After some brief teasing, Blizzard finally unveiled Overwatch’s 27th hero yesterday and I’m already crazy hyped to play her on live. Named Brigitte Lindholm, she’s the daughter of Torbjörn as well as Reinhardt’s goddaughter and squire. Brigitte spent much of her time working in her father’s workshop, but she eventually ended up working with Reinhardt as his squire, tending to his armor and caring for him so that he could do his job protecting others.
Now, Brigitte’s got her own suit of armor and she’s joining the Overwatch roster as the game’s latest support. But if you’re looking to apply the standard “kill the healer!” strategy to Brigitte, you’re probably in for a rude awakening.
Let’s go through her kit. Keep in mind all of the data presented below is from PTR and is subject to change at any time.
LMB: Rocket Flail
- DMG: 35
- RANGE: 6M
Brigitte wields an extendable flail which can strike enemies up to five meters away and she can hit multiple enemies with each swing. The damage on her flail is solid enough, especially when it comes to dealing with the squishier flanking characters who will look to dive her, but the real secret to success will be the various melee cancel combos that can be pulled off with her Rocket Flail to chain together bursts of damage. We’ll talk about that a bit more later.
RMB: Barrier Shield
- STRENGTH: 600 HP
- RECHARGE: 0-600 in 8S
Brigitte’s basically got a mini Reinhardt shield that is primarily designed for protecting herself, but she can use it to help her bodyblock something for a teammate. You won’t be able to just dive Brigitte and blow her up like you would most other healers, she’s got plenty of effective HP to play with due to Barrier Shield.
RMB+LMB: Shield Bash
- DMG: 50
- RANGE: 7M
- STUN: 1S
- RECHARGE: 5S
Shield Bash is one of the defining features of Brigitte. This move allows her to shut down all sorts of dives, particularly against characters like Genji and Tracer who would be looking to pick off a pesky support. The Bash can also be used in mid-air to cover short distances and it plays a significant role as part of the combos we’ll be discussing.
LSHIFT: Whip Shot
- RANGE: 20M(!)
- DMG: 70
- EFFECT: Knockback
- RECHARGE: 4S
Whip Shot is my favorite ability in Brigitte’s kit. Using it, you can extend your flail an insane 20 meters and knock an enemy back. The versatility of this move is incredible and I can’t wait to see all the clutch boops players will be undoubtedly pulling off with it.
E: Repair Pack
- HEAL: 150 HP/Up to 75 Armor on Overheal (5S Duration)
- RANGE: 30M
- RECHARGE: 6S
Repair Pack is a huge burst heal on a fairly short cooldown. The ability uses a Zenyatta Orb style soft-lock, so it’s easy to fling at allies. It’ll be useful for clutch heals on a critically wounded teammate or even preventatively if you anticipate an ally is going to eat a huge chunk of damage. The Armor on Overheal is a great way to mitigate some damage before it comes in.
Q: Rally
- EFFECT: Bonus Runspeed (Brigitte Only)/ 150 Armor to all nearby allies (and herself)
- RADIUS: 7M
- DURATION: 10S
Rally is Brigitte’s ultimate and it offers her a great utility in leading a team push. If you hear those horns blare, it’s time to go in. The armor boost provided should help your teammates press onto an objective, though I wonder if Blizzard would consider allowing the runspeed boost to apply to allies as well as Brigitte.
PASSIVE: Inspire
- HEAL: 80 HP over 5s (or 16HP/S) for self and allies on Rocket Flail/Whip Shot hit. Hits refresh duration.
- RADIUS: 20M
That’s right, Blizzard basically added a Warrior Priest to Overwatch and it’s freaking awesome. The radius on this passive is huge, so you’re basically always healing allies as you whack people with your Rocket Flail.
THOUGHTS SO FAR:
Brigitte is the tank-healer hybrid I’ve been looking for. I love supporting and protecting my allies and Brigitte can do both and also take care of herself. She’s got plenty of utility to peel not only for allies but also for herself and this should make flankers think twice when looking to pick her off. She’s a very easy and straightforward character to pick up, but she’s got a decent skillcap in order to master and this comes through primarily in her ability to weave attacks into combos.
You can cancel her Rocket Flail hits into her Shield or Shield Bash (instant 85 DMG + Stun) which allows you to briefly mitigate damage in between hits or stack up a burst of damage and CC in quick succession after engaging. You can also combo your Rocket Flail into your Whip Shot (instant 105 DMG) to create another burst of damage (for a total of 190 DMG) once you’ve locked down your opponent. The difference between fighting normally and taking advantage of these animation cancels is likely to result in a significant difference in performance for the character. You’re going to want to master these things if you want to get the most out of Brigitte.
It’s hard to say how solid her numbers are at this point, as PTR (ironically) isn’t the greatest environment to feel out for how useful she’ll be on live, but I’m already in love with her kit, so hopefully she finds a solid place in the meta. I haven’t played Overwatch in some time, but Blizzard has already brought me back with Brigitte.
What’s your take on Brigitte? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below!
