io dota 2

Io | Most Questinable hero in Dota 2

Io’s Future in Dota

With a significant margin, Io has the lowest winrate of all time in public, sitting just below 40%. Despite this historical minimum, he nevertheless has the potential to be the best choice in skillful hands. It was the fifth hero banned during the main and group stages at The International 2017, thanks to its strong implementation from Virtus.Pro and Team Liquid.

The fact is that Io is not a suitable hero for most pub players. He, like Chen, needs a certain micro control, coordinated actions of the team and the player with a sharp knowledge of the map and a sense of play. Over the past month in games below five thousand MMR, the Io’s win rate ranges from 37.26% to 40.68%. In games above five thousand, the percentage of victories reaches 47.88%. The hero is unpopular, suffering at high-level games and even many professional teams do not play this hero so well that the hero flies to the permanent ban at the first stage. Is it time to change something?

 

Why Io feels uncomfortable in pub games?

Io – one of those heroes, which should not be played in a state of intoxication, because otherwise, you can make some really scary mistakes. Relocate can send two heroes to certain death due to a single player error. The abilities of Io require that people work in tandem to coordinate movements, beat opponents, find the enemy on the lines, know when it is possible to back off.

io winrate

A pub player choosing Io may be aware of the tactic, but the team should also be aware of the entire system. And when the “ball” is the third least popular hero, with a pick rate of 1.9%, there is a huge chance that your team does not have a rich game experience with Io. Compare him to Lich, who does not care who his partner is on the line. All he needs to do is use Sacrifice and throw random Frost Blast. The line is won. 54% of victories.

Then, for some reason, the inhabitants of the pub play on Io on the wrong line. Io standing on an easy lane in 47.46% of games, where he ranks second in the lowest winrate (the lowest – roaming, 23.12%). The easy line is safe and with a lot of other support heroes that provide this very security better than our hero. Io, paired with the right characters, has unique advantages that players can take advantage of on the top or middle line (45.4% winrate).

Why will Io never be strong in pub games?

The same reasons that make him difficult to use are also his main advantages that it has against its opponents. Firstly, Splitpush is very strong in most pubs. Tricky players on Nature’s Prophet have long used the ability to navigate the line online and do dirty deeds. But Io, together with a hero like Tiny, can be more effective in implementing a split at the end of the game. This kind of mobility is very imbalanced, which is why the ball continues to be the top-ban hero for teams that can use him at full strength, as they will always have a way to win the game, even when there is almost no chance.

io tetherer

Secondly, in pubs, players rarely move or switch to other lines in the first five minutes of the match and do not play the Io + Tiny combo, which really scares every middle player. Roles before the game are chosen very quickly and often quite rashly. One person claims that he will go to the difficult lane and the other that he will go to the middle, but rarely they stipulate that they will have to change their lines or cooperate in case the match is picked up incorrectly or there are any shortcomings in the peak. It usually happens that they die at least once before the team recognizes that the line needs help.

The game against Tiny + Io requires preparation, a little foresight, an awareness of when it is dangerous or safe to appear on one or another line. All these factors can be too many, which can be asked in pubs, and sometimes even in professional games. The coL team recently played a qualification in StarLadder Invitational, using this duo of heroes to win. Their attempt was crowned with success.

The light spirit is so unpopular that most players are usually driven by the mechanics of this hero. A bundle of Tiny and Io can feel very comfortable, but Io also has other strong pairs that, when underestimated, can show themselves very strongly: Bristleback, Necrophos, Sven and Legion Commander, and some more common characters that can be used in pubs.

TI7 Aegis of the Immortal

Kuroky | Thoughts about career after TI7

Life after TI7 | Kuroky

How does a person that has reached the goal of his life feel himself? How to set up to fight the team that was a step away from throwing away from the tournament? For the site – theplayerstribune.com Kuro Salehi Takasomi tell about the way Team Liquid on TI7 and about his feelings after the victory.

It’s hard to describe what The International is, to a person who is not interested in e-sports.

The easiest way to compare TI with the Super Bowl, but there is only one match. The International is an endless Super Bowl. The struggle does not stop for a second, every action you take is watched by thousands of spectators in a crowded arena and millions around the globe on their screens.

Kuroky is the captain of Team Liquid, since 2015. He helped to recruit players into the squad, many of them at that time were relatively little known. Now everything is different.

Ivan Borislavov (MinD_ContRoL) Ivanov is a world-class off-line player. Lasse (MATUMBAMAN) Urpalainen is an amazing carry, charging us with his enthusiasm and gay pals. In 2016, we signed Amera (Miracle-) Al-Barkavi, a 20-year-old Jordanian who was the first in Dota 2 to take 9.000 points of solo-rating, and in the same year, Maroon (GH) Merhei joined Team Liquid – a great support, who added depth of our draft.

TI7 | Bad day for Team Liquid

Before the tournament, the captain felt very confident. They finished the performance in groups with the score 13-3 and went to the playoffs as favorites. They knew that if they just played our Dota, nobody would stop us. We just needed to do what we can.

Kuroky was almost 100% sure that this is their year.

And then Liquid lost in the first match of the grid.

Yes, they lost two maps to Invictus Gaming. But Liquid were not so bad, but eventually ended up in the bottom grid. Now, to win, they had to win 6 series in a row. I do not underestimate the merits IG – they are a great team, they played without fear, whereas Team Liquid was too conservative. They managed to surprise all with an unusual strategy that everybody respect.

Rehabilitation of the Liquids

The International is the main goal of every player in DotA. Subconsciously, Kuroky is thinking about The International constantly, and this obsession can knock anyone off when you finally get to this tournament. In the morning, before the match, he looked at his team and realized: something is wrong. They were not uninhibited, as usual. In none of the previous tournaments, he never feels such a fear of a mistake.

At the first glance on GH, Kuroky can see that he is nervous, it was his first The International. Team Liquid was not ready for a struggle and paid for this.

And this is normal. Teams on TI regularly break down under pressure, it’s even a kind of tradition. But captain’s task was to free the players from their own thoughts. During the interview, Kuroky always stayed calm, people know this Kuroky. But after that defeat, he knew that he needed to show his other side, one that others rarely see, add rigidity to wrest us from this prostration.

Captain arranged a long conversation with players. And by “conversation” I rather mean “speech”. It is unnatural for him to raise voice; from the outside, it usually seems like he forcing himself, but when Kuroky screams – his team immediately listens. “Wow, Kuro yells, something will happen.”

If Kuroky learned something from a long career in Dota, so this is the fact that there is nothing more important than good teamwork. Of course, players should be talented, disciplined, but if you got on The International, then it’s not even discussed. Everyone at this tournament knows what he is doing. When you fight with 17 of the best teams in the world for a prize fund of $ 24 million, you do not need additional motivation. And since everyone there is incredibly strong, the level of the game, in itself – does not play such a big role. The winners of the losers are not distinguished by the ability to behave in the hands, but the ability to co-exist with their teammates.

TI7 Liquids

Leadership, interaction, teamwork – that’s what determines the champion. Do your teammates trust each other? Will they not attack each other after an insulting defeat? Can you organize a team when someone makes a mistake in a gang or dies out of position? Can you keep the mood when the opponent comes forward, or drown in the negative? Of course, these phrases sound like cliches, but everyone who played at this level knows that this is the case. You can have the highest MMR in the world, but if you can not play with the team as a whole – you obviously lost.

So, when the guys did not find their place after the defeat from IG, Kuroky told them – “all your problems in your head, do not doubt your skill.” You can not let The International intimidate you. Yes, in fact, this tournament is very frightening, but thinking about the arena, what is at stake is tantamount to suicide. In fact, you need to deceive yourself, make you believe that this is just another tournament. “Do not think about winning! Just try to perform well. ” Because if you do it, everything else will fall into place.

Preparations for the TI7 Finals

Kuroky is an ordinary person, and also prone to fears and doubts. He visited seven The International, took second place in 2013, was in the top 8 in 2014, 2015 and 2016. Aegis became the goal of his life, and as a leader, he was able to look at things from the other side and understand the feelings young teammates who were not completely ready for this race.

“Guys, listen, I lost this tournament 6 times. And I’m not afraid to lose in the seventh, so do not be afraid either. We played a lot of tournaments together, and this one is just one of them. “

When you’re afraid to fly out, you’ll fall right in the dirt – which happened to the Team Liquid against IG. But on the other hand, one thing I can say for sure: when Team Liquid is playing for fun, they are the strongest team in Dota 2 in the world.

Kuroky captain

The next day we had a game against Team Secret, against them they always played well. In the first game, however, Liquids were simply destroyed. Everyone played badly, everything turned out disgusting. They should be charged with energy to play easily and freely, as they usually do. In the end, Liquids did not have a choice. If they did not play as usual, they would go home.

They win two maps in a row and got a ticket to the next stage of the tournament. From now on, they have kept a balance in every aspect of the game. Team Liquid defeated Team Empire, Virtus.pro, and then successively beat LGD and LGD.ForeverYoung. So they ended up in the grand finale with Newbee.

TI7 Aegis of the Immortal

In the end, they defeated them, with a score of 3-0, which happened for the first time in the history of TI. The best way was to reach the final, where they deserved to be. When we went to the game, I noticed how my guys are driving the crowd. After the first game, leaving the booth, MATUMBAMAN ran his hands across his throat in front of the camera.

“I know it’s hard to believe – there’s still a whole season ahead and a lot of other Dota 2 tournaments – but all my thoughts about The International. I tried to convince myself to live for today, I understand that such an obsession is not good, but in my case, everything went too far.

I am reassured by the knowledge that I am not alone in my thoughts. I am happy to play in the most hardworking, most magnanimous team in the world. Team Liquid is a truly unique team, they responded to each victory or defeat with diligence, discipline and mutual assistance. It’s an honor for me to be their captain, and we are ready for everything that awaits us ahead. The victory on The International was incredible. I knew that it would be so. But these guys made this victory really special.”

Monkey King Dota 2

Dota 2 from 7.1 to 7.2 | How Meta evolve

Meta’s progression from 7.01 to 7.02

 dota 2 patch 7.00

Right after release of 7.00 we talked about hard and easy line. Of course that do not mean that Carry must go on hard line every match, but conditions of hard liners changed dramatically.

Hardline evolution

7.01 meta

From one side, Iron Talon became much weaker, and hard (jungle) now is not for every hero. But from other side – in hard line now 2 jungle camps, and recources that you waste on farm now can be returned with the Sanctuary. Due to this top hardliners now are heroes that can farm jungle and harras line without waste of mana (Underlord, Dark Seer) or Hp (Centaur).

100% hardliner now is Enigma. People learned how to play against Sand King by the end of the past patch? but hardline is much more comfortable for him now: Creep’s camp for pulls now on low ground, and Sand King can win the line with one successful dig.

7.02 meta

Right after 7.02 we all think that Valve sent Pitlord (underlord) right into the pit, where he belongs: -15 move speed and twice reduction at 1st level aura. Even AdmiralBulldog confirmed that this is very serious nerf, and we will see him in professionals tournament much less.

Monkey King Dota 2

  • No one hero in all history of Dota 2 never get nerf for -15 move speed (Terrorblade with his Metamorphosis do not count). Heroes which move speed was reduced by 10 point: Arc Warden, Drow, Eart Spirit, Bloodseeker, Riki and Rubick
  • 5 times from 40 games Underlord was picked during qualification matches DAC after 7.02 release

And do not haste with recap. Underlord is very good at push with a team, but other strategies are much weaker right now. Opponents still try to ban this heroe against such team as Empire and Complexity, which love using the Underlord. Moreover: Team Spirit pick him in every game of their win streak matches against Vega and proved that Underlord is still strong hero.

Runic Facts

7.01 meta

Life of hardliners became easier because with new jungle it is not profitable for enemy’s supports to sit into the safe line. With changing time of the creeps respawn, Icefrog weakened 2 passive elements: stacks and pulls, but among with this, he add some bounty runes all over the map. And now priority pick – aggressive supports that can fight for runes, and roam between lines. Do not worry about HP and MANA, just go into the sanctuary.

New Roshan in Dota 2

Earth Spirit, which combo just burn all his mana pool is now the most popular roamer. Slardar, that previously worked as Jungle guardian with Iron Talon, transformed into support.

  • 48 times Slardar was picked as support in qual DAC matches, as hardliner – almost in 4 times less, just 14.

7.02 meta

All that heroes do not go into shadow, but Valve add more variety. Puppey and zai, for example play as Tusk in publics, and that hero started to appear in DAC.

Wind Ranger look’s nice too at the support position. Now at first level her’s Powershot is in 1.5 times more powerfull, mana cost of Windrun is decreased, and with 4 level and talent she can slow enemies down by 55% with windrun. Long time ago as a support Wind Ranger played EGM, and now she apper in solo ranked of YapZor and Jerax – and last one really good with her.

Closed Pull

7.01 meta

At DotaPit team Faceless show an awesome way to earn easy levels with supports at the first stages of the game. At the first video, Black^ (yes this is Black^ at the Pudge) get 2 level, and Hook at 1:15 and leave Arteezy without whole creep spawns. At second we see how NutZ get 3 level and upgrade Courier, while Black^ control the line, and his enemy play safe, because they do not see where is Rubick.

But the best of all were OG and Jerax. Task: let ana at Alchemist to kill more creeps than Suma1L at Mirana. Solution: Do not let creeps go to the Suma1lL

7.02 meta

Remember how peoples were paid to go on the rally? With new talantes of Ember Spirit and Lone Druid situation was the same, but the price was – easy PTS. Looks like Icefrog wanted that players play differently, and change alternative talantes, maked them much more attractive. +15% to the magic damage at 10 level? +65 to damage at 15? It look such strange, that even normal players realize what talantes to take in a week, and professionals much faster. Okey Icefrog, we understand that we can act like that. And now make balance back, please.

Talantes, Sanctuaries, new map – this all really revived the game in Dota 2 patch 7.00, but there were almost no heroes changes in 7.00. In general, most of the problems of 6.88 are the same – Luna + Shadow Demon, forgotten heroes like Tusk, Lina, Gyro and much more. Moreover – new one appears.

 

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Dota replay

Replays – way to improve your gameplay

Best way to learn your mistakes

HotS Replay

Every time, when you play Moba games you need to find ways to improve your game play. Many people thinks that to improve his skills they need more practice. But this is not the only way to the top. You may look at yourself by a different angle, and look at all your mistakes with help of the replay system.

If you are the player, which want to learn, then i highly recommended to start watch replays. When you playing it is hard to criticize your decisions and see the whole picture of the game. Right here replays will be very helpfull.

You may be shocked with things that you may missed during the match. Ability to pause the game and rewind it, that what makes replay system so great. You may analyze every target if you want. You have full control and you can find what went wrong in fight which you lost.

Start criticize yourself

Dota replay

So, what you want to do, when you watch replays? There is a various things. You may look at all your death or opportunity of ganks that you missed. You may look at map timings and mistakes that you made. May see how aggressively you play, when your healer has low mana. By other words, you can look at yourself and criticize as it is a different player.

The most easy way to improve your game, by watching replays, is to watch every your death. When you see that you lost a big chunk of HP then try to understand why this happen. You was out the preferable position? Run for enemy too far, and opposite team used it?

When you see what caused your death, then you will understand what you did wrong in that situation and learn to not do it in future. Of course you could understand it in the match, but the reason why we watch replays – too see what we missed during the match.

Another thing that you can do, while watching replays – learn every teamfight. Look at your position, cooldowns. Your position and aggression must be at the same level as your allies has. No matter on which role you play, if your allies retreated, you must run with them.

Recap

LoL replay

Thank due to replay system, you can watch at all your decisions at a different angle. It will allow to not do the wrong decision in future matches, and improve your game play style.

Every one who want to improve his game, must give a chance to replays. Enhancement that you can get through it is incomparable with anything else. Watching replays – is the one of the most profitable ways to improve your gameplay, but unfortunately not too many people bothered to use it.


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