Break through dimensions with Khadath Ahemusei, a tricky bruiser who abuses line of sight to win fights.

Backstory

“I can’t rest yet… not with so many depending on me.”

The prince of a small tribal nation, Khadath’s people have been burdened by a terrible curse foretelling of their extinction. Intent on defying the gods and finding a home for his people beyond their reach, Khadath looked to the stars, and set out to master planar science at Argent University.

Now able to jump through the spaces between worlds, Khadath searches for a new paradise among the stars, while protecting his homeland from threats both within and without.

Pros

• A powerful ability that enables safe, uncontestable attacks from behind cover.
• Extreme repositioning utility for the whole team.
• Long and far-reaching effective ranges.

Cons

• Low power makes head to head combat difficult.
• Relies on proper use of terrain and cover to gain value.

Gameplay

Khadath uses interdimensional portals to teleport himself and his teammates during combat. Thanks to this and his long ranges, Khadath is able to apply a large amount of pressure on the entire map, even if opponents are hiding behind cover. So long as he is the Attacker, Khadath’s attacks gain Arced, including any Normals he happens to play. This allows him to not only catch hiding opponents, but also harass enemies from the safety of his own defensive fortifications.

This, combined with his multitude of movement options, lets Khadath weave in and out of sightlines while pelting opponents with ranged attacks. A well-played Khadath is so slippery that he seems completely unhittable.

Team Role

Khadath is classified as a Bruiser but don’t let that fool you into thinking he’s a melee fighter. Khadath squarely plays a mid to long ranged game that abuses terrain and mobility to break sightlines. His ability and ranged attacks give him the feel of a mid-ranged artillery unit—able to support his team safely from a distance by providing covering fire. Khadath’s artifacts and attacks also give his entire team more mobility, letting them move when they otherwise would not be able to, giving Khadath a secondary advantage of being a sort of tactical commander unit who can ferry his allies into better placements.

Khadath’s strengths are great but his weaknesses are quite obvious. Even if his attacks have great range and mobility, his speed and power leave much to be desired. If he ever gets caught out of position, he will easily lose most combats. As a result, Khadath really appreciates help from other Bruisers and Tanks who can defend him in these dire situations.

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Hook Strike

A powerful attack with deceptive range. Even if Strafe movements are lateral, Wardens are able to angle it such that it brings them slightly closer or further away from their targets. This means that Hook Strike can actually hit enemies that are further away than its listed range. Regardless, this attack allows Khadath to maneuver in and out of cover to break sightlines, catch opponents hiding behind terrain, or simply avoid an opponent’s counterattack. This is relevant because Hook Strike relies heavily on its mobility to win strikes. If Khadath ever gets tagged while using it, he will very likely lose the contest of power and get wounded.

Sonic Cymbals gives you a lot of positional control over your opponent. Much like with Hook Strike, the Shunt can be angled such that it can effectively create or close distance, letting the user evade attacks or place the opponent out of position.

Warp Slash

In playtesting, this move became the genesis of a tried and true Khadath gambit that’s been appropriately nicknamed “abducting”. Because of its large range and unique Pull effect that ignores terrain, Khadath can use this with his ability to hit any opponent in range and drag them into the middle of his team, activating all their Assist bonuses and likely wounding the target. If terrain is placed correctly, this will also make it nigh-impossible for that Warden to leave before being ganked into oblivion. A powerful tool for picking off pesky opposing Wardens, Warp Slash literally warps the entire game around Khadath, forcing opponents to stay out of the “abduction zone” lest they instantly lose a Warden.

Calling Staff is a powerful repositioning tool that can be used on both allies and enemies. Since it only affects non-targets, much of its strength comes from affecting positioning for future turns. Obviously, this can be used to bring an ally closer and provide their Assist bonuses, but Calling Staff can also  be used to pull an entirely separate opponent off a control point.

Castle Move

As a battlefield dispatcher, Castle Move is one of Khadath’s most powerful tactical options. He can, at fast speed, swap places with an ally within M. Note that this does not require line of sight, making the options for this movement as diverse as the number of Wardens that are near Khadath. This lets Khadath reposition himself and his allies in and out of cover to create surprise angles from behind terrain. This can also be used to save a wounded teammate by letting Khadath take the hit for them instead, giving Khadath even more team-oriented plays.

Portal Scroll has shows its true power in the hands of a Khadath team as the extra repositioning feeds into his gameplan of maneuvering Wardens and using them as points of threat, even from behind cover.

Tackle (Normal)

While Khadath’s entire kit is built around his maneuverability and Arced attacks, his Normal serves to round it out by giving him the one thing he doesn’t have: a good melee attack. Tackle is by no means the most powerful Normal in the game, but it does its job well. It lets Wardens get into a better position and outpower a large majority of the tricky utility attacks with its 3 power. This is the first attack we’ve seen with Knock down.

A Knocked down Warden cannot be selected as a Defender and also cannot provide Assist effects. This means that if you Knock down an enemy and immediately strike them after, they will not be able to defend themselves and will likely lose that strike. If an enemy strikes you, you will be the one to take the next turn. You can see where this is going. If the enemy strikes into you and you use Tackle to Knock them down, you can pretty much guarantee a free strike into them next turn. This makes Tackle a powerful defensive tool that disincentives opponents from recklessly attacking you in melee. Just what Khadath needs.

Climbing Hooks gives any movement on Khadath’s team the ability to ignore terrain. Many attacks with far-reaching movement are often kept in check by terrain limiting how far they can usually go. This artifact turns all of those attacks into insane teleports that allow for crazy off-angle attacks that opponents will not see coming.

Conclusion

Khadath’s tricks and maneuverability make him the thinking-person’s Bruiser. His combination of excellent positional play, wide ranges, and Arced threats really reward teams who use terrain and cover to their advantage. If you’re in need of an ace up your sleeve, Khadath is who you want for your team.

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