Sonya: Spearheading change in the Heroes America's Championship

First rising in favor out of Korean teams like MVP Black or Snake with a win rate of 7-3 in the Hot6 Superleague, Sonya has now made her presence known in the Heroes America's Championship. Sonya was first chosen by Immunity in game 2 versus Cloud 9 and fell in a loss, however has accumulated a total win for loss of 5-6 with 4 bans. The most potent users of Sonya have been Arthelon of Tempo Storm and iDream of Cloud9,with a 3-0 and 2-0 record respectively in America's Championship. Moreso, 4 wins have come against Jaina, who Sonya preys on easily, especially when equipped with the Spell Shield talent.

The Strategy:

The rise of Sonya is part of a greater meta shift into bruiser-centric teams using a few distinct strategies:

Double tank with bruiser, melee support and a ranged carry

Single tank with bruiser, melee support and two ranged carries

Single tank with bruiser, melee or ranged support, hybrid support and a ranged carry

These strategies emphasize heavy frontlines that can penetrate into their foe's backline, aiming for escapeless carries like Jaina or Kael'thas or ranged supports like Malfurion or Tyrande. Melee supports assist in the frontline pressure and allow for proximity to the bruiser who functions as a melee carry or assassin. Uther, Kharazim and Rehgar all fill this role well, especially Uther whose Divine Shield provides great initiation or escape potential for the bruiser.

In Game 2 versus Complexity, Tempo Storm made an insane play even a man down due to the great combination of Sonya burst and Uther protection.

Moving Forward:

The meta is seeming to solidify approaching the first Heroes Blizzcon tournament. Teams are adopting styles favoring double tank and a ranged backline or a heavy frontline style that can catch enemies off guard. To beat this style, teams must adopt heavy crowd-control to focus down the bruiser meanwhile protecting fragile backlines with sustain oriented supports. Whether this is through picking a hybrid support, carries with escapes, or larger frontlines, all will at least partially assist in countering this upcoming style.

More interested in Sonya and her rise? Visit the GosuGamers stat page where Sonya's stats in all recent patches, tournaments and teams is displayed. Or visit our VOD Database where one can quickly identify games played with Sonya or any other favored hero.

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