Artifact – 27 April 2020 Patch Notes | Keefe the Bold Gets a Heroic Makeover!

Introduction

In this week's edition, we delve into the world of Artifact and its heroes. While the original game had its strengths, there were missed opportunities when it came to hero designs. Players often expressed concerns about lackluster signature cards, heroes without abilities, and characters that didn't quite fit their kit. However, the developers have taken a different approach this time around, and we're here to discuss the factors they consider when evaluating hero designs. First and foremost, all heroes now come equipped with at least one ability, ensuring a more dynamic gameplay experience. Additionally, signature cards have been revamped to evoke excitement when drawn, avoiding situational limitations. These cards are designed to shine when used by their corresponding hero, creating a powerful synergy. And for an added bonus, some heroes even possess a small self-synergy. It's worth noting that heroes may now have two abilities, with at least one being a passive ability. This opens up new possibilities for strategic gameplay, as players must navigate both active and passive abilities on the board. So, without further ado, let's dive into the changes made to the basic heroes and see how they've evolved. First up, we have Keefe the Bold, a formidable hero with an impressive bulk that can withstand a great deal of punishment. His signature card, Reckless Charge, allows him to redirect damage from softer targets, making him a force to be reckoned with. Furthermore, his active ability, Stop Hittin' Yourself, turns the strength of his attackers against them, adding an extra layer of tactical prowess. However, it's worth mentioning that his health has recently been increased, and some players may find it a tad too high. Stay tuned as we explore more hero updates and their impact on the game.

This week we wanted to talk a bit more about the heroes in Artifact. These have been viewed as one of the strengths in the original game, but also as one of the missed opportunities. The most common concerns we hear are about underwhelming signature cards, lack of abilities, or heroes that fictionally don’t fit with their kit. Our philosophy this time around is different, so we’d like to go over some of the factors we use when evaluating hero designs.

All heroes should have at least one ability.
You should be excited to draw a hero’s signature cards.
Signature cards should avoid being situational.
Signature cards should generally be at their best when their corresponding hero uses them.
Bonus if a hero has a small self-synergy.
It’s fine to have two abilities on a hero if at least one of them is a passive.
It’s fine to have strong active and passive abilities on the board. They create interesting threats to play around.

Let’s take a look at the basic heroes and see how they’ve changed.

Keefe the Bold

This big body can absorb a lot of punishment.
Reckless Charge can put this bulk to use, letting him redirect damage from soft targets.
His active ability, Stop Hittin’ Yourself, lets him turn his attackers' strengths against them.
Notes: His health was recently increased, and might be a bit too high.

Farvhan the Dreamer

Green units tend to stick around in lane, so don’t be surprised if you see Farvhan getting up to a big bonus from Pack Leadership.
Prowler Vanguard makes it easy to create a creep imbalance, keeping your tower safe.
Placing Prowler Vanguard in slot 2 with Farvhan in slot 3 is an easy way to build pressure in a lane.
Prowler Vanguard has been feeling a little too expensive, and is likely to decrease to 3 Mana.

J’Muy

Runic Instigation has been a fan favorite. One of our favorites was watching Mirana leap in, get refreshed, then leap back to her original slot!
Runic Instigation lets you refresh creeps and also items on heroes. This makes J’Muy great to splash with any color.
Wisdom of the Elders can keep your hand full, and is a nice choice for an early runic instigation to start getting the cooldown to 1.
J’Muy is pretty hefty for a blue hero, giving you good deployment options.

Our feedback alias also had many requests for new heroes. We hashed out a few designs based on these requests and figured we would

let you decide

which one we add to the beta. Note that the color or abilities might change from those listed here based on testing. Anyway, here’s the list we have so far.