Hellion (Heart of the Swarm)

This article covers the now superseded Heart of the Swarm multiplayer version of this unit. For other versions see Hellion (Legacy of the Void), Hellion (Wings of Liberty) and Hellion (Wings of Liberty Campaign).

[e][h] Hellion

Unit Information

Type:

Ground Unit

Description:

Fast scout. Has a flame attack that damages all enemy units in its line of fire.

Built From:

Factory

Cost:

 100  0  30  2

Hotkey:

E

Attack 1: Infernal Flamethrower

Targets:

Ground

Damage:

8 (+1)

DPS:

3.2 (+0.4)

Cooldown:

2.5

Bonus:

+6 (+1) vs Light
+11 (+1) vs Light (Infernal Pre-Igniter)

Bonus DPS:

+2.4 (+0.4) vs Light
+4.4 (+0.4) vs Light (Infernal Pre-Igniter)

Range:

5

Unit stats

Defense:

90 0 (+1)

Attributes:

Light, Mechanical

Sight:

10

Speed:

4.25

Cargo size:

2

Strong against:

• Marine
• Zealot
• Zergling

Weak against:

• Marauder
• Roach
• Stalker

Note: All time-related values are expressed assuming Normal speed, as they were before LotV. See Game Speed.

Description

A fast expansion-raiding unit and anti-Melee unit when transformed into Hellbats. With a line of effect attack, the same range as a Marine's attack, Hellions excel at fighting in Choke Points on maps. With a very slow cooldown on attack and fast movement speed, this unit requires a lot of attention and micro-management to be effective.

Despite being able to activate its weapon within a range of 5, the Hellion will deal AoE damage up to a range of 5.15. The flamethrower's stream is about 0.15 wide. To unlock the Hellbat mode, an Armory is required.

With good micro, Hellions can take out large numbers of Zerglings (even Roaches prior to their range buff in patch 1.1.2 ).

Abilities

Hellbat Mode

Duration: 4 s Hotkey: D Transforms the Hellion into its Hellbat form. Requires an Armory.

Upgrades

Infernal Pre-Igniter

150 150 110 Hotkey: I Researched from: Tech Lab Improves the Hellion's bonus against Light units by +5 damage and the Hellbat's bonus against Light units by +12 damage.

Competitive Usage

In direct army engagements, Hellions can transform into Hellbats to change to walking pace for extra health and splash radius, which is better suited for engaging melee troops like Zerglings and Zealots.

In Hellion mode, this unit favors hit & away tactics and drive-bombing mineral lines; sometimes even running right past the enemy army.

Vs. Protoss

Hellions are particularly useful against Protoss spellcasters, the Sentry and High Templar, and can attack Zealots. However, it is far stronger for direct engagements as a Hellbat to take the brunt of the first attack wave for more stopping power to allow either Bio or Mech units to provide real firepower.

Vs. Terran

Terrans generally wall off as a popular choice for opening safely against Hellion and Bunker rushes, so having Hellions after the opponent has expanded is better so that there are more places to attack and drop at the same time.

Hellions with Infernal Pre-igniter can be effective against Hellbats in Mech vs Mech battles since the substantial range and speed advantage of the Hellion can allow it decimate Hellbat groups with decent kiting. They must still be controlled very carefully, however, since Hellions have much less health than Hellbats, and thus are much more vulnerable to Siege Tank fire.

Although Hellions can be effective against Marines, Marines generally have Siege Tank support, and therefore they usually cannot be used in large numbers against a bio-tank army.

Vs. Zerg

Hellions are essential in TvZ to provide map control and scouting. Generally 4-6 are produced to create a threat that the Zerg must react to with a mass Queen opening, Roaches, Spine Crawlers, or a large number of Zerglings. Just before substantial defenses are established, Hellions are often sacrificed in the Zerg's mineral lines since they can no longer provide map control.

Hellions are not very effective against Roaches, so Roach attacks are frequently used to punish players who go for a quick third Command Center after producing Hellions. Such attacks can be accounted for with Banshee follow-ups or, if it is scouted, with multiple Bunkers and Marauder production. The Hellions themselves are not useful for defense, but can be used to delay the attack or counter-attack.

Gallery

Quotes

Quotes
Built	Selected	Annoyed	Move	Attack	Under Attack
Ready to raise some hell.	Talk to me, boss. Are you ready for this? Where's the hot action? Light it up. Daylight's burnin'. I'm waitin' on ya'.	Like a bat out of... Guh, forget it. Zerg: They're what's for dinner. I'm burnin' up the road like a big dog in heat. I am speed. Katchoow! Yes in fact, I do own the road. Off road? Hell, I do my best work off world. Suspension is an integral of any vehicle. But this one requires suspension of disbelief... Get it? Ho' boy, I'm hotter than a June bug ridin' bareback on the hind leg of a jackrabbit with its tail on fire. Got a problem with alien races? Seriously, just anticipate the terrain! You'll win every time. Put that in your tail pipe and smoke it. Ain't fallin' for no banana in my tail pipe.	I'm goin' in! Ride on! Hell yeah! Smokin'! Let's do this! Burn rubber! Pedal to the metal! Is that it? All day long! Absolutely! Sounds sweet! Word.	Get some! Death rides with me! Yea-haw! Turnin' up the heat! Eat napalm! Fire! Fire! Not a problem!	Uh... I'm in a heap a' trouble

Hellion's quotes (video and sound) - YouTube video.

Patch Changes

Patch 11 (version 0.13.0.15250)
The range has been increased from 5 to 6.

Patch 15 (version 0.17.0.15623)
Weapon upgrade bonus decreased from 1(+1 Light) to 1.

Patch 17 (version 0.20.0.16036)
Hellion range reverted from 6 to 5.

Patch 1.4.0
Infernal Pre-Igniter damage upgrade decreased from 10 to 5.

Balance Update #2
Battle hellions can now be built from the Factory. It has an Armory requirement. There is a new upgrade at the Armory that will allow transformation between Battle Mode and Normal Mode.

Balance Update #7
Transformation to Hellbat no longer requires an upgrade and is enabled once an Armory is built.

Balance Update #15, Balance Update 15
Transformation to Hellbat upgrade returned.

Balance Update – May 23, 2014
Removed Transformation Servos upgrade. Changed Hellion/Hellbat transform requirement to Armory.