Quentyn K. July 25, 2019
Valve has confirmed plans to implement new balance changes in Dota Underlords that would address a powerful and polarizing meta shift that occurred as a result of the most recent changes to the game.
The official Dota Underlords Twitter account posted about the incoming tweaks.
The company comically mentioned Arc Warden four times to tease that it’s almost certainly getting nerfed. Hunters and Primordials will also receive attention this time around.
There isn’t an exact shipping date for the patch, but Valve suggests something will shoot out of the pipeline early in the week of July 28.
Arc Warden is in the crosshairs thanks to buffs to key stats such as his attack speed, life pool, and damage at higher ranks. His power level at the three-star mark has proven to be a little too much, especially considering he can replicate himself with the Tempest Double ability.
Valve was also magnanimous toward Primordial alliance builds. When fully activated, the Primordial alliance bonus offers a 40% chance to disarm melee attackers and a 10% chance for those at the range.
If the heightened threat of repeated disarmament wasn't enough, the full bonus now also applies to all of your units in play, and not just to the Primordials.
As for the Hunter alliance, it might also be on the buff train for the next patch. Hunters have a 20% chance to make two rapid-firing attacks when three of them are on the field. That number climbs to 35% with six or more.
Its effectiveness dropped with Medusa becoming rarer and Tidehunter switching teams from Hunter to Warrior.
Couple those losses with the attack-canceling gains Primordials have enjoyed, and one can see how annoying it might be to run a Hunter composition at present.
Valve isn’t too proud to admit when it’s made a mistake in balance. Dota fans can be hard on the company for its decisions, but it deserves some leeway for Underlords.
The game and genre are new enough to excuse the stumbles, and Valve's willingness to experiment throughout the maturation process should pay dividends in the long run.