A day after its release, The Outlanders Update received another set of significant buffs and nerfs.
In 7.23a, Valve has heavily shaken up the Neutral Item drop system. Neutrals now only drop three items per tier. The odds were also rescaled to 10% to 5% to 2.5%, to 9% to 6% to 3%.
Item drops will also have no end period and higher tier items will always roll first after their respective start periods. For instance, Tier 1 items will start dropping after 5 minutes, but can still be received 40 minutes into the game. That said, higher-tier items will have priority after their time interval begins. This is a huge change from the 15-minute interval per tier in the initial update.
As expected, there were many changes to the Neutral Items themselves in the new patch. For starters, Valve removed the Tome of Aghanim, a Tier 2 item that temporarily granted an Aghanim’s Scepter buff for three minutes when consumed. Helm of the Undying, Repair Kit, and Vambrace were all moved from Tier 2 to Tier 3 while Clumsy Net was moved from Tier 3 to Tier 2. The Leveller now grants 25% demolish instead of cleave and splash effect.
Valve also tweaked several other items including Spell Prism, Mirror Shield, and Timeless Relic.
Changes to heroes arrive in Dota 2 update 7.23a
Notable changes were also made to several heroes, including the newly added Snapfire and Void Spirit.
Breaking from Valve tradition, it seems that these two heroes were actually underpowered after their initial release.
Snapfire has increased base armor and strength gain. Firesnap Cookie, Lil’ Shredder, and Mortimer Kisses were all also buffed. On the other hand, Void Spirit’s Astral Step cast point was reduced from 0.4 to 0.2 and its cast range was increased from 600/800/1000 to 700/900/1100.
Better-established Dota 2 heroes were also given significant changes. Anti-Mage’s Mana Break was nerfed, Crystal Maiden’s Arcane Aura was rescaled, and Undying was given a fairly substantial buff.
These tweaks will likely be welcomed, but fans are still overwhelmed by the many changes brought by the Outlanders Update. The patch shocked and overwhelmed the community, with many dubbing it Dota 3. That said, there has been a fairly significant pushback against the game’s many balance changes and the increased importance of RNG.
Fans can read the full patch notes on the official Dota 2 blog.
