Dota 2: Meta Overview after ESL One Malaysia

We take a closer look at how the meta is shaping up after the end of ESL One Malaysia.

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ESL One Malaysia was the last big tournament before The International 11, which will take place around a month and a half from now. Malaysia was home to 12 amazing teams that gave us the chance to watch tons of epic matches. Following the two intense groups, the best teams continued to the Playoffs, where they played in Bo3. 

In the end, OG reached the Grand Final from the Lower Bracket, and after an epic match, it won this event. This was the second LAN victory for the young squad after ESL One Stockholm, which was the first Major of the DPC.

Aside from featuring some of the best teams and players in the world, this tournament was special because of the meta. This was one of the rare cases where the was a major update in the middle of the event. Consequently, some of the games were played on the previous patch, whereas others took place on 7.32.

We’ve already covered some of the changes in the new patch, so make sure to learn more about them. With that said, let’s learn more about some of the hottest heroes in the event.

Tiny

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Despite the arrival of the new patch, Tiny continued to be the most popular hero in the patch. His insane damage output, mixed with versatility, makes him one of the best heroes in the game, and it seems like he is here to stay.

Tiny showed up in 25 games and had a 56% win rate with 14 wins and 11 losses. This W/L rate may not seem impressive on paper, but it is not that bad when compared to the rest. 

What’s interesting is that Tiny was one of the heroes that received a couple of nerfs in the new patch. For example, the mana cost for Toss has increased from 120 to 140, and the ability’s cast range has been reduced from 1200 to 1100.

In addition to the changes to Toss, Grow now reduces the hero’s Attack Speed by 30% on all levels. Fortunately, Tiny gets 150 bonus damage on level 3, which means 40 extra damage than before. Sadly, the attack speed reduction makes the hero less potent as a Pos 1, which means we might see Tiny in the support role.

Queen of Pain

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Tiny was the most popular hero at ESL One Malaysia 2022, but QoP is close behind. With 20 appearances and 15 wins, Queen of Pain has a 75% win rate, which makes it the most successful hero in the event. OG’s mid-laner bzm used the hero a lot and had a key role in his team’s success.

Like every Dota 2 hero, QoP was affected by patch 7.32. The most notable change to the hero is her Shadow Strike, the main ability that makes her a nightmare to play against. Even though the Shadow Strike remains the same, it has a different Aghs Scepter. 

Its initial damage is increased by 80, and it is applied to all enemies that are within a 375 radius. What’s more, if you use the ability one more time on an enemy hero, the latter will use Scream of Pain and damage all nearby enemies. 

Aside from these changes, QoP also has some new talents. The level 15 one now gives +0.7s Shadow Strike Damage Interval instead of + 2 Shadow Strike Damage instances. The hero’s level 20 talent now provides -60s Sonic Wave CD instead of 525 Shadow Strike AoE.

Lastly, QoP’s level 25 talent gives + 200 damage to Sonic Wave instead of 18s Spell Block.

Chen

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Chen is one of the heroes that always had a role in the professional meta but never found his way into pubs. Despite not being a popular pick among casual players, Chen has proven himself as one of the best position 4s. Also known as the best jungler, the hero can help all lanes and is one of the best supports for pushing and healing.

Chen also had the chance to shine in 20 games like Queen of Pain. However, the hero “only” won 13 matches, which means he has a 65% win rate. This is very impressive for support, considering that the second-best option is Winter Wyvern which has a 46% win rate.

Since Chen was very popular in the previous patch, the hero received a lot of changes. Starting with Penitence, the bonus attack speed to allies is 100 instead of 120, making the ability less potent.

Chen’s Holy Persuasion’s Scepter now gives heroes under this ability access to a new spell called Martyrdom. When used, the creature dies, allowing Chen to heal a single target with the Hand of God. This ability has 8s CD and a Global Effect.

In addition to the new abilities, Chen’s talents are also slightly different. His level 10 one now gives -2s Holy Persuasion Teleport Delay instead of + 200 HP. His level 15 one gives +12 damage to Holy Persuasion instead of +16. Lastly, Chen’s level 25 talent now allows the hero’s Hand of God to apply a Strong Dispel instead of giving + 3 Holy Persuasion Max Units.

Puck

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Queen of Pain was the most popular mid-laner at ESL One Malaysia 2022, but Puck is also close behind. In fact, the annoying nuker had the chance to shine in 19 matches and won 11 of them. The 57% win rate does not seem as impressive as QoP’s, but that’s mainly because most teams know how to deal with Puck. After all, the hero has been around for some time now.

Patch 7.32 did not introduce that many changes to this hero. However, there are a couple of new things related to the talents. Puck’s level 10 talent gives + 50 Illusory Orb Damage instead of -2s CD. The hero’s level 15 talent now gives Waning Rift + 75 damage instead of +100. 

Puck’s level 20 talent gives Waning Rift 4s CD reduction instead of +6. Lastly, the hero’s level 20 talent now gives +150 initial/break Damage coil instead of +1s stun. The latter is one of the big nerfs Puck has to deal with.

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