Written By Tom "Hucky" Fairbairn
16 September, 2008 10:47 PM

DotA: From pub to pro

It’s no secret that the GotGames DotA community is still a fledgling one. Many (in fact, probably most) of us started out in pubs on Bored Aussie or BattleNET, and still mostly play pubs. This, of course, has directly affected the way we learnt to play the game, the builds we use on certain heroes, and the strategies we use to control the map. It has also left one important aspect of our gameplay vastly underdeveloped: teamwork.

Teamwork encompasses an enormous range of different strategies and tactical decisions. Some are long term decisions (like hero choices) and some have to be made on the fly (like whether to enter a team battle without your carry hero and only half your mana pool). Like in any other game, teamwork can only be achieved with team practice sessions. Again however, like any other game, DotA can be largely influenced by individual skill. Anyone who has seen a top tier player using a hero they play often (vigoss’ Chaos Knight, for example) will attest to this. Games can be won or lost by a dominant carry hero, even if this isn’t always the case.

As I’ve already alluded to, everything changes when you go from pub DotA games to competitive matches. You can’t stack butterflies on Luna and go 20-0. You can’t solo Roshan at level 8 with Undying. You can’t pick Troll and carry your languishing team to victory with permabash. The reasons you can’t do these things are many and varied, but the most pertinent ones are the game mode, your map control and teamwork. Let’s take a more detailed look at each of these.


GAME MODES

Alas, -sdem, -arem, -rdem and –apem are no more. Get ready for less gold, more damaging towers and creeps, more pressure on hero choices and a generally slower game.

The three most commonly used modes for competitive play are League Mode (-lm) , All Pick (-ap) and Extended League Mode (-xl). Easy mode (-em) is never used in competitive play. A few major changes in non-em gameplay are:

• 50% less experience received
• Towers do more damage
• 50% less gold received (1 every .875 seconds instead of 2 every .875 seconds)

The last point regarding gold is particularly important, as it puts pressure on players to last hit more creeps in order to farm gold. It also makes denying creeps much more useful. In non-em, denying a creep denies opposing heroes half the experienced that they would normally have gained from the creep’s death. It also prevents them from last hitting the creep and gaining gold. In some cases, a particularly skilled player can deny enough creeps to gain a significant level advantage over the opposing heroes.

The mode being used in the GotGames DotA tournament is –xl. Its features are similar to that of –ap and –lm, but there are a few crucial differences. In summary:

• Prior to the game, each team can “ban” (read: eliminate) 3 heroes from the hero pool. These can be from either the Sentinel and Scourge taverns, and there are no restrictions on which heroes can be banned.
• After the hero bans, the game proceeds similarly to an –ap draft game. The picks alternate between the two teams in the format 1-2-2-2-2-1, with the Sentinel team picking first. Heroes can be picked from all taverns regardless of whether you’re on Sentinel or Scourge.
• Clockwerk Goblin and Invoker are both banned in the GotGames league. This is due to stability issues with these two heroes which exist because of their recent introduction to the game.
• There are various item restrictions – these can be viewed in the competition ruleset at GotGames.com.au - GotGames Open 5v5 Ladder - Season 1
• Neutral creeps spawn at 3:30, which is considerably later than most other modes.

MAP CONTROL

Map control can essentially be seen as a subsidiary of teamwork, with a few noteable additions. One of these is the use of wards.

Wards

There are two types of wards available for purchase – observer wards, and sentry wards. Both cost 200 gold for 2 wards and last for 10 minutes after being deployed.

Observer wards remove the fog of war in a circular radius around the ward. They are useful in the following situations:

• Keeping track of runes (more on this soon)
• Avoiding ganks by providing early warning of advancing heroes
• Preventing neutral creeps from spawning

Sentry wards reveal invisible units within a similar radius. Their applications are vastly different to those of observer wards, and include:

• Revealing invisible enemy heroes
• Revealing other invisible units, such as Nerubian Weaver’s watchers and Beastmaster’s flying scout.
• Revealing the opposing team’s wards to prevent your team’s heroes being revealed when invisible

I can’t stress how much more important wards are in competitive play. A well practiced team will be twice as organised when they have full or even partial map visibility. Restricting the opposing team’s map visibility keeps them uncertain of your hero positions. This can help prevent ganks which would otherwise have allowed the opposing heroes to gain experience, farm, or even push a tower.

Runes

Runes are often a gift out of the blue when playing pub. In competitive play they are considered an essential part of team strategy. One rune can make a world of difference in a team battle. There are 5 types of runes, each with an equal chance to spawn. They are:

• Double Damage
• Regeneration
• Illusion
• Haste
• Invisibility

Every type of rune (usually excluding DD) can be used both to initiate ganks and escape attacking heroes. Double Damage is used almost exclusively when ganking enemy heroes, and can turn a battle around if collected by a hero with high base damage.

Another important note is that runes are often bottled. It’s not uncommon to see heroes carrying nothing but a bottle, wards and a scroll of town portal early on in league matches. Bottles and wards work well together, allowing you to gain control over the rune spawn, quickly collect the rune for later use, and subsequently help teammates initiate ganks. The bottle is a good example of an item which is used far more in competitive play than in pub. It allows heroes an easy escape mechanism and a constant supply of mana, and opens the door for much more advanced strategies, such as jungling heroes with a flying courier refilling your bottle in the absence of a rune. Alas, such strategies belong in a different guide.


TEAMWORK

Teamwork comes down to rolling everything into one cohesive game plan. Having good teamwork means inside out map knowledge, effective use of wards and runes, good hero choices and well organised ganks and pushes.

Hero choices

Rather than picking your favourite hero, you have to consider how your hero is going to interact with your teammates’ and opponents’ heroes when playing competitively. For example, choosing Luna might not be a great idea against a team of blinking and windwalking heroes (such as Weaver, Queen of Pain and Anti Mage) as they can easily evade your ultimate. However, it might be a smart choice against a team with Sand King and Witch Doctor, as they have channelling ultimates which can be countered by the mini-stun on your lucent beams. Some heroes are chosen solely to counter the opposing team’s carry hero, or to stop the dominant ultimate of an enemy hero.

Lane combinations

Choosing heroes which work well together in lanes is of utmost importance. Of equal importance is choosing a good solo hero. Beware, though: heroes which solo well in pub (such as Bloodseeker and Troll Warlord) can have a hard time against a good lane combo. There are also some heroes which can be “jungled” such as Beastmaster, Furion and Bristleback. This involves killing mainly neutral creeps to gain experience, which allows your team to have two solo heroes. Jungling is very complex, so I’ll leave it to a different guide.

There are a myriad of other things to consider regarding teamwork, and it would take me several thousand words to explore them all. Knowing which heroes to send into team fights first, tailoring your items to counter those of your opponents, using “team item builds” (such as damage, health regen or mana regen aura stacks) or preset hero combinations (such as picking Zeus, Furion and Spectre for greater map control) are all things which can only be perfected with practice.

So start practicing your competitive game now! Play some inhouse games, look for good hero builds on the net, and practice the small things like last hitting, denying and creep blocking. Practice some different heroes, talk to your team about potential hero combinations, and research the opposing team's tactics before your match. It might just give you the edge.