Overwatch’s newest hero, Echo, is looking to be one of the game’s strongest with her super powerful Duplicate Ultimate and Focusing Beam, but it’s her Sticky Bombs that may need to be nerfed before she hits the live client.
While Echo’s mobility has already been adjusted on the PTR, her kit remains very strong, with Sticky Bombs able to deal a ton of damage.
Every six seconds, the hero can launch a volley of six projectiles that do five damage upon impact and stick to a target. After a short delay, the detonate dealing thirty damage per bomb.
If every bomb sticks to an enemy, you’re looking at 180 explosion damage or 210 when factoring in the five for impact. This number is key because it means any squishy hero can instantly die.
Overwatch League MVP Jay ‘Sinatraa’ Won demonstrated how powerful this ability is during a special exhibition game on Junkertown against the Seoul Dynasty on March 22.
Right out of the gate, the San Francisco Shock star fired Sticky Bombs at the Seoul players as they left the spawn. With some help from a Mercy damage boost and Ana Bionade, Echo’s ability was able to claim two victims only three seconds after the round began. (Timestamp 23:45 for mobile viewers)
Not only was he able to pick up two quick frags, but he earned 41% Ultimate charge in the process.
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Sinatraa wasn’t the only pro to discover some spawn tricks with Echo either, although this next one is a bit more advanced.
Overwatch pro Liam ‘Mangachu’ Campbell, who won a Silver Medal with Canada in the 2017 World Cup, found the best way to use Sticky Bombs is right when an enemy is leaving the spawn.
https://twitter.com/Mangachu_/status/1241241083616657409
In a short Twitter clip, the Canadian DPS showed that if you can read the spawn timer for the enemy perfectly, you can time your Sticky Bombs to hit them right as they’re leaving the spawn room.
Due to Echo’s powerful vertical mobility, she can easily see the enemy spawn without ever needing to be directly in front of it. As the second part of the clip shows, Mangachu is able to time exactly when his adversary is leaving the spawn, use Flight, and use Sticky Bombs in combination with his primary fire to score easy kills
Additionally, in the event that an enemy barely survives the burst of damage, Echo has plenty of tools in her kit to finish them off. Focusing Beam can easily confirm those kills considering it does 200 damage per second on any target (including barriers) under half health.
It’s unclear if Echo’s Sticky Bombs will receive any nerfs before she ends up going live, but if they don’t, players everywhere should be wary of the incredible damage they will be up against.