Reinhardt’s Earthshatter can be one of the most devastating ultimates in Overwatch, having the power to knock enemies on the ground for a short period of time leaving them vulnerable to attack. Now, an unlikely discovery has shown how Baptiste can counter the ultimate.
Earthshatter may be strong, but it does have some weaknesses. For one thing, it has a small cast time, meaning that if players are smart and quick enough, they can stun the hero during his ultimate animation.
It also needs line of sight on targets. This means it can be blocked by barriers, Mei Walls and even Immortality Field drones if timed just right.
This latest discovery has shown that if a Baptiste player is fast enough with the Immortality Field, they can time the ability’s activation to match Reinhardt bringing the hammer down. A moment or two too off, however, and the counter won’t work, meaning Baptiste will get knocked on his rear-end.
In a clip posted on Reddit by user SHIR0_OW, you can see how timing the ability just right can cancel out shatter, with the drone effectively acting as a barrier or other object in the way.
So, not only do Baptiste players cause Reinhardt to waste his Ultimate, the actual immortality portion of Immortality Field takes effect too, meaning that anyone who would otherwise have been knocked down can attack aggressively without fear of dying.
While this may seem like a game-breaking trick, it can be very hard to perform in an actual game, but definitely not impossible with some practice.
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“I literally had this happen to my Rein earlier today. I thought he just missed the Bap somehow, but I guess this interaction occurred,” a user commented on the thread.
“It looks easier than you would think. The lamp stays low for like half a second before it goes up, so that’s quite a generous window for it. But it’s still something I wouldn’t expect to see that often,” another remarked.
Other players even tried replicating the discovery, but it took them a few tries. It’s definitely the type of tool that can pay dividends to know about just in case, but players shouldn’t make it their responsibility to be blocking Earthshatter as Baptiste.
That said, if you’re ever in a situation where you know the enemy Rein has Earthshatter and you have no other tools available to block it, this trick could end up saving you and your team. Not to mention maybe even be the turning point that earns your squad the victory.
