I think Ana is overall a solid Support. She can be an incredible backline healer with potential global range. However, her talent tree (at the very least) and Biotic Grenade could use a few updates. Here are my suggestions:
Base Kit
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Biotic Grenade
** Reduce Healing Reduction to 75% from 100%.
** Increase healing radius by 25%.
I strongly believe that 100% healing negation was always too good on Ana. There was never any good counter-play to it. As compensation, I’ve increased the healing radius of the ability to help widen Biotic Grenade’s supporting ability.
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Eye of Horus
** Now pierces allies with full Health.
This update has been needed since Healing Dart a similar update. This will help prevent allies from blocking shots that were not intended for them.
Level 1
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Grenade Calibration
** Healing radius increase reduced to 75% due to compensate for the baseline increase for Biotic Grenade. With this talent, Ana still gains a sum of 100% increased Healing radius (25% is just baseline now). -
Detachable Box Magazine (Rework)
** Quest: Stack 5 Doses on an enemy Hero.
** Reward: After reaching maximum Dosage 10 times, Basic Attacks against targets with maximum Dosage cause Basic Attacks to bounce to an additional nearby enemy, prioritizing Heroes.
** Reward: After reaching maximum Dosage 20 times, gain Detachable Box Magazine, Cooldown: 45 seconds. Activate to Basic Attack each enemy once within a wide arc in front of you.
** Passive: Shrike healing generated from enemy Heroes now heals all nearby allies.
Detachable Box Magazine really needs a rework as it simply cannot compete with the other talents of its tier. This is my suggestion. It’s hard to tell how good Shrike healing will be in a full team setting, especially with her increased efficiency with spreading Doses. It would require a bit of testing, but it would definitely make Ana more interesting to play.
Level 4
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Air Strike
** Now has global range.
I feel this should have been global from the start. It already has a 3 second delay and shares a CD with Biotic Grenade, why not let us throw it anywhere we want?
Level 7
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Temporary Blindness
** Now Basic Attacks against you also cause Sleep Dart’s cooldown to recharge 100% faster for 1 second.
Updated to compete with the tier. I think the CDR will be welcome against heavy dive comps.
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Debilitating Dart
** Removed. - Emergency Hover (New) - “A trick I’ve learned from my daughter.”
- Cooldown: 60 seconds. Activate to cause Ana to hover in the air, becoming Invulnerable and immobile for 2 seconds. While hovering, Ana can only cast Healing Dart, which has 50% increased range.
Let me know what you guys think. I always felt Debilitating Dart was too generic. I think this type of “iceblock” ability would fit well with Ana.
Level 13
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Speed Serum
** Now also increases Healing Darts width by 15%.
Speed Serum is essentially counter-productive to her design. It makes hitting consecutive Healing Darts that much more difficult. Therefore, I think the slight width increase should help with this and also to compete with the other new talents.
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Smelling Salts
** Removed. -
Purifying Darts (Rework)
** Healing Dart removes Stuns, Roots, and Slows from the target, and heals for 10% more when doing so. If a Stun is removed this way, the target gains 25 Armor for 2 seconds.
Combined to make the talent overall more universal, but at reduced efficiency to allow the other talents to compete.
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Double Pin (New)
** Biotic Grenade drops a second talented grenade at Ana’s feet. The damage and healing does not stack.
This is intended to help Biotic Grenade provide more area coverage, especially for your backline. Because the damage and healing will not stack, I don’t see this being too big of an issue, but it will require testing none-the-less.
Level 16
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Concentrated Doses
** Now is capped at 100% increased healing.
Level 20
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Ballistic Advantage
** Now will pierce allies with full Health, but the round will still explode on any allies.
This will still allow Ana to receive proximity healing from nearby allies, whether they are full Health or not. If this change ends up breaking Eye of Horus, it can always be adjusted as needed.
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Custom Optics
** Removed. -
Dynamic Shooting (Rework)
** Basic Attacks increase Attack Speed by 5% for 4 seconds, up to 100%. The rate increase is doubled while Aim Down Sights is active.
** Passive: Increase the Aim Down Sights Basic Attack range bonus from 2 to 4.
Combined both AA talents, as she technically has 3, currently. With the rework for Detachable Box Magazine, I’m very interested to see if Aim Down Sights becomes a more popular build.
Let me know what you guys think!