Phantom Lancer is the new best hero of Dota 2 7.33

The best hero of Dota 2 7.33 is also one of the game’s most frustrating carries.

Tons of heroes got insane buffs as part of 7.33, but it took a few days of playtesting for Dota 2 fans to figure out whose buffs are just fluff and which are the real deal. However, one carry has eclipsed all expectations as the strongest hero of the patch. Phantom Lancer’s win rate has exploded to above 60%, making him the clear best hero of 7.33.

Here’s what made him so good and how to abuse him in your own matches.

What makes Phantom Lancer so good in 7.33

In 7.33, Phantom Lancer didn’t appear to get any massive buffs at all. His attack range was increased to reflect his weapon, but his versatile Aghanim’s Shard was moved to Scepter with increased numbers.

However, his new Shard effectively granted him his old ability Doppelwalk, which was removed in 6.82 back in late 2014. The new ability makes PL invisible and replaces his hero with an illusion, making him incredibly difficult to pin down.

The result is one of the biggest win rate swings in the history of Dota 2. Just two days after patch 7.33, Phantom Lancer’s win rate surged from 48.63% to just over 60%. It has slightly tempered as players have adjusted, but he still sports an incredibly high 57.47% win rate as of August 22, 2023. 

PL leads the race for best hero of 7.33

Other characters in the running for the best hero of Dota 2 7.33 are Riki, Bristleback, and Chen. Riki’s new Shard can make enemy heroes untargetable by their allies in Smoke Cloud, giving him access to an exclusive mechanic.

Bristleback got a massive buff to his titular passive that grants Warpath stacks on passive activations and tracks damage spillover. Holy Persuasion now grants Chen gold equivalent to the dominated creep’s bounty, giving him a massive source of income and utility from those 12 new neutral camps.