Master of Ambra - why she isn't "useless"

So it seems just from browsing this subreddit that there are people who think Ambra was nerfed into uselessness. However, as somebody who has mained her since her unlock and now having done her lore challenges, I thought I'd quell some of that talk.

I did not have the opportunity to play the beta so I never got to see her "OP" form. And I think that's where all this talk of underpoweredness comes from. They're comparing current Ambra to pre-nerf Ambra and I admit some of those 40% reductions looked scary. But in practice, she fits in line with most other Battleborn.

First of all, don't play Ambra as if you are using Miko. In my opinion, they have different roles even though they're both classified as Healers. Miko can top off anybody's health, whereas Ambra relies on her cooldown to be able to heal effectively. You might not be able to heal Kelvin to max HP with the use of one sunspot. Most of the heals may be dominantly used for yourself. Ambra will be on the front lines most of the time due to her short attack range unlike Miko who is usually in the pocket.

So in the beginning levels, your healing won't be as quick as a Miko. To combat this disparity, I recommend going for helix choices that increase the sunspot health, health regeneration, range of sunspots, etc. I typically don't increase damage output of sunspots however as I value them solely for health regen. As Ambra, you will not be following other Battleborn for the purposes of healing. You will almost always be nearby for when they need your support, but don't feel like you can't leave your allies to go do what you gotta do. Play as if you were a distraction, a tank. I aliken her more to a character like Kelvin more than a Miko. Why? Well, while Ambra has the ability to KO with the use of Solar Wind and her ult Extinction Event, she will hardly get any KOs with the use of her main attack, which is okay. Before entering a fight, I will set up a sunspot between the attacker and I to simultaneously heal myself and damage the opponent. Add in the fact that I get 30% of the damage I deal with my main attack (up to 45% at the level 3 spec) and an overshield that activates when my health gets too low and Ambra is one annoying Battleborn to handle. It is not uncommon for opponents to stay engaged with me for several seconds, thinking they can KO me, only for my teammates to come in and finish them off. Often times, they'll even stay locked in combat enough that I can finish them off with a SOLAR WIND (spec level 4 into more damage with solar wind). Don't be afraid to enter engagements with some melee characters for the purposes of distracting them. Just be cautious about any stuns and you should be able to disengage safely if your health starts dipping. Ambra only has a problem with Galilea since she can't utilize her sunspots with Galilea. Now don't take this as me saying Ambra can survive anything. Because she can't. Distracting the opponent as a tank should serve a purpose. Don't just do it because. Do it when allies are moving up or flanking. You simply need to alleviate some of the pressure being put onto your allies. As an Ambra you will not be getting a ton of kills, but you should be getting alot of assists.

Ambra is an excellent minion-clearer. Not at all on ISIC levels but competent at it. With SUNSPOTS, you always want to make sure that as soon as the cooldown finishes, that you'll have used it up again. There will always be somebody to heal, or somebody to damage with it. I typically set up sunspots in chokepoints where there is alot of traffic. These include the direct center of Overgrowth near the turret or when we are pushing up just before the first sentry. Setting up sunspots at these choke points means any allies (this includes your minions) walking through will get some health back and any opponents will get damaged. So you'll be contributing to that part of the map even if you're off somewhere else. But the sunspots won't be enough to finish off minions. This is where your RB ability, SOLAR WIND, is useful. When a minion wave is coming up, one SOLAR WIND should be enough to clear that wave unless they have an overshield. If there's a large minion, use your melee SCORCHING STRIKE to deal some additional damage and then your primary attack to try to top off your health. I typically use her SCORCHING STRIKE every 60 seconds or so (or however long it takes for you to charge up your heat) on a minion or turret. While the melee attack can deal more damage than your primary attack it is fairly hard to use it on opposing Battleborn.

Once you unlock your ult, EXTINCTION EVENT, you'll also want to use it at choke points for either minion clearance or at a fight where several Battleborn are involved. I suppose it's up to personal preference but I treat her ult just like a sunspot. Use it up as soon as possible. While it may seem like you want to save it up for a Battleborn brawl, I find it much preferential to have that Battleborn brawl without their minions clogging up our base.

As for items, I use a gear setup composed of all three slots. The first item I buy is one that grants health regen and increases healing received since the sunspots are primarily used on myself. It also makes her life steal that much more useful. The second item is one that boosts healing power and CC reduction. The third item is one that boosts healing power even further. However, while at a glance it seems like a sunspot should grant bonus health to myself based on the bonus healing received and healing given, I'm still unsure if that is what happens and have yet to test it. Hopefully, GBX can make some of the equipment less vague in terms of what synergizes and what doesn't.

So there you go, hopefully this will encourage some more people to pick up Ambra. I admit I was horrible with Ambra in the beginning but that was mostly attributed to the fact that I tried to treat her as a Miko, following my allies and trying to heal them whenever necessary. However, if you're going to do that, just use Miko. He's better at it. However, Ambra has better survivability and some excellent minion-clearing abilities. In my recent games with Ambra, it is common for myself to have had the same amount of heals done as a Miko alongside the same amount of damage dealt as a Rath, with 2-3x the amount of minion kills as any other player. The best way to describe Ambra is that she's versatile. Miko may be a better healer. Kelvin may be a better tank. Oscar Mike may be a better minion-clearer. But unlike those characters, Ambra can do each of those things decently.

However, it should be noted that while I found success using these strategies, you can and will deviate from this strategy. The beauty of Ambra lies in her versatility. She can be used for everything and anything. So if some of your players need healing, try to heal. If you see an opportunity to use her ult for some KOs, go for it. This guide assumes some situational awareness on your part since at the end of the day, the best judge of what to do and when to do it will be you. It is easy to say Ambra is really good at minion-clearing and taking a punch, but if there's a moment where you think she shouldn't be on the front-lines or attacking minions that is okay since even I don't use Ambra for said purposes all the time.

TL;DR

Treat Ambra as a minion-clearing tank, not as a healer. Set up SUNSPOTS in chokepoints to simultaneously heal allies and damage opponents. Use SOLAR WIND and EXTINCTION EVENT against minions. Don't be afraid to distract opponents. You have amazing survivability. Use it to your advantage.