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Heroes8 years agoGosu "GosuGamers" Gamers

Adorable as she is painful: my hands on experience with Chromie


Chronormu took the form of an adorable gnome and started going by the name Chromie. Here is what you should known based on my hands on experience playing with the new hero.

When Chromie was first revealed to our raucus group of heroes influencers, writers, and otherwise fanatics, our reactions were amazing. The first Gnome in Heroes? Check. Seige mage designed for hero kills and mindgames? Check. Heroic at level 9? Check...?

After we all wrapped our mind around Chromie and what she brings, extensive playtesting was needed as me and the rest of the pros / Heroes streamers leapt to the play stations. The more seasoned of us actually ran (maintaining professionalism, of course) as to not miss out on the very first game with the new heroes.

After hours of play, everyone I talked to has seemed to reach a consensus about Chromie. She is difficult to play and rewards a "git gud" mentality. When you lose as Chromie, you know exactly why: 'because I missed my skill shots'. Similar to playing Nova, your success with the hero is entirely up to your ability to land your combos and use your abilities effectively. In an age of Tracer locking onto targets automatically, Li-ming spamming spells in your general direction, and clicking on heroes with Kael'Thas, Chromie is extremely refreshing.

Abilities
 

[D] Timewalker - Trait
You've traveled into the future, and as such, will learn your talents 1 level earlier than your teammates!
 

  • Sounds minor, but this trait should not be underestimated. It effortlessly breaks any situation of parity between the Chromie team and the enemy team. When it's two level 9 teams, Chromie desperately wants to fight with her huge advantage.
     
  • The same happens to an even more dramatic effect at level 19 vs. 19.
     
  • So flavorful.
     

[Q] Sand Blast (20 mana, 3 sec CD)
After 1 second, fire a missile that deals damage to the first enemy Hero hit.
 

  • Chromie has pathetic auto attacks so keep in mind the 3 second cool down. This ability can be talented and is your main source of damage.
     
  • The one second wind up is hard to master at first, but once you get the hang of it hitting enemies feels natural and responsive. A good Chromie is an absolute terror while a Chromie with poor aim is very easy to dodge.
     
  • This ability does NOT hit structures or minions. So Chromie's PvE game is weak. However, this does make it easier to hit enemy heroes behind structures and minion waves.

 

[W] Dragon's Breath (70 mana, 14 sec CD)
Fire a blast into the air that lands after 1.5 seconds, dealing damage to enemies in an area. Enemies cannot see where the blast will land.


 

  • The mind games from this ability are insane. It's so powerful that enemies cannot see where the blast will land, as in the middle of a teamfight squishy heroes simply don't know they are in danger until they take mass damage.
  • Dragon's Breath talents are very powerful and it's possible to play Chromie based upon this ability.
     
  • You can't spam this without careful consideration. It is a large part of Chromie's burst damage and has a long cool down.
     

[E] Time Trap (50 mana, 18 sec CD)
Place a Time Trap that arms and Stealths after 2 seconds. The first enemy Hero to touch it will be put into Stasis for 2 seconds. Only 1 traps can exist at once.
 

  • Time Trap is a powerful defensive tool for Chromie that can also be used to trick opponents into putting themselves out of position. The stealth component of this ability is vital, allowing Chromie to linger around a particular area knowing she is safe from enemy ganks.
     
  • The enemy, however, isn't aware of the trap, meaning Chromie can just as easily use this tool offensively instead. 
     
  • Sometimes it felt like I was playing Kerrigan with Chromie due to the combo nature of her abilities. All of them can be chained together for lock down and damage and it all starts with Time Trap.
     

(R) Slowing Sands (4 mana/sec, 5 sec CD)
Place a sand vortex that greatly slows enemies inside it. The longer it is active the more it slows, up to 50% after 5 seconds.


 

  • Because Chromie gets her heroics 1 level early, Slowing Sands is actually incredibly powerful. Its low cooldown allows Chromie to control large amounts of space and single-handedly win objectives for her team by making it impossible for the enemy to engage efficiently.
     
  • I can't stress enough how powerful it is to have access to slowing sands in level 9 vs. 9 scenario. On maps like Blackhearts, Sky Temple, or Cursed Hallow it essentially gives you a free objective advantage as the enemy can't afford to fight you through Slowing Sands.
     
  • The mana drain per second is not very noticeable and I never had problems going out of mana spamming this ability.
     

(R)Temporal Loop (60 mana, 70 sec CD)
Choose an enemy Hero. After 3 seconds, they will teleport back to the location where you cast Temporal Loop on them.
 

  • Temporal Loop will be responsible for a lot of cool plays and WTF moments. You can Temporal Loop a target and have time to drop a Time Trap right where they will land, stunning them immediately.
     
  • This heroic is best used to punish a hero out of position. It also single-handedly counters a poking Zeratul harder than you can even imagine. 
     
  • You can can use this on someone who is about to Hearthstone or otherwise warp somewhere, teleporting them back to their original position. Most effective on heroes like Falstad, Dehaka, Brightwing, and Abathur.
     
  • This actually makes playing Brightwing extremely difficult, as there are repeated opportunities to keep her from teleporting away or to a teammate's rescue.
     

The first play verdict

Chromie is much more of a glass cannon than previous mages, as her health pool and mobility are extremely limited. In exchange, she does scary amounts of damage, sometimes at a range and speed that is very hard to defend against.

I predict Chromie will become a competitive staple. The damage she brings is considerable and her Timewalker trait is so valuable with no downside. You don't have to work for it or design a special composition to make use of it-- you just have the advantage every time Chromie is on your team.

It makes snowballing easier and comebacks easier. Combined with some seriously powerful talents (like a 7 second iceblock or a Storm talent that creates Chromie clones) Chromie becomes a serious threat that can fit onto any team. Her weaknesses are her vulnerability to burst damage and mobile heroes that can on reaction dodge her Sand Blast, but Time Trap and tricky use of Dragon's Breath doesn't make her completely defenseless.

The Talents

Level 1

 

  • Quest: Compounding Aether (Q): QUEST: Hitting Heroes empowers Sand Blast. REWARD After hitting 25 heroes, increase it's damage by 100.
  • Deep Breathing (W) : QUEST Every time Dragons Breath hits an enemy hero, increases damage by 2 up to 50. REWARD After hitting 25 heroes, increases it's damage by an additional 150 and also increases your sight radius by %100
  • Timewalker's pursuit: QUEST : Gathering regeneration globes increase your Mana Regeneration by 0.1 up to 1.5. REWARD After gathering 15 globes you also gain 5% Ability Power
  • Peer into the Future: Activate to reveal a target area for 2 seconds. Enemies are revealed after for 4 seconds. Cooldown 25 seconds.


Level 3

 

  • Piercing Sands (Q): Sand Blast will now hit the first two Heroes in its path.
  • Bronze Talons (Q): Increases your Basic Attack range by 35%. Using Sand Blast increases the damage of your next Basic Attack by 250%.
  • Enveloping Assault (W): Increases the radius of Dragon's Breath


Level 6

 

  • Mobius Loop (W): Reduces Dragon's Breath's Mana cost and cooldown by 50%, but also reduces its damage by 25%.
  • Dragon's Eye (W): Dragon's Breath does 25% more damage to enemies in the center.
  • Chrono Sickness (E): Reduces Time Trap's cooldown by 50%. After the Stasis ends, the enemy is also slowed by 40% for 3 seconds.


Level 12

 

  • Bye Bye! (B): Reduces the cast time of your Hearthstone by 75%, and it is not interrupted by taking damage.
  • Reaching through Time (Passive): Increases Sand Blast and Dragon's Breath's range by 25%.
  • Time Out (Active): Activate to place yourself in Stasis and gain Invulnerability for up to 7 seconds. Can be reactivated to end the effect early. 60 second cooldown.


Level 15

 

  • Shifting Sands (Q): Hitting an enemy Hero with Sand Blast increases your Ability Power by 10% for the next 10 seconds. This bonus can be stacked up to 50%, and the duration is refreshed whenever you damage enemy Heroes with Sand Blast.
  • Fast Forward (Q): Long range Sand Blasts reduce its cooldown
  • Quantum Overdrive (Active): Activate to gain Ability Power


Level 19

 

  • Pocket of Time (R): Removes Slowing Sands Mana cost and increases the slow from 50% to 70%.
  • Loophole (R): Temporal Loop hits all enemy Heroes near your initial target.
  • Past and Future Me (Q): After casting Sand Blast, leave an echo of yourself behind. The next time you cast Sand Blast, the echo also casts an untalented Sand Blast that does 50% damage.
  • Andorhal Anomaly (E): You gain 3 charges of Time Trap, and can have 3 active at once. When your cooldown finishes, you gain 3 charges at once.
     

Chromie becomes available for purchase the week May 17th.

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