Tennis Star

Not to be confused with Tennis Champ, a zombie in Plants vs. Zombies Heroes.

Tennis Star is a Rare variant of the All-Star in Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare 2. Being one of the first new variants seen in the E3 trailer, Tennis Star's name and gameplay mechanics were revealed in a video on the Plants vs. Zombies Facebook and Twitter page on November 26, 2015. The Tennis Star will slow down by 25% while firing. Tennis Star also has the fastest speed of any All-Star variant.

Descriptions

Stickerbook description

"Tennis Star is a prodigy of sorts. As a young Zombie, he witnessed Dr. Zomboss lose a fight with a tennis ball machine, and he knew he had to harness such immense and hilarious power for himself. Now he wanders the land, shooting tennis balls at everything he sees, quietly giggling under his breath."

In-game description

Due to his strict training regimen, the Tennis Star moves faster than all other All-Stars!

AI Health

Easy: 120

Normal: 160

Hard: 200

CRAAAAZY: 240

Variant perk

The Tennis Star's main perk is that he has the fastest speed of any All-Star variant, and also does not slow down as much when shooting or zooming in unlike the other All-Star variants.

Primary weapon

The primary weapon of the Tennis Star is the Double Fault Assault. It deals less damage than the regular All-Star's weapon and possibly overheats slightly quicker in exchange for the Tennis Star's faster speed.

The close range base damage per hit is 6 and critical is 7.
The mid range base damage per hit is 5 and critical is 6.
The long range base damage per hit is 4 and critical is 5.
The weapon deals no splash damage.
The weapon has infinite ammo, however it will overheat when used for too long.
The Tennis Star does not slow down when shots are fired.
The projectile speed is medium.
The bloom is low.

Abilities

Imp Punt

With Imp Punt, the All-Star punts an Imp that rolls forward and explodes after a short time, dealing 150 damage to plants within its blast radius.

Sprint Tackle

With the Sprint Tackle, the All-Star rushes forward, dealing 75 damage and knocks plants into the sky. This can serve as a short-ranged attack.

Dummy Shield

Dummy Shield is a shield that the All-Star places to protect himself.

Long Bomb

An alternate ability of Imp Punt, Long Bomb allows the All-Star kicks an Imp up very high, which explodes when he lands and deals 150 damage.

Ultra Tackle

An alternate ability of Sprint Tackle, Ultra Tackle does 90 damage but has a longer recharge time.

Shield Decoy

An alternate ability of Dummy Shield, the player can have four Shield Decoys, but it is weaker.

Future Dummy

An alternate ability of Dummy Shield, the Future Dummy is stronger than the default Dummy Shield, but only one Future Dummy can be placed down at a time. When the Future Dummy is destroyed, it explodes (dealing up to 75 damage to nearby Plants).

Strategies

With

The Tennis Star is the fastest variant of the All-Star, making the Tennis Star extremely useful for quickly rushing into gardens or getting to objectives quicker. Combining his speed with his high health makes him a large threat for plants as he can survive long in a battle and can easily make a quick escape. It can also be easier to shoot from afar as Tennis Star does not slow down when he shoots, meaning Tennis Star can shoot and evade danger at the same time. However, his quick movement speed while shooting may make it harder to hit plants for some players. Try to move in one direction at a time while shooting, rather than zigzagging. This may help with aiming while in motion.

Against

This fast-moving variant is a dangerously hard-hitting opponent to deal with. Try to use the Chomper's Burrow, or a Cactus variant at long range to vanquish him without getting vanquished by his fast-firing weapon.

Balancing changes

Trouble in Zombopolis: Part Two DLC

▼ Decreased Start/End dmg from 7.5/4 to 7/3.5
▼ Decreased default movement speed upgrade from 1.1x – 1.05x
▼ Decreased effectiveness of Overheat Upgrade

July 2016 Patch

▼ Reduced close range damage from 7 to 6.5
▼ Reduced damage falloff start/end distance from 20/50 to 10/40

April 2017 Patch

▼ Decreased movement speed while priming/firing by 25%

Gallery

Plants vs. Zombies Garden Warfare 2 Tennis Star Gameplay

Trivia

His trailer shows off a new gesture, called "Poser" in the full version, as well as the old "The Groove" gesture, while Tennis star borrows an audio clip from one of his gestures, "Fancy Dance."
He and the Hockey Star are the only All-Star variants who have hair without the use of Customization.
He, Wrestling Star and Golf Star are the only All-Star variants that do not have a number on their backs.
His weapon, the Double Fault Assault, is a reference to a term in tennis called a 'double fault', which is when the player serves the ball over the service line twice in a row.
- His weapon is also one of the few weapons to a name that rhymes.
He appears to have a tennis racket stuck through his head.
He, along with the current Dancing Zombie/Disco Zombie, Disco Jetpack Zombie, Boombox Zombie and Party Imp are the only zombies with afros.
- This is not counting the afro customizations that can be applied in Garden Warfare and Garden Warfare 2.
Despite his in-game description stating his faster speed is due to his strict training regimen, his description for the "Mean Green Hero" Showcase (featuring him and Jade Cactus) states that his short-shorts are the reason he moves faster.

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