The Hunter role found itself in a weird spot in Season 5 and it looks like that is going to be the same heading into Season 6. Looking into Season 6 though, which are the best hunters going into Season 6? We got the chance to talk to Dignitas’ hunter Nathaniel “Ataraxia” Mark and ask who he thinks are the best five Hunters heading into Season 6.

Ataraxia starts by saying, "I'll try answer this as a Season 6 prediction! There aren’t huge changes coming to Hunters in S6 sadly, but there’s enough to make some cheeky shifts in what’s good. In no particular order:"

Fear the Goat

Ataraxia says, "Cernunnos. Everyone’s favourite goat (and G.O.A.T) is getting ANOTHER buff that has a good chance of putting him on top of the pile. This is his third round of buffs is nearly as many patches, this time an increase to the upfront damage on his Bramble Blast will make him as obnoxious as he was on release."

Yes, you read that right Cernunnos, everyone’s favourite goat-beast-thing, is back. What makes Cernunnos so strong though?

Ataraxia states that, "Cernunnos is an excellent objective hunter. Between his passive and his stance abilities, he can pump out incredible damage on objectives like the Gold Fury with some of the best sustain to boot. On top of this, his ultimate is a fantastic counter-initiate tool; perfect for baiting an objective with your team. Furthermore, with the new buffs, pressure is a valid reason to pick Cernunnos. Get in there close, abuse that passive and the huge hit box on his Bramble Blast, and enjoy the lane domination."

Plenty of reasons to consider Cernunnos as a strong pick for an ADC. Bramble Blast's buff means he can be a bully in lane and allow you to outbox your opponent to give you the advantage in lane. But there must be a downside to him.

Cernunnos' buffs will put him in a really strong spot for season 6

Ataraxia says, "Unfortunately for the G.O.A.T, his strengths do nothing to protect his weaknesses. Cernunnos suffers from a terrible condition that a lot of Hunters suffer from in this day and age of SMITE, and that condition is that he’s a free snack. Junglers love to munch on Hunters, and Cernunnos is one of the tastiest out there. With no CC immunity and a short dash, Cernunnos has very little ways to escape the jungler outside of turning and burning. Luckily, he is quite good at that, so the next time you hear that blink sound, get ready to turn around and dash in!"

Like Ataraxia said Hunters currently are prime targets for junglers to gank and get an easy kill. With no CC immunity he needs Beads right out of the gate just to survive, most hunters do need early beads to survive ganks in the early game.

We’ve covered what he’s good at and what he struggles with now what items should you look to get when playing Cernunnos.

Ataraxia mentions that, "Cernunnos has an interesting debate on how builds should play out on him. On one hand, he scales immensely well on several abilities and has built in lifesteal via his stance swap so you could definitely justify a Transcendence for the big power plays. That said, this item doesn't help him too much with his objective play. Being able to take on objectives as early as possible is key for utilising his strengths, which leads you down the Devo Gloves route. After you've picked up either of these items, you'll want to start picking up some attack speed and penetration. These will help you bring down objectives faster and safer. Items like Executioner, Ichaival and Odysseus' Bow are you big players here."

Getting either Transcendence or Devourer's Gloves depends on what you look to do in the game. Both items work well with his stance switching, Transcendence will help him box opponents and give him the damage he needs while still having lifesteal off his stance switching. While Devourer's Gloves will allow him to sustain more effectively while taking early objectives and help him with them overall.

Both items can be built on him depending what you want out from your build

Knowing your power spikes is key in Smite. These are key indicators where you are in a game and allow you to be more influential on the game. We asked Ataraxia when Cernunnos' power spike is. "At Cernunnos' third item, he’ll take down a Gold Fury very quickly if his stances are used properly. I'm not kidding, go try it. It's nuts!”

Getting that third item swings the duo side of the map into a battle for the Gold Fury on spawn. If you’ve picked up Devo Gloves, boots and Executioner, for example, you should look at gaining control over Gold Fury and look to burst it down as quickly as possible. You’ll need to communicate this with your team but like Ataraxia said, it's nuts that you can get objective control over it that early.

Now what is the best way to utilise Cernunnos and is there anything you need to look out for?

Ataraxia advises to, "Get in close and make sure you use your dash offensively. Max your 2, then your 3. You'll want to be putting on the poke big time but keep an eye on the map and where the jungler might be. Pressure can become your own worst enemy if using it gets you killed. Stance swapping efficiently isn't necessarily required, and it can be quite tricky to get the hang of but if you're converting to the way of the G.O.A.T, best get practicing your pen > auto > damage stance swaps!"

You'll need to use the dash offensively as much as possible and utilise his stance switching

Rising Jaguar Still Rising

Next up we look at Xbalanque. Ataraxia says that, "After back-to-back dominant performances from Cyclone and Vote at S5 Worlds, it's hard to argue against the utility Xbalanque can bring to a team. With no nerfs to speak of, you better believe Xbalanque is here to stay."

For those of you that have seen Worlds, you’ll know the power of Xbalanque and how strong he was in the tournament. For those that haven't, go check it out! You’ll see what we’re on about. You can see why he is so highly regarded. But what makes him so highly regarded?

Ataraxia mentions that, "Xbalanque's ultimate has always been a hotly debated topic in the SMITE community, and it's his biggest strength. It's a very easy case to argue Darkest of Nights as one of, if not the strongest ultimate in the game and if you plan to play Xbalanque, you've gotta have a great sense of when to use this ability. Outside of this, his CC immune dash and insane base power puts him as a top tier late game carry."

Xbalanque is a great late game Hunter and can become a great carry for your team

With strong base damage and a strong ult, you can see why he is a strong pick. He thrives in the late game and can swing fights in his team's favour with good use of his ult you can see why he is one of the top picks in the role.

Like all in this list there is a down side and things you will need to consider while playing him.

Ataraxia says, "Unlike most on this list, Xbalanque is not a good lane character. His 2 and 3 are both easily abusable by CC and he brings very little in the wave clear department. If you're playing Xbalanque, prepare for a rough lane. If you can, picking him into other weak laners or having your jungler friend spend some time on the duo side of the map will help alleviate this weakness."

Late game potential but is prone to struggling in the early game. His wave clear isn't the strongest and can see himself getting outpressured early unless he has the right help from support and the jungler. Get ready for a long laning phase but don't worry. If you can survive it, late game is where you really shine so it may seem like an eternity, but it will be over soon enough.

But what items can you look at getting to get yourself out of the rough laning phase and transition into the late game carry you know you are?

Ataraxia advises that, "Similarly to Cernunnos, you're looking at a big choice at the start of the game. You can make a case for Transcendence in order to have permanent up-time on your Bolas in the late game, or you can make a case for Devourer's because life-steal is very important for a character who needs to be in auto range to do anything. Cyclone opted for the Devourer's during his dominant reign at the S5 Worlds, and who am I to go against a world champion. Building into crit would be the play in S5, but with the big nerfs to Poison Star, I predict Odysseus' Bow and Qin's in your future.”

Odysseus' Bow and Qin's both are strong pick ups on Xbalanque

Like Ataraxia said, why go against the grain. If the world champions are doing it, there's a reason behind it. Devo Gloves seem to be preferred over Transcendence because you need to be in auto range. Having his Bolas up permanently sounds very tempting but having the lifesteal while in auto range is a lot more viable.

But when does Xbalanque start to come online and start becoming a threat?

Ataraxia says that, “Xbalanque’s power spike can be a bit subtle and has pretty high variance. As a usual point of interest, when you’ve got Executioner online, you’re ready to frag.”

By the time you have Executioner, you should have plenty of stacks on the passive and have plenty of stacks on your Devourer's Gloves. This is where you look to go for fights against the enemy Hunter and start to gain control of the lane. Like Cernunnos though, be careful about the jungler rotating to duo to pick you off if you’re overextending. Remember to ward up.

Getting Executioner for your third item will be the start of his power spike

Xbalanque must sound fun right now. A late game god with a good power spike.

So what does Ataraxia advise when playing Xbalanque?

"The lane is his biggest weakness, and you need to make sure you survive it without being too far behind. If possible, try win pressure via the support pick or encourage your jungler to come over and gank duo lane regularly. Remember to keep an eye on the map for clever ways to use your ult and look for guaranteed farm until you’re strong enough to flex. Xbalanque does have a few good matchups into other hunters when it becomes a 1v1, so be ready to abuse that when the time comes."

Fly Across Them Skies

All looking good so far? Good, now who else looks strong going into Season 6?

Ataraxia says, "Apollo. This one might seem like a surprise, but our golden boy has a few things going for him as we head into S6. Both Odysseus’ Bow and Silverbranch are receiving huge buffs and the duo meta of pressure, pressure, pressure doesn’t seem to be going anywhere.”

High pressure duo lanes look to stay in Season 6 and like Ataraxia said, the buffs to Odysseus’ Bow and Silverbranch will help his passive and allow him to put pressure in lane and be a pain for many duo lanes he can come up against.

Apollo looks to become a top Hunter pick heading into Season 6

What makes Apollo strong though?

Ataraxia says, "Lane dominance. Not many people associate Apollo as a pressure character, and that's a huge mistake. Boasting the second strongest in-hand base damage at level 1 and one of the most potent attack speed steroids for laning, he's a force to be reckoned with. On top of this, he's one of the most frustrating hunters to gank for a jungler which helps him hit his mid-game stride without being behind."

Early pressure has been a focal point in the duo lane during Season 5 and will be important in Season 6. With his early base damage and the steroid, he has he can gain a lot of pressure in lane early on. Combine him with an aggressive support and you can really put pressure in lane, on top of that his ult allows a lot of safety for him. You can get yourself out of a lot of tricky situations and avoid plenty of ganks. But what are the downsides to Apollo?

Apollo's passive is a great tool to use to out pressure your opponent

Ataraxia mentions that, "Apollo suffers from a very situational ultimate in the late game. While the other three abilities he has all seem to indicate a pretty strong late game, his ultimate is incredibly difficult to utilise late game, and as we know, ults win games. Anyone who’s spent any time with Apollo will know the heart-wrenching feeling of ulting into a team fight, only to die on landing as he seemingly self-CC’s himself on landing. Even with the knock up that was returned, there’s just far more damage than there used to be back in his hay day. There isn’t an easy way to mitigate this weakness aside from trying to be extra crafty when using it. Look for cheeky 1v1’s, enemies left alone or, if you’re Spudio, as a way to secure Fire Giant (don’t actually do this). Getting mileage out of this late game is the make or break factor to a good Apollo player, so try to be mindful of ways to use it well!"

The ult allows safety in the early to mid-game but when you get to late game it doesn’t help your team too much. Like Ataraxia said, using it in a teamfight means you die nine times out of ten. Knowing when to use it is key and can be the difference sometimes, but it is situational. It might be best to split push with him then rotate over to a teamfight when it's nearly over, other times this isn't such a good idea.

Ok we've covered what makes him strong and what he's weak at, so what items should you look to build on him?

Ataraxia advises, “Here’s the spice. I put Apollo on this list because two items that work very well on him are getting significant buffs in the next patch. These are Odysseus’ Bow and Silverbranch. Now I can hear the haters already saying "ApOlLo DoEsN’t WaNt To OvErCaP hIs StErOiD" and I hear you, but you’re wrong.

The beauty of Apollo's passive is that it encourages two paths of building. You've got low attack speed to get greater value out of the attack speed increase, or you've got more attack speed which increases the frequency of the passive proccing, albeit at lower potency. Introducing Silverbranch Bow, now with incredible cost efficiency and it’s an item that gives you the best of both worlds. More attack speed means more procs, overcapping means more power, more power means more damage! You'll want to be picking up Devourer's, Odysseus', Silverbranch and Executioner in your build. Your choice on order for the last three!"

Plenty of spice right there. The steroid on Apollo is his bread and butter, it makes Apollo what he is and the more you can proc it the more effective he is. To proc it more often you need attack speed so after getting Devourer's Gloves look at Silverbranch, Odysseus' and Executioner. Taking pen after these items will help you even more with these items as will complement your steroid.

Like we keep mentioning power spikes are key, so when is Apollo’s?

Ataraxia says that, "Apollo's power spike starts the second he enters the game. You’ll wanna keep that rolling for as long as you can."

Early power spikes are great for pressure, so you need to utilise this as much as possible to gain control of the lane and get the lead to start bullying your lane opposition. Correct use of his steroid and his early base damage will allow you to do this and if you play aggressive and avoid getting ganked early you’ll be in for a great laning phase.

Ataraxia follows on this by mentioning that, "Apollo needs to get rolling early, or his lack of a big combat ult is going to hurt his team. You need to apply that lane pressure, clear and invade. A self-sufficient Apollo that’s gaining the ire of the enemy team is a good Apollo, you want to be left alone to draw enemies over or punish the other Hunter in the 1v1. Baiting out ganks is a skill you should learn, as wasting a junglers valuable time is one of the best things you can do in the early game."

Oh Hey Fam

Ataraxia continues on to speak about, "Jing Wei and her eternally-hated passive will always keep her meta. While the crit nerfs hurt her more than most, expect her to stay around."

With crit nerf though what will keep her in the meta? Her kit relies on crit and is a key contributor to her damage but what is strong about Jing Wei?

Jing is still a top hunter, despite all the hate she gets

Ataraxia mentions that, "Jing Wei gets a bad rep for her lane. She's definitely not high pressure, but her kit combos very well into the right matchups and with the right support. Regardless of how her lane goes, you can never keep Jing down. She'll be flying back and soaking up farm, knicking her jungler's back camps, and farming like a machine. All this builds to her fantastic mid/late game where she's hard to kill, very mobile, and pumps out some sick damage."

With her passive allowing her to get back to lane quicker than any other Hunter, she can go to her jungler's back camp take it and get to lane in about the same time that it would take other Hunters to get to lane. Her passive is key to her getting to late game and start dishing out damage while being able to stay at a safe distance. But what does she struggle with?

Jing's passive helps her apply pressure in lane and allows her to farm efficiently

Ataraxia says that, "Jing Wei has two big weaknesses. First is the most obvious, and that's her lane. Similar to Xbalanque, she struggles in the push department and that can make her a difficult pick in the current meta. Fortunately, her kit is very potent at letting her keep up, so even in a rough lane you have a pretty good chance of hitting your stride in time for the late game. The other weakness is people tend to hate Jing players, so you know, people might say mean things."

We can't help with the mean things people say but there is a mute button, so if it gets too much just mute your team and focus on farming. Early game, it's like Ataraxia said, you just need to get to late game and survive like you would with Xbalanque, so just play safe and get to your power spike.

While crit has been nerfed, it has been a key part of Jing’s build over Season 5 so is it still important on her?

Ataraxia says that, "Jing Wei’s always been a versatile character with builds and that won’t change. While Poison Star's nerf hurts crit viability in a big way, if any character overcomes that nerf, it's Jing Wei. You can continue building her the way you would have before, just keep in mind the nerf to Poison Star and the buff to Odysseus' when deciding!"

Crit is still strong on Jing and is still worth a pick up on her

Crit is still important on her yes, but with the buff to Odysseus' Bow it can become a key item for her. Crit will always be an important part of her build and with crit items taking a nerf it may hinder her slightly, but it won’t affect her too much.

Early struggles in lane means you need to look for her power spike to start transitioning into the late game.

Ataraxia advises that, "Much like Xbalanque, Jing can vary on how the game is going. Usually third item is a good mark, whether that ends up being Executioner or Poison Star/Rage."

Like Xba the third item is her a key point for her. Whether you go for crit for her kit or a bit more attack speed at this point Jing starts swinging so it’s a key moment to be aware of. Rage is a great item to look here as it does a lot for Jing. What do you do though to get to survive the early game and become a presence for your team and start to chunk down the enemy team?

Ataraxia says that, “You're aiming for that mid-game team fight around the gold fury. That’s your explosive point, so do what you can to keep up. Always have your passive in mind and think about how to utilise it to get ahead. Despite her weak clear, Jing can combo very well with a few supports and not every lane has to be a loss. Pairing up with characters that provide set up for her knock up can lead to lanes that win the fight, even if they lack the clear."

Still Queen of the Duo Lane

Last but certainly not least, Ataraxia picks out, "Freya. You hate to see it, but the nerfs she's received in the last few patches haven’t been enough to knock her out of favour. Don't expect her to go anytime soon, especially with buffs to items like Dynasty Plate Helmet."

Freya still dominates in the duo lane and is still a must pick or ban

Doesn’t seem like Freya is going away anytime soon, so what makes her such a strong pick?

Ataraxia says that, "Freya has two major strengths, and they're so strong they feel oppressive. Her lane potential is top of the game and is one of the chief reasons as to why people hate to play against her so much. She breaks some of the old rules of SMITE regarding wave clear, and that's why she feels so dirty to play against. Aside from destroying duo lanes on the daily, her Banish is the other major strength to Freya. It's one of the strongest combo abilities in the game, serving as self-set up, peel and team set up. Learn to play with your team with this ability and you'll see how rewarding she can feel late game."

Seeming a bit strong, isn't she? Freya kit just gets better and better as you go further through the game. The more items she gets online the better she becomes and gets more obnoxious to fight against. There must be a weakness to her though, right?

Freya stood out at HRX and HRX Placements and looks to stay at the top for the start of season 6

Ataraxia mentions that, “Freya's a bit of all-round ball buster. She’s got a great early game, she snowballs into an unstoppable mid-game character and she holds up pretty well late game due to her Banish and some nutty ultimate damage. The discerning few of you out there will be quick to notice however, that she is in fact, not a Hunter. This means she sucks at killing towers! She deals significantly less damage than Hunters on towers, and, depending on your build, has potential mana problems when sieging too. Sadly, she can just kill the entire enemy team at the tower and then take her sweet time after they’re all waiting on respawn timers, but you’ve gotta take your wins where you can with Freya."

Don’t expect to take early towers with her and expect yourself to be doing a lot of mana management with her kit. It may seem like there isn’t many weaknesses to her, she is quite immobile though and her kit requires her to get up close and personal to regain her mana. She transitions well throughout the game but due to her needing to drain her mana with her 2, it allows her to get collapsed on when she is out of mana or low.

We mentioned that she gets better and better the more items she has online, so what should you look to build on her?

Ataraxia says that, “At HRX and HRX qualifiers, Freya had some build development with Celestial Legion Helmet being picked up as a second item. This offers the advantages of sustain and protection versus both the Hunter and more than likely the jungler, too. This is still an option, although with the S6 changes to Dynasty Plate Helm this could be a viable alternative too. Outside of this, Bancrofts’ remains an excellent item for solving mana troubles and additional power and sustain. Outside of this, you can build for the one-pop with a ton of power or go for a more sustained build with Demonic Grip. Regardless of which you go down, Rod of Tahuti is an excellent luxury for both builds. The high power is always nice, but the passive is specifically excellent for her due to the nature of her kit using both ability and auto damage when swinging, essentially letting Rod double dip on her abilities."

Both helms provide plenty for Freya in damage and survivability

Building her with either Dynasty Plate or Celestial Legion early allows her to dish out damage while also being able to protect herself against ganks. The rest of the build depends on how you want to play her, want to one shot? You can do that, want to do a lot of damage consistently? You can do that too. Brancrofts' is a must on her, however, as the sustain helps her out so much.

All seeming good so far? The real question now is, when is her key power spike?

Ataraxia mentions that, "Freya's dominating from the loading screen, but boots is when she really shines. As soon as you've got those bad boys on, you'll be faster than most of the SMITE cast. That allows you to make better use of the Banish leading to more poke, more pressure, and more enemy player rage."

Her early power spike allows her to dominate early and allows you to control the lane from the start of the game. Playing with an aggressive support will allow you to do this, the constant pressure you’ll put on will make you snowball through the game. Which leads us on to what you should do when playing Freya.

Ataraxia advises, "Pressure, pressure, pressure! Win that early game. It's the major reason to pick Freya and coming out of lane behind isn't an option. You need to be invading and keeping the enemy behind, but that leaves you susceptible to ganks. Keep that in your mind as you apply pressure."

Freya's 1 and 2 are potent abilities and can do a ton of damage when used together

Few Key Points

This is a lot of information to take in, but a few things to look out for now while playing as a Hunter. Out of these, who are the best to pick if you're fairly new to the role?

Ataraxia points out, "Apollo's the beginner's choice here. His skills are pretty straightforward, he has a strong lane so you won’t necessarily always live under tower, and honestly, flying around in that chariot is just good fun. The value of Cernunnos and Xbalanque isn’t always obvious on first plays as they're both fairly easy to punish. You'll probably want to spend considerable time with Hunters in general before you pick them up."

Meaning if you aren’t too comfortable in the role, he is a great pick up to look at and to learn with.

This is all great information to have, but what gods should you look to avoid playing against when you pick up these gods?

Ataraxia says that, "Cernunnos and Xbalanque have a lot of gods and abilities to be wary of, and this is tied to their lack of on-demand CC immunity and their easy to abuse dashes. Watch out for characters like Fenrir who can take advantage of both of these weaknesses. Apollo, Jing Wei and Freya don’t have strict counters. They're all versatile enough in their kits and uses, that they don't usually end up in bad matchups. Season 5 was a meta that revolved around Hunters trying NOT to die, rather than trying to kill, and that’s a big reason why these three characters make my list. Season 6 is shaping up to be much of the same with Hunters aiming to outlast rather than carry, and that’s why these three will serve you well.”

Hopefully this helps you out with the Hunter role in season 6.

Make sure to follow Ataraxia on Twitter and Twitch to stay up to date with all things Dignitas and Smite.