Junker Queen is one of the new heroes coming into Overwatch 2. Learn all about her abilities, how to master her, and also how to counter her in this guide.
Some players are more excited about the maps and skins, but there is no arguing that many people want to know more about the new heroes. At the time of writing this guide, there are three new options to pick from – Sojourn, Junker Queen and Kiriko. The latter is the most mysterious one because it wasn’t available in the beta. That said, this guide will focus on Overwatch 2’s newest tank – Junker Queen.
This is one of the tanks that can easily carry her team, as long as players know what they’re doing. JQ will most likely go through some changes in the future, but here are some things to focus on right now if you want to win your games.
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Junker Queen does not work against every lineup
Some heroes in Overwatch 2 will be more popular than others simply because they can work in all sorts of lineups. Orisa, for example, is a tank that can easily go up against anything and fit in most setups. However, the same can’t be said against Junker Queen.
While it is true that the hero excels against some targets, she is weak against enemies that keep their distance. There are a couple of examples here, such as Widowmaker, Hanzo, Ashe, Echo, and Pharah. Even though Junker Queen can throw her dagger and bring them closer to her, this is usually not enough for her to swing her axe and do enough damage to land a kill.
The good news is that this tank is good against pretty much anything else. The fact that she does more damage than most other heroes in the game makes her extremely dangerous. Unsurprisingly, her primary fire works best in close range, but it is also capable of doing some damage from a distance.
What’s interesting is that some players underestimate the damage she’s capable of, which means they often play too aggressively. This is good news for all JQ players because they can quickly punish them for their mistakes.
You will need to kite a lot and do damage
The thing that differentiates this Overwatch 2 hero from its alternatives is the lack of defensive abilities. Even though some tanks lost their barriers in Overwatch 2, most heroes have at least one defensive ability that allows them to block damage or become harder to kill. Sadly, this is not the case for Junker Queen.
Since this tank does not have a shield, it relies on the passive ability that heals her when doing bleed damage with. In other words, she needs to do damage to survive, even if she has a pocket healer. Keep in mind that her regular attack won’t heal her because it does not do have the “bleeding” effect.
The bad news is that this isn’t always possible, especially if your teammates know how to counter you. Even though OW2 has been out for a few days, we came across several tank players who knew exactly how to counter JQ. Once they stop taking damage from her, their DPS heroes can easily kill her because she has no defensive abilities (except for Commanding Shout)
To avoid dying like that, you have to be ready to kite, especially on some maps. Some people use their Commanding Shout for the extra HP and hope to tank the incoming damage. That said, you can also use it for the extra movement speed and kite your opponents until your healed up.
Speaking of kiting, it is not a good idea to start pushing when you are on low HP. Although you may not die and sustain yourself thanks to your passive, this may not be enough, so it is better to wait and get healed up before jumping into action.
Using your ultimate the right way
Junker Queen’s ultimate is called rampage, which allows the tank to charge forward and deal damage to all targets she goes through. Aside from triggering her Adrenaline Rush passive, this ultimate also prevent the enemy units from being healed. In other words, it is extremely good against players stacked on top of each other.
Of course, you should always try to hit as many targets as possible when using your ult. However, there are cases where you may want to use a single target if it is essential. The fact that your enemy won’t be able to receive heals makes him an easy target. As you can probably guess, this makes Junker Queen’s ultimate one of the best tools to deal with some of the unkillable tanks, such as Rein or Orisa.
How to counter Junker Queen?
Once you start playing with Junker Queen, you will quickly realize that this hero is extremely powerful. Sadly, there will be a time when you will have to go up against her. This is when you will realize her potential.
We’ve briefly mentioned some things that make JQ powerful, which means the easiest way to counter this tank is to not let it hit its targets. This is not as easy as it sounds, but if you pick the right heroes, you definitely increase your chances of winnings. All of the names mentioned above (Pharah, Echo, Widowmaker, etc.) are good picks against JQ because she won’t be able to hit them.
Another thing that you can do is to try and bait her into pushing and hoping that she will run away from her healers. This wouldn’t work against players who know what they’re doing, but it will do wonders against inexperienced tanks.
Conclusion
JQ’s Jagged Blade is one of the most important abilities that you need to learn how to use. This skill shot can provide you with tons of kill opportunities. Since it acts like a mini-Roadhog hook, you can use it to set up kills.
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