Kulev

**Kulev** is a Fighter featured in *Bleeding Edge*. In a past life, he was a tenured history professor at Cambridge University, enamored by the mystical power of voodoo and driven by a search for immortality. Now, he lives on as his digitized consciousness in the body of a large cybernetic snake puppeting the corpse of his old human body. Unable to fool his peers as to his new state, he was removed from his position at the university. In frustration, Kulev left in a violent huff of accidental arson and travelled overseas to join the "Bleeding Edge" gang of misfits, seeing them as kindred sympathetic to his cause and still driven by his thirst for knowledge and a desire to conquer death.

## Biography

*The eccentric Dr. Ignatius Wright was a renowned professor of history at Cambridge University.*

*Pushed by his passion in the culture of Voodoo, Dr. Wright would travel the world, absorbing the lore, perfecting the practices, and chasing immortality. And it worked, until age 120.*

*In accordance with Wright’s last Will and Testimony, his subconscious was granted to friend and maverick computer scientist, Sterling Taylor, for experimentation. And it worked.*

*His soul was digitised, reborn into data, and configured into an oddity. An automated snake that clumsily parades the mummified cadaver of Dr. Wright to feign inconspicuousness. It does not work.*

*Officially considered “deceased”, and ejected from his lifetime employment with the university, Kulev now seeks the services of kindred spirit Daemon, to join their common forces, and extend the life and plight of humanity.*

## Abilities

### Basic Abilities

*Spit acid at foes.*
 Evade
*Dodge out of harm’s way. Costs stamina.*
 Parry
*Deflects an enemy's attack when well-timed.*
 Lucky Charm
*Continuously heals Kulev and nearby allies.*
A circular green sigil pulses underneath Kulev's feet every time Lucky Charm's heal occurs, every 2 seconds (default). Any ally(s) within range of Kulev's Lucky Charm will see that same green sigil under their feet, except constantly visible. When Lucky Charm pulses, the ally's sigil will pulse as well, and Kulev and all nearby allies receive the heal at the same time.

### Specials

*Summon a ward that damages enemies, and heals allies, in the surrounding area.*
Activating targetting will bring up the AoE targeter at Kulev's feet. If Kulev is locked onto an enemy, the targeter will appear at the enemy's feet (or as close as possible). Once placed, a ward will spawn and generate a wide AoE that lasts for about 10 seconds (default). All allies standing in the area receive a steady heal-over-time, and all enemies standing in the area receive a steady damage-over-time. The ward in the center has its own health and can be destroyed by enemy attacks, ending Sacred Ground early.
*Shield an ally. Double tap to cast on self.*
On single tap, Kulev will cast Good Omen on a targetted ally he is looking at. On double tap, Kulev will cast Good Omen on himself. The target receives a shield that grants armor on top of their health (180 HP, unmodded) and lasts for 6 seconds (default).
Kulev throws a ward needle as a ranged projectile at a targetted enemy. If it connects, the target is marked with a voodoo doll icon above their head. Curse does no damage itself but inflicts the Defence Down debuff for 5 seconds (default), good for 25% increased damage against that target.

### Supers

An install-type super, Kulev powers up a targetted ally for the next 8 seconds (default). The ally will be alerted to the buff with a blue serpent image surrounding them and a bright blue glow on their body, along with the verbal call "Tally-ho, and in you go!" Kulev cannot target himself with Boon.
When activated on a targetted enemy, the player loses control of Kulev and takes direct control of the enemy fighter with the Mind Controlled debuff for about 4 seconds (default). The mind controlled character can only run at a reduced speed and jump.

## General Strategy

> "A ranged support for advanced players who uses curses and boons to protect allies and weaken foes."
>
>

Kulev is a cunning ranged support who specializes in passive healing, buffs for allies and debuffs for enemies. With the power of cybernetically-enhanced voodoo, he can provide soft area control, bursts of survivability and momentary spikes in damage, with his choice of super allowing him to further lean into his preferred style of empowering his allies or cursing his enemies with one of the most ridiculous forms of hard crowd control in the game. With only average stamina and no real movement skills, and with abilities that encourage staying in one place to be most effective, Kulev is one of the less mobile supports, making him a particularly susceptible high-value target of opportunity if he's not careful and doesn't have friends to cover his back. Still, if Kulev can get past that, he has the capability to subtly guide the course of a fight with his boons and curses.

As healing goes, Kulev is what one might call a "lazy" healer. His only sources of healing are his Lucky Charm passive, which grants himself and his nearby companions a slow, consistent, passive heal, and Sacred Ground, which lays an AoE that heals allies and damages enemies that stand in its radius. The typical play is to drop the ward so that it covers at least one ally and one enemy at the same time, so whether supporting a duel or a pitched melee team fight, dropping Sacred Ground to cover the field and getting just close enough so allies benefit from Lucky Charm is how Kulev does his healing, all while plinking away with his Acid Spit basic attack and using Sacred Ground's effect against enemies for consistent damage and his other specials for momentary spikes of power. This encourages a relatively sedentary playstyle that leans towards holding territory more than fighting on the move, so Kulev pairs well with other fighters who excel at holding ground. Instead of burst healing and damage, he has burst mitigation and weakness. Mitigation comes with Good Omen, granting a relatively hefty shield on-demand to whoever needs it, even himself. As for weakness, when it comes time to focus an enemy down, stabbing them with a ranged Curse for a reduced defense debuff helps the team pile on damage quickly.

Kulev's choice of super lets him go one way or the other when it comes to augmented boons and curses. If he wants to empower his ally, Boon provides a major power spike and helps them run wild with increased damage, defense and speed. If he wants to curse and humiliate an enemy, Bamboozle! provides one-of-a-kind hard crowd control (Kulev's only hard crowd control, at that) by taking control of an enemy fighter and puppeting their movements like a doll. At worst, it renders a single enemy (and Kulev himself) helpless and momentarily lets them contribute nothing. At its best, Kulev can guide an enemy into obstacles and hazards and potentially kill the enemy entirely, especially with stage hazards such as fire pits, trains or off a cliff to let good old gravity do the work. When Bamboozle! works, it works very well.

## Gallery

Pixel ArtBLEEDING EDGE Kulev Guide - Abilities, Supers, Tips & TricksConcept ArtKulev Trailer Bleeding Edge