Xero, an Assault Master with long range initiation, added to the live server

Oct 19, 2017

A new Master, Xero, has been released in the MXM live server on October 18th. Xero is an Assault Master with Kinetic Attunement that can inflict heavy AoE damage to enemies if conditions are met, which determines how the team fights go.

Xero’s weapon is the Holo-Cube; it shoots long range projectiles at moderate speed. Xero is a Master whose gameplay relies heavily upon his weapon attacks since his passive skill, Holo-Cube Engraving, can only be activated if the player manages to hit the target twice with his weapon attacks.

If the player manages to hit an enemy twice with their weapon attacks, Holo-Cube Engraving is activated and leaves a mark on that target; the target is subject to any skills Xero uses if it is within a 15m range. This attribute of Xero makes him a powerful Master even from a long range.

▲ How well the player can hit their target with the Holo-Cube determines their skills.

▲ Upgrading Attack Range will allow you to hit enemies from quite a distance.

Xero’s first skill is Engraved Burst, which inflicts 800 damage on the target based on level 0 upgrades. This is the only skill that has no CC effect out of Xero’s skills, yet it deals heavy damage, which makes it a good choice. Upgrading this skill completely will allow players to inflict 1,000 damage every 3 seconds, so it’s usually Xero’s main skill.

The second skill is Engraved Erosion. This can only be used on a target marked with Xero’s Engraving, and using it will reduce the target’s weapon attack damage, skill power, and defense by 20% for 6 seconds. Upgrading this skill completely will increase this debuff effect by 50%, which enables Xero to be played as a support as well.

▲ It is effective when used on enemies clustered together, as it can inflict splash damage within a 2.5m range.

The third skill is Engraved Telekinesis, which pulls the marked target towards Xero. The target gets slowed by 20% for 2 seconds. This is a skill great for initiation if the target is marked with Xero’s Engraving; using this skill to pull them towards allies and slow them will enable players to score kills with ally skill combos.

Xero’s fourth skill is Engraved Shockwave, a skill that stuns the target for 1 second if the upgrade level is 0, and 1.8 if upgraded to level 6. It is a very effective CC skill which can put enemies into a CC hell if the player manages to activate Xero’s passive skill constantly. If a player playing Xero needs CC skills, they’d be choosing either Engraved Telekinesis or Engraved Shockwave.

▲ Players can nip away at the health of the target marked with Engraving,

Xero’s ult is Holo-Cube Pulse, and it inflicts damage on all enemies within a 7m range and instantly activates Holo-Cube Engraving. The skill damage is fairly good, and the fact that it activates Engraving on all enemies within range without having to hit them with weapon attacks makes it very useful. Also, Holo-Cube Pulse has a short cooldown of 15 seconds, and the Ultimate Gauge Consumption is low, so players can easily use it.

Most of Xero’s skills have high effect and short cooldown, yet require high playing skill, since players need to hit two weapon attacks before using their skills. In order to play Xero effectively, those playing him will have to use Holo-Cube Pulse at the right time to mark their targets with Engraving.

Fair understanding and usage of Xero’s skills will allow players to kill their enemies with powerful skill combos. For example, use Engraved Telekinesis to pull the target within range, use Holo-Cub Pulse to mark them with Engraving, then use Engraved Burst on them to finish the enemies off.