We've got everything you need to know about mastering Lucio in our updated and essential strategy guide.
Updated 18th December 2017: Our next Overwatch guide explains how to master the magnificent Lucio, with loads of tips for making the most of his powerful abilities.
Lucio has been one of the most popular Heroes in Overwatch since the game’s very first closed beta, and very little has changed in that regard since the game launched. Part of what makes him so perennially popular is the versatility he brings to the Support slot, along with a set of vital team boosts that simply aren’t available to any other hero in the the game. You’ll see him everywhere, and so you should take some time to read our Lucio guide – even if he’s not a character you’ll play much yourself, you’ll face him again and again.
As a Support character in Overwatch, Lucio’s main job is to keep his teammates topped up with health. He does this by playing a tune on his sonic weapon that casts out a radiating healing buff. The ability to heal may not seem too surprising for a Support hero, but note that he can also switch over to a different tune that instead dramatically increases the run-speed of any nearby friendly heroes – the radius of both auras is the same.
As you can well imagine, this makes Lucio an incredibly powerful character for any team to have in their back pocket. He allows the team make an early push at the start of every match, something that’s particularly important when it comes to getting ready to take and then control a point. He can also ferry his team back into battle much faster, which is particularly useful after a team wipe. Then there’s his Sound Barrier Ultimate, which casts a sonic shield around his team and can often be a game-winner when it comes to seizing a final objective.
All things considered, Lucio is one of the most important heroes to master in Overwatch. To help you along that road, we’ve put together a guide that outlines everything you need to know about him. We’ve got a breakdown of all of his abilities – with advice on how to use them efficiently – along with loads of strategy tips to help you go further with each skill. After that we’ve got some great info on Lucio’s counters, and we’ll be bringing you some map-specific advice in the very near future too!
Editor’s note – Update #4: It’s been a little while since we last updated our Lucio guide, and so we’ve taken this opportunity to bring it right up to speed with new tips, updated stats and a little map-specific advice to help you get on top of things. We’ll be expanding on this latter section in a series of future updates, so stay tuned!
A new event has just hit Overwatch! Check out our essential Retribution guide for all the tips, tricks and strategy advice you need to master this new PVE mode.
Lucio’s abilities and strategy tips
The secret to mastering Lucio lies in weaving together the different elements of his unique musical weapon in the correct way, and at the right time. Here’s a quick breakdown of how all of his sonic skills work and compliment one another.
Sonic Amplifier [LMB] / Soundwave [RMB] – Lucio’s gun allows him to either fire out projectiles of pure sound at his enemies via the left mouse button, or knock them back with a blast of noise by using the right-mouse button instead. Know where all of the death-dealing ledges are on each map and you’ll be able to get some amazing environmental kills with this alternative fire.
Crossfade [SHIFT] – Lucio’s weapon also provides a permanent, passively generated buff to all those within its area-of-effect – check the number in the middle circle to see how many people are currently affected. You can use Crossfade to switch between two different tunes, the first of which heals up nearby allies slowly over time, while the other gives your teammates an extra injection of speed. The latter in particular is great for getting your team back into battle after a wipe.
Amp It Up [E] – This next skill simply increases the strength of whichever of your musical buffs is currently being blasted out. Allies will either move faster on the map, or they’ll see their health get regenerated much more quickly. This can be great for pulling a teammate back from the brink of death, and help them continue pushing through the map with the rest of the pack. It’s also a powerful way to get your team charging from the spawn point at the start of a match – you won’t need to worry about the cooldown at this point.
Sound Barrier [Q] – Lucio’s final skill is Sound Barrier, and it allows him to drop a protective shield around anyone who’s in his immediate vicinity. This is obviously fantastic for team fights, and can often prove to be a crucial edge when it comes to defending or pushing towards tightly-contested objectives – particularly in the desperate later stages of a match! Consider dropping it if your team have been struggling to break through a tricky chokepoint and need a final bit of help – Sound Barrier guide
| Ability | HP | Ammo | Fire Rate | Duration | Cooldown/Reload | Heals | Damage | Range |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sonic Amplifier | – | 20 | 4 RPS | – | 1.5s | – | 20 | – |
| Soundwave | – | 4 | – | – | 4.0s | – | 25 | 8m |
| Crossfade: Speed | – | 4 | – | – | – | – | – | 30m |
| Crossfade: Heal | – | – | – | – | – | 12.5 p/s | – | 30m |
| Amp It Up: Speed | – | – | – | 3s | 12s | – | – | 30m |
| Amp It Up: Heal | – | – | – | 3s | 12s | 120 per 3s | – | 30m |
| Sound Barrier | – | – | – | 6s | – | – | 500 health | 30m |
To get a good feel for how all these skills come together when playing Lucio, take a look through Blizzard’s official video below. We’ll be adding our own videos to this guide once we’re a little bit further into the live metagame.
We’ll keep adding to this section over time, but here are some tips that you should find very useful for getting more out of Lucio – and right from your very first match. Let us know in the comments if you’ve found any clever strategies of your own, and we’ll add them to this article the next time we update it.
- Here’s a great trick to always keep at the back of your mind when playing Lucio. If you find yourself in a section of the map that allows for death through falling, use the right mouse button to push your enemy over the rails and straight to their doom. A nice, easy – and cheap – kill, but a kill nevertheless.
- There’s a slowness and a heft to the projectiles that fire from Lucio’s gun, which means you need to aim somewhat in the direction of your target’s future travel direction in order to have them land correctly. You will get much better at this with practise, but it will take a little while to come together – persevere and you’ll get there though.
- Try to save Lucio’s powerful Sound Barrier ability for when you’re in a team fight with at least two or three team members who will benefit from its sonic protection. Dropping it down in an otherwise even brawl can very often be the deciding factor in the outcome of a fight.
- While Lucio is more than capable of his own impressive killing sprees, your real strength lies in helping your teammates do what they do best, and for longer. Make sure you’re switching between your speed and healing boosts as applicable (it can be easy to lose track at first!), and try to gain the benefit of strength in numbers when returning to battle from the spawn point.
- It’s not very difficult to use Lucio’s wall-ride ability, but it is hard to use it in a meaningful way which gives you a strategic edge. For that reason we recommend spending a bit of time practising your parkour in private matches, as mastering this skill will really give you an edge in live multiplayer games.
- In a duel, you should think about knocking the enemy back with your Sound Wave alternate fire before unloading with your pistol. The former shot actually pins them into place for a brief moment, which gives you a better window of opportunity to fire into their face. Best used when you need to finish off the rest of an opponent’s health bar.
- Consider customising Lucio’s Hero-specific controls so that the healing aura is on by default and you switch over to the speed boost while holding down Shift. This means you’ll never forget to heal up your buddies once you reach them, and it shares something in common with Soldier: 76.
- Use Wall Ride to gain the element of surprise when fleeing from danger. Look for the path least trodden in order to throw your opponent’s aim, and increase the odds that you make it to safety instead of the spawn room. It doesn’t seem powerful at first, but once you’ve mastered it it’ll take your Lucio game to another level.
- Learn the Ultimate tells of the enemy team, as this will help you judge when to cast Sound Barrier to keep your team alive. Think of Reaper’s Death Blossom or D’Va’s deadly suit detonation. Your ability to time this cast may well make the difference between your team thriving or wiping.
- Bear in mind that Lucio’s Ultimate isn’t instant and takes around a second to cast, so don’t leave it too late!
- As Lucio, you should be staying with your teammates as often as possible, otherwise you’re just wasting the auras he produces. What’s more, you’re unlikely to take anyone out or hinder the opposing team by yourself. Stick with your allies, rather than getting carried away with his mobility.
- We’ve talked about using Sound Barrier preemptively if you’re expecting the enemy team to attack, but you can also use it in the opposite fashion. Want to push into an objective? Pop your ultimate and use the temporary advantage it gives to force a fight that’s immediately in your favour.
Here’s a video from Blizzard that shows Lucio off in all his match-long glory. Make sure to watch it all for loads of useful tips, straight from the creators!
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Map-specific advice for Lucio
It pays to take a certain playstyle to a certain kind of map when you’re on healing duties with Lucio. Here’s some advice you’ll find useful for playing on each category of map.
Lucio: Assault tips (Hanamura, Temple of Anubis, Volskaya Industries)
Lucio’s value on these maps as part of an attacking force is tricky to pin down as it’s so dependent on team composition. If your team is full of heavy flankers, you’ll best serve your team by ferrying people back into battle from the spawn room, while simultaneously keeping anyone who is at the choke topped up. If you’re moving as a single unit, however, Lucio’s healing aura has obvious benefits – just try to make yourself the least obvious target and hang back.
When defending on these sorts of maps, it’s vital that you maintain situational awareness and race to help those most in need – very often you’ll need to choose between keeping two different groups of allies alive. Reserve your E for when it’s really needed, so you can top a group’s health bars up nice and fast, then look for your next triage opportunity. Do race your team back from a wipe, but know when to give up on the first point and start reinforcing the second instead. It’s also vital to time the use of your Ultimate for when it’s needed most – typically when the enemy team is making a properly coordinated push onto the point!
Lucio: Control tips (Ilios, Lijiang Tower, Nepal)
Lucio’s ridiculous mobility is a perfect fit for Control as he’s able to bounce around the objective supporting his team and drawing enemy fire away from his allies too. Focus on staying near your team and contesting the point whenever you can as he’s very difficult to take out while skating all over the place.
Lucio: Escort tips (Dorado, Route 66, Watchpoint: Gibraltar)
As the maps constantly shift and change on Escort, it’s easy to get carried away with the parkour and drift away from your team by accident. Counteract this by sitting near your most vulnerable allies while escorting the Payload and look for opportunities to use your speed boost when engaging or disengaging.
Sometimes it’s also a good idea to keep an eye on your tanks and speed boost them in and out of danger – it’s all about reading movements and making the appropriate call with what aura you go ahead and use. Keep practicing and eventually you’ll develop a knack for knowing when to use your healing or speed boost!
Lucio: Hybrid tips (Hollywood, King’s Row, Numbani)
Using much of the same tips above, you’ll want to make sure the ever-changing map is being exploited to the fullest. Use your mobility to scale walls and boop enemies into vulnerable positions or simply to heal your allies from a better position.
Lucio counters and match-ups
In the great balancing game that powers Overwatch’s team compositions, there are of course certain characters who strongly counter Lucio, and other Heroes he performs well against. We’ve picked out a selection of Lucio’s best targets, along with the biggest threats he faces in battle. We’ve also provided a quick overview of what exactly makes these match-ups so interesting.
| Lucio is strong against | Lucio is weak against |
|---|---|
| Mercy | Mei |
| Symmetra | McCree |
| Torbjorn | Pharah |
If Lucio’s doing his job properly, he’s sticking back and helping his team do the hard work, but the three heroes above are a decent match-up if Lucio maintains some kind of range – use his knockback if necessary to reset the fight.
Mei negates the mobility advantage you provide yourself and your team with while McCree has just enough mobility to stay up in Lucio’s face. By definition Lucio likes to work in a close pack, which is practically a red flag to a bull if you’re Pharah. Tracer can also cause Lucio problems too.
For help with other Heroes, make sure you check out our complete Overwatch: Counters guide.
Lucio Skins, Victory Poses, Emotes and Voice Lines
Like every other hero in Overwatch, Lucio has loads of customisation options to work towards unlocking. Here’s a breakdown of everything you can earn to help him stand out!
| Cost | Notes | |
| Skins | ||
| Classic | 0 | Common |
| Azul | 75 | Rare |
| Laranja | 75 | Rare |
| Roxo | 75 | Rare |
| Vermelho | 75 | Rare |
| Andes | 250 | Epic |
| Auditiva | 250 | Epic |
| Synaesthesia | 250 | Epic |
| Breakaway | 1000 | Legendary |
| Hippityhop | 1000 | Legendary |
| Jazzy | Seasonal | Legendary |
| Ribbit | 1000 | Legendary |
| Selecao | 1000 | Legendary |
| Slapshot | 1000 | Legendary |
| Striker | 1000 | Legendary |
| Emotes | ||
| Heroic | 0 | Common |
| Capoeira | 250 | Epic |
| Chilling | 250 | Epic |
| Juggle | 250 | Epic |
| In The Groove | 250 | Epic |
| Knee Slapper | 250 | Epic |
| Nah! | 250 | Epic |
| Smooth | Seasonal | Epic |
| Victory Pose | ||
| Heroic | 0 | Common |
| Confident | 75 | Rare |
| Grooving | 250 | Rare |
| Handstand | 75 | Rare |
| Pumpkin Control | 75 | Rare |
| Ready For Action | 75 | Rare |
| R.I.P. | 75 | Rare |
| Voice Line | ||
| Be Champions | 25 | Common |
| Can’t Stop, Won’t Stop | 25 | Common |
| Everybody Gets Their +1 | 25 | Common |
| Happy Holidays! | 25 | Common |
| Have Some Lucio-Oh’s! | 25 | Common |
| Hit Me! | 25 | Common |
| I’m On Top Of The World | 25 | Common |
| I Could Do This All Day | 25 | Common |
| I Make This Look Good… | 25 | Common |
| Jackpot! | 25 | Common |
| Killed It! | 25 | Common |
| Learn To Take It Easy | 25 | Common |
| Not Hearing That Noise | 25 | Common |
| Oh, Yeah! | 25 | Common |
| Tinnitus | 25 | Common |
| To The Rhythm | 25 | Common |
| Why Are You So Angry? | 25 | Common |
| You Gotta Believe! | 25 | Common |
| Highlight Intro | ||
| Heroic | 0 | Common |
| Random | 0 | Common |
| Bicycle Kick | 250 | Epic |
| Drop The Beat | 250 | Epic |
| Freestyle | 250 | Epic |
| In The Groove | 250 | Epic |
