Heroes of the storm is very unique kind of MOBA(Multiplayer online battle arena) due to several reasons. One of the biggest if not the biggest reason is that it is played on various maps, while other mobas are played on a single map and all of the strategies are formed around that one map. In hots you must know multiple maps, where goals to win are reached differently. There is total of 14 multiplayer maps(Hanamura is currently deactivated due to balance and design issues) available in multiplayer modes. Each of the map have different objectives to win, which forces different strategies on each of them in order to succeed. Different heroes are required for different strategies to execute, therefore maps variety create another layer of game depth. In this guide we will look into main tips for each of the maps and give recommended heroes that you might want to play on each of the maps. Heroescounters website also offer a good resource for looking up good hero choices for specific maps and opponents, while Hots Logs offer a good source to look up statistics for each hero or the map.
Battlefield of Eternity
BoE is a 2 lane map, where the custom objective of the map is 2 immortals spawning in the middle of the map between the 2 lanes, team that kills enemy's immortal first summons an immortal in the lane(that is pushed less) to help team with the push. On this map single target damage dealers thrive. Most of the strategies revolve around auto attackers and countering of auto attackers, which means heroes that either have high auto attack damage, blinding abilities(disables auto attacks for periods of time) or block abilities(reduces damage taken from auto attack) are usually that are going to get picked or banned on this map.
Recommended heroes for this map:
Valla - absolute queen of the map, if you can grab her, she's the best. Malthael - high damage to immortals, due to his percentage based damage dealing abilities, pick him especially if enemy have at least 2 high hp heroes. Other strong auto attackers for this map are Zul'jin, Hanzo, Greymane, Lunara and Samuro. Heroes that are strong due to their ability to counter auto attackers are Artanis, Johanna and Varian. Other heroes that can be strong on this map: Tyrande, Gazlowe, Li-Ming, Sylvanas and Sgt.Hammer. Due to hero stacking near immortals and big amount of fighting happening between heroes on his map, Alarak can also be a strong choice.
BB is a 3 lane map with bottom lane being far away from top two lanes that are close together. Best strategy here is to have 1 hero soak experience from both of the top lanes while other 4 players are battling at the bottom lane. To be able to soak experience effectively from top 2 lanes a hero that can clear minions quickly is a must. Other 4 heroes should be picked to synergise with one another or counter enemy heroes. Custom map objective is a ghost ship that shoots enemy structures once enough doubloons that are given by different objectives are collected. Heroes with global map presence are also solid on this map due to many different small objectives on the map that give doubloons.
Recommended heroes for this map:
Xul, Zagara, Sonya, Samuro, Dehaka, Azmodan, Tychus, Leoric, Illidan, Falstad, Tracer, Brightwing, Sylvanas.
Braxis Holdout
BH is a 2 lane map, where the objective is to control beacons that are in each of 2 lanes. Once you gain control of both beacons a bar starts to load and once one of the teams reach 100% zerg rush forces are released, the more control team has gained the more zerg forces are released to assault enemy structures and players. Two types of heroes are strong here, the ones that can control beacons and the ones that can clear zerg forces quickly.
Recommended heroes for this map:
Ragnaros, Kael'thas, Guldan, Sylvanas, Sonya, Johanna, Rexxar, Dehaka, Probius, Jaina, Zarya, Zagara.
Cursed Hollow
CH is a gigantic 3 lane map, where the objective of the map is to collect 3 tributes that spawn one at a time in designated locations in the jungle. Once a team collect 3 tributes it curses opposing team disabling their towers and forts from shooting and reducing their minion hp to 1. Due to how big is the map and random tribute spawning positions heroes that can move quickly to the different points of the map or have global presence are the absolute best. Heroes that can split push a lane are also strong choice.
Recommended heroes for this map:
Falstad, Brightwing, Dehaka, Abathur, The Lost Vikings, Tyrande, ETC, Chromie, Azmodan.
Dragon Shire
DS is a 3 lane map with a Dragon Knight trapped in the middle lane and two shrines in the other two lanes. In order to take control of the Dragon Knight your team must take control of the both shrines. Dragon Knight deal massive damage to enemy structures, therefore the main objective is to gain control of it, especially the later the game goes. Once again heroes with good map presence are good on this map as well as they can move quickly to the Dragon Knight once the control of the beacons are gained. High self sustain heroes are also very strong on Dragon Shire due to need of controlling the shrines.
Recommended heroes for this map:
Brightwing, Dehaka, Falstad, Leoric, Malthael, Gazlowe, Nazeebo, ETC, Rexxar, Thrall, Sonya.
Garden of Terror
GoT is a 3 lane map where you fight shamblers in the jungle to collect seeds. Once your team gathers 100 seeds you can gain control of the Garden Terror that deals high siege damage. On this map lane pushers are key. Pushing where enemy is not present is strong tactic due to Garden Terror not being as strong of a pushing mechanic as some of the objectives on the other maps and it being relatively big map. also heroes with high single target damage are decent as it helps taking Garden Terror down quicker.
Recommended heroes for this map:
The Lost Vikings, Sylvanas, Zagara, Azmodan, Murky, Malthael, Abathur, Valla, Nazeebo, Tychus.
Haunted Mines
HM is a 2 lane map with an underground space, where undead minion spawns periodically. Undead minions drop skulls, once all the skulls are collected both teams summon skull golems to help them push the lanes. The more skulls your team collect the stronger golem you summon. There is total of 100 skulls to collect. Heroes that can reinforce the push with golem are unfairly strong here, therefore this makes Sylvanas the absolute strongest hero on this map. Taking mercenary camps quickly is also important, as it helps to reinforce the push with golems or help defending the enemy team's golem push. Heroes that can take golem down quickly are also decent choices.
Recommended heroes for this map:
Sylvanas(good luck getting her), Tassadar, Malthael, Leoric, Sonya, Nazeebo, Arthas, Jaina, Ragnaros.
Infernal Shrines
IS is a 3 lane map where the objective is to defeat 40 guardians faster than the enemy does. Completing this objective summons a punisher that wreaks havoc on the enemy team. Aoe(are of effect) damage is important on this map. For that reason mages are popular choice here as they can kill multiple guardians at the shrine from distance. It is important to note that punishers often prioritise heroes by jumping on them. If your team needs to defend from a punisher it is a good idea to hide behind fort wall baiting the punisher where he can be taken down safely.
Recommended heroes for this map:
Kael'thas, Jaina, Ragnaros, Gul'dan, Johanna, Sonya, Xul, Kerrigan, Leoric, Gazlowe, Arthas.
Sky Temple
ST is a quite big 3 lane map where taking control of temples damages enemy structures. To hold a temple's power, which are positioned in every one of the lanes, you need to step on it and defend yourself from enemies that try to get you of the temple. Since the map is big and temple requires to be able to take damage while holding them there are two main factors when choosing a hero - it either needs to have self sustain or global presence.
Recommended heroes for this map:
Dehaka, Falstad, Brightwing, Zagara, Nazeebo, Sonya, Artanis, The Lost Vikings, Gazlowe, ETC, Abathur.
Tomb of the Spider Queen
TotSQ is a 3 lane, but a very tight map. The unique objective is collecting gems that are dropped from spider minions in each lane. Once your team collects enough gems spider queens are summoned in each lane at once to help your team to push. Heroes with long range and siege abilities dictate the game on this map as you can choose your fights and poke all game long as there is no set time when the objective must be done. Also this map usually takes the longest to end, therefore heroes with strong late game are considered to be good picks.
Recommended heroes for this map:
Sylvanas, Kael'thas, Xul, Azmodan, Gul'dan, Ragnaros, Nazeebo, Kel'thuzad, Lunara, Zagara, Jaina, Tyrande, Malthael.
Towers of Doom
ToD is a 3 lane map that differs the most from all other maps, because the objective of the map is activating beacons that shoot straight to the enemy core. There are different beacon locations on the map. Different amount of beacons become active on the map at once each time ranging from 1 to 3. Heroes that can move quicly to different points on the map are by far the most valuable picks. Heroes that are usually used for sieging are bad for this map as core is destroyed not by pushing but only by activating the beacons.
Recommended heroes for this map:
Brightwing, Dehaka, Falstad, Li-Ming, Tyrande, Chromie.
Volskaya Foundry
VF is the newest map in the game, it has 3 lanes that are quite close together. Map objective requires to control a zone, team that holds the zone for a period of time get's to enter a Triglav Protector that can be controlled by two players and have it's own set of abilities that are geared for pushing. Since controlling the zone is key, heroes that that are tough and have self sustain are best suited for this map. It is important to note that for first one or two Triglav Peotector's it is best for only one player to enter as it's damaging abilities early game aren't strong enough to trade for your hero abilities.
Recommended heroes for this map:
Lucio, Johanna, Garrosh, Zarya, D.Va, Leoric, Gul'Dan, Malthael, Sgt.Hammer, Arthas.
Warhead Junction
WJ is the biggest map in the game and it has 3 lanes, that allows heroes with global map presence to shine and its objective makes heroes with global presence even stronger. Due to such nature of the map, heroes that can kill solo heroes quickly can be really valuable, therefore having assasin with stealth might be good idea. The map objective is spawning warheads, which when collected can be dropped on the enemy and deal high structure damage.
Recommended heroes for this map:
Dehaka, Brightwing, Falstad, ETC, Illidan, Zagara, Abathur, Nova, Zeratul, Valeera.
Don't forget that the lists for recommended heroes depending on maps is just one criteria for choosing heroes, there are also other factors like synergy with your team and how do you interact with heroes that enemy has chosen, as well as how comfortable with those heroes you are. The list however should give you the basic idea what to expect and what could be a good choice on each of the maps.
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