The biggest winners of Dota 2 patch 7.34d

Valve has released the latest Dota 2 gameplay update, a mere week before The International 12 is set to begin. The previous patch was a little too restricted in the pro scene, with only a handful of heroes being viable for each role.

As with every update, some heroes rise while others fall and in this article, we will be looking at the biggest winners of Dota 2 patch 7.34d and if they are worth picking now.

The five biggest winners of Dota 2 patch 7.34d

Huskar

Huskar is a great midlaner for zoning enemies. (Credit: Valve)

Changes in Dota 2 patch 7.34d

• Burning Spear: Duration increased from 8s to 9s

Huskar didn't receive massive changes in the latest update, with just one second added to his Burning Spear. That's an additional 24 damage when the skill is maxed and with the level 15 talent.

The bigger reason for Huskar's uptick in win rate is due to the nerf his counters have gone through.

Huskar is weak to heavy physical damage, which heroes such as Sven and Phantom Assassin (PA) dish out.

With his biggest rivals not doing so well, and most midlaners picking melee heroes such as Earth Spirit, Primal Beast, and Kunkka, Huskar is in the perfect spot to return to the competitive scene.

Thanks to the meta shift and a small buff, Huskar gained a solid 2% to his win rate, although the hero is less effective at higher MMR games.

Lifestealer

Truly a face only a mother could love. (Credit: Valve)

Changes in Dota 2 patch 7.34d

• Feast: Max Health Damage increased from 0.8/1.1/1.4/1.7% to 1/1.3/1.6/1.9%

One important thing to address on Lifestealer is that the official patch notes were incorrect in labeling the previous values for Feast.

Lifestealer gained 0.2% extra damage per level of Feast. If you think that's not much, you're right.

For every 500 health an enemy hero has, Naix now deals an extra one damage, holy moly.

In most games, the buff to Feast will amount to at most 10 extra damage per hit, it's one of the smallest buffs I've ever seen.

If Lifestealer had such a tiny buff, why is the hero winning 2.8% more now?

Similar to our previous entry, Lifestealer is one of The biggest winners of Dota 2 patch 7.34d because other carries are significantly weaker.

Naix is worth picking in lower MMR games, where his magic immunity and lifesteal are enough to win fights against uncoordinated enemies.

His win rate drops off a cliff in Immortal matches, so he's better to play now, but not worth mastering.

Abaddon

He's such a smart pick now. (Credit: Valve)

Changes in Dota 2 patch 7.34d

• Base Intelligence increased from 18 to 19
• Intelligence gain increased from 1.2 to 1.6
• Aphotic Shield: Damage Barrier increased from 110/140/170/200 to 120/150/180/210

Finally, a support makes it on the list, and it is a support that has needed love for a long time.

Abaddon has the smallest attribute gain in Dota 2 and a little bonus to his base stats and intelligence growth goes a long way.

It's a decent-sized buff to the hero's mana pool. Abaddon now starts with 12 extra mana at level one and gains an extra 24 mana every five levels, not bad.

Aphotic Shield blocks a little more damage now as well. An extra 10 block per level is quite nice, especially when you remember that the shield deals damage when broken, so that's potentially an extra 50 damage done per shield.

With solid buffs, and most other position-five supports getting nerfed, along with people prioritizing Abaddon's incredibly powerful Aghanim Scepter, it's no wonder the hero wins 3.5% more now.

Should you be picking Abaddon though? If you're a hard support, then definitely.

The hero is very effective across all brackets thanks to his durability, amazing sustain in fights, and the ability to mow down towers with his team.

Spirit Breaker

Wouldn't wanna be charged by that fella. (Credit: Valve)

Changes in Dota 2 patch 7.34d

• Greater Bash: Movement Speed as Damage increased from 20/25/30/35% to 25/30/35/40%

Spirit Breaker deals 5% more damage with Greater Bash at all levels, that's actually a pretty big deal.

With Phase Boots active and a Wind Lace, two common items for the hero, Spirit Breaker runs at 947 movement speed while charging a target.

That used to deal 331 damage in the previous patch, it now deals 379.

That's almost 50 extra damage to every unit Spirit Breaker passes through, along with the primary target. It also makes it significantly easier to farm creeps. It also works with regular attacks and Nether Strike.

It's a straight-up damage buff and in Dota 2 that goes a long way. The best enemy is a dead enemy and anyone that gets charged by Spirit Breaker won't be spending much time among the living.

Chaos Knight

One hit and creeps die, how fun. (Credit: Valve)

Changes in Dota 2 patch 7.34d

• Chaos Strike: Creep Damage Multiplier increased from 1.6 to 1.9

Chaos Strike now deals (almost) double damage on creeps, on top of the innate critical damage the ability already provides.

At this point anytime a Chaos Strike lands on a creep, it will be killed in a single blow. That's a pretty big deal.

Chaos Knight's farming speed is greatly accelerated in the new update, allowing him to come online earlier and scale better late-game.

If the lane goes badly, Chaos Knight can jungle at lower levels than before, thanks to the buff the hero received in the latest update.

And of course, it goes without saying that Phantasm was heavily countered by previous meta heroes such as Sven and Gyrocopter. With these heroes nerfed, CK is in a prime spot to dominate the pro scene.

The new patch has shaken the pub scene in Dota 2, and once The International 12 begins, it will be fascinating to see how pros adapt to the latest update. Will it be the same heroes as the last few months? or will new stars take the limelight?

READ MORE: The best entries for The International 12 short film contest

Featured Image Source: Valve