HWA ALL • RELIC GUIDE

JULIUS RELICS

FIRST LOOK • MECHANICS • TESTING

Julius has entered the Relic system. His four Legendary Relic stages expand the mechanic that has always defined him: Shields. From emergency protection and healing to negative-effect removal and Armor Penetration, each stage adds a different layer to Julius's defensive identity.

FIRST LOOK: Julius is already available with his Relics in Brawls, giving us an opportunity to test these mechanics in real battles. This is not yet a recommendation for the best stopping level or an assessment of whether Level 30 is mandatory. Those conclusions require proper battle testing.

QUICK REFERENCE

RELIC PROGRESSION

🟢 LEVEL 1

Shield

Emergency protection for the most injured ally.

🔵 LEVEL 10

Healing

Shields can transition into team sustain.

🟣 LEVEL 20

Cleanse

Gaining a Shield removes negative effects.

🟠 LEVEL 30

Offense

Active Shields contribute Armor Penetration.

DETAILED BREAKDOWN

JULIUS RELICS

🟢 LEGENDARY RELIC LEVEL 1

Pawsitive Influence

NEW SKILL

Pawsitive Influence is a completely new skill rather than an upgrade to one of Julius's existing abilities.

Every 13 seconds, Julius identifies the most injured ally and gives that Hero a Shield capable of absorbing any type of damage.

The amount of Health that ally has already lost matters: the more Health they have lost, the stronger the Shield becomes.

CORE MECHANIC

Every 13 seconds → Find the most injured ally → Apply a Shield → More missing Health creates a stronger Shield.

This gives Julius an emergency protection mechanic specifically aimed at the Hero who currently needs his help the most.

🔵 LEGENDARY RELIC LEVEL 10

Meowsterpiece of Defense

LEGENDARY SKILL UPGRADE

At Level 10, Julius upgrades one of his existing skills to Legendary.

When a Shield is destroyed or expires, the Hero who was protected by that Shield recovers Health.

Way of Progress Heroes receive twice as much healing from this effect.

There is one important exception: this additional effect does not apply to the Meowsterpiece of Defense skill itself.

CORE MECHANIC

Shield destroyed or expires → Protected Hero recovers Health → Way of Progress Heroes receive double healing.

The important development here is the connection between protection and sustain. Julius's Shields are no longer only absorbing damage — their disappearance can also contribute to healing.

🟣 LEGENDARY RELIC LEVEL 20

Nine-Lives Engine

LEGENDARY SKILL UPGRADE

At Level 20, Nine-Lives Engine is upgraded to Legendary.

Whenever Julius or one of his allies gains a Shield, all negative effects are removed from that Hero.

CORE MECHANIC

Julius or ally gains a Shield → All negative effects are removed from that Hero.

This means a Shield can potentially perform two jobs at once: protect the Hero from incoming damage and remove negative effects already affecting that Hero.

⚠ DAMAGE OVER TIME — TESTING REQUIRED

One major interaction still needs to be verified in battle. If a Hero is already suffering from an active Damage over Time effect and then receives a Shield, exactly what happens?

The description states that all negative effects are removed, but we are not assuming how every active DoT interaction behaves. This needs direct testing in Brawls before drawing conclusions.

🟠 LEGENDARY RELIC LEVEL 30

Defensive Lunge

NEW SKILL

Level 30 gives Julius another completely new skill: Defensive Lunge.

While Julius or his allies have a Shield, their Armor Penetration is increased for each active Shield.

CORE MECHANIC

Active Shields → Increased Armor Penetration → Each active Shield contributes to the effect.

This introduces an offensive component after three Relic stages focused heavily on keeping the team alive.

Julius's signature defensive mechanic can now potentially contribute to how effectively his team attacks as well.

THE BIG PICTURE

HOW THE RELICS EVOLVE JULIUS

LEVEL 1

PROTECTION

Another Shield.

LEVEL 10

SUSTAIN

Shields connect to healing.

LEVEL 20

CLEANSE

Shields remove negative effects.

LEVEL 30

OFFENSE

Shields connect to Armor Penetration.

NEXT STEP

WHAT STILL NEEDS TESTING?

Level 1 Shield

How significant is Pawsitive Influence's Shield in real combat, how often can it change a battle, and which Heroes benefit most from Julius protecting them this way?

Shield Healing

How much additional survivability does the Level 10 healing mechanic create across a complete battle, particularly for Way of Progress Heroes?

Negative Effects & DoT

Which negative effects can Level 20 consistently remove, how frequently can the cleanse activate, and exactly how does it interact with active Damage over Time effects?

Armor Penetration

How does Level 30 behave with multiple active Shields, how consistently can those Shields be maintained, and does the offensive benefit create a meaningful difference in battle?

FIRST LOOK TAKEAWAY

SHIELDS REMAIN THE CENTER OF JULIUS

The four Relic stages follow a clear progression: protection, sustain, cleanse and finally offense. On paper, Julius gains several new ways to make Shields matter without moving away from the mechanic that has always defined him.

What we are not doing yet is declaring Level 20 the ideal stopping point, Level 30 mandatory, or Julius suddenly unstoppable. Those conclusions require proper testing.

Level 20 is particularly interesting because of its negative-effect removal, especially the unanswered Damage over Time interaction. Level 30 creates a different question: can Julius's defensive Shields also make his team meaningfully more dangerous offensively?

The descriptions are here. The Relics are here. Now they need to be tested in real battles.