“There is a difference between Support and Healer” is the truest statement that you will ever hear.

If your supports have to pump an insane amount of healing to keep their teammates alive, then I see that as a HUGE problem and I am going to explain why. You are either taking too much damage, not mitigating enough damage, have no game sense, or you’re not playing around health packs.

Your supports are NOT supposed to out heal damage! Especially against DPS that can one or two tap you. Otherwise, no one would die and that would be boring. The amount of people that don’t play around cover is INSANE. The cart, robot, walls, rooms, columns, pillars, rooms, etc are the BEST SHIELDS in the game. Use them for the love of god. Bastion in turret form? Hide behind the cart… Trust me, it won’t break! If you are taking too much damage, or need to wait to be healed, TAKE COVER. It’s okay to pause for a minute so your supports can catch up. The amount of times I’ve had a tank or damage hero get toxic because I can’t heal them when they are standing in front 2, 3, 4 enemies. If I know I can’t keep my tank or dps alive with heals, then my goal is to at least help them eliminate the enemy. If we take them out, then I’ll heal my teammate. If one of us goes down, then hopefully the survivor finishes them off.

It is okay to disengage for a minute and FIND A HEALTH PACK! Another issue I have with are teammates I see in critical health off in the distance sticking with the robot/cart/point. I love the ping system, but you don’t have to use it if you can be self-sufficient. I once had a Widow way behind us on high ground pinging for heals when she was 20 feet away from a large health pack on low ground. I am not leaving my front line characters to heal you when you’re in no immediate danger. Drop down, grab the pack, grapple back. Everyone should always be mindful of the closest, or where ALL, health packs are on the map.

Meet Your Supports Halfway or Regroup! Have the game sense to know that your supports have been eliminated or are coming back from spawn. If are low health and don’t have enough health packs, then just walk towards your supports or back up so you can get closer to view. I have so much respect for tanks/dps that will get closer so I can guardian angel in or TP in as Kiriko. As a support, if I have a second to run and grab mercy/kiriko, then I will definitely do it. It benefits me and the team. Also, It also just allows you to regroup so just leave the objective for a moment. [AGAIN: It is okay to leave robot, cart, or point. It will be there when you come back. Trust and believe]

I am not putting myself in danger to heal anyone out of LOS/Position. If you are a hero that has mobility, self heals, utility, shields/damage mitigation, then my focus are on the heroes that don’t have those benefits. The amount of genji’s that flank and ping heals while out of position make me confused. All that parkour and you can’t jump to a health pack or come back for heals? I LOVE tanks/dps that will come to me to get healed and then run off again. When I play tank, I would rather a dps get eliminated over a support, because a support can do damage AND heal. They can keep the team up until you’re able to rejoin so no, they shouldn’t come to you for heals if it’s dangerous. You have to remember, using a utility to position them in your leaves them unable to get out. The amount of times I’ve gone in to heal to see genji, hanzo, sym, sombra just abandon me immediately has made me learn a valuable lesson.

There Are Other Parts to A Supports Kit! As a tank/damage player, if a support wants to get an elim or two, go right ahead. I won’t have to worry about heals if they are getting constant eliminations. There was a tank game I played where Ana was always out of position, but getting constant elims. I didn’t mind AT ALL she wasn’t in sight to heal me because she had more elims than our DPS. If a support is able to pick up some slack, do your thing. Also, the moment a Mercy Valks, I EXPECT you to go battle mercy and pull out that Mercy 9MM. A murder hungry petite blonde with flight and unlimited ammo? That is my idea of fun. The respect I have for battle mercys that are able to roll a widow on high ground or wreak havoc on the enemy team is something I will happily die for.

Also, just accept that some teams or players are better than you. You won’t win every game, even with insane amounts of healing. Just remember to have fun, try your best, learn from, etc. Some teams have better synergy, game sense, communication etc. Every game should be a learning experience or a way to get better. Whether you win or lose, just have fun.

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These are just my opinions and you are welcome to disagree, or add your own advice to the mix. I used to be Diamond 1 and I just re-started playing recently and these issues I find more in metal ranks than I do in higher ranks.