Dota 2: Lifestealer’s Rise in Patch 7.31d

Some tips on how to make the most of Lifestealer in Dota 2’s Patch 7.31d.

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The current Dota 2 patch is a lot more interesting to play than the previous one because it offers a wide selection of meta heroes. Before 7.31d, pro teams and pub players played with Storm Spirit and Templar Assassin all the time. Fortunately, these two have become situational picks and most players focusing on other options.

The current patch allows us to watch a lot of interesting heroes, some of which were not in the meta before. Marci and Dawnbringer are the best examples here because they were nowhere to be found a couple of months ago. In fact, Marci made her debut in the Captains Mode, and as expected, she quickly rose to the top.

With that being said, this article won’t focus on these heroes because it is dedicated to one specific carry — Lifestealer. This is a hero that many people underestimate because he doesn’t look that good on paper. However, Naix has proven himself many times over the years. 

Despite the fact that he was a situational pick, the hero found his way into the meta and has a crucial role for many teams and players. So, let’s learn more about him and see what we can do to make the most while playing.

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Why is Lifestealer so good in the current meta?

This is a question that many people are interested in, but only a few of them know the answer to. Lifestealer is a STR hero, which means he does not scale as well as most Agility carries, especially those known for being late-game monsters. However, Naix can do a lot of damage in every stage of the game. Furthermore, he is a lot tankier than most other carries, which makes him great for certain matchups.

In addition to everything mentioned above, Lifestealer has the ability to destroy heroes that have tons of HP. Since names like Chaos Knight and Ursa are often among the popular picks, it shouldn’t be surprising that Lifestealer gets the chance to shine.

Speaking of destroying STR heroes, his Feast received a significant buff in Dota 2’s latest patch. Feast now deals 1.4% of the target’s maximum HP as damage, which makes Naix even more dangerous. That’s one of the reasons why teams avoid stacking tanky lineups if this hero is still in the hero pool.

Apart from the buff to Feast, if we look at some of the previous patches (mainly 7.31), we will see that Lifestealer received even more buffs. Sure, his Rage now only has 18 seconds cooldown on level 4, but his Open Wounds is way stronger. Despite the fact that this ability’s duration is 7 seconds instead of 8, Naix can affect two enemy heroes with it, as long as his primary target receives more than 500 damage.

How to make the most of Lifestealer?

To make the most of Lifestealer, you need to put in in a lane where he can farm. Although the hero has high base damage and can quickly secure last hits, he has no flash-farming abilities. This can be a problem because the hero can’t bounce back as easily as other carries. Hence, he needs to have a sound laning stage.

Speaking of laning, Lifestealer can work against pretty much anything. There are only a few heroes that can go up against him in the offlane. Tidehunter is one of them, and he can be hard to beat, but the good news is that he is not that popular in the meta. The same applies to Broodmother, but most people put the hero in the mid-lane.

During the laning stage, your goal should be to get one of your core items as soon as possible. You can go for loads of different items, so it all depends on the lineup and your opponents. Some people prefer to get the classic Armlet build, whereas others go for items like Sange and Yasha, Desolator, Mjollnir, and more.

Naix used to be a hero that was notorious for his glass-cannon build. However, some players decided to get at least a few defensive items such as Shadow Blade, Linken’s Sphere, and more. They allow him to be more dangerous and harder to kill.

The mid-game is your chance to shine

We’ve already mentioned that Lifestealer is a hero that can work in any stage of the game. His early game is not the best, but he becomes much stronger afterward.

Speaking of being strong, Lifestealer is probably one of the best carries for the mid-game, especially if his team is winning. The hero is as strong as names like Razor because he deals almost twice as much damage as other heroes. Furthermore, the fact that his main stat is STR, he is a lot tankier than other carries.

Professional teams and high-MMR players know that Lifestealer excels once the laning stage is over, which is why they try to make the most of him. Aside from securing an Aegis, teams force team fights and push towers because they know that he is very hard to kill.

Once the late game arrives, Lifestealer continues to be an unstoppable force, but this is when you have to be a lot more careful, especially against certain heroes. Despite his high damage output, a six-slotted Lifestealer can’t defeat heroes like Terrorblade, Spectre, and Troll Warlord, assuming they also have six big items.

Although Lifestealer does not have the highest win rating right now, the hero is an excellent option in the current meta. This is why some of the best Dota 2 teams in the world pick him regularly.

The hero works in many lineups. He is easy to play with and does not need tons of items to be useful. What’s even more impressive is that his ult can be used for the so-called “Naix bombs”. The latter is usually a good option with heroes like Storm Spirit, but it can work with any other mobile hero, including Ember Spirit, Void Spirit, and even Puck.

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