7.11 meta-analysis ‘Buyback is the optimal move’

The latest patch 7.11 has changed the economics of Dota, and many believe these changes will be important, but very unpredictable. This is not untrue: Meta 7.11 is clearly different, but not in the win rate per hero.

BUYBACK IS THE OPTIMIZED MOVE IN 7.11

Looking at the meta in pro and the high ranks in pub, it’s clear that the early game buyback duration has increased. Teams lure the opponent’s great ultimates and then counterattack, and supports quickly return to the fight for gold and experience. From there, protecting the turret becomes much easier.

Perhaps the best example of this new buyback system was in DreamLeague Season 9’s Team Liquid vs Fnatic Game 3 match:

In this video you can see Mind_Control sacrificing itself for the Universe Black Hole. He quickly boughtback and returned to the teamfight, putting Fnatic at a disadvantage.

The most obvious example of using a “buyback comeback” is when defending two Tier 2 turrets in the top lane: there are two TP positions nearby and the opponent has pushed too hard. Meanwhile, the exit can only be through the shrine and the other way is to run back from the lane.

With buybacks no longer incurring a gold penalty, this method can be used frequently, especially when the team is being left behind by the opponent. Map control is extremely important if you want to farm and even if your gold is reduced due to buybacks, you can still get new gold when you return to the fight, especially in positions 3 to 5.

CHANGE THE AMOUNT OF GOLD RECEIVED IF COMEBACK

To make sure these changes make flips less likely, this patch also reduces the AoE amount as well as the amount of gold received when flipping. From there, the teams that are leading if they lose will also feel more secure. Now, ganking weak heroes on the opposing team doesn’t reward as much gold as before, so dying support won’t have much of an effect on the team that’s in the lead.

With teams in the lead, it will obviously change the way they approach the game. With less gold per life, turret destruction becomes more of a priority. Don’t underestimate the gold gain from turret destruction as it allows cores to generate more gold for supports with turrets and Roshan.

It’s also important to note that we often see winning teams playing a 4+1 strategy. Usually a position 4 support will act as a pawn: if this player blocks smoke ganks to more important heroes, this shouldn’t be a big deal, because if he dies, the amount of gold the opponent gets won’t be as much as before. If position 4 can farm good items, your team will have an even greater advantage. Some supports can push turrets well on their own, sometimes even destroying turrets or forcing the enemy to react.

INTERESTED IN THE TEAM’S SUPPORT

The economic benefit from taking turrets early in the game will help the supports be more able to support the team – adding an item can help the support survive or gain more lives, thereby creating a chain effect. Surviving the encounter means getting more XP and Gold, which means more items and higher levels. From there, the survivability rate as well as the kill/assist to kill is also higher in the next encounter.

Because of this, you will often see active cores in safelane and mid: they can get kills if they get support from support and can then turn that kill into a turret push.

Let’s take a look at the most popular cores at Dreamleague Season 9. There’s a lot of Gyrocopter, Tiny, Death Prophet and Lifestealer: these are heroes that “support” support, creating a situation where the support can support early game and from there Improve yourself through support items.

TIMES IN 7.12

Since it doesn’t affect the hero balance, this patch is unlikely to change the meta. The vast majority of heroes that appeared in Bucharest and Katowice are still present in this patch.

However, there are still some small changes. Lifestealer became the preferred pick, and a great counter-hero to Gyrocopter. Lifestealer can be played more actively than Gyro in early game encounters, while still being able to be one-on-one.

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