Dota 2: Explains new armor mechanics in 7.20

This article will dive into the changes related to armor calculation and what they mean for players.

Patch 7.20 introduced a major change in the Dota 2 system, and many players still haven’t adapted to it. This article will dive into the changes related to armor calculation and what they mean for players.

Armor Changes

Armor is now more effective than before. The formula for calculating physical damage reduced by armor changed from (0.05 x armor) / (1+0.05x|armor|) Fort (0.052 x armor) / ( 0.9 + 0.048 x |armor|).

This change becomes more pronounced from 10 armor, with physical damage taken reduced by almost 4.5% according to the new formula. In games with heroes with more than 30 armor, it makes a big difference: the vast majority of damage in the late game is physical and when the carry hero does it. 300+ damage with crit, the difference is bigger.

Armor STACK

It should be understood from the armor value table above that stacking more armor will reduce the value of each unit. While the first point in armor increases physical damage resistance is 5.49%, 5th point only increase yes 3.76%. Every point after 27 adds less than 1%. Of course, each armor point will still give you about 5% extra EHP (Effective Hit Point – the amount of actual damage you can withstand), but the effectiveness of the EHP will gradually decrease.

We will call it “high value armor” and “low value armor”. To simplify, with armor below 20 it is “high value armor”, and any extra armor above 20 is called “low value armor”.

REDUCED ARMOR

Armor reduction is only effective when it plays a big part in the calculation of DPS (damage per second). Armor is a multiplier effect, so armor reduction in the late and mid game will be extremely effective. Desolator is probably one of the most underrated items, and we could see pro players adapting to the new patch during the Chongqing Major qualifiers. The new armor formula is also why heroes like Dazzle and Phantom Assassin have become so popular. These two heroes are forced to be nerfed after 7.20.

Direct reduction of “high value armor”, you can increase the amount of damage through hand attack. With an object with 25 armor, we take almost 9% more damage difference when hit by Desolator, and it only subtracts two points of “high value armor”. With 20 armor objects, the difference is 11.55%. With 15 armor left, it’s 15.75% and 22.74% bonus damage for enemies with only 10 armor.

Assuming you’re a level 20 Phantom Assassin with a crit damage of 750, you’ll deal 68, 87, 119, and 170 bonus damage. As you can see, these numbers aren’t small, especially with low armor supports – you’re cutting into “highest value armor”. The amount of physical damage you can deal to enemies with negative armor is much more terrible. Maybe after these changes, focusing on reducing hero armor could become a new tactic.

WHAT DOES IT MEAN?

We can draw many conclusions. Armor Aura helps support survive and that’s why we often see items like Vladmir’s Offering bought by core or support position 4. At the beginning of the game, the added value of “high value armor” keeps you alive. Small armor items like Buckler and Mekansm can play an important role in teamfight. Final, Assault Cuirass is still underestimated compared to the benefits that this item brings.

Turrets are now easier to destroy. The first impression of the general gameplay change is that adding HP and reducing armor to turrets will offset each other. But that’s not the case – while the turret’s EHP is the same, when adding armor reduction moves the situation changes a lot. Again, you are directly reducing “high value armor” – even Tier 4 turrets now only have 21 armor. You can reduce this number by 7 or 12 points, which means that the physical damage increases by about 11% or 22%.

In addition, some heroes have extremely high armor, making the armor reduction not worth it, like Morpling and Terrorblade – two popular heroes right now. TB has a base armor of 32 at level 25, not counting items or talents. Even with 1.5k crit damage, the difference Desolator makes is not enough 100 damage. With such heavily armored objects, you have to concentrate all, use heroes like Elder Titan or Dazzle, or have to find other solutions. Armor reduction moves/effects with these objects only affect “low value armor” and are not worth our investment.

Finally, cleave, now also reduced by armor. To compensate for the reduced physical damage, the values ​​of Great Cleave, Empower, and Tidebringer have also changed. Great Cleave is almost useless, not very effective, and should only be used to farm low armor creeps. However, Empower and Tidebringer are pretty much buffed. Kunkka can now deal more damage from Tidebringer to enemies with less than 40% physical damage reduction. That is, as long as the affected objects have armor of 11 or less, the amount of damage dealt will be at least the same as before. That also means that, reducing armor on objects behind (sticking to the spread) is also more effective than before.

EPILOGUE

Dota 2 systems are always an interesting topic, as they can completely change the way people play games. With increased armor effectiveness, the theoretical survivability of heroes also increases. At least in terms of physical damage.

Meanwhile, spell amplification – may become the new trend in the game, and magic damage may appear more in the later stages of the game. That has happened in the past and it could happen in the coming months – Dota is always full of surprises.

According to Dotabuff