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Dota 2: How does Positive Mental Attitude Affect your Game?
PMA -Positive Mental Attitude
Dota 2 is a game based on teamwork, strategy, and mental endurance. And when things are not going our way, it is easy to lose our cool. We often give in to our negative thoughts and start with the toxicity & the famous 'blaming time'. But rather than being negative, how would our game change if we had a PMA approach? It's not as easy as flipping a switch, but with some tips and consistency, we can surely reach higher ranks.
Stop Blaming Your Teammates
Instead of blaming your team, think about how to better the situation or compensate for your team's mistakes. Spamming pings and their items will only irritate the team more. If there is something you want your team to do or not to do, communicate with them rather than letting it spin in your head and blame them later on. Who knows, they might find your suggestions better and would comply with your positive mental attitude.
Don't phase out and play a 1 vs. 9 game!
Credit: u/MaxOfS2D
The worst thing you can do is play an isolated game of Dota 2. Muting your whole team is one thing, but not wanting to respond to their moves or defending a siege is another. We all need farm and experience but do it near your team and keep a watch on their movements. If a fight breaks out and your involvement can change it in your team's favor, it's better to take it than be stuck on the other end of the map afk farming.
Don't hesitate to buy team items!
Vision is an important aspect of Dota 2. Don't hesitate to get Observer and Sentry wards. Supports don't have the gold to buy wards sometimes, so buy them. Drop it if you do not want to place them, and let your team know when you do so.
Not everyone is a carry, and if there is an item or two that helps win the fight, get it! The regular team items are Crimson Guard, Pipe of Insight, Lotus Orb & Guardian Greaves. Why these four items?
Crimson Guard
Active: Provides allies a 100% chance to block (70+50% of Caster Strength) physical damage for 8 seconds.
Passive: Provides a 60% chance to block 75 melee damage and 50 ranged damage for you.
Pipe of Insight
Active: Provides allies a barrier that blocks 450 magic damage for 12 seconds.
Passive: Provides an aura with 2 hp regen and 10% magic resistance to nearby allies.
Note that after the barrier blocks 450 damage before its 12-second duration is over, it will disappear.
Lotus Orb
When targeted on you or an ally, it provides a normal dispel and applies an Echo Shell buff for 6 seconds, which mirrors all targeted spells back at its caster.
Guardian Greaves
Active: Restores 350 health and 200 mana to nearby allies and removes negative debuffs from the caster when activated.
Passive: Provides 2.5 health regen and 3 armor for nearby allies. It also provides a bonus of 12 health regen and 8 armor when a hero's health is below 25%.
Note that Multiple Guardian Auras do not stack.
Depending on the enemy, these items can change, so don't stick to just one hero build. In the below video, at 23 seconds, watch how Artour "Arteezy" Babaev gets ganked by the enemy team but takes almost no damage because his Dark Seer activates Crimson, Pipe, and Greaves. This helps him turn around the fight and even get a rampage!
Take a break after every game
Whether you win or lose, Dota 2 can be mentally taxing. Don't grind the game and take a break from your seat, have some water, and refresh yourself. Start your next game with a positive mental attitude and enjoy the game.
Tools that Dota 2 Provides to help us
Practicing with Bots
Never try out a new hero in a Ranked match. Not only will you be unsure of your gameplay, but you won't be able to perform your best. Learning a new hero takes time, so practice with bots first. Go wild, try new strategies and builds, then move on to unranked and test what you learned. When you are confident with the hero, pick it in ranked matches.
Last Hit Trainer
Spend a few minutes with the last hit trainer before starting your series of games. The laning stage sets the pace for the rest of the game, and learning how to last hit is a basic necessity of the laning stage.
Download Replay
When you have a bad game, watching a replay will help you figure out the mistakes you made, and you can resolve them. With the enemy perspective, you can also see ward positions and how the enemy reacted to your movements.
Dota 2 New Behaviour System
The Summer Update brought the new behavior system, which has helped dial down the toxicity. With more detailed options to report players that negatively affect our game, we have one less thing to worry about during the game.
Consistency is key. You can forget things you want to practice during a game, and keeping a note of it to remember them can help out until you are used to it. Once you are able to avoid the negativity during games, you can concentrate on honing your skills.
Dota 2 is just a game and we are all here to have fun. I would like to conclude by saying that communication and teamwork can take you a long way. Remember that those who abandon their friends are worse than scum!
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