Esmeralda is the warrior astrologer of Mobile Legends: Bang Bang. Astrologers undergo extremely difficult assessments, tests of character and astrological abilities. The astrology elders of the Land of Dawn found Esmeralda to be worthy of guarding the Starmoon Casket which was passed down for many generations.
Esmeralda embarked on a journey to the Minos Labyrinth to discover the secrets of the Starmoon Casket. Along the way, she encountered a strong sandstorm combined with an earthquake. The Starmoon Casket suddenly opened and unleashed a celestial power that filled Esmeralda and gave her protection.
While she was slowly possessed by the power, memories of previous astrologers flashed in her mind. She was given a vague vision about an ancient enemy named Khufra, his romantic affair with an astrologer and how he has returned to bring chaos to the present world. She felt bad about Khufra’s painful past but her new mission is to seal Khufra and restore peace in the Western Desert.
Esmeralda Overview
Esmeralda is uniquely a mage and a tank. Thanks to the celestial powers endowed on her, her body can be protected by an ultra-tough shield that makes her a tank. But unlike most tanks, she has strong offensive abilities which have an AoE because of her Mage nature.
The Global Top 1 Esmeralda player at the moment is نيش ايج. Her name is translated as The Nash Edge in English. This guide will review her best Esmeralda build and check how each item will benefit this hero based on her gameplay. We’ll examine her choice of battle spell and emblem and then assess how these will give Esmeralda the best advantage in the game.
Skills
Passive: Starmoon Casket
Esmeralda’s Basic Damage is dealt with twice. The first one is called Stardust the deals with Physical Damage while the second one is called Frostmoon which deals with Magic Damage.
Frostmoon grants the target a shield that’s equivalent to 135% of the damage dealt by Frostmoon.
Esmeralda’s attacks ignore her target’s shields while her shield transforms into HP at the same time.
First Skill: Frostmoon Shield
Esmeralda summons a shield with 400 + 150% Total Magic Power while boosting her Movement Speed by 40% which gradually decays within 4 seconds. At the same time, she slowly steals the enemy’s shields to make them her own shield with a limit of 50% based on her maximum HP.
Second Skill: Stardust Dance
Esmeralda spins the Stardust and Frostmoon to deal 240 + 60% Total Physical Attack Damage and 240 + 90% Total Magic Attack Damage to all enemies nearby. A successful hit will reduce the cooldown of her first skill while reducing the Movement Speed of the enemy by 10% within 1.5 seconds.
Ultimate: Falling Starmoon
Esmeralda casts a huge Stardust blow to a designated area to deal 350 + 90% Total Physical Attack Damage, and then she immediately jumps to the target area to deal Frostmoon’s damage which deals 350 + 140% Total Magic Power Damage. All of the enemies hit will be stunned for 1 second.
Best Esmeralda Build
Items
Warrior Boots. Despite Esmeralda’s existing skill of summoning a shield, having an extra layer would be a good precaution. On top of the extra Physical Defense that she can get from this item, the speed boost is crucial to Esmeralda’s poking style early in the game.
Enchanted Talisman. This may be the most affordable major magic item on the list but it’s packed with what Esmeralda exactly needs. She’ll get an extra HP, large cooldown reduction and mana spring. Esmeralda’s skills are mana-intensive so it’s great for her to start the game with a good mana source.
Brute Force Breastplate. This third item will further bulk up Esmeralda with its high HP addition and Physical Defense. Its passive will further increase her Movement Speed, Physical Defense and even her Magic Defense as she deals with Basic Attacks.
Holy Crystal. The Magic Damage of this item is one of the highest in the game. On top of that, its passive adds a huge percentage of overall Magic Damage for her.
Late Game Items
Oracle. Shield absorption is what this item does best that will benefit Esmeralda tremendously because of her shield stealing ability. On top of that, this item gives Esmeralda a good amount of HP, Magic Defense, cooldown reduction and HP regen.
Blood Wings. This Final item is Esmeralda’s ultimate weapon because it boosts both her offense and defense. This adds the highest default Magic Damage, a huge HP plus a strong Shield equivalent to 200% Magic Power.
Esmeralda Emblem Set
Despite being a mage and a tank what our Global Top 1 player found to be most effective for Esmeralda is the Custom Support Emblem. This definitely makes sense because this emblem boosts both Physical and Magic Damage which perfectly fits her dual-type skills. Let’s check the feature that she picked for this emblem.
She started by maxing out Agility to boost Esmeralda’s Movement Speed. Unlike the Mage & Assassin Emblem which has a default of +2% added Movement Speed, the Custom Support Emblem provides +3.5%. Add the 6% from the Agility feature and it will make Esmeralda’s mobility faster than most at the start of the game. She picked and maxed out Rupture for the second feature which provides both Physical and Magic penetration.
For the final feature, she selected Avarice which adds a little amount of gold to Esmeralda every time she attacks a hero. This will help Esmeralda get her strong items quicker and dominate in the game.
Battle Spell
Purify. This battle spell is the top choice of our Global Top 1 Esmeralda player. As a clash initiator who is a semi-tank as well, this spell is clearly ideal for her as she tends to absorb all of the attacks before going out of the battle. Aside from removing control effects and gaining control immunity, this also provides a slight speed boost.
Retribution. As a dual-role hero, Esmeralda can play the core player role. Retribution would allow her to farm faster in the jungle and get all of the buffs to be able to assist her allies better.
Sprint. As a poker and clash initiator, having the Movement Speed boost and slow immunity allows her to secure her escape when facing a group of enemies. This will also allow her to chase escaping enemies and secure the kill.
Esmeralda Gameplay
Skill Sequence
Unlike other heroes, Esmeralda’s priority can either be her second or first skill. This depends on who you are facing and what’s your priority. If survival is your priority, focus on the Frostmoon Shield. If damage is your priority, focus on the Stardust Dance. Once you decided to prioritize one of the skills make sure to put her Falling Starmoon ultimate skill as the next priority and immediately upgrade it as soon as it’s available.
Esmeralda Combo
First Combo:
First Skill + Second Skill + Basic Attacks
This early game combo is ideal when facing a long-range enemy who can attack you first while approaching. Take note that casting the second skill reduces the cooldown of the first skill.
Second Combo:
Second Skill + First Skill + Basic Attacks
This combo is best used when fighting a melee enemy in the early game.
Third Combo:
Ultimate Skill + Second Skill + First Skill + Basic Attacks
Start with the ultimate skill to stun the target then use the second skill to inflict damage while giving your enemy a shield. Use the first skill to steal the target’s shield then barrage it with your basic attacks. You can also poke your enemy with your two skills first to inflict huge damage to your target then wait for them to refresh before doing the combo above.
Fighting Strategy
Poke. Start the game by taking advantage of your shield to harass your enemy. Since Esmeralda’s first skill has a speed boost and strong shield, you’ll have that one-on-one advantage early in the game. Rush in to attack while your shield is up then swiftly move back when your shield is about to fade. Wait for the cooldown to refresh then repeat the same steps. When your enemy’s HP is low enough, you might get a kill if you’re lucky. It’s okay to let it escape and travel a long way from its base because it will give you the time to level up through the minions and also kill the crab.
Roam and Assist. Esmeralda’s stun and tanky feature make her one of the best team assistants. Visit your teammate’s lane by hiding inside the bush to give a hint that you’ll help when a fight breaks out. When your teammate triggers the enemy to a duel, jump in to stun it. This will prevent it from attacking your ally further. Then, you can help your teammate barrage the enemy with attacks to secure the kill.
Core. While this role is mostly taken by assassins, Esmeralda’s flexibility as a mage/tank allows her to take this role as well. It’s best to put emphasis on damage when taking this role to be able to farm faster in the jungle and have the extra time to help your teammates.
Team Fight. Considering Esmeralda’s powerful shield, she can start a team fight by jumping to a group of enemies to stun them and deal an AoE damage. Then, she can use her first skill to quickly get out of the battle while her teammates are barraging the enemies. Make sure to target marksmen and mages first because they are strong damage dealers but are easy to kill.
Esmeralda FYI Checklist
- Don’t buy Athena’s Shield because Esmeralda will just absorb it when casting her first skill.
- Esmeralda can steal the native shield of Lolita, Harith, Chou and other heroes that summon shields. In fact, it can even steal the shield from Aegis.
- The shield eventually gets converted to health points. In other words, summoning the shield can help you recover some lost HP.
- Esmeralda’s first skill grants shield to enemies because her damage can bypass shields and her first skill will steal the enemy’s shield—including what she has given.
- Be careful of Kaja, Franco and Guinevere because they’re capable of stopping you from escaping.