Greetings! k0nduit here, and today I've got an article for you on Whitemane in HotS. She's been out on the live servers for some time now and, after quite a number of Whitemane games, I've got a decent handle on how the character plays, what her strengths and weaknesses are, and a preferred build. A quick note: this article passes over some of the basics of Whitemane's gameplay and skips to the intermediate/advanced stuff. Make sure you're familiar with the fundamentals of her kit in order to get the most out of this guide. Without further ado, let's get into it!

Thoughts on Whitemane: Analyzing the High Inquisitor

Whitemane's a powerful anti-burst support with some potent sustained healing potential. To me, the real lynchpin in her kit is the Scarlet Aegis Heroic, a powerful defensive tool which gives your nearby teammates 40 armor and applies a heal and the Zeal buff. This ulti is similar in function to Lucio's Sound Barrier, but it's on a lower cooldown (60 seconds) and has no windup time. This makes it extremely reliable as a form of burst/AoE damage mitigation. Believe me, it's very, very difficult for a teammate to die while holding a +40 armor buff.

The thing to note about Whitemane is that she has limited utility outside of healing and damage mitigation (though this changes after lvl 13 with the Harsh Discipline talent), but, when it comes to healing and damage mitigation, she's a force to be reckoned with. One term that I think is relevant here is 'effective' healing as opposed to 'sustain' healing. I use the term 'sustain' healing to mostly refer to out-of-combat healing of post-teamfight damage, poke, and other random sources of ambient damage.

Some healers are really good at this (Brightwing, Stukov, etc.), but those healers suffer a bit when it comes to putting out healing in tight situations when an ally is under duress by direct kill pressure (though they can save allies in other ways, like with proactive CC). Whitemane is one of the best 'effective' healers (i.e. a healer who excels in tight combat situations) in the game and is amazing at saving teammates. She puts out great in-combat healing (her full healing potential can only be realized in-combat, in fact), has a Cleanse variant to stop CC chains, and she's notorious for keeping her team alive in dire situations with Scarlet Aegis. Her sustain healing potential isn't anything to scoff at either, as depending on your talent build, you can put out solid sustained healing numbers.

I feel largely comfortable picking Whitemane into anything and everything from the opponent's side and feel fine picking her as a support for my team in basically every composition. I would definitely describe her as a 'generalist' support, she's pretty good in a wide variety of situations and isn't terribly weak in many. While I'd be 'OK' picking her in basically every match, other supports have contexts where they would contribute comparatively more, particularly in the realm of CC and utility; so while Whitemane is a jack-of-all trades, the other supports can often be better in particular compositions and matchups.

However, I really want to pick Whitemane when the enemy team has AoE burst potential and CC-and-burst-one-target capabilities but I still want some sustained healing. In such a situation, I want a healer with a true Cleanse (i.e. Whitemane's Intercession talent), while still wanting sustained healing potential. This is a unique niche that I feel only Whitemane and, to a lesser extent, Rehgar fill (a sustain-y healer with a true Cleanse and save potential), which why I think Whitemane is quite strong - she covers all those bases nicely. Most matches will want this to an extent haha, so Whitemane will often be a good pick. Scarlet Aegis, again, is a game-changer. Let's say your opponents rip a Lightning Breath/Purification Salvo combo: popping Scarlet Aegis will allow your team to come out ok. I love that Scarlet Aegis is in the game, it's a great answer to burst and blowup comps.

In essence, I would highly recommend Whitemane as a support hero to master. She lacks utility/proactive playmaking potential (this is where supports like Deckard and Stukov shine) until she gets her root at lvl 13 and she's definitely not the best sustaining healer out there, but she's got great clutch-save potential and strong effective healing at all points in the game. You'll often find yourself bullying the other team away from an objective because, when piloted well, Whitemane can just keep her team's healthbars higher than the opposing support. And of course, there's nothing as fun as completely shutting down the other team's best efforts to kill your teammates with Scarlet Aegis. Ohohoho!

Talenting Whitemane

Whitemane's talent build has some flexibility/options, particularly in the early levels. Figuring out which early build to go is an important question you should ask yourself each match. While I've found a build I prefer, I always revisit this question even if the answer seems 'obvious'. One of the traps you can fall into in Heroes of the Storm is sticking with a particular build that you've gotten used to. You must be flexible and aware of the different variables in a given match to pick the build that's right for the situation. It's not just about one particular talent on a given tier, sometimes it's about structuring your entire build for the match. Always think about your full talent build when you're in the loading screen - plan out where you want to go in your talent tree. Now, back to Whitemane!

Unwavering Faith or High Inquisitor?

Whitemane's early talent build has two major variations - Q Build or W build.

Q Build is as follows:

Lvl 1 Martyrdom: Each stack of Desperation increases Desperate Plea's healing by 30%.

Lvl 4 Unwavering Faith: Reduce Desperate Plea's Mana cost by 15. Upon reaching 3 stacks of Desperation, gain a 250 Shield for 5 seconds.

W Build is as follows:

Lvl 1 Clemency: Activate to cast Inquisition on an allied Hero, healing them for up to 371 of 3 seconds while Channeling. Passive: Reduce Inquisition's cooldown by 4 seconds.

Lvl 4 High Inquisitor: Casting Inquisition instantly removes all stacks of Desperation and restores 75 mana per stack removed.

The two builds have different goals. Q Build is the build for when you want to save someone at all costs (and more often than not, this is going to be yourself, haha). If you need maximum healing output in the shortest amount of time, Martyrdom will help keep someone alive - you can pour chunks of your mana bar into saving a teammate. Getting to 3 Desperation stacks will also trigger your shield from Unwavering Faith, another self-defense mechanism. Consider this build if the opponents have some kind of extremely potent dive (particularly when you yourself will be the dive target!) that Scarlet Aegis won't always be sufficient to respond to. I often find myself going Q build against Valeera, for example. However, the downside to this build is that, with the nerfs to Unwavering Faith, your mana sustain becomes a significant consideration. You have to be very careful when applying Zeal to multiple targets. 1-2 Desperate Pleas is ok, but going up to 3 will tax your mana.

W build eschews the maximum save potential of Q build for longer teamfight sustain (due to the cooldown reduction on Inquisition from Clemency) as well as perfect mana sustain. High Inquisitor essentially removes your mana problems, provided that you are timing your Inquisitions and Desperate Pleas correctly. I'll go into this in more detail in the tips section, but while it's challenging at first, with some practice you can get the rhythm of using Desperate Plea and Inquisition down pat. In any case, for the majority of games after the Q build nerf, W build on lvls 1 and 4 is my preferred build. The Clemency cooldown reduction on Inquisition is absolutely massive, and you can really feel it in fights (not to mention the additional out-of-combat sustain that Clemency provides). Your perfect mana sustain allows you to continue providing value in longer, drawn-out skirmishes over objectives and whatnot, giving you the ability to outmuscle the enemy team with simply having higher health bars as the fight goes on.

A quick note on Pity the Frail (Allies below 50% Health receive 25% more healing from Zeal) at lvl 1: I think Clemency/Martyrdom are much stronger, and so you're giving up a lot by taking it. In short, stay away from it!

There's also a couple other builds I want to touch on. There is a hybrid build, mixing the W and Q talents. You can take Clemency at lvl 1 and then Unwavering Faith at lvl 4. What this does is give you the out-of-combat healing of Clemency, the lower Inquisition cooldown, as well as the self-shield from Unwavering Faith. The downside is that your mana sustain and multi-target Zeal application becomes more limited, as you don't have the perfect mana that High Inquisitor provides. In theory this build is ok, but ultimately it comes down to value: are you going to get more value from the Shield, or from being able to apply Zeal to more targets in each fight and have good mana sustain for longer skirmishes? To me, I think High Inquisitor will often give you more value. However, keep in mind that this build is an option.

Searing Lash (Whitemane's 'E' ability) also has a supported build. The key talent is at lvl 1, Righteous Flame (Searing Lash deals 75% more damage to enemies who are Stunned, Rooted, Silenced or Slowed), the executioner-style talent. You can take either Unwavering Faith or Indulgence at 4. The build really spikes at 16 with Lashing Out, allowing you to throw out many more E's. If you have an Arthas/Jaina (or maybe Arthas AND Jaina) and the enemy team comp has a tendency to group up, you can consider going this build.

However, Searing Lash build's downsides are numerous: your out-of-combat sustain will be quite poor, you have to land skillshots for full effectiveness, and in many ways it's a "win-more" build - if you're behind, it'll be tougher to position well and get full value from your Searing Lashes. This build's pretty niche, but if you have a source or two of consistent, reliable slows on your team, as well as predict that the enemy team will be clumping up (giving you multi-target Searing Lashes), you can consider this build. Even then though, I feel Q or W build might give you more consistent value.

The Rest of the Talent Build!

Level 7 will typically involve picking Intercession.

vs.

Here we have Intercession (Whitemane's Cleanse Variant) and Fanatical Power, respectively pictured above. I think in the vast majority of games, Intercession is the pick. Cleanse is simply too powerful. Zealous Spirit (Upon reaching 2 stacks of Desperation, Whitemane gains Zeal), while nice for your mana sustain, is usually unnecessary and won't provide nearly as much value as the other two options on the tier.

Cleanse covers your worst-case scenarios, saving allies from situations where they otherwise would have no chance of escaping from, and is a direct counter to many strategies that the enemy team is looking to pull off. In a way, Intercession will 'heal' for much more than Fanatical Power will. Keeping an ally out of a CC chain will heal for thousands of hp, as well as covering nightmare situations. Fanatical Power makes you better at what you're already good at, while Intercession adds an entirely new capability. In the end though, it's about value.

Are you going to get more value from the damage and healing boosts that Fanatical Power gives? If the enemy team has little to no cc, this may be the case. But even if there's just a couple high-impact cc abilities on the enemy team's side, I would strongly recommend taking Intercession. Cleanse, when used well, can shut down your opponent's kill pressure and is super high-impact.

Lvl 10 is 95% of the time Scarlet Aegis.

vs.

To me, Scarlet Aegis (Bolster the spirits of nearby allied Heroes, healing them for 250 and granting them 40 Armor for 4 seconds) is simply more reliable and fills a desired niche in countering/mitigating the enemy team's coordinated burst or dive efforts. Additionally, it's a powerful self-save tool. I pick Scarlet Aegis almost every game!

Divine Reckoning (After 1 second, consecrate an area for 4 seconds, dealing 50 damage every 0.5 seconds to enemies inside) is not as reliable/has some counterplay as enemies can move out of it. There are some moving parts here as well, as you not only need to have enemies in the DoT, but you also need to have Zeal on the targets you want to heal beforehand. Divine Reckoning can be great if you have some kind of AoE wombo composition, but in that situation other supports can offer more compared to Whitemane. And, if you're using Divine Reckoning for the damage portion, you're not always going to get value from the heal it provides.

Overall, I think Divine Reckoning has a bit too many constraints/setup costs to match up to the consistent value that Aegis will provide, not to mention that the cooldown on DR is much longer (100 vs. 60 seconds). It can be decent though if you're in some kind of AoE damage composition or in teamfights where everything will be super clustered, so keep that in mind. Also, if you plan to take Divine Reckoning then strongly consider Fanatical Power at 7: there's a great deal of synergy there.

In the end, I would say that if you're ever in doubt about which heroic to pick, go for Scarlet Aegis - you'll always get good value from it.

Lvl 13 is a clear Harsh Discipline pick.

Harsh Discipline's root (hitting a Hero with Searing Lash while they are being targeted by Inquisition Roots them for 1.5 seconds) is too powerful and unique, and honestly completely changes the dynamic of the game for both teams after level 13. Now you can follow up CC to CC-lock a target or initiate the CC chain that other teammates can follow up on. You can threaten divers who go too deep into your backline and can interrupt globals/mobility skills. This will be the pick near 99.9% of the time, even if you did not take Clemency to lower Inquisition's cooldown - the 1.5 second root is just that good.

Guiding Light (Whenever Zeal is applied to allies other than Whitemane, it grants them 20% Movement Speed for 2 seconds) is interesting and can synergize well with certain characters (Garrosh and playing around Garrosh running to throw a teammate for example). Self Righteous (Casting Desperate Plea on an ally heals Whitemane for 125. Does not grant Zeal) seems ok, but in reality isn't that great because you don't want to be casting Desperate Plea all that often, and it's easy to miss out on getting value because you're at full health. There are some moving pieces, you want to be lower health and you want to get value from putting Zeal on your allies, etc. Both of these talents might have some impact, but often fall very short of Harsh Discipline, which provides immense value and changes Whitemane's play patterns and threat potential for the enemy team.

Lvl 16 is a competitive tier.

vs. vs.

Radiance (Upon reaching 3 stacks of Desperation, all allies with Zeal are healed for 175) is potentially team-wide heal proc and will provide the most consistent value on the tier.

Shared Punishment (Upon casting, Inquisition can chain to an additional enemy Hero near its target, dealing 35 damage every 0.5 seconds) is the most aggressive option - as it provides more CC - but is subject to getting interrupted, not having another target around, etc.

Lashing Out (Searing Lash's second strike deals 25% more damage and reduces Searing Lash's cooldown to 1 second if it hits a Hero) is good (particularly if you're 'E' build) if teamfights tend to play a certain way, i.e. the enemy team will clump up. Or, if you're a master at landing the second hit on rapid-fire Searing Lashes, this is a good option.

I find myself taking Radiance the most often. It provides you excellent out-of-combat sustain (particularly with High Inquisitor build; if you go another build, then Radiance becomes costly to proc multiple times, disincentivizing picking it a bit), additional burst healing in fights, and is consistent - you will always get Radiance value/procs if you want them. I would consider Shared Punishment if you're far ahead in the game and your team is very aggressive, as the double slow (and potentially double root from Harsh Discipline) gets the most value there. Lashing Out is not bad at all and is an option even if you didn't take Righteous Flame at lvl 1. If teamfights are clump-y or you feel you are good enough to spam out Searing Lash and always get the second hit, then this is an option.

Lvl 20 you have a couple options.

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On the level 20 tier, I'm usually considering Scarlet Crusade (Scarlet Aegis heals for 50% more and makes affected allies Unstoppable for 1 second) and Purge the Wicked (Activate to blast an enemy Hero with holy fire, reducing their Armor by 25 and dealing 300 damage over 4 seconds). The decision basically comes down to whether I need an AoE Cleanse against something specific (like a full Maiev Wombo or other high impact AoE CC)/two separate Cleanses for multiple notable CC threats (as you can just use Aegis as a single-target cleanse, like Intercession), or a self-cleanse to help myself if I'm susceptible to particular CC from the enemy team.

Otherwise, I take Purge the Wicked. It enables your team to burst down a target (even a tank) and bolsters your healing - not only does the negative armor help your damaging abilities hit harder (which means more healing), but the Purge the Wicked damage itself also heals. Purge the Wicked is a great burst-y heal for all allies who have Zeal. The majority of the time, I take Purge the Wicked; Scarlet Crusade, while powerful, is more niche; the former has greater application in more situations and is another burst heal for your team, with the additional upside of armor reduction.

If you went Divine Reckoning at 10 you can opt to take Judgement Day (Divine Reckoning deals 30% more damage and pulls enemies to its center the first time it hits them), the upgrade is quite powerful.

Subjugation (Inquisition reduces all damage the target deals by 75%) is hard to get full value off of. They need to have some specific divers, but even then they can get their damage off before you get value from the damage reduction. Additionally, oftentimes you will just Inquisition a tank for healing because that's the easiest target to hit: thus, Subjugation is the weakest option on the tier.

Wrapping Up Whitemane's Talent Build

More often than not, my build goes like this: Clemency, High Inquisitor, Intercession, Scarlet Aegis, Harsh Discipline, Radiance, Purge the Wicked.

However, remember that Whitemane has flexibility depending on the matchup, so keep in mind the potential build variations. Always think about your build every game!

In the tips and tricks section, you'll find some more assorted commentary on Whitemane's build and playstyle, so read on!

Whitemane Tips and Tricks!

Core Gameplay Patterns/Mana Management

- Whitemane's healing output is gated through the Desperation mechanic; successive casts of Desperate Plea get more and more expensive when cast within four seconds of each other. As a general guideline, Whitemane can apply Zeal to 1-2 allies efficiently, but 3+ targets will strain her mana - this will always be true pre-lvl 4, but after level 4 Whitemane's mana mangement practices will vary between builds.

- Let's start with W build, as that's the one I recommend in most situations. After level 4, you can easily apply Zeal/use Desperate Plea three times with little to no mana troubles. Using Q three times costs 270 mana, and the High Inquisitor talent will refund 225 mana after using Inquisition at three stacks of Desperation, yielding a net loss of 45 - which is a very small amount. Using Inquisition at one or two stacks of Desperation will actually make you GAIN mana. In this way, given time for a few ability rotations, Whitemane has infinite sustain on both resources (health and mana). With W Build, you can and should regularly apply Zeal three times before channeling Inquisition. This can be a bit skill testing, as you want to find a target to use Inquisition on within 4 seconds.

You can always use Clemency on an ally, but then you'll be missing out on a lot of potential healing (as Inquisitioning an enemy will help out all of your Zeal targets). But, you don't always have to use Inquisition or Clemency. If you've just used two Q's, you can drop Desperation. Don't worry about mana too much, you can restore the mana back with High Inquisitor given some time.

- Regarding out-of-combat sustain healing with W build, keep this play pattern in mind: use Q three times, and then channel Clemency if you have it. Rinse and repeat, dropping down to two Q's, or one Q when you want to replenish your mana.

- Q Build (i.e. taking Unwavering Faith at lvl 4) Whitemane's general guideline is to not go above 2 Desperation stacks when healing allies, particularly out-of-combat. Of course you can go to 3 stacks when needed, but keep in mind you won't have the mana sustain for a longer/extended fight - try and wrap things up somewhat quickly.

- If you're Q build, then Scarlet Aegis rises in value even more - applying Zeal to your team at no mana cost (allowing you to point heal with Desperate Plea) will make things much easier on your mana and allow you to save a target who really needs healing.

- One pitfall I've run into with W build Whitemane is sticking too closely to the above gameplay patterns and never actually using my full mana bar. With W build, you have tons of mana return, and so in order to get full value, you should dip into your mana reserves, rather than leaving them at full all the time! This means maybe sometimes applying Zeal to FOUR targets in quick succession, or looking to point heal a bit more when Inquisition is on cooldown, etc. Don't overdo it of course - but if you're constantly at full mana, try to open up your mana reserves a bit and use your Q more liberally.

- In teamfights, it's important to consider carefully if you want to go ham in trying to save an ally with Desperate Plea. Even if you do barely save an ally, if it takes your whole mana bar, you may be in bad shape for the rest of the fight. I would say, unless you're sure you can save your ally and there's compelling reasons to burn your mana bar to do so, stay disciplined with your normal play patterns and wait for your Desperation stacks to fade.

Ability Usage Insights

- Choosing the right Inquisition target is important. Sometimes you'll get to channel Inquisition on your team's kill target, providing the extra damage and the slow to aid in taking the target down (though sometimes the target can go down too quick, limiting the amount of heals you can get - keep that in mind when selecting your target!). But this won't always be the case - sometimes you'll just need to channel Inquisition on an enemy frontliner for the safer, more reliable healing output. Above all, make sure you're in a relatively safe position to not be focused down or interrupted when you go for an Inquisition! It's your main healing ability, and if you lose out on it then your team will be really strapped for heals.

- When aiming Searing Lash, keep in mind that the second horizontal strike will come at a delay. Thus, if your target is running away from you, you should lead the target a bit (aiming the rectangle skillshot such that the bottom of the rectangle will hit the target) so that the horizontal rectangle will come down just right. When your target is moving towards you, you should drop the first lash in front of the target (such that the top of the rectangle hits), making the second strike hit. In essence, remember to 'lead' your target such that the delayed horizontal lash will hit. With some practice, you'll get it down.

- After level 13, you get access to your hard CC, the Harsh Discipline root. If your target's well within your range of Inquisition, then the two-ability combo is relatively straightforward to land - just point your cursor over your target and press 'E', then 'W' in quick succession. This sequence is fairly reliable; however, things get a bit trickier when your target is on the outskirts of your Inquisition range. I would recommend waiting a bit to make sure you're in range for the root, before going for it.

- An underestimated attribute of Scarlet Aegis is that it applies Zeal in addition to granting your allies armor. After using Scarlet Aegis, if all the targets you would want to apply Zeal to now have Zeal, you can then use Desperate Plea to point-heal and save someone. Always remember your combo, apply Zeal a few times, then channel inquisition. This will basically always be the case, get in the habit of always maxing your Desperation Stacks before you cast Inquisition! (If you're W build)

- After level 20, if you took Purge the Wicked, don't forget to incorporate it into your root combo. QQQ->Purge->E->W will result in massive healing for all of your Zeal targets, and an enemy Hero that's very squishy and easy to burst down. One thing to note (and not even just with Purge, even pre-lvl 20) is that if you want to get value from the healing, you should wait for your team to take damage a bit before unleashing your combo. It's situational of course - sometimes you should create a pick at the start of a fight, eschewing having your stuff up to heal your team, but do keep in mind that Whitemane's output has multiple dimensions (damage, CC, and healing), and in the ideal case, you can get all of them. Finally, if you're in dire straits, you can use Purge the Wicked (even without any followup) as a bit of a burst of healing for all your Zeal targets.

- Think ahead about what you want to be using Scarlet Aegis for. The best usage of Scarlet Aegis is to counter a particular play, hard commitment, or heroic from the enemy team, rather than to simply provide a last-second heal or damage mitigation for ambient damage. Think of it kind of like Sound Barrier, you want to use the heroic to counter another heroic a lot of the time. Take some time at the beginning of the match, and after your opponents have selected their ultimates, to think about what you want to be using Scarlet Aegis to counter and then play with those use cases in mind.

Miscellaneous Tips

- I like Whitemane quite a bit against mobile assassins like Genji and Zeratul. Aegis provides great protection against Dragonblade and, post-level 13, Whitemane provides a source of (mostly) guaranteed lockdown against a Genji who's in your team's backline. Even if the root doesn't land, a targeted/guaranteed 3 second slow is good against the slippery Genji. Against Zeratul, Void Prison combos get a lot tougher when the enemy team has to deal with 40 armor as soon as VP gets dropped. If you're caught in Void Prison, just mash your 'R' button! And likewise, in the same way that Whitemane helps control Genji, Whitemane can help control Zeratul as well.

- Radiance at level 16 makes your team-wide out of combat sustain excellent with W build Whitemane. You can cast Q 3 times (proccing Radiance), then use Clemency. Then while Inquisition's cooling down, you can QQQ again, proccing Radiance, then wait for Desperation stacks to fall off. By this time, Inquisition will be close to off cooldown, and you can get in another ability rotation with a Radiance proc, followed up by Clemency to restore your mana.

- After level 13, you now have two cooldowns that want to be synchronized - your 'E' and your 'W'. The cooldown on Searing Lash is 6 seconds, while Inquisition is on a 14 second cooldown (10 with Clemency at lvl 1). First, let's assume that you will always start a sequence by casting 'E' and 'W' together. This means that without Clemency, you'll want to use Searing Lash once more (independently of Inquisition), and then wait an additional 2 seconds for Inquisition to come off of cooldown, so you can combo them again (6 + 6 = 12, so an additional 2 seconds of downtime should be employed to sync up with Inquisition's 14 second cooldown).

With Clemency, you can use Searing Lash once more independently, but then you should wait for 2 seconds more for your Inquisition to come off of cooldown (6 + 6 = 12, while Inquisition will be back up in 10 seconds). In essence, build the habit of keeping track of your Searing Lash cooldown and coordinating it with Inquisition. Post 13, you almost always want to use Searing Lash to proc the root rather than using both abilities independently (though the rules will change quite a bit if you get Lashing Out at 16).

- The weakness of 'W' build Whitemane is that she has less self-save potential. However, there is a bit of a trick you can do in a pinch: you can triple Q yourself, then briefly cast and cancel Inquisition on a target to reset your Desperation stacks, then triple Q yourself again. 6 Q's of healing is a lot! However, this will only work when Inquisition is up, which definitely won't be too often in these kinds of dire scenarios. But, it's a tactic worth keeping in mind.

- Post-13, your survivability options increase a bit, as you can quickly root a chasing opponent and run away. You can even combo this with the above tactic for more a more effective escape. It'll require some fast fingers and inputs though, so keep your hands warm!

- More on the root: there's a pitfall that you can run into, where you if use the root as an initial CC, your team will lack heals for the next few seconds. This comes up when you see an opportunity to kill a target and want to instantly CC them, but in doing so you don't apply Zeal to your allies first so you can get heal value. Sometimes, you may not even have time to do so if you want to get the root off on a fleeing target! This is an important and skill-testing part of Whitemane's gameplay - her combo has multiple functionalities, as it can deal damage/CC targets as well as heal your allies.

Ideally, you want to do both and you should strive wherever possible to take the second or two to apply Zeal to your teammates before you throw out your root combo. But sometimes, it's worth rooting a target immediately. It's going to be situational, but keep in mind this potential pitfall. This comes up most often in the middle of a teamfight, when your Inquisition is coming off of cooldown after your first use and your initial applications of Zeal are falling off. You'll get better at determining the best play with experience.

Playing Against Whitemane

- Note which talents Whitemane goes on levels 1 and 4 and use that to inform your playstyle. If she's Q build, go in and burst a bit, fall back, then go in again - this will strain her mana, and you should be able to win a longer sustain war. If she's W build, her own defenses are nowhere near as strong, so she becomes a viable focus target if she's mispositioned even a bit.

- Note where she applies Zeal. A common pattern is that she'll put Zeal on allies, but not herself, so she's focusable - keep an eye out for the golden aura to see who's affected by Whitemane's healing and who's not. Moreover, keep track of her Inquisition cooldown, as that's her big healing ability. If you can strike and focus all your damage on a target while Inquisition is down - forcing Whitemane to have to use Desperate Plea if she wants to save her ally - even if you don't get the kill, you can severely tax her mana, giving your team an advantage as the fight goes on.

Whitemane's in-game Hero Portrait.

- Probably the biggest piece of advice I can give is to not play into Scarlet Aegis if you can help it. Whenever possible, wait for Aegis' armor buff to wear off before piling on damage; i.e. don't expend important cooldowns while your targets have the 40 armor buff. You can bait the Scarlet Aegis out, and then reengage. This will require some planning and coordination, but it's definitely possible in some situations - the armor buff only lasts 4 seconds, so you can peel out for a bit and then go back in. Sometimes you will have to fight into Aegis... but I think there's even still many situations where you can wait for the buff to expire before committing further. Consider carefully if you want to expend important CD's into Aegis!

Wrapping Up!

Whitemane's a super fun support who will test your decision-making skills and mechanical dexterity. Figuring out when and how to use abilities for maximum value is always a fun puzzle to deconstruct in a fight and managing your Zeal buffs along with synchronizing your ability timings creates some truly rewarding moments. After level 16 (when you have access to both your root and Radiance/Lashing Out), things get really interesting from a mechanical perspective; planning your ability usage is a wonderful timing puzzle and you can really put out some amazing healing if you're managing things well.

Hopefully this article will jump start you on your Whitemane journey. As you play, experiment with different strategies, talents, and playstyles. The best use of a guide, in my opinion, is to provide a starting point/a new perspective. After reading, you may find ideas that you agree with, and others you may diverge from as you get more experience playing. From there, you'll form your own ideas, opinions, and thoughts about the character and determine what's best in each context. Have fun playing Whitemane!

That's all for today, I hope you enjoyed the article. If you'd like to discuss anything HotS, have comments/feedback on this article, or just want to say hi, feel free to tweet me @k0nduit and I'll get back to you.

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