The latest Dota 2 update, Patch 7.34, introduces significant shifts in the meta, with numerous heroes receiving adjustments, along with noteworthy item changes. This patch sets the stage for The International, impacting hero selections and strategies. Here's a breakdown of the biggest winners and losers in Dota 2 Patch 7.34:
Winners:
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Queen of Pain: With buffs to her abilities, Queen of Pain (QoP) returns to the spotlight. Notably, a shorter cooldown on Shadow Strike and an increased radius for Scream of Pain make her early-game harassment even more potent. Her Sonic Wave ultimate now features an undispellable knockback, increased damage, and reduced cooldown at level three, making her a force to be reckoned with in the mid lane.
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Morphling: A significant change to Morphling's ultimate allows him to create illusions of enemy heroes to cast their abilities. He can also instantly teleport to the illusion's location, making him a versatile and formidable hero.
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Earth Spirit: Earth Spirit regains prominence with a new invulnerability mechanic during Rolling Boulder, making him resistant to crucial enemy abilities. His spell amplification boost and Magnetize improvements add to his magic damage potential.
Losers:
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Illusion Heroes: Heroes reliant on creating illusions suffer due to item buffs (Radiance, Maelstrom, Shiva's Guard), Pudge's Hook insta-killing illusions, and smaller nerfs to specific champions like Phantom Lancer and Naga Siren.
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Supports as Cores: The fun of selecting heroes like Winter Wyvern and Snapfire as cores is curtailed. Snapfire's Lil' Shredder attack damage is pushed to level 25, limiting her carry potential, while Winter Wyvern loses free physical damage to enemies affected by her Winter's Curse. These changes encourage the return to traditional support roles.
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Meepo: Despite a high win rate, Meepo faces significant nerfs in this patch. Overall base stat nerfs, decreased stat growth, and the Rod of Atos change heavily impact the hero. The loss of Atos' stats and Root ability diminish Meepo's effectiveness, suggesting he might fall out of favor once again.
In conclusion, Dota 2 Patch 7.34 significantly reshapes the competitive landscape, introducing new dynamics that will undoubtedly influence hero selections and strategies leading up to The International.
