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The Biggest Changes in Dota 2 patch 7.34e
Valve has released the latest update to their flagship MOBA. Dota 2 patch 7.34e doesn't aim to shake the meta up too much but it does introduce much-needed changes to the game.
While it would have been nice to have a bigger update, the latest overhaul is a step in the right direction. The strongest heroes and items have taken a hit from the nerf hammer, while previously ignored heroes got a little love.
The three biggest Changes in Dota 2 patch 7.34e
Hand of Midas and Heart of Tarrasque are a little less enticing now
Items didn't get changed too much in Dota 2 patch 7.34e, with only six of them being updated. A little more armor on Helm of the Overlord is nice, but hardly exciting.
Two items did receive significant nerfs though. Hand of Midas got 10 seconds added to its cooldown, making it a riskier purchase now.
The other big loser is Heart of Tarrasque. It costs 100 gold more while providing five less strength.
Both items are still worth buying for the heroes who need them, however they do make those heroes slightly weaker.
One surprising item that made it through the patch unscathed was Blade Mail. It's been the partner of Heart since patch 7.34 and it's strange to see IceFrog avoid nerfing it.
Chaos Knight isn't looking so hot in the Dota 2 patch 7.34e
The previous meta wore out its welcome and by the end, it was obvious which heroes were overpowered and needed to be toned down. A total of 17 heroes received direct nerfs.
Some of the nerfs are negligible, such as Wraith King's Skeletons doing slightly less damage, or Ink Swell healing slightly less from creeps.
A few heroes did take big hits from the nerf stick though. Bristleback will do a lot less damage in a smaller area now. Players will also need to max his passive to proc Quill Spray more often, something they could skip before.
Another big loser is Kunkka. Ghostship reduces less damage, Torrent Storm is less reliable, and Tidal Wave doesn't hit the same way as it used to. Magic Kunkka is still good, but not overly so.
The biggest loser has to be Chaos Knight. Five less starting damage hurts him at all stages of the game. Phantasm's increased mana cost means the hero can't spam it to farm like before. The greatly reduced life steal forces the hero to buy more regeneration items and jungle later. We'll make an early prediction and say we expect CK to lose 3-4% more often now at least.
Timbersaw is set to dominate at ESL Kuala Lumpur
There were fewer buffs than nerfs in the recent update, a shame to be sure. But at least 11 heroes were given some much-needed love, though time will tell if it's enough to make it back into the meta.
Shadow Shaman's Hex provides double damage amplification at level one, going from 5% to 10% and maxing out at 25% now. Since this spell tends to get maxed last, the early extra damage goes a long way to making the hero feel more impactful.
The biggest patch winner is likely to be Timbersaw. Whirling Death now takes away 13% of a hero's main stats, that's insane, especially against strength heroes. Combine that with Heart providing less strength overall, and we might see the return of more Agility and Intelligence cores.
Overall there weren't a whole lot of changes in Dota 2 patch 7.34e, but it's a small step in the right direction and should spice up the upcoming ESL Kuala Lumpur tournament in December.
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