In this article, opinions from leaguers were collected about 6.60. Read it for yourself and see why I said it is the Tauren Chieftain’s map.

I do not know what will happen in 6.61 the next incarnation, but being very concerned with “league balance” the frog will definitely not lie low and see that his pet is snubbed because it’s too powerful or something. Either a nerf or some sort of “rebalance” option will be on the tables to please the leaguers. You will see this very soon.

My way of predicting what will happen in the next versions or so varies (it’s a trade secret ), but one of the ways is to check feedback from the leaguers. Fresh players of Dota will be surprised at this post - even leaguers can complain about imbalance. I can expect some eggs thrown my way, but seriously they are not as perfect or supertypical as many Dota fans make them out to be. TC is imbalanced? Oh come on, nothing is impossible for the Dota gods

As a final remark, if you want to win games in the immediate and similar versions beyond 6.60, I suggest you should figure out the following:

1. How can I incorporate Force Staff into future item builds? What sort of combos can I derive from its use?
2. How can I make sure the buffed DPS heroes like Viper, Razor, Mortred, etc. be able to dish out damage without dying to spells or stuns?
3. How do I get them to overcome stun/blink heroes? I don’t want them to escape just because they can stun me. I don’t want them to surprise me with Blink Dagger.
4. Should item builds for certain heroes be evaluated? Which heroes should they be?

The fellow who can actually figure out a lineup that satisfies all 4 above will most likely be the next King of Dota. We had the kings of Virtus Pro in 6.48b, MYM in 6.52 and KS.int in 6.59. In 6.60 who will this King be? I’m leaving this as an open question, because frankly there can be a multitude of answers, or no answers at all - in which the frog will provide the answer by yet another map incarnation.

Also I don’t know the answers and I’m lazy. So don’t ask me

If you have being living under a rock for the past year or so, you would not know that the DotA concept has been taken by a  number of game companies, had the wc3 elements and restrictions removed then revamped into a whole new game.  So far the only one of these that was sold to the general public is Demigod which sadly enough was a bit of a flop in my opinion.

Do not fret, there are more on the way which look quite promising, I am (naturally) talking about League of Legends. While browsing this site in recent times you will probably have noticed the same two ads flashing at you relentlessly. On the topic of LoL, I can’t say much more than this: yes there is beta, and I am participating.

Riot staff (the makers of League of Legends, including the maker of DotA Allstars – ‘Guinsoo’) have taken a very open approach to the development of the game throwing the doors wide and asking the question: What would you like to see in this game? Thus far this has being highly successful and LoL has gained popularity (definitely helped by the witty internet meem abbreviation.)

It is no surprise, perhaps that the secret S2Games project ‘Heroes of Newerth’ was announced, not only that, but you can get a beta key if you are willing to try. This covers the 2 new games that are cited as being DotA-like (and thus largely denied a wiki page on the topic of MOBA genre) and now it is time to try and draw comparisons without breaking the NDA I signed… or ticked the box really, but it is still a legally binding document.

A quick comparison or two…

League of Legends has what appears to be a lower standard of graphics when compared to Heroes on Newerth if you compare gameplay videos, this could be a reason as simple as the belief that you don’t need epic graphics while in the beta stage or they think that the stand to have a bigger audience if low end computers can handle it, meanwhile HoN has graphics that appear to be out to make you gasp, obviously more graphics intensive it doesn’t mean much as I’m sure most people play games for fun rather than the graphics.

Another important thing to note about the graphics is the style of the art. LoL is brighter and full of flowers witch comical signposts at every turn warning you of imminent death if you go this way preferring to stay away from realism, again keeping the target audience nice and big at the same time giving a unique and fun feel to the game. HoN is far darker and seems to be aiming for realism (this is hard when you are making realistic creatures that don’t exist) but none the less they have had good results so far. Gameplay wise these games will be very similar, with only the smallest differences (but in the end, they may make or break the games as they are in direct competition with each other.)

Finally, on my long winded rant on the subject of MOBAs I will bring your attention to Bloodline Champions a game I feel the developers of both LoL and HoN should be watching carefully, it is for the most part a simple arena game but what is more important is the number of different modes you can play in. Think of a good old FPS King of the Hill match; now picture yourself climbing that hill while in control of Pudge or Master Yi. BC has a spell use system similar to that of the WC3 mod ‘Warlocks’ and consists of fast paced matches lasting less than 10 minutes in a huge variety of scenarios.

The League of Legends forums has had several topics posted in relation to different maps and scenarios and with the open to suggestion attitude of the developers it is likely to make the cut unless it is to hard to do or not as fun as they would like. Heroes of Newerth is shrouded in mystery but to all intents and purposes it is a direct DotA clone, they wont try fix what isn’t broken and want to stick to what works.

In the end my money will be going to whichever provides the best gameplay and in the ideal world isn’t pay to play (something Riot has confirmed will not be the case although expansion buying might be there) but most importantly I would like innovation. Yes, DotA is great, but nothing is perfect and everything can be improved.

In recent times everyone’s favourite Arctic Amphibian has made some very subtle changes to DotA along with some very big ones, in my eyes the most important has been the move to eradicate cloned skills, there was once 3 copies of poison dagger, now it is 3 different skills, 2 of them are similar but the other last was a complete remake.

Icefrog can see what the emerging MOBAs mean and is working hard to keep us happy (at least until LoL or HoN makes him redundant) we have seen big changes as well as a push towards ‘total balance’. On this note I move to the section of the post you are undoubtedly reading this for, the 6.61 beta leaks.

Dota 6.61 Beta 3 Map Changelogs:
=========================

* Fixed natural regeneration on rax
* Fixed Living Armor not regenerating structures properly
* Fixed incorrect sell value on some aghanim scepters
* Fixed Double Damage visual effect to properly show when the user is using low graphics mode
* Reduced Double Edge cooldown (25->12)
* Watchers now have collision. They also have 400 less vision range and give +40 more bounty.
- Various misc code fps stuff
- Undid Sil armor change
- Fixed Reverse Polarity, it properly places them infront of you now
* Fixed an error in the damage calculation method for Plasma Field
* Reduced FPS drops when using Shiva’s Guard and Plasma Field with some custom import files (PGRu-Unexpect3D)
* Improved Faceless Void’s base strength (17->23)
* Restored original cooldown improvement on Scepter for QoP
* Improved Searing Arrows damage from 10/20/30/40 to 20/30/40/50
* Increased projectile speed on Mystic Snake
* Lowered Stone Gaze cooldown (70->35)
* Sven’s Storm bolt now uses the normal unit targeting scheme. No gameplay changes, just the interface visuals.
* Fixed -ns mode
* Fixed Napalm not properly stacking and doing higher constant values [needs playtesting since it may be too useless now]
* Slightly increased Eyes in the Forest cast range (+25) to fix some order issue bugs [make sure u can't abuse it]
* Casting Nature’s Guise on an allied unit will no longer take you out if if you have it on you
* Reverse Polarity now pulls units slightly infront of you instead of all around you
* Lowered Magic Stick/Wand cooldown from 25 to 17
* Added a new icon for Slardar’s Bash (3587)

In bold are the changes I find to be rather important, First we have the buffs to Centaur Warchief, Treant Protector and Magnus, 3 tanks with AoE damage and Disables as well as a very useful buff to the best invisibility spell in the game.

Next on my agenda is the buff to searing arrows, it is official, the frog wants clinkz to backdoor, with strafe active, the damage from your arrows nullifies and then adds damage to your attacks when against tower regen.

Voids base HP is increased by over 100. this does quite a bit to largely nullify the nerf he got on his gain a while back.

The frog has answered Caspians plee to make QoP viable again, and finally, Weaver is officially useless, a buff to Radience now a nerf to the Watchers means that they don’t do as much and they die faster giving the enemy more gold. Perhaps like all frogs, our amphibious friend has a phobia of invisible spiders and ghosts.

The versions 6.56 up to 6.60 have been phenomenal where change is concerned. By now you should have understood the significance of these changes, so I need not elaborate. What needs to be reconsidered in light of the changes, however, are item builds hitherto considered “cookie cutter” on certain heroes.

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Luna Moonfang

From 6.49 onwards, the only item build which was seriously considered by both pubs and leagues was the Butterfly + Satanic build. This was especially so after it was found that in 6.49, Luna could tank 5 heroes while killing about 3 (maybe even all 5) at the same time. This was due to the nature of Satanic giving lifeleech off the 2nd-to-5th bounceys at that time. Even though this was changed in 6.52 so that the extra bounceys did not count for lifesteal, it still remained popular despite the reality that begun to sank in.

This terribly expensive item build was a burden that made Luna hard to play especially in later versions which demanded cheap ownage. With the 6.60 changes, it is even more important to evaluate if Butterfly + Satanic is ever a practical item build on the Moon Rider. Can Luna just sit still and farm more than 10 000 gold just to own when devastation is all around her? Why is Satanic still on her when she doesn’t get that special lifesteal anymore? If lifesteal is needed, then a simple Mask of Death or even just Mask of Madness (yes read that right) should do. Unless Luna has achieved her peak and is able to farm the crucial 3300 fast, Butterfly is also a suspect.

Personally, in place of this item build I would rather take:

1. Mask of Madness (1900)
2. Manta Style (4850)
3. Diffusal Blade (3300)

Which components are so much easier to farm. Purge can be more useful than you think, on a hero which just runs fast and does not have any other form of slow. Luna images also have bounceys making them potentially deadly, and MoM coupled with Black King Bar can allow quick bursts of DPS without too much backlash from the Berserk effect. You can call me armchair theorist if you want, but has anyone else including leaguers seriously considered alternatives to an item build which is so expensive it is not really practical anymore?

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Syllabear

Ever since the days of 6.37 the only item build ever recommended on the Lone Druid (or rather the Spirit Bear) is Radiance + Power Treads. Nothing else is ever given thought and it seems this is still the case 23 incarnations later on. I say, unless you can farm that 3800 fast (like in 10 minutes), you’re basically a liability - and a burden - to whoever are your friends. Ditch it.

Call me maverick, but I’d substitute Battle Fury in place of Radiance. Since the Spirit Bear need not fear that disabling spells like Cyclone or Icebite cast on it will last much longer than on heroes (check changelog), Battle Fury can be an alternative source of damage. Retain the treads (or I’d just put boots and gloves of haste in the bear’s inventory). Everything else is up to the imagination. But to suggest that the Lone Druid shall only get Radiance is tantamount to mental fascism IMO.

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Bristleback

Woefully neglected ever since 6.48b, the last item build that you would hear leaguers recommend was Radiance + Heart + Perseverance. The Bristleback has since seen some improvements but is still difficult to use especially because it doesn’t really have disables. I wouldn’t like to be presumptive and imply that the following works, but think:

1. Vanguard
2. Armlet of Mordiggan
3. Mask of Madness
4. Orchid Malevolence

All of which involve cheap components. I’m sure you see the pattern here - it’s not practical to say only the expensive item build works. Often cheap ones have to be considered in light of the evolving changes of 6.60.

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Rikimaru

Ever since satyrs became popular in 6.57b, so has the accompanying item build. I don’t know if I was the first to recognise the worth of Diffusal Blade on Riki, but I was certainly one of the first to have made the isolated discovery without ever referring to leaguers. Diffusal continues to be an excellent item on Riki especially now that it can be upgraded, and so add in Manta Style and you’ll have super-fast Rikis who can never let you go from their electrifying grasps. It’s definitely better than the Butterfly “rush” in which the hero once again becomes a liability until the crucial 3300.

The Diffusal + Manta combination is in fact an excellent pairup on many other agility heroes like Morphling, Naga Siren, Luna (as described above), Juggernaut, POTM, etc. Most important, it is affordable.

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Force Staff, Quelling Blade

Not exactly a hero, but it is definitely high time to seriously contemplate the role of Force Staff. Displacement pushes have a much more influential impact than many of us would like to think. Entire comboes can be constructed - or demolished - by the use of this item alone. Heroes hitherto neglected by leaguers can suddenly become powerful. I would not be surprised if leaguers would actually spam this as they spammed Phase Boots back in 6.57b.

As for Quelling Blade, I need not say what impact it has had on melee heroes.

________________________________________________________

I hope the above will trigger some considerations from both pubs and leaguers alike. I was like “OMG I’m going gaga (not Lady Gaga)” after I heard that 6.61 Beta restored Aghanim’s 75-second cooldown on QoP, after I b**ched blogged about it. Of course I’m being boastful here, since I don’t know if it will really be carried into the official version. But perhaps the DS blog is quite influential after all.

It’s official. Team Flow, Philippine representative to the Asian Cyber Games 2006 and 2007, is the 2009 Philippine representative. Team Flow is composed of Arby Ng, Marvin Tan, Jojo Uy, Bryan Ang, and Vinzyre Villeguez. The famed Team Flow has been a force to reckon with since they burst out into the DotA scene more than four years ago.

In 2006, they won the local qualifiers against veterans 129. Flow represented the Philippines in the Asian Cyber Games in Singapore but lost to the eventual champions. In 2007, Flow decimated Ninja in the local qualifiers and represented the Philippines once again. That year, Flow gave the Philippines it’s first ACG medal as the team finished 3rd place.

Read the rest of this entry »

6.60 and most of the succeeding versions that reflect 6.60 will bring with it some implications that will affect pub and leagues quite differently.

For pub, the greatest implication is a heavy tilt towards heroes of DPS potential. Remakes of Razor, Troll Warlord and Sniper, the most popular pub heroes; buffs on several others like  Spiritbreaker, Phantom Assassin, Ursa Warrior and Windrunner; and important item remakes (Manta Style, Diffusal Blade, Aghanim) that have indirectly buffed heroes like Naga Siren, Phantom Lancer, Riki, Nightstalker and Chaos Knight, this version’s DPS assassins pack a heavy punch to annihilate all that defy them. Furthermore with the presence of Quelling Blade, most of the above heroes may scale their peak much faster. Sheer and brutal devastation has never been easier.

Furthermore, the presence of some defensive items that protect against spell damage, like Khadgar’s Pipe of Insight, can be easily interpreted by pubbies as a sign of the frog’s disapproval of spells. Granted, this may not be the case, but what matters a lot in Dota is perception.

_____________________________________________________

In leagues, the end result may turn out to be different from what the frog desires - more DPS participation. In fact leaguers may very well ignore the signs and continue on the path of spell devastation as was common in 6.59. However, this time the attention will probably be more on spells that can deal % HP instead of a fixed amount. Ironically version 6.60 may also be termed The Tauren Chieftain’s Map, because his aura that can remove base spell resistance and the ultimate that removes %HP will surely feature heavily, if nothing much is done to change his skills.

Thus I expect that in addition to TC, some old 6.59 powerhouses like Enigma, Necrolyte and Undying will probably take on this map just as easily. Expect much of the situation in the house to be pretty much the same - you won’t be seeing the trio (plus TC) so much like in 6.59 (ban ban ban).  Along the lines of %HP removal, leaguers might also throw in heroes that can play along and zap dying souls who managed to escape the pangs of mortality. Thus Zeus, the longest reigning God of leaguers will be comfortably entrenched in his position, as will heroes that have the same potential (who will they be?). Heroes that depend a little too much on spell damage, like Tinker (think BKB that cannot be rearmed), Tormented Soul, Queen of Pain and so on will probably not make it, unless room is made whereby they can take advantage of the situation described above.

Another less noticed tell-tale sign is the displacement combo as I related in the Batrider post. This group of heroes - Pudge, Vengeful, Batrider, Bloodseeker, Keeper of the Light, Omniknight - could also become popular (and rightly so), with buffs and the addition of the Force Staff.

_____________________________________________________

In summary, I’m not very sure if the changes of 6.60 and the following versions will produce results that the frog wants. I hope it does, because change is embraced not forced.

While I’m thinking of a new post about Dota 6.60 proper, here’s a little bit about the title you just read.

I have a general style of writing for blogs. When I was still writing stuff in my own Dota blog, I made it a point not to be so detailed and rigid about the content.. In the DS blog, The Batrider and MeduScandal posts are two good examples of general writing. While reading the comments I saw that some readers preferred that I do some sort of mini-guide in the DS blog. It is certainly in my power to do so, and I can do it (the Tauren Chieftain post was one), but I don’t do it often, and I don’t like to do it.

Why?

It’s because I regard the act of doing guides in the blog as defeating the purpose of the Strategy Panel and the forum. I’m not here to usurp the position of strategy owners, nor am I here to dictate to you what sort of strategy and item build you should follow. If I want to make a strategy I go to the Strategy Panel, and I’m more than confident my guide will get approved. Ok maybe that’s a bit too much of a presumption, but in the future more guides will be made, more discussions, more brainstorming. In time to come Dota fanatics, pub and league, will be able to decide for themselves what works for them, even after I’ve long moved on and longer contribute here.

Read the rest of this entry »

This just in. Dota Allstars 6.60b was released today. Several bugs and exploits corrected.

Get it here.

6.60b Changelog:
================
* Some minor performance optimizations
* Fixed a fatal error possible when 2 users with blademail active fight each other
* Fixed a desync bug when using -tips while other map languages are in the game
* Fixed Force Staff so it doesn’t push you into an impassable terrain
* Fixed some bugs with RS and other modes like RD
* Fixed a group memory bug
* Fixed camera from moving when you pick a hero in RD
* Fixed pink player from not being able to pick the furthest hero in -CD
* Fixed a bug that sometimes caused Echo Stomp to not get dispelled upon damage
* Fixed some issues with Treant Protector’s Eyes In The Forest
* Fixed a multiple quelling abuse
* Added a note in the tooltip about Kunkka not being able to use Quelling Blade
* Fixed a minor visual cooldown glitch with the MKB toggle
* Temporarily disabled -terrain snow. It was causing annoying visual side effects for all terrain modes when exploring terrain that had previously destroyed trees. I’ll restore this functionality as soon as I can.
* Fixed some typos

This is just a quick bugfix patch to fix exploits being abused. More changes and balance tweaks will come soon in the next patch.

“As a result of some differences, I am no longer affiliated with the dota-allstars.com website. I want to take this opportunity to wish everyone over there the best of luck in the future.” - icefrog Thu, 05/14/2009 - 22:13

The controversial question spawned from this situation now is - what will the future of dota be?

Of course, right now it seems that the frozen amphibian is going to continue with the map. However, what would happen if he, for some reason did not continue the map, perhaps, he has too many issues with the players and other websites. What then?

Would we continue playing the old maps? Or would someone step up to the helm and take charge of the dota project like what happened with guinsoo and euls?

Well enough of speculation for now, whatever the future holds,  let it stay in the future.

There have been rumours spreading that Icefrog and Pendragon had an argument about the League of Legends and of DotA becoming P2P(Pay to play) since Pendragon did not think they were getting enough for the amount of effort put in to developing the map.

Part of Icefrog’s statement : “As a result of some differences”       casts a certain shadow of doubt as to how and why he actually left the website.  What actually happened is known only to the two.

According to Pendragon, there is no bad blood between them and this is simply a parting of the ways, so to speak. He also asserted that there is a possibility of him working with the frog on a project together, once more,  in the future. On what, is yet to be seen.

Aftermath:

Icefrog created playdota.com which he is using now as the ‘official’ site. According to the frog, he does not even take ad revenue.

Pendragon personally stated he plans on updating and continuing to upgrade dota-allstars even though it has become a fansite, as opposed to some speculation regarding him turning it into a LoL site or stepping stone to boost LoL popularity.

The creation of the new website has divded the dota allstars community to a certain level. Many have emigrated to playdota while there are also many who decided to stay at dota-allstars. com.

One thing is for sure, something did happen between the two and they have both decided to remain extremely vague and discreet, only letting out the tiniest of details.

~Amp

Medusa is one of the heroes who received a slight tweak in skill set while retaining the old theme, and very possibly done under the peer pressure of making her sound more relevant to her namesake. If you have studied the history of Dota (if ever there was such a subject :P), Medusa is one hero who has always courted controversy throughout her career. The new Medusa is no exception. Maybe that’s the way of nagas to popularize their sexiness.

Why do I say that Medusa is controversial both old and new? The old Medusa often had the trouble of choosing between the skill set of Chain Lightning and Mana Shield in early game. While most players preferred Chain Lightning, most leaguers opted for Mana Shield. Both have valid reasons and that is why the argument about Medusa (henceforth called the Medusa Scandal) in most Dota forums including DS never ends. If not for the existence of the Bliderberg Club moderators, Medusa scandal threads would have turned into a fascist rant long ago.

The  Medusa Scandal also extends to whether Medusa should amass hitpoint, or damage, or both. Most male (presumably), hot-blooded players who don’t like to be seen as sissies would tell you they absolutely want damage. A minority suggests absolute tankage ie. HP for their own reasons. Some male (or female) players who stand their own ground (but are not soft) would tell you it’s good to take both, thus risking a blast from the extreme left or right for their centric views.

Now, after Medusa has been remade with the Mystic Snake skill that steals mana and deals damage in the same fashion as Furion the Prophet’s Wrath of Nature it seems the Medusa Scandal has not abated. Obviously the frog has been trying to simmer the Medusa Scandal with this remake. This seems to be the case until you notice that he’s remade Purge as well (oh), renaming it Stone Gaze and giving it a very very high cooldown to compensate for the AoE effect, it seems. In one side the frog appears to try to solve the Medusa Scandal, only to reignite it in another side. Thus the Scandal never ends (for now) and I believe threads have already risen in the forum as a reaction to the Medusa Scandal.

Morale of the story - Nagas should never be allowed a roleplay, especially age-old, nearly worn-out Nagas that constantly seek attention like the Gorgon. Scandals are fun, especially one called the Medusa Scandal. Bilderbergers watch in from above, relishing all the fun and fascist name-calling in the threads before stepping in to hammerwack undesirable targets.

Real morale of the story - the frog should seriously decide what sort of role Medusa is supposed to play in Dota. If she’s supposed to tank then tank only. If damage then damage only. If AoE then AoE only. Unadulterated. Don’t mix in all the stuff and create the biggest scandal that’s ever discussed in the hero taverns - the Medusa Scandal. Why even Queen of Pain with all her stories of seducing stupid men pales in comparison.

The Batrider along with Tauren Chieftain are the official new additions to 6.60. It’s interesting to note that at the time of this writing neither Dota-Allstars not Dota Portal has yet updated their databases to reflect the two additions. While the DS database is in a haywire itself (OMG look at the new taverns), I’m happy to say we have at least two newer things to be happy about.

I’m sure by now most of you will have played a game or two involving the Batrider. What I’m not sure about, is how do players especially leaguers react to the new hero’s skills. Like TC, I have mixed feelings about Jin’zakk.

From the looks of it, Jin’zakk has been designed to be heavily aligned with fire, even more so than Lina the Slayer. The hero has some AoE, an interesting hovering flight skill and yet another skill that can actually displace a single target. The implication for Dota is that Jin’zakk has reinforced a certain style of playing that involves forced movement, and that kind of style fits in well with some oldies, among them Admiral, Keeper of the Light, Bloodseeker, Vengeful Spirit and Butcher.

Perhaps, that is the frog’s true intention for introducing Batrider. It is part of the masterplan, along with some items like Force Staff,  to make this kind of play popular, especially in leagues. Some hero unleashes a fury that punishes an enemy for movement, then some other hero forcibly executes the punishment by forcing it to move. If you understand what I say then you get the picture.

What’s even more intriguing is that Flaming Lasso is an ultimate, thus it can override magical immunity - meaning even Black King Bar cannot ever counter the forced displacement. Is it any coincidence that Nether Swap and Dismember, ultimates of the Vengeful Spirit and Butcher respectively, are ultimates too? You see the link now? Who cares about Omniknight’s Repel or Naix’a Rage? Just bring them over as sacrificial offerings!

How successful is this masterplan, however, depends very much on the reciprocity of the leaguers. Are they prepared to abandon the Blink-Stun strategy for this one? Will they be willing to sacrifice Area-of-Effect damage for pin-point target assassination? These are serious questions both the frog and the leaguers must sit down and debate before reforms such as this can be taken seriously. Until then we shall just amuse ourselves with the Batriders’ antics.

Haha, sounds good to me mon’!