Hanabi is the La Femme Nikita of Mobile Legends: Bang Bang. She came from the Scarlet Shadow village where the two rivaling clans of Scarlet Sect and Shadow Sect reside. As the most talented daughter of the Scarlet Supreme Ninja, she was expected to be the heir to the role. As a young girl, she was admired for her exceptional talent for fighting until she met the young Hayabusa.
Hayabusa defeated Hanabi in training and it made her very upset. Whenever the moon is full, she would keep on provoking Hayabusa to challenge her to a fight but loses most of the time. In the few times she won, Hayabusa would still have the upper hand. They would sometimes rest on a tall rooftop while staring at the moonlight and exchanging a few words. Hanabi said that she’ll become the Akakage while Hayabusa said that he’ll look for him.
During the coming-of-age ceremony, Hanabi carefully prepared a bento of red rice and then wore one of her best attires. She rushed in the rain while holding the bento in her chest until she saw Hayabusa with Kagura. Hayabusa offered her an umbrella but Hanabi was stunned so she bowed to him as if they just ended a spar and then left in the rain with tears in her eyes. That was the last time she saw Hayabusa. She later found out that he left their village to look for the demon Hanzo.
Hanabi Overview
Hanabi is a marksman hero who is feared in team fights because all of her attacks have an Area of Effect and her ultimate skill has an immobilizing feature. She may not have an escape capability but she has a native lifesteal and a shield that gives her immunity to Crowd Control effects.
The current Global Top 1 Hanabi player is 花火. This is a Japanese word written in Kanji that means FlowerFire. We will be examining her best Hanabi build and inspect how her choice of emblem, spell and items will optimize Hanabi’s performance in the game.
Skills
Passive
Ninjutsu: Equinox
If Hanabi’s HP is full, 60% of the additional HP that she gets from lifesteal will be converted into a shield. The shield’s capacity equates to 25% of her maximum HP.
She will be immune to crowd control effects and her Movement Speed will be boosted to 30 if the shield is active.
First Skill
Ninjutsu: Petal Barrage
Passive: Hanabi gets an 8% Physical Lifesteal permanently.
Active: Activating this skill allows Hanabi to generate new petal blades that bounce three times to multiple enemies who are close together. The petals have a 25% damage reduction per bounce.
Second Skill
Ninjutsu: Soul Scroll
Hanabi throws an energy scroll in a selected area that deals 450 + 80% Total Physical Attack Damage. This also applies a 50% slow effect to all enemies along its path for 2 seconds.
Hanabi regains 140 mana when she hits a target. If multiple enemies are hit, the mana regained on the succeeding enemies will have a gradual reduction.
Ultimate Skill
Forbidden Jutsu: Higanbana
Hanabi fires Higanbana to a selected area then bloom when a target gets hit. It will deal 600 + 100% Total Physical Attack Damage and immobilize the enemy for 2 seconds. Nearby enemies will receive the same effect but only once. If the main target remains within the range of Higanbana, it will be affected by another Higanbana bloom with the same amount of effect and damage.
Best Hanabi Build
Items
Swift Boots. This first and most affordable item will boost Hanabi’s Movement and Attack Speed.
Windtalker. Movement and Attack Speed is also the focus of this item but it adds a slight improvement to Hanabi’s Critical Chance. A faster Attack Speed gives her an edge at the start of the game because this equates to a better lifesteal. The typhoon feature of this item compliments her first skill because they work similarly.
Scarlet Phantom. This third item will start to make Hanabi’s attacks more painful because of its high Critical Chance and extra Physical Attack. It also significantly increases her Attack Speed. This will make Hanabi’s attacks crazy fast when combined with Inspire.
Berserker’s Fury. The large Physical Attack and Critical Damage that Hanabi will get from this item will make her more dominant in the game. Its passive will make critical hits slightly increase her overall Physical Damage for a short period.
Late Game Items
Wind of Nature. Survivability is the focus of this late-game item. Aside from further increasing her lifesteal, it has an active feature that makes her immune to all kinds of Physical Attacks within 2 seconds. This item is a must for her considering that she doesn’t have any native escape skills. The high Attack Speed that this item adds will also help her kill her enemies faster while stealing their life quicker.
Blade of Despair. This last item will make her enemies tremble because it has the highest Physical Damage in the game. Its passive feature will make her damage even higher. When an enemy’s life is less than half, it will receive an extra 25% damage based on the overall Physical Attack of Hanabi. Combine this with her high Critical Chance and Attack Speed and you’ll see your enemy gone in a snap.
Hanabi Emblem Set
The Global Top 1 player found it best to use the Custom Marksman Emblem for Hanabi. Its default features which already come with lifesteal greatly match her choice of items. Let’s inspect how her configuration of this emblem will work well with Hanabi.
She maxed out Bravery for the first feature. Since her build is heavy on Critical Chance, giving Hanabi high initial damage will help her dominate at the start of the game. Her next choice is Doom which was maxed out as well. This will help Hanabi make the most out of her crit-related items because it will make her overall Critical Damage more painful.
For the final feature, she selected Weapon Master. Unlike other marksman heroes, Hanabi doesn’t have a damage buff so having that 15% damage increase from items and the emblem itself will compensate for that missing feature.
Battle Spell
Inspire. This battle spell will help Hanabi instantly eliminate her enemies because of the insane Attack Speed that it will give her. Not to mention that it will also make her attacks armor-busting. Since her immobilizing attack only lasts for 2 seconds, activating this feature will greatly increase her chances of killing a target.
Flicker. If your priority is Hanabi’s survivability, getting Flicker would be the next best option. Aside from helping her blink away from unforeseen attacks, this can also be used to chase dying enemies.
Hanabi Gameplay
Skill Priority Sequence
Ninjutsu: Petal Barrage. Prioritize this first skill because aside from its AoE damage, it also gives Hanabi a lifesteal capability. The bounce time of the petals and percentage of her lifesteal increase along with the skill upgrade.
Forbidden Jutsu: Higanbana. This ultimate skill should be upgraded as soon as it’s available because it will be your deadliest craft. Your enemies will hate you a lot during team fights because its immobilizing feature is contagious. Make sure to hit your target when unleashing this.
Ninjutsu: Soul Scroll. While this powerful scroll has high initial damage and can slow down your enemies—you don’t have to prioritize this. Every upgrade will have a minimal improvement in its base damage, cooldown and mana regen but it won’t increase the slow effect and its 2-second limit.
Hanabi Combo
First Combo:
First Skill + Basic Attacks + Second Skill + Inspire + Basic Attacks
This will be your early game combo. Start by harassing your enemy with your bouncing petals. If even it fights back, you can quickly recover your HP because your Emblem and First Skill have lifesteal. When the enemy’s life is low enough, hit it with your Second Skill then barrage it with your Basic Attacks after activating Inspire to either send it back to base or even kill it.
Second Combo:
First Skill + Ultimate Skill + Inspire + Basic Attacks + Second Skill
Use this combo while Hanabi is hiding in the bush or hiding at the back of the team during clashes. It’s important for Hanabi to have a steady target when casting her ultimate skill to ensure a hit. The second skill was placed last on the list because it helps her chase an enemy who managed to survive the first part of his combo. It also replenishes Hanabi’s mana which could be nearing depletion.
Fighting Strategy
Poke. Start the game by taking advantage of the lifesteal and bouncing petals of your first skill to harass your enemy. The moment your second skill becomes active, cast it to your enemy and use Inspire to make the most out of its slow effect. When your enemy goes back to the base to heal, take advantage of the time to kill the crab and minions. The cooldown of your Inspire battle spell should be over by the time you’ve unlocked your ultimate skill.
Ambush. Hide in the bush that’s close to your enemy’s favorite spot. When your target comes closer to you and is in a steady position—shock it with your combo. One of the best bushes to hide is near the crab. When the enemy is close to killing the crab, surprise it with your combo and you’ll end up killing your target and stealing the crab at the same time. You can do the same to an enemy who’s trying to kill the turtle.
Farm. Take note that the final feature of the emblem she selected is Weapon Master which adds 15% Physical Damage based on her items. As a marksman, it’s very important to prioritize getting the strong items as soon as possible to dominate the game. Make sure that you don’t disregard farming.
Team Fight. As a squishy marksman, always stay at the back and avoid initiating a team fight. Let your bulkier allies like fighters and tanks start the fight then help them by immobilizing their attackers. The other advantage of letting them initiate the fight is that your target becomes more steady and easier to target with your ultimate skill.
Shield & Mana
Conserve your mana. Take note that your First Skill consumes a lot of mana. You can switch it off when attacking a single target to help regain your mana.
Native Shield. Make sure to always keep your native shield active because it can spare you from Crowd Control attacks and even Franco’s hook.
Have I missed a valuable tip for Hanabi? Please feel free to share them in the comments section.