Tychus is a Ranged Assassin with moderate mobility issues and a decent amount of firepower. He doesn’t have the range of most other Ranged Assassins, but he has more range than a Melee Warrior. He’s a fairly straightforward hero, but may still take a bit of time to get used to depending on how much experience you have with the game and this type of character.
Overkill
This is one of the better area attacks in the game since it hits your primary target for full damage and surrounding targets for 50 percent damage. Tychus can also move while the attack is active, making it a great tool for chasing down enemies. The range isn’t amazing, but it’s not terrible either. Once you learn the maximum range of the attack, you can really start dishing out the damage from moderately safe distances.
Frag Grenade
The Frag Grenade is Tychus’ bread and butter attack. It has a multitude of uses, such as knocking an opponent out of an attack (similar to a stun), helping you or your teammates escape a bad situation and simply moving enemies out of place should the need arise. Essentially, if you see an enemy hero doing something you don’t like, you should probably toss a Frag Grenade.
Run and Gun
Run and Gun is basically a quick dash for Tychus. It removes the windup time of your Minigun ability (your basic attack) and moves Tychus a short distance. This is effective to chase down an enemy, get back up to optimal basic attack damage after being stunned or try to make a quick escape. It doesn’t work quite as well as a quick escape because Tychus is a slow character, but it can give you the small boost you need.
Basic Build
Level 1 -Armor Piercing Rounds
Level 4 – Melting Pot or Vampiric Assault
Level 7 – Quarterback
Level 10 – Commandeer Odin
Level 13 – Lead Rain or Giant Killer
Level 16 – Concussion Grenade or Executioner
Level 20 – Big Red Button or Bolt of the Storm
Tychus is fairly straightforward. He has a few options depending on your skill level and play style, but for the most part there isn’t a lot of variance in the abilities you select. At level one you should pick up Armor Piercing Rounds to increase the damage of Overkill to your primary target. Overkill is strictly a damage tool, so increasing said damage is key.
When you reach level four, pick up Melting Pot or Vampiric Assault. You won’t get a lot of health return from Vampiric Assault, but if you don’t have a healer on your team (or your healer isn’t good), this can give you a bit more time to plan your escape if you’re being attacked. In any other situation, Melting Pot should be your ability of choice. Tychus is great when it comes to taking down enemy structures, and Melting Pot simply makes that task easier.
At level seven, pick up Quarterback to increase the range of Frag Grenade. This should be self-explanatory, but with superior range Frag Grenade becomes more useful for interrupting enemies and attacking from a distance. If you’re new to the game or you’re having problems dying a lot, you can opt for First Aid, but Quarterback should be your selection here.
Commandeer Odin should be your level 10 Heroic ability of choice as Tychus. It summons an Odin unit that gives Tychus a second health bar and different (powerful) abilities. Keep in mind that Tychus loses his normal abilities while inside the Odin. The Drakken Laser Drill can be useful, but generally only if your team needs you to hit enemies with Frag Grenades whenever possible. It’s not uncommon for an opposing team to wait for you to use Commandeer Odin (restricting your Frag Grenade access), then use their Heroic abilities without fear of being interrupted.
Level 13 is a choice between Lead Rain or Giant Killer. Lead Rain is the more desirable of the two, slowing targets when using Overkill. However, Giant Killer increases your damage output against heroes and can come in handy depending on your team composition. If you have enough damage already, opt for Lead Rain.
At level 16 Concussion Grenade should be your primary choice, but Executioner can also be beneficial. As Tychus, you’re going to use Frag Grenade a lot. Concussion Grenade doubles the knockback of the attack, making it much more effective. However, if you have a team capable of slowing, stunning or rooting your opponents, Executioner gives you a damage boost of 40 percent to those targets. In that kind of team composition, Executioner is generally the better choice.
When you reach level 20, Big Red Button should be your go-to ability, as it increases how long you’re in the Odin and gives you the Nuclear Blast ability, which can be devastating. However, if you opted for the Drakken Laser Drill at level 10, Focusing Diodes is basically your only option here, as it increases the range and damage of that ability. Finally, if you’re having issues escaping bad situations, you can opt for Bolt of the Storm to give Tychus a teleport option for an easier escape.
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