Multiple nerfs and buffs to meta heroes ahead of the Midseason Championship

The midcycle update for Overwatch Season 3 - Into the Tiger's Den is now live. With more than a few tweaks affecting the heroes that have shaped the recent competitive meta, this patch might have a major effect on the fast-approaching Midseason Championship.

Mauga and Sigma have both received slaps on the wrist. It comes as no surprise as the two were the most-picked tanks throughout Stage 2. Sigma’s shield has been brought down to 250 from 275. Additionally, the shield health converted from his Hyper Regeneration perk has been reduced from 40% to 30%. Blizzard also added weapon spread to Mauga's Chainguns when firing individually. These changes will rein in the two popular tanks a little, but we'll see whether they'll be completely phased out in favour of others.

The winners in the tank position were Junker Queen and Ramattra.

Junker Queen’s Commanding Shout cooldown was reduced from 12 seconds to 10, which is a significant change that might see Junker Queen become the niche pick that she has been in the past on some maps.

Ramattra’s Ravenous Vortex impact damage has been increased from 15 to 30, and Block's cooldown has been reduced from 1 second to 0.5 seconds. This makes Ramattra’s Nemesis Form a lot more tanky, and since he was already seeing decent playtime throughout Season 3, this might just push him to the forefront of the meta similar to the Midseason Championship last year.

Cassidy and Shion, both frequent picks the past few weeks, have received nerfs. Cassidy's Silver Bullet perk received a significant projectile size decrease, from 0.17 to 0.07, and Shion's Joyride (bike) does half as much impact damage, which will definitely impact some of her one-shot combo potential.

On the other hand, Reaper, who's also picked frequently (mostly paired with Mauga), received significant boosts to his survivability, his passive lifesteal increasing from 25% to 30% and the Soul Reaving perk pickup radius going from 5 up to 8.

Freja, who was a very popular pick in Stage 3 last year, received minor buffs, which may help her regain her status compared to the other hitscan options right now.

For supports, Ana’s Biotic Grenade healing and damage were increased from 75 to 90. Brigitte’s Inspire now heals for 12hp instantly instead of over time, improving her burst heal, while Kiriko’s Ofuda healing per projectile was reduced from 13 to 12. Lucio also got a damage increase on his primary fire from 20 to 22.

You can read the full patch notes here.

These changes arrive ahead of the highly anticipated Midseason Championship, and with only two weeks left to prepare, it'll be a total mystery as to which teams figure out the best new compositions in time for the competition.