Heroes of the Storm/Patch 16.5

Patch 16.5
Heroes of the Storm; “Balance Update”
Release date	March 16, 2016;; 8 years ago
Version	16.5
Initial build	41504
Related links
	Patch 16.5 patch notes;
Patch chronology
← Previous	Next →
Patch 16.4	Patch 17.0
Additional links
	Patches category, Heroes of the Storm

Heroes of the Storm patch 16.5 is the fifth minor patch since patch 16.0.

Heroes

Health increased from 1,273 (+4% per level) to 1,350 (+4% per level)
Health Regeneration increased from 2.65 per second (+4% per level) to 2.81 per second (+4% per level)
Snipe (Q)
- Cooldown decreased from 8 to 6 seconds
- Mana cost decreased from 60 to 50
- Perfect Shot (Talent)
  - Cooldown reduction decreased from 4 to 3 seconds
Pinning Show (W)
- Slow amount increased from 30% to 40%
- Covert Ops (Talent)
  - Maximum slow amount increased from 50% to 60%

Developer Comments: We have been giving Nova slow and steady buffs in order to increase her viability without pushing her burst damage to uncomfortable levels. Each round of changes has shown us positive results—albeit not large ones. A lower cooldown on Snipe and a stronger slow on Pinning Shot should help Nova players secure kills more frequently while also helping her to contribute more during engagements and skirmishes.

Basic Attack damage reduced from 115 (+4% per level) to 104 (+4% per level)
Raise Skeleton (Trait)
- Skeleton Mastery (Talent)
  - Damage bonus reduced from 100% to 50%
- Corpse Explosion (Talent)
  - Damage reduced from 65 (+4% per level) to 55 (+4% per level)
Spectral Scythe (Q)
- Damage reduced from 300 (+4% per level) to 240 (+4% per level).
- Mana cost increased from 45 to 60
Cursed Strikes (W)
- Attack Speed slow amount reduced from 50% to 40%

Developer Comments: Xul deals way too much damage for the amount of utility he has in his kit, and his pushing Talents are vastly outperforming their competitors. He also has the highest win-rate currently and it’s still climbing, so we needed to be pretty heavy-handed with these nerfs.

Developer Comments: Rehgar is too hard to kill for how much value he brings to the table. Adding more counterplay options for Ancestral Healing should help to trim down the frustrating moments when you can’t seem to catch the Shaman. We also wanted to do this without nerfing Rehgar’s Ghost Wolf form, which could cause his playstyle to feel less active.