Zenyatta

Zenyatta
"True self is without form."
Real Name	Tekhartha Zenyatta
Age	20
Occupation	Wandering Guru Adventurer
Base	Shambali Monastery, Nepal (formerly)
Affiliation	Shambali (formerly)
Voice	Feodor Chin (English) Marc Perez (French) Frank Schaff (German) Li Yuantao (Mandarin (China)) Li Yong(Mandarin (Taiwan)) Gabriele Calindri (Italian) Manmosu Nishio (Japanese) An Hyo-min (Korean) Ricardo Juarez (Brazilian Portuguese) Arturo Mercado Jr. (American Spanish) Abraham Aguilar (European Spanish)
Cosmetics	Cosmetic page
Quotes	Quotation page
Role	Support
Health	50
Shields	150
Character Video

Zenyatta is a Support hero in Overwatch.

Overview

Zenyatta calls upon orbs of harmony and discord to heal his teammates and weaken his opponents, all while pursuing a transcendent state of immunity to damage.

Abilities

Orb of Destruction

Type

Weapon (Primary Fire)

Effect Type

Projectile

Zenyatta projects his destructive energy orbs individually.

Damage:

48

Headshot:

✓

Rate of fire:

2.5 shots per second

Ammo:

20

Reload time:

1.5 seconds

Spread angle:

Pinpoint

Projectile speed:

90 meters per second

Example Video

Orb of Destruction

Type

Weapon (Secondary Fire)

Effect Type

Projectile

Zenyatta projects his destructive energy orbs in a rapid-fire volley after a few seconds spent gathering power.

Damage:

48 per orb
Max 240 per volley

Headshot:

✓

Rate of fire:

9 shots per second (firing)
1 orb per 0.52 seconds (charging)
0.6 second recovery

Ammo per shot:

Up to 5 per volley

Ammo:

20

Reload time:

1.5 seconds

Spread angle:

Pinpoint

Projectile speed:

90 meters per second

Example Video

Orb of Harmony

LSHIFT

Type

Ability

Effect Type

Targeted

Zenyatta casts an orb over the shoulder of a targeted ally. So long as Zenyatta maintains line of sight, the orb slowly restores health to his ally. Only one ally can receive the orb's benefit at a time.

Healing:

30 health per second

Ammo:

One active

Duration:

3 seconds (if out of sight)

Max. range:

40 meters

Projectile speed:

90 meters per second

• Details

Ability details:

• If Zenyatta loses sight of the player being healed, Orb of Harmony will be returned to Zenyatta after 3 seconds.
• Multiple orbs stack additively.

Example Video

Orb of Discord

E

Type

Ability

Effect Type

Targeted

Attaching the orb of discord to an opponent amplifies the amount of damage they receive for as long as Zenyatta maintains line of sight. Only one opponent can suffer the orb's effects at a time.

Damage:

+25% damage received

Ammo:

One active

Duration:

3 seconds (if out of sight)

Max. range:

40 meters

Projectile speed:

90 meters per second

• Details

Ability details:

• If Zenyatta loses sight of the player afflicted, Orb of Discord will be returned to Zenyatta after 3 seconds.

Example Video

Transcendence

Q

2310 points

Type

Ultimate Ability

Effect Type

Area of effect

Zenyatta enters a state of heightened existence for a short period of time. While transcendent, Zenyatta cannot use abilities or weapons, but is immune to damage and automatically restores his health and that of nearby allies.

Healing:

300 health per second

Duration:

6 seconds

Max. range:

10 meters radius

Move. speed:

11 meters per second

• Details

Ability details:

• Zenyatta is also immune to certain stuns, such as Hack and Earthshatter.
• Ammunition is restored after completion.

Example Video

Strategy

Zenyatta is a potent offense-focused Support. He stands out from the other supports due to his incredible killing power: his Orb of Destruction and Orb of Discord can let him shred through even the sturdiest of Tanks with well aimed shots. While not as powerful a healer as Mercy, his Orb of Harmony and Transcendence abilities are more than enough to let him keep a team alive when used smartly. All of this power is counterbalanced by a severe lack of mobility. Unless Zenyatta is using his ultimate, he moves at a relatively slow pace, and has no abilities to speed him up. This makes him vulnerable to agile flankers or large amounts of incoming fire.

Weapons & Abilities

• Orb of Destruction: Zenyatta's primary weapon. The primary fire causes Zenyatta to shoot fast-moving orb projectiles at a reasonable rate, dealing damage to an enemy. The secondary fire is a charge ability: Zenyatta will gradually begin preparing up to five orbs, with the number of orbs increasing the longer he charges. He can let go of the secondary fire button at any time to release the stored orbs, firing them straight forward at his crosshairs, in a rapid burst. He will automatically fire his stored orbs if the secondary fire button is held down long enough.
  • The small size of the orbs Zenyatta fires masks their incredible damage potential. Zenyatta can out-damage many Offense heroes if he is accurate with his shots.
  • The orbs do have a small amount of travel time. As with other projectiles, lead your shots slightly so that they will hit moving targets.
  • Use the secondary fire to ambush stationary targets like Bastion or Widowmaker. The sudden burst of orbs will usually kill them instantly, not giving them time to react.

• Orb of Discord: When activated, Zenyatta will place an Orb of Discord on the targeted enemy, causing them to take greatly increased damage from all sources. This ability automatically targets the enemy that is closest to Zenyatta's crosshairs. Orb of Discord is removed when the Zenyatta applies the Orb to a different target, loses line of sight for three seconds, or dies. Orb of Discord cannot be applied to targets who are behind a barrier.
  • A powerful basic ability. It has no cooldown and can be applied as often as Zenyatta likes, greatly increasing the damage the target takes.
  • Who you put this on usually depends on who the biggest threat to your team is at that moment. In general, Tanks like Winston or Reinhardt are prime targets. If your team is being harassed by a powerful Offense hero like Pharah, throw it on them and use Orb of Destruction to kill them, as they will take massive damage from your projectiles.

• Orb of Harmony: When activated, Zenyatta will place an Orb of Harmony on the targeted ally, causing them to slowly regenerate health over time. This ability automatically targets the ally that is closest to Zenyatta's crosshairs. Orb of Harmony is removed when Zenyatta applies the Orb to a different target, loses line of sight for three seconds, or dies.
  • Orb of Harmony is not the strongest of heals, but it is still considerable, and it allows Zenyatta to turn his attention toward damaging enemies while still healing. Since it is not particularly strong, Zenyatta should prioritise healing to allies who have lower max health or are or closer to death, instead of tanks, as the latter will take very long to heal with Orb of Harmony (this does not mean to not heal your tank if they're dying).
  • The Orb of Harmony will remain on the target for several seconds after they leave Zenyatta's line of sight. Take advantage of this by constantly ducking in and out of sight with them to refresh the duration while still avoiding enemy fire.
  • Constantly swap the Orb between injured allies in order to keep everyone's Health topped up.
  • Pharah can make great use of the Orb, as she usually maintains constant line of sight with Zenyatta while in the air.

• Transcendence (Ultimate): Zenyatta's Ultimate ability. When activated, Zenyatta becomes invulnerable to damage for several seconds and generates an aura around himself that rapidly heals any allies standing within it. Zenyatta cannot use any other weapons or abilities while Transcendence is active, though he can move at an accelerated rate. Zenyatta does still remain targetable, and so can be affected by knockbacks as normal, just not damaged.
  • This is Zenyatta's only real defensive ability. Use Transcendence when you are being attacked and are near to your team, as it will keep both you and them alive.
  • The healing from Transcendence is massive, able to easily outpace many Ultimates like Pharah's Barrage. Keep in mind that it will not keep an ally alive if they take a single packet of damage in excess of their maximum Health, such as from Tracer's Pulse Bomb.
  • Because of Zenyatta's active role in combat, this Ultimate tends to charge quickly. Don't be afraid to use it if it will help your team to consistently win small skirmishes.
  • Transcendence will not heal allies if they are not in line of sight or behind an enemy barrier.

General Strategies

• Zenyatta is a challenging Support to play. With an average health pool and no way to speed himself up or dodge attacks beyond moving erratically, he has the potential to be instantly killed by a wide variety of heroes (with Hanzo and Widowmaker being the most prominent). While his abilities are rather simple, his gameplay is not, requiring you to balance helping your team by dealing damage while staying alive so that Orb of Discord and Orb of Harmony remain active.

• Due to Orb of Harmony's low health regen rate, it is encouraged to play Zenyatta when you have another healer on your team (i.e. Mercy, Lúcio) or on a team that is prevalent in multiple healing abilities (e.g. Roadhog's Take A Breather, Soldier: 76's Biotic Field, etc.).
• Due to Orb of Destruction's lack of damage falloff, Zenyatta can be very powerful if played in a sniper position. Do be aware though that if you are too far away, you will not be able to use Orb of Harmony or Orb of Discord. Target enemies that struggle to deal with snipers such as Tracer, Reaper, Junkrat, Bastion, and Torbjörn's turret (if you can outrange it). Also be aware that if someone moves behind you, you will die very quickly if caught off-guard.

• As above; Zenyatta's projectiles are a very effective way of dealing with an enemy Bastion in Sentry mode. If the Bastion's teammates are not protecting him with a shield, Zenyatta can place a Orb of Discord on the stationary Bastion and take him out a lot more effectively than other ranged offensive heroes due to the lack of damage falloff. The lack of damage falloff coupled with Zenyatta's usual positioning of being behind his team and Bastion's high damage falloff with his Sentry minigun means that an enemy Bastion will do very little damage to you (Damage Falloff + Large bullet spread). This strategy can be used to "snipe" a stationary Bastion and remove the effective defensive ability he can bring to a teamfight.

• Try to position yourself so that you minimize the number of directions the enemy team can fire at you from. This is especially critical if the enemy team has a good Widowmaker, as a charged bodyshot will take off a large amount of your health. Keep a constant eye on nearby side routes and listen for the sounds of approaching flankers so that you can be prepared for them.

• Try to always stay at the back of your team to minimize the amount of damage you take. Your Orb of Harmony can heal targets who are far away from you, so long as you can continue to maintain line of sight with them, and your Orb of Destruction has no damage falloff (meaning it will deal full damage no matter how far away an enemy is). If you are being constantly harassed by flankers, however, it can be better to stay closer to a Tank like Reinhardt who can block their damage and drive them away from you.

• If an enemy flanker (such as Genji or Tracer) manages to get behind you, don't try to run; Zenyatta cannot outrun mobile heroes like them. Instead, hit them with Orb of Discord and move erratically while firing your Orb of Destruction at them. One headshot and one bodyshot from a Discord-empowered Orb of Destruction is enough to kill both Tracer and Genji, assuming they don't have bonus Health from Brigitte or Torbjörn.

• The majority of Zenyatta's Health is composed of shields. If you take damage, retreat into cover for a few seconds to allow it to regenerate.

• The autotargeting reticle from Orb of Discord can be useful when firing at distant enemies, as it will give you a general idea of their location. This is especially helpful if they are obscured by large particle effects (such as Hanzo's Dragonstrike). On top of that the reticle still shows through walls which can help you predict an enemy emerging from cover to shower them with an Orb Volley.

• Transcendence still allows you to be targeted by enemy abilities. Though they will deal no damage to you, they can still knock you back and away from your team, nullifying the healing on your allies. If up against enemies with strong knockbacks like Pharah or Roadhog, try to position yourself so that you will be flung into a corner or a nearby wall in order to stay near to your allies.
• Like Junkrat, Zenyatta can easily fire down a choke point and prevent easy movement through. His large clip size and projectile weapon can provide almost constant sustained fire.
• If an enemy is on the other side of a corner, it's sometimes a good idea to use a charged shot to take them by surprise before they can react.

Match-Ups and Team Synergy

Tank

Hero	Match-Up	Team Synergy
D.Va	Of all of the Support heroes, you're one of the most well-equipped to handle D.Va. Her Defense Matrix and Boosters allow her to quickly close the gap on you, but even so, your Orb of Discord and her massive frame make it a somewhat even fight. You'll need to be very jumpy and use smart Orb Volleys to remove her Mech before she kills you. If she's at a distance, she's even easier to hit with your Orb of Discord, which she has no way of blocking with her Defense Matrix. She's even more vulnerable when out of her Mech, but be cautious as her Light Gun's high firepower can still finish you off before you can eliminate her. Transcendence won't counter Self-Destruct, but in an emergency it can be used to survive or escape its blast radius.	Running a D.Va along with Zenyatta is a great idea. Her Defense Matrix is especially useful for your survival, as your large hit box and lack of movement abilities leave you as the enemy's first target. Orb of Discord helps D.Va do more damage, which is just as well for her burst damage engages.
Orisa	(To be added)	(To be added)
Reinhardt	Reinhardt will usually be standing firm and protecting his team and you'll be hanging back alongside your own team, making engagements rare. While you can't hit him with Orb of Discord through his shield, should he drop it for whatever reason, you can target him with it and it will remain stuck on him even if he puts his shield back up. Be careful if he closes the distance on you, though; even with Orb of Discord on him, he severely outdamages you and can clobber you in a few hammer swings.	(To be added)
Roadhog	Always be wary of Roadhog and always keep your distance from him. If you're too far away for him to snag you with his Chain Hook, he's a prime target for Orb of Discord and can be mowed down in seconds. If he sneaks up on you, though, one good Hook and you're down for the count. Stick with your team and be aware of his location whenever possible.	(To be added)
Sigma	(To be added)	(To be added)
Wrecking Ball	(To be added)	(To be added)
Winston	Winston's Jump Pack allows him to instantly approach you and begin attacking, but don't panic; your Orb of Discord and his massive frame still gives you a fighting chance to take him out. At a distance, Winston's much easier to handle. His Barrier Protector will protect him and allies from being targeted by Orb of Discord, but without it, his Tesla Cannon's pitiful range will give him no way to counter your Orbs of Destruction, outside of fleeing to safety.	(To be added)
Zarya	Zarya's Barrier instantly nullifies your Orb of Discord, making it difficult to apply consistent damage to her. If her Barrier is down, you can still outdamage her at a distance. Just be exceptionally careful when she closes the gap on you (which is much easier with her Barrier up); with a charged up laser, you have no means of surviving her attacks. Transcendence won't help you escape Graviton Surge, but it can protect your allies from being killed during its duration.	(To be added)

Damage

Hero	Match-Up	Team Synergy
Ashe	(To be added)	(To be added)
Bastion	Bastion's stationary nature makes it easy for you to attach your Orb of Discord on it and pelt it with Orbs of Destruction. While it is powerful even at a distance, your Orb of Discord will cause it to take rapid damage before it can react. You have about the same mobility as it while it's in Recon mode, but your firepower generally outpaces Bastion's. If it severely wounds you, duck behind cover while popping your head out every few seconds to make sure your Orb of Discord stays on Bastion. Your shields will recover and it'll be able to self-heal, but your Orb of Discord's presence means that your teammates can continue firing on it and dealing bonus damage. Your Orb of Discord can't be sent through barriers, so if Bastion is set up in a defensive position, you may need your team to break his protective barrier before you can apply your Orb on him.	(To be added)
Cassidy	While Cassidy's Peacekeeper can easily land shots on Zenyatta at mid to long range, his magazine is much smaller than yours, meaning you can harass Cassidy with Orbs for a prolonged period of time. His damage also suffers much more falloff than your Orbs do. Orb of Discord's visual notification can help your team spot Cassidy when he's hiding behind a wall for an ambush, letting you and your team hunt him down and kill him. Cassidy's Combat Roll is only his mobility skill, so he can't chase you down if you're too far away. However, don't get too confident when chasing Cassidy; if he ambushes you with Flashbang, you're done for. Be wary that Transcendence does nothing to protect your allies from Cassidy's Deadeye, as its one-shot burst damage will still kill anyone in its range excluding yourself. Still, if you're in Deadeye's range, activating Transcendence is acceptable as at least it will protect you from being shot down.	(To be added)
Doomfist	(To be added)	(To be added)
Echo	When it comes to facing an enemy Echo as Zenyatta, You're going to need quick reflexes and good aiming, most of the time, an enemy Echo will consider you easy prey due to your lack of mobility and slow movement speed, which makes it easy for her to land her abilities, while this is true, you can usually defend yourself fairly well against an enemy Echo if you have good aim and she doesn't catch you by surprise, orb of discord also helps with this, if there's an enemy echo on the other team, keep watching your surroundings since an enemy Echo can easily flank you and your teammates due to her superior mobility, An enemy Echo duplicating you is rare, since there are usually better heroes to transform into, but should it happen, you should try to avoid facing her unless you're VERY confident with your aim, because even if you do win the matchup, once she loses all of her health during her ultimate she'll go back to being Echo, which can be very bad if you find yourself at low health.	(To be added)
Genji	Zenyatta's low mobility makes it difficult for you to flee from a Genji who's out to get you. Genji's vertical mobility and Swift Strike make it easy for him to approach you from any angle, and his Deflect gives him the upper hand when combating his master. While Orb of Discord can amplify your killing potential, Genji's Deflect will buy him time or reflect some of your orbs back at you. As long as Genji is at a close range, he can continue to harass you with Shuriken and then finish you off once you have low health with a Swift Strike. Since you can't outrun or outmaneuver Genji, your only option if caught alone is to fight back while backpedaling to regroup with your team. Even though it may be a tough fight, if you're accurate in your shots, you may be able to take the Genji out as your Orbs can hit exceptionally hard, especially when augmented with Orb of Discord. If Genji is far away from you and there's some good space separating you, you can pelt him with Orbs from a distance and there's very little he can do about it. Transcendence is a fantastic counter to Genji's Dragonblade, as it will deny Genji of the kills he needs to recharge his Swift Strike. If the enemy team has a coordinated Genji (especially if they plan to combo with Zarya's Graviton Surge), save Transcendence for that emergency.	Orb of Discord can help Genji quickly kill enemies with Swift Strike one after the other.
Hanzo	You excel at fighting foes at long range; unfortunately, so does Hanzo. Your slow speed and predictable movement makes it easy for him to land shots on you. Even if you duck for cover indoors, Sonic Arrow will keep him notified of your exact position. If he manages to close the gap on you, Storm Arrows will quickly kill you before you have a chance to retaliate. Dragonstrike can also be very difficult to avoid; while Transcendence can help you escape the attack and protect your teammates, there are usually other Ultimate abilities that are more dangerous that you would want to save Transcendence for.	(To be added)
Junkrat	Because your Orb of Discord requires constant line of sight, it can difficult to battle a Junkrat, who will usually be staying behind cover while launching indirect grenades your way. Should you get trapped by his Steel Trap, it's incredibly simple for him or another enemy to kill you while you're immobile, vulnerable and wounded. Concussion Mine can also launch you away from your teammates into enemy territory where you'll be surrounded and outgunned. If Junkrat is in the open, you can take the opportunity to attack at a distance. Be careful not to be hit by his grenades, though, as it only takes a few to kill you and your low mobility makes you an easy target to hit. Transcendence does little to combat RIP-Tire, outside of saving yourself.	(To be added)
Mei	Mei is extremely dangerous at close range, since she can quickly freeze you and you lack any means of escaping her Endothermic Blaster. Always try to be aware of her location and keep your distance. Your Orbs of Destruction will generally outdamage her icicles, but don't get cocky, as one or two well-aimed icicle shots can still make quick work of you. Transcendence won't stop your allies from being frozen by Blizzard, but it can protect them from the resulting enemy assault that usually follows Mei's Ultimate.	(To be added)
Pharah	Zenyatta's large magazine allows you to fight back against Pharah at any range. Although Pharah's airborne status helps her avoid most projectiles, your Orb of Destruction's speed is fast enough to catch Pharah mid-air. With Orb of Discord attached to her as well, she will receive more damage and a visual identifier, making her easy for you and your teammates to shoot down. Orb of Discord can force Pharah to fall back for cover, removing her great asset of aerial supremacy. Should Pharah catch you by surprise, however, your low mobility gives you no means to escape from her. If she attacks you in an open area with little cover, you'll be forced to fight back unless your team's around to protect you. Transcendence can protect you and your teammates from Barrage, but you'll need to be able to react at a moment's notice; if you wait even a split second too long, Barrage's quick damage output can kill your or your teammates before you can protect them.	(To be added)
Reaper	Reaper has to engage Zenyatta at very close range; should you keep your distance, he has no means with which to outdamage you. However, should Reaper close the distance on you, he's one of the most deadly opponents for you to deal with. His Hellfire Shotguns are extremely powerful at close range, and your slow movement makes it easy for him to land the few shots necessary to eliminate you. With higher health than most Damage heroes, Reaper can withstand more of your Orbs of Destruction even if he has Orb of Discord attached. Reaper can escape from a poor engagement with Wraith Form, as well as to quickly reload or to pursue should you make some distance from him, all while removing an Orb of Discord that's on him. Transcendence will negate Reaper's Death Blossom, since your healing will overwhelm his consistent damage output. Unlike Pharah's Barrage, Death Blossom's damage isn't quite so sudden, which gives you a little more reaction time before you're eliminated.	(To be added)
Soldier: 76	Like most Damage heroes, it can be difficult to handle Soldier: 76 if he attacks you at close range. However, if you keep your distance, you can maintain superiority over Soldier: 76. Be wary of his Helix Rockets, though, as their burst damage can quickly take you out before you can react. Transcendence can easily protect your team from Tactical Visor, giving your team the opportunity to strike back and take Soldier: 76 out.	(To be added)
Sombra	Should Sombra hack you, you'll lose the ability to fire your Orbs of Harmony and Discord. If they're on a target prior to the hack, however, they will remain there until automatically recalled (via line of sight or if their target dies). Even without your Orbs, you can handle decently in a fight with Sombra. Just keep in mind that she can escape from a poor engagement with her Translocator. If she does so, it's usually not wise to pursue; your low mobility means it'll be difficult to back out if she lures you towards the rest of her team. EMP will immediately rob you of 75% of your health while also cutting off your ability to protect your team from a big push with Transcendence; if hit by EMP, huddle behind your team and pray they can protect you, because with no mobility or health, you're going to be a prime target.	(To be added)
Symmetra	Symmetra's Photon Protector is lethal at high charge, so try to keep your distance if possible. If Symmetra shows herself out in the open, her low mobility makes it easy for you to hit her with your Orbs of Discord and Destruction to quickly strike her down. Try not to lead the charge, or else you'll be caught by her Sentry Turrets; let bulkier teammates push forward and keep them healed while they handle her turrets. While you tend to hold up the back line, keep an eye out for Symmetra's Teleporter, since if she and her team sneak up behind your team, you'll be the first target to go.	(To be added)
Torbjörn	Orb of Discord has no effect on Torbjörn's Turret, making it very difficult for you to eliminate it since its damage output is around equal to your own (and the Torbjörn can simply continue repairing his Turret while you take damage). For the most part, it's best to stay behind and heal your teammates while they attack the Turret. If it's distracted, though, you can quickly provide support fire, since even without Orb of Discord, your Orbs of Destruction can still deal substantial damage. If you catch Torbjörn without his Turret, he has low mobility and firepower. However, don't underestimate him at close range, as his secondary fire can quickly turn you into scrap, especially when Overload is active.	(To be added)
Tracer	Tracer's slim model and significant mid-combat mobility makes it easy for her to avoid any and all of Zenyatta's fire when at close range. While you have the upper hand at long range, she can use Blink to either escape to cover or close the distance and flank you. Should you get her to low health, her Recall ability not only lets her recover health, but it also removes the Orb of Discord. If the enemy team has a Tracer, try to stick close to your team, as they can help you fend off a Tracer attempting to flank you.	Placing Orb of Discord on an enemy before Tracer plants a Pulse Bomb on them can ensure that the Pulse Bomb finishes them off. Also, because Orb of Discord will remain on opponents at a distance, a friendly Tracer can flank around the enemy and attack those affected by your Orb.
Widowmaker	Your lack of mobility and slow movement make you an ideal target for Widowmaker. A fully charged bodyshot will leave you with extremely low health, making you easy to finish off unless you go for cover. It may be tempting to hit a distracted Widowmaker with Orb of Discord and try to quickly take her out, but be cautious, since if she swivels around and shoots you, you're as good as dead. It's also very easy for you to trip on a Venom Mine; your shields will eventually recover, but not until the Mine's gradual damage wears off. Your lower health will make you even easier to gun down, and Widowmaker will be able to see your exact position to land the killing blow. Be extremely cautious if you hear Widowmaker activate Infra-Sight; should you so much as peek your head out from around a corner, you may end up on the receiving end of a lethal headshot.	(To be added)

Support

Hero	Match-Up	Team Synergy
Ana	Like most snipers, Ana retains superiority over you at a distance due to her superior aim. If you two fight at closer range, the fight is even less in your favor, as her Biotic Grenade and Sleep Dart are excellent close range tools, while you have no means of handling enemies at close range. Her Biotic Grenade in particular not only renders your Shield regeneration useless, it will also block your affected teammates from being healed by your Orb of Harmony or Transcendence. Should you activate your Ultimate to protect your team from an enemy push, a single Biotic Grenade splash will deny your teammates from receiving your healing and will make them more vulnerable to attack. That being said, Transcendence can help protect your team from a Nano-Boosted hero, so judge accordingly. Overall, though, try to stay out of Ana's sights if possible.	(To be added)
Baptiste	(To be added)	(To be added)
Brigitte	(To be added)	(To be added)
Lúcio	Lúcio's high mobility will often make it difficult for you to hit him with successive Orbs of Destruction, but with Orb of Discord, your team can take him out quicker. Just be careful that he doesn't use Soundwave to knock you towards his team or off a cliff.	(To be added)
Mercy	Mercy's only option when fighting you is to hide behind teammates, but Orb of Discord can keep her location known to your teammates, allowing them to quickly home in on her and take her out.	(To be added)
Moira	(To be added)	(To be added)
Zenyatta	A Zenyatta mirror match is one of the most fair in the game, as you can both instantly hit each other with Orb of Discord, at which point it's simply a matter of who has superior aim at landing their Orbs of Destruction. If fighting at a long distance, try to fight close to a wall so you can fall back and recharge your Shields if your health falls to dangerous levels. Since your Orb of Discord will keep you notified of the enemy Zenyatta's location, you can take this opportunity to charge up an Orb Volley e and bombard the other Zenyatta when peeking from around a corner.	(To be added)

Story

"True Self Is Without Form."

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. He believes that by forming people into relationships, the world can be healed, and a better society created. But, when necessary, he will fight to protect the innocent, be they omnic or human. The orbs he uses were hand-carved at the Shambali monastary and serve as a means to channel omnic energy.

Zenyatta found humans' manner of speech perplexing at first, having little grasp of metaphors. He still occasionally struggles with their figures of speech.

Like all Shambali, despite being unable to eat, Zenyatta knows how to prepare food.

Background

A former member of the Shambali, Zenyatta disagreed with the group's approach. 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.

At some point either before or after leaving the monastery, he encountered Genji, who had left Overwatch and was conflicted with his nature as a cyborg. Though Genji initially rejected Zenyatta's wisdom, the benevolent omnic would not be deterred. In time, Zenyatta became his mentor, and under the monk's tutelage, Genji reconciled his dual existence as both man and machine. Zenyatta would later consider Genji to be one of his brightest pupils.

Reflections

Zenyatta and Genji

Zenyatta and Genji spent Christmas together in a monastery.

Stone By Stone

“	It is true that you do not know what we want. No one knows what another wants without getting to know them first. Are you a priest here? Only a pilgrim. My name is Zenyatta.	„
	~ Zenyatta meets with Satya Vaswani

Zenyatta was on pilgrimige in Suravasa, intending to reflect on Mondatta's teachings, when the Vishkar Corporation's ground breaking caused a tremor that destroyed the statue of Aurora in a temple. Later, inside the temple, he met with Vishkar agent Satya Vaswani, who'd come on Vishkar's behalf. He told her that it was good that Vishkar was taking responsibility for the damage they'd caused, but it would mean nothing if the help they provided wasn't constructive. He offered her lodging at the temple so that she may better understand the community and the temple's faith. She agreed to stay, and he guided her through the temple, also informing her about Aurora's history.

Zenyatta and Vaswani inside the temple

Zenyatta greeted Vaswani the next morning, noting that she had put on a temple robe. She stated that while she had not come as a pilgrim, she was sincere in her efforts to provide recompense; an intention that Zenyatta had never doubted. Days passed before Zenyatta gave her the Orb of Perception, and told her to study it. On the fourth day, she watched Zenyatta and the other omnic priests prepare food for anyone in the village who was hungry. Noting the angry whispers directed at Vaswani, served her food himself, as a gesture of silent support. Later in the evening, after meditation on the orbs had finished, Zenyatta asked Vaswani to stay behind, asking her for her thoughts on the day's events. The conversation turned to her role as a hard-light architech. At the end of their conversation, Vaswani stated that she now knew what she had to do.

A week after Vaswani's arrival, she and Zenyatta walked into the temple's courtyard, where they met with Sarpanch Ranesh Grewal, along with a crowd of priests, pilgrims, villagers, and Vishkar personnel. She revealed that she had used hard-light to fix the shrine, giving it a new luminescence. After the event, she met with Zenyatta outside, who gave her incense as a parting gift, telling her that she was always welcome. To Sanjay Korpal of Vishkar, he stated "every dawn brings a new chance to choose our paths. I hope Vishkar Corporation sees that now."

Reunion

“	I knew you would return one day. It has been too long, master.	„
	~ Zenyatta and Genji

Genji returns to Zenyatta

After helping thwart Null Sector's attack on Paris, Genji returned to Zenyatta.

Achievements

Name	Icon	Description	Reward
Rapid Discord		Get 4 kills or assists with Zenyatta's Orb of Discord within 6 seconds in Quick or Competitive play.	Pixel
The Iris Embraces You		Restore 1500 Health with a single use of Zenyatta's Transcendence in Quick or Competitive play.	Cute

Trivia

Zenyatta figure

• Zenyatta is one of Chris Metzen's favorite heroes in the game.

• The idea for Zenyatta came from a piece of omnic concept art.

• The healing aspect of his orbs and the chime-like sound they make may take inspiration from Baoding balls, also known as Chinese medicine balls, among other names. They are popular among advocates as a form of alternative medicine for stress relief and improving dexterity and strength in the hands.

• Zenyatta's name has been observed to be a combination of the word "Zen", which is the Japanese name for Chan Buddhism, and "Śūnyatā", which means "emptiness" in Pali, a Buddhist concept referring to the idea that the world is without a true essence or sense of self.
  • It's also likely a reference to the The Police album Zenyatta Mondatta, considering his late counterpart's name is Mondatta.
  • The name they share between Mondatta and Zenyatta, "Tekhartha," could play off of the name of the Buddha before he achieved nirvana, Siddhartha Gautama, and "Tek" pronounced like "Tech" as a play on the fact that they are robots.

• Zenyatta is the first hero to have his total hit points changed (from 50 Health/100 Shield to 50 Health/150 Shield) through a patch in July 19, 2016. This was followed by D.Va in September 1, 2016.

• Zenyatta is one of three heroes with no footstep sounds, as he floats instead of walking. The others are Sigma and Echo.

Merchandise

Cultist Zenyatta

• A Zenyatta Figma statue is available.

• A Zenytatta statue is available from the Blizzard store.

• Zenyatta is one of the first officially revealed Overwatch POP! vinyl with a skin, specifically the Cultist Zenyatta skin, it was released during Halloween Terror 2018.

Balance Change Logs

Patch

Description

13 Aug 2020

Orb of Destruction

Secondary Fire

• Charge rate increased 15% (0.6 down to 0.52 seconds per orb)
• Rate of fire increased from 8.5 to 9 shots per second

Zenyatta has low healing and mobility outside of his ultimate but makes up for it with high potential damage output. With the recently lowered barrier uptime resulting in an overall faster pace of the game, we want to make sure Zenyatta still excels at his strengths. This change will make his charged attack flow a bit better in combat.

19 May 2020

Orb of Discord

• Damage amplification increased from 25% to 30%

19 Mar 2019

Orb of Destruction

• Damage increased from 46 to 48

Orb of Discord

• Effect reduced from 30% to 25%

10 Apr 2018

Orb of Destruction

• Secondary fire rate of fire reduced by 15%

21 Mar 2017

Orb of Destruction

• Alternate fire cooldown has been reduced from 1 seconds to 0.6 seconds
• Weapon spread has been removed

1 Sep 2016

*When activating the "Needs healing" communication while targeting a teammate, Ana, Lúcio, Mercy, and Zenyatta will now tell allies to group up to receive healing. A marker will also appear above the player's head, allowing teammates to locate the healer more quickly.

Orb of Discord

• The amount of damage amplified by a target with Orb of Discord has been decreased from 50% to 30%

Orb of Destruction

• Damage has been increased from 40 to 46

Developer Comments: Zenyatta is in a far better place since the last update, but the strength of Orb of Discord has turned him into an almost mandatory pick. These changes reduce Orb of Discord's effectiveness, but his damage-dealing potential has been increased. The amount of damage that he delivers should feel largely unaffected by the change.

19 Jul 2016

*Base shields increased by 50 (now 50 Health/150 Shield)

Orb of Destruction

• Primary fire weapon damage decreased from 45 to 40
• Alternate fire weapon damage increased from 35 to 40

Orb of Discord and Orb of Harmony

• Projectile speed has been increased from 30 to 120

Transcendence

• Movement speed is now doubled upon activation
• Healing amount increased from 200 to 300 health per second

Developer Comment: While Zenyatta has never had the healing abilities of Lúcio or Mercy, he made up for it by dealing more damage. However, his lack of mobility and low health has meant he’s struggled to find a place in many games. To increase his effectiveness, we've made several changes, the biggest of which is an increased shield pool. This will allow him to go head-to-head with more enemies. The Orb of Harmony and Discord changes are also a quality of life change, helping Zenyatta move his orbs around and apply their effects more quickly. And lastly, we’ve increased Transcendence’s healing throughput. This ultimate was designed to be the most effective against sustained, high-damage fire and least effective against short, high-damage bursts (like D.Va’s or Junkrat's ultimates). But, due to the amount of healing it provided, there were times when it was possible for even sustained fire to overcome Transcendence’s output. We’ve made the heal powerful and also allowed Zenyatta to move around more quickly while it’s active.

Developer Comment: While Zenyatta has never had the healing abilities of Lúcio or Mercy, he made up for it by dealing more damage. However, his lack of mobility and low health has meant he’s struggled to find a place in many games. To increase his effectiveness, we've made several changes, the biggest of which is an increased shield pool. This will allow him to go head-to-head with more enemies. The Orb of Harmony and Discord changes are also a quality of life change, helping Zenyatta move his orbs around and apply their effects more quickly. And lastly, we’ve increased Transcendence’s healing throughput. This ultimate was designed to be the most effective against sustained, high-damage fire and least effective against short, high-damage bursts (like D.Va’s or Junkrat's ultimates). But, due to the amount of healing it provided, there were times when it was possible for even sustained fire to overcome Transcendence’s output. We’ve made the heal powerful and also allowed Zenyatta to move around more quickly while it’s active.

External links

• Official Site - Zenyatta
• Zenyatta Guide on Icy Veins