Dota 2: The best supports patch 7.20 currently

One of the biggest complaints about patch 7.19 is that the meta support was almost unchanged at the end of this patch. There are only a few useful supports that can pick first or second without letting their team lose.

Many people think that 7.20 changes this completely, but that is not the case. The game still limits the number of support heroes that can be effective when picked early and the game still has heroes that are difficult to use, but the price to pay is too high.

However, we also have important differences in this patch from the previous patch. The first big difference is that we can pick core heroes in the early picks of the draft. You don’t want to be countered in the first place, but on turn 1 or 2, picking Phantom Assassin, Juggernaut or more offlane heroes is still acceptable. This means that you can pick supports in the middle of the draft and thereby open up more options for yourself.

The second big difference is that the number of support heroes that work well in this patch is more than 7.19. This article will analyze some support heroes and explain why they are worth playing and worth your while in 7.20.

BANE

Bane’s Enfeedble has been reworked and now reduces attack speed instead of damage, while increasing the duration of its negative effects on enemies. Theoretically the new Enfeedble looks appealing, but the vast majority of Bane players still max out Brain Sap and Nightmare first. Therefore, this hero is not much different from 7.19.

In this case, it is again a good thing. Bane is still pretty cool, can trade hits well, has no trouble casting, and has an immunity-piercing disable. That’s why Bane was successful in 7.19 and why Bane is still successful today.

DAZZLE

Despite playing in his current core position, Dazzle is still a great support. Bad Juju allowed the hero to return to the pro scene, while subsequent updates have been near perfecting the hero – Dazzle’s win rate is just over 50% and isn’t too strong in a pub environment.

A common mistake that Dazzle support makes is that they only raise Poison Touch by 1 point. Sometimes, Dazzle support has a different build in mind, sometimes has to “adjust” to suit the lane, trying to live better. Both of the above reasons lead to the wrong way to build 99%.

A lot of older players think Dazzle is a healer, but playing that way is hard in the current meta. You really need two points for Poison Touch, as it boosts your power in lane and can turn the tide. Otherwise, you will only make things worse.

The second mistake is the ones in Medallion of Courage. It used to be a great item for the hero and early game Blight Stone is destructive, but Medallion and Solar Crest are now more core-friendly – ​​they are very expensive.

If you play at support 5, you will usually be more successful when you go to Arcane Boots and try to get Mekansm and Guardian Greaves if you enter the late game. Has a Greaves Aura and an active effect that takes only a 20 second cooldown to destroy other items in this price bracket. The 950 gold recipe for Mekansm is probably the most expensive in the early to mid game, making this build stable.

Speaking of gameplay, you need to be adaptable. Before that, in most cases, turning on Weave, then saving teammates with Shallow Grave and then rushing into the crowd in the hope of getting the opponent to use a stun on you and a few hand attacks was the best way to play.

Now, you want to keep fighting and keep reducing your opponent’s armor. While in the late game, you want to max out Shallow Grave every 7.5 seconds.

GRIMTROKE

Ink Tendrils can now fully charge from just one hero and that makes it extremely good in lane. Despite the slight nerf, this change is not enough to help Grimstroke support from behind to play actively in the lane.

With 600 HP and 3 starting armor, this hero has never been seen as a strong support and synergizes well when paired with a hero capable of stun or dash. However, after the 7.20d nerf, Grimstroke’s presence was terrifying.

Also, with the early game+90 GPM talent, you’ll have a great laning support, with good spells in the mid-game, and can build single-target items later in the game.

JAKIRO

Jakiro benefits from good laning, but the hero is also more attractive thanks to the shorter games in the new patch. Everyone is finally focusing on pushing, and many turret pushers are in the meta, which means that Liquid Fire has become the favorite turret demolisher.

Depending on the situation of the match, Jakiro can follow the build way to participate in teamfight more, helping to be flexible in combat. While Dual Breath is probably the best level 1 move and Liquid Fire helps win the lane, if you find the match to be long and a lot of teamfight happening, max Ice Path first for best results.

Unlike many popular supports today, Jakiro has the GPM talent quite late, but will also receive +30% talent at level 10. This talent allows Jakiro to enter the mid-game with better upgraded spells. , stronger.

However, this hero regresses in the late game and it is better to push the turret with his teammates at 20-30 minutes. However, when combined with heroes with strong setup like Faceless Void, Jakiro will deal massive amounts of damage throughout the match.

CALENDAR

Frost Shield is probably one of the best support moves in the game and it gives Lich more favor. Frost Shield is strong in lane, both defensively and offensively. It’s good in the mid game and totally awesome in the late game, since the damage is mostly physical. Combined with the long cast range and fast cast time, Frost Shield becomes a very powerful tool for Lich.

However, Lich only has a win rate of over 50%, partly due to his other moves. There’s nothing appealing about Frost Blast – its usefulness dwindles as the game goes on, but it’s pretty good early in the game.

Sinister Gaze, Lich’s new move, is probably one of the worst spells in the game – 120 mana for a 1.6 second disable with a 500 cast range and a 30 second cooldown. Disable is still a disable and can save teammates, but Sinister Gaze is too weak. It’s not an AoE, it takes 2.4 seconds to channel and the second effect pulls the enemy closer to you almost for show.

All other disables in the game are better than Sinister Gaze, but Lich is still an easy hero to play with a good win rate. Frost Shield is that strong. Maximize it first, use it wisely and you will win your match.

LION

Lion is constantly being upgraded, making this hero’s win rate also higher in pubs.

Lion has never been bad. Since patch 7.12, manacost level 1 Earthspike has been reduced, Lion has become better. Lion used to be Slark’s opponent, due to his many disables and being able to stay in lane for as long as he had mana. Of course, Lion has to pay for that with a low initial stats, but if played wisely, Lion will babysit well for the core and play more actively.

All of the above is still true, except for Slark’s nemesis. Having an extra 50 damage per kill with Finger Death doesn’t really make the hero stronger, but it does get people to notice Lion and tap into Lion’s potential. Talent level 15 +150 GPM is great and Lion can build large items, if needed.

Having lots of disables will make Lion useful in the mid game, while nukes can make a big difference in the late game. As long as you know how to play Lion, with proper placement and spell usage, this hero can be an extremely powerful support.

SHADOW SHAMAN

Shadow Shaman is a good disable support but trades teamfight for increased turret push potential. The lack of GPM talent clearly affects Shadow Shaman and +20% XP is not enough to replace it, but Shadow Shaman can still be picked first.

When combined with buffalo heroes possessing the ability to attract enemies and change their position, Shadow Shaman is very strong in lane. SS is low on health, but has very high arm attacks and early game nukes that can turn the tide to your liking.

In addition, Shadow can create more space when compared to Lion. Shadow Shaman has better map control and tower push. The opponent can abandon the lane that Lion is pushing because Lion pushes the turret. While Shadow Shaman forces enemies to rotate, your team’s carry is jungling.

This means that the opposing team has to waste time and resources ganking a support hero or ganking a core, but in return could lose the turret during that core gank. With Shadow Shaman, a good map feeling and understanding of the game’s position are more important than standing position and ability to use your own moves.

EPILOGUE

Above are seven highly successful support heroes in the game, at least in terms of data gathered for the current meta. From there, you can pick these heroes first and if you know how to play them, you won’t create a word in your teammates.

However, that doesn’t mean these are good support heroes of the game. They are just the most common nowadays and your teammates better know how to coordinate well with everyone. We still have plenty of reasons not to pick these seven heroes, especially in the later stages of the draft. However, the most important thing is still communicating with each other, and making sure your teammates know how to play with you.