Anub'arak Balance/"Speedy Bug" Build by VonWolfstein

Anub'arak Balance/"Speedy Bug" Build

By: VonWolfstein
Last Updated: Jan 4, 2016
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Anub'arak

Build: Anub'arak AoE Build

Level 1
Level 4
Level 7
Level 10
Level 13
Level 16
Level 20

Threats to Anub'arak with this build

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Threat Hero Notes
1
 Cho Due to Anub'araks speediness, Cho'gall isn't much of a threat, as Anub'arak can easily weave around Cho'galls attacks, not to mention stun the monster out of commission. If all else fails, his E is a powerful escape for him to gather some buddies to stunlock the big baddie.
1
 Gall Due to his speediness, Anub'arak doesn't have much to fear from Gall's W attack, or his E drops. Gall's more popular shadow bolt volley R is easy to escape, but watch out for the other ultimate.
1
 Abathur Slapathur can't really stop this bug from having a presence in the lanes, and Anub'arak is very capable of soloing monstrosities. Abathur is only a threat if he can copy a powerful escaping ranged hero, like Valla or Falstad.
1
 Lt. Morales Lt. Morales can be a powerful support to a sustaining enemy team, but Anub'arak can put her out of commission easily with his cocoon, and keep her stunlocked with his powerful CC.
2
 E.T.C. With Anub'araks ability to stun from a distance, ETC's CCs become a bit redundant.
2
 Stitches Stitches can hurt if you've exhausted your E and you are pulled back to him. That being said, with this build, your AoE damage and your sustainability with regeneration master and shields don't really make this warrior much of a threat. Just be cautious about your escape.
2
 The Lost Vikings The Lost Vikings don't represent much of a holistic threat, due to Anub'araks powerful AoE and sustainability. That being said, the soaking power of TLV is immense, and can be always be a threat in terms of level.
3
   No Threat
4
 Diablo Anub'arak can stop a Diablo in his tracks if he tries for his team. That being said, Diablo's CC is powerful, and is something to be cautious of. Luckily, Anub'araks kit practically counters this daemonic Diablo series bad guy.
4
 Sgt. Hammer Sgt. Hammer can really hurt if you aren't careful against her. That being said, aim your Q's well, and she won't be a problem. If you're on Infernal Shrines and Sgt. Hammer is hitting pretty hard, don't be afraid to trap her in a cocoon. Odds are she's away from her team, and it will take them time to decide to either get her back in the fight quickly, or face your team. Not to mention that she is perfect target practice for your Impale, as she is a virtual sitting duck.
4
 Artanis Artanis, as a bruiser, can be tough against. Luckily, Anub'arak's kit is designed, with this build, to escape his E and prevent his shields. You can knock him out with your impale, and hit him hard with some added burning damage. Not to mention if he tries to escape, you can stun him and hit him with your blood for blood. If his shield is down, you will get this hero knocked out. You can also easily escape his laser beam R, and burning rage can help soften the other blinding ultimate.
4
 Azmodan Azmodan can only truly be a threat when he builds his melting E. Otherwise, your beetles will face his warriors (and probably lose), but you will win hero versus hero with your powerful CC and blocks. He can't really escape you, and he can only truly damage you if he's melting you. Therefore, the usage of your E as a means to engage are acceptable. This is a time when you don't truly have to escape him - even if you do, the shed exoskeleton talent lets you get out of his E pretty quick.
5
 Arthas Arthas is an underused "Perfect warrior" that can really hit you hard with his roots, his trait, and his death coil. His E slow shouldn't be an issue, as you have multiple escapes and with the speedy bug talent, you can escape it, but definitely be wary of the roots. The same goes for Thrall.
5
 Brightwing Polymorph can bug you. Bug Brightwing back with some loving CC and cocoons. Who knows, maybe you'll turn her into a caterpillar.
6
 Thrall Roots. Roots are a big problem for Anub'arak, primarily because if he is focused down and rooted, Anub'arak, while he has sustainability, will still melt. Therefore, be cautious with your E and when to use it, and be map conscious of this hero. If you have good map awareness of Thrall, you can stop his attacks with your great CC. That being said, chain lightning will hurt you when you're escaping, so try to escape into areas he can't see.
6
 Gazlowe Gazlowe can hurt with his turrets, but his stuns aren't fast enough to stop Anub'arak. You can impale him pretty well, and then melt him with your damage output. Coupled with a strong ADC like Raynor, Gazlowe is a weak target. Alone, Anub'arak can still sustain, but it will take some time. You can lane versus this hero, as your bugs help you take out turrets. Just micro around the stuns - if you get stunlocked, you can get ganked quite well.
6
 Illidan
7
 Chen Chen can be a real pain with his ridiculous survivability and his strong flying kicks. He can slow you down a lot, so make sure you be judicious about your E. Chen doesn't die easily, and his trait can pretty much keep him out of a teamfight. But, he is like Anub'arak (minus the CC) - powerful AoE damage combined with strong sustain.
8
   No Threat
9
 Falstad Falstad is a huge problem with Anub'arak, because he can do really massive damage to the bug, and chase hard if he uses his E and Q at the right time. Do not try to lane versus Falstad, you might not be able to reach him. He, like Valla, has good initiation and good escape. You have to be wary of this.
9
 Valla Valla is the biggest pain in this bug's thorax. She can really melt him if she builds up her trait, or if she builds up her hungering arrow. Her great escapes and range make her a formidable foe in the lane. I would advise you let a teammate who has a hero able to lane versus Valla.
10
   No Threat

Introduction Top

From empiricism, I find Anub'arak to be horrendously underused. This depends on the current meta, but considering most metas revolve around CC, it is imperative to know that Anub'arak is the master of CC. From a CC skillshot that CC's in a line to a CC escape, the only thing that would make Anub'arak more CC is if he had an ultimate that temporarily put heroes out of any fight. Oh wait. He's got that, too. So why not play him?

Well, he's the kind of bug you gotta build around. So let's make a build that lets him be a little more sustainable with escapes, a little more annoying with a cute nuke, and a little more pushy with some AoE.

I was playing a game with Anub'arak recently, and I was lagging pretty hard. Out of panic and mid team fight, I chose Shed Exoskeleton instead of Urticating Spines, and was planning on building the bug to be completely AoE with coccoon. At first, I was a bit anxious, but then I realised that Shed Exoskeleton is easily a greater talent. Why? Because you can still get another nuke later. Let's break-down the build with another chapter.

Build Break-Down Top

1. Regeneration Master
Why choose Regeneration Master at level 1? Primarily because Anub'arak simply needs it. While Extended Spikes seems like a good idea, the reality is Anub'arak doesn't live for long without a little bit of help. So, to curb this, it's a better idea to snack on some regen globes (ideally you want about 3x per minute, if you can't get 3x per minute, try 2x) so you can last a little longer in combat. Anub'arak relies a lot on his shield, but if he gets blasted through it, he can always escape with his E, regenerate quickly, and re-enter. It's easily more preferable than a 25% range increase on your primary CC. I would recommend you take Regeneration Master every time, unless you are rolling deep with two supports named Uther and Rehgar. Otherwise, don't risk it.

4. Locust Needles[/i]
A controversial stance at talent four for a CC bug. Why not add a lengthier CC and escape with Underking? Well, because you won't need it. With regeneration master and shed exoskeleton at your side, realistically, your E doesn't really need a buff. Now, if you're feeling skittish because you don't play Anub'arak, I still recommend Locust Needles. It helps in waveclear immensely, and it helps in teamfights - especially on maps with close quarters, and especially on maps with narrow passageways like Dragon Shrine, Blackheart's Bay, Towers of Doom and even when you're gathering some tribute on Cursed Hollow. The reality of Anub'arak is that he has some powerful AoE. You might as well spec into it.

7. Shed Exoskeleton
Shed Exoskeleton was something I found out in a headrush. Originally, I went full-blown AoE bug, but then I accidentally clicked on Shed Exoskeleton during an anxiety flare in the midst of a lag-spiking team-fight. I actually enjoy Shed Exoskeleton. Because this build doesn't exactly rely on beetles, and rather relies on being employable in team fights, the 25% increase in movement speed works well with any support, and allows you to position yourself better as a bruising AoE/CC tank.

10. Cocoon
Interestingly enough, cocoon is (at the current moment of writing this guide) not the popular heroic with Anub'arak. The locust swarm is useful for health purposes, but the reality is, cocoon is stronger for teamfights. Being able to single out a healer or an annoying CC tank like Diablo with a virtually complete disable is powerful. While cocoon is breakable, it will, at bear minimum, give you about two-three seconds of table-turning gameplay. I can't tell you how many times I've turned the tides of battle with cocoon. Rehgar can't ancestral heal when he's stuck in a sleeping bag. Uther can't divine shield when he's talking to spiders. Diablo can't drop some twisty-turny-stunny-stuns when he's trapped in a web from a spider's bum.

13. Burning Rage
Oh man! Why burning rage? Primarily because this talent allows you to scare away some melee DPS. Not all melee DPS, but burning rage really helps in the AoE teamfights, it, along with Locust Needles results in some heavy-hitting AoE damage perfect for fights against strong frontlines. The 40% increase by Chitinous Plating should only be utilised if you have no healer, or if you did not take Regeneration Master. Otherwise, due to your globe-gobbling, burning rage will be a suitable pick at 13.

16. Blood for Blood
Nothing annoys a nova more than A) being unable to kill a target and B) getting killed by said sustaining target after she tries to escape. Blood for Blood is an extremely helpful talent for Anub'arak, since his health pool is mediocre, and he needs to be able to stay alive in team fights. Without the extra vampiricism (Which also serves as a handy mid-range magic missile) Anub'arak loses a lot of sustainability. Imposing Presence is not applicable to this build, since we are sacrificing some shield for damage. If you chose chitinous plating, by all means, take imposing presence.

20. Rewind
A bit more self-explanatory. You want to be able to launch as much CC as possible, especially if you are, by some ungodly chance, the only CCer on the team. Not only does this add more beetles to the fight, it allows you to drop more shields on yourself and escape faster if you need it. It also allows you to initiate with your E, or save a buddy from behind a wall.

Closing Top

Anub'arak is, with reiteration, a highly underused hero. His CC is impeccable, his sustainability is admirable. The biggest problem is he's a bug that can be easily exterminated by a powerful backline, especially with a KT-Nova tag-team. With this build, Anub'arak can last a little longer, and his team-fight viability becomes a lot stronger. If you have questions, please feel free to ask me in the comments, in a message, or online in Heroes of the Storm.

Good luck, have fun, and happy hunting.

EDIT #1: I will add more heroes to the threat bar later. My bed is calling.

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