GOTA

INNATE POWERS GAMEPLAY UPDATE

PREAMBLE

This patch is more than ambitious. To help you digest every change, the patchnote page is separated into four segments, visible at the top:

Main Page - General Updates - Item Updates - Hero Updates.

You are currently reading the main page, which also contains the highlights section just below this text.

UPDATE HIGHLIGHTS

GENERAL CHANGES

Something not mentioned here is that the map has also been reworked, but that is a given in any good patch.

Side Shops Return

Quirt and Sithil return to business after a long hiatus; however, due to the hard times, their stock amount is even more limited than before, only selling components that are not more expensive than 400 gold.

Make sure to pay a visit to them on the side lanes between the Radiant and Dire tier 1 towers, where they previously conducted business.

Rune System Reworked

Runes have been reworked to include two separate rune classes: Power Runes and Utility Runes.

Power Runes grant effects that either make your hero deal more damage or increase your survivability, while Utility Runes help you manage your economy game, making sure you do not fall behind.

ROOT UPDATES

Roots have been standardized into two types:

Basic Root: Prevents the target from moving, casting mobility abilities, and grants True Sight over it for the duration.

Strong Root: Prevents the target from moving, attacking, casting abilities, and grants True Sight over it for the duration.

Additionally, both types are now immediately removed from forced movement. (e.g. Force Staff)

HERO changes

The hero class has undergone quite a number of exciting changes.

New Hero Class:

FLUID

These heroes allow the players to build them however they want, depending on their playstyle, by having a fluid primary attribute. The primary attribute is determined by which attribute the hero has the most of. For example, a hero like Pangolier, who gains more agility than strength, can be turned into a strength hero by buying items that give strength.

INNATE ABILITIES

Every hero has an innate ability now.

These passive and active abilities differ from being a useful tool early on to being a game-changing late-game ability to abuse. They also differ in leveling: some can be leveled, while others cannot.

A few of these innate abilities will be familiar, for example, Invoker's Invoke or Earth Spirit's Stone Remnants; however, others, like Chaotic Luck or Black Grimoire, will probably not be.

OLD KING RETURNS

King Leoric is back from his ceremony, ready to replace Wraith King and extend his reach once again.

With a kit of reworked abilities and a new innate ability to help him fit in, he surely won't have any problem dealing with heroes who oppose him.

Welcome back, King Leoric.

HERO CLASS BENEFITS

Heroes now gain class specific perks, depending on their primary attribute. Strength heroes gain bonus damage block per strength, Agility heroes gain bonus movement speed per agility, and Intelligence heroes gain cooldown reduction per intelligence, while Universal heroes enjoy the perks of every class without any downsides.

CREEP-HERO SCALING

Creep-Heroes are now even more similar to heroes. They are now treated by every ability in the game as heroes, and are capable of leveling up. They level-up when their owner levels up and gain 4 bonus attack damage and 0.8 bonus armor with each level.

Universal Hero Pool Reworked

The entire universal hero roster has been changed, and their number has been decreased from 32 available heroes to only a select few. These heroes are Void Spirit, Enigma, Faceless Void, Chaos Knight, Keeper of the Light, IO, Elder Titan, and Weaver.

INNATE ABILITIES

As mentioned in the previous segment, every hero has an innate ability now. This section will show some examples.

ROTTING BODY

Undying's body is constantly rotting away, losing 5 Health per second. Undying's every attack spreads this rot to enemy units, applying a -15% Movement Slow and dealing 15 Magical Damage per second. Lasts 4 seconds.

Dispellable: Yes

DARKNESS COMES

Night Stalker shifts the day-night cycle, starting the cycle with night first, as well as drawing out the night sooner than expected, making the daytime 30 seconds shorter. Each subsequent day is even shorter by an additional 30 seconds, eventually leading to a permanent night.

THUNDERGOD'S WRATH

When activated, Zeus strikes every enemy hero, no matter where they may be, with the current level of Lightning Bolt, dealing damage, stunning them, and providing True Sight over them.

Mana Cost: 300

Cooldown: 160

Rouge Knight

Sven gains +2 Armor for every nearby enemy hero. Radius: 1200.

Beast Companion

Beastmaster chooses a non-ancient savage beast of any level to take his side in the battles to come.

Beastmaster loses 300 health when the beast dies.

Cast Range: 600

Cooldown: 60s

PARRY

Juggernaut has a 15% chance to block attacks within a 400-range and counterattack the attacker.

Sidekick

Marci's loyalty helps ensure survival, imbuing a chosen allied hero with +10 Attack Damage, and healing this allied hero by 50% of the damage dealt to enemy units by her.

Sidekick is removed when the chosen allied hero and Marci drift 2400-units apart from each other.

Dispellable: No

Cast Range: 1200

Mana Cost: 25

Cooldown: 60

Battleforged Skin

Axe's red-blooded body prevents enemy heroes from lifestealing off of him.

Chaotic Luck

Chaos Knight's chance to proc his abilities and items is set to a flat 50% for 6 seconds.

Dispellable: No

Cooldown: 30s

ITEM CHANGES

Introducing 26 New Items and 70 Reworked Items. There are also a few old ones brought back in a different manner. This segment will show some examples.

Lunar Crest

2800

NEW ITEM

Tiara of Selemene

Energy Booster

Recipe

+ 250 Mana

Active: Glow

UNIT TARGET - Equipped Hero grants an allied unit +10% Magic Amplification, +5% Magic Resistance, and +10% Movement Speed for 8 seconds. Enemy units facing towards the allied unit gain a -15% Magic Damage debuff for 2 seconds. The effects are doubled during nighttime.

Dispellable: Yes

1000

Passive: Lunar Blessing

Equipped Hero gains +3 Mana Regeneration and +400 Vision during nighttime.

Dispellable: No

Guardian Charm

1200

NEW ITEM

Passive: Guardian Aura

Equipped Hero emits a protective aura that grants +1 Health Regeneration and +1 Armor to nearby allied units for every 10% Health they are missing. Radius: 1200.

Diabolic Blade

2800

NEW ITEM

Broadsword

Vitality Booster

Recipe

+ 20 Attack Damage

+ 250 Health

Active: Devil's Curse

UNIT TARGET - Equipped Hero applies a dark curse on the target unit that prevents the cursed target's allies from going within a 600-radius of their cursed ally for 5 seconds. Allied units that are already within the radius are pushed outside.

Dispellable: No

750

Gungnir

4900

NEW ITEM

Maelstrom

Javelin

Broadsword

Recipe

+ 50 Attack Damage

Passive: Chain Lightning

Equipped Hero's every attack has a 30% chance to release a bolt of electricity that leaps between 6 targets within a 650-radius, dealing 160 Magical Damage with each bounce.

Passive: True Strike

Equipped Hero's every attack is empowered with True Strike.

Iron Talon

1400

ITEM RETURNED

Quelling Blade

Ring of Health

Recipe

+ 10 Attack Damage

+ 6 Health Regeneration

Active: Quell

UNIT TARGET - Equipped Hero culls the life source of a neutral or enemy creep, instantly removing 30% of its current health.

Can also be cast on a tree to cut it down, in which case the cooldown is set to 4 seconds.

350

Trident

5325

NEW ITEM

Kaya

Aether Lens

Recipe

+ 20 Intelligence

+ 300 Mana

+ 100% Mana Regeneration

+ 250 Cast Range

Passive: Magic Lightning

Equipped Hero's every unit-target ability creates bolt of electricity that leaps between 8 targets within a 650-radius, dealing 100 Magical Damage with each bounce.

Passive: Magic Empower

Equipped Hero's next ability cast is empowered, gaining a buff for 4 seconds that makes the first tick of the ability deal +75 Magic Damage when coming in contact with an enemy unit.

Dispellable: No

Ring of Tarrasque

1200

ITEM REWORKED

Passive: Intense Heartbeat

Equipped Hero gains bonus health regeneration equal to 2.5% Maximum Health when attacked by an enemy hero. Lasts 5 seconds.

Dispellable: No

Falcon Blade

2450

ITEM REWORKED

Claymore

Void Stone

Recipe

+ 25 Attack Damage

+ 2 Mana Regeneration

Passive: Mind Reverberate

Equipped Hero's every attack deals bonus physical damage equal to 25% of the target's intelligence.

Daedalus

5400

ITEM REWORKED

Crystalys

Dragon Lance

Recipe

+ 200

Attack Range

+ 15 Strength

+ 60 Attack Damage

Passive: Critical Strike

Equipped Hero's every attack has a 25% chance to deal 250% damage.

Passive: Pierce

Equipped Hero's every attack has a 40% chance to deal +100 Physical Damage while piercing through the target's evasion.

Revenant's Brooch

5200

ITEM REWORKED

Sacred Relic

Magical Blade

+ 100 Magic Attack Damage

+ 50% Magic Amplification

Passive: Revenant's Pierce

Equipped Hero's every magic damage instance has a 50% chance to pierce the target's magic resistance.

Passive: Everlasting

Equipped Hero loses the magical brooch upon death. Revenant's Brooch cannot be destroyed while it is on the ground.

Monkey King Bar

5200

ITEM REWORKED

Sacred Relic

Bone Totem

Recipe

+ 50

Attack Range

+ 75 Attack Damage

+ 5 Armor

Active: Extend Reach

NO TARGET - Equipped Hero gains +200

Attack Range for 5 seconds.

Dispellable: No

Passive: Jingu Attacks

Equipped Hero's every attack has a 20% chance to deal additional 40 Pure Damage with +40% Lifesteal.

Phylactery

3000

ITEM REWORKED

Point Booster

Perseverence

Recipe

+ 6 Health Regeneration

+ 2 Mana Regeneration

Active: Soul Trap

UNIT TARGET - Equipped Hero traps the target's soul, causing the unit to be silenced and to take +15% Magic Damage for 5 seconds.

Dispellable: Yes

900

Passive: Soul Collector

Equipped Hero collects the souls of slain enemy heroes, gaining +50 Health and +50 Mana for every nearby enemy hero dying in a 1200-radius. Equipped Hero loses 2 souls for every death. Initial Soul Count: 4.

THE GRAVEYARD

Not everything can stay in the game forever. This segment will show some that did not escape the culling blade this patch.

The very first concept removed as a design choice was the talent system.

The two main problems with the talent system in particular are that it takes every creative quirk that you could give to a hero, as well as being the greatest offender when it comes to power creep.

You don't want boring talents that just give +20 damage or -2 second cooldown, but if you make creative talents, then you are just throwing away creative ideas that could be implemented as a base mechanic for the hero. Not to mention that the number of creative talents that fit a specific hero is very scarce, so making 8 talents like that for each hero is pretty much impossible.

Basically, the trade-off here is that players get heroes with more interesting hero toolkits and less power crept numbers in exchange for the talent system. It should not be too bad of a trade.

But that is not all.

Neutral Items have also been removed.

Neutral Items also suffer from the same problems as talents but with an added spin - they are kind of just pointless.

With talents, at least they are interesting but neutral items.. not so much.

Even now, with the tokens change, it is still just pointless RNG and power creep wrapped up in one package.

The following structures have also been removed:

Outposts

When Outposts were introduced, they used to give tons of experience, which, understandably, was not very enjoyable to play around.

A huge part of the charm of DotA is that it gives you creative freedom and allows you to play the game however you want to.

With their sole purpose of granting experience stripped, Outposts simply became glorified teleport spots, which is something that is not necessary on the current map; therefore, they are removed.

Tormentors

Tormentors are honestly just not memorable.

While they definitely have a decent impact on the game, they just feel redundant and are a chore to take down.

They are probably the least necessary structure in the whole game, and as a result, they are removed.

Watchers

The services of the small free observer wards, also known as Watchers, are no longer necessary with the map scaled back to a decent degree.

They will be remembered.

The following Items have also been removed: