Principles from Moira

I have plenty going on in my life: a handful of kids, an awesome wife, a full time job I enjoy, and school ambitions. How does Overwatch fit into that? Only as much as I am able to learn from my play and feel it is adding to my life. Below are some some of the most recent life principles that I also need to master for Moira.

Disengage

As Moira (and probably all supports) your most precious asset is not your tank, or even (except in the most dire circumstances) the point. Your most precious assett, hands down, is your own life. This ties in with the point that ArX once made about high ground. While it is a lower-level mistake to think high ground is ALWAYS good, the greatest advantage for High Ground is that it allows you the choice of when to disengage from a battle, saving your own life.

More than just with high ground, though, is the deeper principle of rapidly disengaging. Moira is particularly good at this because of her fade-powered mobility. It is too easy to think you need that one more perfect orb, or that target is at 1hp. If the decision is between risking the end of your life and maybe pulling off that thing, it should be no question: save your life. Someday you might be a grandmaster and have a clearer estimate of what the payoff might be, but until then, you have not earned the privilege of making that an option.

In life, too, there are times when being selfish is a virtue. Certainly Moira understands this (though with her, perhaps too well). You are uniquely positioned to take care of yourself. This is always one of the greatest responsibilites you have, and a place of highest service. Highest because no one else can take care of you as well as you can yourself.

Patience

Remember that patience does not always mean waiting; patience is mastery of time. Sometimes that means hurrying without tolerance for distraction. Other times it means recognizing that the right time is NOT YET. When you feel yourself starting to feel rushed, make yourself stop and slow down. Even if that means endangering the current game, you need a clear mind and an honest assessment of the timings at play in the current situation. Be aware of things threatening to carry you or your attention away.¹

Story makes failure precious

You should have a story for every failure (read: every death or loss or screwed up play). Stories make the failures become precious assets that you can learn from and which can make you a better player. When you can’t make stories or lessons from you failures, it is time to quit for now and come back with a fresh perspective. Elseways you are wasting your time.

Footnotes

¹ An inverse that will be worthy of another post, Moira is very well positioned to persuade others to fail patience. Moira is well-suited to distract and foil enemy plans, making them waste time, attention, ammunition, or even ults by causing them to make the mistake of getting carried away. This is especially true in a permabronze rank. But it usually only matters if Moira gets out alive (except in rare cases where dying helps the rest of the team win, usually not necessary at lower ranks).