Overview

Uther : Holy Light Uther Silver Touch Quest: Reduce damage from Heroic sources with Devotion. Reward: After reducing damage 40 times, Holy Light's Mana cost is reduced from 90 to 70. Reward: After reducing damage 80 times, Holy Light's Mana cost is reduced to 50, and its range is increased by 50%. Holy Shock Holy Light can be used on an enemy to do 50% of its healing amount as damage. When used this way, Uther receives its self-healing benefits, its cooldown is reduced by 6 seconds, and it refunds 45 mana. Hand of Protection Activate to make target ally Unstoppable for 1 second. Cannot be cast on Uther. Basic Attacks reduce Hand of Protection's cooldown by 5 seconds. Divine Shield Make an allied Hero Invulnerable and increase their Movement Speed by 20% for 3 seconds. Well Met When used against Heroes, Hammer of Justice reduces the target's Movement Speed and damage dealt by 25% for 3 seconds. Benediction Activate to reduce the Mana cost of Uther's next Basic Ability by 50 and its cooldown by 10 seconds. Redemption After Eternal Devotion ends, Uther revives at the spirit's location with 50% of his maximum Health.

Uther : Holy Radiance Build Wave of Light Quest: Damage or heal Heroes 60 times with Holy Radiance. Reward: Increase the duration of Devotion by 0.5 seconds. Passive: Damaging or healing Heroes with Holy Radiance refunds 5 Mana and reduces its cooldown by 0.75 seconds. Pursuit of Justice Hammer of Justice increases Uther's Movement Speed by 25% for 3 seconds. Hand of Protection Activate to make target ally Unstoppable for 1 second. Cannot be cast on Uther. Basic Attacks reduce Hand of Protection's cooldown by 5 seconds. Divine Shield Make an allied Hero Invulnerable and increase their Movement Speed by 20% for 3 seconds. Blessed Champion For the next 5 seconds after using Holy Light, Uther's Basic Attacks heal him and nearby allies for 15% of the total amount healed by Holy Light. Tyr's Deliverance Increase the damage and healing of Holy Radiance by 10%. Basic Attacks against enemy Heroes cause Uther’s next cast of Holy Radiance to have its damage and healing increased by an additional 10%, stacking up to 4 times. Redemption After Eternal Devotion ends, Uther revives at the spirit's location with 50% of his maximum Health.

Uther : Hammer of Justice Build Hammer of the Lightbringer Quest: Basic Attack enemies 75 times. Reward: Basic Attacks reduce the cooldown of Hammer of Justice by 1.5 seconds. Passive: Basic Attacks restore 1.5% of Uther's maximum Mana. Pursuit of Justice Hammer of Justice increases Uther's Movement Speed by 25% for 3 seconds. Hand of Protection Activate to make target ally Unstoppable for 1 second. Cannot be cast on Uther. Basic Attacks reduce Hand of Protection's cooldown by 5 seconds. Divine Storm Deal 170 damage and stun nearby enemies for 1.75 seconds. Well Met When used against Heroes, Hammer of Justice reduces the target's Movement Speed and damage dealt by 25% for 3 seconds. Benediction Activate to reduce the Mana cost of Uther's next Basic Ability by 50 and its cooldown by 10 seconds. Redemption After Eternal Devotion ends, Uther revives at the spirit's location with 50% of his maximum Health.

Talent Breakdown

Level 1

Silver Touch (Q) (Recommended)

❢ Quest: Reduce damage from Heroic sources with Devotion.

❢ Reward: After reducing damage 40 times, Holy Light's Mana cost is reduced from 90 to 70.

❢ Reward: After reducing damage 80 times, Holy Light's Mana cost is reduced to 50, and its range is increased by 50% Reduce damage from Heroic sources with Devotion.After reducing damage 40 times, Holy Light's Mana cost is reduced from 90 to 70.After reducing damage 80 times, Holy Light's Mana cost is reduced to 50, and its range is increased by 50%

Wave of Light (W) (Situational)

❢ Quest: Damage or heal Heroes 60 times with Holy Radiance.

❢ Reward: Increase the duration of Devotion by 0.5 seconds.

Passive: Damaging or healing Heroes with Holy Radiance refunds 5 Mana and reduces its cooldown by 1 second. Damage or heal Heroes 60 times with Holy Radiance.Increase the duration of Devotion by 0.5 seconds.Damaging or healing Heroes with Holy Radiance refunds 5 Mana and reduces its cooldown by 1 second.

Hammer of the Lightbringer (Situational)

❢ Quest: Basic Attack enemies 75 times.

❢ Reward: Basic Attacks reduce the cooldown of Hammer of Justice by 1.5 seconds.

Passive: Basic Attacks restore 1.5% of Uther's maximum Mana Basic Attack enemies 75 times.Basic Attacks reduce the cooldown of Hammer of Justice by 1.5 seconds.Basic Attacks restore 1.5% of Uther's maximum Mana

Level 4

Holy Shock (Q) (Recommended)

Holy Light can be used on an enemy to do 50% of its healing amount as damage. When used this way, Uther receives its self-healing benefits, its cooldown is reduced by 6 seconds, and it refunds 45 Mana. Holy Light can be used on an enemy to do 50% of its healing amount as damage. When used this way, Uther receives its self-healing benefits, its cooldown is reduced by 6 seconds, and it refunds 45 Mana.

Pursuit of Justice (E) (Recommended)

Hammer of Justice increases Uther's Movement Speed by 25% for 3 seconds.



Hammer of Justice increases Uther's Movement Speed by 25% for 3 seconds.

Holy Fire (Situational)

Deal 13 (+4% per level) damage per second to nearby enemies. Basic Attacks against enemy Heroes increase this damage by 20% for 3 seconds. This can stack up to 3 times.

Deal 13 (+4% per level) damage per second to nearby enemies. Basic Attacks against enemy Heroes increase this damage by 20% for 3 seconds. This can stack up to 3 times.

Level 7

Armor of Faith (Q) (Not Recommended)

Being stunned, rooted, or silenced causes Holy Light's cooldown to recharge 200% faster for 6 seconds.

Being stunned, rooted, or silenced causes Holy Light's cooldown to recharge 200% faster for 6 seconds.

Guardian of Ancient Kings (Situational)

Healing a Hero that is Stunned, Rooted, or Silenced increases the Armor bonus they receive from Devotion from 15 to 50.

Healing a Hero that is Stunned, Rooted, or Silenced increases the Armor bonus they receive from Devotion from 15 to 50.

Hand of Protection (Recommended)

Cooldown: 90 seconds

Activate to make target ally Unstoppable for 1 second. Cannot be cast on Uther. Basic Attacks reduce Hand of Protection's cooldown by 5 seconds. 90 secondsActivate to make target ally Unstoppable for 1 second. Cannot be cast on Uther. Basic Attacks reduce Hand of Protection's cooldown by 5 seconds.

Level 10

Divine Shield (R1) (Recommended)

Cooldown: 90 seconds

Make an allied Hero Invulnerable and increase their Movement Speed by 20% for 3 seconds. 90 secondsMake an allied Hero Invulnerable and increase their Movement Speed by 20% for 3 seconds.

Divine Storm (R2) (Situational)

Cooldown: 80 seconds

Deal 170 (+4% per level) damage and stun nearby enemies for 1.75 seconds.

80 secondsDeal 170 (+4% per level) damage and stun nearby enemies for 1.75 seconds.

Level 13

Blessed Champion (Q) (Situational)

For the next 5 seconds after using Holy Light, Uther's Basic Attacks heal him and nearby allies for 15% of the total amount healed by Holy Light.

For the next 5 seconds after using Holy Light, Uther's Basic Attacks heal him and nearby allies for 15% of the total amount healed by Holy Light.

Well Met (E) (Recommended)

When used against Heroes, Hammer of Justice reduces the target's Movement Speed and damage dealt by 25% for 3 seconds.

When used against Heroes, Hammer of Justice reduces the target's Movement Speed and damage dealt by 25% for 3 seconds.

Spell Shield (Situational)

Every 30 seconds, gain 50 Spell Armor against the next enemy Ability and subsequent Abilities for 3 seconds, reducing the damage taken by 50%. Can be toggled to allow or prevent this talent from triggering automatically. Every 30 seconds, gain 50 Spell Armor against the next enemy Ability and subsequent Abilities for 3 seconds, reducing the damage taken by 50%. Can be toggled to allow or prevent this talent from triggering automatically.

Level 16

Beacon of Light (Q) (Situational)

While below 50% Health, Uther receives 200% more self-healing when healing others with Holy Light.

While below 50% Health, Uther receives 200% more self-healing when healing others with Holy Light.

Tyr's Deliverance (W) (Situational)

Allies healed by Holy Radiance receive 40% increased healing from all sources for 6 seconds.

Allies healed by Holy Radiance receive 40% increased healing from all sources for 6 seconds.

Benediction (Recommended)

Cooldown: 60 seconds

Activate to reduce the Mana cost of your next Basic Ability by 50 and its cooldown by 10 seconds. 60 secondsActivate to reduce the Mana cost of your next Basic Ability by 50 and its cooldown by 10 seconds.

Level 20

Bulwark of Light (R1) (Not Recommended)

Divine Shield lasts 2 seconds longer and its cooldown is reduced by 20 seconds.



Divine Shield lasts 2 seconds longer and its cooldown is reduced by 20 seconds.

Divine Hurricane (R2) (Not Recommended)

Divine Storm's radius is increased by 50% and its cooldown is reduced by 20 seconds.



Divine Storm's radius is increased by 50% and its cooldown is reduced by 20 seconds.

Redemption (Trait) (Recommended)

After Eternal Devotion ends, return to 50% of your maximum Health at your spirit's location. This effect has a 180 second cooldown.

After Eternal Devotion ends, return to 50% of your maximum Health at your spirit's location. This effect has a 180 second cooldown.

Divine Protection (Trait) (Not Recommended)

Devotion now stacks twice, and its duration is refreshed when applied.



Devotion now stacks twice, and its duration is refreshed when applied.

How He Plays

1. Don't top off your team!

2. Play like a ranged hero.

3. Time your heals well!

4. Communication.

5. Hold your 20!

The Light Abandons No Man!

Hello, and welcome to another installment of "A Detailed Breakdown". Today's guide is going to be a little bit different, as unlike the others, this one is not going to focus on a single build. The hero of discussion today is Uther, The Lightbringer, and I thought that it might be beneficial to speak to a few different build, rather than just one. I find that Uther has a very versatile talent tree, and possesses multiple viable build paths that are all worth touching on. As this is a slightly different approach that my previous guides, please do let me know what you think, if you would like to see more like this, or if you prefer the more strict focus on a single build.Now, let's get right into this with a few sample/common builds.As usual, it's time to dive into the context of each choice we have.This is the most common pick on Uther in his current state, and it is not without good reason. One of Uther's greatest weaknesses is his resource management. Even one cast of Holy Light is a considerable chunk of his mana gone. The cost reduction from this talent, with both rewards achieved, is almost 45%. This gives Uther far more staying power in extended fights, or poke wars. With Holy Shock at level 4, this also means that using Holy Light as an offensive poke when healing is not needed is effectively free. The range also compliments this, as well as increasing the ease-of-use for this spell overall.Once upon a time, this talent was by and large the best of the tier. A number of nerfs were issued to remedy the overwhelming strength of this talent in combination with Uther's new (at the time) trait, Devotion. Devotion's armor bonus was brought down from 25 to 15, and the duration increase of this quest reward went from 1 second to 0.5 seconds. This turned this talent from a must-have into a rather situational pick. Despite these nerfs, however, in games where there will be many clustered allies and enemies, the immediate passive of this talent alone can justify its use, increasing the amount of W casts you can put out, which in turn increases your healing output.A staple of Uther's slightly less common E build, this talent dramatically increases the uptime of Uther's E, while giving him a lovely little mana siphon through his AA's immediately. This can allow for more aggressive play through increased stuns, or increased peel, if you need to keep diving targets off your backline. For obvious reasons, this fits in beautifully with lockdown comps. Note, however, that finding AA's against anything you can as early as possible is crucial. The mana return in itself is not nearly justification enough to take this talent, so do as much as you can to rush down this quest... without getting yourself killed, of course.The natural progression from Silver Touch in the previous tier, the two talents compliment eachother nicely. As mentioned in the context there, completing the quests means that using Holy Light offensively makes it a free poke every 6 seconds, if your team is not currently in need of the heal instead. As Uther is ill-suited to topping off teammates, having a second healer allows you to effectively use this offensively on cooldown, until the real damage comes in when the real fight begins.A versatile talent that benefits both your chase and escape potential, all while heavily complimenting Uther's E build, if you chose to take that path. This does not mean, however, that you must choose the E build to make this talent viable. 25% movement speed is beneficial to every build Uther has, given he has no innate mobility spells. The movement speed is a welcome addition to his kit.In the vast majority of situations, the other talents outperform this one, on this tier. The one exception to this, however, is when facing stealthed enemies without a reliable means of revealing them on your team (NOTE: Zagara's creep tumors actually fall into this category, too, as this will reveal them upon damaging them). This talent makes it very difficult for stealth heroes, as they cannot get close to you without instantly revealing themselves. The damage itself, however, is pretty low, and isn't generally worth taking just for that.While one would think this pairs quite well with the other Q talents (which it does), the problem is less in the strength of this talent, and more in the overwhelming strength of the other two on this tier. This is one of Uther's most important talent tiers, and as good as this one is, it simply can't keep up with the alternatives.Back when the armor bonus from this talent was 75, it was a bit too overwhelming for anyone to pass up. Since the reduction, however, it is still effective, but does not outperform everything else. This talent should be picked up over cleanse only in select scenarios, however, as the playmaking/saving potential of Hand of Protection is hard to pass up. Against enemies like ETC or Malfurion, where multiple allies may be CC'd at once, is where this talent is so powerful. You can negate half of the enemies' burst, shutting down any stunlock combos they might have been wanting to pull off.Uther's variant of cleanse, this is just as important as it is on any other healer. The playmaking potential of this talent is so vast that it can literally make or break a fight, with proper use. Next to healing, cleanse is the most important part of being a healer in HotS, even more so at higher levels of play. Uther is one of the rare few who actually has an alternative in the form of GoAK, but even that is situational.Divine Shield has long been the big playmaker on Uther, when combined with heroes like Genji or Greymane, who are given free reign to rip into the enemy team unhindered for its duration. Whether it is used offensively or defensively, the potency of this spell is undeniable. The biggest drawback to this ability is knowing when and where to use it, as well as who it should be used on. This knowledge can really only be gathered from experience, as every game, every situation will demand a different decision. The more you play, the more familiar you will be with how to use it.A strong playmaker in its own right, Divine Storm is the go-to choice for stunlock comps, as well as when facing characters like Genji or Tracer in order to keep them stunned even longer. Being as squishy as they are, they can be wiped off the face of the earth very quickly without their mobility. Uther excels at removing that aspect of their kit. Divine Storm also tends to be a little easier to use effectively than Divine Shield.Considering none of Holy Light's talents actually increase the raw healing output of the spell, this talent is actually a viable one to pick in any build, as it has roughly the same effectiveness all throughout. It does pair well with Armor of Faith, but this talent does not make up for the sacrifice you would make, were you to choose it at level 7. Given this talent also requires you to be basic attacking constantly for it to be effective, it is a little more risky than other options, too.A major hindrance to any target you stun with E, this is an excellent tool in any build to mitigate the damage of an enemy bruiser or assassin. The slow makes it harder for them to escape the clutches of your team, too, which is always nice. As with all of the E talents, this pairs excellently with Hammer of the Lightbringer at level 1.If you are having a really hard time staying alive, and there is enough bursty spell damage from the enemy team (re: Kael), this is not a bad choice. It is not ideal, as it benefits nobody but you. With that said, it is better to have a living healer helping the rest of the team slightly less, than a dead one not helping at all. Play it by ear, and pick this if you really need to mitigate some spell damage.If you find you are being the target of focus, or are taking enough damage to warrant this, this talent can be useful. The increase to self-healing is quite large, giving you much more staying power. Though the talent description does not state it, it should be noted that if you took Holy Shock at level 4, this talent actually triggers from the self healing you receive when damaging enemies. Oddly enough, this makes you a half-decent duelist, in a pinch.It should be noted immediately that this talent is extremely weak compared to its counterparts, if you do not have a second healer. If youhave one, however, this quickly becomes the most powerful talent on the tier. The reason for this is, Uther has very limited heals outside of Holy Radiance. He can Holy Light one target, and while this will make that chunk of healing much higher, Benediction can do that at 100% power. Beyond this, his only other option for actual healing output that can benefit from this is Blessed Champion at level 13. Even that, however, would only be receiving a small increase, given the relatively low heal it gives out to start with. As such, he needs another healer to capitalize on this talent, but when he has that, it becomes absolutely incredible.In... pretty much any situation not explicitly described above, this is the talent of choice. It is incredibly versatile and works well with any build. You can double up on your stun-lock, or double your single target OR AOE healing. There is not a ton to say here other than that it simply gives you an option to increase the power of just about anything you choose to do, once every sixty seconds.This is a good talent, with not much to say about it other than it increases the potency of what Divine Shield already does. However, like the rest of the talents on this tier, it simply cannot compete with Redemption.Thanks to /u/petscopkid over on reddit for reminding me of a rather important piece to this talent. In fringe cases, a 5 second invulnerability window is enough to channel an objective. In a pinch, this can be enough to win the game on certain maps. so it's good to be aware of that. For more on how to decide when to do this, see the tip further down on holding your level 20 talent.This talent makes your stunlock combo a little easier to land, while making it hit... potentially, many more targets than it otherwise would. Again, however, it cannot compete with Redemption.Redemption is, in its current state, simply too good to pass up in virtually any situation. In the late game, death timers can be over a minute long, and this effectively removes yours unless you are killed twice. It also allows you to be far more aggressive, as you can die, spam heal your allies, and simply come back at half health ready for more with your basic kit off cooldown and ready to cast. No other talent on this tier compares to Redemption.Another victim of the Devotion nerfs, this can now only apply up to 30 armor under regular circumstances, and for up to 1 second less than it used to. While it once might have competed with Redemption as a viable talent in this tier, it is now back to a situation that the others all find themselves in: Redemption is too good to sacrifice.I am going to do this section slightly differently today, both because I am not focusing on a single build, and because I feel that Uther would benefit from a different format. Instead, I am going to give a few tips on things to keep in mind, and practices you can put to work when playing as Uther.As a healer, this is an almost universal urge. When you see an ally with missing health, your obvious instinct is often to simply top them off, and keep them as healthy as can be. With Uther, however, this is something you simply cannot afford to do. Unless your ally is low enough that you will get the full value of your heal on them (or if you can hit multiple allies with one wave of light to get them all healed), you do not have the mana to sustain topping off your allies. Let them regen naturally. Unless they are actually in danger, there is no need to heal that final 9% health they are missing. This is especially true in the early game, when your mana pool is a measly 500 at level 1.This doesn't apply nearly as much if you took Hammer of the Lightbringer at level 1, but in any other situation, you should only be moving into melee range ifthe enemy is on the retreat,You are briefly moving in to stun someone (and there are no diving heroes that you need to peel off your backline), orSomeone moved into range of you, not the other way around. As with anything, there will be exceptions to this, but as a general rule of thumb this is a safe guideline to follow. You may be a tankier support than most, but you are still a support. You cannot keep up with the other frontliners that will be there. You are better served staying safe and being able to heal your teammates more freely as a result.Unlike most healers, Uther's healing is not his only means of protection of his allies. Due to Devotion, it is very important that you pick the right time to cast a heal, rather than simply spamming your buttons any time an ally is low. The armor has a short duration, and will dramatically increase Uther's effective healing when timed properly. This becomes even more important when you take Guardian of Ancient Kings at level 7, as the bonus does not apply unless you heal someone WHILE they are CC'ed.I know, I know, this applies to pretty much everything you do in HotS. But in the case of Uther, this is directed more at his heroic abilities. Both of them have insane combo potential, but like any combo, they need to be coordinated. This is difficult to do in anything other than playing on an actual team, but what I've found the most effective is simply pinging when your heroics are ready so that your allies know, and then being ready to follow up on potential ults from your allies. In the case of Divine Shield, you can wait until you hear Genji pop his ultimate, as an example, before dropping it on him. Or you can cast Divine Storm when you see your allied Diablo get his charge combo off. Simply wait until it is finished, and then back it up with your own stuns. Reactive play is the best way to accomplish combos when playing solo, as you cannot be certain when your allies will follow up with you, but you can prepare yourself to follow up with them, instead.Despite Redemption being the best choice in most situations, there are fringe cases where you may want to make the snap decision of having the extra few seconds of Divine Shield from its level 20, or perhaps the extra radius on Divine Storm if a fight suddenly calls for it that could win the game. Given Redemption gives no benefit until you die, it is well worth it to hold off on picking your 20 until you absolutely have to, as you could make that snap decision to go with something else, and it could close out the game for you in a team fight that late into the game. Big thanks to Phosheezy for pointing this out to me.I hope you enjoyed this slightly different version of my guides. I keep feeling like these still have a lot of room to improve, so I'm looking to try out some different things. Next week will probably have some new formatting, and I'm still debating whether or not to add a section on the heroes' base kit. It feels like that could be a valuable piece to add. As usual, let me know what you think of the changes, or the content in general! I love hearing it, and I always try to respond to everything pretty quickly.Until next week!