The latest buffs to Anub'arak aim to make him tankier, as he is without a doubt the most vulnerable warrior in the game. His low HP pool has always been a liability, but his low winrates also has to do with the inherent difficulty of the hero.
For instance, Burrow Charge is a difficult ability to use. The choice between offensively charging to stun the enemy or defensively burrowing away is key to surviving with Anub'arak. But warriors can't just survive- they have to contribute to the fight. Thankfully, Anub'arak has loads of stuns and CC options that allow him to make an impact
But that impact is still pretty small. Impale is a good ability, but it's difficult to hit multiple enemy heroes with it without putting your self in harms away. That leaves you with Cocoon, which is by far his most powerful heroic. A long time ago, Locust Swarm was the go to heroic, but nerfs to Anub'araks HP and beetle AI made it harder and harder to survive in the middle of a big team fight.
Cocoon on key targets like Cho'Gall, or Support heroes is the strongest thing Anub'arak has going for him currently.
The Buff
If you noticed, there was a running trend in all of the reasons why Anub'arak is in such a difficult spot: he just dies too quickly. This lack of tankiness has turned him into the CC bot we know today, as he is unable to properly solo tank or disrupt an enemies frontline (and live to tell the tale) like a Johanna, E.T.C, or Muradin.
Hardened Carapace (W)
-
Shield amount increased from 242 (+4% per level) to 260 (+4% per level)
So these buffs to Harden Carapace are a step in a right direction. Stuns and crowd control are powerful tools, and Anub'arak has that in spades, however he's simply too vulnerable to position your self into truly advantageous scenarios. While the buffs to the shield is admittedly very small (It's about 80 more damage per shield at level 20) it at least is a step in the right direction.
Until the time Anub'arak gets a serious buff to his tankiness, his role will always be relegated to Cocoon'ing a key hero to negate their team fight presence, most notably support heroes. Doing this gives his team enough time to kill their intended target. It's not like this isn't a powerful thing to do, but it's the only think Anub'arak can really do.
The current best uses for Anub'arak
Believe it or not, Anub'arak used to be a tier 1 hero, picked almost every game. Back then, he did incredible damage and never died, but now adays his team viability is questionable. Some teams though, have managed to make it work.
For example:
Pigs in a Blanket vs. Team Sandwhich Monkeys. What a delicious sounding match up. In game 3, Pigs in a blanket used Anub'arak in a double warrior lineup to better peel and cause chaos in the front line for their allied Illidan. This is an ideal lineup for Anub'arak because there are higher priority targets that Sandwhich Monkey needed to focus, allowing Anub'arak to make a bunch of beetles and stun things freely. Cocoon is a great option against an enemy Greymane about to pounce all over your team.
Team Blaze also used Anub'arak in a similar lineup. Cocoon can stop Sonya when she is on a tear, while an allied Stitches can take the majority of the damage. Once again, Anub'arak succeeds in double warrior compositions where he can stop momentum baesd heroes from snowballing during a team fight.
(check out more Anub'arak games using our VOD search function)
Anub'arak isn't Gazlowe tier of bad, but he certainly isn't a hero you can pick freely. His requires specific teams that can take advantage of his 8 second cocoon and, above all, doesn't need him to solo tank.
Follow us on twitter @GosuGamersHots for more Heroes of the Storm esports news.
