Valve announces The Ringmaster coming in 2024

Valve announces The Ringmaster coming in 2024

Otomo

30 Sep, 2023, 00:37

|

Last updated: 11 Apr, 2025, 01:15

At The International 12 (TI12) Valve announced the next hero to join the Dota 2 roster. Ringmaster will be coming in 2024.

Not much detail has been revealed about the new hero, but there are certain hints to what he does in the trailer.

Everything we know about the Ringmaster in Dota 2

Dota 2's Ringmaster looks like a great controller.
Good luck escaping that (Credit: Valve)

From the trailer video, we can see the Ringmaster controls a creep to lure enemies. That's not unexpected, since the hero is based on the Puppet Master from Heroes of Neworth.

When Axe is lured to a carnival device, he tests his strength on the machine. We believe that Ringmaster will use some ability based on the enemy's strength, the stronger the enemy, the higher the impact. It could be from how high their main attribute or level is, time will tell.

After Axe hits the machine, he is immediately grabbed and sucked into it.  Ringmaster will likely have some form of control that locks enemies away for a few seconds, possibly his ultimate.

In 2021 a few people datamined information from the Dota 2 servers and found a few unused abilities, we expect at least a couple of these to be used for Ringmaster (possibly called Puppet Master back then).

Puppet Master: Chastise (Deleted), Command Puppets, Craft Puppets (Deleted), Dark Marionette, Marionette Cancel, Marionette, Master of Puppets, Pull the Strings, Punch No Judy, Siphon Soul (Deleted), String Up, Voodoo Doll, Funhouse (New ability), Limelight (New ability), Mannequin Pull (New ability), Mannequin Push (New ability) and Standing Ovation (New ability).

Not much else is known about the hero, but we're hopeful he comes out early in 2024, which for Valve would be November.

Till then, happy pubbing!

READ MORE: Zai: "This might have been my last TI"

Image Source provided by: Valve

 

Latest news

The International 2026: North America Regional Qualifier Schedule

The International 2026: North America Regional Qualifier Schedule

The International Regional Qualifiers are coming to an end but not before deciding which North American team will fight for the Aegis of Champions representing their region.
22 Jun
Eric Oliveira

Miposhka Returns To Team Spirit As Coach

Almost a year after being moved to Team Spirit's inactive roster, Yaroslav "Miposhka" Naidenov returns as a coach to help his former teammates on their journey to the Esports World Cup and The International 2026.
21 Jun
Eric Oliveira

The International 2026: Europe Regional Qualifier Schedule

Western and Eastern Europe are huge regions with a lot of competitive teams on their own, but for The International 2026, Valve decided to merge them into one big qualifier that will definitely be as entertaining as most tournaments.
19 Jun
Eric Oliveira

Esports Nations Cup 2026 Tickets: Pricing and Purchase Guide

Tickets for the inaugural Esports Nations Cup are now live, with weekly and tournament passes currently available. Here's how to purchase them.
19 Jun
Adarsh J. Kumar

Esports World Cup 2026: All Dota 2 Teams Invited and Qualified

The Esports World Cup (EWC) Regional Qualifiers are over, and with the tournament approaching, it's time to check which 24 teams secured their spots through the ESL Pro Tour (EPT) Ranking and the Regional Qualifiers.
18 Jun
Eric Oliveira

GOALS Partners with PUMA for Exclusive In-Game Collectible Cosmetics

The new online football game currently gathering momentum — GOALS — has announced their latest endeavour: a team up with major sports brand: PUMA. The sports brand giant becomes the first to align themselves with GOALS for the release of an exclusive line of collectable cosmetics.
18 Jun
Foo Zen-Wen

The International 2026: Southeast Asia Regional Qualifier Schedule

Let's take a look at the Southeast Asian Regional Qualifiers for The International 2026 and check everything you need to know about the invited teams, format, possible rivalries, and much more.
18 Jun
Eric Oliveira

Comments (0)

Log in to comment on this match