How to play a brawl as a tank

A brawl comp fights close and fights together. The whole team moves as one group, takes the fight at short range, and wins it with damage and healing that the other side cannot match up close. As the tank, you are the front of that group. You pick where the fight happens, you decide when the team goes in, and you are the reason the others can stand that close.

I play Zarya at Master in Overwatch. For bubble timing, see the Overwatch Zarya guide. Here’s how I lead a brawl on Zarya at Master.

What brawl wants

The Overwatch wiki on team composition describes brawl as a team that does major damage together at the front. Unlike dive, it does not take multiple angles. The group moves in a straight line as one unit.

Brawl is strong when the fight is close, long, and in one place. It has sustain, heavy cooldowns, and a lot of damage at short range. It is weaker at holding high ground and covering long sightlines, and it runs on resources: health, barriers, and cooldowns that need time to come back.

So the plan is simple. Make the enemy fight you where you are strong. That usually means a spot near the objective with few open angles, like a choke or a room, where they have to come to you or walk past you.

Brawl is often called rush when it leans on Lucio’s speed to close the distance. The idea is the same.

Which tanks fit

The same wiki page lists Reinhardt, Junker Queen, Zarya, Mauga, Orisa, Roadhog, Ramattra, and Hazard as brawl tanks. Reinhardt is the classic one: a barrier to walk the team forward and a hammer that only works up close. Ramattra is a common modern pick, with a barrier to cross the gap and a close-range form to fight in once he arrives.

Zarya fits because the beam wants bodies in front of her and the bubbles keep the group standing in that space. Energy is the kit. Every death resets it. That is why “don’t die” is the first line of the Zarya guide, and why a brawl that overstays is how I throw the next fight.

Which name is strongest changes with patches. The job does not.

Lead one group

The tank’s first job in a brawl is keeping it a brawl. The comp only works when all five players arrive together. A tank who walks in alone is not starting a brawl. They are fighting five people while their team watches.

Before you step in, check that your team is close enough to follow. Call it: “going in”, or “wait”. When you commit, commit fully. Brawl fights are short and decided fast. Half-going in gives the enemy the close fight without your team’s damage behind it.

On Zarya that commit is a bubble and a walk, not a dash. If I bubble and step in while Lucio is still around the corner, I am the only one in the room.

Keep your supports in sight

Brawl lives on healing, and supports heal what they can see. If you take a corner your supports cannot see, you are taking damage nobody can heal.

Stay where at least one support has a clear line to you, even if it means a slightly worse angle. A tank with healing behind them can stand in the fight much longer than a tank with a better angle and no healing. How to use cover is the wall you use to take that angle without standing in the open.

Back off before zero

The most useful brawl habit is leaving early. When your health drops low, step behind cover and let your supports heal you, then come back. Dying at zero wastes every heal that went into you. Backing off at a third of your health keeps it.

On Zarya, dying also dumps energy. That is a worse reset than a Reinhardt who walks back with a new barrier. Leave while the beam is still a threat.

The same goes for cooldowns. If your barrier is broken and your big defensive tool is spent, that is a moment to hold, not to push. Wait the few seconds until they are back.

Play the matchup

What is the enemy team playing?

DivePokeBrawl

Stay close and turn when they land

• Hold a spot near the objective with few open angles, so divers have to come to you.
• Keep your supports a few steps behind you, not far back on their own.
• When a diver lands on them, turn around and help. A dead support ends the brawl.
• Push forward once their dive cooldowns are spent.

Against another brawl. Win the close fight you already wanted. Stack the ultimates. Do not start a second brawl after yours is spent.

Against dive. Stay close to the objective in a spot with few open angles. Keep supports near you. When they land, turn. Push once their dive cooldowns are spent. Chasing the first Winston off the point is how the rest of their team eats your backline.

Against poke. Do not trade shots at range. Walk up behind cover, then cross the last open gap together, often with speed or a barrier, and stay on top of them once you get there. Zarya loses a long hallway to hitscan. The trade you want is beam on people who already closed.

Use the ultimates together

Brawl ultimates work best stacked. A speed or healing ultimate from a support can carry the whole group into the fight. A damage ultimate from the tank or a damage hero finishes it. If you use them one at a time, the enemy answers each one. Used together, they are hard to answer.

Before a fight, check what your team has, and say it. “I have grav, Lucio has beat” is enough. Then decide which one starts the fight and which one follows. The Zarya guide already names Lifeweaver as the pull that wastes a grav. Call that before you throw it.

What goes wrong

Most failed brawls are one of three things. The tank went in before the team. The team fought in the open against a team with more range. Or everyone stayed in after the cooldowns ran out. If you fix only one, fix the first. A brawl that arrives together can recover from a lot.

I review the same way I review a loss: one sentence about the fight, not a vibe — how to review an Overwatch loss. “I walked in without Lucio” is a sentence. “Brawl feels bad” is not.

Related: PvP, Overwatch counters, What crosshair placement is, Overwatch guides, aim tools.

Common questions

What is a brawl comp in Overwatch?

A brawl comp is a team that fights up close as one tight group, winning with sustained damage and healing. It's often called rush when it uses Lucio's speed boost to close the distance.

What are the best tanks for brawl in Overwatch?

Reinhardt, Junker Queen, Zarya, Mauga, Orisa, Roadhog, Ramattra and Hazard all fit brawl. Reinhardt is the classic pick, and Zarya, who I play, is great at punishing teams that clump up.

What does the tank do in a brawl comp?

The tank leads. You pick where the team fights, call when to go in and stay at the front; if you dive in alone, it's not a brawl, it's one player against five.

How do you beat dive with a brawl comp?

Stay near the objective in a spot with few open angles and keep your supports close. When divers jump in, turn around and peel for your backline, then push once their cooldowns are used.

How do you beat poke with a brawl comp?

Don't trade shots at range. Walk up using cover, then cross the last open gap together with speed boost or a barrier, and stay in their face once you arrive.