Hey all,

Balance Team here again with an update on the latest round of Champions up for review, Photon and Vox!

Photon

Photon has immediately made her impact felt on the Battlerealm. She was aimed at being one of the toughest Battlegrounds and War defenders that needed a hard counter. She did this by re-visiting the ability to turn off dex much like Heimdall, Domino, Void, and Jabari, while also adding some modern twists. Alongside defense, Photon was also aimed at being a strong attacker, countering a lot of the meta Mystic threats with her neutralize immunity and sunder debuff. Looking at her data she has clearly hit these goals. Because of that, Photon will be staying as is!

Vox

Vox will also see no changes! They targeted dealing high, versatile damage that was easy to access, while still making room for skill expression to allow masterful players to take them into more matchups and squeeze out more damage. Vox’s success against both Tech matchups that highlight Utility (like Omega Sentinel) but also in more general tough defender matchups (like Thing) indicate Vox has all the tools at the right strength for long-term viability.

What’s Next

With both Champions needing no changes, we’re happy to share that Luke Cage is getting a moderate rework. His timeline will look like:
42.1 (January) + 43.0 (February) Beta builds
43.1 (March): Full release with changes

One Final Note

Starting with Luke Cage, updates to old Champions will also include a followup review to make sure they’re having the intended impact. For example, if we update an older Champion’s damage target, we want the opportunity to identify whether they’re hitting that target and to adjust if needed. Just like with new Champions, this allows us to make sure the best version of that Champion arrives in The Contest–BAMF!