With just days to go until The International 12, Valve has released Dota patch 7.34d. This new patch should be the one the tournament will be played on. There are some changes to the meta so there’s no doubt teams will be working on altering their strategies.
It’s not uncommon for Valve to drop a brand-new patch just before a tournament. The teams will have a lot more time than they did back in April when 7.33b dropped with mere hours to go before the ESL One Berlin Major.
Understanding these last-minute changes can help you figure out who will win TI12 in Dota 2!
Notable Dota Patch 7.34d Hero Updates
The patch isn’t huge or game-changing but does make some needed changes. If you’re planning on betting on The International, don’t worry. This patch is mainly here to fix bugs. However, any patch no matter how small will result in changes to drafts and metas.
Phantom Assassin
First on the nerfing chopping block is PA. After her dominant performance at DreamLeague Season 21, this really isn’t surprising. What is surprising is that the nerf is actually quite small. Her crit chance has returned to its original 17% but her Stifling Dagger still stands strong at 34%.
Additionally, her Vanish radius has been increased from 400-500 during Blur, making her evasion just a little better.
Pangolier
One of the hardest-hit heroes is common midlaner Pangolier. Between his Rolling Thunder ult and Swashbuckle range, he’s been a formidable and contested hero at most S-tier tournaments in recent years. Perhaps no more.
Not only has Valve introduced a scaleable mana cost from 75-90 for Swashbuckle but Shield Crash has also been hit hard. With the mana cost increased and the damage decreased, it doesn’t make much sense to keep playing this hero.
Pugna
Pugna’s pushing power has received a significant buff. He’s already a thorn in the side of magic-dependent drafts but increasing Netherblast’s building damage from 50% to 65% is going to sting. The Dota 2 TI betting sites will likely be expecting to see him on some ban lists going forward.
Sven
Sven has hardly been the most contested hero of 2023 but that doesn’t mean he’s immune. Having his base damage reduced by 4 is actually one of the biggest nerfs in this patch. Additionally, God’s Strength bonus damage took a hit, being decreased from 120/160/200% to 100/140/180%.
Ogre Magi
A rare hero that hasn’t been nerfed – Ogre has actually seen a decent buff. Between a Fire Blast (including Unrefined Fire Blast) range increase and attack speed increases on Bloodlust, our bets are on him playing a part in the winning drafts for several teams.
Item Changes
Only 5 items have been affected by Dota patch 7.34d:
- Hand of Midas (attack speed bonus decreased from +40 to +35)
- Eul’s Scepter (recipe cost has been decreased by 100 gold)
- Blade Mail (damage bonus decreased from +20 to +18)
- Heart of Tarrasque (total cost increased from 5000 to 5100)
- Wind Waker (recipe cost increased by 100 gold, overall cost remains the same)
While this might not seem like a lot, all of these items are particularly popular with common carries including Naga Siren, Legion Commander and Lina.
The Occult Bracelet, Tumbler’s Toy and Ninja Gear were the only neutrals to be affected in the patch too. There are some slight decreases in mana regen and bonuses but not much to speak of.
Images: Valve
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