Heroes of the Storm has picked up a new, chunky patch for its open beta. Along with rebalances for characters and various bug fixes, the update adds World of Warcraft Night Elf archer Sylvanas Windrunner to the character roster, and introduces a whole new Battleground to play on.
The Heroes of the Storm blog reveals the new Battleground is Tomb of the Spider Queen; a three-lane arachnid-themed arena where teams will have to collect gems and place them at the Spider Queen’s altar. Gems can be picked up from dead Heroes and Spider Minions. Providing 50 gems to the Queen will see Webweavers descend down the lanes, attacking all enemies in their path. Players can repeatedly summon Webweavers, but the cost increases by five gems per wave. Be careful though; you’ll drop all your gems if you die!
You’ll be able to play on this new Battleground with the game’s brand new Hero: Sylvanas Windrunner. She’s a ranged unit with some fun powers: Withering Fire shoots a close enemy for 25 damage, Shadow Dagger deals 10 instant damage and a further 40 damage over time to an enemy, with the effects spreading to nearby units. Haunting Wave will send out a wave of banshees that deal 30 damage to all targets. Reactivating the skill will teleport Sylvanas to the banshees’ location.
The Wailing Arrow shoots a projectile that explodes with 200 damage and silences the enemy for 2.5 seconds. It can be detonated at any time on its flight path. Sylvanas can also posses an enemy minion, boosting it with 20% attack and health.
Team League has finally been added to the game. This allows teams to create a roster and name themselves, and then head out against other ranked groups. Participation in Team League requires you to be at level 40, own 10 or more Heroes, and to be in a team with at least five members that are ready to play.
Hero progression has also been altered, with the level cap increased from 10 to 20. 1,250 gold will be awarded at level 15, and 2,500 at level 20. Players who hit a player level of 10 will pick up a 7-day stimpack, 2000 gold at levels 20, 25, 30, 35, and 40. If you’ve already hit those levels, you’ll be retrospectively rewarded.