Lt. Morales is the latest addition to the Heroes of the Storm family. Hailing from StarCraft, she is a tried and true Support class hero. The Support class heroes in Heroes of the Storm are quite varied, with some offering considerable utility (Uther, Malfurion) and others being pure healing (Li Li). Morales falls into the category of pure healing and has quite a few similarities with Li Li.
Many professional Heroes of the Storm players will tell you Li Li is not a good character, and while it’s certainly possible Morales could fall into that category, right now it’s a bit too early to tell. In addition, while characters such as Li Li and Morales lack the utility that some of the other Support class heroes offer, they have top notch raw healing, and that can easily mean the difference between life or death during a team battle, so let’s dive in and take a look at Morales basic abilities.
Healing Beam (Q)
This is Morales’ primary healing ability. It does not have a cast time or cooldown, but it only focuses a single ally. You have to be careful when using this because it drains Morales’ mana at a steady pace. Once an ally is fully healed, the Healing Beam will not consume additional mana, even if you don’t turn it off. You can switch targets by simply activating the Healing Beam on another target, or turn it off by activating it on yourself (although it won’t heal Morales) or your trait (D). It’s very important to watch the health of your allies and switch between as needed to keep them healed.
Safeguard (W)
Safeguard is another single target ability that offers a 25 percent damage resistance for three seconds. This ability can be self-targeted, unlike Healing Beam. It should be used as soon as an ally engages an enemy, or if an ally is about to take considerable damage. It’s much easier for an ally to survive Kael’ Thas’ Pyroblast and other similar attacks if you activate Safeguard at the right time.
Displacement Grenade (E)
Lt. Morales does not have a good escape option. She can’t Blink or increase her movement speed with her base abilities. This is where the Displacement Grenade comes into play. It explodes on the first target hit (including minions) and knocks away nearby enemies. If you’re running away from an enemy, this can give you the time you need to escape. Likewise, you can use it to knock an enemy into a more favorable position, into your teammates or even a fort turret.
Caduceus Reactor (Trait)
Morales’ trait is similar to Muradin’s. If she does not take damage for four second, she activates a self-heal that gradually regenerates a small amount of life until she returns to full health (or takes more damage). Keep in mind you can attack while the trait is active so long as you don’t take damage. This is the only way Morales can heal herself until you get to higher levels (if you select specific abilities). It makes her difficult to take down in the early game, but doesn’t help much during team battles, especially if she’s getting focused down by the opposing team. This is where the Safeguard and Displacement Grenade can really increase Morales’ survivability.
Healing Build
Level 1 – Prolonged Safeguard or Trauma Trigger
Level 4 – Bioshield or Advanced Block
Level 7 – Clear
Level 10 – Stim Drone or Medivac Dropship
Level 13 – Couples Therapy or Preventative Care
Level 16 – Shield Sequencer or Second Opinion
Level 20 – Caduceus Reactor 2.0
At level one, your choice is going to depend on your skill and style of play with Morales. Prolonged Safeguard is the general choice because it makes the ability last one second longer, which can lead to considerable damage reduction. However, if you have difficulty staying alive (especially in the early game), Trauma Trigger gives you a free (untalented) Safeguard when your health drops below 50 percent. Additionally, if you have mana issues, you can opt to go with Feedback Loop to refund some of the mana used to cast Safeguard. This should be a rare selection.
When you reach level four, you should pick up Bioshield or Advanced Block. Bioshield gives your Healing Beam target a shield once they reach full health. The shield immediately disappears if you switch targets or shut off the Healing Beam, but it’s also 100 percent mana-free. This is extremely effective if you’re about to head into a team battle, or even laning early in the game if you use this on Illidan or other high damage auto-attack heroes. The alternative is Advanced Block, which reduces basic attack damage by 50 percent (up to 3 charges). Use this if you’re having trouble staying alive in the early game.
Level 7 is a fairly easy choice in Clear. This increases the explosion radius and knockback of the Displacement Grenade, making it considerably more effective. That said, the other choices at this level can offer good utility depending on the abilities of the opposing team. The M.U.L.E. can repair fortifications, Cleanse is a great tool if you’re up against constant enfeebling abilities and Irradiate deals damage over time while Healing Beam is active, which is good for laning or some map objectives.
Your choice at level 10 is dependent on your team composition and the map you’re playing on. If you have a solid auto-attack hero (Illidan, Valla, etc.), Stim Drone can be devastating in a team battle. It gives a single ally a 75 percent attack speed boost and 25 percent movement speed increase for 10 seconds. However, on maps where getting to certain locations is key, the Medivac Dropship can transport your entire team to almost any location in an instant. Keep in mind, this does not work in the Haunted Mines transition from to or from the mines area.
When you reach level 13, Couples Therapy or Preventative Care should be your talent of choice. Couples Therapy finally gives you a self-heal anytime you have the Healing Beam active on a teammate. If you’re battling against an enemy team that has good auto-attack damage, you may want to opt for Preventative Care to slow their attacks by 25 percent for 2.5 seconds. In most cases Couples Therapy is the option to go with here, but against certain team, Preventative Care can save lives.
At level 16, the Shield Sequencer or Second Opinion are best to pick up. Shield Sequencer allows you to cast Safeguard a second time within three seconds of the initial cast, at no additional mana cost. This is very effective in team battles, especially against teams that have good area damage. If you’re facing a team that doesn’t have great area damage you can also opt for Second Opinion to get a second charge of the Displacement Grenade, but in most cases, Shield Sequencer should be your go-to option.
Your level 20 selection should almost always be Caduceus Reactor 2.0. With this talent, any time your Caduceus Reactor is active, you gradually replenish mana and gain a significant shield. Once you have this talent Morales becomes difficult to kill and she can sustain her heals for considerably longer periods. There’s also some utility in Storm Shield, but you should almost alway go with Caduceus Reactor 2.0 at level 20.
Be sure to check out our early look at Artanis, the next character coming to the Nexus, or take a look at our build guides for Kharazim, The Butcher and many other heroes in our Heroes of the Storm Guide!
