Another day, another patch. At least it seems that way, as Dota 2 just received a new gameplay update for the second time in six days.
While not being a major patch overall, 7.04 still contains its fair share of interesting changes to both items and hero abilities. The most substantial change affects the recipe prices of Hurricane Pike (from 250 to 500) and Silver’s Edge (from 300 to 500).
The patch has also removed the item Slippers of Agility from the side shop, which is located on either side of the map. The item is a staple of most carry heroes’ item builds, as the slippers build into both Wraithband and Poor Man’s Shield, two fairly important items in the early stages of the game. The impact of this change will be interesting to see, as safelane carries may opt for different starting builds.
In terms of hero changes, the patch follows a similar pattern to that of 7.03. Dota 2 pundit and analysis desk mainstay Alan “Nahaz” Bester tweeted that the majority of heroes that were affected in 7.03 received additional buffs and nerfs in 7.04.
Among the heroes that received further nerfs, we find the most recent addition to the game’s competitive mode—Monkey King. Following several nerfs in 7.03, the marsupial royalty received an additional set of nerfs in 7.04, which specifically target his spell Primal Spring.
- Monkey King: Primal Spring slow rescaled from 40/50/60/70% to 30/45/60/75%
- Monkey King: Spring winding up sound effect can be heard by nearby enemies
Abaddon also received two more nerfs following 7.03.
- Abaddon: Strength gain reduced from 2.7 to 2.5
- Abaddon: Mist Coil projectile speed reduced from 2000 to 1600
With this patch, Valve has once again experimented with the many different hero talents introduced in patch 7.00. Talents are unlocked to all heroes upon reaching level 10, and feature a wide array of different buffs such as increased stats, as well as aspects such as passive gold income.
This includes the hero Phoenix, who not only had his level 15 talent changed from 120 gold per minute to 150, but also received a plus-15 damage buff to its spell Icarus Dive.
The patch arrived a mere four days before the start of the Dota 2 Asia Championships on March 27, so the group stage will more than likely see teams experiment with their hero picks or strategies to a larger degree.
