Ana Synergies and Matchups

Table of Contents

• +Introduction
  • 1. Overview of Ana (Ana Amari)
  • 2. Ana's Strengths
  • 3. Ana's Weaknesses
  • 4. Ana Synergies
  • 5. Ana Counters
  • 6. Ana Is Strong Against
  • 7. Ana TL;DR Tips
  • 8. Reading Further for Ana
  • 9. Changelog
• +Abilities and Strategy
  • 1. Ana TL;DR Tips
  • 2. Ana's Abilities
    • 2.1. Biotic Rifle
    • 2.2. Sleep Dart
    • 2.3. Biotic Grenade
    • 2.4. Nano Boost
• +Playstyle
  • 1. Introduction to Ana
  • 2. Who to Heal as Ana
  • 3. Ana's Positioning
  • 4. Biotic Grenade Uses
  • 5. Nano Boost Uses
• ×Synergies and Matchups
  • 1. Synergies for Ana
    • 1.1. Reinhardt & Ana
    • 1.2. Bastion & Ana
    • 1.3. Brigitte & Ana
  • 2. Ana Counters
    • 2.1. Genji & Ana
    • 2.2. D.Va & Ana
    • 2.3. Lucio & Ana
  • 3. Ana Is Strong Against
    • 3.1. Roadhog & Ana
    • 3.2. Zenyatta & Ana
• +Maps
  • 1. Best Maps for Ana
    • 1.1. Ana on Watchpoint:Gibraltar
    • 1.2. Ana on Blizzard World
  • 2. Worst Map for Ana
    • 2.1. Ana on Defensive Capture Points

On this page, we list the good and bad matchups for Ana. More specifically, we list the heroes that Ana synergizes well with, the heroes that counter Ana, and those that Ana is strong against.

The other pages of our Ana guide can be accessed from the table of contents on the right.

As Ana has some of the best single-target healing in the game, she is excellent at keeping beefy heroes alive and in the fray. Therefore, Ana and Reinhardt are a classic synergy thanks to Ana's ability to help Reinhardt push through enemy choke points and into enemy territory. Ana's healing also allows Reinhardt to swing his Rocket Hammer, increasing his damage output and his ability to gain ultimate charge. When the duo need to defend a point, Nano Boost can greatly impact Reinhardt's overall DPS output and survivability, forcing enemies to flee from his power. Lastly, Ana can use her Sleep Dart to help Reinhardt secure Charge kills or to put down an enemy trying to get past Reinhardt's Barrier Field.

When a team picks Bastion, they are attempting to defend a point or position. Therefore, having Ana on the team can significantly help with achieving that goal. Since Bastion uses his Configuration: Sentry for most of the time he is played, Ana should have no problem showering him with health from Biotic Rifle. If an enemy attempts to go in on Bastion, Ana can use her Sleep Dart to put them down, allowing Bastion to clean them up. With Biotic Grenade, Ana can increase Bastion's durability through increased healing, effectively raising the efficiency of Self-Repair and allowing him to deal with pesky flankers for a little bit longer. Lastly, Nano Boost lets Bastion freely roam when in Configuration: Tank, increasing rocket damage to over 300 a hit.

Brigitte and Ana work well together for a number of reasons. First, Brigitte is an effective close-range support, but she struggles to quickly heal allies. Therefore, Ana's Biotic Rifle can supplement Brigitte's kit thanks to its high healing output. Second, Ana can effectively heal from a distance, so if the team gets caught in an enemy Graviton Surge, Ana can still heal while Brigitte attempts to defend the team. Third, Ana greatly benefits from Rally and Repair Pack as both abilities can potentially give Ana some much needed sustain and armor. Fourth, Ana can keep Brigitte alive when she attempts to use Whip Shot or Shield Bash. Fifth, Ana's Biotic Grenade greatly increases the healing potential of Inspire on affected allies.

Typically, Genji has to respect his prey, giving them distance before diving in with Swift Strike. However, thanks to Ana's weak kit against flankers, Genji can typically harass Ana for the duration of the match. Genji can single-handedly take down Ana, but even if he goes in on her and fails to secure the kill, the fact that Ana has to turn her attention on him when he attacks forces her to miss out on healing her team. This causes Ana's team to suffer a lack of healing even though Ana is still alive. Additionally, Ana typically sits on high ground in an effort to stay away from enemies. However, thanks to Genji's Cyber-Agility, Ana is never safe from his reach regardless of her position on a map. All that to say, Genji's mobility can significantly cap Ana's effectiveness.

D.Va is easily one of the best characters in countering Ana for a number of reasons. First, D.Va's Boosters allow her to get to Ana's position in a pinch, making Ana's positioning even more critical. Second, D.Va's Defense Matrix is a hard-counter to almost all of Ana's abilities. It shuts down Ana's Biotic Rifle shots, Biotic Grenade, and Sleep Dart. While the Matrix does nothing to the initial use of Nano Boost, D.Va can use her Defense Matrix to stop the bullets/arrows/shurikens of whoever has Nano Boost, effectively shutting down its effectiveness in a roundabout way. Third, D.Va can use her Micro Missiles and her Fusion Cannons to damage Ana, killing her in a matter of seconds.

Lúcio is a great counter to Ana because of his mobility and the rest of his kit. Lucio can use his Crossfade ability to speed boost allies, forcing Ana to work extra hard to land her Biotic Rifle on her foes. As Lucio allows his team to speed through the enemy, Ana will be hard pressed to choose the right target for her heals. While Biotic Grenade shuts down Lucio's area-of-effect healing if his targets are drenched in biotic fluid, the ability has no effect on his ultimate: Sound Barrier. As Lucio can use his Wall Ride to climb up to high ground, and because his Sonic Amplifier is capable of dealing 40 damage a hit with a headshot, Lucio is also a threat to Ana when played effectively.

Roadhog is a beast of a hero, but Ana's kit can do a lot to counter his effectiveness. First, Ana's Sleep Dart is an easy ability to land on Roadhog, effectively forcing him to snooze at inopportune times. Second, Roadhog, unlike other tanks, has nothing but regular health and has no way to gain shields or armor on his own. Therefore, a Biotic Grenade makes Roadhog a sitting duck in the health department, and is a direct counter to Roadhog's massive self sustain ability: Take A Breather. As Roadhog is an effective tank killer thanks to his Scrap Gun, Ana's high single-target healing can often negate Roadhog's kill-secure potential. Lastly, a Nano Boost can save a lot of heroes from Roadhog's Chain Hook/Scrap Gun combo if Roadhog has poor aim.

Ana is an interesting counter to Zenyatta, and while not the strongest counter against Zen (as other heroes can just dive and kill him to counter his abilities), Ana is a direct counter to some of Zenyatta's kit. With Biotic Grenade, Ana can shutdown Zen's lackluster healing with Orb of Harmony. Additionally, Biotic Grenade can help increase the sustainability of an ally who is marked by Zenyatta's Orb of Discord. Sleep Dart can be an effective tool to shutdown Zenyatta's Transcendence since he cannot move with his team, and Biotic Grenade also cuts its effectiveness by negating enemy healing capabilities, forcing Zen's Transcendence to have no affect on the effected heroes. Lastly, a skilled Ana use her Biotic Rifle to take down an overconfident Zenyatta from afar.

About our Author

Mournflakes is a flex Grandmaster Overwatch player who boasts a career high SR rating of 4433. His favorite heroes are Roadhog, Soldier: 76, and Ana. He has played Overwatch since its initial release, and has put over 700 hours into competitive play. When not writing guides, you can catch Mournflakes streaming on his Twitch channel.