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The International Group Stage Preview - DOTABUFF - Dota 2 Stats
The Group Stage schedule has finally been released. The sixteen participating teams are sorted into four groups, four teams each. There are no eliminations in the Group Stage of TI this year, so everyone will have a chance to show themselves during the playoffs and considering the level of the competition this year it is a good thing.
Understanding Ringmaster - DOTABUFF - Dota 2 Stats
The long-awaited Ringmaster is finally in the game and it looks like the hero is not just viable, but is extremely powerful. That said, his winrate starts being an outlier only in higher level games, so it seems that tapping into his full potential isn’t necessarily trivial. Today we are going to look over why the hero works so well in higher level games and how to replicate his success.
Against the Meta — Support Edition - DOTABUFF - Dota 2 Stats
7.37b did little to the overall idea of the current meta. We are still playing in an extremely tanky patch with a lot of healing and sustain. Dota being Dota, though, there are always ways to adapt and overcome. Sometimes they aren’t obvious, or they can be hard to pull off, but when played correctly they can work wonders for your win rate. So today we are going to have a look at some of the best heroes to play, if you want to deal with the most popular picks of the current patch.
Biggest Winners of 7.37 - DOTABUFF - Dota 2 Stats
As expected, the latest patch was very focused on refining the new facet mechanics. It also improved the overall balance of the game, with many heroes from our wishlist getting some very well deserved buffs. These seemingly small changes had a profound effect on the overall meta and today we would like to highlight the biggest winners of 7.37.
Buffs We are Waiting For - DOTABUFF - Dota 2 Stats
Facets introduced a lot of balance chaos to the game. There are many heroes who can perform great with one facet and be completely unviable with another. However, there are also heroes who are simply too weak in the current meta, regardless of what facet they choose. These heroes desperately need a buff and today we are going to have a close look at them.
Major Patch Wishlist - DOTABUFF - Dota 2 Stats
Discussing the professional meta seems redundant — hopefully there is a minor, post-tournament patch to deal with some of the more problematic heroes. Instead, we would like to highlight a couple of our small grievances with the current balance of the game and start a discussion about what we would like to see changed.
In Defence of the "Bad" Facets - DOTABUFF - Dota 2 Stats
There are bad, statistically game-losing Facets and there are “bad” hero facets. The ones that receive mockery, while technically being decent in some scenarios. Today we are going to go over facets that we feel get underserved hate and analyse how and when they can be the better option.
Facets that Desperately Need a Buff - DOTABUFF - Dota 2 Stats
The facet mechanic is very interesting, but it is going to take a while before it matures into what we feel Valve envisioned. Currently, many heroes have a “weak” and a “strong” facet, as opposed to having two distinct situational options. Today we are going to look into some of the most egregious examples of this and share our opinion on why they are underwhelming.
7.36c First Impressions - DOTABUFF - Dota 2 Stats
We didn’t have to wait long for a new Dota patch right after TI qualifiers. There were definitely some balance issues in the game and from the looks of it, most of them were addressed. We are going to highlight some of the biggest patch changes and try to guess what it means for the meta.
TI Qualifiers Meta Highlights — EEU and SA - DOTABUFF - Dota 2 Stats
We continue analysing high level Dota to highlight some interesting fresh ideas. EEU and SA are two regions where games are highly chaotic and aggressive and it definitely shows in their draft and build preferences. Some of their ideas are a return to classics, while some are brand new, but all of them should be easily usable in your everyday pubs.
TI Qualifiers Meta Highlights — CN and NA - DOTABUFF - Dota 2 Stats
I got to watch (and even cast) some of the International qualifiers and there are many interesting new ideas to explore. Some of them seemed extremely dependent on good teamplay and high levels of coordination, while some can be easily used in pubs. Today we are going to look at the latter group
Nerfs We are Waiting For - DOTABUFF - Dota 2 Stats
The new patch is an absolute treat for players and theorycrafters, but it will definitely take some work before it can be considered balanced. Today we are going to highlight heroes and aspects that are in desperate need of attention from the balancing team. Not only are they undeniably strong, they are also quite frustrating to play against, making for prime nerf candidates. Incidentally, they are also some of the easiest heroes to gain MMR on.
New and improved hero and facet stats! - DOTABUFF - Dota 2 Stats
Today we're pleased to release the first in a series of major updates to Dotabuff, starting with new and improved hero and facet statistics! Read on to learn more about this update and others we expect to deliver in the coming weeks and months.
Crownfall Act II First Impressions - DOTABUFF - Dota 2 Stats
The new patch is ridiculously big. In fact, it is so huge it took us two days of non-stop Dota to form an initial impression. Turns out, there are way too many things to discuss and analyse to fit into a single blog post, so instead we are going to highlight some of our most interesting and surprising findings.
Understanding Attack Speed and DPS - DOTABUFF - Dota 2 Stats
There are a lot of misconceptions when it comes to Attack Speed and DPS. For some reason most players heavily lean towards larger damage numbers when it comes to DPS optimisation and while there are reasons for it, it is not always optimal. Today we would like to spend some time diving into Dota 2 AS and DPS mechanics and clear some misunderstandings related to them.
More Fun Ideas to Try - DOTABUFF - Dota 2 Stats
The gameplay patch isn’t here yet, but it doesn’t mean we have to sit around and complain. It is very unlikely any one player has exhausted the full depth of what Dota has to offer even without any external changes, so today we would like to highlight some extra fun ideas and interactions you could try out to mix up your pubs.
Fresh Ideas from ESL One Birmingham - DOTABUFF - Dota 2 Stats
Despite being played on the tried and tested 7.35d, ESL One Birmingham came with a couple of interesting pocket strats to try out and toy with. They aren’t necessarily a great fit for everyday pubs and neither are they game-breakingly overpowered, but they are definitely a lot of fun to discuss and analyse. That’s exactly what we are going to do today.
Fun Ideas to Try with Friends - DOTABUFF - Dota 2 Stats
We aren’t sure when the patch is coming, but it does feel like it is a bit too late to discuss the meta or the best heroes to play in Ranked. So today we are going to do something different. Today we are going to highlight some fun and somewhat stupid interactions to try in casual, unranked pubs.
Supports Who Could Use a Buff - DOTABUFF - Dota 2 Stats
The current support gameplay is exceptionally rewarding. The impact both position four and five supports can have on the game extends far beyond the laning stage and far beyond simple saves and disables. There are some supports, however, who really don’t fit into the current meta and could really use a buff or two.
Carries Who Could Use a Buff - DOTABUFF - Dota 2 Stats
There are very few overpowered heroes in the current patch: outside of pro-scene Chen, the current patch is very well balanced. That said we feel some heroes are quite heavily underpowered and as a result they are not played professionally and have limited usefulness in pubs. So today we are going to discuss heroes who desperately need a buff.
7.35d Impressions - DOTABUFF - Dota 2 Stats
The new patch introduced some small, but key changes to the game. It might not be a complete meta overhaul, but the effects are noticeable and today we would like to take a look at the biggest winners and losers of the current patch and how it influenced the overall pub environment.
Crownfall Wishlist - DOTABUFF - Dota 2 Stats
We might be a bit premature with our wishlist, but it’s hard to contain our excitement. This time around we are excited about some unexpected things, though. Last April we got the New Frontiers update that greatly overhauled the map, added a new attribute, introduced new objectives and heavily reworked the core concept of Spell Immunity. Just three months ago we also received a batch of new Items to play with so the gameplay is very far from being stale. Hence our wishlist is going to primarily focus on things unrelated to core game mechanics. We are, of course, talking about events and cosmetics.
BB Dacha Meta Recap - DOTABUFF - Dota 2 Stats
BB Dacha Dubai didn’t have too many meta revelations: for the most part we were seeing the same kind of meta we see in higher level pubs and other tournaments. There were only a few notable additions to the regular suspects and none of them were too surprising, so hopefully teams will be showing more fresh ideas in the upcoming tournaments.
Introducing Your Special Ones to Dota - DOTABUFF - Dota 2 Stats
Introducing people to Dota is very hard. Introducing people you care about to Dota is even harder. However, as someone with almost two decades of experience with the game and countless students throughout the years, there are some tips and tricks I’ve gathered along the way. Today I want to share those, so that the process of onboarding new players is just a little bit smoother for everyone.
Is Pudge Really Worth It? - DOTABUFF - Dota 2 Stats
We hear you, you really love playing Pudge. The hero’s been the most popular Dota hero for as long as he was in the game, and is one of the most copied designs in cheap Dota knock-offs. Is the hero actually good now and did the changes of the last several years finally made him a viable character to pick in higher level games? Let’s find out.
Speculating about Ringmaster - DOTABUFF - Dota 2 Stats
It’s been almost a year since the Muerta release and it might be time to start hyping up Ringmaster. New Dota 2 hero releases are always exciting, since they always introduce new, unique mechanics, so today we would like to speculate about the upcoming character and what their kit might look like.
Undervalued Concepts of the New Patch - DOTABUFF - Dota 2 Stats
Calling the patch “new” is becoming a bit of a stretch, but there are still many things that we feel are underutilised. Some of them are strong, but don’t necessarily fit the usual pub game and get forgotten in games where they fit. Some are simply overlooked. Today we would like to talk about both categories, highlighting undervalued items, heroes and concepts.
Overvalued Concepts of the New Patch - DOTABUFF - Dota 2 Stats
It’s been almost a month since the release of the new patch, yet some players still cling to ideas that don’t work. They might sound interesting and exciting on paper, but regardless of the level of execution, most attempts to implement said ideas in practice are doomed to fail. Today we want to talk about some of the most tenacious bad ideas and argue against them, at least for the time being.
How Good are the New Items? - DOTABUFF - Dota 2 Stats
New and reworked items are always exciting. They lead to significant meta shifts and interesting new builds. They also frequently lead to a lot of frustration from the traditionalists, at least until after the builds are finalised and become mainstream. Today we will try to figure out which new and reworked items are great and which deserve the hate.
The OP Heroes of the New Patch - DOTABUFF - Dota 2 Stats
Some time ago we made a post about getting ahead in the new patch. We were a month too early and now it is finally time to apply our knowledge and identify the most overpowered heroes of 7.35. These heroes are definitely getting nerfed, but since it is the holiday season, chances are, we get to tap into their strengths for a while.
We Should Talk About Huskar - DOTABUFF - Dota 2 Stats
The meta is ever-evolving and looking at ESL One Kuala Lumpur there is a very concerning trend. Huskar is becoming more and more of a priority by the professional teams and soon this effect will trickle down to pubs as well. It is best to be prepared.
Trending Up — Support Pugna - DOTABUFF - Dota 2 Stats
The meta continues its development after the last patch, but for the most part it feels like a “rich get richer” situation. A lot of heroes who were good initially are now even better, with standouts like Spectre, Wraith King and Slardar still dominating pubs of all levels. There is one interesting newcomer we would like to discuss today, one that seems well suited for the current pubs and who might be making a lot of appearances in the professional scene as well. If you are a support player, Pugna should definitely be on your radar.
Slardar — the Strongest Hero to Play - DOTABUFF - Dota 2 Stats
The meta shake up resulted in the resurgence of a long-forgotten hero. Slardar didn’t receive any direct buffs in 7.34e, but his lane dominance feels a lot more pronounced in the current patch. With some adjustments to itemization, the hero’s power level can be insane, making him one of the toughest opponents to face.
Patch 7.34e First Trends - DOTABUFF - Dota 2 Stats
As Dota fans ourselves we absolutely get it: this is not what we were expecting three whole weeks after TI. As a stats website, though, there are some interesting trends we would love to discuss. Dota is a very complex game with many interconnected moving parts and even miniscule changes can have massive consequences.
How to Get Ahead Early in the New Patch - DOTABUFF - Dota 2 Stats
Hopefully the wait is almost over and soon we are once again going to be scrambling for more meta insights. New patch in Dota is always an exciting time, but it is also the best time to rank up and get ahead of the curve. Today we are going to talk about how to use tools provided by Dotabuff to your advantage.
Patch 7.35 Wishlist - DOTABUFF - Dota 2 Stats
It usually takes a couple of weeks for a new patch to arrive after the International and now is the best time to discuss some of the changes we would love to see. Some of them are going to be very obvious, as there are definitely problematic pub heroes who are both strong and annoying to play against. Other suggestions will be subjective proposals, to encourage a discussion in the comment section below.
The S-Tier Heroes of the International - DOTABUFF - Dota 2 Stats
The dust is slowly settling after the biggest Dota tournament of the year and both the teams and the organisers are probably going to take a bit of a rest. That means that for a short period of time we get to collectively benefit from the lessons from the International and apply some of the ideas in our everyday pubs. Today we would like to highlight some of the best TI heroes that will also work well in your own games.