A comprehensive and intimate showcase of knowledge regarding player behaviors by ranking and how to remedy that? I think this is one of your greatest content pieces, Zach! Really well done!
Coming back to this video a year later, I can say that the main thing that was always holding me back was me myself. At one point years ago before the medal system came into the game, I was ranked 4.3k, but over the years my mmr kept going down slowly, and stagnated at around 2k. Picked up a lot of bad habits in the process and ended up in this toxic loop of terrible games 3 outa 5 times. For me, I've always felt like mechanically I was good enough to be able to climb again but I think mentally I had lost my love for the game and simply kept playing cause I had nothing else I wanted to play. I eventually ended up taking a very long break from the game (about 2years in total) and only started playing regularly again the past few months. Took some time to shake the rust off, but with a refreshed mentality, everything came back pretty quickly and I now find myself solidly climbing rank again. The biggest difference now vs a few years ago, purely the fact that I actually enjoy playing the game again. I think in addition to that, taking a long break has also allowed me to reset mentally in terms of self control and I am far better now at dealing with toxic people in games and that has improved my games massively. Also knowing when to play or when not to play in terms of my mood. So if anyone else can relate to this, maybe just take a step back for a while to clear your head a bit. Might just be the change you need to get back to winning ways :)
I just wanna say that I know exactly how you feel about the mental block except for League of Legends. I’ve switched to dota as my ‘break’ game and also to build better teamwork a stronger mental and better mechanics. I doubt I’ll go back tho
@@ousqa I started with smite over 10 years ago I’m 3400 now after leaving this comment and playing for a couple months of dota I was hardstuck league at bronze for years I stand by my comment as I’m still rising in elo
showed in my feed and didn't expect anything, and it just sums up every single lost pieces I've been receiving through some coaching from some people. Very comprehensive and easy to understand! Not disappointed clicking the video
Having been an Archon I that recently recalibrated as Crusader I and then lost my way down to Guardian III, and then started focusing on Game plan (using the deadlane theory and focusing the correct objectives and taking good fights) and made my way back to Crusader with ~70% wr since, I have to say you ABSOLUTELLY NAILED IT for Guardian-to-Archon bracket. Even communication and calling the right fights. This got me amazed, really.
You need to know when you’re strong and when you’re not and push your lead . Try shoving more waves and buying your own wards to safely push waves since your suppprts tend to ward defensively . While to win faster games you need to win offensively
Been in dota for over a decade. You’re a breadth of fresh air and good vibes in the sea of harsh and gruff content creators. It will benefit as you as a dota coach and content creator. Keep it up!
Excellent content and thank you kindly for making this game, which is really hard lol, a more approachable game for newbies. You're an incredible creator and teacher.
This is the greatest guide. I have watched so many guides and they basically all just say "hit more creeps". This actually covers all the aspects of skill that can contribute to winning a game of dota.
As an archon player this is painfully accurate. The number of times I've seen someone in this bracket who I can only assume is playing with 1 hand and wonder how on earth my sweaty ass is the same rank baffels my mind. I must have to work on the game knowledge aspect.
Thank you for actually going into detail about the topics you are talking about, most DOTA creators just go with the overarching themes, but this was very detailed!
The fact that Guardian, Crusader and Archon are together shows the video is more focused on higher ranks (and kind of laziness) but still is the best systemized information i have seen on you tube. In addition there should be another row called 'BALLS SIZE' if you have small balls you can't rank up!
I wish I would have found you four to five years ago! FANTASTIC content dude. I've paid hundreds of dollars just to hear the same exact points you've said in your videos. And at times you've explained them even better than the coaches I've had. Thank you!
I usually play very well when I'm watching the minimap. Sometimes I'll catch myself just spacing out on my lane and go oh wait, I have no idea what is happening anywhere else.
Excellent analysis, make Dota 2 a study-way to explain problems is A MUST that people do not deem as necessary. Please keep up the good content (new sub to you). Teach it as an academic course so people can actually get something out of it. Thanks a lot
Im a newer subscriber, This helps quite a bit and overlaps nicely with all the things Ive been coming to realize recently. Thank you for the awesome videos!
Yesterday I played a game in herald 3 where I went 15/0/11 at 30~min until my void teamate decided to chrono me in and let my opponents kill me. The game ended immediatelly cause I had no bb. Coming from csgo to dota has been harsh, but my experience in competitive games allows me to keep focused on whats important. There are games that you just can't win, it's just impossible. All we can do is stay consistent in every game as in the long run the bad teamates (who are there but are not the solo reason I'm herald :p) will even out and we will promote to higher leagues. Just stay confident on your skill and always play to learn more and more
Yup! I've always been interested in just playing the best that I can. Having bad (or good) teammates is just another factor I try to adjust to every game
@@ZQuixotix I used to be mad back in cs, but then I realised that raging wouldn't change anything, so I learned to just accept it and move on haha insta mute is the best thing to keep me focused when I cant help myself. I always use it when I realise I'm arguing with a mate or if people are just being negative towards me or another mate
Hope UA-cam will do include laugh reaction in comment section , this is funny , experience it try palying in herald bracket haha, AI in dota 1 is better than them 😂, even neutral Item they just drop them I think they don't knwo how to teleport it 😂
This is outstanding analysis right here. I love the perspective on every rank and many different player archetypes, this is content for nearly all Dota players and makes some really brilliant, astute observations. I'm super excited for the chance to evolve my gameplay and improve based on your framework, Z.
Got to immortal in 2019 and stopped playing til 2 months ago, Lately I realized I was really autopilot when I play 5 (i'll do EVERYTHING I should, but itemization would basically be hero dependent, between mek, blink, aether, glimmer force. ) and no game vision or plan (leads to not making a lotus where its super important) and it's made me suffer on other roles, so I don't see my own team''s game, and the enemies item build and learning from that too (or my own teammates) I got like 7k games on pos 5 and i am probably a 3k mid, carry or offlaner because of this. Doesn't help I kinda just filled my day with 12+ games of dota a day so the effort really dwindled and probably learned super bad habits. Lately I decided I wanna bring my average performance on carry and offlane higher, and it's so nuts. As support you basically choose between tranqs or arcanes, maybe skipping full boots and rushing shard. But for cores it's like, itemization can really twist a game into your favor In 2012 when I used to play cores, I would adjust and adapt my builds so easily, but it feels like the game now is way more diverse. No longer a "do I want a skadi or do I want a linkens" Like a PA could go bfury deso bkb abyssal satanic, it would not occur to me (i played vs an sf) that I should make AC and maybe skadi. great video, and honestly, just good things to remind myself of when I play now, "game vision" ""purpose" even though i do think those things if i'm on like wyvern or oracle, its still probably gonna win a ton of games for me just to consider it more often. /blog over
Great video! Consistency is definitely important. Which is why when I play really well in a game I get nervous if I'll be able to play as well in the next one. But as I worry, I start to play worse :p
I commented this on another video, but I would love to see you break down how to know if you're showing to the enemy on the map, and tips and tricks to stay hidden
This is simple. When you shove lanes you are visible. Except if you are PA. When they have wards they can see you. If you take away a sentry they see your position (even without a ward your face shows up). I am support and i know when to deward or not (dont feed to deward/ward) and tbh this is really the most annoying part where someone pings and says that they need the vision there but hey it s not safe. So the guy buys the ward and dies himself. Well. I guet it we re invaded but it s all a matter of time and pressure other side of the map. Also you can be spotted if the enemy is invisible and is passing by, you are clearly visible to all the ennemy team.
Very well spoken! I feel like I knew this stuff but couldn't pin point it. I appreciate you taking the time to help lay it all out and help me win some more games (hopefully)
god, you're right. it's very much awareness that's lacking in lower mmr. i'm so focused on my own hero and i find it more and more difficult as the game goes on to look at other players and check items etc. i wonder if mental fatigue plays a part in that
Really great video, i rewatched it like 3 times already and when i feel it's needed to gather some ideas on what parts of my playstyle should be improved, i come back here. Thanks a lot man for your awesome content, i used to be in crusader bracket, now i am legend 2
The amount of variability in Dota 2 is what keeps me into the game. Another thing to the newbies watching this guide. Don't worry a lot of people don't know what they are doing and are trying to figure it out as they go. So yeah try to improve all of these things but at your own pace. It DOES make a difference.
This is some great content, I just started a month or so ago and i've been playing ranked for almost 3 weeks. Started at 1880 MMR around Guardian5/Crusader1 and now I'm around 2350 in Archon with a 65% win rate. Your comment about games going on so long in this bracket is so true. I watch a lot of high MMR games, replays, coaching sessions, etc. and it always feels so hard to get my team to push the early advantage. We'll be up like 10-0 and instead of continuing to run at them and disrupt the game, my team will just back off and farm, not push lanes, etc.. Then eventually the team starts catching up and the game lasts an hour. I'd say that most of my games last between 40 and 50 minutes just because people in this MMR do not know how to end or they prioritize pushing every lane equally instead of just shoving down mid T3 after getting multiple kills.
Lol you are forgetting that there s timing for each hero and you have to know the heroes very well to deal with that and think at the same time. Im curious on how you only started dota in less than 6months and got this high (not to say that the game requires a lot to learn about, im learning every day tbh). And i also watch replays from ana or even just immortals or archon players (they are the worse tbh). You play mid ? Or carry ?
I hope you also consider your allies hero or what they can do specially cores (not all can deal heavy damage on turret) plus how their laning phase went back in the early game and the space available for him to farm
@@darukona7218 So I play all 3 core roles, but mainly offlane funny enough. I find that being able to control the enemy carry and shut them down while also being able to roam and play the map for your team is the ultimate way to make space for your carry. I found that playing pos 1 I just relied on my team a little too much so if I had a bad team one game I'd have a really rough time. Mid is good too because you can do a lot of roaming but it's a lot more difficult to play right than offlane. Still climbing, up to 2.5k archon 2 now.
I feel like there should be several strategies which you can quickly communicate with your team. When styles clash it's really hard to teamplay. It would be good to know this before it's too late in the match. Some people play dota as a 25 minute game, some as 40 and a lot (in ancient-legend) as 60. Just to synchronize timings. We need a shorthand for these things that 5 solo qeue people could use.
Regarding communication and in-game calls: I find this to be an issue when multiple people are trying to make several calls and they contradict. Unfortunately, during the middle of a game is not really a good time to go into an extended debate about what the correct decision is, and people get their egos hurt easily. Whatever this happens to me a lot of the time I will just stop making the calls and go along with whatever plan the other caller wants to make. So long as the decisions aren't immediately game losing, I think having some sort of unified plan is better than to go against it. Especially if said teammate already has support from others. Of course there are times I will mute them and continue to call shots, either because they are making absolutely game losing calls, and/or the rest of my team is going along with whatever I say instead. I'm curious if you have any insights into this. Edit: I just finished watching the video and I noticed at the end you mentioned how sometimes it is better to keep quiet in immortal. For reference I am an ancient / divine player. I think what you said can also be applied to those brackets. Correct me if I'm wrong. Thanks for making such a great video.
Thank you for this Video! Im divine and just starting to put more emphasis on predicting what moves around the map the enemies are going to do next and its helping me a lot.
itemization.. everything else will follow.. build orders and versatile items between heroes. I stick to this build order -> wards boots at start then I work on Cornucopia for regen followed by Hyper-stone for speed. These 2 parts are the start to a later build of Bloodthorn. Next I go Skullbasher as I hit woods so I don't get ganked as it costs 2800 while rest of item list is relatively cheap. After this I go for Witchblade then Crystalis & Portal Boot recipe. Then I finish off Bloodthorn and get blink & finish Abyssal. Sometimes I will get mask for lifesteal & build it up or I might get Echo Blade & "Specialized Array" might work like on PA.
Awesome video! Really interesting to hear the thoughts at each level. As a crusader, I'd be really interested to learn more about game plan. I feel like I've gotten a good handle on laning and often play in a party so I'm interested in how to approach the game especially after a couple tier ones fall because it always feel like I take a bad fight and throw any lead. Thanks again for all your great content, appreciate the support hero focus and holistoc view of dota.
understand when the lane is lost and how to come back to it (from every position perspective) / when to rotate to mid/safelane (pos4 perspective) when to build defensive items and when to be greedy
I think about variability in guardian + is so true. I cannot tell you how many games I've won against absolutely terrifying invoker, puck etc players who absolutely ruthlessly destroy everyone for 40mins, only to split push at the wrong time and have the other 4 people on their team die across the map. In these sorts of games a well timed tip can be a game winner.
I think what makes you good in the immortal bracket is being able to adapt your playstyle to the other visions of players since you can only lose if both parties resist each other. at the end of the day you'll end up being placed higher than the players that do resist because they will lose more games by throwing because of differences in opinion. besides that it comes down to how well you understand games in general and I think good game sense will allow you to play at different paces and make different moves within the realm of your situational capability. As for anything below ancient I think having a decent macro game understanding can get you to ancient because you're able to look at the game objectively and not be dissuaded from trying because things went badly. We play from south africa so ping is already a problem for us which means that winning a lane can sometimes be difficult. so instead we play macro game, wait item timings and win just because we understand the advantages we have. Sometimes its even a matter of taking just one good fight and winning the game. the amount of times I have had a 1% win probability and winning is astounding and that comes from just using the maximum power of our heroes to get a really good push after winning a teamfight.
Great video. Definititely feel i am in the herald trench. Play mainly pos 4 or 5 and although i still have a lot to learn, i have improved my awarness a lot of late, but I feel often its the lack of awareness by cores and carries will determine the game. Maybe some more insight how to work with a team that have bad awareness would be useful :-D
Herald Sea is next level adapting is a requisite, if you are mid or safe you must pick whats missing in your team. ie support/tank is most common. Two hard carries is 90% certain in the team for a herald game.
I’m new to Dota (230ish hours!). Honestly I find your video so helpful! You’re the only UA-camr that makes Dota context that actually make sense to me. Really appreciate this context you are sharing. Is there any other way we can support you other than ‘like’’subscribe’ your channel?
Stuck in the sub 500 trench. Over the last week I got MVP 6 times out of 20 games as a support (the games we won). I do the same thing every game, stay in lane to help the carry until they are 6 or strong enough, pull creep agro to the carry to make it easier for them to last hit the melee, pull lanes to balance the lane, get runes, ward in smart places and de-ward, stack when I can but I always have the jungle and triangle triple stacked by 15 minutes. I direct my team to the towers in the correct order: mid; offlane, safelane, mid, offlane; safelane. I push the lanes with the catapults every 5 minutes to make space. But still I'm 43% win rate and keep sinking lower. If I get mid or offlane which is rare I use Visage 900 game main hero, dominate 80% of the time usually with 80+ last hits and 20-40 denies by 10 mins, push mind and their safelane tower by 12 minutes. Still only win 53% of the time. It's definitely my teams fault or smurfs ruining the game.
I'm crusader/archon. I feel like the only thing that's hard for me, is counter picking a unusual pick/combo. Then, I also only solo queue, so even though I suggest to my team what to pick, but that doesn't mean they care or listen, and they will pick something like pos1 bristleback, and still go rush a vanguard and pipe, with no regard to actually go for a aggressive carry build first. And this keeps happening, you get a lot of people that grief after landing stage and buys a Shadow amulet etc. I as a solo player can only do so much.
Spot on analysis! I started out at around ~800 MMR and my highest has been Divine 3. The naunce you go into really helps me understand how I can move forward.
It’s funny as a herald you are right. You really just need to hit creeps and then contribute to team fights. My issue is I’m either farming well or contributing to team fights. In games I win it’s where I can split the difference. In games I’m up by like 200 last hits I struggle in team fights cause I got my items so I’m cocky and position bad. Or I’m not last hitting well but I’m scared causing me to think about positioning a ton and then can Contribute to fights, sometimes the game will turn around in my favor due to better contribution in fights. But usually we just plowed and it doesn’t matter cause I’m so far behind. TLDR: to win games in herald hit creeps and help your teammates in fights
As a support that is now Archon, but have been to Ancient. Seem to struggle with reliable cores. I feel comfortable in the laning phase and consistently win one or more lanes and then still lose. I think my issue is the mid/late game and cores running around doing god knows what. Feel I shouldn't follow and should push lanes. But maybe I should just follow them around? Would love to see something about support in the mid/late. Most content focusses on laning stage and says if you win that you win. My experience as a support is MUCH different, to the point where I am not sure the laning phase matters much at all.
The problem I have with map awareness is that if I spend time looking around the map at friendly/enemy heroes loadouts, runes, etc, then my hero just sort of stands there doing nothing. If I get jumped during that time I'm easy pickings. It's really hard to multitask controlling a hero and having map awareness.
As someone right around legend “blame teammates” phase.. when I’m 20-8 and we lose and the graph shows me being top farm the first 20-30 minutes, it’s less my fault than theirs. I killed, I farmed, but as a team we didn’t execute.
At every bracket you talk about the importance of watching your own replays. I've tried to do this more regularly, but some replays i find useful and learn something to work on, but others it just feels like wasted time. When I see stuff of lower mmr players, it's easy to identify not only what was wrong, but would have been a better option instead. When i see higher mmr stuff, honestly I probably don't even notice the wrong stuff, let alone have any idea what would've been better. When I look at my own games and my own mmr, what I really struggle with is figuring out what the better option would have been. I can often figure out 'something was wrong here', but i can't decode it myself. How do you 'coach yourself' with replays when you don't always know what the correct thing to do is? Maybe a video about how to analyze your own replays?
I've been casually playing Ranked DOTA and I tend to sit between Guardian and low Crusader as a support player. At times I get the feeling that if my carries do not build correctly they can not carry and I take a loss regardless of my own preference (not saying I always play perfectly). I honestly do not want to play a carry just to rank up but a lot of videos claim that you should stop playing support and play mid or some carry position.
This is awesome, thanks. Do you have any advice for mixed ability stacks? My group ranges from herald to legend, and I've always suspected there's a special knack to playing optimally under those conditions.
As a legend player old knowledge can be hard to kick lol. I tried to cut the wave with firefly on lvl 1 batrider, then realized, wait a sec they aren't aggroing lol
when i was playing league i never get tilted and I got to grandmaster doing that, but here in dota 2 there's just something about this game that can make a go fking insane and I think that's really slowing me down. its an effective outlet for me to release rage but I don't think I want dota 2 to be that type of game for me I want to reach divine (I'm sure asf I can reach it, I have the mechanics and game sense for it but I just drag team morale down when nothing goes right, I can see that but I cant just shut up for some reason) just because I think that's a good rank to leave on for a game that I don't want to reach the peak in (then maybe this different experience can help me get challenger in league haha)
I have been at crusade to divine then archon then crusade again, 1 thing i know but it just so hard to change, its your emotion. The fact is, you always have to adjust the play style on different rank. along the dropping trend, i slowly find it out. The lower you go the worst support u gonna get, when u at divine, the support more likely to know what to do(most of the case), but when u go down to lower archon and crusader, the support mostly are not doing support, and in laning phase, they play with no purpose(well, not all of the case). So, if i play 1~3pose, i bough ward, smokes(usually i bough the most in most game), thats how i slowly climb back up. Of course there still of issue, no just the suppott, but u get what i mean. During the esrly drop phase, i just couldnt adjust to it, thats makes me mad at the other players, thats spark thing to the worst. Thats why i think emotion account for at least 40% to winning the game
for me at least from the brasilian server in crusader those support almost always pick a defensive support, which is cool if i'm playing 4, if i'm the 5, the 4 usually pick a defensive support like dazzle or warlock but the most annoying thing is the mid, you can't do shit with a farmer mid, even a wk or am, that shit is awful
Nice video bro. I am a Guardian. There are lots of information to digest. I am trying to play HC to get out of this bracket. So I also study one role more.
As a legend player I find myself struggling to create opportunities. My plays are usually reactionary and while there are heroes for that kind of play (like Dazzle) it does limit my impact. I would love to hear something regarding playmaking/making space.
You can't be a playmaker from pos 5 (I assume it's Dazzle 5). All you can do is put good vision and call for smokes. Everything else about your role is reactionary.
I used to be about 3800mmr then i quit dota for a few years jaysus did i get bad at it. Took me months to get used to modern dota and i sank to like 300mmr during that time. Back to 1500 currently and have like 58% win rate now so climbing. But as an offlaner mainly it took so long to wrap my head around actually having a support every game.
Ironically people want to get out of the trench because they assume its going to be more fun if their teammates are better, not realizing that the opponents will be better too. The game is never going to feel "better". Its only getting more stressfull.The only way to have more enjoyable games is to quit playing dota and do something else 😅
Tbf at a higher level of play at least you understand why you lost. At crusader and below often you lose because some of your teammates have not qued to win, but for shits and giggles. Not saying it doesn't happen later, but a lot of people just troll from minute 1 in ranked games and often do it subconsciously by not playing to win.
Its a different kind of stress though. For exampe which sounds more fun to deal with A. "wow this other mid player is really good I'm sweating he might win I'll have to try hard" Or B. "Why is my carry jungling at 3 minutes, why does his support have 3 deaths already, and why are they mid sappong my xp now"
as a new player i understand where your coming from sometimes i feel like damn this games alot to learn but i like a challenge & i find this game to be quite fun especially since i can pick pretty much anybody to have fun, or try to win games
The easiest way to get out of the trench is to simply go back and watch your replays. Find your mistakes and try to work on them, if you can't find any flaws then you need to study pro games with that hero more. But no one wants to put in that effort.
You said you think game plan or purpose isn't that big of a problem for a lot of people, and it's actually an awareness problem. It might be, but I think a lot of people really just don't know what to do in certain situations, like when to buy back, what to do when the enemies buy back, when it's better to push certain lanes/towers over others, and most certainly when teams are comparatively stronger or weaker than one another at any given point (or future point) of the game. People don't understand win conditions very well in general in pubs. I think there is a maxim in this game: A lot of people know how to play a game of dota, not that many know how to win a game of a dota.
Was hard stuck Herald for 3 years, than i decided to grind turbo until my behavior score went from 3k to 10k, after I got my behavior score up I got archon in 2 weeks
Lot of game are lost before it even starts because your team don't have cc/front line/enough carry potential. I restarted to play after a 8 year break and I usualy win even with hero Im not use to play because I pick right before the game starts. LoL is different, its almost only about mechanic of your champ (and learning your matchup)
i narrowed my roles and my heroes by alot and sky rocketed, BUT NOW everytime i play something OUT of my comfort zone i get annihilated by better players and in the end of the day i'm still not satisfied.. :D
Stare at the minimap 75% of the time and you will gain 500+ MMR in no time. In a 50 minute game there's probably a grand total of 15 minutes that something interesting or important is happening on your screen and not the map, and 10 of those minutes are the laning stage.
My number one bad habit is playing DOTA for fun and therefore even though I think winning is fun I play with friends. My main account is archon my ALT account is ancient and guess which one I don't play very much the one that is a higher rank because I can't play with friends
This game is so stresstful. Being at low rank is total hell hole. I was previously at legend 3 and dropped to crusader 5. I was on and off at going back to archon and then falling over to crusader 5 at the end. This game is mentally and physically exhausting. Most especially if you only play support. Not to mention the smurfs you'll encounter within each match. Having them on your team is definitely an advantage, but if they are on the enemy team, goodluck. I also can't understand why these smurfs play at low rank then proceeds to flame their teammates for playing bad when if fact they should be playing on their actual ranks. Dota is a team game but if your teammates are not that good, the chances of losing is still high. Goodluck to all the people grinding mmr, I hope you'll reach your goal. I'm totally sick of this game.
"low rank" is objective, to me legend 3 is a low rank and it's impossible to be that unlucky to drop to crusader so it was your fault. I understand if it was coming back from a break, then u gotta accept it's not a low rank, it's your rank. Everyone gets better and a rank you used to be means nothing. If you don't want to get flamed then premute all. It's a team game where you can manipulate it in your favour, unlike csgo/rocket league (technically you can with positioning but does anyone do that under supersonic/global elite). Smurfs in normal games are stuck in their rank and not detected as smurfs, maybe they play well but they probably grief a lot. I'm in the 5k smurf pool and there is very little griefing and most would be 6kmmr I'd guess.
You made a really good point about high immortal players there. I'm a rank 1100 Europe and laned against Matumba the other day and literally the first 10 seconds of the laning you could see the difference between me and him. We both 'knew' what to do, but his way of doing things were so much refined and it was astounding. Don't judge all immortal players the same out there, a rank 5000 can't compare to a rank 1000 and rank 1000 is closer to a divine bracket than top 50. Also what you said was super correct, not everything that seems bad is actually bad and can be imterpreted in a different way, just because you do it your own way you shouldn't blame people for doing certain stuff, just focus on your game and try to learn from your own mistakes and try to refine your own gameplay, so much more rewarding than trying to correct others (Both you, me and our teammates to a lot of mistakes).
is hard to get out.. i was guardian 4 then i got some bad team mates lol went back to hearld 3... now i am back at guardian 1.. i just play my strong hero to try to get out from the trench.. i went back from guardian to herald when i started experimenting picking supports and other characters like the pros.. but it does not work here.. if u r playing alone, play your strongest hero and win it for the team.
I had a brain injury and lost vision in my right eye, I was at crusader but nosedived to the bottom of herald. I'm now herald 3/4 I'm definitly going to improve on my last hits. I know jenkins has a blind side too I don't know how he got to immortal
as a respectable crusaider/herald it makes me sad that i have the game knowledge but not the mechanics to execute them. map awareness is there, the conceps are there, timings and builds i know... then a teamfight starts and i lagunablade a creep next to the enemy hero. Sausage hands.
Ive been watching these videos for like ten years but i still cant figure out how to deal with what i can only describe as counterweight teammates. People who either have absolutely no idea how to play their role or people who are tilted and primed to throw your game by handicapping you. Throwing infinite time at the problem so it stabilizes isn't an option.
As someone who was a former legend 1 who calibrated to archon 2 i find it very questionable that i got roped with herald players @_@# Well I'll go grind now, thx for vid. No moreeee sleeping till i get back to legend
A comprehensive and intimate showcase of knowledge regarding player behaviors by ranking and how to remedy that? I think this is one of your greatest content pieces, Zach! Really well done!
Aww thank you!
Totally agree, incredible work
Perfectly summed up! A really well rounded look at this type of problem!
Coming back to this video a year later, I can say that the main thing that was always holding me back was me myself. At one point years ago before the medal system came into the game, I was ranked 4.3k, but over the years my mmr kept going down slowly, and stagnated at around 2k. Picked up a lot of bad habits in the process and ended up in this toxic loop of terrible games 3 outa 5 times.
For me, I've always felt like mechanically I was good enough to be able to climb again but I think mentally I had lost my love for the game and simply kept playing cause I had nothing else I wanted to play. I eventually ended up taking a very long break from the game (about 2years in total) and only started playing regularly again the past few months.
Took some time to shake the rust off, but with a refreshed mentality, everything came back pretty quickly and I now find myself solidly climbing rank again. The biggest difference now vs a few years ago, purely the fact that I actually enjoy playing the game again. I think in addition to that, taking a long break has also allowed me to reset mentally in terms of self control and I am far better now at dealing with toxic people in games and that has improved my games massively. Also knowing when to play or when not to play in terms of my mood.
So if anyone else can relate to this, maybe just take a step back for a while to clear your head a bit. Might just be the change you need to get back to winning ways :)
great comment. Thank you for sharing.
I just wanna say that I know exactly how you feel about the mental block except for League of Legends. I’ve switched to dota as my ‘break’ game and also to build better teamwork a stronger mental and better mechanics. I doubt I’ll go back tho
@@Cyd99 I think both games are fun but I just can't take league seriously, I started with dota though.
@@ousqa I started with smite over 10 years ago I’m 3400 now after leaving this comment and playing for a couple months of dota I was hardstuck league at bronze for years I stand by my comment as I’m still rising in elo
showed in my feed and didn't expect anything, and it just sums up every single lost pieces I've been receiving through some coaching from some people. Very comprehensive and easy to understand! Not disappointed clicking the video
Having been an Archon I that recently recalibrated as Crusader I and then lost my way down to Guardian III, and then started focusing on Game plan (using the deadlane theory and focusing the correct objectives and taking good fights) and made my way back to Crusader with ~70% wr since, I have to say you ABSOLUTELLY NAILED IT for Guardian-to-Archon bracket. Even communication and calling the right fights. This got me amazed, really.
You need to know when you’re strong and when you’re not and push your lead . Try shoving more waves and buying your own wards to safely push waves since your suppprts tend to ward defensively . While to win faster games you need to win offensively
Been in dota for over a decade. You’re a breadth of fresh air and good vibes in the sea of harsh and gruff content creators. It will benefit as you as a dota coach and content creator. Keep it up!
Excellent content and thank you kindly for making this game, which is really hard lol, a more approachable game for newbies. You're an incredible creator and teacher.
Thank you!
This is the greatest guide. I have watched so many guides and they basically all just say "hit more creeps". This actually covers all the aspects of skill that can contribute to winning a game of dota.
As an archon player this is painfully accurate. The number of times I've seen someone in this bracket who I can only assume is playing with 1 hand and wonder how on earth my sweaty ass is the same rank baffels my mind. I must have to work on the game knowledge aspect.
Thank you for actually going into detail about the topics you are talking about, most DOTA creators just go with the overarching themes, but this was very detailed!
U can tell he did his research on the lower ranks to give the best insight. Such a great video. Thank you
The fact that Guardian, Crusader and Archon are together shows the video is more focused on higher ranks (and kind of laziness) but still is the best systemized information i have seen on you tube. In addition there should be another row called 'BALLS SIZE' if you have small balls you can't rank up!
I wish I would have found you four to five years ago! FANTASTIC content dude. I've paid hundreds of dollars just to hear the same exact points you've said in your videos. And at times you've explained them even better than the coaches I've had. Thank you!
I usually play very well when I'm watching the minimap. Sometimes I'll catch myself just spacing out on my lane and go oh wait, I have no idea what is happening anywhere else.
Honestly I’ve been looking for something like this for a long time now. Really needed the “what am I missing??” Filled in.
I like how you conceptualize things, such as your definition of "the trench" - it's not any particular badge, but rather stagnation.
Excellent analysis, make Dota 2 a study-way to explain problems is A MUST that people do not deem as necessary. Please keep up the good content (new sub to you). Teach it as an academic course so people can actually get something out of it. Thanks a lot
Im a newer subscriber, This helps quite a bit and overlaps nicely with all the things Ive been coming to realize recently. Thank you for the awesome videos!
Yesterday I played a game in herald 3 where I went 15/0/11 at 30~min until my void teamate decided to chrono me in and let my opponents kill me. The game ended immediatelly cause I had no bb. Coming from csgo to dota has been harsh, but my experience in competitive games allows me to keep focused on whats important. There are games that you just can't win, it's just impossible. All we can do is stay consistent in every game as in the long run the bad teamates (who are there but are not the solo reason I'm herald :p) will even out and we will promote to higher leagues. Just stay confident on your skill and always play to learn more and more
Yup! I've always been interested in just playing the best that I can. Having bad (or good) teammates is just another factor I try to adjust to every game
@@ZQuixotix I used to be mad back in cs, but then I realised that raging wouldn't change anything, so I learned to just accept it and move on haha insta mute is the best thing to keep me focused when I cant help myself. I always use it when I realise I'm arguing with a mate or if people are just being negative towards me or another mate
@@chumbogrosso5133 wise words king
Hope UA-cam will do include laugh reaction in comment section , this is funny , experience it try palying in herald bracket haha, AI in dota 1 is better than them 😂, even neutral Item they just drop them I think they don't knwo how to teleport it 😂
This is outstanding analysis right here. I love the perspective on every rank and many different player archetypes, this is content for nearly all Dota players and makes some really brilliant, astute observations. I'm super excited for the chance to evolve my gameplay and improve based on your framework, Z.
Got to immortal in 2019 and stopped playing til 2 months ago, Lately I realized I was really autopilot when I play 5 (i'll do EVERYTHING I should, but itemization would basically be hero dependent, between mek, blink, aether, glimmer force. ) and no game vision or plan (leads to not making a lotus where its super important) and it's made me suffer on other roles, so I don't see my own team''s game, and the enemies item build and learning from that too (or my own teammates)
I got like 7k games on pos 5 and i am probably a 3k mid, carry or offlaner because of this. Doesn't help I kinda just filled my day with 12+ games of dota a day so the effort really dwindled and probably learned super bad habits.
Lately I decided I wanna bring my average performance on carry and offlane higher, and it's so nuts. As support you basically choose between tranqs or arcanes, maybe skipping full boots and rushing shard. But for cores it's like, itemization can really twist a game into your favor
In 2012 when I used to play cores, I would adjust and adapt my builds so easily, but it feels like the game now is way more diverse. No longer a "do I want a skadi or do I want a linkens" Like a PA could go bfury deso bkb abyssal satanic, it would not occur to me (i played vs an sf) that I should make AC and maybe skadi.
great video, and honestly, just good things to remind myself of when I play now, "game vision" ""purpose" even though i do think those things if i'm on like wyvern or oracle, its still probably gonna win a ton of games for me just to consider it more often.
/blog over
Great video! Consistency is definitely important. Which is why when I play really well in a game I get nervous if I'll be able to play as well in the next one. But as I worry, I start to play worse :p
I commented this on another video, but I would love to see you break down how to know if you're showing to the enemy on the map, and tips and tricks to stay hidden
Good idea! I'll try to include this in some map awareness videos
Yeah, seems simple but this would be really helpful to me. Also how wards play into this
This is simple. When you shove lanes you are visible. Except if you are PA. When they have wards they can see you. If you take away a sentry they see your position (even without a ward your face shows up). I am support and i know when to deward or not (dont feed to deward/ward) and tbh this is really the most annoying part where someone pings and says that they need the vision there but hey it s not safe. So the guy buys the ward and dies himself. Well. I guet it we re invaded but it s all a matter of time and pressure other side of the map. Also you can be spotted if the enemy is invisible and is passing by, you are clearly visible to all the ennemy team.
Additional point for gaurdian to archon TAKE ROSH AFTER A WON FIGHT. Cool channel. You could do a whole video on when to rosh.
Very well spoken! I feel like I knew this stuff but couldn't pin point it. I appreciate you taking the time to help lay it all out and help me win some more games (hopefully)
come party with me we will be the best duo in game and out game . xD😉😉
god, you're right. it's very much awareness that's lacking in lower mmr. i'm so focused on my own hero and i find it more and more difficult as the game goes on to look at other players and check items etc. i wonder if mental fatigue plays a part in that
Really great video, i rewatched it like 3 times already and when i feel it's needed to gather some ideas on what parts of my playstyle should be improved, i come back here. Thanks a lot man for your awesome content, i used to be in crusader bracket, now i am legend 2
The amount of variability in Dota 2 is what keeps me into the game. Another thing to the newbies watching this guide. Don't worry a lot of people don't know what they are doing and are trying to figure it out as they go. So yeah try to improve all of these things but at your own pace. It DOES make a difference.
This is some great content, I just started a month or so ago and i've been playing ranked for almost 3 weeks. Started at 1880 MMR around Guardian5/Crusader1 and now I'm around 2350 in Archon with a 65% win rate. Your comment about games going on so long in this bracket is so true. I watch a lot of high MMR games, replays, coaching sessions, etc. and it always feels so hard to get my team to push the early advantage. We'll be up like 10-0 and instead of continuing to run at them and disrupt the game, my team will just back off and farm, not push lanes, etc.. Then eventually the team starts catching up and the game lasts an hour. I'd say that most of my games last between 40 and 50 minutes just because people in this MMR do not know how to end or they prioritize pushing every lane equally instead of just shoving down mid T3 after getting multiple kills.
Lol you are forgetting that there s timing for each hero and you have to know the heroes very well to deal with that and think at the same time. Im curious on how you only started dota in less than 6months and got this high (not to say that the game requires a lot to learn about, im learning every day tbh). And i also watch replays from ana or even just immortals or archon players (they are the worse tbh). You play mid ? Or carry ?
I hope you also consider your allies hero or what they can do specially cores (not all can deal heavy damage on turret) plus how their laning phase went back in the early game and the space available for him to farm
@@darukona7218 So I play all 3 core roles, but mainly offlane funny enough. I find that being able to control the enemy carry and shut them down while also being able to roam and play the map for your team is the ultimate way to make space for your carry. I found that playing pos 1 I just relied on my team a little too much so if I had a bad team one game I'd have a really rough time. Mid is good too because you can do a lot of roaming but it's a lot more difficult to play right than offlane. Still climbing, up to 2.5k archon 2 now.
I feel like there should be several strategies which you can quickly communicate with your team. When styles clash it's really hard to teamplay. It would be good to know this before it's too late in the match. Some people play dota as a 25 minute game, some as 40 and a lot (in ancient-legend) as 60. Just to synchronize timings. We need a shorthand for these things that 5 solo qeue people could use.
end middle, end middle-late, end late. A lot depends on team comp as well.
Regarding communication and in-game calls: I find this to be an issue when multiple people are trying to make several calls and they contradict. Unfortunately, during the middle of a game is not really a good time to go into an extended debate about what the correct decision is, and people get their egos hurt easily. Whatever this happens to me a lot of the time I will just stop making the calls and go along with whatever plan the other caller wants to make. So long as the decisions aren't immediately game losing, I think having some sort of unified plan is better than to go against it. Especially if said teammate already has support from others. Of course there are times I will mute them and continue to call shots, either because they are making absolutely game losing calls, and/or the rest of my team is going along with whatever I say instead.
I'm curious if you have any insights into this. Edit: I just finished watching the video and I noticed at the end you mentioned how sometimes it is better to keep quiet in immortal. For reference I am an ancient / divine player. I think what you said can also be applied to those brackets. Correct me if I'm wrong. Thanks for making such a great video.
Thank you for this Video! Im divine and just starting to put more emphasis on predicting what moves around the map the enemies are going to do next and its helping me a lot.
itemization.. everything else will follow.. build orders and versatile items between heroes.
I stick to this build order -> wards boots at start then I work on Cornucopia for regen followed by Hyper-stone for speed. These 2 parts are the start to a later build of Bloodthorn. Next I go Skullbasher as I hit woods so I don't get ganked as it costs 2800 while rest of item list is relatively cheap. After this I go for Witchblade then Crystalis & Portal Boot recipe.
Then I finish off Bloodthorn and get blink & finish Abyssal. Sometimes I will get mask for lifesteal & build it up or I might get Echo Blade & "Specialized Array" might work like on PA.
Awesome video! Really interesting to hear the thoughts at each level. As a crusader, I'd be really interested to learn more about game plan. I feel like I've gotten a good handle on laning and often play in a party so I'm interested in how to approach the game especially after a couple tier ones fall because it always feel like I take a bad fight and throw any lead. Thanks again for all your great content, appreciate the support hero focus and holistoc view of dota.
Thank you, great video. One thing that jumped out at me that I am struggling with is when to farm as a pos 4 or 5.
understand when the lane is lost and how to come back to it (from every position perspective) / when to rotate to mid/safelane (pos4 perspective) when to build defensive items and when to be greedy
I think about variability in guardian + is so true. I cannot tell you how many games I've won against absolutely terrifying invoker, puck etc players who absolutely ruthlessly destroy everyone for 40mins, only to split push at the wrong time and have the other 4 people on their team die across the map. In these sorts of games a well timed tip can be a game winner.
I think what makes you good in the immortal bracket is being able to adapt your playstyle to the other visions of players since you can only lose if both parties resist each other. at the end of the day you'll end up being placed higher than the players that do resist because they will lose more games by throwing because of differences in opinion. besides that it comes down to how well you understand games in general and I think good game sense will allow you to play at different paces and make different moves within the realm of your situational capability. As for anything below ancient I think having a decent macro game understanding can get you to ancient because you're able to look at the game objectively and not be dissuaded from trying because things went badly. We play from south africa so ping is already a problem for us which means that winning a lane can sometimes be difficult. so instead we play macro game, wait item timings and win just because we understand the advantages we have. Sometimes its even a matter of taking just one good fight and winning the game. the amount of times I have had a 1% win probability and winning is astounding and that comes from just using the maximum power of our heroes to get a really good push after winning a teamfight.
what i learned from 10 years of dota and beginning from herald to divine is you must pick a certain heroes you know youre good at.
I appreciate your content here, an indept analysis of what to do, thank you.
Great video. Definititely feel i am in the herald trench. Play mainly pos 4 or 5 and although i still have a lot to learn, i have improved my awarness a lot of late, but I feel often its the lack of awareness by cores and carries will determine the game. Maybe some more insight how to work with a team that have bad awareness would be useful :-D
Herald Sea is next level adapting is a requisite, if you are mid or safe you must pick whats missing in your team. ie support/tank is most common. Two hard carries is 90% certain in the team for a herald game.
I’m new to Dota (230ish hours!). Honestly I find your video so helpful! You’re the only UA-camr that makes Dota context that actually make sense to me. Really appreciate this context you are sharing.
Is there any other way we can support you other than ‘like’’subscribe’ your channel?
Stuck in the sub 500 trench. Over the last week I got MVP 6 times out of 20 games as a support (the games we won). I do the same thing every game, stay in lane to help the carry until they are 6 or strong enough, pull creep agro to the carry to make it easier for them to last hit the melee, pull lanes to balance the lane, get runes, ward in smart places and de-ward, stack when I can but I always have the jungle and triangle triple stacked by 15 minutes. I direct my team to the towers in the correct order: mid; offlane, safelane, mid, offlane; safelane. I push the lanes with the catapults every 5 minutes to make space. But still I'm 43% win rate and keep sinking lower.
If I get mid or offlane which is rare I use Visage 900 game main hero, dominate 80% of the time usually with 80+ last hits and 20-40 denies by 10 mins, push mind and their safelane tower by 12 minutes. Still only win 53% of the time.
It's definitely my teams fault or smurfs ruining the game.
I'm crusader/archon. I feel like the only thing that's hard for me, is counter picking a unusual pick/combo.
Then, I also only solo queue, so even though I suggest to my team what to pick, but that doesn't mean they care or listen, and they will pick something like pos1 bristleback, and still go rush a vanguard and pipe, with no regard to actually go for a aggressive carry build first.
And this keeps happening, you get a lot of people that grief after landing stage and buys a Shadow amulet etc.
I as a solo player can only do so much.
Spot on analysis! I started out at around ~800 MMR and my highest has been Divine 3. The naunce you go into really helps me understand how I can move forward.
It’s funny as a herald you are right. You really just need to hit creeps and then contribute to team fights. My issue is I’m either farming well or contributing to team fights. In games I win it’s where I can split the difference. In games I’m up by like 200 last hits I struggle in team fights cause I got my items so I’m cocky and position bad. Or I’m not last hitting well but I’m scared causing me to think about positioning a ton and then can Contribute to fights, sometimes the game will turn around in my favor due to better contribution in fights. But usually we just plowed and it doesn’t matter cause I’m so far behind.
TLDR: to win games in herald hit creeps and help your teammates in fights
Rly good content, bro!
Keep it up!
Thanks!
16:04 completely agree with this, thats why you dont copy 100% of what the pros do.. try adjust a bit.
As a support that is now Archon, but have been to Ancient. Seem to struggle with reliable cores. I feel comfortable in the laning phase and consistently win one or more lanes and then still lose. I think my issue is the mid/late game and cores running around doing god knows what. Feel I shouldn't follow and should push lanes. But maybe I should just follow them around? Would love to see something about support in the mid/late. Most content focusses on laning stage and says if you win that you win. My experience as a support is MUCH different, to the point where I am not sure the laning phase matters much at all.
I feel you
Me too
Im more impressed with the powerpoint slides than the content, great uni level presentation haha
If you like this PowerPoint, I'm very proud of the Pulling series in terms of the slides I prepared haha
That pit quote about herald really hit home!!
But I’ll still run CM mid😤
Fantastic content! You outdid yourself! Thank you for the amazing content! 🙏
Thank you for your content! hoping to see more of them cause you really help us out!
The problem I have with map awareness is that if I spend time looking around the map at friendly/enemy heroes loadouts, runes, etc, then my hero just sort of stands there doing nothing. If I get jumped during that time I'm easy pickings. It's really hard to multitask controlling a hero and having map awareness.
Zach is quite literally "Blessings from the Lord!" For DotA!
As someone right around legend “blame teammates” phase.. when I’m 20-8 and we lose and the graph shows me being top farm the first 20-30 minutes, it’s less my fault than theirs. I killed, I farmed, but as a team we didn’t execute.
Love this , keep uploading this kind of content🔥 more power to dota
At every bracket you talk about the importance of watching your own replays. I've tried to do this more regularly, but some replays i find useful and learn something to work on, but others it just feels like wasted time. When I see stuff of lower mmr players, it's easy to identify not only what was wrong, but would have been a better option instead. When i see higher mmr stuff, honestly I probably don't even notice the wrong stuff, let alone have any idea what would've been better. When I look at my own games and my own mmr, what I really struggle with is figuring out what the better option would have been. I can often figure out 'something was wrong here', but i can't decode it myself. How do you 'coach yourself' with replays when you don't always know what the correct thing to do is? Maybe a video about how to analyze your own replays?
Yes, this is on the list of videos I want to make! It's a great question and it's hard to learn when you don't know what to look for.
really some of the best educational content out there for dota !
I've been casually playing Ranked DOTA and I tend to sit between Guardian and low Crusader as a support player. At times I get the feeling that if my carries do not build correctly they can not carry and I take a loss regardless of my own preference (not saying I always play perfectly). I honestly do not want to play a carry just to rank up but a lot of videos claim that you should stop playing support and play mid or some carry position.
This is awesome, thanks. Do you have any advice for mixed ability stacks? My group ranges from herald to legend, and I've always suspected there's a special knack to playing optimally under those conditions.
As a legend player old knowledge can be hard to kick lol. I tried to cut the wave with firefly on lvl 1 batrider, then realized, wait a sec they aren't aggroing lol
when i was playing league i never get tilted and I got to grandmaster doing that, but here in dota 2 there's just something about this game that can make a go fking insane and I think that's really slowing me down. its an effective outlet for me to release rage but I don't think I want dota 2 to be that type of game for me I want to reach divine (I'm sure asf I can reach it, I have the mechanics and game sense for it but I just drag team morale down when nothing goes right, I can see that but I cant just shut up for some reason) just because I think that's a good rank to leave on for a game that I don't want to reach the peak in (then maybe this different experience can help me get challenger in league haha)
I have been at crusade to divine then archon then crusade again, 1 thing i know but it just so hard to change, its your emotion. The fact is, you always have to adjust the play style on different rank. along the dropping trend, i slowly find it out. The lower you go the worst support u gonna get, when u at divine, the support more likely to know what to do(most of the case), but when u go down to lower archon and crusader, the support mostly are not doing support, and in laning phase, they play with no purpose(well, not all of the case). So, if i play 1~3pose, i bough ward, smokes(usually i bough the most in most game), thats how i slowly climb back up. Of course there still of issue, no just the suppott, but u get what i mean.
During the esrly drop phase, i just couldnt adjust to it, thats makes me mad at the other players, thats spark thing to the worst. Thats why i think emotion account for at least 40% to winning the game
for me
at least from the brasilian server in crusader
those support almost always pick a defensive support, which is cool if i'm playing 4, if i'm the 5, the 4 usually pick a defensive support like dazzle or warlock
but the most annoying thing is the mid, you can't do shit with a farmer mid, even a wk or am, that shit is awful
Nice video bro. I am a Guardian. There are lots of information to digest.
I am trying to play HC to get out of this bracket. So I also study one role more.
As a legend player I find myself struggling to create opportunities. My plays are usually reactionary and while there are heroes for that kind of play (like Dazzle) it does limit my impact. I would love to hear something regarding playmaking/making space.
play a pos 4?
you either need a initiator pos 3 who you can enable or directly pick a melee pos 4 bc usually they gank(?)
You can't be a playmaker from pos 5 (I assume it's Dazzle 5). All you can do is put good vision and call for smokes. Everything else about your role is reactionary.
I'll try to incorporate this into a future video! In the mean time, deep wards are a huge part of supports helping to make plays
I used to be about 3800mmr then i quit dota for a few years jaysus did i get bad at it. Took me months to get used to modern dota and i sank to like 300mmr during that time. Back to 1500 currently and have like 58% win rate now so climbing. But as an offlaner mainly it took so long to wrap my head around actually having a support every game.
Ironically people want to get out of the trench because they assume its going to be more fun if their teammates are better, not realizing that the opponents will be better too. The game is never going to feel "better". Its only getting more stressfull.The only way to have more enjoyable games is to quit playing dota and do something else 😅
Tbf at a higher level of play at least you understand why you lost. At crusader and below often you lose because some of your teammates have not qued to win, but for shits and giggles. Not saying it doesn't happen later, but a lot of people just troll from minute 1 in ranked games and often do it subconsciously by not playing to win.
Its a different kind of stress though. For exampe which sounds more fun to deal with
A. "wow this other mid player is really good I'm sweating he might win I'll have to try hard"
Or
B. "Why is my carry jungling at 3 minutes, why does his support have 3 deaths already, and why are they mid sappong my xp now"
as a new player i understand where your coming from sometimes i feel like damn this games alot to learn but i like a challenge & i find this game to be quite fun especially since i can pick pretty much anybody to have fun, or try to win games
Love to see more support guide, content is better than BSJ
The easiest way to get out of the trench is to simply go back and watch your replays. Find your mistakes and try to work on them, if you can't find any flaws then you need to study pro games with that hero more. But no one wants to put in that effort.
You said you think game plan or purpose isn't that big of a problem for a lot of people, and it's actually an awareness problem.
It might be, but I think a lot of people really just don't know what to do in certain situations, like when to buy back, what to do when the enemies buy back, when it's better to push certain lanes/towers over others, and most certainly when teams are comparatively stronger or weaker than one another at any given point (or future point) of the game. People don't understand win conditions very well in general in pubs.
I think there is a maxim in this game: A lot of people know how to play a game of dota, not that many know how to win a game of a dota.
Was hard stuck Herald for 3 years, than i decided to grind turbo until my behavior score went from 3k to 10k, after I got my behavior score up I got archon in 2 weeks
So much information! You are helping us grind with your videos.
Lot of game are lost before it even starts because your team don't have cc/front line/enough carry potential. I restarted to play after a 8 year break and I usualy win even with hero Im not use to play because I pick right before the game starts. LoL is different, its almost only about mechanic of your champ (and learning your matchup)
Whether I've won or lost the lane, in the phase after laning I always get lost on what I should be doing next... on basically any hero, any position.
You are an amazing teacher Zach
i narrowed my roles and my heroes by alot and sky rocketed, BUT NOW everytime i play something OUT of my comfort zone i get annihilated by better players and in the end of the day i'm still not satisfied.. :D
It takes time to grow out the hero pool!
Stare at the minimap 75% of the time and you will gain 500+ MMR in no time. In a 50 minute game there's probably a grand total of 15 minutes that something interesting or important is happening on your screen and not the map, and 10 of those minutes are the laning stage.
Absolutely fantastic video! Congratulations and thank you very much
My number one bad habit is playing DOTA for fun and therefore even though I think winning is fun I play with friends. My main account is archon my ALT account is ancient and guess which one I don't play very much the one that is a higher rank because I can't play with friends
Mate you're such a good teacher!! ty for the content!!
8:59 actually no. You can be 0 mmr. I have been there. *cries*
I hope you get picked up as a talent, you have great knowledge of the game and have a soothing voice to communicate it.
21:35 ofcourse there r 4-5 games with good teammates who'd listen...majority players just don't have the persisting patience required to ask nicely...
This game is so stresstful. Being at low rank is total hell hole. I was previously at legend 3 and dropped to crusader 5. I was on and off at going back to archon and then falling over to crusader 5 at the end. This game is mentally and physically exhausting. Most especially if you only play support. Not to mention the smurfs you'll encounter within each match. Having them on your team is definitely an advantage, but if they are on the enemy team, goodluck. I also can't understand why these smurfs play at low rank then proceeds to flame their teammates for playing bad when if fact they should be playing on their actual ranks. Dota is a team game but if your teammates are not that good, the chances of losing is still high. Goodluck to all the people grinding mmr, I hope you'll reach your goal. I'm totally sick of this game.
"low rank" is objective, to me legend 3 is a low rank and it's impossible to be that unlucky to drop to crusader so it was your fault. I understand if it was coming back from a break, then u gotta accept it's not a low rank, it's your rank. Everyone gets better and a rank you used to be means nothing. If you don't want to get flamed then premute all. It's a team game where you can manipulate it in your favour, unlike csgo/rocket league (technically you can with positioning but does anyone do that under supersonic/global elite). Smurfs in normal games are stuck in their rank and not detected as smurfs, maybe they play well but they probably grief a lot. I'm in the 5k smurf pool and there is very little griefing and most would be 6kmmr I'd guess.
You made a really good point about high immortal players there. I'm a rank 1100 Europe and laned against Matumba the other day and literally the first 10 seconds of the laning you could see the difference between me and him. We both 'knew' what to do, but his way of doing things were so much refined and it was astounding. Don't judge all immortal players the same out there, a rank 5000 can't compare to a rank 1000 and rank 1000 is closer to a divine bracket than top 50.
Also what you said was super correct, not everything that seems bad is actually bad and can be imterpreted in a different way, just because you do it your own way you shouldn't blame people for doing certain stuff, just focus on your game and try to learn from your own mistakes and try to refine your own gameplay, so much more rewarding than trying to correct others (Both you, me and our teammates to a lot of mistakes).
oooo mystery skills i wanna know now >_<
awww herald is a special place
I can't hold my concentration long enough for a whole game. I start pepegaing after a few minutes
is hard to get out.. i was guardian 4 then i got some bad team mates lol went back to hearld 3... now i am back at guardian 1.. i just play my strong hero to try to get out from the trench.. i went back from guardian to herald when i started experimenting picking supports and other characters like the pros.. but it does not work here.. if u r playing alone, play your strongest hero and win it for the team.
I had a brain injury and lost vision in my right eye,
I was at crusader but nosedived to the bottom of herald.
I'm now herald 3/4
I'm definitly going to improve on my last hits.
I know jenkins has a blind side too I don't know how he got to immortal
I remember my herald days :) spamming meepo because more heroes=better and buying 6 maelstroms on zeus
😂
great job on presention dude, subbed 4 sure.
thanks bro, maybe some videos more in depth on itemization would be cool.
I almost never comment, but I just wanted to say this video is really great.
as a respectable crusaider/herald it makes me sad that i have the game knowledge but not the mechanics to execute them.
map awareness is there, the conceps are there, timings and builds i know... then a teamfight starts and i lagunablade a creep next to the enemy hero. Sausage hands.
thank you very much man, you are very useful and will go for in success
Ive been watching these videos for like ten years but i still cant figure out how to deal with what i can only describe as counterweight teammates. People who either have absolutely no idea how to play their role or people who are tilted and primed to throw your game by handicapping you. Throwing infinite time at the problem so it stabilizes isn't an option.
After finally reaching immortal, the griefing,trolling, and throws never ends....
As someone who was a former legend 1 who calibrated to archon 2 i find it very questionable that i got roped with herald players @_@#
Well I'll go grind now, thx for vid. No moreeee sleeping till i get back to legend