Never go taunt in solo queue
Your teammates will lack the ability to pounce on taunts even if it’s something like a lunara lucio or junkrat.
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It can work, but is harder. I try to type in chat early, before the gates open, about who my priority target is. I also warn people to move towards me if the enemy has a strong diver. Lastly, I’ll try to ping targets to gank.
A full combo of abilities and AAs from Taunt Varian can do about 60% of a ranged Assassins health, with Overpower at level 1. So you can hold off on your Taunt until they are around half health, then go in with a full combo. A strong single target Assasin following you can turn that into 100-0 of course.
It is true that sometimes Taunt won’t make any sense with the comps, and I think people tilt pretty easily at the idea of going TB if the team lacks a Tank. There is nuance to when it’s the right call, but people just can’t handle their allied Varian not choosing their preferred role.
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That’s why going heroes with CC but no damage or clear in solo que is a terrible idea, unless you know you have good teammates, that’s why i NEVER go Deckard unless i have a team
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Ping your CC ability and your target before casting it. It helps your teammates focus better (keyword is better)
You have more faith in the potato’s then I do
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Some of it is the fact that a lot of people are used to Taunt Varians taunting at bad times, or bad targets, so don’t really expect much. As mentioned, ping your target before you taunt, and people will be ready to follow up more often.
Even if many people demand that you only go Taunt, I also practically always refuse to go anything but tb/colossus in solo unless I know any of my teammates from earlier games or have friended them.
Had too many Taunt games where nobody followed up. And unlike the two other ults, it offers no camp taking, no holding obj 1v1, horrible lane clear etc.
I’m starting to understand why TB actually has higher WR across the leagues on HeroesProfile.
It’s just noise and social pressure that “demands” you go Taunt - even with teammates who never utilize your taunts.
There is an exception though, if they have Genji or Tracer I go Taunt regardless of teammates. It’s often the only way to lock them down and prevent them from shredding back laners if they dive.
In a premade party, though, I always pick Taunt.
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Maybe its my elo, my timings or the fact that i ping targets. I dont have this problem.
i do not agree. don’t play Varian if you don’t want to pick taunt cause varian is counted as a main tank so if you pick him enemy team will get a main tank and you choose either TB or CS then you screw up your team and you’re the only one to blame cause you choose a tank but you’re not tanking. don’t remind me of that varian that said “i choose what i want” while we were playing vs 2 main tanks our backline got screwed up cause he didn’t go taunt. if you want to “bruiser” or damage then pick something else but don’t screw up your team cause you don’t have faith in them by going varian pepega blades or CS
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Well in my puny elo (plat or maybe lower part of diamond, depends on season) people will never, ever use Medivh’s portal. Never follow Taunt. Never go into Sanctification.
Even if you ping or the play is obvious.
But I imagine it is different in master and higher.
It is still better than CS where you’ll be immediately blown up since you end up with less HP and the lack of follow up means you’ve just dove into the enemy line to be easy pickings.
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As a medium rank player I think CS is the worst of all 3. Even in solo, even if your team doesn’t help.
I wish it didn’t incur a HP penalty… Horrible passive 
That’s why you don’t dive directly into the team, you dive on tanks or whoever is in range without going too far
Colossus varian is a melee assassin, play him as such and you’ll have a great time especially between Lionheart and Shieldwall survival.
At that point I think your issues with taunt on solo maybe more due to your playstyle than the actual ability… Because taunt still brings a lot of value in solo play just by the ability to peel, which can save allies quite well. So while even if people don’t follow up at least you still provide value in saving your allies, and in turn at times preventing snowballs from occurring or just giving the enemy momentum.
Although I personally find TB to be the better solo play option, if you’re not sure whether the people around you are ever going to follow up.
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and you can go TB if you have a main tank already in your team sure thing then but if you’re the only one then you’re only making it harder for your team and yourself.
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Varian dosen’t have quite enough cc to main tank anyway. If you wanna take taunt, pick him in a high damage team that dosent really need a briuser along side a tank.
You only really go taunt if you have specific targets that are a nuisance and without taunting them, it would be difficult to kill them. You can tank just as well on Varian, with TB and CS but also offer a lot of damage.
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Twin blades has more survivability then taunt does in lots of different situations anyway.
Just got out of a QM where the enemy team had a Varian, who inevitably went Winblades. Granted, he had a pocket Abathur to hat him, and an Auriel behind him, and he was smart enough to take Shattering Throw into my Artanis, but with our 23 kills to their 16, and the fact that their poor Auriel alone died 8 times, he might have been better off with Taunt to peel for her a bit more, rather than yoloing into our back line for no good reason.
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there you go finally someone that can think. going TB is just braindead mode you leave your backline open for attacks and you’re just complete pepega with your blades
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