Maximizing Mercy: A Data-Driven Guide to Her Best Support Duos

As an experienced Overwatch analyst and content creator, I consistently see questions around which heroes make the optimal healing pairs with Mercy. Based on win rates, synergies, and firsthand expertise, one duo stands above the rest…

Mercy + Lucio: The Ultimate Support Power Combo

Statistics from sites like OmnicMeta clearly show Mercy + Lucio has the highest win percentage (64%) of any healer pair in Overwatch 2. This isn‘t surprising given how perfectly their abilities complement each other:

Mercy excels at sustaining individual allies with her Caduceus Staff while Lucio provides team-wide healing and speed with his Crossfade ability. With both single-target and AoE healing covered, this duo can sustain teams through virtually any damage.

My own experience shows this works phenomenally since Mercy can focus her pocket healing and damage boost beams on amplifying key DPS heroes while Lucio handles topping the rest of the team off. The two supports end up covering separate yet equally vital roles.

Optimizing the Mercy/Lucio Duo

However, simply having a Mercy and Lucio together isn‘t enough. To maximize this combo you need to adjust your playstyle:

• Mercy should prioritize damage boost over healing and stick to high-impact heroes like Pharah rather than topped-off tanks
• Lucio should swap his songs between Speed and Healing depending on damage taken rather than just sitting on heals

Essentially, Mercy takes an aggressive damage-focused approach while Lucio focuses more on reactive healing. This aligns best with both their kits.

Here are some advanced tactics I like to use when playing Mercy/Lucio that new duo players can learn from:

Learning when and how to combo support abilities is what takes this potent duo to the next level!

Alternative Second Supports that Thrive with Mercy

While Mercy and Lucio are priority picks, other healers can be just as impactful depending on your team composition:

Mercy + Zenyatta

This duo is quite popular for the massive damage potential it brings. According to Overbuff, teams running Mercy/Zen win over 56% of games on average. The explanation lies in how Discord Orb and Mercy‘s Damage Boost stack:

I love this combo with heroes like Pharah or Widowmaker who become practically one-shot machines with a harmony orb and blue beam powering their attacks. Focus on amplifying the damage dealers and you‘ll shred unprepared teams!

The only risk is the lower raw healing which can leave you vulnerable to ult combos or sustained poke damage. So make sure you have self-sustain heroes or Barrier tanks to offset this potential weakness.

Mercy + Brigitte

If opponents are relentlessly diving your backline, Mercy + Brigitte can make you nearly untouchable. As a fellow support player I know how frustrating being focused can be. But with Brig by your side, most flankers quickly regret trying to pick you off.

Brigitte has the tools to directly counter troublesome heroes like Doomfist, Genji, and Tracer that often plague Mercy players:

Between Shield Bash interrupts, Whip Shot boops, Inspire AoE heals, and Repair Pack burst healing, this mischievous duo provides the perfect balance of offense and sustain to demolish uncoordinated attacks.

I love surprising overeager flankers by dropping from the high ground with Mercy then pinning them against a wall with Brigitte stun combos. The hubris! Just remember to position aggressively when running this combo to force isolated 1v2 duels where you have the clear advantage.

Mercy + Pharah

If there‘s one hero practically custom-made to pair with Mercy, it‘s definitely Pharah. This combo has been popular for ages due to their unrivaled aerial mobility. Both heroes can traverse the skies independently, but combined they become nearly impossible to pin down.

I have over 50 hours played on the classic "Pharmercy" duo and attest that its strength still holds up. The core dynamic revolves around these key pillars:

• Near-constant healing/damage boost uptime since Mercy can always fly into range
• Barrage made exponentially more deadly by a pocket Mercy boost
• Concussive Blast giving Mercy slingshot mobility on demand
• Vertical repositioning to evade ground-based threats with ease

Pharmercy forces opponents to choose between trying to shoot two highly mobile aerial threats or defending the objective. Either way you have the advantage!

My advice is to master mid-air Super Jumps as Mercy to keep pace with Pharah‘s jets and make erratic maneuvers to dodge enemy hitscans. Keep your movement unpredictable and they‘ll rarely secure the kills needed to stop your bombardment.

The Secret Ingredient: Synchronized Ult Combos

No matter which secondary healer you choose, the way to magnify your impact is through ultimate combinations. The very best Mercy players know how to sync their Valkyrie with friendly support ults for positively game-changing results:

This "ult economy" optimization is an artform unto itself, but well worth practicing regularly!

The Takeaway: Balance Pockets and Sustain

As Overwatch 2 matures, support execution becomes less about raw healing totals and more about power balancing. How much of your effort fuels individual playmakers versus keeping everyone healthy?

That‘s why Mercy thrives alongside Lucio, Zen, Brig, and Pharah rather than say Moira or Ana. Her kit already magnifies selected allies. Pairing with heroes that specially sustain tanks and flankers fills the gaps perfectly.

As you build your own support lines, remember that holistic coverage trumps one-dimensional output. The synergistic combinations above show how multiplying whole-team impact ultimately leads Mercy and her allies to victory!