Zenyatta
Role: Support
Difficulty: Hard
Zenyatta’s orbs provide a range of bonuses and hindrances, all while building his Transcendence, and becoming impervious to damage.
Abilities
Orb of Destruction: Zenyatta can either dispense his health diminishing orbs piecemeal, or send them in a charged flurry.
Orb of Harmony: Zenyatta can slowly heal a teammate of his choosing, so long as he can maintain a line of sight. Only one ally can be targeted at a time.
Orb of Discord: This orb amplifies the amount of damage an enemy combatant receives, and just like the Orb of Harmony, a line of sight must be sustained to maintain the Orbs effect. The Orb can only be applied to a single enemy at a time.
Transcendence: Though Zenyatta cannot use abilities, he also cannot take damage and in his heightened state, heals all the teammates around him.
Tactics
Zenyatta is a great support character due to his orb combinations and high damage potential of his primary fire, but he must be used efficiently. With Zenyatta, you must stay at the back of your team, moving with as many teammates as possible. you should start any group fight you encounter by first throwing an Orb of Discord at the most dangerous enemy. Sending it to Roadhog, is far more effective than sending it to Mercy, for example. Then use your primary fire to unleash a volley of Orbs at that enemy.
Zenyatta's Orb of Destruction is actually quite interesting. It has a solid damage output, and can be charged into a volley, that will unleash 5 orbs in quick succession. You can actually charge a full volley even when you only have a single orb left in your possession. This is great for unleashing as much damage as possible without having to reload.
Any time you're in a fight, you need to plant an Orb Of Discord on an enemy to easily take them down. This is not your only viable orb, though. You also have an Orb Of Harmony, which can be sent to a teammate to heal them over time. Switching between these quickly takes some getting used to, but using them effectively can provide incredible benefits to your team's abilities. Throwing Orbs as frequently as possible will charge your ultimate rather quickly, and what an ultimate it is. Zenyatta's ultimate heals all of his teammates within the small area and he becomes invulnerable to damage. This is great for defense counter when the enemy is about to overtake a checkpoint.
Zenyatta is incredibly useful in battle, but he does have some downfalls. His Orbs can only be used on a single enemy or teammate at a time, but they have no cooldown and can be easily cast without having to line up difficult shots. His Orbs of destruction have high damage potential, especially when paired with an Orb Of Discord, but it's difficult to line up shots with the Orb of Destruction, specifically the volley variation. His ultimate heals all teammates around him, but he cannot attack. He is also fairly slow, and can be easily targeted by snipers, or can fall to high damage close range opponents like Zarya. You must stick by your allies and support them, throwing out Orbs of Discord as quickly as possible, or Orbs of Harmony when needed. Work with your team constantly, and you will likely find victory.
Pro-Tip
As Zenyatta, never try to begin an attack on an opposing hero without first using an orb of discord. The orb will give you an immense boost in any firefight.
Strong Against
Reinhardt: Since he is such a large target, it’s fairly easy to hit him with an Orb of Discord to allow your teammates to eliminate him. His shield will block the orb from reaching him, so you must throw it before he deploys it. Simply keep your distance, and wait for your opportune moment.
Tracer: Though she’s fast, hitting her with a Discord Orb can leave her vulnerable enough that she immediately falls in battle. For instance, if she is on the front lines of an assault and is hit with an Orb, any of your more offensive teammates can eliminate her within seconds.
Weak Against
Hanzo: Due to his poor movement speed and health, he can easily be taken down with a couple of well-placed shots. The best method for dealing with Hanzo is to take cover and stay behind your teammates, buffering them while they work on eliminating members of the other team.
Soldier 76: He can counter Orb of Discord by using his Biotic Field and healing while firing back, and due to his relatively high damage output, he can eliminate Zenyatta fairly quickly. It’s best to use a Harmony Orb on whoever he is currently firing against, allowing your teammate to close in for the kill.
Biography
Real Name: Tekhartha Zenyatta
Age: 20
Occupation: Wandering Guru, Adventurer
Base of Operations: Shambali Monastery, Nepal (formerly)
Affiliation: The Shambali (formerly)
Story
Zenyatta is an omnic monk who wanders the world in search of spiritual enlightenment. It is said that those who cross his path are never the same again.
Years ago, following the Omnic Crisis, a group of outcast omnic robots experienced what they described as a spiritual awakening. They abandoned their preprogrammed lives to establish a communal monastery deep in the Himalayas. After many years of meditation on the nature of existence, they came to the belief that they were more than artificial intelligences and that, like humans, they possessed the essence of a soul.
Recognizing the spiritual equality they held with humans, the monks, led by the enigmatic robot known as Tekhartha Mondatta, sought to heal the wounds caused by the Omnic Crisis a generation earlier and bring humans and robots back into societal harmony. Their message was embraced by millions around the world, and they became global celebrities.
But one monk, Zenyatta, disagreed with this new direction. He believed that the way to repair the problems between humans and omnics was not through dogmatic teaching but through interpersonal connection and engagement.
Ultimately, Zenyatta followed his own path. He chose to leave the monastery and wander the world, helping those he meets to overcome their personal struggles and find inner peace. But, when necessary, he will fight to protect the innocent, be they omnic or human.