Ashe’s Mardis Gras Challenge launches with new skin and rewards

The previously leaked Ashe’s Mardi Gras Challenge is now live on Overwatch servers. 

The event starts on February 25 and ends March 9. Players can earn unique Mardi Gras-inspired rewards through participation. There are two player icons, seven sprays, and an epic Mardi Gras Ashe skin available to earn as rewards for playing matches during the event.

Players must win three games to unlock two player icons, win six games to get a spray, and win nine games total to earn the Ashe Mardi Gras skin.

In addition, there will be rewards for watching streams on Twitch.tv via the stream schedule listed on the playoverwatch website. Watching two hours gets a hammond spray, watching four hours gets Torbjorn/Brigitte and Zenyatta sprays, and watching six hours wins three sprays featuring McCree, Reaper, and Lucio, all decked out in their Mardi Gras party gear. All channels under the Twitch Overwatch game category will earn the sprays.

Also dropped in with the patch is the Experimental Card that was announced in the latest Developer Update, as well as Hero Pools, which will come into effect beginning with Season 21 of competitive play. The patch notes claim that the Hero Pools may not last past Season 21, and that they may alter the frequency in which the pools are changed.

There is also a list of hero changes that is implemented only in the Experimental Card section of the game. The hero changes are meant to support each team only having one available tank role, which weakens off-tanks and strengthens the main tanks. 

One of the most interesting changes is a change made to Take a Breather, which is Roadhog’s healing ability. It now leaves behind a cloud of healing which heals all allies within it for 25 health per second and provides a 25% damage reduction. Zarya’s Particle Barriers also now protect all allies within 8 meters of the target.

There is no word on how long the Experimental Card will stick around or how developers at Blizzard will collect feedback, but Hero Pools will end after Season 21 and the development team will be reevaluating whether they should remain as implemented or be altered when the season is over.