Deathwing Build Guide “All will burn beneath the shadow of my wings!”

Last updated on Sep 20, 2023 at 12:44 by Elitesparkle 18 comments
General Information

Welcome to our guide for Deathwing, a Bruiser in Heroes of the Storm. Within these pages, you will find everything required to understand how best to play this hero, in both different map styles and team compositions.

1.

Deathwing's Overview

Deathwing is a melee Bruiser with various ranged Abilities that also make him a threat to be reckoned with from larger distances. His massive dragon form renders him resistant to enemy crowd control, however, it also prevents any form of healing or Shielding on him.

He excels at dealing dangerous burst damage onto his foes, however, most of his Abilities have a rather slow casting animation, allowing most opponents to dodge them if they are not impaired in their movement. Thus, Deathwing is a heavy hitter that is somewhat reliant on his teammates to pave the way for his impactful damage Abilities by using crowd control effects on enemy Heroes.

2.

Deathwing's Strengths and Weaknesses

V Strengths
  • +Outstanding burst damage
  • +Immune to any form of crowd control
  • +Global re-deployment thanks to Dragonflight Icon Dragonflight
  • +Great at pushing and sieging enemy Structures
X Weaknesses
  • -Cannot be affected by allies' buffs or healing
  • -Slow casting animations
  • -Poor in-combat mobility
  • -Weak against high mobility Heroes
3.

Deathwing's Talent Build Cheatsheet

Molten Flame Build

Recommended
Level 1 Molten Blood Icon Draconic Might Icon ?
Level 4 Infernus Icon
Level 7 Skyfall Icon
Level 10 Burn Beneath My Shadow Icon Bellowing Roar Icon ?
Level 13 Wicked Inferno Icon
Level 16 Conflagration Icon
Level 20 Stood in the Fire Icon

Deathwing's Molten Flame Build empowers the damage you can deal from the distance to enemy Heroes caught within Molten Flame Icon Molten Flame for a few seconds.

The damage comes from the combination of multiple Talents that empower the same Basic Ability: Infernus Icon Infernus at Level 4, Wicked Inferno Icon Wicked Inferno at Level 13, and Conflagration Icon Conflagration at Level 16.

When playing this Build, you should heavily prefer World Breaker Form.

Basic Attacks Build

Situational
Level 1 Dragon Soul Icon
Level 4 Heat Wave Icon
Level 7 Skyfall Icon
Level 10 Burn Beneath My Shadow Icon Bellowing Roar Icon ?
Level 13 Fire and Fury Icon
Level 16 Elementium Plating Icon
Level 20 Stood in the Fire Icon

Deathwing's Basic Attacks Build makes you harder to kill and increases your damage at the same time, especially when you can fight at melee range.

The combination of Dragon Soul Icon Dragon Soul at Level 1 and Heat Wave Icon Heat Wave at Level 4 boosts your damage and survivability during the early game and after.

In the mid game, Fire and Fury Icon Fire and Fury at Level 13 further empowers Deathwing's overall power when fighting at melee range.

While transitioning to the late game, you gain access to Elementium Plating Icon Elementium Plating at Level 16 that increases your survivability even more.

When playing this Build, you should use Destroyer Form when you can play aggressively or World Breaker Form when you have to play defensively or poke.

Dragonflight Build

Situational
Level 1 Dragon Soul Icon
Level 4 Heat Wave Icon
Level 7 Death Drop Icon
Level 10 Bellowing Roar Icon
Level 13 Fire and Fury Icon
Level 16 Gaze Onto Destruction Icon
Level 20 Destroyer's Rampage Icon

Deathwing's Dragonflight Build is a powerful choice for games where you can safely land on top of enemy Heroes with Destroyer Icon Destroyer after your Tank engages.

The combination of Dragon Soul Icon Dragon Soul at Level 1 and Heat Wave Icon Heat Wave at Level 4 boost your damage and survivability during the early game and after.

In the mid game, Fire and Fury Icon Fire and Fury at Level 13 further empowers Deathwing's overall power when fighting at melee range.

The key Talents of this Build, however, are Death Drop Icon Death Drop at Level 7 increasing the damage dealt by allied Heroes and Gaze Onto Destruction Icon Gaze Onto Destruction at Level 16 reducing the damage dealt by enemy Heroes while also Slowing them.

When playing this Build, you should heavily prefer Destroyer Form, especially when landing from Dragonflight Icon Dragonflight.

ARAM Build

ARAM
Level 1 Molten Blood Icon Draconic Might Icon ?
Level 4 Infernus Icon
Level 7 Skyfall Icon
Level 10 Burn Beneath My Shadow Icon Bellowing Roar Icon ?
Level 13 Wicked Inferno Icon
Level 16 Conflagration Icon
Level 20 Stood in the Fire Icon

Deathwing's ARAM Build empowers the damage you can deal from the distance to enemy Heroes caught within Molten Flame Icon Molten Flame for a few seconds.

The damage comes from the combination of multiple Talents that empower the same Basic Ability: Infernus Icon Infernus at Level 4, Wicked Inferno Icon Wicked Inferno at Level 13, and Conflagration Icon Conflagration at Level 16.

When playing this Build, you should heavily prefer World Breaker Form.

4.

Deathwing's Synergies and Counters

V Deathwing synergizes with

It is hard to find Heroes that naturally synergize with Deathwing, since he cannot be buffed or enhanced in any way. However, there are some Heroes, usually crowd control heavy Tanks, that can make it easier for Deathwing to land his devastating damage Abilities. Consequently, we find Heroes like E.T.C., Johanna, or Arthas to be a fitting match, since their Stuns and Slows can buy enough time for Deathwing to wipe the opposing team off the battlefield.

X Deathwing is countered by

Because of Deathwing's health, size, and low mobility, there are two types of Heroes that counter him very well. Firstly, percentage-based damage abilities, such as Tychus' Minigun Icon Minigun or Greymane's Cursed Bullet Icon Cursed Bullet inflict a lot of damage on Deathwing's high health pool. Secondly, nimble Assassins like Zeratul, Valla, or Tracer have an easy time dodging and thus diminishing a lot of Deathwing's damage due to long casting animations on most of his abilities.

5.

Deathwing's Maps

Deathwing's stronger maps
Alterac Pass Braxis Holdout Infernal Shrines
Deathwing's average maps
Battlefield of Eternity Blackheart's Bay Cursed Hollow Dragon Shire Garden of Terror Hanamura Temple Sky Temple Tomb of the Spider Queen Towers of Doom Volskaya Foundry Warhead Junction
Deathwing's weaker maps
None

Deathwing excels on maps that feature a pushing Map Objective, such as Alterac Pass, Braxis Holdout, or Infernal Shrine. Furthermore, he usually performs better on larger maps that allow his Dragonflight Icon Dragonflight to have global impact.

6.

Deathwing's Tips and Tricks

  • Most of your damaging abilities have a significant casting delay until they hit. Take this into consideration and aim accordingly.
  • Deathwing can only restore lost Armor Plates by using Dragonflight Icon Dragonflight.
  • On push-heavy maps such as Tomb of the Spider Queen or Towers of Doom, Burn Beneath My Shadow Icon Burn Beneath My Shadow at Level 10 is a good choice. Use Cataclysm Icon Cataclysm shortly before a Structure is about to fall to maximize value of the talent.
  • When fighting melee Heroes, Destroyer Form is recommended. Against ranged Heroes, World Breaker's long distance abilities have an edge.
  • Despite Deathwing being such a massive combatant, it is often wiser to avoid direct combat and reposition him globally via Dragonflight Icon Dragonflight and push a lane away from the enemy team.
7.

Deathwing's Role in the Current Meta

Deathwing is a Hero that defies standard limitations and requirements. As an entity that cannot be put to stop by crowd control on the one hand, but also does not get affected by any allied buffs or heals on the other hand, he is best played on push-heavy Maps like Alterac Pass, Infernal Shrines, and other Maps with a moving Objective. Here, Deathwing can make best use of his devastating area of effect Abilities to secure the Objective and make sure that the ensuing push will have a significant impact. Cataclysm Icon Cataclysm, by itself, can wreak absolute havoc in the enemy ranks next to a charging Cavalry Unit on Alterac Pass or a pushing Punisher on Infernal Shrines.

As a Deathwing player, it is important to remember that you are the architect of your own fortune. Being independent of your Healer, resistant to enemy crowd control, and having a global reposition Ability in Dragonflight Icon Dragonflight provides you with unique freedom on the battlefield. Use these features wisely to make an impact where it is most needed.

8.

Changelog

  • 20 Sep. 2023 (talents page): ARAM Build added.
  • 20 Sep. 2023 (this page): ARAM Build added.
  • 17 Jan. 2022 (talents page): Builds updated.
  • 17 Jan. 2022 (this page): Builds updated.
  • 25 Jun. 2021 (talents page): Builds updated.
  • 25 Jun. 2021 (this page): Builds updated.
  • 25 Feb. 2021 (talents page): New layout.
  • 31 Oct. 2020 (talents page): Builds and Talents updated.
  • 31 Oct. 2020 (this page): Builds updated.
  • 08 Oct. 2020 (talents page): Guide reviewed for the latest Balance Update.
  • 08 Oct. 2020 (abilities page): Guide reviewed for the latest Balance Update.
  • 08 Oct. 2020 (this page): Guide reviewed for the latest Balance Update.
  • 05 Oct. 2020 (talents page): Builds updated.
  • 05 Oct. 2020 (this page): Builds updated.
  • 24 Aug. 2020 (talents page): Talent Build page updated.
    • Builds modified to reflect the current metagame.
    • Balance Update revision.
    • Minor fixes.
  • 24 Aug. 2020 (this page): Introduction page updated.
    • Builds modified to reflect the current metagame.
    • Balance Update revision.
    • Minor fixes.
  • 25 Jul. 2020 (talents page): Builds modified to reflect the current metagame.
  • 25 Jul. 2020 (this page): Builds modified to reflect the current metagame.
  • 08 May 2020 (talents page): Builds and Descriptions changed according to the latest Balance Update.
  • 08 May 2020 (this page): Builds and Descriptions changed according to the latest Balance Update.
  • 12 Apr. 2020 (talents page): Talent Build partially revised to match new standards.
    • Talent Build and Talent Build Cheatsheet modified to reflect the current metagame.
    • Talent Descriptions modified to better describe when to pick them.
  • 12 Apr. 2020 (this page): Introduction partially revised to match new standards.
    • Talent Build Cheatsheet updated to reflect the current metagame.
    • Role in the Current Meta modified to remove the unnecessary part about the now fixed Experience Globes.
  • 14 Feb. 2020 (talents page): Revised Deathwing's guide and found it is still up-to-date after the recent Balance Update.
  • 23 Jan. 2020 (talents page): Updated Deathwing's Talent Builds.
  • 19 Dec. 2019 (talents page): Revised the Deathwing Guide in accordance with the new Balance Update and found no changes were necessary.
  • 06 Dec. 2019 (talents page): Changed Deathwing's Aggressive Build and changed Draconic Might to Recommended.
  • 03 Dec. 2019 (talents page): Added the Aggressive Build and updated Deathwing's talents in general.
  • 03 Dec. 2019 (this page): Added the current Anomaly (Experience Globes) to the guide.
  • 28 Nov. 2019 (talents page): Updatede Deathwing's talents according to the latest PTR version.
  • 26 Nov. 2019 (talents page): Added Deathwing to the Heroes section.
  • 26 Nov. 2019 (abilities page): Added Deathwing to the Heroes section.
  • 26 Nov. 2019 (this page): Added Deathwing to the Heroes section.
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