SMITE: Demigods, Deities and Gods Explained is a column dedicated to introducing prospective players of SMITE to its massive back story of lore. From the Greek to Hindu, each week we’ll look at two characters from a major pantheon and provide a quick recap of their history and in what capacity their digital incarnation will represent on the field of Hi-Rez Studios’ upcoming MOBA.
Lore: Adorning the walls and gates of home and shops, Zhong Kui is the Demon Queller of Chinese mythology. The former scholar now focuses his time on containing the ghosts and evil beings that plague the planes of men and gods alike. Capable of directing 80,000 of his captured spirits, Zhong Kui is revered by the populace despite serving the Hell King. How Zhong Kui fell into the Hell King’s realm is an unfortunate matter.
A bookish man, Zhong Kui traveled with his friend Du Ping to take the imperial examinations at the capital. After scoring top honors, Zhong Kui expected his ambitious to finally, after years of hard work, come to fruition. However, the emperor would not allow a disfigured individual to obtain top honors. The heartbroken Zhong Kui reacted in rage, throwing himself against the doors of the palace until he had bludgeoned himself to death.
Condemned to hell for committing suicide, it was at this juncture that the Hell King saw his potential and place him in charge to hunt, capture, maintain and order evil spirits.
In-Game: A ranged magical character, Zhong Kui is an excellent support mage that can lay out a large amount of damage to groups of enemies. To fully maximize Zhong Kui’s potential players should seek to optimize his demon possessing and crowd control skills.
This means that heavy in Magical Power should not be your only focus. Utility, sustainability and mana, while reducing your cooldown to collect demons for personal protection & bonus support pops are your first priorities. To do this, look to grab magic boots of your flavor, a magical power item like Polynomicron, Rod of Tahuti and a mid-to-late game Spirit Robe.
Further reading:
- Zhong Kui on Wikipedia
- Chinese Mythology on Wikipedia
Head over to SMITE: Demigods, Deities and Gods Explained for details on all of the playable characters.