Fading away: 9 former must-pick Dota 2 heroes were nowhere to be seen at Berlin Major

May 7 saw the conclusion of the second Dota 2 Major in Berlin, as Gaimin Gladiators emerged triumphant with an emphatic display of adaptability given the release of the vast 7.33 patch just days before the premiere event began.

In all, 115 heroes saw some form of contest over the Dota tournament, with runner-ups Team Liquid testing the waters the most with 55 heroes picked through groups and playoffs. But even the most adaptable were unfazed by a select group of heroes that would go entirely uncontested across the Berlin Major. Nine heroes didn’t see a single draft phase, several of which all but dominated drafts at the Lima Major just two months ago.

We take a look at the heroes no one wanted to touch in Berlin, and where we think they’ll end up as the meta finally begins to settle after the New Frontiers patch.

Lina

Oh, how the mighty have fallen. Lina was in 97 percent of Dota matches at the Lima Major—seventh most picked, second most banned—enjoying the better part of a 61 percent win rate, according to pro stats site Liquipedia. The Slayer’s kit was potent in numerous positions, but in Peru, she enjoyed her stint in the one as a primary carry.

But following the Lima Major, Valve swung the hammer hard. Her Fiery Soul passive gave less movement and attack speed and her ability downtime was lengthened, meaning fewer passive stacks. While 7.33 didn’t affect her so much directly, a larger map, lessened mobility, and the global nerf to stun duration all but ended her reign as Dota’s queen.

Natures Prophet

NP was all over the Lima Major, with the hero picked heavily throughout the follow-up of DreamLeague in April… right up until 7.33’s release. With the hero receiving heavy increases to ability cooldowns and a damage nerf to his Wrath of Nature ultimate, he would go untouched through the DreamLeague playoffs, then again in Berlin. His level 15 talent change that saw him lose the attack speed bonus really affected his damage output, too.

Treant Protector

Valve cut Treant Protector down to size over the course of 7.32, with pro teams finally turned off the hard support entering the Berlin Major. It’s a far cry from Lima, where alongside Undying and Rubick, Treant was the most picked hard support out there.

Given the scale of Dota 2’s map following the New Frontiers patch, one would think his innate ability to weave between trees and an unaffected Overgrowth root would make him viable, but his pub win rate also remains constantly low.

Clinkz

It’s no surprise in a patch bringing plenty of new features to Dota, a hero with a gigantic rework would go untouched. There just wasn’t enough time for our little Bone Fletcher to catch on following massive changes to his kit, which saw his Searing Arrows attack modifier shuffled across to his Bone Soldiers and his Tar Bomb.

Clinkz has gone uncontested across both the Lima and Berlin Major, but hopefully, with a little more time in practice, pro teams will wake up to the insane pushing power and damage output Clinkz can provide.

Winter Wyvern

Also going back-to-back Majors without a single pick or ban is Winter Wyvern, who appears in limbo between patches. Her primary attribute switching to Universal and away from Intelligence, coupled with a slight buff to her Arctic Burn, seems to be a push by Valve into a more active role.

But her kit still requires copious amounts of mana, and with her Intelligence gain dropping, she’ll still need to build mana items before truly coming online.

Gyrocopter

Gyrocopter saw just the four picks at the Lima Major, emerging with a single win thanks in part to his Aghanims Scepter and Shard upgrades for his Flak Cannon Side Gunner and Homing Missile. While Flak Cannon did receive a buff in 7.33, the global changes to stun duration and a lack of base stats across the board left him stranded in Berlin. Other cores are just so much better across the board: it may be some time until we see Gyro in any capacity again.

Bane

From three picks in Lima to zero in Berlin. Bane remains on the outer for pro teams and pub players alike, with his pick rate falling below two percent, according to Dota stats tracking page Dotabuff.

His Q, Enfeeble, once again received another change, and while the extra nine seconds of pure damage-over-time seems good on paper, a doubled mana cost and a switch to the Universal attribute wouldn’t save him. The global change to stun duration hit Bane where it hurt the most, his ultimate Fiend’s Grip.

Razor

Razor feels like a hero built for the meta. With such an aura-heavy start to 7.33, coupled with a 25 percent cooldown reduction in his Static Link damage siphon at level four, it seems odd the Lightning Revenant hasn’t even attracted an iota of interes. At the same time, with extremely mobile carries in Bloodseeker, Slark, and Phantom Lancer in charge so far, Razor might just need the meta to relax a little before seeing play.

Warlock

With how mobile teams are thanks to items like Boots of Bearing, and a lessened Chaotic Offering stun timer, Warlock’s potency as a support has weakened heavily. Even though Black King Bar saw heavy changes, Warlock’s Golems are simply outpaced by the Dota meta.

Once upon a time, Warlock’s large area-of-effect abilities would be game-changing—now, they’re a minor annoyance, and simply not impactful enough to warrant a pick.