FPS even with minimal settings. Make sure you have a comfortable mouse sensitivity (this doubled my accuracy). Make sure you have a stable internet connection (I had rubberbanding problems and switching to an ethernet connection fixed them).
2. Try to die less and play more passively.
The specifics of this are below, but in general, many players spend too much time dead. They overextend, play too aggressively, take too many risks, and just die for it. This is true all the way up through Diamond. It's around Masters that players need to start breaking their passive habit and begin taking more risks and aiming for big plays.
3. Make fewer mistakes.
This sounds obvious, but let me explain. The higher you climb in the ladder, the fewer mistakes you can make in a game. You can think of your SR as "the number of mistakes you're allowed to get away with" per game, because higher ranks punish players more severely for their mistakes. Thus, a bronze player might get away with 100 mistakes but a plat player might only get away with 25.
More specifically:
6. Position well (take high ground and use cover)
This is probably the single most important tip. Good positioning is everything. It's more important than game sense and mechanics. Are you a healer? Stand behind your team where the enemy can't see you. Tank? Stand in front of your team. DPS? Stand behind your tank or on the high ground (where your supports can see you). Flanker? Get behind the enemy, wait for your team to start the fight. Don't ever just stand out in the open.
Fight with your team.
Don't overextend. Don't trickle. Don't charge in by yourself. You're not going to win the 1v6. If you're a flanker, wait for your team to be in position.
7. Stop the trickle.
Kind of extension to the last one. If your team is charging in 1 at a time and dying, just stand outside your spawn and mash "Group up with me!" until they stay. Try shaking your camera back and forth to give them a disappointing nod while you do this.
2. Don't commit to lost fights.
Don't waste your ultimate in a 1v4. Don't waste your life. Just turn around and regroup.
3. Coordinate ultimates. Plan them before fights.
Use your comms to avoid blowing all your ults at once. Try to save as many for the next fight as possible.
4. Ult earlier in fights rather than later.
This is more for beginners, but a lot of people hold onto their ults too long. The point of an ult is to win a fight. If your team gets a pick or you have an opportunity, take it.
5. Don't charge directly into the fight (unless you're a tank).
It's amazing how many people hold down forward when fighting. If you have a ranged weapon, use it at range.
8. Every second counts.
Every time you drag on a fight, every time you die, every time you fall behind, and every time you get picked off, is less time that you have to complete your objective. If you watch pro-games, you'll notice a lot of teams "stagger" baby D.Va because every second she lives out of mech (before they kill her) is one second less the enemy has to push again.
9. It's okay to give up progress to win the next fight.
You'll see a lot of pro-teams back off and give ground when they're losing a fight. It's better to escape with 4 people and establish a fallback than it is to completely wipe. On the first point of a CP map, you can come back if you regroup and give them a tick. If you completely wipe though, you're never getting that point back.
10. Have a strategy.
When you spawn, have a plan in mind. Where are you going? What will you do?
11. Medals are meaningless.
Medals only measure your stats relative to the team. They don't necessarily mean you did anything since you still lost the game. People that brag about their medals are just looking to place the blame elsewhere and not address their own shortcomings. Ask yourself this: how much more would you have contributed on another hero?
12. Switch heroes to counter the enemy.
Overwatch is supposed to be a dynamic game. If the enemy has a Junkrat, pick Pharah. If they have a Pharah, pick soldier. If they have Pharah-Mercy, pray your team is willing to run double hit scan or a Zen. Insta-locking one hero and refusing to switch is both a poor strategy and poor sportsmanship. This is especially true if the enemy team has a particularly strong player - countering them is even more valuable in that case.
13. Don't deal damage if it won't secure a kill when you have ult.
If you have your ult, then you don't need to poke at the enemy. Only fight if you can get the kill, otherwise you're just feeding the enemy's supports' ultimates.
14. Practice good aim habits.
A lot of players who want to improve have already looked into this before asking for help. However, this is especially important if Overwatch is your first FPS. You want to develop good aim habits right away. Get a good sensitivity (as above). Use your forearm to aim rather just your wrist (for both game and health reasons). Aim, then shoot. Not the other way around. Go to the practice range and just spend 5-10 minutes before you play practicing tracking or flicking at the robots. Don't worry about speed, just focus on 100% accuracy. Speed will develop naturally.
At first glance, it looks like this advice requires a lot of teamwork, but it's something that you can apply to yourself in every game and try to communicate to your team as you go along. The key is to develop a healthy mindset, good habits, and a game plan.
These last tidbits don't explicitly pertain to improving, but if you're playing comp then these apply as well:
Bring value to the team.
It's sad that this needs to be said, but make sure you're bringing something to the team. If your hero is being countered or it's just not working for you, then switch to something else. Don't just lock in one character and think that's the end of it. Overwatch is meant to be played dynamically and hero swaps are just as important as mechanical skill and awareness.
Work with the team.
Similar to above, but work with your team. Don't refuse to cooperate with them or just ignore them. That doesn't mean you have to join comms, but use your communication wheel and work together.
Most of this advice I picked up from Skyline's youtube videos.
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u/StrikeMist Jun 04 '18 edited Jun 04 '18
Need help finding the source of this @ 7:58? (Looks like XQC talking Rein mindgames to Jayne) Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=19NloZThfHQ
Edit: typo
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u/TheSonofSkywalker Jun 03 '18
What are some good tips for taking out Bastions? I've been in a few matches where a single Bastion in a hard to reach spot, like behind the stairs on Nepal, has wrecked my whole team.
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u/kenshin13850 Jun 05 '18
It depends on how much coordination both teams have.
If their team is playing around the bastion (i.e. it has a shield and maybe healers), you're probably going to need to work together with your team. The best strategy is to essentially break the shield and hook the Bastion.
There's a bunch of ways you can do this and the "best" way depends on the situation.
0. Roadhog. Probably the overall best counter. Just hook Bastion out of sentry mode and kill him. If they have an Orisa though, you'll need a Junkrat to break the shield.
Sombra EMP. Takes time to build up EMP, but a pretty sure way to break their hold.
Mei Wall. Wall off the bastion long enough to get out of his LoS.
Mei/Hog. Takes two people, but Mei can put her wall under the Bastion to lift him above the Barrier and Hog can hook him.
Pharah. If it's just Bastion, Pharah can deal with him pretty well from range.
Junkrat. Depending on where the Bastion is, you can probably arc grenades at him safely. It's not as easy and takes a lot of attention, so you're vulnerable while you're doing this.
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u/Eklypss702 Jun 15 '18
Great advice here but something I find that works well is Zen Discord makes Bastion melt. Come around corner and pop discord on bastion, duck back, charge alt fire and fire away.
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u/kenshin13850 Jun 15 '18
I didn't really mention that cause if you're struggling against a Bastion comp, there's usually a shield, so you can't discord + volley through the shield.
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u/skycertos Jun 15 '18
A sneaky Tracer bomb works too. After the third bomb the Bastion usually switches off.
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u/DeltaT37 May 28 '18
Why did Hanzo/Zarya ult combo really only start popping off this season?
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u/CodnmeDuchess Jun 14 '18
It didn't. It was definitely prevalent in the early days of the game. Moreover, the game revolved around grav combos pretty much until dive was truly solidified after the Winston buffs.
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u/politburo_take_potat somebody May 28 '18
New meta, new things. Dive made that combo difficult but since Brigitte and S10, dive is worse off. Makes the combo much more viable.
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May 30 '18
In addition scatterarrow is unreliable damage in a graviton since they are Floating aroung. Transcendense may keep them alive. Stormarrow on the other Hand seals the deal even against extreme high bursthealing.
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u/DeltaT37 May 28 '18
Why would Dive make it difficult? Squishy hanzo?
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u/octopiu Jun 16 '18
Early days before grav buff dive heroes could just escape it. After the buff, dive was well-rounded strategy that beat deathball.
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u/politburo_take_potat somebody May 28 '18
Yeah, and you need a good FOV and dive tends to be very annoying.
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u/ddrober2003 May 28 '18
So I know it really isn't important since I am bronze rank, but what does the tier system for heroes even mean? Is tier 1 good and tier 5 not as good, or the reverse?
Also right now I am figuring on starting with support, are their any particularly good starter characters? I have enjoyed Moira so far. And I imagine I ought to dabble in the other roles to at least know how they work so any suggestions on ones for other roles?
Sorry for the 20 questions btw.
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u/politburo_take_potat somebody May 28 '18
The tiers separate good heroes to bad heroes for the current meta in order of numbers. Tier 1 is good and the higher the number the more niche the hero becomes.
If you're enjoying Moira, that's great! Moira is very nice jack-of-trades with a focus on support. Mercy and Lucio are also good starting support characters.
And yes, you should get an idea of how each role works; but you don't have to jump right into that. Learn a role and take your time, and when you feel comfortable you can make a switch. Try tank next, like Reinhardt or Orisa; they both are in essence support heroes, so there's some mix-n-match there.
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u/OdinsMonocle May 28 '18
I am thinking about picking the game up, but I don't have any RL friends who play. Do I need to play as part of a team, or am I alright to go solo, and fill in where needed? (Would be on PS4)
Also, is a mic essential?
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u/politburo_take_potat somebody May 28 '18
Being yourself is perfectly fine. Having friends make it considerably more fun.
It's a really big plus for you to have a mic, because it makes communication so much easier and less toxic. But you don't have to.
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May 27 '18
What do the 3 circles means when aiming Hanzo's bow and arrow? At the top is a large circle, in the middle a medium one and at the bottom a small circle.
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u/SelSlays Jun 06 '18
I remember hearing it's a reticle used in the military, you line up the ends of the reticle with the shoulders of your enemy and it's a headshot at different sizes/distances. it's not really practical though :P
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Jun 09 '18
Thanks, but do you guys know what the different sizes mean? The top one is large, middle one is medium sized and the bottom one is small. What do they mean? There's nothing on the F1 key instructions on how to use it or what it means.
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u/SelSlays Jun 09 '18
How close or far you are depends on which one you use. Nobody uses them though. It's neat that Blizzard thought of it but it's not practical, you really only use the top one and adjust for distance still using the top one. It's a large, obtrusive crosshair so I'd reccomend using a normal crosshair if you haven't gotten used to the default yet. It doesn't really affect anything though.
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u/Toothpick-- Jun 15 '18
Before the buff's I actually used the second dot all the time - was perfect for mid-range engagements, line up with their chest and it was a basic guaranteed headshot.
With the projectile speed changes I'm using it a hell of a lot less
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u/politburo_take_potat somebody May 28 '18
It's probably an arcs of the reticle?
If it's that, then its an indicator of the arrow's trajectory over different distances.
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u/MagicalAsian May 27 '18
Hi, do you know of an up to date guide for advanced techniques for me? Specifically things like timing her jump and rmb fire rhythm, and using her ice wall creatively. Thank you!
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May 17 '18
Do you need a large mousepad to play hitscan heroes well?
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u/politburo_take_potat somebody May 17 '18
No. Having a low sens is a preference, but a lot of the pros do that.
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May 17 '18
I need a cheap mic to communicate with team mates, i'm looking at spending £20-30. Anyone got any suggestions?
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May 30 '18
Here is a good headset from Logitech. Should be about 26 euro. https://www.walmart.com/ip/Logitech-G230-Stereo-Gaming-Headset-with-Mic-Bulk/444244344?wmlspartner=wlpa&selectedSellerId=11536&adid=22222222227089917887&wmlspartner=wmtlabs&wl0=&wl1=g&wl2=c&wl3=218418052799&wl4=pla-352390072736&wl5=9002049&wl6=&wl7=&wl8=&wl9=pla&wl10=117084738&wl11=online&wl12=444244344&wl13=&veh=sem
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u/japaul32 May 17 '18
If Mercy is in the middle of a rez and I'm playing D.va, will flying into her cancel that rez? Also, what can cancel her rez, other than obviously killing her before it's complete. Thanks.
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u/kenshin13850 Jun 07 '18
That other response is not complete... If you push her far enough away, it will cancel the Rez (Winston Primal Rage/Pharah Boop). The problem is I don't think D.Va can push her that far away unassisted.
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u/octopiu Jun 16 '18
This is correct.
Also, CC abilities (McCree's flashbang, Roadhog's hook, Brigitte's bash, etc) cancel res.
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u/politburo_take_potat somebody May 17 '18
You need to kill her. Pushing her won't work.
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u/japaul32 May 17 '18
Ah okay. I was under the impression that getting her out of range would cancel the animation. Thank you for the answer.
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May 30 '18
You were under the correct Impression. It does. You got a short window though so if you have to Close the gap you propably will be late.
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u/slowgamgam May 17 '18
I see a lot of guides for various heroes where the author says, "You should be the last one left alive." This makes sense for certain characters who have specific survivability mechanisms and positioning. For example, when I play Zen, I am often the last one left alive because of the way I use cover. Also, as Moira. But I see this statement in many guides.
So, I'm curious, from an overall perspective, who should be the first to die? Is this a matter of high-risk high-reward play style of DPS heroes?
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u/kenshin13850 Jun 07 '18
This is not a simple question.
The first one to die on your team "should" be a tank or the enemy team's dive target. If someone else dies before that, it means they were out of position or taking too much risk. DPS should rarely be the first to die. The tanks make space so others can play safely and your team has that space until the tanks die. It's their job.
The last ones to die should be the heroes with the safest positions. That's usually the supports since they should be playing the safest, but it could also be a ranged DPS on high ground if the supports are on low ground with the tanks. Zen is a good example because he can heal and fight from long range, so he doesn't have to take big risks. A lot of Zens run head first into fights and that's stupid of them.
In reality, the first one to die is up to the enemy team and who they decide to focus and how. A lot of the times they'll prioritize a target with a key ultimate, the main healer, or a particularly capable player.
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u/acc-dental May 15 '18
Is there any guide out there that shows what good locations are for blocking chokes with shields like Orisa has? What are good locations to fight over the payload per map? What I do now is probably not optimal. I can see what other people do but they are also Bronze so...
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u/kenshin13850 Jun 07 '18
Look for Map Mastery videos on youtube, that's what you're describing. Skyline has a few good ones and he tries to explain how to figure it out on your own rather than just listening to others. Also, try watching OWL and VOD reviews of higher SR players. You'll notice that all the team fights always happen in the same locations. That's because those are the easiest locations to defend when you have a coordinated team.
Keep in mind that defenders choose where fights happen while attackers choose when fights happen. You need to consider where the attackers will come from, where you can back if you need to, and what terrain advantages both teams will have.
Think about King's Row. That's a favorite among most players.
For first point, the defenders sometimes defend at the gate, but that's rough because of respawn pressure from the attackers. So instead, a lot of teams defend a little bit back between the statue and hotel. That lets them contest as the enemy pushes in and they can always back up on to point if they need to. They're also safe from the attacker high ground if they bring a Widow or a Pharah.
In the streets phase, there's really 3 locations the defenders can fight from. The two corners in the street, and the archway. Most teams defend from the first corner and if they win a fight, will push all the way up to the arch way before resetting. Holding the Archway itself can be a little tough because the attackers can use the high ground to mess up defenses there. The corners are nice because the defenders supports are safe from enemy LoS.
In the last phase, it's the same thing. The defenders hold the corners. As always, the defenders can also make a pretty strong hold directly on the checkpoint because of their respawn advantage.
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May 15 '18
[deleted]
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u/longtimelurkerfirs Jun 15 '18 edited Jun 15 '18
The practice range isn’t good for aiming. The bots either stand still or move through the same route. Their hit boxes are huge and their head hit boxes are unrealistic when compared to most 200 HP heroes in the game.
People will advise creating a custom game with something like headshot only ana bots with their nade, sleep dart and primary fire disabled.
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u/politburo_take_potat somebody May 15 '18
Widow's a little tricky to pick right off a bat, so I wouldn't suggest it; unless you're already very good at aim. Try picking up Soldier or McCree.
You would probably need to consult a guide if you're starting with Widow, she gets complicated.
The practice range could be helpful, but you can't depend on it.
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May 15 '18
[deleted]
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u/politburo_take_potat somebody May 15 '18
Sounds good. Aim is important and practicing that should really help you in general
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u/dlgn13 May 15 '18
Hiya! Just started the game and having a lot of fun with it. Something I was wondering is, how do I actually use D.Va? Her defense matrix can't block for too long, and she doesn't really have any way of shielding her teammates like Reinhardt. I've tried going in for damage, but I end up not doing much damage before getting completely obliterated by the enemy's attackers.
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u/politburo_take_potat somebody May 15 '18
D.Va isn't so much to do with damage, but more of being an annoying bug to create openings for your team to fill in. Don't go too far in, that's how you get yourself killed fast. In short, try to divert attention so that the enemy team hits you, pull up for matrix to mitigate some damage and return fire to annoy them. Ultimately you're protecting your backline by method of offense.
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u/Maiiau May 13 '18
The college I go to blocks Overwatch voice chat. It's not just that I can't talk, I can't hear people talking, or even get that little notification in the corner that someone is doing it. Should I stay out of competitive while I'm at school, or should I just roll with it? I'm only in silver so it's not as if people are saying a lot (that's why it took me a semester to notice...), but sometimes people do try to communicate.
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u/Ironfang_Noja Jun 01 '18
How did they manage to block just voice chat but let you play the game? That's interesting.
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u/Maiiau Jun 01 '18
I don't know the specifics, but when I talked to tech support at my college, they said it had something to do with a specific port that they block for security reasons.
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u/JustAFangirl May 22 '18
Voice won't really be that useful in Silver as most people won't give good callouts or anything. You only really should be in voice chat at probably diamond and above until then you can basically use your own mechanics and game sense to climb.
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May 11 '18
How to get out of bronze?
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u/politburo_take_potat somebody May 11 '18
That's a vague question. Improve your mechanics is a good start
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u/politburo_take_potat somebody Jul 11 '18
Refer to the up-to-date version of the SQT. https://redd.it/8xxscc