Zagara, Broodmother of the Swarm

Commanding a swarm of her spawn, Zagara is one of the strongest specialists available in Heroes of the Storm. With the ability to easily go alone into any lane composition as well as strong objective and fight control, the Broodmother makes a great addition to any team.

Talents and Abillities

Baneling Barrage (Q) summons four banelings that explode when they reach maximum range or hit an enemy target. A source of significant AoE damage, Barrage should be used to shove in your lane as hard as possible as well as to zone opponents away from key locations. Be careful, as you're immobile while spawning the clutch.

Hunter Killer (W) summons a hydralisk that attacks your indicated target. The hydralisk chases the target until it is killed or its duration ends. W is the spell that deals the most damage and should be used aggressively to harass and kill enemy heroes. When the target of the hydralisk dies, it switches to attacking a new target for the rest of its lifespan.

Infested Drop (E) drops a blighted missile on a target location, damaging those hit as well as summoning two roaches. The roaches aggressively push lanes and attack the nearest targets. You should throw the Drop on enemy waves on cooldown, as well as throwing it into the backline to hit heroes using their minions as cover. Drop also helps when taking mercenary camps, as it summons two meat shields to absorb damage from the neutrals.

Zagara's trait is Creep Tumor (D). As a Zerg Queen, Zagara is able to create and spread the blighted creep by laying tumors across the map. The tumors have a four minute duration and when Zagara and her minions are on the creep, they get a movement speed bonus as well as a massive health regeneration buff. The tumors provide vision and should be used to expand it whenever you can.

For heroics, Zagara is given the choice between Nydus Network and Devouring Maw. While Nydus is an interesting ability that gives Zagara unmatched mobility and the means to shove lanes across the map, Maw is a pick that is stronger in skirmishes and doesn't rely on communication - making it a better choice in Hero League. After a brief indicator, a worm comes up and devours the foes in the area, doing massive damage and putting the enemies in a stasis that deals damage to them for three seconds.

Zagara has a number of strong talents that allow her to adapt to most situations. At level 1, Corpse Feeders allow her to fire and forget roaches that can push lanes alone, while Reconstitution makes the already significant health regeneration buff on creep even better. Envenomed Spines at level 4 allow Zagara to harass her enemies with auto-attacks from a safe distance.

Taking Rapid Incubation at level 7 gives her the equivalent of a fountain drink every 45 seconds, allowing her to constantly stay in lane and harass opponents with abilities. Mutalisk and Grooved Spines at level 13 upgrade her hydralisks. Pick up Mutalisk when facing high mobility targets that flee to escape damage, while Grooved Spines will allow your hydralisks to wear down even the toughest tanks.

At level 17, Brood Expansion allows you to store two charges of your heavy-hitting Hunter Killer, while Stoneskin allows you to endure attacks from hard hitting assassins like Zeratul and Illidan. Finally, Bolt of the Storm at 20 allows you to escape almost any situation. Circumstantially Tyrant Maw is a good pick, especially with enemies like Leoric who will quickly recharge the cooldown, ensuring it is up every skirmish.

Laning with Zagara

Like most specialists, Zagara is a strong solo laner. Her creep tumors allow her to have unmatched vision over a region of a map, and her hydralisks and roaches allow her to bully out her lane opponent from range. At the beginning of the laning phase, it's important to lay your tumors to create a path to your Healing Fountain as well as placing them at the entrances to your lane. The tumors will give you clear vision of the common early game ganking paths as well as allow you to roam quickly into the jungle to clear mercenary camps.

In lane, your goal is to win by attrition. Throw out Hunter Killer on your lane opponent whenever they get within range and push the lane with your banelings and roaches. Once you hit level 7, your Rapid Incubation allows you a free fountain drink every 45 seconds, so you shouldn't worry about running out of mana. Continue to spam out your lane opponent and once your wave crashes against their gate, look to go and take any merc camps.

In a 2v1 lane or more, Zagara's spam should be focused on the minion wave instead of your lane opponents. Using Hunter Killer on the front of the wave will have the hydralisk attack the wave from far away, while your AoE softens the wave up for you and your hydra's auto-attacks. Once the target of the hydralisk dies, it will shift to the nearest target, allowing it to kill the lane with you.

Objectives with Zagara

Zagara's tumors can be used for objective control if you're able to set up your vision before the skirmish starts. For that reason, you should be aware of where the next teamfight is going to occur and push your lane up beforehand so you have the chance to get there in time. With your tumors, try to put them on the edge of the paths so they aren't susceptible to your opponents' attacks. Once the fight begins, you can use your roaches to regain vision lost by the destruction of your tumors.

As the skirmish starts, your goal should be to stay as far back as possible. While your auto-attacks can do significant damage, your minions will do more, so it is important to stay alive as long as possible. If enemy assassins dive on you, make sure you use Rapid Incubation and Stoneskin to withstand the assault and delay for your team's peel. Your hydralisks and auto-attacks should be able to drive off any hard engage. Fights can shift quickly, so be careful when using your banelings - you become immobile and might end up in the front line like I did in the image below.

Devouring Maw can be an absolute back-breaker in teamfights if used correctly. Your heroic can be used in two ways. The first way is to lock up the greatest number of people so your teammates can kill those not trapped, much like one would use Zeratul's Void Prison. The other manner is to layer it with your teammates AoE to do massive damage. Look for teammates like Leoric, Johanna, and Kael'Thas who can continue to lock down the enemy while dishing out damage.

Conclusion

Zagara's ability to push out opponents in lane while never leaving it herself makes her one of the best solo pushing specialists in the game. Her ability to easily and safely 2v1 also allows your team incredible flexibility when maneuvering around the map. In teamfights, Zagara can serve as a team's primary damage dealer by using her spawn and attacks to chip away at the enemy team and can help lock down large zones with Maw. While she is susceptible to dive, her sheer damage output and ability to sustain make her an ideal specialist pick for any team.

Tristam Mizak