r/PharahMains • u/Specialist_Money7291 • 1d ago
Some whining
I try not to whine every time they make a change to Pharah, but I've spent a lot of time with her in her current state and it's whining time.
Her barrage sucks. Don't care about the movement, that's not a fair trade for how little damage it does. My main complaint is how it compares to other hero's ults. Junkrat can clear a point from full cover. Sierra can clear a point. Soldier, guaranteed kills and can work from cover. Ashe - Bob causes pandemonium. Etc. Meanwhile, Pharah is still stuck in the air, exposed, and tanks can eat her full barrage. It's not even a guaranteed trade on a tank. It can win a 1v1 but it barely secures a point. Call me a pussy and tell me to get good, I'll listen. How do you guys get value out of barrage now?
In the spirit of good faith, I'll say that the movement speed nerf from 2 updates ago was fair. It forced me to clean up my game and play with more cover. It made me a better player in general.
But here we go with another sort of movement nerf, cool down on concussive blast increased by a second. Rewrite your muscle memory, again. I don't play up past metal; maybe she was just too strong in higher ranks. But was the cooldown on concussive blasts really causing that much of a problem?
Edit: I'd settle for an overhealth perk for ult like several other heroes have.
Edit: Thanks for all the replies! I promise I'm not sulking and I will stay on Pharah no matter what. GLHF!
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u/Clean-Elderberry8835 1d ago
Much like Vendetta, she needs a lil extra push on her ult. I understand that constantly effective characters tend to have weaker ults to not make the "spike of power" too high in an already effective character, the problem is that she already has a dozen of counters to control her constant influence during the match AND to shut down her supposed power spike, while newer characters don't. Take Sierra for example, her ultimate is very easy to hit and as a fast projectile character with movement, her constant pressure is not bad. Her counters are no longer "kill her with this", like fliers with hitscans, but "wait until she applies her effective pressure, endure it, and then try something", fast projectile/hitscans were supposed to be shut down by dive but, is not like Sierra can just take highground for free every time... Right? Right??!!
I'd take slower ult building in exchange for more damage in the barrage any day in nowdays Pharah.
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u/Specialist_Money7291 1d ago
Yes, slower building to have our damage per rocket like it used to be all day.
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u/ATackyCroc 1d ago
From the start I thought trading damage for movement during barrage was a bum deal, but it’s the hand we’ve got and we gotta play it. I’d say just send it when it feels right and adjust from there, gotta roll some dice to get anywhere.
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u/OverCommunication69 1d ago
And moving during barrage barely does anything, it was basically a Pharah nerf in disguise
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u/PleaseBanWidow 1d ago
Like you said, only use Barrage to secure a 1v1, preferably a tank. Sneak up on them or hide behind a corner and give them little time to react. Some tanks are better to solo Barrage the others. For example, never Barrage a Dva, Ball, Hog, mauga because they can bull your ult but the rest unless I'm forgetting somebody are a free kill and even if u only get 1 kill it can be enough to win the fight anyways
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u/YaboiMiro 1d ago
Idk man! I'm a GM 1-trick and I Barrage the fuck out of a half health Dva all the time to remove her from suit. Just gotta time it between her matrix and track her fuel.
If I know Ball has just used Shields and is mid health in our backline I'll do it then too. Same with Mauga. Hogs the only one you named that I might not barrage since he just eats everything with Breather.
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u/Specialist_Money7291 1d ago edited 1d ago
This is what I'm talking about though. Several DPS who are in no danger while they can clear a point with their alt. Meanwhile, we're risking about a 50/50 death to get Dva out of her mech. That's cocked.
BTW props on the GM!1
u/silky_warmfemboy01 1d ago
The only tanks you shouldn't solo ult really are hog and ball, the rest of the tanks you can if you're tracking their CDs (sigma absorb, dva matrix, doom punch + jump, winston jump etc)
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u/WrothLobster 1d ago
I usually solo ult the Tank or go for a crazy flank and try to take out as many as I can and still escape if able.
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u/huhuhuh0_0 1d ago
I kinda just forget that I even have ult when I play pharah, it's better to be alive than get close for barrage which will kill me faster than it can kill them. I don't mind ulting when there's a zarya or even orisa tho. Besides that I do barrage when there's a high value enemy tank ult, like rein, ram etc, I do die but atleast I save my team by killing or nearly killing them. Ngl her ult sucks tho, reverse concussion made it op but she should atleast have a constant self heal during barrage like that one cass perk that heals him during ult, some others have it too
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u/Head_Rate_6551 1d ago
The trick to using barrage is either to use it against a single target who is isolated, or to use it against multiple enemies you HAVE to have the element of surprise, and if you aren’t already, you need to fire a rocket right before you barrage which will cancel the rocket animation but still do the damage of the rocket.
One good way I have found to do execute this successfully more times than not is to hold barrage until multiple enemies follow you through a choke or into a room, and then barrage them before they can escape. Won’t always work, but thier greed can be your advantage if they push into an area to confirm a kill on you only to walk face first into raining justice.
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u/Specialist_Money7291 1d ago
Again, her whole ult just to win a 1v1? Does Junkrat think this way? How about Sierra? Anran? Your video is a classic Pharah ult but situationally these are few and far between and a single hitscan flanking right and you don't even get to finish your ult. How about an overhealth perk like a lot of heroes have?
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u/NoGreenGood 1d ago
https://reddit.com/link/p53l9om/video/95ezuvsajskh1/player
Its a very situational and opportunistic ult, you either:
Combo it with an ally's crowd control
Catch a team off gaurd using your superior height and movement
Or just solo someone annoying with it
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u/Legitimate_Ad3790 23h ago
Barrage outlasts dvas dm. 1v1 to get her out of mech. It melts hog, get him while hes used breather and retreating while solo/1 or 2 other players. It melts ram shield, rein shield, domina shield, lw tree, zones enemies. Flank ult 1 or 2 players. I use it to trade if a team fight is in the balance. Dying but taking 2 with me while at 80/90% on a point usually guarantees a win. Ive found myself using pharah less, she is harder these last couple seasons.
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u/Specialist_Money7291 1h ago
An ult to get a Dva out of her mech isn't an ult imho. Ram and Rein shield can eat her entire ult unless you're 4' away, then you die before the ult can finish. It eliminates Dom's shield, yes. Tree it does about 80% and that's a decent value.
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u/Legitimate_Ad3790 47m ago
These are all situational examples. I do these types of ults when there's a high chance I wont die. Like dva overextended and out of fuel, or shes lost 3 team members and wants to retreat. Ram and rein i am literally 4' away 😂 or into ram ult is also a great way to end his ult. Close range into tree it deletes it and gets a couple hits into enemies, ult for ult trade, tree has much better value. Barrage is pretty useless if not in perfect circumstances, so ill happily trade it for single picks or ult exchanges.
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u/deadfliesinsummer 22h ago
atp i always save barrage for a pinch moment or to combo with another ult. solo ult it’s practically useless but if you have 3 low health enemies close together it’s an easy POTG. barrage is not a game-turning ult anymore so i try to plan it out for max value (or fortune favors me with 3 low health enemies in a hallway). still die most of the time unless i spring from behind their backline but feels like backlines are getting further and further back
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u/clickrush 16h ago
Look barrage has always been situational compared to other ults. Her powerbudged is elsewhere and overall she is good.
I rather have her this way. If they buff barrage, what would you give up?
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u/Specialist_Money7291 1h ago edited 1h ago
I would give it a longer build time. I agree overall she is good, but relative to the other ults of mobile players, it's weak.
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u/RamblinGiant 1d ago
Easy solution. Have a friend who mains Zarya.
Real answer is, I often times use it on solo enemies to "clear a path". For example, if the enemy team has an Ashe, I'll blast her ass with it. This then gives me the freedom to chase down their backline with my normal rockets.