Fortuna, The Masked Goddess: Priority Dispel Meets Perpetual Debuffs

Overview

Fortuna is a Fast mana Ice Legendary hero from the Masquerade family (Carnival of Gods). Released in late 2022, she entered the game amidst a storm of controversy due to a significant nerf right at launch. Despite the initial backlash, she carved out a unique niche as one of the few heroes who can dispel buffs before dealing damage.

While her damage output has always been the subject of mockery (and rightfully so), her utility as a disruptive support hero is undeniable. She isn't here to wipe the team with a single blow; she's here to strip their defenses and cripple their attack stats indefinitely.

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Hero Art & Visuals

Fortuna's design is striking, embodying the mysterious elegance of the Masquerade. She wears an ornate golden mask and blue robes, surrounded by floating, disembodied masks that serve as her weapons/minions. The art perfectly captures the "Carnival of Gods" aesthetic—beautiful, slightly unsettling, and undeniably regal. It’s a sophisticated look that stands out even among the flashy modern designs.

General Info

Hero Stats

Stat Analysis: Let's be blunt: Fortuna is showing her age. With a base power of 873, she is significantly behind the modern curve where heroes routinely break the 1260+ power threshold.

• Attack (819): Low by modern standards. Even with emblems and limit breaks, she struggles to deal meaningful direct damage.
• Defense (856) & HP (1584): Respectable for her era but fragile compared to the 2200+ HP behemoths released today. She needs heavy defensive emblems and Limit Breaks to survive against modern snipers.

Special Skill: Bad Fortune

Skill Analysis: "Bad Fortune" is a skill defined by its order of operations.

1. Priority Dispel: This is her crown jewel. She removes all buffs from all enemies before doing anything else. This means she bypasses Counterattacks, Defense Buffs, and Elemental Reflections completely. It is an incredibly rare and valuable mechanic.
2. Damage (150%): Originally 120%, this was buffed to 150% in February 2024. It’s still negligible. Don't rely on this for kills; think of it as a way to poke the enemy to check if they are awake.
3. Corrupted Mask Fiends: These fiends deal minor damage and absorb healing, but their real value is the -36% Attack Debuff. This debuff is tied to the fiend, meaning it cannot be cleansed by standard skills—the opponent must heal the fiend away to remove the attack down.

By the Numbers

• Mana Speed: Fast (8 tiles). With a lvl 29 Mana troop or appropriate bard/family bonuses, she can reach 7 tiles effortlessly.
• Damage Potential:
  • Base Attack (819) x 150% = ~1228 damage value.
  • For context, modern hitters deal 450%+ with 1300 attack stat. Fortuna's damage is purely decorative.
• Fiend Impact:
  • Absorbs ~22% of target's max HP. On a modern 2500 HP tank, that's roughly 550 HP of healing required to remove it.
  • -36% Attack: This effectively turns a 1300 Attack monster into an 832 Attack puppy. This is her primary survival tool.

Family Bonus, Passives, Aether Power & Unique Abilities

Family Bonus

The Masquerade family bonus is minion-centric.

• 1 Member: Summons a Mask Minion (8% HP/Attack) at the start of battle.
• 2 Members: Minion gives +7% Attack.
• 3 Members: Minion grants Ailment Immunity.
• Analysis: The ailment immunity is powerful, but maintaining these weak 8% minions in the current meta of heavy AOE damage is nearly impossible without a dedicated minion protector or taunt.

Passives

• Cleanse on Minion Death: When her Mask Minion is destroyed, she cleanses status ailments from herself.
• Analysis: This is a fantastic passive for a support hero. Since her minions are fragile, they will die often, granting her frequent self-cleanses, ensuring she can fire her dispel when needed.

Aether Power

• Fiend Resist: At the start of battle, grants immunity to new Fiends for 6 turns.
• Analysis: Useful against the likes of Waterpipe or modern fiend summoners, keeping her health pool intact early in the match.

Legacy & Modern Relevance

• Historical Context: Upon release, Fortuna was famously "neutered" from her Beta version, losing significant damage and effect potency. The community was in uproar, labeling her "un'fortuna'te." However, players quickly realized the value of a Fast Priority Dispeller.
• Power Creep Analysis: Her stats are undeniably outdated. She is squishy and hits like a wet noodle. However, Priority Dispel is a mechanic that defies power creep. Removing a Taunt or a 100% Counterattack before hitting is timeless utility.
• Modern Viability Verdict: Niche but Vital. She is no longer a top-tier defense hero. However, on Offense, she remains a tactical nuke against buff-heavy teams (Ludwig, Hathor, Aramis). If you can keep her alive, she shuts down the enemy's defensive setup completely.

Emblem Path Analysis

Fortuna is a support hero. Her damage is irrelevant. Your only goal is to keep her alive long enough to dispel the enemy.

The Survivor (Recommended)

• Path: Defense > Health > Attack
• Pros: Maximizes her survivability against modern high-damage snipers. Increases the HP of her minions (marginally).
• Cons: Her special skill damage remains negligible.

The "Attacker" (Not Recommended)

• Path: Attack > Defense > Health
• Pros: Slightly increases Fiend damage tick and initial hit.
• Cons: She will die to a stiff breeze in the current meta.

Final Recommendation

For almost every player, the Defense/Health path is the only logical choice. Ignore the sword nodes unless they are unavoidable.

Strengths

• Priority Dispel: Removes buffs before damage/effects apply. Counters Riposte, Taunt, and Defense Up perfectly.
• Fast Speed: Can turn the tide of battle quickly with just 3 matches (or fewer with starting mana).
• Uncleansable Attack Down: The -36% attack debuff stays until the fiend is healed, crippling enemy damage output.
• Self-Cleanse: Passive cleanses her when her minion pops, making her resilient against silences or mana slows (if timed right).

Weaknesses

• Abysmal Damage: 150% damage is virtually unnoticeable against modern stats.
• Fragile Minions: Her family bonus minions are too weak to provide lasting benefits like the ailment immunity.
• Aging Stats: Low base defense and HP make her a prime target for one-shots.
• Fiend Dependency: If the enemy has a strong healer (like Rhys or Hathor), the fiends—and their attack debuff—vanish instantly.

Best Game Modes

• PvP Offense (Raids/Wars): Her best home. Use her to strip buffs from Taunt heroes or heavy buffers.
• Bloody Battle Tournaments: S-Tier. Since healing is disabled, her Fiends (and the attack debuff) stay permanently attached to the enemy.
• Buff Booster Tournaments: Excellent for stripping the enemy's stacked buffs immediately.

Advanced Strategy & Team Compositions

Fortuna shines when she sets the table for harder hitters. She should almost always fire first in a chain.

Sample Team Ideas

1. The Anti-Meta Blue Stack:
   • Fortuna -> Hippo -> Lord Loki.
   • Fortuna strips the buffs (Taunt/Dodge), Hippo provides the damage engine, and Loki copies the best enemy skill.
2. The Fiend Overload:
   • Fortuna -> Viscaro -> Motega.
   • Stacking fiends overwhelms the enemy healers. Fortuna's fast speed applies early pressure, while slower fiend summoners finish the job.

Counters & Anti-Synergies

• Counters: Arco, Esme, and Cleopatra destroy fiends or turn them into minions, negating her secondary effects. Garnet/Vanda (Ailment Immunity) block the fiends from landing if cast first.
• Anti-Synergy: Grimble or Captain of Diamonds on your own team don't hurt her, but pairing her with other minion summoners can be tricky due to the limited minion slots (3 per hero).

Advice for New Players

If you pulled Fortuna, celebrate! You have a "Swiss Army Knife" for difficult raid stages. Even at 3/70, her dispel is valuable. Pair her with your strongest sniper; she opens the door, and the sniper walks through it. Prioritize her survivability above all else.

Advice for Veterans

Fortuna is a luxury tool. You likely have higher stat heroes, but do you have a Fast Priority Dispeller? Probably not many. She is worth keeping for War depth, especially against Ludwig tanks or heavy counterattack teams. Do not waste Alpha Aethers on her unless you use her daily; LB1 is usually sufficient for her support role.

Community Corner: Hot Takes & History

The release of Fortuna was... dramatic.

• “Sounds like Ice is the new Dark... way to ‘nerf’ Ludwig.” — Early optimism turned to salt when the nerf hammer hit.
• “Dispels, damages, and forces fiends down your throat? At a fast speed? Sheesh…” — A beta tester's reaction before the nerf.
• The community consensus shifted from "She is broken OP" in Beta to "She’s pretty much a Hannah with a dispel" post-release.
• One player famously noted: "A rare hero like Fortuna and her defining special is dispel? How dispellapointing."

Despite the complaints about her damage, experienced players recognized her value: "She is great on offense, that fast dispel is crazy handy... I treat the damage as a bonus."

Final Thoughts

Fortuna is the ultimate "utility over vanity" hero. She won't win you any "highest damage hit" screenshots, and her stat card looks like a relic from a bygone era. But when you are staring down a team protected by Taunt, Dodge, and Defense Up, Fortuna is the skeleton key that unlocks victory.

She strips the enemy naked, hands them a cursed mask, and lets your actual hitters do the work. Just don't ask her to arm wrestle any of the new Construct heroes; she'll lose.

Verdict: A timeless utility support who aged gracefully in skill, if not in stats.