The end of Tour 3 Division I marked the beginning of the preparation for the last Major of the 2023 DPC and DreamLeague Season 20. The latter event, which started on June 11th, features some of the best teams in the world and will also offer a spot at the Riyadh Masters in July.
With DreamLeague just getting started, we wanted to take a moment to look back at Tour 3 Division 1 to review some of the least-popular heroes across all regions. We all know that names like Techies, Medusa, and Void Spirit are among the best, but most players aren’t aware of the heroes they should avoid. Since many Dota 2 players keep an eye on the pro meta when deciding what to get, this article will focus on showing some heroes casual players and pros alike should probably avoid.
Since there are tons of heroes across all regions, BLIX can’t include every hero, instead, let us focus on some of the big names that failed to appear frequently in several regions.
Dragon Knight
The first name that is worth mentioning here is Dragon Knight. Despite being a prominent mid-laner in Dota 2 for many years, he’s not a hero you want to have on your team right now. He is fantastic for pushing and among the most robust midders. However, this is where the advantages end because Dragon Knight is among the slowest farmers in the game.
Looking at regions like Western Europe, DK didn’t appear in a single match. The situation is the same in Eastern Europe’s Tour 3 Division I, whereas, in China, the hero showed up 3 times and won just 1 game.
Even though there are instances where DK can help a lot in PUB games, he’s not the best hero for the job. Instead of relying on a slow-farming midder, most people prefer having an explosive hero that can snowball much faster like Void Spirit.
Tinker
While discussing mid-laners you should avoid having on your team, Tinker is second on the list. It’s worth knowing that while this hero has seen action in some parts of the world, such as SEA, however most regions ignore him due to being a risky pick.
Tinker is one of the best nukers in the game, there is no arguing that. Sadly, the problem is that he’s incredibly fragile and needs a lot of time to start winning. Most teams can’t afford to provide the hero with what he needs to thrive, so they prefer to focus on something else.
Although this is among the least popular Tour 3 Division 1 heroes with zero picks in Western Europe, the Dota 2 hero can work in PUBs. Tinker is among the most dominant laners in a game where he gets a good start. Consequently, many people are trying to boost themselves and reach their desired MMR by spamming this hero. This explains why his win rate is above 51%, which is pretty good compared to more popular names in the professional scene.
Arc Warden
Arc Warden was rarely picked, however when he was, he picked up an impressive win rate in pro play. Credit: ValveOne of the most surprising heroes on the list is Arc Warden. The latter was one of the heroes that received a lot of changes in the Dota 2 patch 7.33c. In fact, many people expected him to dominate the meta and become the preferred option for mid-lane players in all regions. However, this ended up not being the case.
Looking at the Tour 3 Division I in places like WEU, SEA and SA, the hero barely has any picks. Interestingly, he won almost all of the games he was a part of, which is pretty impressive for a hero that doesn’t seem to be in the current meta.
While it’s true that Arc Warden requires a lot of farms, this is a hero that can shine in many scenarios. He can easily win against most top-tier midders in a 1v1 situation. Furthermore, his ability to scale, split, push and be highly effective in team fights is something that many people appreciate. That is the reason why you may often see him in PUBs.
Night Stalker
A couple of Dota 2 heroes are usually more prevalent in PUBs than in professional games. Night Stalker is undoubtedly one of them, even though he’s a hero that has been a part of a couple of metas. In fact, there are times when this hero has been seen in action, but this wasn’t the case during Tour 3 Division I.
According to the stats, NS did not appear in a single match in most regions. Some players experimented with him, but he’s not good in the current meta. As NS is only effective at night, teams that run this draft need to plan their start around it, which has seemingly decreased his pick rate.
Huskar
Lastly, we have a hero that can be played in all three core positions. Despite his versatility, Huskar only appeared in 2-3 matches during Tour 3 Division I. In this meta it was expected to see a lot more from him, but this wasn’t the case.
Like Night Stalker and Arc Warden, Huskar got a couple of big buffs that were thought would be enough to bring him back in the meta. Sadly, this was not the case, at least in pro games.
The good thing about Huskar is that he is among the most popular and sought-after heroes in PUBs, especially in some brackets. His ability to lane against anything and snowball quickly makes him highly adequate, but not quite enough to see any serious play in Division I matches.
With DreamLeague Season 20 currently underway, keen-eyed fans should keep an eye out for these heroes, but if the Tour 3 Divison 1 stats have shown, don’t expect any of these heroes to see much play time.
