Drum roll for our next HOTS champ.
Alexei Stukov had a hard life, and an even harder death. He has been betrayed, shot into space, resurrected and infested, almost cured, and then experimented upon as the viruses returned. Now, his infestations are spreading within the Nexus…
It’s not all bad though. Alexei Stukov is a powerful tactician who is ready to support his team. He can heal allies using pathogens, slow and damage enemies with his pustules, and use his mutated arm to silence, swipe, or push back enemies.
Trait
Bio-Kill Switch
o Activate to detonate all of Stukov’s Viruses. Each Healing Pathogen heals its target for 500 health, and each Weighted Pustule does 100 damage and Slows its target by 70% for 2 seconds. Can be cast while channeling Lurking Arm.
Basic Abilities
Healing Pathogen (Q)
o Infest an allied Hero with a Healing Pathogen that heals the target for 240 Health over 4.5 seconds. Healing Pathogens can spread to a nearby allied Hero every 0.75 seconds, and a single Healing Pathogen can spread to each allied Hero 1 time.
Can cast it on self, and spread to self.
Cannot spread to targets to whom it has already spread.
Weighted Pustule (W)
o Hurl a pustule that impacts all enemy Heroes in its path, dealing 20 damage and Slowing by 5%, increasing to 50% over 3 seconds. Deals an additional 80 damage upon expiring or being removed.
Lurking Arm (E)
o Channel at a target location, creating an area that Silences enemies inside and deals 144 damage per second to them. Deals 50% reduced damage to non-Heroes. Does not cost Mana while Channeling, and lasts until canceled or interrupted.
Heroic Abilities
Massive Shove (R)
o Extend Stukov’s arm. If it hits an enemy Hero, they are rapidly shoved until they collide with terrain, taking 200 damage. Stukov gains 50 Armor while shoving an enemy.
Flailing Swipe (R)
o Swipe 3 times in front of Stukov over 1.75 seconds, dealing 50 damage to enemies hit and knocking them away. Each swipe is larger than the previous.
Talents
Hero Level (Tier) Talent Description
1 Spine Launcher Basic Attacks become ranged and Slow enemies by 20% for 1 second, but deal 50% less damage.
1 [W] Fetid Touch
Quest: Hit Heroes with Weighted Pustule. Reward: After hitting 20
Heroes, reduce the cooldown of Weighted Pustule by 2.5 seconds.
Reward: After hitting 40 Heroes, reduce the cooldown of Weighted Pustule by an additional 2.5 seconds and remove its Mana cost.
1 [E] Growing Infestation Lurking Arm’s area expands by 50% over 2.5 seconds.
1 [Trait] Poppin’ Pustules
Quest: Detonate 10 Weighted Pustules without dying.
Reward: Detonating a Weighted Pustule now applies its damage and Slow in an area.
4 [Q] One Good Spread… After a Healing Pathogen infests 4 targets, restore 30 Mana and reduce the cooldown of Healing Pathogen by 2 seconds.
4 [Q] Top Off Healing Pathogen’s healing-over- time on its initial target is increased by 50% while they are above 60% Health.
4 [Q] Biotic Armor Healing Pathogen grants 50 Physical Armor to its initial target while active on them.
4 [Trait] Vigorous Reuptake
Quest: Detonate 50 Healing Pathogens with Bio-Kill Switch.
Reward: Increase Bio-Kill Switch’s healing by 50%.
7 [W] The Long Pitch Increase the range of Weighted Pustule by 100%.
7 [E] Within My Reach Increase the range of Lurking Arm by 50%.
7 [E] It Hungers Each time an enemy Hero is hit by Lurking Arm, reduce its cooldown by 0.5 seconds, up to 6.5 seconds, and restore 5 Mana.
7 [Trait] Targeted Excision
Detonating exactly 1 Weighted Pustule (but any number of Healing Pathogens) with Bio-Kill Switch reduces the cooldown of Bio-Kill Switch to 5 seconds.
10 Massive Shove
Extend Stukov’s arm. If it hits an enemy Hero, they are rapidly shoved until they collide with terrain, taking 200 damage. Stukov gains 50 Armor while shoving an enemy.
10 Flailing Swipe
Swipe 3 times in front of Stukov over 1.75 seconds, dealing 50 damage to enemies hit and knocking them away. Each swipe is larger than the previous.
13 [W] Reactive
Ballistospores
When taking damage below 50% Health, instantly spread a Weighted Pustule to all nearby enemy Heroes and reset the cooldown of Bio-Kill Switch. This effect has a 10 second cooldown.
13 [E] Low Blow Lurking Arm deals 150% more damage to enemy Heroes below 25%
Health.
13 [E] Lingering Spines Lurking Arm persists for 1.5 seconds after it is canceled.
13 [E] Virulent Reaction Detonating a Weighted Pustule on an enemy who is inside of Lurking Arm Roots them for 2 seconds.
16 [Trait] Pox Populi Bio-Kill Switch no longer removes Healing Pathogen and instead refreshes its duration.
16 [Q] Universal Carrier Healing Pathogen can continually spread through Stukov, but its healing is reduced by 60%.
16 [Trait] Eye Infection
Increase the final damage of Weighted Pustule by 50%. Additionally, detonating a Weighted Pustule with Bio-Kill Switch Blinds the target for 3 seconds.
16 [Q] Superstrain Whenever an ally with Healing Pathogen is Stunned, they are
instantly healed for 250 Health.
20 [R1] Controlled Chaos
Flailing Swipe’s Mana cost is reduced from 100 to 50 and it gains 2 additional charges, but each use only swings 1 time, at maximum range.
20 [R2] Push Comes To Shove Massive Shove travels 25% faster. If Massive Shove pushes a target for more than 1.5 seconds, its cooldown is reduced by 15 seconds.
20 [Trait] Bio-Explosion Switch
Bio-Kill Switch now also detonates Lurking Arm, applying a Weighted Pustule to enemy Heroes inside and Silencing them for 2 seconds.
Although he has been gaming since the Sega Mega Drive launched in 1990, he still sucks at most games. When not being trash he watches French horror films, drinks herbal tea and secretly loves the music of Taylor Swift.
