Heroes of the Storm 23 July Tech Alpha patch notes released – There’s big changes

This Heroes of the Storm update might be a bit controversial with its new Artifact slots but it’s ready to go.

Blizzard has been teasing this patch for a few days now and introduced us to the wonders of the new Artifact system which has a had a real mixed response from the community. Whether you like the idea or not, it’s here and ready for testing. Testers are being given a pool of extra gold to help get started with the new Artifact system which will help.

• The higher a player’s level, the more Gold has been granted for Artifact play testing.
  • Level 30+:  75,000  Gold
  • Levels 20 – 29:  35,000 Gold
  • Levels 5 – 19:  10,000 Gold

This update also brings a new battleground, the Garden of Terror which involves collecting seeds and unleashing the Garden Terror. A new hero has also been added to the mix in the form of Warcraft’s Rehgar Eathfury. Having not played WoW for ages I have no idea who this Orc is but he looks like he could do the business with his Chain Heal, Lightning Shield and Ghost Wolf.

The levelling system has also been reworked with progressions rewards now reorganised and the Co-op and Versus modes no longer need to be unlocked which means you can jump right in without having to level-up.

Hero Quests have also been renamed to to Hero Levels with XP points from playing Co-op and Versus matches counting toward player and hero level. Each hero will now have to level up separately to unlock Heroic Abilities and talents which means you’re going to have to work harder with each hero.

• A level 1 Hero now starts with two Talents available at each tier of in-game Talent selection, and one Heroic Ability.
• A Hero’s second Heroic Ability can be unlocked by reaching level 2.
• Hero level 3 grants 6 additional talents for that Hero, one at each tier.
• Level 4 unlocks all remaining Talent choices for that Hero.

This is a major update for the game and some of these changes are quite literally game changers. Blizzard look to be moving away from creating and easily accessible MOBA and HOTS is now starting to fall more in-line with the other popular MOBAs. I’m not sure that’s a great idea. Some innovation would actually be quite nice for a change but then again Blizzard are not exactly known for innovation.

Check the full notes here.