The new Dota 2 patch makes some big balance changes.
Just a few days after the release of a big Dota 2 patch we already have another set of patch notes to read, but these ones are focused on balancing some of the heroes that became two strong.
The Dota 2 7.36a patch notes that were released overnight include big nerfs to many of the top heroes from the initial 7.36 patch including the likes of Templar Assassin, Wraith King and Clinkz. There’s also a big list of bug fixes and solutions to a number of crashes that have popped up in recent days.
Templar Assassin, who has had one of the biggest win rate jumps since the patch, gets a big round of nerfs, with her damage shield being dropped significantly along with the initial range on her Psy Blades and the damage from Meld. In short, this means she does less damage, from a shorter ranger with less of a shield.
Juggernaut has also been given some big nerfs, almost all of which are to his damage output which jumped massively thanks to his new innate ability that gave him a 10% damage buff to targets facing him and the face his spin can now crit while it’s active. Now his damage should be massively reduced with nerfs to his ultimate and Blade Fury damage that look to be significant.
Thankfully Legion Commander’s Stonehall Plate has also been given a nerf, now she will no longer get a barrier for damaging illusions and the damage barrier has been halved, so you should no longer have her running around with a damage barrier in the thousands whenever she plays against PL.
Other heroes hit with the nerf hammer include Wraith King, who gets damage nerfs to his new Spectral Balde ability, along with Abaddon who gets smaller but noticeable buffs to the damage his shield outputs and his passive damage.
One big nerf that isn’t documented as a hero change but instead as a bug fix is that Clinkz’s Skeleton Archers no longer apply Burning Barrage when cast, which is a significant nerf to the damage he has been outputting since the patch.
There are a few buffs to some of the heroes who had a bad time with 7.36, with perhaps the worst facet in the game, Magnus’ Reverse Reverse Polarity, getting some number increases that probably still won’t make it any good.
You can see the full list of changes in the patch notes, but for a first letter patch just days after a big one, this seems like a solid list of changes that should have a big impact on the Dota 2 meta.