NERF EL DRAGON! Lol no, but seriously, can someone help me counter this guy?

Battleborn El Dragón
#11

Out of playing:
Ambra, Benedict, Boldur, Caldarius, El Dragon, Ghalt, Mellka, Oscar Mike, Shayne and Aurox, and Thorn

Not a single one really struggles with Rath’s ultimate barring Reyna if you’re out of position. It is by far the MOST predictable thing in Battleborn. I’d probably say that most of my deaths are from Orendi and Thorn’s ultimate because of the insane burst damage.

Caldarius can legitimately walk out of Rath’s ult, while Mellka should be using Claw Lunge to escape Rath if you’re expecting an Ult, and yes this is just as easy as it is to write as I play both of them and do so multiple times.

Rath is one of the worst characters in my opinion and it baffles me when people call for a nerf with him.

You can’t counter pick but you can pick a team that counters your own weaknesses, which in turn should provide counters for most characters. If you’re playing as a bunch of squishy characters without a tank or any hard CC for example, you’re clearly going to get run over by El Dragón.

#12

Hmm, while it is true it is a team game it is a luxury to have people with mics. So team counter picking isnt usually an option.

I definitely don’t think Rath is one of the worst.

You must play against some terrible rath’s or you must usually run in an organized team. A good rath will wait till the cool downs are ready…slow>silence>knock up>spin>prophet in just about any 1v1 situation.

But you are correct about Benedict and Cald. They have a decent chance of escaping. But that’s besides the point…Rath is child’s play compared to El Dragon. That is the subject at hand.

#13

LOL

There are 2 people I actively avoid during gameplay. Alani and Eld Dragon. It doesn’t matter who I am or where I am. I see them coming, I run the other way. Bye, CYA.

Can’t wait to play him myself though. Played a couple times on bot PVP. Absolutely sucked as him.

1 Like
#14

I have a guide posted that should help you do better with him. So you want to be an Intergalactic Champion huh? (Guide)

@Derch Done.

3 Likes
#15

You might want to post a link to it

#16

Thanks for the replies! I think the only real counter I’m seeing here is to play certain characters - namely ranged dps/aoe. It would be nice if dragon splash had a more noticeable set up though. Compare it to Caldarius’ ult… you can see the spin and jets animation when he goes up. You know it’s coming so you can run in hopes of avoiding it. I almost never see the dragon splash coming though. It has a decent range on it so it can be activated outside of the skirmish going on in front of you and then you get smashed from out of no where. I would even say that dragon splash with aoe helix does more damage that Caldarius’ ult! The El Dragon in the video was consistently double and triple killing my team with that combo! I can read the telegraph of most every character’s skills by now, but not that dragon splash… it’s frustrating to say the least!

#17

Here’s the proper link that’ll take people to the first post; your link takes them to the 25th post.

#18

Don’t try to 1v1 him, especially with a support character.

As an El Dragon player I can tell you what he finds annoying.

1/ Any type of CC. Seriously, this wrecks him and destroys his combo.

2/ Focus fire. El Dragon is great at 1v1, sometimes 1v2, but if you team up on him his low health drops FAST.

Same as any brawler/assassin with high burst they are VERY effective in PUGs. If you call him out or have anyone with CC interrupt him he can’t do much.

1 Like
#19

Seconding this. If you spot El Dragon, call him out, because if he’s letting himself be seen it’s because he’s about to let loose on his nuke combo. Let your team know he’s coming in, make sure someone with a good CC is prepared and hanging back waiting for him to dive in.

They can CC him after his clothesline, which will give the player(s) he’s targeting a chance to escape or counter-attack, but ideally you want them to hit him with it AFTER his ultimate activates (basically right when he does the pose, don’t let him finish the pose or he may manage to pull off the Dragon Splash, and you can say goodbye to your butts). It does mean your teammates eat a chunk of AOE damage but if El Dragon is making his attack run solo (ie his teammates aren’t layering their own AOEs on top of him), it won’t be too bad. Most stuns will still leave him with some ult timer left afterwards, but with just a few seconds delay you’ve ruined his combo and likely put enough hurt on to make him run away. Even if you don’t manage to kill him in this time, now his ult is on cooldown and he will be back in harass mode for at least 60 seconds.

For this reason though, it’s more important than usual to control blind spots if El Dragon is around. He’ll always be looking for somewhere to clothesline in from unseen to initiate his combo precisely because it helps avoid being CC countered. So keep someone in the nest watching for him on Overgrowth, keep an eye on the minimap. He’s a lot more difficult to deal with on Capture and Meltdown as a result, as those modes have no real skirmish lines that force him back - he can run around pretty much anywhere he wants and attack from any angle.

2 Likes
#20

Very good point on catching him during the ult transformation.

Not only is he stationary but it’s pivotal for him to trap enemies with his stun post knockup, if you CC him, even if you don’t kill him, he’s far less likely to be able to stun anyone and lay into them.

#21

Turrets stop him dead in his tracks.,
cc him.
Shoot him. He’s massive and he is forced to clear with huge investment and risk in safety.
Stop him and cc him when he is near.

#22

need nerf , massive damage as rath. but yes thorn was nerfed -_-

#23

CC him and focus him as a team. He is one of the squishiest characters in the game and will die very fast if focused.

1 Like
#24

I’m pulling a face at you. >:I Don’t even joke about that!

1 Like
#25

Hmmm… As a fellow Reyna character, PSA alert: He is no match for Reyna’s slow.

Besides that… Deande devoures him. 1 uppercut = lights out dragon, extremely squishy. When you fight a dragon w/ full on attack speed he is depending on those hit and runs. Take away the run and he is dead.

When facing Dragon, don’t be in the front lines because that’s where he splashes.

#26

Thanks maaan ! Niiice advice!! I´ll consider it … Why didn’t I think of that befoooore?
(not answer my last question pls :slight_smile: )

#27

If you’re using Mellka, spike him then mid-air claw lunge out of his range. Not to mention, if you don’t land, you’re super hard to track… He takes a nice burst of damage and then takes DoT. This should be enough for a teammate to clean up. At the very least, you’ll annoy him to the point where he becomes cautious. Always remember that Mellka’a abilities are also forms of movement. Also, her slide kick is faster than him. If you add movement/sprint speed gear to her loadout she can easily outpace any other BB.

1 Like
#28

If he is coming solely after you, you won’t have many options. If you see him going after someone else, it’s an easy priority target>>>slow>>> punch him below the belt>> keep on pelting him with slow. He would 1) go after you (which you just then keep attacking and punch him when he gets too close) 2) run away

You will make him upset and most likely splash on you 100% of the time if you are close. You just gotta be really aware of where is his by communicating with the team and watching the map

#29

dragon its fine I only said he do massive damage. I do not care if it’s an opportunist or a good player, dragon Have MASSIVE damage , that’s my point . I know he is not OP.
no more obvious solutions, please.

#30

As mellka he is rly easy to counter. If struggling it’s because you’re not using the right strat. You should keep yourself at a good distance and try to hit him with your venom canister. If he closes range, slow him with your spike and claw lunge away immediately! Try not to let him get any damage on you even if he stuns you with en fuego, immediately claw lunge away as far as you possibly can. A great strat is to claw lunge to a high ground where he can’t reach and continue to rain hell on him from above. His large size makes him a very easy target even with his speed, in fact mellka is one of few characters with the mobility to actually chase him down and finish him even if he does closeline away