This section I will go in depth on each tier of talents and their ability to be effectively utilized. For the sake of this section each talent will be colored based on usage and viability.
Level 1
Spiritwalker's Grace - Reduces the mana cost of Chain heal from 75 - 40.
This talent use to be subpar when artifacts were a thing, now that they have been removed this talent has seen an increase in viability. Rehgar's mana usage isn't the best or the worst, so this talent really only shines when you feel you have little chance of out poking your lane match up and want to simply soak and last until your other power spikes show up.
Empowering Charge - Lightning Shield also increases the damage of the target's next 3 basic attacks by 25%.
This is my usual go to talent due mainly to its early game effectiveness and synergy with common lane partners such as Raynor and Valla.It can net you some early kills and pressure if your opponent isn't paying attention to your early talent choices. With the multiple talents that buff your lightning shield, this is almost always the best choice.
Colossal Totem - Increases the area of Earthbind Totem by 50% and its health by 100%
Has its uses but I personally feel its lackluster unless heavily invested into. The increased range on the slow makes it more reliable, but I find that once you adapt your positioning and learn your limits its not that big of a gain for what you lose. Its overshadowed in survivability by Grace and utility by Empowering. Get this if you enjoy the niche totem build, if not..pass it up.
Healing Totem - Activate to place a totem that heals allies in an area for 2% of their max health every second for 10 seconds.
Until they increase the healing, lower the cool down...do something with it I just don't see its viability. It can be useful in lane sustainability but even then the mana reduction from Grace is just better in that regard. I haven't found this talent useful since testing it. I'm open to feedback but until then I wouldn't in any way recommend this talent.
Level 4
Focused Attacks - Every 10 seconds your next basic attack deals 50% additional attack damage. Basic attacks reduce the cool down by 1 second.
Not much to say about this, few heroes can make use of this talent and Rehgar isn't one of them. Some may chose to get this for Carryghar but even then I feel speccing into the increased regeneration is still better than the very situational bonus this gives. It does have synergy with Rehgar's passive but its not easy to manage and even when done correctly it won't make or break how your duel would have turned out.
Chain Reaction - Chain heals on allies with Lightning Shield active are increased by 25%.
Very useful in passive support builds. Has inherent synergy with both chain heal and lightning shield, can allow you to bait some substantial burst healing if your opponent is unaware you picked up this talent because most would expect you to have Feral Heart. This talent has lost a bit of flavor since artifacts were removed and you are required to be alittle more mindful of your mana, but still a worthwhile decision and investment.
Reactive Spark - Lightning Shield's duration does not start until an enemy is nearby.
Eh, not that great in my opinion. Useful in situations when you are roaming with an assassin and want to stack the basic attack bonus early to allow you to double up for 6 bonus attacks. Still, its lackluster compared to the other options in this tier and I'm not convinced its worth it.
Feral Heart - Gain 100% increased health and mana regeneration while in Ghost Wolf form.
The go to choice for the most part in the current meta. Allows you lane longevity to soak and with the multiple top tier choices to boost your Ghost Wolf, this is almost always a good investment. Its slight drawback is that it does kinda dictate you into a passive lane presence but its benefits far out weight the drawbacks.
FarSight - Activate to reveal the target area. Enemies in the area are revealed for 4 seconds.
Not great. Other heroes get Clairvoyance and usually on levels that its affordable to get. This can potentially give great information on objectives but other heroes just do this better. Pass on this in most situations.
Level 7
Battle Momentum - Basic Attacks reduce Ability cool downs by 0.5 seconds.
Honestly haven't tested this to much. Has potential to be decent but with the Lightning Shield talent being on this tier its hard to justify investing into this.
Earth Shield - Lightning Shield also shields the ally, absorbing 200 damage over 3 seconds.
This Talent is so good. It scales so well with level and with the other talents you are likely to get, it just keeps paying for itself over the course of the game. One of Rehgar's downfalls is his one healing ability, this talent helps to eliminate that weakness.
Shadow Wolf - When entering Ghost Wolf, you are cloaked for 2 seconds.
This Talent can be very fun and is kinda a variable in its viability. It has the potential to add to your survivability, your ability to footsie your opponents and just your general ability to toy around and create some pretty fun situations. That being said, its ultimately kinda lacking and in most situations you will want to look at your other options before picking this up.
Searing Attacks - Activate to increase Basic Attack damage by 50% for 5 seconds. Each attacks costs mana.
Really only one situation when this talent outshines any of the others and that is with a very aggressive Solo Que build. Has great synergy with your level 1 Lightning Shield talent as well as some later talents which can transform you into a dueling machine. If you aren't going for a yolo build do not pick this up.
Level 10 [Ultimates]
Bloodlust - Give nearby Allies 40% attack speed and 30% movement speed. Lasts 10 seconds.
So. Good. The possibilities with this Ultimate are endless. Gives you the ability to turn team fights on a dime as well as claim objectives/push keeps and forts quickly and safely. Also worth noting is the disengagement this ability gives when fights don't seem worth the risk. Be careful about the early versions of this because the range isn't huge and if your position is bad you will not hit your team and this ability will quickly lose effectiveness.
Ancestral Healing - After a short delay, heal target allied hero for 600(+140 per level)
This Ultimate is also very worthwhile. It allows you to bait fights into a favorable situation as well as negate wombo combos that are unleashed on yourself or your carry. This scales incredibly well and has a cool down low enough that using it to save yourself or someone caught out isn't a bad decision. Worth noting is that on the Dragon Knight map, you can use this ultimate on the DK to heal it for a very substantial amount increasing the effectiveness of that objective.
Level 13
Spell Shield - Upon taking ability damage, gains a shield that reduces all ability damage taken by 50% for 2 seconds. Can only trigger once every 30 seconds.
The Talent itself isn't bad, and you might find it on alot of other heroes builds. On Rehgar however, its just not that useful. You already have enough inherent survivability that investing into this leaves you weaker based on the choices you left behind, but all-in-all not the worst talent in the game if you decide you want to take it.
Healing Surge - Increases Chain Heal's healing on the primary target by 25% and heal an additional target.
Very good Talent. Substantially increases your team's survivability and coupled with Lightning Shield's HP shield, can really give you the push you need to win team fights. Given Rehgar's good heal scaling this can end up healing for over 1.1k on primary targets during late game team fights.
Storm Shield - Reduces the cool down of Lightning Shield from 8 seconds to 6 seconds and its mana cost by 50%.
Decent but not great. It gives you more mana efficiency and gives you slightly more shield spamming, but just isn't really worth getting over either Healing Surge or Feral Lunge.
Lightning Totem - Earthbind Totem automatically gains Lightning Shield when created.
I, uh.. just don't get the point of this talent. I don't see a foreseeable consequence where this makes or breaks any factor in your game. Nothing really more to say, I don't see myself ever getting this and I don't recommend it.
Feral Lunge - While in Ghost Wolf, you lunge a short distance towards your attack target. The damage bonus for Basic Attacks in Ghost Wolf is increased from 100% to 200%.
The potential of this ability is amazing. It gives you multiple advantages, whether it be the obvious damage increase or the mind games it can play with the lunge mechanic.The Lunge can be used to catch opponents, dodge ultimates, gain aggressive positioning.. its just so good. One thing often overlooked is that if you lunge towards a target and get the timing down before you actually connect with the auto, you can re-click another target within range and you will redirect towards it allowing you to take juking to a unbelievable level.
Level 16
Lightning Bond - Casting Lightning Shield on an ally also casts it on you, including any talent bonuses.
My number one choice for this tier. You gain so much effective hp/damage from this that its almost a no brainer to pick this up. The only times I see this not being utilized is yoloque builds that may go for niche kills with BFB.
Earthgrasp Totem - Increases the cast range of Earthbind Totem by 3 and the initial slow becomes a 1 second root.
Not bad. Adds a little CC to your kit, and makes the range viable to use without putting yourself in immediate danger. I still would place LB a level above this one but its not bad if you feel it suits you more.
Blood for Blood - Activate to steal 15% of target enemy's max health and slow its movement speed by 30% for 3 seconds.
Fun pick. When going Carryghar build this is a really efficient pick up. Allows you to actually out duel most heroes if played right. That being said I wouldn't recommend it unless you don't really care about the outcome of the game, as this will really only net you highlight reels, not wins.
Berserk - Activate to increase your Attack Speed by 40% movement speed by 10% for 4 seconds.
A personal lust. Not much more to say here, not great and BFB will most likely be the better choice for an offensive talent in this tier.
Level 20 [Advanced Ultimates]
Fury of the Storm - Basic attacks bounce twice to nearby enemies for 50% damage.
No, just no.
Storm Shield - Activate to give all nearby allied heroes a shield for 20% of their max health for 3 seconds.
Not really all that bad, this talents downfall is mainly its range. Its so short that its not really viable to hit your entire team and with the really big advantages your level 2 ultimates give you, its just not worth taking a chance on this.
Gladiator's War Shout - Bloodlust affects all allied heroes, minions, and mercenaries on the entire battleground and can be cast without breaking Ghost Wolf.
Basically just compounds on whats already good about level 10 lust. It doesnt increase in raw stats but rather allows you to lust while splitting, lust while minions are pushing an advantage, or lust while someone on your team attempts something cheeky. Also this removes the range drawback from early game on lusting at inopportune times.
Farseer's Blessing - Ancestral Healing now heals for 100% of the allied heroes health. Allies near the target are also healed for 25% of the initial amount.
Probably the biggest gain of the two advanced ultimates. The already huge heal is only increased in effectiveness with this talent. Something to note is that when using this on something such as Dragon Knight, the heal heals for the max hp of the DK not the target inside the DK.
Heroes of the Storm Build Guides
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