Whitemane Abilities and Strategy

• Desperate Plea is the only Ability in Whitemane's kit that has a Mana cost, but you have to manage your Mana wisely because of the Desperation mechanic.
• Use Inquisition immediately after Searing Lash to maximise your damage output.
• Cast Searing Lash when you can hit enemy Heroes, preferably when they are under crowd control effects that impair their movements.
• Scarlet Aegis can be used during team fights to apply Zeal to multiple allied Heroes without having to pay Desperation cost, given they are in range.
• Divine Reckoning should be preferably used as a follow-up to allied crowd control effects that can keep enemy Heroes in place.
• Make sure to apply Zeal to allied Heroes before using your Abilities to deal damage.
• Rely on Clemency when you need to sustain your team with out-of-combat healing: use Desperate Plea, use Clemency to remove Desperation, use Desperate Plea again.

Desperate Plea (Q) Whitemane

• Mana: 40

Heal an allied Hero for 140 (+4% per level) and gain Desperation for 4 seconds.

Desperation increases Desperate Plea's Mana cost by 40, and stacks up to 3 times.

Current Mana Cost: 40.

Desperate Plea is the only Ability in Whitemane's kit that has a Mana cost. It is also the only Ability in her kit that has no cooldown. While it does provide a small amount of direct healing, the primary function of Desperate Plea is to apply Zeal to allies relatively often. The Desperation mechanic allows you to decide on your own cooldown.

Casting Desperate Plea often with full Desperation stacks is not sustainable. You should generally prioritise allies that need Zeal during early fights. A good thing to remember is that the Zeal buff lasts longer than the Desperation debuff. This means that with careful management, Zeal can be sustainably applied to several allies at once.

A good practice to default to is to cast Desperate Plea twice, and then wait for Desperation to expire before casting it again. While there will be many situations that require you to improvise outside of this pattern, it is a good starting point to preserve your Mana for when you need it.

In case of emergency, do not hesitate to use Desperate Plea several times in a row, regardless of how many Desperation stacks you have. This way you can save an allied Hero from death at the cost of having to use your Healing Fountain or your Hearthstone to get Mana before the next team fight, which does not give Experience to the enemy team and is faster than waiting for an allied Hero to respawn in the late-game.

Inquisition (W) Whitemane

• Cooldown: 12 seconds

Channel on an enemy Hero for up to 3 seconds, dealing 50 (+4% per level) damage every 0.5 seconds and Slowing them by 30%. Removes a stack of Desperation.

Shares a cooldown with Clemency.

Inquisition damages a target enemy Hero, but must be channeled. This means that it will block Whitemane in place unless it is cancelled or interrupted. You should choose wisely when to start casting this Ability so you can keep channeling it for longer but you should also not hesitate cancelling it to move in case of danger or to cast another Ability if needed.

Because Inquisition removes 1 stack of Desperation, Desperate Plea should ideally be cast at least once just before channeling it. This way, you can damage someone and then reapply Zeal by spending less Mana.

Inquisition may also be used specifically for the Slow effect. If an enemy Hero is out of position and your Allies are nearby, reducing their Movement Speed may help your team secure a kill. Inquisition has a rather long cooldown, and should be used this way only when allies are likely to complete the takedown. Inquisition should be primarily used to maximise your healing output when allies need it.

Searing Lash (E) Whitemane

• Cooldown: 6 seconds

After 0.5 seconds, smite enemies in a straight line for 82 (+4% per level) damage.

If the first strike hits an enemy Hero, a second strike will occur after a short delay.

Searing Lash has a low cooldown, no Mana cost, and a very short cast animation. It should usually be cast whenever it is available. It is good to practice casting it all the time, as this will increase your familiarity with the Ability. Once constant use of Searing Lash is second nature, it will be easier to do while managing Desperate Plea's Desperation stacks.

Searing Lash should ideally be on cooldown right before casting Inquisition because its cooldown will keep going while you are busy channeling that.

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.

Scarlet Aegis (R) Whitemane

• Heroic
• Cooldown: 60 seconds

Bolster the spirits of nearby allied Heroes, healing them for 300 (+4% per level) and granting them 40 Armor for 4 seconds.

Scarlet Aegis is a fantastic Heroic that heals all nearby allies, which applies Zeal to them. This means that you can apply Zeal to all teammates simultaneously without gaining any Desperation stacks. The armor provided by this Heroic is also very beneficial.

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.

Divine Reckoning (R) Whitemane

• Heroic
• Cooldown: 75 seconds

After 1 second, consecrate an area for 4 seconds, dealing 50 (+4% per level) damage every 0.5 seconds to enemies inside. 25% of the damage dealt to Heroes is returned as Mana.

Divine Reckoning deals damage over time in an area. This can be a great way to increase your healing through Zeal. Divine Reckoning works best in team compositions that can help trap enemies inside the consecrated area.

Zeal (D) Whitemane

• Cooldown: 40 seconds

Whitemane's healing Abilities apply Zeal for 8 seconds. Allies with Zeal are healed for 100% of the damage Whitemane deals to Heroes.

Activate to gain 25% Spell Power and lose 15 Armor for 5 seconds. Can be cast while channeling abilities.

Zeal is an extremely powerful buff that can be applied to Whitemane and her allies. By converting damage into healing, it allows Whitemane to trade damage exceptionally well and to heal several members of her team at the same time.

Whitemane's damage dealing Abilities can and should be thought of as potential healing, multiplied by the amount of allied Heroes with a Zeal buff on them. Because of this, it is important to think about how to maximise your damage per second when playing her. This can be accomplished by casting her damage dealing Abilities as often as it is safe to do so.

When the enemy team commits to a fight, it is ideal to have Zeal applied to all allied Heroes who are in combat. Zeal can be applied to teammates with any healing Whitemane provides that is not from Zeal itself. This means that Desperate Plea, Clemency, and Scarlet Aegis can be used to apply Zeal. Understanding this is important for Mana management because Desperate Plea is the only tool Whitemane has that has any Mana cost limiting its use.

Zeal's active component temporarily increases Whitemane's Spell Power and reduces her Armor. This can greatly increase Whitemane's healing and damage done with Abilities for a short time but will also increase Whitemane's vulnerability to damage taken, so you should only activate it when not in danger.

Clemency (1) Whitemane

Activate to cast Inquisition on an allied Hero, healing them for up to 329 (+4% per level) over 3 seconds while Channeling. Removes a stack of Desperation

Shares a cooldown with Inquisition.

Clemency heals a target allied Hero, but must be channeled. This means that it will block Whitemane in place unless it is cancelled or interrupted. You should choose wisely when to start casting this Ability so you can keep channeling it for longer but you should also not hesitate cancelling it to move in case of danger or to cast another Ability if needed.

Because Clemency removes 1 stack of Desperation, Desperate Plea should ideally be cast at least once just before channeling it. This way, you can heal someone and then reapply Zeal by spending less Mana.