The Support role in Overwatch has always been one that’s retained the most versatility. From a hard-hitting Moira to a frag-scoring Moira to a clutch-reviving Mercy, we’ve seen it all. With the game now turning into a 5v5, reducing a Tank makes the role of a Support all the more important.
So, we’ve done our digging, played our matches, and have some tips and tricks on how you can get started as a Support in Overwatch 2.
Understanding The Support Role
Support classes in Overwatch 2 are similar to what you see in MOBAs like Dota 2 or League. In essence, they’re not meant to be damage dealers but are rather used to enable your team’s ulterior roles, the DPS and Tank, to deal more damage and to sustain the frontlines better, respectively.
So, regardless of what support you’ll pick, you’ll either be great at healing, will have some sort of damage amplification, or will be agile and mobile enough to wreak havoc across the map. Needless to say, Supports can still deal a lot of damage. I mean, look at Moira for instance, she’s great at healing, but her Biotic Orb can really deal a lot of AoE damage alongside her Ultimate if needed.
But, for beginners, we recommend sticking to the Supporting part instead of focusing on dealing damage. This is because when you are new, you might not be able to identify as to when you should be healing and when it’s okay for you to go guns blazing. Therefore, it is better to let the DPS do the fragging while you do the healing and amping.
For now…at least. Anyways, now that you’ve sorted through the role, it’s time for us to take a deeper dive into how you can turn into an excellent Support player in no time.
Tips and Tricks For A Support In Overwatch 2
As we’ve mentioned, a Support doesn’t need to be dealing damage. Instead, your primary focus should be on keeping you and your team alive. To that accord, here’s our honest advice.
Positioning Is Key
Supports have one of the lowest health pools in the game. Therefore, while many have a mobility trick up their sleeve, like Lucio’s enhanced speed, they are sitll very fragile. So, position is of paramount importance. As you get better at the role, you’ll be able to make more risky plays.
Source: BRO YOU WACK
But, for starters – we recommend sticking to your Tank / DPS as much as possible. Generally, your Tank is the one you should pocket. In essence, it’s when you focus more of your attention on a certain role / hero due to their importance in their game.
A good Tank player ensures that he soaks up and peels most of the damage the enemy team throws away from their team. When that’s happening, heals are the only way they can stay alive while also soaking up damage.
That’s where you, the Support, come in. With your ability to heal, you’ll be able to turn the tides of battle, letting your Tank sustain the frontlines for much longer. Plus, the fact that you’ll be positioned near them will also lead you to soak up less damage yourself.
Communicating Is Your Shtick
Whether you like it or not, a Support usually makes the calls in Overwatch 2. These can be as simple as Push right now or more intricate ones, such as having someone switch a hero depending on how the game’s flowing.
In any case, as you move up the pub ladder, more responsibility will be placed on you to make real-time callouts in the game. With the addition of a pinging system in Overwatch 2, there’s no reason for you not to take full advantage of that and try and get some captaincy into the mix.
Let Them Die…Sometimes
Not all teammates deserve to live. Wait, let’s phrase that better. Not all teammates are in positions or situations where they can be saved. So, there are situations where you should let your teammates go.
Now, picture this – you have a D.Va running into the enemy full force. You, their trusty Support, pocket them to the very end. But suddenly, they’ve overextended, things don’t look too great anymore; these are situations where you take the L and dip. Otherwise, you’ll be dead along with them.
A Support being on death timer is very harmful to the entire team. While yes, your Tank dying redundantly wouldn’t be that great either, they’re probably going to be dying anyways, if not a few seconds later in that position. While you, as a Support, can save yourself from the trouble.
So, with you being alive, you gain the ability to help your other more saveable teammates from danger. And, your Tank will be coming to a position that is relatively fortified due to your supporting prowess rather than being completely left in shambles.
Don’t Worry About Your Damage Dealt
Overwatch 2 is meant to act as a war of attrition, not a K/D/A counter like Call of Duty. So, even if you aren’t getting kills on Moira, that isn’t a big issue. Why? Well, you are reducing the health of your enemy team, right? So, chances are either someone else is getting the final kill or the enemy Support is expending their resources trying to keep the person you are damaging healthy.
Supports don’t have a lot of finishing abilities besides their Ultimate; they don’t have a barrage of rockets like D.Va or an automatic assault rifle like Soldier 76. So, ultimately, you end up with skills that deal a lot of damage but don’t necessarily have that oomph to snag a kill.
So, focus on your core role, which is to heal and amp your team if you do end up dealing some damage, well and good. If you don’t, never fret about it!
Best Support To Get Started With: Moira
Moira is one of the best Supports in Overwatch 2, period. She’s one of the only Supports you’ll see top-fragging on the leaderboards while also being able to heal her team to an insane margin. Her third ability, Fade, lets her disappear and become invulnerable for a short period of time.
You gain access to two abilities that are essential for your kit, your Biotic Orb. This Orb is further bifurcated into two segments, a slow-moving yellow orb that heals you or a damaging orb that moves much quicker.
So, even if you aren’t great at understanding who to heal in a particular fight, your AoE ends up being enough in most instances, as you can just throw it down and have your team move to the orb to get healed.
So, even if you are an absolutely new player, you’ll have the greatest luck with a Support like Moira to have some sort of impact in the game. As soon as you get better at targeting players, Moira still remains a very viable Support. Why? Well, you can dish out tons of damage with your Ultimate and your right-click attacks.
So, the hero has quite a high skill ceiling. But, she still remains a cohesive, legible Support for newer players as well.
