Progression 2.0
With our next patch, we’re overhauling player and hero progression, adding new loot and customization options, along with different ways to unlock everything in the game.
Loot Chests will let you get the goodies you previously bought with gold (or in the Shop), plus cool new items like sprays, banners, emojis, announcers, and more. Best of all, you can join us right now in the Heroes 2.0 Beta to try all of the system changes we’ve made, and check out all of the epic loot we’ve added to the game.
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The Development Team Talks
Heroes 2.0
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What is Heroes 2.0?
What is Heroes 2.0?
Heroes 2.0 is the culmination of all the ways we’ve transformed the Nexus since launch, plus plenty of radical additions on their way to the game right now! Learn more about Heroes 2.0 →
A Hero’s Journey Never Ends
The first major update coming with Heroes of the Storm 2.0 is a massive overhaul of our leveling and progression systems! In our next patch, we’ve decided to make progression more straightforward by removing the Player Level cap and transforming it into the sum of all the Hero levels you’ve gained. We’ve also removed the Hero level cap so that your ability to continue progressing is near limitless.
As a result, the XP you’ll earn by completing games will now only affect your Hero progression. Whenever you gain a new Hero level, your overall Player Level will increase as well.
Uncapping progression helps us accomplish our goals to make progression more frequent and more meaningful. It also gives us enough flexibility to reward you with some sweet in-game loot every time you level up one of your Heroes!
We’re rolling out game-changing additions to make Heroes of the Storm a new, even better experience: stronger player progression in the form of Loot Chests; innovative new Battlegrounds from more Blizzard universes; new mechanical twists on over-the-top brawls; and, of course, tons of rule-shattering Heroes.
Flaunt Your Prowess
As your Heroes reach new heights, and your player level hits certain milestones in the progression system, the badge art on your portrait will become more and more elaborate.
Your portrait badge art will become more intricate for every 25 levels you earn. Upon reaching level 100, your visible level will reset to 1 and you’ll don a badge that’s even more epic so that you can show off your dedication anywhere your portrait is visible.
While your portrait badge will only display your level up to 99, you can always check out your total player level by heading to your profile.
Hero XP and Level Adjustments
After closely examining the rates that Heroes were leveling-up in the previous progression system, we found they were commonly progressing through the lower levels far too quickly. So quickly, that players often jumped from level one to three after just one game, which didn’t feel particularly meaningful or valuable.
On the flip side, climbing through the upper Hero levels in the previous system could take hours and hours of play to earn a single level. Leveling up feels great, and we want to make sure that happens much more often for your high-level Heroes.
Our next patch brings significant changes to Hero level XP requirements that should satisfy both of these concerns. We’ve slightly increased XP requirements during the first few Hero Levels, and reduced the amount of play needed to progress during later Hero levels by approximately 75-80%.
These changes also mean that some of your current Hero levels may shift around a bit after you log in on patch day. Heroes who were above level 5 before the patch will likely gain a level or more!
Example: Heroes who were level 10 prior to the patch will shift up to about Level 15 in the new system. Those who were level 20 will be adjusted to approximately level 55!
Since we increased XP requirements for lower levels, some of your lower level Heroes may see adjustments as well. However, you will never lose any Hero levels. Instead, these Heroes will now be set to the amount of XP required to reach that same progression in the same level they attained before.
Example: A Hero who had progressed 50% into level 3 prior to the patch will not be adjusted down to level 2 in the new system. Instead, that Hero will remain at level 3 with 50% of the XP needed to get to level 4.
Loot Chests: Treasure for Everybody!
Our next patch brings Loot Chests—packages containing random assortments of nearly every awesome reward in the game, including Heroes themselves—to Heroes of the Storm, and you’re going to get one every single time you level up!
In addition to regular Loot Chests, you’ll also pick up Rare and Epic Loot Chests as you continue your climb in the progression system. Each chest type is guaranteed to award at least one item of that Chest’s rarity level or higher, though even standard Loot Chests have a chance to contain Rare, Epic, or Legendary items.
Common loot Chest
Rare loot Chest
Epic loot Chest
Additionally, for every 10 levels you earn with the same Hero, you’ll receive a Hero-Specific Loot Chest, guaranteed to contain at least one item for that Hero. We’re also planning to regularly add new items to Loot Chests, so you’ll always have exciting new drops to look out for when you open your chests.
| Loot Chest Type | Reward Frequency |
|---|---|
| Common | Every Player Level that does not award a Rare or Epic Loot Chest |
| Rare | Every 5 Player Levels |
| Epic | Every 25 Player Levels |
| Hero-Specific | Every 10 Player Levels |
If you don’t want to wait on level-ups to crack open a bunch of Loot Chests, or you happen to feel extra lucky one day, then you’ll also find Loot Chests available for purchase via the Buy button on the Loot page in the game’s menus.
Gear Up with New Cosmetic Items!
Start ripping through your Loot Chests any time you like by heading to the new Loot tab that we’ve added to the game menus at the top of the screen. Each chest you open has an assortment of four (4), randomized items. In addition to Heroes, Skins, and Mounts, Loot Chests will award you with a myriad of new cosmetic items that you can use to customize Heroes of the Storm like never before.
Announcers: Customize your Battleground Announcers by choosing voiceover from some of your favorite Heroes. Listen in as they call out your takedowns, kill streaks, and much, much more during your games.
Voice Lines: Cheer on your allies and jeer your opponents by sounding off in-game with your Hero’s most quotable catchphrase.
Banners: Make a show of dominance over the enemy team by raising a flag with your personal symbol whenever you destroy a Fort or Keep, capture a Merc Camp, or capture an objective.
Sprays: Make your mark on the field of battle by dropping unique icons and tags on the terrain. Better still, we’ve added a number of animated sprays you can use to give your Battleground graffiti a little extra oomph.
Emojis: Chat in Heroes of the Storm is about to get a whole lot more expressive, because we’re adding a massive collection of stylized and Hero-specific Emojis that you can use both in and out of game. While in-game, your Emojis will even convert to match the Hero you’re currently using so long as you own one of that Hero’s Emoji packs.
Portraits: We’re adding a boatload of new Portraits to Heroes of the Storm so that you have even more opportunity to show off your personality on loading screens, in your profile, and the out-of-game UI.
Shards: Shards can be used to forge specific cosmetic items that you’re looking to add to your collection. Varying amounts of Shards can appear in your Loot Chest drops, and any duplicate items you receive in a Loot Chest will automatically fragment into Shards!
Let’s say your latest Loot Chest offered rewards that don’t quite fit your style—No problem! You can spend a little gold to re-roll the contents of every Loot Chest you receive up to three times. Choose which Chests you want to reroll wisely, because once you do, those items will be gone for good.
Finally, Heroes players who are level 3 or higher in the new progression system will get at least 5 free Loot Chests to start, as well as a special portrait. Those of you who have already racked up a bunch of levels in Heroes are going to get up to 70 Loot Chests to open on patch day. The higher your player level, the more you’ll receive.
Do Combat in Style with Collections and Loadouts
We’re excited to announce the arrival of the Collection, which you can use to keep track of the growing pile of treasures that you’ll unlock through progression rewards, Loot Chests, and in-game purchases. The Collection replaces the Shop in the game’s menus and serves as a central location for purchasing new items, Shard crafting, and browsing and sorting through just about every item in the game.
With a Collection that’s brimming with loot, you’re going to want to gear up your Heroes so they inspire awe in allies and enemies alike. Use the new Loadout button on Hero Select to outfit your roster with preferred Skins, Mounts, Sprays, and more—even Announcers can be set on a per-Loadout basis!
Collection view
Loadout panel
You can create up to three Loadouts per Hero, and they’re automatically saved, so you’ll always have the perfect item synergy prepped before diving into your next game.
Reworked Progression Rewards and Profile
In addition to Loot Chests, we’re rewarding you with even more epic goodies at certain Player Level milestones in the new Heroes of the Storm progression system.
| Player Level | Rewards |
|---|---|
| Level 1 | First 10 Hero Rotation Slots |
| Level 5 | 1,000 Gems + Hero Rotation Slot 11 |
| Level 10 | 7 Day Stimpack + Hero Rotation Slot 12 |
| Level 15 | Hero Rotation Slot 13 |
| Level 20 | Hero Rotation Slot 14 |
| Every Level-Up | 1 Common Loot Chest |
| Every 5 Levels | 1 Rare Loot Chest |
| Every 25 Levels | 150 Gems + 1 Epic Loot Chest |
Gems are a new currency we’re introducing as part of Heroes 2.0, and you can learn more about them by clicking here.
Hero Level Progression Rewards
With the arrival of the new progression system, we’ve also overhauled the rewards that you can earn by leveling up your individual Heroes. One of the most significant changes we’re making is that Skin Variations, Mount Variations, and Master Skins, are no longer unlockable through Hero Progression. Instead, they are now individual items that you can receive in Loot Chests or pick up in the Shop.
However, please note that if you’ve already purchased a Skin or Mount using gold or real money before the patch arrives, you’ll permanently receive the base version and both of its variations on patch day —whether or not you had previously unlocked those variations.
Take a moment to look over the other changes we’re implementing for Hero Progression:
| Hero Level | Reward |
|---|---|
| Level 5 | Hero Portrait |
| Level 15 | Master Hero Portrait |
| Every 5 Hero levels | 500 Gold |
| Every 10 Hero levels | 1 Hero-Specific Loot Chest |
A New Look for Your Profile
At this point, you may be asking yourself how you’re supposed to keep track of all these progression changes, as well as which rewards you’ll earn, and when. Don’t worry, we’ve got you covered!
We’ve reworked and reorganized your profile so that it’s even easier to navigate, and better accommodates the progression and reward updates coming to Heroes with our next patch.
On the Progression tab, you’ll find details about your Player Level, which of your Heroes are closest to leveling-up, as well as the next few rewards that are headed your way at any given time.
Gold, Gems, and Shards
Alongside Gold, we’re adding Gems as a new virtual currency, and Shards as a new crafting material with the arrival of our next patch. Check below for a brief description of how to get your hands on Gold, Gems, and Shards in Heroes 2.0, as well as how to use them.
Existing Currency: Gold
Get it: You’ll still earn gold regularly by playing Heroes matches, leveling up your Heroes, and completing Daily Quests.
Spend it on: Heroes and Loot Chest Rerolls.
New Currency: Gems
Get them: You can use real money to purchase Gems in the Gem Shop. You’ll also receive free Gems at regular intervals just by reaching certain account level milestones.
Spend them on: Loot Chests, Heroes, Stimpacks, and featured items (such as Bundles).
Forge Items with Shards!
Get them: As mentioned previously, varying amounts of Shards can appear as Loot Chest drops, and any duplicate items you receive in Loot Chests will automatically be fragmented into Shards.
Spend them on: Cosmetics (like Skins, Mounts, Sprays, Emoji Packs, Announcers, and Voice Lines).
Your total Gem count is displayed next to the party panel in the game menus at the top of the screen, and clicking the “+” button will take you to the Gem Shop where you can use real money to buy additional Gems.
In addition to forging Skins and Mounts with Shards, or finding them in Loot Chests, you can also head to the Collection screen to find a selection of Featured Skins and Mounts available for purchase using Gems. Featured items will rotate regularly, so you always have the chance to pick up a fresh set of specific items that you haven’t managed to unlock through other methods.
Cashing In
While new players will earn their first few Loot Chests quickly as they rise through the early levels, we haven’t forgotten about those of you who have been throwing down in the Nexus for a while.
Whether you’ve only played a handful of games, or you’re a die-hard veteran of the Nexus, you’re going to get free loot immediately upon logging in to Heroes of the Storm after patch day. Depending on your overall Account Level after installing the patch, we’re going to award you with a wealth of Loot Chests:
| Account Level | Rewards |
|---|---|
| Completed at least 1 Heroes match | 5 Common Loot Chests |
| Every 10 Account Levels | +1 Common Loot Chest (35 Maximum) |
| Every 25 Account Levels | +1 Rare Loot Chest (20 Maximum) |
| Every 100 Account Levels | +1 Epic Loot Chest (10 Maximum) |
Additionally, because we’ve reduced the amount of XP needed to progress through later levels, those of you who already have lots of high-level Heroes will now level up—and unlock corresponding rewards—far more frequently than before.
Join Us During the Heroes 2.0 Beta
As you can see, there are a ton of major changes coming to Heroes of the Storm with our next patch, and we’d like to request your help in playtesting all of them. We’ve set up a month-long Beta test so that we can hunt down any bugs and start gathering your feedback.
You can read the instructions below to dive into Beta and start checking out all of the new items, systems, and other changes right now!
- Head to the Heroes of the Storm tab on your Blizzard launcher.
- Use the Region selector found above the “Play” button to switch to “Heroes 2.0 Beta.”
- Hit the big, blue “Install” button, and then log in to start playtesting!
There are also a few important details that you should be aware of during the Heroes 2.0 Beta:
- Real money cannot be used to buy Gems or make any other purchases in the Heroes 2.0
Beta.
- Instead, you’ll earn Gems by completing a Weekly Quest that will only be available during the Beta.
- Finally, any items unlocked or purchased during the Beta will not transfer to your live Heroes of the Storm account.
We hope you have a blast digging into this massive update for Heroes of the Storm, and we’d love to hear your constructive feedback on everything that’s changing. Be sure to head to the official Heroes forums to let us know what you think.
Until next time, we’ll see you in the Nexus… with your fancy new loot!