Overwatch guide: best hero team comps
Six of the best: the heroes and their roles in your new favourite team composition.
Overwatch guide: best hero team comps
Want to clean up in Overwatch? You’re right, there’s no quick and easy solution. You can, however, give yourself a handle on the game with this VG247-certified good time gang.
Balancing six-hero teams in Overwatch greatly depends on the mode you’re playing and the strengths/preferences of guys by your side. But if you’ve managed to assemble six friends for the evening and want to be in with a fighting chance at the very least, we’ve settled on this merry band of thieves to steal victory from the over-keen and desperately disorganised.
So as not to upset the helper on the menu, which aggravates the OCD in some people when boxes are left unchecked, the VG247 Foundational Team is spread across all four Roles. That said, we do favour agile Offense heroes and chose our Tank because of her unlimited ammo. Basically, this team is built for fun and pins down the opposition while not becoming easy targets. Notable omissions include Reinhardt (too specific) and Bastion (too needy), but they can always be substituted for their respective Tank and Defence roles if you’re desperate.
Soldier: 76 (Role: Offense, Difficulty: Easy)
Why 76: He’s the most adaptable, dependable and common-sense hero of the entire roster. Capable of looking after himself, clearing pathways through weaker/weakened heroes and while backing out of trouble, 76 can also provide additional health support to wingmen.
Basic Job: Stick close to the team, to spearhead attacks or assist slower TTK allies under fire (and bag their eliminations). Flank the enemy team if they’re grouped together and create distraction by spraying in their general direction, retreat to lure angry heroes into traps.
Reaper (Role: Offense, Difficulty: Easy)
Why Reaper: Ridiculously fast TTK, guaranteeing kills which are always pleasing. He’s hard to hit in Wraith Form and harder to predict during Shadow Step. A solid Reaper just keeps the heads spinning of the opposition, infuriating and crucially distracting in all game modes.
Basic Job: Eliminate stationary, highly threatening targets such as Bastion and Widowmaker. Work around the hotspots to swiftly close down weaker/weakened heroes; go dancing with Tracer and take your chances strafing the slower-moving Tanks. Be supremely annoying.
Hanzo (Role: Defence, Difficulty: Hard)
Why Hanzo: Rewards a skilled hand (seasoned FPS player) with precision kills from range, fully aware of surroundings and still perfectly agile. His recon capability is of benefit to the team, so can play less aggressively too, relying on Dragonstrike for the satisfaction of kills.
Basic Job: Assist the team, using cover to hurt most heroes with helpful body shots with the high possibility of landing headshots. Take out snipers identified by the team, chip away at Bastion and Torbjörn turrets. Recon with Sonic Arrow. Usually sit back, don’t get stuck in.
Widowmaker (Role: Defence, Difficulty: Medium)
Why Widowmaker: The sniper meta is real! Many teams are on the whole unprepared for one-shot take downs from who knows where. Widowmaker is unrivalled at finding specific targets. Her Venom Mines cool down fast to aid with eliminations for the rest of the team.
Basic Job: Experienced FPS players, take to the high ground or darkest corners and wait for opportunities just on the fringe of your own team. Average (normal) players, Venom Mine plus full-auto firing mode is a great combo. Infra-sight can be your greatest contribution.
D.Va (Role: Tank, Difficulty: Medium)
Why D.Va and not Reinhardt, specifically? D.Va is so much fun to use, gives the player a pass on death by sacrificing her mech – usually – running for cover to defend. The mech is also a guided missile capable of taking out multiple targets. What’s not to like here!?
Basic Job: Get among the action, soaking up the hits in order to relieve your allies and give them clearer shots on foes that can already taste your blood. Enjoy the infinite ammo of Fusion Cannons, causing DPS without having to reload. Aim mech Self Destruct at crowds.
Mercy (Role: Support, Difficulty: Easy)
Why Mercy: She can heal, and bring you back to life. You are always happy because of this. Guided by the right hands, Mercy can boost the performance of this entire team with perhaps the exception of Reaper whose sporadic movement keeps him out of reach.
Basic Job: Shadow the heroes that most need assistance, monitor allied health bars at all times. Work with the main Offence heroes, advise them when their health is low, alerting them to danger from a position of safety. Help your Tank to soak up the heat.
Cornerstones
Mercy is such an important hero in this team, with the wait of responsibility on her shoulders to keep everyone in the fight. She can make up for lack of skill, basically, improving chances of multi-kills. Reaper is the guy you’ll want to be causing the most havoc. A great Hanzo can be legendary on this team, given that his ultimate is so devastating too. If Soldier: 76 completes a solid tour of duty, the rest should be gravy shared between D.Va and Widowmaker.
Partnerships
Generally, on this team, it’s Mercy plus whoever, but the guardian angel is most effective in support of a cautious Soldier: 76. Hanzo, keeping an eye on where Reaper is up to, can pick his targets from the headless-chicken antics of a dastardly Reaper’s intended prey. D.Va can whack anyone closing in on Hanzo or Widowmaker, simultaneously acting as their lure.
Stand-ins
For Hanzo, the most popular choice would be Bastion as a Defender on this team. We built this primarily for flexibility of positioning. You’d lose your mid-range marksman though and that ridiculous ultimate. Right now, Reinhardt is a basic for Escort so bring him in for D.Va. The badass knight is very role-specific though, which is why we’re suggesting D.Va for fun.
General Tactics
This is a fairly loose but balanced team that benefits from communication specific to health. It’s built for adaptability across the whole map, on most of the 12 maps, expecting that each player can take care of their own, but has sufficient awareness of allies to watch their backs.