Ångström: A hero that can enlarge/decrease its size (hit-box) in exchange for different bonuses.

[photon]

I won't go into too much details since I have no idea how to balance it but I am just going to give a small taste of what this hero could play like. I believe there could be a way to balance this.

Ability 1:
UNIMPLEMENTED
Need your help in the comments! I am trying to come up with something.

Ability 2:
Angstrom shrinks to the size of an Atom, gaining increased movement speed and becoming "invisible" to the naked eye and immune to all damage. After 1.5 seconds, burst into his last used size (depends on your 3rd ability) before using this ability.
If in very close proximity to an enemy, deal spirit damage depending on your size. (The point of this ability is to expand inside someone). If you're small, won't do much damage.


Ability 3: Atomic Spacing Manipulation

Angstrom can control the space between atoms at will.

This ability is leveled as a single ability but has 2 buttons:
One for increasing your size (hitbox), another for decreasing your size (exactly like Morphling from DotA).
There are also 2 passives:
1. The size of your hitbox is proportional to your max health.
2. You gain increased punch damage proportional to your hitbox.
This isn't instant and it takes a couple of seconds to shift between max size to min. size.
An interesting interaction for this would be that Colossus would grant Angstrom bonus health since it increases the user's hitbox.
Notice there are limits, you can't be too small/too large. The smallest hitbox still has to be bearable so players may be able to hit you.

Ability 4: Augmenting Ray

Angstrom charges up a Railgun on his shoulder and after a 2 second delay, fires a ray at the location of his crosshair.
Upon hitting a target with that ray, immediately set the target's size to Angstroms' current size for 5 seconds. This can affect allies and enemies.
In addition, during the duration, the hit target gains bonuses based on whether he is an ally/enemy and if he is enlarged or reduced by size.

If the target is enlarged in size (bigger than the original model), he will gain a multiplier of the following bonuses:

• Reduced ability range (can only affect enemies)
• Slower movement speed (can only affect enemies)
• Increased outgoing punch damage (can only affect allies)
• Increased max health (can only affect allies)
• Increased resistances (can only affect allies)

If the target is reduced in size (smaller than the original model), he will gain a multiplier of the following bonuses:

• Increased incoming punch damage (can only affect enemies)
• Decreased max health (can only affect enemies)
• Decreased resistances (can only affect enemies)
• Faster movement speed (can only affect allies)
• Increased ability range (can only affect allies)

Also don't forget the raw value you get from enlarging/reducing a target's size. Enlarging an enemy carry already has huge benefits and allows your team to hit more abilities/gun damage onto him.

 

[gmazonakis200370]

Dude,I wanted to write such idea long ago,having huge or small(or in this case,both) character walking around map would be hella sick(imagine dude walking over bridge) because there is not really much tanks/fight initiators/engagers in game and whole 6 characters in Hero Labs is mostly assasins/carrys.
Also I think giving bigger ability range to allies and yourself when u small is weird, wouldn't it be more logical to give it to someone who is big? Because small character is a lot harder to hit,notice and it moves fast with bigger ability range would be just OP(imagine small Lash or Dynamo or Bebop).
First ability for example can be charging shot from railgun to decrease enemy in size(which well,only works on enemy) and allowing to step on them,stunning for 1 second and dealing,dunno,maybe melee damage maybe just spirit damage.
Also it may probably make sense to have movement ability first,and then just second ability increasing in size(also now u can increase minions in size,to have some big lane pushing boy) and second that just decreases and both of them work on those four things(allys,self,enemys and for enemys it lasts less,and minions both yours and enemys),for u know, fantasy of guy experimentimg with increasing and decreasing people,with risk and fun.
Hitting enemy with increasing ray in tight spaces will result in enemy hitting ceiling with their head upon increasing size will result in stunning enemy and them taking small portion of damage.
For Ult,it can be self,or ally powerful,long cooldown buff that makes yourself or ally huge giant,but because of not having enough oxygen in atmosphere,after duration of ability ends you or your ally will be put to sleep for 4 seconds(or maybe just stuned and of course, decreased back to regular size)
But thats my variation of such archetype.

 

[photon]

Dude,I wanted to write such idea long ago,having huge or small(or in this case,both) character walking around map would be hella sick(imagine dude walking over bridge) because there is not really much tanks/fight initiators/engagers in game and whole 6 characters in Hero Labs is mostly assasins/carrys.
Also I think giving bigger ability range to allies and yourself when u small is weird, wouldn't it be more logical to give it to someone who is big? Because small character is a lot harder to hit,notice and it moves fast with bigger ability range would be just OP(imagine small Lash or Dynamo or Bebop).
First ability for example can be charging shot from railgun to decrease enemy in size(which well,only works on enemy) and allowing to step on them,stunning for 1 second and dealing,dunno,maybe melee damage maybe just spirit damage.
Also it may probably make sense to have movement ability first,and then just second ability increasing in size(also now u can increase minions in size,to have some big lane pushing boy) and second that just decreases and both of them work on those four things(allys,self,enemys and for enemys it lasts less,and minions both yours and enemys),for u know, fantasy of guy experimentimg with increasing and decreasing people,with risk and fun.
Hitting enemy with increasing ray in tight spaces will result in enemy hitting ceiling with their head upon increasing size will result in stunning enemy and them taking small portion of damage.
For Ult,it can be self,or ally powerful,long cooldown buff that makes yourself or ally huge giant,but because of not having enough oxygen in atmosphere,after duration of ability ends you or your ally will be put to sleep for 4 seconds(or maybe just stuned and of course, decreased back to regular size)
But thats my variation of such archetype.

You're giving some great ideas here

I agree about the buffs that the ray is giving are not so balanced or could be kinda op but the main idea stands. I really think the idea of a hero being able to modify others' size to his liking is extremely interesting.

As for the ult you suggested, I really thought about it and I feel like that makes the hero too focused on enlarging and less on reducing and I thought the ability to become kind of a giant is already baked into the kit with the 3rd ability, maybe even make it a lvl 5 upgrade to grow even further in size, if wanted. Personally I wanted the hero to be viable around enlarging and reducing at the same time and let players go wild with it.

 

[SingularityMaw]

I actually played around with a size-based hero, but they could only grow, so this is quite a fun and unique concept regardless.

Ability 4: Augmenting Ray

Is there a world where this ability is simplified? Where on enemies they always shrink and allies always grow, since one is often more beneficial than the other is most situations/hero interactions.

Ability 1:
UNIMPLEMENTED

If we're going on Morphling's whole thing, why not make something similar to his second ability, Adaptive Strike? Something like:

---

1- Mini/Mega Grenade
Throw an explosive, dealing spirit damage around the area. Speed, damage, projectile arc and secondary effect are based on your current size.
Mini: Fast, small and lower damage but direct hits can headshot for bonus bullet damage.
Mega: Heavy, slow but multiplied area and damage, will knock enemies back from the blast.

---

This is just an example, I'm sure you could make something much more fitting for your own concept. You could also just make the larger one do more damage and the smaller one doesn't get a damage negative, just wanted to drive the point home.

 

[gmazonakis200370]

You're giving some great ideas here

I agree about the buffs that the ray is giving are not so balanced or could be kinda op but the main idea stands. I really think the idea of a hero being able to modify others' size to his liking is extremely interesting.

As for the ult you suggested, I really thought about it and I feel like that makes the hero too focused on enlarging and less on reducing and I thought the ability to become kind of a giant is already baked into the kit with the 3rd ability, maybe even make it a lvl 5 upgrade to grow even further in size, if wanted. Personally I wanted the hero to be viable around enlarging and reducing at the same time and let players go wild with it.

Yeah,I agree Ult idea sounds like its gonna be too much around enlargement.So maybe what if Ult (I got this idea reading Singularity Maw),was second device, Containment box?
Essentially what it does,u throw it and certain place,and Angstrom shoots it in the air with enlargement ray it becomes bigger and works like 4 side wall,and then this character shoots at box with shrinking ray and entraps every caught hero(it does big Spiritual damage) and basically just groups them(without stun or anything,that might be too much CC).
But I guess it's too simple or not really correlates with what we tryin to have here.
(Also,just for the gooners,we need to make this scientist,hot female,so we can feed of off macro/micro fillia fetishists)

 

[Vofi]

Maybe should design it for a barista, a scientist of molecular physics. When he's small, he sits in a floating coffee cup. (on pictiure - 1960s Doctor Who)

 

[Vofi]

I mean, it can be only floating glasses+cup

 

[photon]

I actually played around with a size-based hero, but they could only grow, so this is quite a fun and unique concept regardless.

Is there a world where this ability is simplified? Where on enemies they always shrink and allies always grow, since one is often more beneficial than the other is most situations/hero interactions.

If we're going on Morphling's whole thing, why not make something similar to his second ability, Adaptive Strike? Something like:

---

1- Mini/Mega Grenade
Throw an explosive, dealing spirit damage around the area. Speed, damage, projectile arc and secondary effect are based on your current size.
Mini: Fast, small and lower damage but direct hits can headshot for bonus bullet damage.
Mega: Heavy, slow but multiplied area and damage, will knock enemies back from the blast.

---

This is just an example, I'm sure you could make something much more fitting for your own concept. You could also just make the larger one do more damage and the smaller one doesn't get a damage negative, just wanted to drive the point home.

I love the grenade idea, that would work!

View attachment 34273
Maybe should design it for a barista, a scientist of molecular physics. When he's small, he sits in a floating coffee cup. (on pictiure - 1960s Doctor Who)
View attachment 34274View attachment 34275View attachment 34276

holy shit man I appreciate the art, I do think he should be an older European scientist-dude but the barista concept seems interesting

 

[supremejester28]

Crazy concept. Nice ideas !