Welcome to our guide for Kael'thas, a Ranged Assassin in Heroes of the Storm. Within these pages, you will find everything required to understand how best to play this hero, in both different map styles and team compositions.

1. Kael'thas's Overview

Kael'thas is a ranged Assassin, with an exceptional overall damage potential. All of his abilities deal AoE damage, severely punishing enemy teams that stand close together. However, Kael'thas is the definition of "glass-cannon"; his low maximum health and total lack of mobility leave him completely exposed to enemy assassins and bruisers.

Kael'thas' Trait mechanic, Verdant Spheres, allows him to improve the effectiveness of one Basic Ability at a time. It is important for players to decide which ability should be empowered and when, as every situation is incredibly different and will need to be approached accordingly. Try to not waste Verdant Spheres on an ability simply because it was available, as Kael'thas may immediately find himself in a dire situation without it.

2. Kael'thas's Strengths and Weaknesses

Strengths Very high single and area damage with appropriate talents

All of his abilities have an AoE component

Gravity Lapse provides crowd control

Excellent waveclear

Phoenix is an exceptional zoning tool

Effective gank during the early game Weaknesses Has extremely low mobility and survivability

Requires close attention to positioning

Completely Mana dependant

Has difficulty self- peeling enemy Heroes; consistantly requires allies' assistance

3. Kael'thas's Talent Build Cheatsheet

4. Kael'thas's Synergies and Counters

Kael'thas synergizes with Kael'thas requires allies who are going to be able to provide him good peel and sustain when he is targeted in team fights. A solid frontline with ample crowd-control will help keep enemies at bay, while healers who can provide a source of Health or damage mitigation can keep him from being immediately picked off. Kael'thas is countered by Kael'thas is countered by highly mobile assassins who are able to dive him behind the allied frontline. He will need to rely heavily on the assistance of his team to survive once engaged on by means of peel or damage mitigation abilities.

5. Kael'thas's Maps

Kael'thas's stronger maps Kael'thas's average maps Kael'thas's weaker maps Kael'thas' high AoE and team fight damage cause him to be an incredibly effective pick on smaller maps where fights and skirmishes break out often. His strong waveclear also makes him a valuable pick on maps where quickly killing large amounts of low health targets is vital, such as on Tomb of the Spider Queen, Braxis Holdout, and Infernal Shrines. Kael'thas also favors maps with many narrow pathways and chokepoints. These passages force enemies close to one another and susceptible to Kael'thas' team-wide damage. Try to steer clear of large Battlegrounds with multiple objective locations as this may allow Kael'thas to be isolated and picked off while his team is split-up accross the map.

6. Kael'thas's Tips and Tricks

Since Kael'thas lacks any type of mobility, positioning is extremely important. Once an enemy Hero is attacking him, he must rely on his allies to assist him. Protect Kael'thas by being proactive and keeping a distance.

Verdant Spheres Flamestrike waveclear.

waveclear. Gravity Lapse Verdant Spheres

Phoenix zone enemy Heroes, kill Mercenaries, clear Minion waves, and to siege or defend Forts and Keeps. Its relatively low cooldown encourages Kael'thas to use it liberally.

zone enemy Heroes, kill Mercenaries, clear Minion waves, and to siege or defend Forts and Keeps. Its relatively low cooldown encourages Kael'thas to use it liberally. Channel Pyroblast frontline. Try to use it proactively and early in fights, rather than saving it to finish enemies off.

frontline. Try to use it proactively and early in fights, rather than saving it to finish enemies off. Gravity Lapse

7.

Kael'thas' sheer amount of damage makes him a good choice for most team compositions, although his complete lack of mobility requires his team to have a solid frontline and good peeling. Otherwise, Heroes like Zeratul and Tracer will kill him immediately in every team fight. Kael'thas is exceptionally good at contesting map objectives and fighting in choke points, as all of his abilities deal AoE damage. Additionally, Phoenix can be used either to deal damage or discourage movement past the affected area, effectively zoning entire teams from objectives.

While decent during the early game, Kael'thas only really begins to shine once he is able to utilize his Talent selections to deal significantly more damage. Kael'thas should stay as far back as possible and poke with Living Bomb and Flamestrike. Using Living Bomb in the middle of team fights can absolutely decimate the enemy team. Also remember to keep an eye out for the position of enemy Heroes who will attempt to flank Kael'thas. During the late-game, Kael'thas should rarely (if ever) be left alone. This holds true especially against enemy teams that have a highly mobile assassin who will be able to capitalize on Kael'thas' isolated position.

8. Changelog