How to use anger to improve your game

The highest level competitors use emotion as fuel.

If you watch high level competition, whether it be football or Heroes of the Storm, you’ll see some pretty intense anger, yelling, and all sorts of crazy faces. We take it for granted, but emotion is the fuel that inspires us to act boldly. Check out this quick clip of Misfits and Fanatic at the Europe Fall Regional and watch how strongly their emotions run as they perform at the highest level.

Anatomy of anger

If you ask the average person what IS anger or if it was a good thing, they’re likely to tell you it’s an irrational outburst of emotion or something bad and divorced from rationality. If you’re emotional or angry people assume you’re out of control.

What you probably didn’t know is that anger is a very powerful activator of behavior.

Ask yourself now right now, is anger helping your game like you see in teams like Misfits and Fanatic? Or is anger hurting your game? When it comes to Heroes of the Storm, my guess is we can all do better with a little bit of what the pros got. So how do the pros use anger when everyone else seems to just flop around like a fish?

You will not be punished for your anger, you will be punished by your anger. – Buddha

Anger is an emotion. And every emotion is a signal to take action in some way. The difference between the average Bronzer and the average pro is pros can use anger to play better.

In the face of anger we all know how to do something (and that something usually involves rage-typing, rage-feeding, rage-quitting, and playing poorly in general), but what if there was a way to channel that anger into power? I mean Sith-like dark power?

All Star-Wars joking aside though, anger really can be directed and channeled into a powerful force (Angeromancer? Angeromancy?). And I’m here to share how you can wield the power of anger, taking your game to the next level. Guldan? I’m take notes now…



Wielding the power of the Dark side.

What most people don’t know about anger is that it’s your brain telling you a very logical and concrete message that is there to generate action, especially in the face of adversity. Are you ready for this? Burn this into your mind. The message anger is telling you is:

“A rule has been broken! Do something about it!”

The question next is, what rule is being broken? Think up an in-game example yourself. The first question that comes to my mind is “Why is this jackaknobber typing in chat when he should be team-fighting with us?”

The trick to wielding the dark side comes down to how our “rule” is constructed. Rules can either point internally, or externally. When our rules are for things under our control we can use them to grow. When our rules are for things outside of our control we become disempowered and weak.

My question: “Why is this jackaknobber typing in chat when he should be team-fighting with us?” doesn’t do anything to help. It simply drags focus away from what could be done to win the match.

Here are some examples of external rules you might have, things in Heroes of the Storm that are directly outside of your control.

Everyone should be soaking lanes until level 10.

You can only play Thrall if you go Sunder, and know how to land it.

If you’re first pick in draft you have to pick the OP meta hero.

No one should be a toxic jackaknobber or it will ruin our game.

Only winning matters.

The stricter your rules are for things outside of your control, the more angry and defeated you can become.

What kind of rules do you have for others when going into the game? By knowing, you can better communicate expectations or even strategies in-game.

Rules decide when you get angry. So, what rules do you have for yourself and others?

Here are some internal rules, things that reflect your inner game:

I always stick to my role.

I’m the kind of person who tries to meet my teammates where they are.

I look for opportunities to praise good plays.

If things sour, I don’t let jackaknobbers get to me and I watch my replays to learn.

I try my best to communicate camp timing, rotations, and objectives.



These rules point to your inner game. Internal rules are standards you try to hold to. When you live up to them, you feel good. When other players have the same internal rules, you feel friendship and camaraderie.

Use external and internal rules to shape anger.

Expectations or rules for stuff outside of your control can be tough. If you’re getting angry, and ask yourself “What rule is being broken?” and find that you have some external rule or expectation, this is what to do.

Ask yourself: Is my rule reasonable?

If your rule is unreasonable you’re gonna have a bad time. Something that is always under your control is your ability to evaluate your expectations and to reshape them so they help you and your teammates.

Let’s say you have some great ideas for how to play Battlefield of Eternity. Great. If you know from experience that rushing down the immortal is the way to go you have some kind of rule. The rule can be shaped two different ways: Internal or External. Here’s an example:

Useful Internal Rule (Channeled anger)

Internal rule: Offense is best on BOE, so I let my team know my intentions.

Resulting action: Before events a “Hey guys, let’s all go offence when the immortal spawns. GLHF”

Debilitating External Rule (Consuming anger)

External rule: Everyone knows you go offence when the immortals spawns. Unless they’re a noobsicle.

Example: After events a “What are you moron’s doing? Ugh! RIP 2 min GG”



"It isn't the mountains ahead to climb that wear you out; it's the pebble in your shoe." - Muhammad Ali, World Heavyweight Champion boxer, (1960-1966, 1970-1981).

Next time you’re in the Nexus and you find yourself frustrated, embrace the dark side. Ask yourself “What rules do I have that are pissing me off right now?” Track down that leaked anger, embrace it, re-shape it into power, and grow your game to the next level!

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