Heroes of the Storm Reveals May 2025 Update Ahead of 10…

Summary

Heroes of the Storm released a major update with hero reworks, bug fixes, and changes to Storm League rankings.
The update includes significant changes to heroes like Ana, Azmodan, Genji, E.T.C., and more.
Rank decay now only affects Master and Grand Master ranks in Storm League, with stricter party composition rules.

Heroes of the Storm recently released a sizable update for May 2025, including some hero ability reworks, bug fixes, and changes to Storm League rankings and matchmaking. These updates are live in Heroes of the Storm right now, just a few weeks ahead of its 10-year anniversary.

Though Heroes of the Storm went into maintenance mode in July 2022, Blizzard delighted fans by releasing a balance update and bug fixes for the MOBA just over a year later. Every few months since then, Heroes of the Storm has released new patches, with the latest having been last March.

heroes of the storm january 2025 brawl mode ptr

Heroes of the Storm Bringing Back Popular Game Mode

The latest Public Test Realm patch for Heroes of the Storm revives a popular game mode that hasn't been seen in the MOBA for nearly five years.

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By Eric Law

Now, yet another Heroes of the Storm update has arrived, and this time, Blizzard has made some exciting changes to several heroes. Ana, Azmodan, and Genji all got new functionality added to some of their base abilities and talents, with heroes like E.T.C. And Lunara even getting brand-new talent options. Imperius saw even more changes, with a light rework to some of his core talents. Others, like Auriel, Malthael, and Zagara, saw less-drastic changes, namely in the form of numerical buffs or nerfs to their existing abilities.

Beyond balance updates, the Heroes of the Storm developers have squashed plenty of bugs from various maps and heroes. For the competitive Storm League mode, players will also find rank decay only applies to the Master and Grand Master ranks, which now have more strict party composition requirements. Fans will find other miscellaneous changes as well, such as World of Warcraft protagonist Anduin now appearing as the allied hero in Try Me Mode instead of Malfurion.

This particular update is noteworthy because June 2 marks 10 years since the official release of Heroes of the Storm. Many players have been hoping for a Heroes of the Storm revival to celebrate the milestone, especially in the wake of Microsoft’s acquisition of Blizzard, but nothing has been revealed yet. If Heroes of the Storm is planning something for its anniversary, fans can expect to learn more within the next few weeks.

Players looking to bulk out their hero roster in Blizzard's MOBA are in luck, as Xbox Game Pass Ultimate recently added new benefits for Heroes of the Storm. Fans with the subscription who hop into HotS will unlock 30 heroes – about a third of the total roster – for free, including characters like Varian, Tassadar, and the Lost Vikings. With the chance to save thousands of in-game gold required to unlock these characters normally, Heroes of the Storm players who already have Xbox Game Pass Ultimate won’t want to miss out on this free perk.

Heroes of the Storm Patch Notes – May 15, 2025

Our next Heroes of the Storm patch is live! Read on for more information.

NOTE: Italicized text indicates a change between PTR and Live notes.

General

Anduin has replaced Malfurion as the Ally hero in Try Me Mode.
Numerous game strings have been updated to reflect current gameplay.
Updated Homescreen and Startup Music.

Storm League

Rank Decay will now only apply to players in Master and Grand Master Leagues.
Reduced maximum party size for Master and Grand Master players to 2.
Master and Grand Masters can only party with players 5,000 Rank Points away from them.

Balance Update

Heroes

Ana
- Base
  - Biotic Grenade [W]
    - ADDED FUNCTIONALITY: If Biotic Grenade does not hit any enemies, its cooldown is reduced by 3 seconds.
    - ADDED FUNCTIONALITY: If Biotic Grenade only hits Ana, its cooldown is reduced by 2 seconds.
- Talents
  - Level 1
    - Vampiric Rounds
      - Shrike now gives a 15% passive healing bonus.
  - Level 20
    - Deadeye
      - ADDED FUNCTIONALITY: Eye of Horus can now be toggled On and Off.
      - ADDED FUNCTIONALITY: Eye of Horus rounds are regained once every 10 seconds.
      - ADDED FUNCTIONALITY: Eye of Horus cooldown is now 6 seconds.
      - Bonuses acquired from Deadeye now lasts 4 seconds.
Auriel
- Base
  - Bestow Hope [Trait D]
    - Reduced amount of energy stored from 40% to 35% of damage to non-Heroes.
    - Reduced amount of energy stored from 80% to 70% of damage to Heroes.
Azmodan
- Talents
  - Level 16
    - Trample
      - ADDED FUNCTIONALITY: Now reduces Heroic cooldown by 25% if Trample hits a Hero.
E.T.C.
- Base
  - Face Melt [W]
    - Cooldown reduced from 12 to 10 seconds.
  - Rockstar [Trait D]
    - Armor from Basic Abilities increased from 20 to 25.
    - Armor from Heroic Abilities reduced from 60 to 50.
- Talents
  - Level 4
    - Crowd Surfer
      - Cooldown reduction reduced from 7 to 6 seconds.
  - Level 7
    - Hammer-on
      - ADDED FUNCTIONALITY: Basic Attacks deal 12% more damage, increased to 36% while Guitar Solo is active.
  - Level 13
    - Encore
      - Cooldown reduction reduced from 5% to 4%.
  - Level 20
    - Power of the Horde
      - NEW TALENT: Activate to grant nearby allied Heroes a Shield that absorbs damage equal to 30% of their maximum Health for 5 seconds, increased by 2% for each other allied Hero in the area. This new Talent replaces Storm Shield.
    - Ride the Lightning
      - NEW TALENT: Activate to teleport to a nearby location and deal 48 damage to nearby enemy Heroes. The cooldown is reduced by 10 seconds for every enemy Hero hit, up to 50 seconds.
Genji
- Talents
  - Level 1
    - Pathfinder
      - ADDED FUNCTIONALITY: Heroic Ability now heals Genji for 10% of the damage dealt to enemy Heroes, increased by up to 30% based on how low Genji's Health is.
  - Level 10
    - X-Strike
      - Cooldown increased from 60 seconds to 75 seconds.
      - Detonation damage increased from 275 to 290.
      - Slash damage increased from 135 to 145.
  - Level 13
    - Shingan
      - Now does 40% less damage to Structures.
  - Level 20
    - Living Weapon
      - Cooldown reduction increased from 10 seconds to 12.5 seconds.
Imperius
- Base
  - Molten Armor [E]
    - Now hits two extra targets if no Heroes are in range.
- Talents
  - Level 1
    - Impaling Light
      - REWORK: Impaling Light cooldown is reduced by 2 seconds.
      - REWORK: Impaling Light does 180% more damage to Heroes, reduced by 20% for each additional Hero hit.
      - REWORK: Impaling Light mana cost is reduced from 40 to 30.
      - REWORK: When a Valorous Branded target's Stun ends, Impaling Light's cooldown is reduced by 1 second for each Valorous Brand on the target.
  - Level 7
    - Blaze of Glory
      - Blaze of Glory delay reduced from 2 seconds to 1.75 seconds.
    - Holy Fervor
      - Molten Armor no longer grants Holy Fervor.
  - Level 20
    - Heavenly Host
      - ADDED FUNCTIONALITY: All Shields created by Angelic Armaments no longer expire.
      - ADDED FUNCTIONALITY: Swords fired by Heavenly Host Shields can target non-Heroes, but Heroes are prioritized.
    - Molten Wrath
      - NEW TALENT: Molten Armor will now hit two extra targets even if enemy Heroes are in range.
Lunara
- Talents
  - Level 7
    - Splintered Spear
      - ADDED FUNCTIONALITY: Now grants 3 stacks of Splintered Spear. A stack is consumed when an extra target is attacked. Can have a maximum of 3 stacks and all stacks can be consumed in a single attack.
  - Level 13
    - Endless Spores
      - Now also refunds 50 Mana.
  - Level 20
    - For The Wildlands!
      - NEW TALENT: Thornwood Vine now shoots out 4 additional Vines in an arc.
    - Forest's Wrath
      - Can now be selected with either Heroic.
Malthael
- Base
  - Wraith Strike [W]
    - Range is increased from 6 to 7.
- Talents
  - Level 4
    - Black Harvest
      - Quest goal reduced from 180 seconds to 150 seconds.
  - Level 10
    - Tormented Souls
      - No longer resets the cooldown of Wraith Strike when Tormented Souls ends.
      - Now reduces the cooldown of Wraith Strike to 2 seconds and removes its Mana cost while Tormented Souls is active.
  - Level 20
    - Reaper of Souls
      - While 2 or more enemy Heroes are in Tormented Souls' radius, its duration does not decay.
Zagara
- Talents
  - Level 16
    - Corrosive Saliva
      - Damage reduced from 1.75% to 1.5% of maximum Health.

Bug Fixes

General

Fixed an issue with the display priority for the duration bar of Taunt effects.

Map

Battlefield of Eternity
- Fixed an issue where areas of the map were not covered under Fog of War.
Blackheart's Bay
- Fixed an issue where some Heroes would not be able to path around Healing Fountains.
Cursed Hollow
- Fixed an issue where Hogger could go through unpathable sections of the map.
Warhead Junction
- Fixed an issue where healing fountains were not symmetrical on the map.

Heroes

Alarak
- Level 16
  - Lethal Onslaught
    - Fixed an issue that caused Lethal Onslaught to not increase Alarak's Basic Attack damage correctly.
Artanis
- Base
  - Shield Overload [Q]
    - Fixed an issue that caused Shield Overload to not display correctly if empowered by Shield Surge.
Arthas
- Level 10
  - Summon Sindragosa
    - Can now be cast over the Minimap.
Azmodan
- Level 20
  - Sin's Grasp
    - Tooltip Updated.
Brightwing
- Base
  - Arcane Flare [Q]
    - Now has a minimum cast range of.05.
- Level 10
  - Blink Heal
    - Fixed an issue that caused Blink Heal's trailing images to be visible while Brightwing has no remaining Blink Heal charges.
Chen
- Base
  - Fortifying Brew [Trait D]
    - Fixed an issue that caused Fortifying Brew being instantly destroyed not granting Attack Speed.
    - Fortifying Brew has been added to the Buff Bar.
Dehaka
- Base
  - Burrow [E]
    - Fixed an issue that caused Burrow's visuals to be displaced if Dehaka is launched shortly after Burrow ends.
- Level 7
  - Paralyzing Enzymes
    - Fixed an issue that caused Paralyzing Enzymes' duration to not be reduced if Drag ends early.
Gazlowe
- Base
  - Xplodium Charge [E]
    - Now has a minimum cast range of.2.
- Level 10
  - Grav-O-Bomb 3000
    - Now has a minimum cast range of.2.
Hanzo
- Base
  - Sonic Arrow [E]
    - Now has a minimum cast range of.2.
Jaina
- Base
  - Frostbite [Trait]
    - Ice Block's before first use attention indicator is now also removed when Jaina is killed.
Johanna
- Level 4
  - Eternal Retaliation
    - Updated Eternal Retaliation's visual effect to only be visible to Johanna.
- Level 10
  - Blessed Shield
    - Fixed an issue with the display priority for the duration bar of Blessed Shield.
Kel'Thuzad
- Level 13
  - Chains of Ice
    - Chains of Ice no longer Slows if the Stun is removed.
Li-Ming
- Level 10
  - Disintegrate
    - Fixed an issue that allowed Disintegrate to be cast while moving.
Lt. Morales
- Base
  - Healing Beam [Q]
    - Fixed an issue that allowed Healing Beam to be cast on multiple targets at once.
- Level 10
  - Medivac Dropships
    - Fixed an issue that caused Medivac Reinforcement's indicator beam to point to Lt. Morales' active position instead of where Reinforcements was cast.
Malfurion
- Level 1
  - Emerald Dreams
    - Emerald Dreams no longer puts Heroes to Sleep if the Root gets removed.
Medivh
- Level 20
  - Glyph Of Poly Bomb
    - Fixed an issue that allowed Medivh to cast abilities during Raven Form.
Mephisto
- Base
  - Shade of Mephisto [E]
    - Fixed an issue with the display priority for the duration bar of Shade of Mephisto.
- Level 20
  - Unspeakable Horror
    - Fixed an issue that caused Unspeakable Horror to Silence twice.
Muradin
- Base
  - Thunder Clap [W]
    - Fixed an issue that caused Thunder Clap's splat to not match the area Thunder Clap hits.
- Level 4
  - Thunder Burn
    - Fixed an issue that caused Thunder Burn's damaging area to be smaller than Thunder Clap's area.
    - Fixed an issue that caused Thunder Burn's warning indicator to be inconsistently sized for the area affected.
Murky
- Base
  - Pufferfish [W]
    - Now has a minimum cast range of.05.
Orphea
- Base
  - Shadow Waltz [Q]
    - Fixed an issue that caused Orphea to not dash when moving after hitting an enemy Hero with Shadow Waltz.
Ragnaros
- Level 13
  - Cauterize Wounds
    - Cauterize Wounds healing is now a singular combined effect each time it heals, instead of a heal effect for each Hero hit.
    - Fixed an issue that caused Cauterize Wounds healing amount to be determined by the damage dealt to the target furthest from the primary Empower Sulfuras target.
    - If Cauterize Wounds is reapplied while already active, any remaining healing will apply over the refreshed duration.
Rexxar
- Base
  - Misha, Charge! [W]
    - Can now be self-cast.
Samuro
- Base
  - Critical Strike [W]
    - Fixed an issue that caused Samuro's Critical Strike stacks to be visible to an enemy Samuro.
Sonya
- Level 10
  - Wrath of the Berserker
    - Fixed an issue with the display priority for the duration bar of Wrath of the Berserker.
    - Remaining duration indicator is now standalone from Whirlwind's duration indicator.
Stukov
- Base
  - Healing Pathogen [Q]
    - Fixed an issue that caused Healing Pathogen to persist for a brief period after activating Bio-Kill Switch.
Sylvanas
- Base
  - Black Arrows [Trait D]
    - Fixed an issue with the display priority for the duration bar of Black Arrows.
    - Remaining duration indicator is now standalone from Haunting Wave's duration indicator.
- Level 10
  - Mind Control
    - Fixed an issue with the display duration for the duration bar of Mind Control.
- Level 20
  - Deafening Blast
    - Fixed an issue that caused Deafening Blast to activate off of the center of units instead of their edge.
The Lost Vikings
- Fixed an issue that prevented Olaf from charging while Silenced.
Tracer
- Level 16
  - Ricochet
    - Now appears as its own entry in the Death Recap.
Tychus
- Base
  - Frag Grenade [W]
    - Fixed an issue that caused Frag Grenade to not apply physics to physics objects when no targets are hit.
Valeera
- Level 16
  - Assassinate
    - Damage bonus is now additive.
    - Fixed an issue with duration extension.
Whitemane
- Base
  - Searing Lash [E]
    - Can now be self-cast.