Summary
Support heroes are the backbone of the team inOverwatch 2. Tanks bait out cooldowns and take space for the team and damage characters make the important picks to win a team fight, but without a competent support duo, no one is standing long enough to make it all happen. Support heroes aren’t only healers, though. Their kits provide much of the utility that enables other characters to thrive in battle.
Support characters boost allied damage, negate enemy healing, and more. These are without a doubt the strongest support hero abilities with howOverwatch 2is currently balanced.
10Fade (Moira)
The original “get out of jail free” card, Moira’s Fade ability used to be the best mobility a support hero had. It encourages Moira to play around her teammates, knowing that she canpump damageand heal while escaping a sticky situation.
Unfortunately, the ability has been powercrept by a much quicker gameplay philosophy, but Fade is still quite good. A competent Moira can control this ability’s cooldown to weave in and out of battle as needed.
9Swift Step (Kiriko)
Swift Step is all the proof needed to demonstrate how much mobility supports have gained inOverwatch’s sequel. With this ability, Kiriko is able to teleport to a teammate within 35 meters of her - and through walls, no less.
This ability is a great way to get to a teammate in trouble, assuming they’re safe enough to warrant a teleport. More importantly, this is a great way for Kiriko to remove herself from a failing fight, denying the opposing team ult charge and aiding her team’s escape.
8Healing Pylon (Illari)
The newest addition to the game’s roster of characters, Illari has arrived with avery powerful kit of abilities. The main ability, the Healing Pylon, allows Illari to heal her teammates while actively engaging the enemy at the same time.
This ability has a fantastic rate of healing, frees Illari up to participate in damage dealing, and helps build ult charge incredibly quickly. The Healing Pylon is a must-have for a team on defense.
7Sleep Dart (Ana)
Ana’s Sleep Dart is one of those abilities that theentire enemy team has to play around. If it’s off cooldown, it has the potential to ruin an entire play. A landed Sleep Dart can stop a flank before it starts, isolate an overextended enemy, freeze up their backline, or simply stall an entire push.
This ability even allows Ana to stop enemy ultimates from going off - it’s great against abilities like High Noon and Gravitic Flux!
6Resurrect (Mercy)
Though it has an unforgiving cooldown time and a several-second cast animation, Mercy’s Resurrect ability is one of themost powerful abilities inOverwatch.
In the new 5v5 gameplay format, losing a teammate in a fighthas never been more impactful. Resurrect mitigates the damage the enemy team can do by making a quick intro pick, ensuring Mercy’s team still has a chance at winning a big fight.
5Discord Orb (Zenyatta)
Overwatch 2’s 5v5 format has also made Zenyatta even more powerful than before. While the character might not beexplicitly meta right now, what with healing being prioritized over anything else at the moment, Zenyatta is a high-damage threat.
The Discord Orb amplifies damage any damage the target receives… with only one tank on a team, Zenyatta can “set and forget” this ability as long as he stays in line-of-sight of the enemy tank, and he gets absolutely free, game-changing utility with the orb.
4Immortality Field (Baptiste)
While Immortality Field is on a very lengthy cooldown, it’s one of the few abilities in the game that provides the utility that the name suggests - functional immortality. Teammates need to stay within line of sight of the lamp, and the ability can be destroyed early, but a skilled Baptiste can use this ability to save a life when healing just won’t do the trick.
The Immortality Field is also great for canceling ults that would otherwise be nearly unstoppable, such as Junkrat’s tire and D.Va’s bomb.
3Life Grip (Lifeweaver)
The only ability in the game that can forcibly reposition teammates, Life Grip has the potential to be one of the best abilities in the game - if playersknow how to use it correctly. Allies pulled by Life Grip are invulnerable until they reach Lifeweaver’s position, so this ability allows a competent support to yank someone from their demise.
Other great ways to use Life Grip include pulling damage characters to high ground or pulling a teammate to come peel for a dive. This ability has so many potential uses, and that utility makes it one of the better abilities in the game.
2Biotic Grenade (Ana)
Biotic Grenade has some of the best value out of any support ability because it consistently buffs Ana’s team while severely debuffing the enemy team. The Biotic Grenade debuff is only shared with Junker Queen’s ultimate, making Ana an incredibly pivotal pick for the team.
The Biotic Grenade is so powerful that it sometimes necessitates a counter pick to even deal with. Zarya’s bubbles can cleanse the effect, but the only other way to deal with the anti-healing effect without letting the timer run is to use the best support ability in the game…
1Protection Suzu (Kiriko)
Kiriko’s best ability by far, the Protection Suzu heals teammates for a small amount upon impact, makes them completely invulnerable for a fraction of a second, and completely cleanses debuffs.
This ability can remove Ana and Junker Queen’s anti-healing effect, Illari’s ultimate Sunstruck status, and more. There’s no real replacement for having a great Kiriko on a team, and it’s all thanks to Protection Suzu.
Overwatch 2is available now on PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox One Series X/S, and Nintendo Switch.
