Patch 7.34d Review – The International 12’s Patch

To be honest, most people didn’t expect Valve to release a new update before TI 12. However, it seems like some heroes were too strong, which is why players have access to the Dota 2 Patch 7.34d. As you can probably guess, the patch doesn’t bring any fundamental changes, but some heroes and items are slightly better or worse than before.

There is no need to go through every change because you can read everything in the 7.34d patch note. However, some things deserve more attention, so we’ll review them. It seems like the DreamLeague Season 21 meta has an effect on Valve’s decision for some heroes because we can see they got substantial nerfs.

Will Phantom Assassin go out of the meta?

As mentioned, the Dota 2 Patch 7.34d brings several nerfs and buffs to some fan-favorite favorite heroes. While names like Anti-Mage will probably become more popular after the changes, the same can’t be said about Phantom Assassin. Just when we thought the hero would be ripping through her opponents at The International 12, it seems like this won’t be the case.

Phantom Assassin is one of the heroes who was pretty big in the last patch, and pro teams used her every now and then. However, it seems like Valve thought she was too strong because PA got several big nerfs.

• Blur’s Aghanim Scepter no longer increases Vanish Buffer
• Vanish Radius is now 500 instead of 400
• The cooldown with Aghanim’s Scepter is now 50% of the current CD instead of 10s flat.
• Coup De Grace now has a 17% chance of Deadly Focus (the chance to do that with your Stifling Dagger is down from 40% to 37).

Although these changes may not seem that bad, the first stats reveal the hero just isn’t performing as well as before. We are yet to see if professional Dota 2 players will rely on her, but we believe the 7.34d patch has put an end to PA’s competitive journey.

Vengeful Spirit continues to get weaker

Following the buffs to Vengeful Spirit a couple of patches ago, she became one of the strongest heroes in the game. In fact, she was the most picked hero in several tournaments in a row, even though she keeps getting nerfs in the last two small updates.7.34d isn’t an exception because Venge received another portion of nerfs.

• Magic Missile now has 15/13/11/9s CD instead of 12/11/10/9s
• Wave of Terror decreases 10/15/20/25% Attack Damage instead of 15/20/25/30%

Overall, these changes should make Vengeful Spirit more balanced because this was one of the heroes who was too strong. We don’t believe Dota 2 Patch 7.34d will remove her from the meta. Nevertheless, she may not be the go-to support for most teams, especially in Western Europe.

Pangolier is in trouble

The next hero to receive a lot of nerfs in 7.34d is Pangolier. The fact he is one of the heroes affected isn’t a surprise because a lot of players, including some of the best, thought he was too strong. Judging by what happened, Valve agrees with them because Pango got “sliced”:

• Swashbuckle costs 75/80/85/90 mana instead of 75 on all levels
• Shield Crash costs 70/80/90/100 mana instead of 60/70/80/90
• The hero’s level 20 talent gives +15 DMG to Swashbuckle instead of +20
• Shield Crash’s damage is now 60/120/180/240, but it used to be 70/140/210/280

As can we seen after the 7.34d patch, Pangolier will have a lot of issues with mana. His damage output is also slightly lower than before, but the real problem will be the mana because his core abilities require more than before.

We don’t believe those changes are enough to push him away from the meta. However, we are certain he’ll be way more tricky to play, especially in teams without a lot of Arcane Boots.

Invoker Is Nerfed. Again.

It seems like Invoker players are not allowed to have fun and dominate their games because the Dota 2 7.34d patch nerfed the hero. Although the nerfs aren’t that drastic, they’ll probably have an effect on his popularity for The International 12.

Speaking of changes, here is what’s new:

• His base HP regen is down from 1 to 0.5.
• Cold Snap’s Freeze Heal is down from 16 -> 128 to 13 -> 104
• E.M.P’s mana restoration is down from 50% to 25%

In other words, Invoker will have problems surviving and he won’t be able to gain as much mana as before.

Ogre Magi is Back

Besides nerfs, 7.34d also brings a lot of buffs to certain heroes. One of them is Ogre Magi, a name we haven’t seen much in the last few months. With that said, the most recent changes mean Ogre will most likely appear more at The International 12.

• The hero’s Fireblast and Unrefined Fireblast now have 525 range instead of 475
• Bloodlust provides 40/60/80/100 AS to Ogre and 30/45/60/75 to his allies. This is a substantial buff that will be really useful for the late game.

The range buffs may not seem good, but they can make a huge difference. Ogre Magi isn’t famous for being the fastest hero in Dota 2, so having more range for his stuns allows him to be more effective.