Defensive Ult
An ultimate used to save teammates and reset a losing fight rather than to secure kills — Transcendence, Sound Barrier, Tree of Life, and similar.
Unlike offensive ults, it's spent not "to win" but "to not lose / to trade." Zenyatta's Transcendence, Lucio's Sound Barrier, and Lifeweaver's Tree of Life are the archetypes, all used to absorb the enemy's ult or stacked burst and prevent a wipe. Suzu and Immortality Field are powerful defensive CDs but not ults, so they're tracked in a separate bracket from defensive ults. Unlike ult-negate (nullifying the enemy's ult with a CD) or counter-ult (cancelling out the enemy's ult with your own), a defensive ult is defined by its purpose: spent to protect your own team. If it gets forced out early, the real engage walks straight through.
Timed to the moment the enemy commits a Wombo Combo or Nano Blade. When your side is down bodies and starting to collapse, to prevent the wipe and reset the fight.
Falling for a bait and burning it early, leaving nothing defensive against the real offensive ult. Or holding the defensive ult so long it comes too late and the team wipes anyway.
Resource Trade
Spending a minor cooldown to force a major defensive one, netting an advantage for the real fight.
Ult Cycle
Long-game management of team ult economy across fights — engineering favorable trades every round.
Bait Ult
Forcing the enemy to spend an ultimate on empty space or a low-value target.
Peel
Switching mid-fight focus to protect a backline ally from a diving threat.
Ult Negate
Using a defensive ability (not an ult) to absorb an enemy ultimate, making it score zero kills.
Counter Ult
Using your own ultimate to directly nullify or cancel an enemy ultimate.