Whitemane Abilities and Strategy

• Desperate Plea is the only Ability in Whitemane's kit that has a Mana cost, but you have to manage your Mana wisely because of the Desperation mechanic.
• Use Inquisition immediately after Searing Lash to maximise your damage output.
• Cast Searing Lash when you can hit enemy Heroes, preferably when they are under crowd control effects that impair their movements.
• Scarlet Aegis can be used during team fights to apply Zeal to multiple allied Heroes without having to pay Desperation cost, given they are in range.
• Divine Reckoning should be preferably used as a follow-up to allied crowd control effects that can keep enemy Heroes in place.
• Make sure to apply Zeal to allied Heroes before using your Abilities to deal damage.
• Rely on Clemency when you need to sustain your team with out-of-combat healing: use Desperate Plea, use Clemency to remove Desperation, use Desperate Plea again.

Desperate Plea is the only Ability in Whitemane's kit that has a Mana cost. It is also the only Ability in her kit that has no cooldown. While it does provide a small amount of direct healing, the primary function of Desperate Plea is to apply Zeal to allies relatively often. The Desperation mechanic allows you to decide on your own cooldown. Casting Desperate Plea with full Desperation stacks is not sustainable; you must prioritise which allies need Zeal during early fights. A good thing to remember is that the Zeal buff lasts longer than the Desperation debuff. This means that with careful management, Zeal can be sustainably applied to several allies at once. A good practice to default to is to cast Desperate Plea twice, and then wait for Desperation to expire before casting it again. While there will be many situations that require you to improvise outside of this pattern, it is a good starting point to preserve your Mana for when you need it.

Inquisition deals direct damage to enemy Heroes, but must be channeled. This means that it will root Whitemane in place unless it is cancelled or interrupted. Whitemane's damage dealing Abilities can and should be thought of as potential healing; damage dealt may be multiplied by the number of allies with Zeal to calculate potential healing. Because of this, it is important to think about how to maximise your damage per second when playing her. This can be accomplished by casting her damage dealing Abilities as often as it is safe to do so. Searing Lash is not channeled and its cooldown can partially refresh during Inquisition's channel, so it should usually be cast just before Inquisition.

Inquisition may also be used specifically for the Slow effect. If an enemy Hero is out of position and your Allies are nearby, reducing their Movement Speed may help your team secure a kill. Inquisition has a rather long cooldown, and should be used this way only when allies are likely to complete the takedown. Inquisition should be primarily used to maximise your healing output when allies need it.

Because Inquisition removes one stack of Desperation, Desperate Plea should almost always be cast to apply Zeal just before Inquisition is channeled. This way, an allied Hero may benefit from the damage dealt by Inquisition and you can then reapply Zeal without having to spend extra Mana.

Searing Lash has a low cooldown, no Mana cost, and a very short cast animation. It should usually be cast whenever it is available. It is good to practice casting it all the time, as this will increase your familiarity with the Ability. Once constant use of Searing Lash is second nature, it will be easier to do while managing Desperate Plea's Desperation stacks.

Scarlet Aegis is a fantastic Heroic that heals all nearby allies, which applies Zeal to them. This means that you can apply Zeal to all teammates simultaneously without gaining any Desperation stacks. The armor provided by this Heroic is also very beneficial.

Divine Reckoning deals damage over time in an area. This can be a great way to increase your healing through Zeal. Divine Reckoning works best in team compositions that can help trap enemies inside the consecrated area.

Zeal is an extremely powerful buff that can be applied to Whitemane and her allies. It allows Whitemane to trade damage exceptionally well and to heal several members of her team at the same time. Zeal can be applied to teammates with any healing Whitemane provides that is not from Zeal itself. This means that Desperate Plea, Clemency, and Scarlet Aegis can be used to apply Zeal. It is good to understand this, as Desperate Plea is the only tool Whitemane has that has any Mana cost limiting its use. When the enemy team commits to a fight, it is ideal to have Zeal applied to all allied Heroes who are in combat.

Zeal's active component temporarily increases Whitemane's Spell Power and reduces her Armor. This can greatly increase Whitemane's healing for a short time. The Armor debuff can be negated by Scarlet Aegis' Armor buff, which has a conveniently similar cooldown.

Clemency allows you to heal allies with Inquisition directly. Casting Inquisition roots Whitemane in place. Instead of channeling Inquisition on an enemy Hero, Clemency enables you to heal from a safer position when necessary. Clemency cast on allies will trigger Shared Punishment if an enemy Hero is nearby. This will allow you to position much more safely while providing healing to your team. Clemency, like Inquisition, will remove one stack of Desperation.