by JR Cook - 9 years ago     show comments

Thrall is the warchief of the horde who plays as a strong front line character in the nexus. With his sustain and damage capabilities Thrall carries a big presence along with his big hammer. While Thrall isn’t exactly an easy character to play he is a lot of fun and a very strong hero choice after some practice. We at BlizzPro have all the basics on Thrall at his hero page here.

Abilities

Frostwolf Resilience is Thrall’s trait which allows Thrall to heal himself. Every time you damage someone with an ability Thrall gets a stack of Frostwolf Resilience and once you get to 5 stacks an auto heal will trigger on Thrall. This is what gives Thrall the sustain he needs to survive in the front lines during a team fight. It also makes Thrall really good at dueling most heroes 1 on 1.

Chain Lightning (Q) This is a decent harass tool for Thrall that helps him safely keep up stacks of Frostwolf Resilience because of its lower mana cost and range. This doesn’t mean to abuse it because Thrall can have mana problems. The damage isn’t a lot from this skill but it can often land that last hit you need to finish off a fleeing hero.

Feral Spirit (W) is great for rooting a target and allowing Thrall to unload some auto attacks. This is definitely his best skill to use out of the bush for a surprise assault. Feral Spirit does a bit of damage too but it’s fairly minor.

Windfury (E) makes you move faster and your next three auto attacks come out 100% quicker. This is Thrall’s bread and butter because not only are auto attacks his main source of damage he can also use this as an escape tool. Another good thing is that Windfury will cause Thrall’s 3 buffed auto attacks to give him stacks of Frostwolf Resilience.

Heroic Abilities(R)

Earthquake Is a great heroic ability that requires the right situation to pick it. This is amazing for shutting down melee heavy teams that need to get in close because a 10 second 70% slow is massive. This is also good for protecting heroes who need to stay in the back line like Sgt. Hammer. In a game of positioning a massive radius slow can be your best friend. This is also a great ultimate for punishing Illidan and Kerrigan carry comps that need their carry to be mobile. If the enemy teams has a lot of ranged heroes you should probably pass on this because its effectiveness will be limited.

Sundering is the go to choice most of the time because of the good damage, the stun, and the way it can ruin the enemies position in a team fight. Try not to just blow this skill right away as it may disrupt teammates skills that get used right away. Often times it can be hard to use it vertically but the pay off is huge as it will push enemies into and away from your team with a stun.

The Build

Level 1

Rolling Thunder – This is will give you a bit of mana back on Thrall’s Q along with a big range increase. This skill will help you secure kills on fleeing targets because of the massive range increase. Rabid Wolves can be a decent choice here to help with your sustain but I find that I really miss the 30% range increase.

Level 4

Envenom – Thrall is a damage dealer that needs to get up close so this is an obvious choice. It’s a good dot to throw on a target that you’re dueling for some burst and kill secure. Take this skill and enjoy the damage spike.

Level 7

Wind Shear – Since you will find yourself using Windfury all the time reducing the cooldown is important. Not much at this level is even worth mentioning. Windfury is every thing to Thrall in this build so taking this is a no brainer.

Level 10

Sundering – I outlined the heroic abilities above and sundering is the typical choice but do not miss a chance to take Earthquake when your team will need it.

Level 13

Grace of Air – This skill makes it so every time you hit with your 3 auto attacks after a Windfury he will end up with 6 stacks of Frostwolf Resilience. This skill helps Thrall with his sustain quite a bit because every time he hits with Windfury he gets a heal now. If you’re not worried about the sustain but need more damage against high health targets Giant Killer is the choice. If you find yourself getting blown up by the enemy team taking spell shield is also an option.

Level 16

Tempest Fury – This is a big power spike for Thrall because of the constant use of Windfury with auto attacks. Since Windfury’s cooldown is much shorter than Blood for Blood and the damage is comparable I always take this.

Level 20

Nexus Blades – Again since all of Thrall’s damage comes from auto attacks there is no real other choice here. This will be a big damage spike again with some slows to ensure targets stay where you want them. If you find you absolutely need an escape tool then Bolt of the Storm is the choice.

The Strategy

Thrall’s early and late game is where he really shines and can be a bit weak mid game if all things are even. Early on you want to try to set traps in the lane to wear down or possible kill the opponent. Your team may also benefit from Thrall hiding in some bushes to try for a gank on someone over extending early. Early kills and good lane soak will help Thrall because the level lead is everything going into mid game.

Once the mid game starts everyone is going to be a lot stronger. The problem is Thrall needs to be in close to do damage and this can make him an easy target for the enemy to focus. The trick is to look for one good sundering and pick off who you can. Play conservatively here because charging into the enemy team like you’re some kind of raid boss will often net you almost no damage and a one way ticket to the graveyard.

Late game Thrall gets his power spike and can use it to smack targets for big damage. Still play conservatively but if you’re not being focused don’t be afraid to flex your muscles a bit on a target. The damage comes quick and hard with Windfury now so get in and get out to keep the enemy team off balance and harassed. Also with a minion line Thrall can use his Windfury to put some serious damage on structures. Just try not to be the focus of a Fort or Keep because that slow can get you killed if the enemy is wise to your play.

Overall Thrall is a very balanced and fun hero to play if done properly. Melee hero is not an easy job in this game but the reward is strong damage with good sustain that can allow you to out-duel most other heroes. Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed the guide and learned something. Let me know what you think in the comment section below and watch for my guides to come every Thursday.