When Overwatch's favorite gamer, D.Va, made her way into the nexus back in 2017, players of multiple Blizzard titles chomped at the bit to see how the Heroes of the Storm development team was able to turn this half-mech, half-girl into a MOBA champion while still maintaining her familiarity. 

Three years later, results have been...mixed. While fans of Overwatch were able to relive the fantasy of jumping out of an exploding mech, swapping to a pilot with a pistol then doing it all over again, Heroes of the Storm players struggled with a champion that didn't feel as if they were impactful enough on the battlefield to make up for the sluggish walking speed of the mech. Compounded with a Defense Matrix that felt clunky to use and a pool of champions that did what D.Va aimed to do much better, she quickly fell out of the meta. 

Well, the development team felt the same way and early Monday morning revealed she was receiving a rework alongside Gazlowe. Now live on the Public Test Realm (PTR) for players to try out before she goes live, D.Va's tweaked talents and abilities aim to bring her up to speed with the rest of the pool of playable characters.

The game's development team provided the following comment regarding her updated kit:

"At long last, our favorite Pro Gamer is back and ready to pwn teh n00bs! With D.Va's rework we've given her tons of new tools and redistributed her power to help her fill more of a traditional bruiser role while still retaining a lot of her "supporty" essence. This new talent tree should allow her to flex to fill gaps in your team comp or to be her old aggro self. Her old Heroic option, Big Shot, is now baseline and has been replaced with Micro Missiles, giving her Mech some reach and soft CC that she didn't have before."

D.Va's reworked kit is as follows:

Reworked abilities

Mech Mode
- Health increased from 2150 to 2250.
- Health Regeneration increased from 4.48 to 4.69.
- Base damage reduced from 26 to 23.
- Added functionality: Enemies close to D.Va’s Mech take 50% bonus damage.

Mechanized Walker (Z)
- New Functionality: D.Va’s Mech can move while attacking. While attacking or channeling an ability, the Mech’s speed is quickly reduced by 25%.

Boosters (Q)
- Cooldown increased from 9 to 10 seconds.
- Duration decreased from 2 to 1.75 seconds.
- Speed bonus decreased from 125% to 115%.
- Area reduced from 1.5 to 1.375.

Defensive Matrix (W)
- Damage reduction reduced from 75% to 50%.
- Added Functionality: Can now be retargeted while active.

Self-Destruct/Call Mech (E)
- Charge earned per 100% maximum life damage taken reduced from 33% to 25%.
- Maximum damage reduced from 1,200 to 1,100.

Bunny Hop (R1)
- Cooldown reduced from 100 to 80 seconds.
- Damage reduced from 60 to 52.
- Radius reduced from 5 to 4.5.
- New Functionality: Every 4th consecutive hit deals 100% increased damage and stuns for .5 seconds.

Big Shot (R2)
- Ability now available baseline.
- Cooldown increased from 4 to 6 seconds.
- Call Mech cooldown reduction reduced from 8 to 5 seconds.
- Damage reduced from 200 to 150.
- Added Functionality: Enemy Heroes hit are slowed by 25% for 1.5 seconds.

Micro Missles (R2)
- After .375 seconds fire a stream of 12 missiles in a target direction. Upon impact, each missile deals a small amount of damage and slows in an area.
- Missiles deal 35 Damage and apply a 35% slow for 2 seconds.
- 12 range.
- Holds 2 Charges. 20-second charge cooldown with a 5-second cooldown between charge uses.

Updated talent tree

Level 1

Rush-Down (Q)
- Moved to level 4.
- New Functionality: Boosters steals 4% of maximum health from enemy Heroes and deals 100% increased damage to non-heroic enemies.

Hit the Nitrous (Q)
- Moved to level 7.
- New Functionality: The initial speed bonus of Boosters is increased to 300%, decaying to normal speed over .5 seconds. During this time, Boosters stuns for .5 seconds.

Crash Course (Q)
- Removed.

Pro Moves (Trait)
- New Functionality: Each time D.Va’s Mech takes damage, its movement speed is increased by 2% and gains 2 Armor, stacking up to 10 times. A stack of this effect decays every .5 seconds. Basic Attacks in Pilot Mode against enemy Heroes reduce the cooldown of Call Mech by 1 additional second.

Liquid Cooling (Active)
- When used in Mech Mode, the cooldown of Healing Fountain is decreased to 50 seconds and it lasts 25% longer. Activate to gain Healing Fountains effects and incur the reduced cooldown. 50-second cooldown.

Level 4

Diverting Power (W)
- Moved to level 16.
- New Functionality: Drastically increases Defense Matrix’s area and each time it reduces damage D.Va’s mech is healed for 35.

Fusion Generator (W)
- Moved to level 7.
- Maximum Self-Destruct charge gained per cast increased from 15 to 20.
- Added Functionality: While at full Self-Destruct charge, Fusion Cannons’ bonus damage is increased to 75%.

Bring It On (E)
- Removed.

Level 7

Coming Through (Q)
- Removed.

Get On The Point! (Q)
- Casting Boosters grants nearby allies 20% movement speed for 2 seconds. After being out of combat for 3 seconds, Boosters’ cooldown refreshes 100% faster.

Aggression Matrix (W)
- Moved to level 4.
- New Functionality: Basic Attacks against Heroes reduces the cooldown of Defense Matrix by .125 seconds. Enemy Heroes in your Defense Matrix receive 30% less healing.

Dazer Zone (W)
- Removed.

Nuclear Option (E)
- Moved to level 4.
- New Functionality: (Passive) Each time Fusion Cannons deals bonus damage to a Hero, gain .25 Self-Destruct Charge. Hitting your self-destructing Mech with Big Shot causes it to self-destruct 40% faster.

Level 13

Ablative Armor (Passive)
- Moved to level 20.
- New Functionality: 45% of Ability damage taken by D.Va’s Mech is returned as Health over 4 seconds.

Emergency Shielding (Trait)
- Moved to level 16.
- Cooldown increased from 15 to 30 seconds.
- Shield increased from 210 to 280.
- Duration reduced from 6 to 4 seconds.

Expensive Plating [Passive]
- Moved to level 1.
- Renamed to “Full Metal”.
- No longer increases the cooldown for Call Mech.
- Bonus Mech Health reduced from 20% to 10%.
- Added Functionality: Fusion Cannon bonus damage heals for 20% of the damage dealt.

Target Locked (W)
- Enemy heroes that remain in Defense Matrix for 1.5 seconds have their armor reduced by 15 and are slowed by 25% for 3 seconds.

Good To Go (Pilot Active)
- Unlock the Torpedo Dash and Concussive Pulse abilities while in Pilot Mode.

Torpedo Dash (Pilot Mode Q)
- Travel distance decreased from 6.75 to 4.5.
- Travel speed reduced from 17.5 to 14.
- Now has a .75 second coolup when exiting Mech Mode.
- Cooldown reduced from 12 to 10 seconds.

Concussive Pulse (Active)
- Cooldown increased from 7 to 10 seconds.
- Damage reduced from 141 to 120.
- Knockback distance reduced by 40%.

Level 16

GG, WP [Trait]
- Removed.

Nanoweave Suit [Trait]
- Removed.

Suppressing Fire [Trait]
- Removed.

In For The Kill (Q)
- Casting Boosters grants a shield equal to 10% maximum health for 2.5 seconds. Each enemy Hero hit by Boosters increases your Basic Attack damage by 10% for 5 seconds, stacking up to 5 times.

Level 20

Stop And Pop (R1)
- New functionality: While D.Va is stationary, Bunny Hop’s duration is paused.

Pew! Pew! Pew! (R2)
- Moved to Level 13.
- Damage per shot increased from 50% to 75%.

MEKA Fall (Trait)
- Removed.

Timing Attack (R2)
- Micro Missiles gains an additional charge. Each time Micro Missiles deals damage to a Hero, reduce its cooldown by .5 seconds and its charge cooldown by .25 seconds.

Headshot! (R2)
- Big Shot’s damage is increased by 75% and its cooldown is reduced by 2 seconds.


Players will have the next week to try out the new and improved D.Va before she goes live during the week of September 7.