[Custom Hero Spotlight]
[Role/Skills/Descriptions] - basically everything you need to know about his skill-set or attributes.
BIIIIG SHOUTOUT to BlackRyu - who created the model/textures and animations of Arthas.
My thought process...
... was to create a draft that deals with hero combat as well as base management but which focuses mainly on defense. There are lots of push oriented heroes out there but not a single one that specifically specializes in dealing with them (you can say that AoE heroes have a certain anti-push mechanic but only to a certain degree).
So in order to balance the two sets of plays into something that was not boring and also fresh, I've transformed the base management component into a semi-passive one that works only on towers (the main and only defense against pushes) while leaving the hero aspect play as normal. Why ? Simply because towers are limited and the passives are as good as there are towers left standing, otherwise their effects are 0.
Now regarding the skills themselves, if you take a closer look, they are structured into roles as well as spiced with anti-pushing mechanics all around.
[Q] - is the offensive role spell / aura that augments your base's attacks as well as provide your hero with a way to deal AoE damage (one of the strong components against minion pushers).
[W] - is the defensive role spell / aura that augments your base's defensive capabilities as well as provide your hero with a defensive delaying soft cc. Nothing from this skill deals any damage since it's main role is to delay a push.
[E] - is the utility passive / aura that augments both your team and your towers durability in the hopes that they will last longer when push comes to shove. This is purely based on your well being in the game since dying constantly will keep this bonus at a lower rate.
[Q]+[W]+[E] - tie these in together and you have some pretty sweet upgraded towers that might stand a chance in mid/late game with assistance from your team. Specially vs pushing heroes who's sole purpose is to tear through base defenses like are nothing. Also reaching the apex of the upgrades only happens around level 12 IF you skip your ultimate so in the early game you have choices on how you want to "build" your defenses. Will you take a more active approach and level [Q] ? or will you be more laid back and go with [W] ?
Last but not least, the ultimate [R] - which brings in a new element to HoN .... tactical ground control. The mini-tower has massive potential opening the gameplay to a more tactical playstile. You can guard certain areas of the map, or you can use it as an advanced outpost or why not go deeper with upping your defenses even more.
One thing is sure - using it inside the base with the sole purpose of defense will reap you the most benefits due to the upgrades that he provides for the adjacent buildings.
Overall - I know I am repeating myself with these explanations but most of the passive benefits are situational and can even be entirely lost in a game while the active ones do not provide any special perks besides damage and a soft cc. His kill potential, supportive skills and damage burst are extremely low which in return gets compensated with a high innate defensive capability and map control.
[Q] - Blizzard
# The spell / tower aura is aimed at being offensive
# Not a great source of damage but a good source of getting farm and souls in lane
# Synergyses well with [W] as well as with other CC's that can help keep your target under fire, as the full duration damage is above average
# Destroys trees
# The passive tower aura will help defend against mob pushers like Ophelia and Deadlift due to the AoE damage and freeze
# The passive aura works only on towers and only when you are alive, thus works perfectly when you are preparing to repel an attack and less (not at all) during an enemy counter push if you managed to get yourself killed
# Being a magic damage spell it gets countered by magic immunity as well as stepping outside the affected area which should not be an issue due to the mediocre radius (see above picture for reference)
[W] - Sindragosa
# The spell / tower aura is aimed at being defensive
# Both the active and the passive component deal NO DAMAGE what so ever
# The active component has a Superior application thus will work vs magic immune targets
# The active component starts with a narrow path then ending with a small radius, any enemies caught in these 2 areas will be frozen
# Frozen enemies can cast spells but they can't attack or move thus magic damage carries will be basically unaffected while physical auto-damage dealers will be shutdown
# The frozen state can be dispelled or transferred
# Destroys trees ONLY in the ending radius
# The passive tower component kicks in only when the tower receives damage, slowing the attacker's AS by a % and not a flat amount thus keeping it's potency as the game progresses
# The passive component is aimed at delaying flash pushes by reducing the incoming damage dealt through slowing their attacks, however sluggish heavy hitters will not be that affected and still be able to cut through your tower with ease
# As with the previous aura, this only is in play while Arthas is alive
# The Range of the spell increases with level and can be seen in the below picture
[E] - Frostmourne Hungers
# Works on denies as well as on kills
# Passively increases the max HP of both your allied towers as well as your allied heroes
# The more HP you amass the more durable your team and towers will become
# Works only when you are alive (think Glacius bonus mana from leveling his aura)
# You gain souls ONLY if the killing blow is dealt by Arthas regardless if you use auto-attacks, spells or items
# The more you kill the bigger your durability will become however getting yourself killed will make you lose souls thus reducing your durability
[R] - Frozen Throne
# The sentry tower has it's own skills and attributes that get upgraded when leveling up the Hero Ultimate (will go over them bellow)
# The sentry tower is a gadget that has it's combat type set to structure thus behaving like any structure (receives more damage from siege units etc.)
# The sentry does not accept TP's thus homecoming stone and post haste will not work then them for balance issues but also to incline the scale towards using it defensively rather than offensively
# The sentry tower will give a rather moderate amount of gold to the enemy team if it gets destroyed (emphasizing defensive use rather than offensive)
# The sentry tower has unitwalking thus can't block narrow paths for both allies as well as enemies
# The sentry tower blocks neutral spawns (this is to prevent leaving it in the jungle to gain constant revenue from neutrals)
# The sentry tower also behaves as a tower thus can reveal invisible units or wards in it's vecinity but has no attack
# The sentry tower will destroy trees when it gets built to prevent hiding or favorable placing (will consider transforming the targeting scheme from "position" to "self")
# Can have a maximum number of 1/2/3 with the sole purpose of keeping up in late game when damage is very high and structures can be easily destroyed but also to not have too much position controlling power in the early game
# Has a passive skill and 3 auras that upgrade themselves when you level your Hero ultimate (more info on each level and skill can be found in the bellow pictures)
# The sentry tower's maximum potential is unlocked when used defensively inside your base and not to control the map due to his auras that "UPGRADE" your adjacent structures giving them increased durability, increased sustainability but also a way of retaliating
# The sentry tower has an aura that garrisons it and any of the adjacent structures allowing them to attack 2 separate targets
- the attacks are physical
- the damage is lowish to medium but with an increased attack cooldown (low damage - high hit count)
- the garrison will attack any enemy that comes in 700 range
- the tower will spawn a frozen ground effect that spreads in this 700 range to visually notify the enemy where the danger starts
- easily destroyed if focused down or left un-garded
- due to the garrison, the sentry can be used to control key or tactical points of the map and force the enemy to avoid them or look for other routes
Bonus Content
# Sound Quotes when you upgrade your skills for the first time which can be heard by anyone around you (Arthas says some ****)
# Sound Quotes when you kill certain heroes (the spoiler picture shows which heroes have sound interactions with Arthas when they die by his hand)
# Custom targeting materials for [Q], [W] and [R]