E.T.C. Abilities and Strategy
Welcome to our Abilities page for E.T.C.. Here, we give you an overview of every ability in E.T.C.'s kit. For each of them, we explain what it does, how to best use it, and how it works in combination with E.T.C.'s other abilities. We also give you strategy tips to play E.T.C. efficiently.
E.T.C.'s Tips and Tricks
- When dangerous to go forward, use Powerslide from the side of the enemy Hero you intend to Stun, possibly more towards allied Heroes than enemy Heroes.
- Face Melt is a great tool to peel or interrupt stationary-channeled Abilities.
- Guitar Solo is the least important Ability at your disposal, thus being great for triggering Rockstar to mitigate incoming damage.
- Mentally track of enemy crowd control Abilities so that Mosh Pit does not get interrupted.
- Stage Dive allows you to quickly join your team when playing E.T.C. as Offlaner and/or to dive together with other allied Heroes.
Powerslide
- Mana: 60
- Cooldown: 12 seconds
Slide to a location dealing 105 (+4% per level) damage and Stunning enemies hit for 1.25 seconds.
Powerslide is E.T.C.'s defining Ability. On its own, it provides a reliable area of effect Stun to initiate, peel, and interrupt channeled Abilities.
Avoid using Powerslide only for the negligible amount of damage it deals. Instead, use it as a setup tool for allied Heroes and their Abilities (such as Blizzard by Jaina). Avoid using Face Melt immediately after Powerslide or you will cause allied Heroes to miss their skillshot Abilities.
The lengthy dash allows you to quickly position yourself behind enemy Heroes to body block them out of an escape route, or between allied and enemy Heroes to reduce their effectiveness in team fight. When in danger, you can also use Powerslide to run away.
As Powerslide is both your only engage and escape tool, you have to think twice before using it aggressively, else you may end up being surrounded by enemy Heroes and die for no reason. To avoid that, try to use Powerslide from a side to the other or from the middle towards your team, usually done by flanking.
E.T.C.'s presence alone is often enough to control aggression, particularly when opponents know full well that Powerslide is available, especially after Level 10 because its Stun effectively allows you to fully channel Mosh Pit with no possibility of escape.
Face Melt
- Mana: 55
- Cooldown: 12 seconds
Deals 68 (+4% per level) damage to nearby enemies, knocking them back.
Face Melt is a Basic Ability that can be used to knockback all enemies nearby. Including a daze, this effect will also interrupt any stationary-channeled Ability being performed by them.
You can use Face Melt to move enemy Heroes and Mercenaries where you want them to be. In case of Heroes, it can be used to knock them towards your team right after a flank as a setup for a safer Powerslide. In case of Mercenaries, it can be used to knock them into the range of your Structures, thus making it way easier to take them down as they will help you with powerful shots.
A nice tech to know is that you can use Face Melt to make enemy Heroes unable to dodge Powerslide because they cannot do anything while affected by a daze. Keep this in mind when playing against enemy Heroes who have mobility tools at their disposal, especially if they tend to play in melee range (such as Zeratul).
While standing between allied and enemy Heroes, the knockback effect will create a protective buffer zone to give your team breathing room, especially against melee Heroes who lack mobility and do not have reliable tools to close the gap again (for example Artanis).
Guitar Solo
- Mana: 40
- Cooldown: 9 seconds
Regenerate 66 (+4% per level) Health per second for 4 seconds.
Guitar Solo is a Basic Ability that gives E.T.C. some self-sustain, helping him stay in the action for longer. Over time, it allows him to heal some poke damage.
Guitar Solo is the best way to trigger Rockstar when you do not want to spend important cooldowns but need extra survivability.
Mosh Pit
In this section we discuss how this Heroic Ability works and give some tips on how to use it. If you are looking for a detailed explanation on when and why you should pick it, check out the dedicated section in the Talent Build page.
- Heroic
- Mana: 100
- Cooldown: 120 seconds
After 0.75 seconds, channel to stun nearby enemies for 4 seconds.
Mosh Pit is an Heroic Ability that, after a short cast time, can be stationary-channeled to Stun enemies within its area.
When you pick Mosh Pit at Level 10, it is important to mentally track the cooldown of enemy Abilities that can interrupt it, otherwise you may end up wasting an extremely long cooldown for no reason.
If you catch Heroes who still have interrupts available with Powerslide, then you do not have to worry about them anymore because casting Mosh Pit immediately after will surely Stun them with literally no time to react.
If you see a good opportunity to kill an enemy Hero and then get value from that, do not hesitate to use Mosh Pit for blocking a single enemy Hero and allow your team to take them down. Just make sure that the enemy team does not have single-target tools to counter that play, in which case your plan should be to catch at least 2 Heroes inside Mosh Pit.
Like any crowd control effect, Mosh Pit can also be used to try to momentarily prevent powerful defensive Abilities (such as Divine Shield Uther) from being used while the rest of your team focuses down a specific target.
In theory, players should pay attention to both sound effect and animation, however, there are some players who do not rely on sound clues. As a consequence, in some rare occasions you can use a peculiar trick: Dance with [Y] or Mount with [Z] to make the opponents think you are casting Mosh Pit. The difference is that using Dance cannot be stopped by damage whereas using Mount shows a channel in progress to your enemies.
Stage Dive
In this section we discuss how this Heroic Ability works and give some tips on how to use it. If you are looking for a detailed explanation on when and why you should pick it, check out the dedicated section in the Talent Build page.
- Heroic
- Mana: 70
- Cooldown: 75 seconds
Leap to target location, landing after 2.75 seconds, dealing 495 (+4.0% per level) damage to enemies in the area, and slowing them by 50% for 4 seconds.
Though seldom used mid-combat due to its 1.25-second cast time, Stage Dive is useful as an initiation tool thanks to its lengthy and potent Slow. On its own, this Heroic Ability may be enough to force an enemy team to split up or use mobility Abilities in order to avoid its effect as they will see its indicator on the ground. This allows your own team to capitalize on the precarious position of your opponents.
Stage Dive can also be used as a last resort escape, though this is not recommended due to its relatively long cooldown. It should be noted that the Ability's initial 1.5-second channeling time can be interrupted, as with all channeled Abilities.
E.T.C goes into Stasis while in the air, something that allows you to use Stage Dive as a defensive tool against powerful damaging Abilities which deal damage to their target after a while (such as Last Rites by Malthael) or that follow the Hero model (for example Pyroblast by Kael'thas), but only if you have enough time to cast Stage Dive before they hit you, if you do not get interrupted.
Rockstar
Using a Basic Ability grants 20 Armor for 2 seconds. Heroic Abilities grant 60 Armor.
Rockstar is a Trait that makes E.T.C. more resistant to incoming damage by providing a low amount of of Armor after using Basic Abilities and a high amount of Armor when using Heroic Abilities.
While Face Melt and Guitar Solo activate your Trait immediately, Powerslide only does so when E.T.C stops sliding, Mosh Pit needs to be successfully cast, and Stage Dive gives Armor after ETC lands. Keep that in mind when you need immediate protection.
Changelog
- 03 Feb. 2022: Guide reviewed for the latest Balance Update.
- 28 Sep. 2021: Guide reviewed for the latest Balance Update.
- 18 Aug. 2021: Abilities and Strategy page updated.
- Descriptions improved.
- Tips and Tricks improved.
- New layout.
- 11 Oct. 2019: Abilities section reviewed.
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Elitesparkle is a multiple times Master player in Europe who plays Heroes of the Storm since its release. He is an active member of the community who likes to teach new and veteran players all he knows about his favorite game.
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