posted by kipspul,
This update is very much a gameplay update. There's no hats, no new battle pass or compendium--just map differences, new items, and a whole slew of buffs and nerfs. Let's open up our test clients and run down the big changes.
Global Gameplay Changes
First up is the change in [color=gold]Ranked All-Pick drafting[/color]. Every ranked all pick game will now start with a ban phase, in which players can vote on which heroes they want to be banned. Half of these heroes will be selected at random by the game to be banned. This allows for more different heroes per game (finally, a 50% chance for Invoker to not make it!) but it doesn't give players the power to remove heroes outright.
[color=gold]Captain's Mode drafting[/color] will also see a change. The ban order for the second ban phase has been changed up, as have the last two picks.
Last but not least, there's the [color=gold]Scan ability[/color], which is a team ability on a 4.5 minute cooldown. Activating Scan will tell a team whether or not there are enemies in the 900 AOE area they selected-nothing more. It won't reveal anyone, and it won't work inside Roshan.
Dotabuff shows us how to use Scan:
New Scan from 6.87 in action! Sounds and red indication on map, but no hero revealed. pic.twitter.com/ayxDLah4PI— DOTABUFF (@DOTABUFF) April 25, 2016
Terrain Changes
Nothing's quite as terrifying as a change in the map. 6.87 adds a ton of new hiding spots--I reccommend going into a lobby and walking through all of them, just to get a feel for where they are and how to use them. There's also two big changes:
- There is now a ramp leading up from the Dire ancients towards the Dire Offlane, behind the T1 tower. Expect to see ganks coming from here.
- A highground ward spot has been added to the Dire jungle
Stats Upgrades & Nerfs
IceFrog has also been experimenting with heroes' and creeps starting stats. Starting as soon as the patch goes live, heroes will have more starting HP and more base Mana. Ranged creeps will also be worth a lot more EXP.
Other noteworthy changes include:
- Towers now give a bonus armor aura to nearby allies
- Evasion now follows Pseudo-Random Distribution (goodbye, RNG'sus)
- Illusions now benefit from Damage Block
- [color=gold]Intelligence now increases your spell damage by 1% per 16 Intelligence points.[/color]
Items
Like the last two patches, this one too includes a slew of new items for your purchasing pleasure. There's two new consumables: the [b]Infused Teardrops[/b], which gives a charge-based magic damage block; and [b]Tome of Knowledge[/b], which grants 425 experience when consumed. Both of these items start out of stock, so they can't be purchased at the start of the game.
There's also two new components: [b]Wind Lace[/b] and [b]Blight Stone[/b]. Neither cost much money, so they can be bought as part of your starting items. The Wind Lace gives +20 movement speed and is used as a component for Euls and Drums. The Blight Stone reduces enemy armor by 2 on attack; it's used as a component for Medallion and Desolator.
The list is rounded out by three new "full" items. The [b]Bloodthorn[/b] is a big purchase for Int-based carries. The Bloodthorn builds out of Orchid; it's active allows for extra autoattack damage to be dealt to your silenced target. It also has true strike and a passive crit built in! The [b]Echo Sabre[/b]'s passive makes any melee hero that buys it attack twice (and apply a slow) every five seconds. I think Troll Warlord's going to be very pleased with that one...
Enchantress likes this item.
Last but not least, the [b]Hurricane Pike[/b] is combines Force Staff and Dragon Lance into one crazy package. Using it on an ally will simply push them, like a Force Staff would. Using it on an opponent, however, will push you and that opponent away from each other--while allowing you to attack your target four more times.
Aghanims Scepter
The quest for crazy Aghs abilities goes on. In this patch [color=gold]Bloodseeker, Mirana, Winter Wyvern, Oracle and Storm Spirit[/color] see themselves get an ultimate-upgrade. Gyrocopter's and Earthshaker's Scepter abilities are reworked--giving Gyrocopter a permanent Rocket Barrage buddy, and Earthshaker a built-in Slam-Dunk. Sound too crazy? Just take a look below.
Why walk when you can bounce?
Last but not least, there's a whole SLEW of hero changes. The nerfstick hasn't been kind to Enchantress, Invoker, Earth Spirit, and Beastmaster. There's also fun buffs, both big and small. Puck has more speed on his Illusory Orb, Time Lapse now disjoints projectiles, and Phantom Assassin's dagger is now treated as a full hero attack at distance.
Want to read all of it? Here's the full patchnotes. For now, the patch is only available in the test client. It will go live in a couple of days, when the rough spots have been ironed out.
Comments