Dota 2
Although we expected Tour 3 of the 2023 DPC to occur on the 7.33b patch, Valve has decided to give us access to something fresh. Just a day before the start of the last DPC tour of 2023, patch 7.33c dropped.
This new path contains a large amount of gameplay changes, some of which are more interesting than others. Remember to check the complete changelog to get an idea of everything new.
This article will only focus on a limited number of changes regarding heroes and items. Instead, BLIX will provide you with a meta-analysis and what we expect to happen. The best Dota 2 teams in the world will have to get used to 7.33c quickly because Tour 3 is just around the corner.
Supports have been buffed
One of the most significant changes you need to be aware of after 7.33c is that supports have received multiple buffs. If we take a close look at the patch notes, we can see three big news that will have a significant effect on support heroes:
- Getting a wisdom rune will grant experience to the lowest-level hero on the team
- Observer wards provide more EXP bounty
- When a camp that's been stacked dies, the player who stacked it gets 30% of the EXP.
Those three things will make support a lot stronger and help them gain levels much faster. Also, starting with the Wisdom Rune that becomes available seven minutes after the start will allow the Pos4/5 support players to catch up on EXP. Support players are usually those who are lacking behind the rest of the team in terms of levels.
The EXP buff for the Observer Wards is also a small bonus because support players are the ones that usually do the dewarding on their team. The EXP bounty could be more impressive, so it won't make a big difference.
What will make a massive difference is the experience bonus for stacks. Patch 7.33 introduced more neutral camps, so stacking is even more important than before. Thanks to the Dota 2 patch 7.33c, heroes that decide to stack won't lose that much experience from not being in the lane because they will get a 30% of the EXP from that stack.
This buff is even more impressive because it will help pub support players focus more on stacking. Sadly, this was something that most pub support players should have paid more attention to.
Some of the strongest Auras in the games have been nurfed
One of the things you will notice after reading the Dota 2 patch 7.33c change log is the item changes. There are several essential things to cover, and we won't be able to go through everything. First, however, it is vital to know that some of the strongest Auras in the game got nerfed.
When talking about Auras, we mean items that heroes got to improve their team's team fight potential. This includes the likes of Crimson Guard, Boots of Bearing, Pipe of Insight and more. Interestingly, all those items received a nerf in some form, such as costing more gold, providing less HP regen and so on.
Some Neutral Items are more viable
In addition to the changes to the standard items in Dota 2, patch 7.33c also introduced a lot of new things about the Neutral Items. All of the changes are manageable; however, some items are much better than before.
Some good examples are here, such as Stormcrafter, which gives +35 MS instead of +30. Vindicator's Axe also gives +35 AS instead of +30 and so on.
Alchemist and Medusa are not as strong as before
One of the things that we expected to see in the Dota 2 patch 7.33c is a nerf to Alchemist and Medusa. These two heroes have been a nightmare to play against in PUBs, and pro players also relied on them to win. However, Valve also noticed that they felt a bit too strong, so the publisher decided to nerf them a bit in 7.33c.
Starting with Alchemist, almost all his core abilities are less strong than before. Greedevil's Greed, for example, provides less additional gold, and the talent that gives the hero damage is better than before. In addition, Unstable Concoction has more cooldown, the hero has less movement speed, and his ult provides him less MS than before.
Although none of these changes will make Alchemist feel bad, he is slightly weaker than before. Therefore, it will be interesting to see if some of the teams in Tour 3 of the 2023 DPC will pass on him in favor of someone else. On the other hand, the new "stacking meta" is excellent for heroes like Alch, so we wouldn't be surprised if the new patch makes him even more popular.
Speaking of heroes that crushed the competition in 7.33b, we must address Medusa. She also got some nerfs to her Mystic Snake and Mana Shield, but we don't think they will be enough to push the hero out of the meta. Before patch 7.33c, Medusa was the most successful hero in Dota 2, and we expect this trend to continue.
Some heroes are going to be back in the meta
Aside from the heroes that got nerfed, a few exciting names received a buff in the Dota 2 patch 7.33c. Earthshaker, for example, got a massive buff to all of his abilities, which means that he will definitely be back in the meta.
Chaos Knight is another interesting name that got slightly better. Albeit less impressive than the changes to ES, CK can be a viable option for some teams. Sadly, he is not that good at clearing camps unless the hero goes for a Battlefury.
Be sure to keep an eye on our Dota 2 portal with Tour 3 right around the corner, which will be played on 7.33c.
