Here's how Sigma, Overwatch's new Flex Tank hero, works

Here’s how Sigma, Overwatch’s new Flex Tank hero, works

Overwatch

Sigma is the 31st hero in Blizzard’s Overwatch. While he is not live yet, he is on the PTR and is already making waves after only one day. Sigma is a tank by role, but his amazing offensive abilities make him a versatile pick for your team composition. Let’s take a quick look at his move set and see why he is so versatile.

Bouncy-explody balls

Sigma’s primary fire ability is Hyperspheres. He launches two gravitic charges that can bounce off walls and cause AOE damage to any in their small radius. This ability is particularly strong when forcing opponents through chokes, allowing Sigma to do damage to the group. This ability alone will force teams to think about their approach towards a choke with Sigma waiting on the other side.

The moving wall

Sigma’s secondary fire ability is Experimental Barrier. He can propel a floating barrier to a location he chooses and can dismiss it at any time. This ability complements his Hyperspheres extremely well while also being a great ability on its own. Putting this in a choke point will force enemies to focus their fire on it and leave them susceptible to the flurry of fire his team can put down behind it — on top of Sigma’s own AOE damage.

The shield is much more versatile than that of Orissa or Reinhardt due to the ability to place it wherever Sigma points. Plus, it can be replaced whenever he wishes. It has 1500 health and will help your team sustain no matter the area you are forced to use it in.

GRASP OF DOOM

If those two weren’t enough to get you excited, this one surely will. Kinectic Grasp allows Sigma to freeze incoming projectiles in midair and convert them into shields. That Farrah ultimate coming in hot? No problem, I’ll just turn that into shields. This ability helps protect Sigma’s team and himself from any projectiles launched their way. It does have a 15-second cooldown though, so Grasp wisely.

The slingshot

Sigma’s next ability is one that can be easily overlooked, but with excellent execution, it will yield great results. Accretion is an ability in which Sigma gathers a mass of debris and slings it at an enemy to knock them down. This renders the hero hit useless for a brief period. If used correctly, this could create a huge swing in team fights by disabling valuable targets. Throw it out willy nilly and you won’t see the great use it has, but use it correctly and you will reap the reward.

Is this legal?

Last but certainly not least is Sigma’s ultimate, Gravitic Flux. Sigma takes flight, lifts enemies in a targeted area, and launches them into the sky before slamming them back down. This ultimate is good for a multitude of reasons. First, is it does quite a bit of damage and its area of effect is large. That will almost always guarantee that you pick up at least a couple of heroes. Second, it renders the heroes in it useless for a period while your team focuses on the others outside of the flux. Third, Sigma takes flight. This allows you to maneuver him in a high place that he otherwise couldn’t get to without some routing.

Fourth, while it may or may not be intentional, this ability lifts opponents off objectives. If you can get all six of the enemy heroes inside of the flux during overtime, it will lift them from the point or payload, and it lifts them long enough for the overtime counter to empty. Here is an example of this.

So… apparently you can do this. I will call this “Sig9” from Overwatch

All in all, it seems Sigma is a great addition to the hero line up and provides something to the tank role that isn’t currently available. While Sigma may not be active in Stage 4, we should see him in Season 3. What impact do you think he will have on the new 2-2-2 meta at the Flex Tank role?