[Battleborn Guide] Ambra. The power of the sun at the tip of your staff!

##Foreword Ambra is the most nerfed character in the game now, her damage was cut significantly since the start of beta. But still she stands high in tier list, unburnt and unbroken. I remember picking her in beta based solely on looks and play style similar of Warhammer online's ArchMage. From the get go I was amazed at her versatility and survivability. When I got to PVP, there was just not enough stopping power to back her down. Then came the first nerf, I didn't notice it at all, because it wasn't that bad. Bit later the release day came and god devs were harsh. At first I thought (like many still do) that they butchered the character. But then it came to me that the only thing she lacks now is the need for further nerfs being able to hold the frontline alone. All her versatility stayed. Then I tried couple of less obvious helix choices and now I have her back to badass level. Also she has the best laughter when picked in character selection screen and oh-so-many lines

I WILL NOT REST UNTIL EVERY SHIRT ON THIS PLANET IS TUCKED THE F... IN!!!

Contents:

1. Battleborn overview
2. Unlock requirements
3. Lore challenges
4. Core abilities
5. Helix Upgrades & Mutations
6. Legendary gear & gear loadout ideas
7. Play styles

##1. Battleborn Overview

Name: Claudia Ambralia Divia
Alias: Ambra
Faction: Jennerit Imperium

Starting HP: 920
Shield: 300
Base Damage: 35
Alt. Base damage: 48-184

Weapon: Staff of Radiance
Main attack: drains health from a targeted enemy, returning 30% (up to 45%) of the damage dealt to herself and generates heat
Secondary attack: Melee hit with damage scaling with Staff's heat level (up to 100% extra damage) OR shoots fireballs at a steady rate of 2 FPS (fireballs per second), spending heat. Melee hit can be a devastating finisher if modified with helix upgrade
Quick melee: Off-hand hard hitting punch in the face

Ambra is very versatile character with lots of utility and interesting choices making for different builds. There's one build in particular i love more than any other, ever since beta. But after all the nerfs that happened to her, she's meant to be played smart now. Forget rushing center from the match start. She's not an early pusher now, she's the support she was meant to be and decent healer if done right. Her only problem that people just won't stay near sunspots as if they are terrified of these little harmless suns

##2. Unlock requirements

Ambra is unlocked once you win 5 matches as jennerit character(Rath and Caldarius being the earliest for access)or reach command rank 14
You can actually unlock her even before you unlock Caldarius in story missions, by going in PVP and helicoptering the hell out of enemies with Rath

##3. Lore Challenges

Ambra's lore challenges are easy and completed naturally in PVE as you progress. I recommend finishing them as soon as possible (can actually take 1-2 matches/missions if you know what you're doing), since the reward item is kind of crucial point

Order of the Sustaining Mother: Heal yourself for 24 000 health using the Staff of Radiance's health drain ability. Was a no-brainer in beta and could be completed in a span of 1 incursion match. Now it just takes a bit more time, but on the plus side - overheal also seems to count

Staff of the Silent Sisters: Deal 28 000 damage with Scorching Strikes. This one can take the most time to get if you forget to use your alt.attack as often as possible

The Winds of Change: Kill 500 enemies with Solar Wind. Upon completion says "push" instead of kill for some reason. This can be the most troublesome to get fast enough, since the damage was cut significantly and solar wind just isn't that effective now even with all the upgrades you can give it. There's however a way to complete it fast enough. Right after Geoff (or Galactic emperor, i forgot) there's a cave with frozen enemies in Algorithm mission. After breaking 1 or 2 crystals, some hive enemies spawn, who in turn spawn little swarms, one hit kill those little things with solar wind and don't kill big ones until you complete challenge.

Cleansing Fire: Heal teammates for 50 000 damage. Comes naturally, 1-2 matches of incursion if you're good with sunspotting

I Command the Very Stars: Deal 60 000 damage with Extinction Event Achieved fastest in PVE in large groups.

Once you complete all the challenges, you will receive Ambra's legendary item as a reward (see gear section)

##4. Core abilities and skills

1st and foremost: Look at the map. It's the key to successfully playing every kind of battleborn. Map is life, map is love!

2nd but not any less important: Teleport to base to replenish HP. It's on B key by default on PC and down on d-pad of X-one/Ps4controller. Less of a necessity with Ambra, but bad stuff happens and it's better to insta-heal in some cases than to stare at the sun

Taunt: Important thing to incorporate in your playstyle. I prefer using Hot Stuff one. You can get it from opening Jennerit faction packs. Taunts can destabilize people and make them choose you as a primary target, tunneling the surroundings, making for great ambushes

Ambra specific:

Silent Sister// All stars title: This way we can make strategic advantage of the enemy team. There are many Galileas out there and they have Frenemies lore piece which requires them to kill Ambra 25 times. And you wouldn't believe what wonders it works sometimes. For some Galileas it becomes number 1 priority to kill Ambra, even if they have almost dead pretty much any other character around. Use this knowledge to set traps, switch attention and break enemy lines. The title will telegraph the other team that there might be Ambra in your team, so they are more likely to pick Galilea

Flame Shield(Passive ability): When Ambra's health falls below 20%, she is protected by a Flame Shield for 4 seconds that provides 300 Overshield.
Not the kind of passive skill you'd want for the character who commands the very stars, but with level 5 helix upgrade it becomes a great tool for making an escape.

Sunspot: Summons a Sunspot that does damage per second to nearby enemies and healing to allies at the cost of its own health. Up to 2 Sunspots can be active at once(3 with mutation).
Your bread and butter along with Staff of Radiance attacks. There's literally no wrong way to use this skill. I'd recommend using it on cooldown and never leave any to just sit there waiting for a chance to be used. Other interesting thing is - you can put one sunspot as an ambush device, since it will linger as long as your 2nd sunspot is destroyed every time before you place another in its place. Also works wonders paired with healing station, fasthealing teammate to full HP. I just have so much love for this skill, especially when you get a kill off a sunspot you forgot was even there

Solar Wind: Channels a fiery wind that quickly builds Heat as it damages enemies in front of Ambra. Solar Wind does 80 damage per second for 3 seconds
This one's the most underestimated skill. Initially it was used to annihilate waves of enemies/minions and deal significant damage. It can be used for minion clearing now too, but you'll need to soften them up with unspot first. Pushing effect upgrade is where this skill really shines making for some really nice setups if you learn to push in the right direction(over the edge, towards your team, into ultimate's radius), it also annoys the hell out of melee

Extinction Event: Calls down a meteor at a targeted location, dealing 450 damage and leaving a scorching area of effect, dealing 300 damage over 5 seconds.
While this ultimate sounds good, it's not. It has around 5 seconds build-up period which is telegraphed so obviously, the blind man could see it. The damage is only good when you catch large groups of enemies in it, so far it's best used for clearing out minions in incursion. I often use it for tactical advantage, besause of that giant blue-to-red mark in the center and its huge AOE radius. People instinctively back down when they see it giving us more ground and a chance to push back

##5. Helix Upgrades & mutations
http://orcz.com/Battleborn:_Ambra#Helix_Tree - Neat table with mutations
http://battleborn.wikia.com/wiki/Ambra - mutations with unlock ranks

My thoughts on each helix option in general:
##LEVEL 1

• Sunspotter(l) - good choice, but the benefit is limited to 4 seconds
• Illumination(r) - Mostly PVE and minion clearing choice, I go for Sunspotter 90% of the time anyway

##LEVEL 2

• Blessing of the Sun(l) - Faster heals for your teammates, pretty much the number one choice, especially if you plan to take middle mutation on level 3
• Solar Burst(r) - If you plan on going full offense. You can also finish off running enemies without getting in range for melee with this one, a choice to consider for capture missions, since it makes easier for setting up ambushes, making sunspots proximity mines. Not as good with lots of weaker enemies like in Incursion or meltdown
• Soothing Sunlight(m) - Burst heal, use this if you don't plan on taking any other option here, I personally prefer Blessing over this one

##LEVEL 3

• Ceremonial Sacrifice(l) - This is by far THE MOST UNDERAPPRECIATED choice. I use this every time our team doesn't have Miko, people love healing beams! If someone says 30% nerf to damage isn't enough to bring Ambra off the pedestal, then I say 30% own health for healing others isn't much of a price to pay to keep team alive. The only trouble is consistent focused fire on a teammate in which case you can find yourself lacking HP, avoid this type of situations and you'll be fine. Highly recommended skill if the only healer in your team
• Blood Drive(r) - The most common choice, besause hey +15% self-heal from Staff is great! The more I play, the more I shy away from this option, the reason being my late game playstyle. But it's a good option for those who is just starting out nonetheless.
• Stellar Ritual(m) - Unlocks at character rank 12. Allows you...get this...RECHARGE SUNSPOTS. It sounds so epic! Well, in gameplay it's not that great, but it can be used in some situations to destroy minion groups or to make healing of multiple teammates possible at once if you went for blessing ofthe sun earlier. Or you can heal yourself faster, by charging the sunspot, while it heals you

##LEVEL 4

• Radiant Gale(l) - PVP option number one. This is your trapping device now, you can push enemies in AOEs, off the edges, out of reach, into the corner, so many fun ways
• Searing Wind(r) - Ifrit EX most annoying debuff in Final Fantasy XIV Purely PVE option, other options are much more useful in PVP
• Ritual of Repulsion(m) - lazier option than RG. It changes animation and the way it works, but push-back seems to be further, you lose some versatility with pushes, but can not care about facing the enemy, since it becomes 360 area

##LEVEL 5

• Cauterization(l) - the only viable option here, even though speed was reduced in half...
• Flame Burst(r) - no longer viable in any situation
  the most castrated helix upgrade level

##LEVEL 6

• Agile Anomaly(l) - my go to option, especially if I picked stellar ritual before. Increases effectiveness of well-placed sunspot by a lot
• Solar Storm(r) - nice PVE option, in PVP you solar wind will be off cooldown most of the time anyway, since it's an emergency plan/ambush device
• Solar Anomaly(m) - +1 sunspot sounds nice, but for me there was rarely a situation where I'd need this one. Except maybe some complicated ambushes

##LEVEL 7

• Flame Staff(l) - can provide nice boost to survivability in melee range if you're comfortable with hitting things with your staff. Works best if you have full heat
• Radiant Spear(r) - almost guaranteed killing blow on weakened enemies, since the damage burst is so high
• Radiant Halberd(m) - Best.Helix.Upgrade for Ambra hands down. Completely changes her playstyle. It makes her alt attack ranged, with decent speed and good fixed damage. Downsides are - no crits and it requires heat to use. "What's so great about it then?" - you might ask. Oh...do you remember my advice to get legendary ASAP? Read Ambra-specific effect. So...now you have your staff has potential of 220 DPS...with no worrying about heat ending. This staff also has little AOE effect, so you can hit 2 enemies standing right next to each other, ramping your DPs even higher.
  Without legendary, picking Halberd won't give you the real feel of how it works, since it spends heat quite fats and only takes seconds before you find yourself swinging your staff at nothing. You're better off using either of the other 2 options, whatever you feel like actually

##LEVEL 8

• Bask in the Light(l) - if you picked Solar anomaly, you can pick this option to actually make Anomaly choice do at least something
• Fan the Flames(r) - more health for sunspots. With Stellar ritual chosen, pick this option

##LEVEL 9

• Howling Wind(l) - PVP option
• Sweltering Wind(r) - PVE option

##LEVEL 10

• Impact Crater(l) - more important for PVP
• World's End(r) - PVE choice

##6.Gear

Ambra's Legendary: Shard of Jennar

• +7% Skill Damage
• +7% Heal Power
• Ambra Only: Staff of Radiance slowly generates its own heat
  I'll update values once they fix legendaries.

For offensive play, I use the same stuff as I use for my melee chars, since channeling ability seems to be considered melee and that gear also augments my ranged attack so:
Ambra's Legendary - for obvious reasons.
Jennerit Gauntlets - Attack power
Jennerit Sword - Attack speed

For healing purposes:
Ambra's Legendary
Medkit - healing done
Locket - healing received

##7. Play Styles

You can play Ambra offensive or defensive or even mix it when you get the legendary. Your build/gear should also be very dependant on team composition. If someone picks Miko, go offensive. No Miko means you'd better take up that healer spot, you get the idea. Levels 5 and 7 have the only option for me in all modes