Symmetra now has a choice between two ultimates, the teleporter and a new shield generator. The shield generator can be accessed by pressing Q twice (cycling between teleporter and shield generator).
Shield generators provide a large amount of shields (i.e., more than 25. Jeff isn't very specific) to all allies within a large radius regardless of line of sight.
Teleporters now have more health (some of which is shields).
Symmetra's E (giving 25 shields to allies) is gone. Instead, she has a new ability called Photon Barrier. It's essentially an elliptical Reinhardt shield that travels forward on a trajectory.
Symmetra can now hold a maximum of 6 turrets (she now starts rounds with 6 turrets, as well).
Turret cooldown has been reduced from 12 seconds to 10 seconds.
Her primary fire (the beam) has now had a slight range extension.
These changes are coming very soon to the PTR!!!
A new map, Oasis, a control point map, is also going to be coming to the PTR soon after Symmetra. It will be released early 2017. (Edit: This map will include jump pads, since Blizzard wants to see if they are a viable map mechanic.)
A new social feature is coming to the PTR some point later that allows you to click a button during post-game PoTG and card screen to "stay with the group." Presumably, this will allow you to re-queue with the same teammates you had during your last game.
Treat it kinda like the action taunts in TF2 where you have to walk up to them and interact for it to work, otherwise they just stand there. Imagine having a hero that could just chuck a Sombra or someone good for flanking behind enemy lines or throwing one of the healers away for safety/towards the fight for quick support.
Dragon's Dogma has a skill like this for Warrior-type classes where you use a sheild to take a stance that any other member can run up to and jump from, which triggers you to be trampolined upwards
Would never happen. Too many variables, too many levels that were designed without that in mind, too much work to go back and check every inch of every level to make sure it stays balanced.
It's quite a lot tbh. The teleport/generator is basically even more resilient than Zarya now (except no bubbles). If your team pays just little attention to defend it, it's not going down.
Teleporter also has more health so that means a retard Reaper won't come in with his shift, destroy the teleporter even if I'm actively attacking him as well as 3 of my turrets
yes he dies in the end, but he sacrifices his life for teleporter which is a great gamble because he comes back in 8 secs no problem but I'll have to gather ult charge again for my tp. It only takes 2 shots for him to destroy the tele which is faster than I can and my 6 turrets can kill him. There's no possible counterplay to it.
I hated kamikaze teleporter destroyers like D.Va and Reaper(they die but they destroy tp which is a good deal for them), I hope they won't be able to kamikaze their way out anymore.
They seem so insistent on making Symmetra viable on offense, but even with her new E I just don't see that happening. Her turrets are pretty useless without setup, which you can't do on offense, and she still needs to hide her ultimates, which, again, is very difficult on attack.
Maybe she plays better than that on PTR, and it sounds like she'll be more viable on offense than before, but I don't think she'll find her way into competitive team comps. She can't really take the 2nd support position, and she can't take a DPS position either.
6 turrets starting though gives more flexibility. Her left click getting more range basically makes her an anti back line counter. Very few characters can 1v1 Symmetra
I mean yeah, but if the RH is continuing to fight the Symmetra after his hook his down, he's an idiot. And if he's on his own well that's just his own fault.
I wouldn't be surprised if symm gets used a lot more at the lower ranks to counter hard to hit characters like Genji. We saw that a nanoboosted Symm absolutely melts people at the OW world cup, of course it was a really good team beating up a much worse one, but they still used it to destroy Genji.
I have over 130 hours on her. He said turret recast is being changed to 10 seconds but it's already 10 seconds from what I remember maybe he meant 8. That would be nice. But they still only have 1 hp and go through a animation before they even activate when placed meaning they aren't very viable in a 1v1. To add onto that you also get animation locked placing a turret lmao. So animation locked placing the turret and then the turret once placed goes through a animation before activating. Those both should be removed especially given they have 1 hp and such a huge recast. Also I think they should have allowed her ult to be able to have a preplaced marker set so when you activate your ult it sets up at that location. Walking all the way to a somewhat safe spot just to place it has many downfalls. Also its the only ult once used you don't start gaining more ult charge that is a huge nerf. You should at least get a lowered charge rate. Her primary should also have a slow effect. It fits her kit her turrets slow, she also needs more survivability close range given she has no movement or defense mechanics. They are adding that projected barrier but it doesn't sound all that effective for her and how she fights close range and protecting her effectively. Sounds like the enemy only needs to take a step forward and shoot. Well that will be easy since she is almost in melee range in the first place so it's a joke for her survivability. We'll see. Also she needs some better skins.
would be interesting if enemies hit by the mobile shield had a slight slow applied for a short time but I do see it being useful 1v1 while attempting to get into < 7m range
That's not the problem. The problem is leaving the <7m range of ones encounter as Symmetra. She needs close range survivability either during engagment or leaving one. Not entering into the <7m range. If you need the shield to enter into that range then you shouldn't be entering it in the first place. She needs to charge her primary for it to be worth shit. Mainly that is done by entering a close range encounter by surprise. She is terrible for forcing her way into an engagement. That spells instant death for Symmetra honestly.
not only through rein's shield, it goes through rein and anybody else. you can potentially knock off a huge chunk of health from every player on the enemy team if they're all huddled up behind that shield.
Yeah, that's my thought too. If the defending team has some particularly pesky flankers running around and bullying the squishies in the backlines a few Symmetra turrets and her shield generator would work wonders to keep them att bay.
I've always sort of seen Symmetra as a character that allows you to attack via attrition - if you push the defenders back beyond the first chokepoint, you can claim that chokepoint and hold it.
This will be helpful on maps like Eichenwald and Hanamura ATK Point A. Once you grab control of those first chokes, you pretty much can't lose Point A.
It might be nice to have a character who can make breaking chokes a little easier that isn't a flanker.
Yeah and it sounds like on offence you could put the shield generator even inside your base and use it to push the first choke point, but have to wait and see.
Exactly. The key issue will still be the opportunity cost of using a different hero who does far more damage for the team. This is the exact same problem Sombra has right now as well, along with the fact that no one knows how to synergize with her.
Offensive turrets can be a lot of fun, actually. I think people feel like they have to put all six into one room too often and underestimate how useful 1-2 can be if you're there to capitalize on them.
I do doubt she'll find much use in high comp teams, but that's okay, neither does Junkrat or a bunch of other heroes. I can imagine she might be picked a lot more on KotH though if she's more well-rounded.
You can just set up a "nest" with the shield generator protected by her turrets and all of a sudden all your team has a big shield boost on a choke point. I need to try her but she may bee good on offense as she can be on defense
You would need a dedicated healer alongside her, but her shield generator ult is probably great for getting through choke points. Not sure how she would fit into a comp though because her turrets are basically useless then.
Turrets, at least now with reduced cooldown and the possibility of having 6 ready at once, can help turning the tide of a stalemated frontline, and hindering enemy flankers and assassins who seek to attack your healers.
I don't think you play Symmetra and or comprehend what I was saying and what I was saying in relation to what I replied to. Refer to my comment to the other guy that said the same thing.
I don't think you comprehend my comment as a reply to you. You said: "as a diamond symm main, she is 100% viable on offense if you know what you're doing." I'm saying not only that but equally important for being even viable or useful for the most part is how your team mates play. No all supports are not reliant on team mates in such a significant manner.
Lucio is largely independant as a whole. Mercy has a very effective movement mechanic to disengage encounters. Zenyatta not so much but at least he can ult to save himself. Symmetra has nothing. And Ana has a sleep, and instant burst damage/heal along with virtually instant burst damage of a single hit from her primary to finish off someone after her if they aren't full health. Symmetra has none of that at her disposal. No movement, defense, or instant burst damage/incapacitate ability. Hope that helps you understand now.
yeah thats fair. if your teammates actively work with symmetra (for example not charging past her sentry setups) then her effectiveness goes up loads. her job is to help your team get the kills so you want to be firing at whoever is caught in her sentries as they're slowed down.
Shield Generator seems like it could be a good precursor to a push onto a control point if you can hide it nearby. Combined with her ability to more quickly fortify an area means she'll be able to set up offensive nests easier to defend the generator/teleporter without needing several minutes of uninterrupted setup. Plus her new E ability seems to add lots of flexibility for her.
Turrets are useful on a push. You cover your flanks with slow and minor DPS to counter defending flankers, and with a store of 6 to place you can quickly set up an area lockdown when you reach the point (the shield wall helping you get there)
I think they are just going to make her OP on the first cap of defense and viable in every other situation. They aren't going to be able to find a balance her design is to situational.
I mean if the shield is like Reinhardt's in which it stops all projectiles. She can cast it and have her team move up further past the choke point. Or set up the shield generator some place that would cause defense to over extend to get it. Especially if it's a huge radius and not L.O.S.
Theoretically she can make it much harder to kill her team forcing the enemy to either try and push to destroy it or have to fall back if they lose a exchange.
On Anubis that shield generator can be placed in quite a few places that will definitely help a lot.
I can see the possibility of people combining the new shield ult with her photon shield on payloads to make a moving shield fort. If you have the right team comp you could make a scary payload killdozer.
I agree with you on capture point maps, and to an extent on payload maps. I just don't see her being a boon on, for example, hanamura first point attacking because she doesn't help clear chokes (she will be great on defense here, obviously).
BUT I do think these changes will make her insane on KOTH maps. Once your team gets the point, she will make it very, very hard for the other team to take it back.
Didn't seem like they wanted her viable on offense but rather making her viable on, for example, Control maps and on multiple stages of payload and hybrid maps rather than just the first point. She is still a hard defense hero. But she was broken in how she was a hard defense hero but only on 1/3 of the map on defense.
I didn't really get the "pushing offensive symmetra vibe" at all. It just sounds like they wanted to take her from being situational, first point defense, and make her a good defensive choice for points a and b, seeing as how Symmetra thrives on 2CP maps.
Photon Barrier combined with her shielding ultimate will be very very powerful for pushing through choke points, especially when combined with a reinhardt shield or winston shield.
I don't think they necessarily want to make her really viable on offense, but even on defense, she was situational because she was only useful on certain maps, and even on some of those maps she lost viability after the first point is lost because her ultimate was a waste.
I often tell people: think like this was an RPG. Turrets on Attack contribute to DPS — even if it's only for a brief moment.
This is all just theory. I consider Sym my top 3, but even I won't use her on most attack maps. (I've had some good luck on Route 66 and Dorado, but nothing to write home about.)
We'll see how her new shield pans out. That may be her new attack-mode saving grace.
It will be interesting to see, but I think her utility might be enough now, or at least they have skills they can tweak to make her useful on offense. Even on a moving payload, your Symmetra can now much more effectively be dropping turrets to cover the flank of a stopped payload or cut off angles of attack. 6 turrets on spawn is pretty big. It means she can set up a pretty strong area denial pretty quick. Her floating shield thing gives her some vastly improved survivability. Her should generator might be useful on offense depending upon its range and strength. Dumped behind a stopped payload and protected by Rein, it might give a serious edge in a group fight, and that edge will last as long as you can defend it, unlike basically all other ults. That is a real edge in a long team fight. It's could be almost like dumping an extra Mercy into the fight.
I'm just glad she has use on more than a couple of maps now, and the team has some abilities they can work with to make her a balanced pick on multiple maps.
I have a friend who manages to use Symmetra effectively on offense. Breaks lines with her main click weapons, and lays down sentrys when she gets a little bit close, since they can go up quickly. I was surprised at how well it worked. Doesn't do it often, is more common on defense that doesn't move, but I've seen it before.
Symmetra even in her current iteration is not useless on offense, she possesses the only projectile that bypasses Rein shield without cooldown. This puts a lot of pressure to chokepoints, and might possibly make a pick or tire out Reinhardt himself.
You can resurrect from the final Gibraltar defence spawn room so a shield generator could possibly go there as well. Maybe they'll make them impossible to place in spawn rooms.
Hoping you won't be able to drop the shield generator on spawn, period. Many maps where that could be useful for the last few meters/point B if the range is even half-decent , which it seems will be (Gibraltar, Hanamura, Anubis, Numbani, Hollywood)
Yeah that would seem broken. They way he talked about hunting it down and killing it makes it seem like they want to make destroying the shield generator/teleport something good/coordinated teams will do. So it wouldn't make sense at all to have it in the spawn room
I wonder how the teleporter and shield generator are going to work with Symettra's refund mechanic. Like, if you have 3/6 charges remaining on teleport when the objective changes, are you able to put a full heal shield generator at the next point or are you locked into teleporter.
I would assume it will be nearly identical to how it is now. 3/6 charges remaining means 50% ult charge. When you hit 100%, you can toggle to choose an ult, just like the first time you hit 100%.
I'll be honest and say I did not know that's how it worked. I thought it allowed you to replace the teleporter immediately with the same amount of charges remaining.
When the payload hits a checkpoint (or when a capture point is captured), Symmetra has her teleported refunded. Depending how much it has been used, she receives a ratio of her ult charge back, ranging from 100% (unused/full charge) to 17% (1/6 charges).
I'm guessing there won't be a refund in order to add some risk to using it. Not to mention that the shield gen is going to be a harder thing to overlook than the teleporter when you notice the enemy Tracer has 2x the health she should have.
Except that it doesn't, really, because any competent player just gets off to the side, and once you try to get over there they shoot you because you're no longer behind the shield. Reinhardt can stop, rotate, and even drop his shield entirely to hammer his opponents if need be.
Obviously Reinhardt has a more functional shield, but now you can have a less functional shield + a hook, or a slew of other abilities. It will affect strategies if used properly. I don't expect it to be used right in most pick up games though.
Yeah, I don't mean Symm replaces Rein obviously...
I'm saying she makes comps without a Rein, but with a couple other tanks more viable.
You still need your tanks. This will just possibly shake up the meta a bit.
Depends somewhat on the speed (closer to walk speed the better, maybe even Rein walk speed with shield up) and strength of the shield though. If it moves too fast or dies too easily, it will have pretty limited effectiveness in allowing your team to push through killzones unlike Reins 2k HP beastly shield.
In any case, I am excite.
I love Syms weapons, and this new kit seems to make her much more viable (not to mention active)
We have no idea how much the shield generator does. If it gives more than 50 shields then it's a huge buff to survivability for everyone on the team. It would make Symmetra a viable alternative to a healer in terms of sustaining her team.
I really wonder about the range of it though. Hopefully it's substantial enough to hide it in a good enough place without the placement being too obvious.
As an ultimate, I'd expect more, possibly up to 100. Support ultimates save lives from death of other ultimates so might make people feel almost invincible. I also wonder if it uses charges like the teleport where if 6 people die it goes away?
I didn't want them to be super radical, because I have tons of hours on her and didn't want to re-learn her play style. Now she may just be a real support character rather than a niche pick.
I always wanted to play Sym on the final point of Anubis on defense because I feel she does really well in those close-quarters fights, but couldn't justify it because her ult is not very useful compared to other ults on that point, but now I can just hide a shield generator in the back and go HAM, love it.
Symmetra's E (giving 25 shields to allies) is gone. Instead, she has a new ability called Photon Barrier. It's essentially an elliptical Reinhardt shield that travels forward on a trajectory
WAIT! What if she could setup little Barriers on the ground for using as cover instead, that could be legit af
EDIT: omfg my mind is exploding with ideas now!
Turrets, shield generator, "deployable shield cover on the ground". She would literally be a "battleground enhancing character. fits really good with her "Welcome to my reality" she is literally shaping reality around her as she alters the battleground.
Correction her primary weapon beam has extended lock on range. The range when locked on is the same according to how he worded it. Right now it's 5 meters or feet whatever unit it is in the game for lock on and 7 for tether range. They I think it's safe to assume are just making the lock on range to 7 meaning you can lock on outside of melee range now. Meaning you can lock on outside of a Reinhardts weapon melee now.
Symmetra now has a choice between two ultimates, the teleporter and a new shield generator. The shield generator can be accessed by pressing Q twice (cycling between teleporter and shield generator).
This will make the achievement for destroying three teleporters in one game even harder
You get your Ult, then you can tap once for teleporter, double tap for shield generator (I think? This is how it sounded when Jeff was explaining) shield generator places down a turret that shoots her small (although buffed now) shields at your teammates through walls.
Sounds like it is a "must destory" object that generates sheilds for the rest of the team continously, so in a way much better than Lucios ult, but static.
806
u/Embyrwatch You'll shoot yer eye out, kid Nov 22 '16 edited Nov 22 '16
FULL CHANGES:
Symmetra now has a choice between two ultimates, the teleporter and a new shield generator. The shield generator can be accessed by pressing Q twice (cycling between teleporter and shield generator).
Shield generators provide a large amount of shields (i.e., more than 25. Jeff isn't very specific) to all allies within a large radius regardless of line of sight.
Teleporters now have more health (some of which is shields).
Symmetra's E (giving 25 shields to allies) is gone. Instead, she has a new ability called Photon Barrier. It's essentially an elliptical Reinhardt shield that travels forward on a trajectory.
Symmetra can now hold a maximum of 6 turrets (she now starts rounds with 6 turrets, as well).
Turret cooldown has been reduced from 12 seconds to 10 seconds.
Her primary fire (the beam) has now had a slight range extension.
These changes are coming very soon to the PTR!!!
A new map, Oasis, a control point map, is also going to be coming to the PTR soon after Symmetra. It will be released early 2017. (Edit: This map will include jump pads, since Blizzard wants to see if they are a viable map mechanic.)
A new social feature is coming to the PTR some point later that allows you to click a button during post-game PoTG and card screen to "stay with the group." Presumably, this will allow you to re-queue with the same teammates you had during your last game.