Priestess of the Moon (Warcraft III)

For lore, see Priestess of the Moon. For other uses, see Priestess of the Moon (disambiguation).

Priestess of the Moon
Race	Night elf and frostsaber
Faction	Night Elf Sentinels
Statistics
Hit points	550
Hit point regeneration	Always
Hit point regeneration rate	0.90 (+0.50 at Night) HP/sec.
Mana	225
Mana Regeneration rate	0.76 Mana/sec.
Unit Type	Hero
Level	1-10
Gold	400 (0, If hired first)
Lumber	135 (0, If hired first)
Food	5
Produced at	Altar of Elders
Build time	55 sec.
Transport slots	1
Hotkey	P
Collision Size	3.2
Combat
Weapon(s)	Longbow and Arrows
Normal attack	21-31 (26 avg)
Can attack	Ground, Structure, Debris, Air, Item, Ward
Range	60
Attack type	Hero
Cooldown	1.69 (Basic 2.33) sec.
Weapon type	Missile
Armor Type	Hero
Armor	4 (Basic -2)
Day Sight	180
Night Sight	80
Movement Speed	Fast (320)
Turn Rate	0.40
Sound
Sound Set	HeroMoonPriestess
Hero Parameters
Primary Attribute	Agility
Strength	18 (+1.9/level)
Agility	19 (+1.5/level)
Intelligence	15 (+2.6/level)

This article contains lore taken from Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos, Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne, the manuals, and/or official bonus maps.

The fearless leaders of the Sentinel army, the Priestesses of the Moon epitomize the power and grace of their race's ancient Moon Goddess, Elune. The Priestesses, equipped with silvery, glowing armor, ride the fearless Frostsaber tigers of Winterspring into battle. Charged with the safekeeping of the night elf lands and armed with magical energy bows - the Priestesses will stop at nothing to rid their ancient land of evil.

Statistics

Level	Strength	Hit Points	HP Regen Rate (At Night)	Agility	Armor (In-game)	Cooldown	Attack (Ground/Air)	Intelligence	Mana	Mana Regen Rate
1	18	550	0.90 (1.40) HP/sec.	19	3.7 (4)	1.69 sec.	21-31 (26 avg)	15	225	0.76 Mana/sec.
2	19.9	575	0.95 (1.45) HP/sec.	20.5	4.0 (4)	1.66 sec.	22-32 (27 avg)	17.6	255	0.86 Mana/sec.
3	21.8	625	1.05 (1.55) HP/sec.	22	4.6 (5)	1.62 sec.	24-34 (29 avg)	20.2	300	1.01 Mana/sec.
4	23.7	675	1.15 (1.65) HP/sec.	23.5	4.9 (5)	1.60 sec.	25-35 (30 avg)	22.8	330	1.11 Mana/sec.
5	25.6	725	1.25 (1.75) HP/sec.	25	5.5 (6)	1.55 sec.	27-37 (32 avg)	25.4	375	1.26 Mana/sec.
6	27.5	775	1.35 (1.85) HP/sec.	26.5	5.8 (6)	1.53 sec.	28-38 (33 avg)	28	420	1.41 Mana/sec.
7	29.4	825	1.45 (1.95) HP/sec.	28	6.4 (6)	1.49 sec.	30-40 (35 avg)	30.6	450	1.51 Mana/sec.
8	31.3	875	1.55 (2.05) HP/sec.	29.5	6.7 (7)	1.47 sec.	31-41 (36 avg)	33.2	495	1.66 Mana/sec.
9	33.2	925	1.65 (2.15) HP/sec.	31	7.3 (7)	1.44 sec.	33-43 (38 avg)	35.8	525	1.76 Mana/sec.
10	35.1	975	1.75 (2.25) HP/sec.	32.5	7.6 (8)	1.42 sec.	34-44 (39 avg)	38.4	570	1.91 Mana/sec.

Hero names

Kathris Starsong, Adora Nightshade, Mora Moonsinger, Felore Moonray, Anara Chillwind, Kera Stardragon, Mave Whisperwind, Delas Moonfang, Mira Whitemane, Theta Saberfang, Tygra Snowscar, Ariel Darkmoon, Diana Windwood.

Information

The Priestess of the Moon is often an overlooked Night Elf Hero. While many prefer the Keeper of the Grove or the Demon Hunter for their Entangling Roots and Mana Burn, the Priestess can do very well when controlled properly. It can take some time to learn how to use the Priestess of the Moon effectively, but once you do you can rip things up. The Priestess of the Moon is a great focused fire Hero and unit killer, sometimes killing many more enemy Heroes than other allied Heroes in team games. The Demon Hunter and Keeper of the Grove have to get up close to enemy units while the Priestess can bomb them from long distances. The Priestess is also great at delivering killing blows using Searing Arrow to enemy Heroes or units running away. The Priestess is also good for her Trueshot Aura, which adds damage to ranged units. She becomes even more effective when sharing the Aura with multiple allied teammates to increase the damage of their ranged units as well. If the Priestess of the Moon is able to reach level 6 and Starfall she becomes a huge powerhouse. While good enemy players can cancel the Starfall shortly after it begins, against lesser players and with allied support you can kill plenty of enemy units with Starfall.

The key to doing well with the Priestess of the Moon is to use her like an Archer. Use the typical ranged unit tactics as you do with other ranged units. Make sure she is always toward the rear of the army and that melee units cannot reach her. Run away when units attempt to surround her or focus fire on her with ranged units. Even with these methods you may still find you lose her against good Undead players using Dread Lord's Sleep, or Night Elf Keeper of the Grove's Entangle. But you can also protect her with a Demon Hunter to Mana Burn enemy Heroes.

Some top Night Elf players recommend first placing points in Trueshot Aura followed by Searing Arrows and then Starfall at Level 6. You may find Owl useful in large games, or after Searing Arrows and Trueshot Aura is maxed. You can also scout using Huntress Sentinel and combat units or Wisps instead of using Owls. The Benefit of Owls is that they are easy to use and the enemy can't cast spells on them.

The Priestess of the Moon is often a good second Hero choice. She can instantly give the Trueshot Aura to your existing units at level 1 and can support your primary Demon Hunter or Keeper of the Grove Hero. The downside of picking her second is that is slower to reach Level 6 and Starfall. Picking the Priestess as the first and only Hero can allow you to reach Starfall much faster. This can be especially effective in 2 vs. 2, 3 vs. 3, and 4 vs. 4 games. The Priestess can also be a great primary Hero when teaming with other Night Elf players since it helps them both.

Make use of Hide with the Priestess of the Moon. Attack the enemy, then Hide, attack then Hide. If the Priestess is about to die at night, use Hide to avoid dying. This works very well. You can then run back home when it is safe. You can use Hide with your entire army of Archers and Huntresses since all have Shadowmeld. If you find a Cloak of Shadows you can even use this with your second Hero as well.

Give the Priestess combat items such as Claws, Gloves of Haste, Agility Items, and other items that add to her damage and combat ability. Some players think of her as a caster type Hero but she can actually take advantage of combat items, especially when combined with Searing Arrow.

Use Moon Wells with the Priestess to heal her and recover mana.

When Searing Arrows are activated, the Priestess of the Moon will continue to drain mana. This can conflict with Starfall sometimes because you will not have enough mana to cast it. If you wish to use Starfall but cannot seem to gain enough mana to cast it, deactivate Searing Arrows. You can also buy a few Mana Potions so that you can use Starfall and Searing Arrows and not worry about having enough Mana.

Spells and abilities

Scout

Temporarily summons an Owl Scout, which can be used to scout the map. Can see invisible units.

Cooldown	Mana Cost	Effect
20 sec.	50	Summons an Owl Scout.

Level	Duration	Day/Night Sight	Hero Level Req
1	60 sec.	100	1
2	90 sec.	150	3
3	120 sec.	220	5

Scout Information

The Owl is invulnerable so you can do whatever you want with it and the enemy can't attack it. The Owl is great for scouting enemy towns or expansions.

Searing Arrows (Autocast)

Increases the damage of the Priestess' attack by adding fire.

Mana Cost	Allowed Targets
8 per shot	Air, Ground, Structure, Enemy, Neutral

Level	Range	Effect	Hero Level Req
1	60	10 bonus damage	1
2	70	20 bonus damage	3
3	70	30 bonus damage	5

Notes:

• Searing Arrows will fire until the Priestess is out of mana.
• Manually casting Searing Arrows will allow the Priestess of the Moon to fire beyond her normal 60 range at level 2.

The bonus damage uses the unit's Attack type, so heroes will not take reduced damage from it. Damage is, however, affected by numeric armor value.

Trueshot Aura (Passive)

An aura that gives friendly units around the Priestess bonus damage to their ranged attacks.

Area of Effect	Allowed Targets
90	Air, Ground, Friend, Self, Vulnerable, Invulnerable

Level	Effect	Hero Level Req
1	Base ranged damage increased 10%	1
2	Base ranged damage increased 20%	3
3	Base ranged damage increased 30%	5

Starfall (Ultimate)

Calls down waves of falling stars that damage nearby enemy units. Each wave deals 50 damage. The time between waves is 1.5 seconds.

Duration	Cooldown	Mana Cost	Area of Effect	Allowed Targets	Effect	Hero Level Req
45 sec.	120 sec.	150	100	Air, Ground, Structure, Enemy, Neutral	50 damage/wave for 45 sec.	6

Starfall Information

Starfall is great at killing units. If you use potions it will interrupt the Starfall.

Starfall damage vs. buildings is reduced to 35%.

Starfall hits units automatically without the caster having to aim. This means it's not really possible to avoid the Starfall unless you run away from the area.

Starfall Counters

The most common defense against Starfall is to run away from the Priestess of the Moon until she is done casting Starfall.

This spell must be "maintained" to get the full effect. This functionality is applied to mainly mass damage area of effect spells. For example, if you cast an Earthquake spell on an enemy town, your Far Seer must stay casting the spell until the Earthquake is finished. If you give him a new order during the spell, the Far Seer will stop casting the Earthquake. The same is the case for the Priestess of the Moon and Starfall. Therefore, force the Priestess of the Moon to run away by attacking her which will end the Starfall.

You can interrupt this spell with spells such as:

       Humans: Mountain King - Storm Bolt
       Humans: Mountain King - Bash (uncastable on air units)
       Orcs: Raider - Ensnare
       Orcs: Tauren Chieftain - War Stomp (uncastable on air units)
       Orcs: Witch Doctor - Stasis Trap (uncastable on air units)
       Orcs: Shadow Hunter - Hex
       Night Elves: Druid of the Talon - Cyclone (uncastable on air units)
       Night Elves: Keeper of the Grove - Entangling Roots (uncastable on air units)
       Undead: Dread Lord - Sleep
       Undead: Dread Lord - Inferno (uncastable on air units)
       Undead: Crypt Lord - Impale (uncastable on air units)
       Neutral: Dark Ranger - Silence
       Neutral: Goblin Tinker - Cluster Rockets
       Neutral: Fire Lord - Soul Burn
       Neutral: Fire Lord - Volcano

Hide

Lie in wait for enemies without attacking (Will respond to attacks).

Units will hold position and hold their fire, so when they are Shadowmelding, they will not break their own invisibility.

It's very handy for running away from a battle. The Hide ability is disabled during the day.

Requires 1.5 seconds to Fade.

Upgrades

Ultravision

Gives Night Elves the ability to see as far at night as they do during the day.

Research Cost Researched At Requirements Upgrade Time Effect 50 50 Hunter's Hall Tree of Ages 45 sec. Night Sight: 180

Quotes

• See Warcraft III Priestess of the Moon quotes

Trivia

• Most of the Priestess of the Moon's abilities are from the cancelled Ranger hero unit.

Gallery

• 

  Alpha priestess of the moon

Patch changes

• Patch 1.04 (2002-11-04): Starfall cooldown increased to 180 from 120.
  
• Patch 1.01 (2002-07-05): Starfall damage reduced from 75 per wave to 50 per wave, duration increased from 30 sec. to 45 sec, damage factor reduced to 35% vs. buildings.
  

External links

Battle.net Warcraft III - Night Elves -> Units -> Priestess of the Moon