These marksmen are a disgrace in high-level matches, ignored by pros, yet pampered and cherished in low-level matches. (Part Three)

A stationary marksman who can turn the tide of battle by firing his turret. He controls himself before he can control the enemy. Although his range is large, he is not much of a threat to heroes who can dash in or attack from a distance. He can dash twice and then deal damage from a distance. He can call on Niu Mo and Zhang Fei to use their ultimate skills to control the enemy directly. The five of them can focus fire and flank from behind. It all depends on who can save Huang Zhong's life.

Galo

Galo is a fairly strong marksman, beginner-friendly, and her first skill extends her attack range, giving her a long-range advantage. Her passive skill triggers critical hit rate and causes a slowing effect. She's easy to play, but mastering the timing of her powerful basic attack is crucial. Because her movement speed is significantly reduced during this phase, shortening the attack range immediately restores the speed boost, so it's not a continuous buff. Each attack is very mana-intensive. She's known as a tank killer. Her damage includes armor penetration, and once she's fully equipped in the late game, combat doesn't require much skill; just mindlessly attack the closest target.

With strong early-game dominance and near-invincibility in the late game, her laning advantage is immediately apparent. So why do high-level players overlook her? It's about self-preservation and survivability. The combat environment isn't very friendly to ranged DPS characters. Di Renjie has Purify, Hou Yi has his ultimate for crowd control, and Lu Ban No. 7's cannonballs knock back enemies—at least they have some form of control. Galo, aside from ranged attacks, relies heavily on Flash for self-preservation, making her overly dependent on teammates. She dies easily in the shadows, gets targeted, and becomes a liability for skilled players. Forget about having a good gaming experience with Galo.

Assassins can flank, mages can ambush from bushes, and relying entirely on teammates to protect the wounded is unrealistic. Since you're complete strangers and too lazy to communicate via voice chat, you're better off relying on your skill mechanics for movement and kiting your opponents. There's some hope in team play, but solo queue is extremely unreliable.

Li Yuanfang

The "stunned" marksman is disliked by high-level players, so why is Li Yuanfang, the "mobile marksman," also targeted? He used to be a headache in high-level games, the only exception in the development lane. He broke out of the marksman framework and went to the jungle. In lower ranks, he was considered strong, mainly because his strength was in the early and mid-game. His first skill marked, his second skill dashed in, and his ultimate quickly took down squishy targets, giving people the illusion of explosive damage. He seemed like a flying assassin. However, in the late game, all his shortcomings were exposed: short range, poor sustained damage, and he couldn't even stack the marks. His second skill was a death sentence when entering the fray. When used to retreat, the distance was too far, and he couldn't keep up with the team. He was an unfinished assassin and was unlikely to become a great player.

Image source: Internet