Kerrigan Talents

Level	Choices
1	? ✘︎ ✓
4	✓ ? ?
7	✘︎ ✓ ✘︎
10	? ✓
13	? ? ✓
16	✘︎ ✓ ?
20	✘︎ ✘︎ ? ✓

Siphoning Impact can be a good Talent choice on Maps where fights happen far from the wave, and there is not much waveclear involved, such as Battlefield of Eternity, Hanamura Temple, Alterac Pass and Cursed Hollow. This Talent works particularly well when combined with Boundless Fury as the extra charges of Ravage can be used to generate more Assimilation Shield. It is important to note that this Shield is increased by the extra Spell Power provided by Unbridled Energy.

Assimilation Mastery provides Kerrigan a solid amount of Shield via Assimilation anytime she is under the effects of a Regeneration Globe. She is also granted bonus Health and Mana Regeneration as long as Assimilation is active. This Talent brings no additional damage to Kerrigan's kit, and not enough self-sustain in fights when compared with Siphoning Impact. Therefore, we do not recommend Assimilation Mastery.

Fury of the Swarm is a great source of Assimilation Shielding alongside the newfound splash damage on Kerrigan's basic attacks after casting Ravage. The splash damage is phenomenal for clearing Minion waves, especially during the early game when Kerrigan will be roaming from lane to lane looking for an opportunity to gank. The splash damage also helps to quickly stack up additional burst damage for Kinetic Fulmination.

Sharpened Blades solely increases the damage of Ravage through a Quest mechanic that relies on farming kills on enemy Minions and Heroes. The quest can take some time to complete, as Kerrigan will need to kill 75 Minions within 1.5 Seconds of being hit by Ravage (without taking into account any Heroes that Kerrigan may be able to pick off). When utilizing the Ravage Build, it is very important for Kerrigan to try and finish this quest as quickly as possible as it will provide a nice spike in damage once completed. However, finishing the quest should never take priority over assisting your allies in fighting over Objectives and pushing or depushing.

When fully stacked, Kinetic Fulmination causes Impaling Blades to deal a massive amount of burst damage. One of the fastest ways to stack up applications of Kinetic Fulmination is by pairing this Talent with Fury of the Swarm at Level 1. Kerrigan can gather applications off of Minion waves very easily before heading into a skirmish or teamfight to quickly burst down a Hero. Kerrigan can keep up her applications of Kinetic Fulmination when traveling between lanes by Basic Attacking Mercenary Camps or enemy Structures such as left over Walls.

Psionic Pulse is the core element behind a successful Primal Grasp Build. It can deal an amazing amount of area of effect damage upon initiation and after sticking to an enemy Hero. Keep in mind it takes 4.5 Seconds for Psionic Pulse's damage to be fully applied (assuming Kerrigan is not immediately peeled away from her target) therefore it is important to utilize the multiple charges of Ravage to stay on top of her target(s).

Queen of Blades adds a good amount of extra damage against Minions and Mercenaries, which speeds up Sharpened Blades's completion. However, the cooldown Reduction part of the Talent cannot compete with Boundless Fury's extra Ravage's charges, being overshadowed by it.

Boundless Fury grants Kerrigan an additional charge of Ravage after striking an enemy Hero with Ravage. This Talent is great for Kerrigan's mobility, and allows her to more reliably navigate her way through cluttered team-fights and across longer distances. It is important to note that the "Cooldown" of Boundless Fury is separate from that of the recharges for Ravage. This means that upon Kerrigan's first use of Ravage, her Ravage's charge cooldown will not begin. Kerrigan should therefore use her first two casts of Ravage consecutively if her goal is to put out as much damage as possible without consideration of Ravage's potential for strategic mobility.

Bladed Momentum significantly reduces the cooldowns of Kerrigan's Basic Abilities as she strikes enemy targets with her Basic Attacks. This is a good Talent, as Kerrigan's primary strength lies in her ability to perform a devastating combo of Ravage, Primal Grasp, and Impaling Blades to deal massive amounts of damage to an isolated target. Unfortunately, it competes with Boundless Fury, which will be the better choice in most games. Mostly for the disparity between Boundless Fury and the other Talents of this tier, we do not recommend Bladed Momentum.

At this Level, you gain access to Heroic Abilities. If you want to read more about them, check the dedicated section in the Abilities and Strategy page.

Maelstrom deals plenty of area of effect damage although its primary purpose should be to generate Shields from Assimilation. The damage per second element of Maelstrom is very slow, and does not seem to fit too well with Kerrigan's high burst kit. Kerrigan's main objective is to dive the enemy backline. This strategy usually results in Kerrigan becoming a primary target of focus for the enemy team. The additional Shield generated by Maelstrom via Assimilation is integral to Kerrigan's survival. Try to keep in mind that Maelstrom's main purpose is not to deal team wide damage, and players should not sacrifice single target focus to try and position themselves within multiple enemies, unless the situation allows for it.

Summon Ultralisk is great for harassing one or a couple of enemy Heroes and zoning them away from teamfights or Objectives. The Ultralisk's heightened Movement Speed will ensure that it will be able to damage most enemies trying to kite or flee from it. The charge and Stun component of the Ultralisk when summoned allows Kerrigan to lockdown a target who may be otherwise outside of the range of her initiation via Ravage. Summon Ultralisk tends to be the better Heroic Ability option when Kerrigan is fighting in more open Maps that do not consist of as many narrow choke points. Ultralisk is also the ideal choice when Kerrigan finds herself in more 1-on-1 situations as the Stun and burst damage will more often than not outperform the area of effect damage of Maelstrom.

Psionic Barrier is a situational Talent that will sometimes find use against Spell Power heavy team compositions that rely on coordinated focus-fire to take down a Hero. Assuming Kerrigan is not able to land her Primal Grasp on multiple targets, the Talent does take time to ramp up needing to be refreshed by each application of Primal Grasp damage. This Spell Armor definitely runs risk of falling off and resetting completely should Kerrigan be unable to stick to her desired targets. It is only useful with Psionic Pulse, because it will have a much higher duration and Armor.

Volatile Power is a go-to defensive Talent for Kerrigan that will significantly increase her ability to stay alive during encounters through an increase in Assimilation Shield. The one trade off is that Kerrigan's Shield will now expire 50% faster, lasting only 3 Seconds. Volatile Power also performs very well with any one of Kerrigan's Level 1 Talents and will help to mitigate all sources of damage unlike Psionic Barrier.

Chrysalis is a great option when Kerrigan is against heavy burst damage, since it will mitigate some of that, allowing her to survive and come back to the fight with higher Health.

Mounting Potency takes a lot of time to ramp-up within a teamfight, and can easily fall off when not careful. This Talent is completely overshadowed by Unbridled Energy, because it would only be better in fights where your Heroic Ability is on cooldown and it will be better to not fight in this scenario.

Painful Spikes will oftentimes be the Level 16 Talent of choice as it is the most reliable and consistent source of bonus damage. Kerrigan is easily able to utilize all 6 applications of Painful Spikes on an enemy target as it is triggered by any source of damage, including her Heroic Abilities Maelstrom and Summon Ultralisk.

Unbridled Energy is a good choice when paired with Sharpened Blades, since it will greatly improve Kerrigan's Ravage, which is the main damage tool for that build.

Omegastorm is not a good choice here, firstly, because it competes with Psionic Shift, and it will only be a valuable Talent in long teamfights. As Kerrigan, you cannot be in the middle of enemy team after using your combo, sometimes even the increased duration might not be transformed into damage, since you will have to retreat sooner.

Torrasque can be a decent option in less coordinated scenarios, such as Quick match or Silver and Bronze Storm League, since enemies will have a hard time bursting Ultralisk, giving this Talent much value. The cooldown timer of Summon Ultralisk will continue to run regardless of how long the Ultralisk stays alive.

Assimilation Blades's damage bonus may prove useful, but takes a very long time to effectively ramp-up and the Talent is overall much less game-changing than what is provided in utility and versatility of Psionic Shift. However, it can be a good choice for long fights, as Psionic Shift will only be used once, while Assimilation Blades will be constantly up.

Psionic Shift is by far one of the best Talents in Kerrigan's entire kit, as it has a multitude of uses. The versatility provided by Psionic Shift makes it almost mandatory for Kerrigan. Most often Psionic Shift will be used for survival, primarily to escape the fray once Kerrigan has collapsed on and killed an enemy Hero. Since Psionic Shift's Shield is activated by each enemy hit, including Minions, Structures, Mercenaries, and Monsters, it can be used towards a Minion wave to get 55% of your maximum Health in the form of Shields. Should Kerrigan be caught within crowd control, Psionic Shift can be used for an otherwise impossible escape. In a game where good positioning is key, Psionic Shift should rarely be overlooked.