Version 6.68 under the lupe

Mooseman, Kev, Zeyall and Holymaster at ESWC, Paris
Kevin "Kev" Stegemann, former team member of LAN-DotA and ESWC participant was kind enough to share insights and tips about 6.68's hero additions! What follows is a translation of his interview with fragster from the 16th of August, conducted by Stefan 'Varmendrion' Schmitt

Kev with version 6.68 released, which of the new heroes have you encountered and/or played so far?
-"All of them. In order to get to know them better, I started out playing them in Inhouse Games; by now I use and fight them in EEDL as well. They are amazing, Icefrog did an excellent job"

Who would you describe as too strong, who as too weak and who do you like the most??
-"In general, the new heroes were made very well. Some aspects need adjustments now and then, but thats just normal and not that big of deal.

Personally, I prefer the Guardian Wisp over the other heroes, because it fits my playstyle best. He is very strong at the moment and I believe he will evolve to a Firstpick when it comes to competitive games. In Inhouse Games he seems a rather average choice to me, due to the fact, that you generally cant communicate in those as well as in games, you teamed up with your clanmates for.
Ventrilo is the Key word here. As soon as a well-practised team uses Wisp with flawless communication, you'll realise how strong he is. With a cooldown of only 80 seconds on Level 1, Relocate means basically nothing else than 2 kills every 80 seconds. Good teams know how to put his ultimate to perfect use.

The Far Seer is too strong as well for now. Once again the problem here is the cooldown of his ultimate; 60 seconds is just too short!
Describing it, Its quite similar to Rikimarus Smoke, but deals more damage in a larger area, plus it follows the targeted opponent. Because of that, I would classify him a competitve hero as well.

Im still not sure about the Shadow Demon, but fairly confident, that we´ll see him in professional games too once in a while. He is amazingly strong in earlier phases, although his potential decreases later on. Still, due to Soul Catch he keeps being useful, just for the purpose of getting a fast Kill. Furthermore, there are many possible combinations with Desruption. Overall, i think we can leave Eredar as he is, without buffs or nerfs.

Continuing with the simply brilliant Gyrocopter now. He is the only fellow, who needs a slight buff in my opinion. Rocket Barrage is useless after about 20 minutes and Homing Missile is not that strong either as the game gets longer, because then, you are easily able to fight it off. In order to give his Flak Cannon a purpose you need items; therefore I would classify it as lategame spell and not that useful early on."



Lets get more into detail then, starting with Io the Wisp. I would clearly say he will take the role of a supporter.
"Yes he will indeed, but I have to add that teams shouldnt let him support alone. In my opinion, he needs assistance, be it either a Crystal Maiden or Vengeful Spirit."

Which skillbuild and items would you suggest?
"Due to the fact, that the amount of his hitpoints is rather small, you should opt for Power Treads, a Magical Wand and a Ring of Basilius at the beginning. Especially the Ring is important to have, because Io is not blessed with armor. Should you catch a good start with him, I suggest items like Vanguard and Blademail, otherwise two Bracer and maybe Linkens Sphere later on.
Skillwise, just go with Spirits - Thether - Spirits and so on; you gotta mix in the Relocate of course. After the above named first spells are maxed out, continue with Overcharge."

You mentioned earlier that, there are numerous combinations possible. If you want to reveal it: Which have you seen so far and what have you tried out yourself?
"The Wisp should always be dual-, or tripplelaned. He works well with Sven, Alchemist, Sand King and Earthshaker. Especially with the last two, due to their amazing ultimates. I recently tried to lane him with Huskar as well. The plan was getting early kills with Relocate to ensure, getting a strong ganker; didnt work out as well though."
(Editors Note: The replay of this game can be found in the link at the bottom of the article)



Continuing with the Shadow Demon now, it seems hard to characterise him. He is rather vulnerable, needs a lot of Mana and doesnt deal huge amounts of damage either. What is he for you? Supporter, Ganker, of Semi Carry.
-"You are right, thats hard to tell. I think he was meant to be a supporter, although I would love to see him solo mid with Necronomicon and Dagon."

Whats your style when playing him. Which items and spells do you prefer?
-"I play him solo mid; my skill build looks like this: I go for Disruption first to avoid early ganks, continuing with 2 times Shadow Poison and Soul Catcher. The ultimate on level 6 is a must of course, but note, that I leave Disruption on 1, because the only thing that improves when skilling it further, is the Illusions damage-output. Besides, Soul Catch is amazingly strong in the early phase.
If Eredar is used as Supporter, he starts out the with same items as the Guardian Wisp: Treads, Wand, Ring and after that Necronomicon.

Regardless of his role being solo mid or support, the 'Book' on him is essential, because it provides him with the Hitpoints and Mana he desperately needs. Furthermore, it deals more damage, if you combine it with Soul Catch.
That build, and you are easily able to pick out heroes 1 versus 1; Dagon benefits from the additional damage as well."

What heroes would he synergise well with?
-"Probably the best option, is on a lane with Kunkka. Backing up Torrents with Disruption, is just so easy and crucial; likewise with Arrows from a PotM. Apart from that, every Trilane suits him well. Shadow Poison deals lots of damage, Disruption saves Mates, so you really cant ask for more!"



About Gyrocopter: A pretty vulnerable agility hero, i would say. To me, it seems he is too strong in the beginning, but getting weaker as the game progresses. What do you think?
-"He is indeed very strong in early phases, although his spells substantially loose potential over time. After this off-time however, his Flak Cannon increases his value again. He is definitely a carry in my opinon!"

Until now we have only seen Lothars Edge as recommended item. Why is that, what items would you buy and what skills would teach him first?
-"I go for 'Lothars' as well for the following reason:
He deals no damage and has no escape spell. Lothars Edge equips him with both and makes it easier to solely kick heroes from the map. After that, I recommend Black King Bar against lineups with more disables. Continued can be with 'Damage items' like Butterfly. Incidentally, I want to point out, that you shouldn't go for Orb effects, because they are not compatible with his Flak Cannon.

The Skillbuild should be obvious: Missile - Rocket - Rocket - Missile - Rocket - Ultimate and so on. Flak Cannon can be skilled right after that; it makes farming easier in mid game and becomes very powerful later."

What hero combinations are there for Gyrocopter?
-"There are no special combos. He should be used on Dual- or Trilanes though. Good partners would be Crystal Maiden, Vengeful Spirit or Witch Doctor. Its just essential, that he brings a Stunner with him, so his Homing Missile doesnt fly for ages."

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The Far Seer has only few hitpoints, but mighty spells. Which items would you suggest on him?
-"Thrall is a typical solo hero and nothing else. On him, I play Power Treads, Magic Bottle, Magic Wand, Lothars Edge and Guisoo."

We have seen Refresher Orbs on a lot of Far Seer's as well; Do you think its worth it?
-"Hmm, I admit, that his ultimate is pretty strong so having it a second time sure is powerful. Still, I dont think its needed. You can play this way for fun, but competitive-wise its not worth it."

There should definitely be combos with Thrall. What have you seen and/or played so far?
-"First of all, yes there are combos. As most of you possibly know already, Dark Seer synergises best with him. Catch them all with Vaccum plus Kinetic Field and release Static Field after that. Other useful partners would be Sand King or Lich; simply everybody who has an AoE Ultimate at his disposal"

You said, you like to play Thrall solo mid. How do you skill him and how should the laning phase look like?
-"I go for Thunder Strike - Kinetic Field - Thunder Strike - Glimpse - Thunder Strike - Static Field - Thunder Strike. After that max out Kinetic Field first, then Glimpse.

Important for Thralls solo-mid play is putting as much pressure as possible on your opppnent. Start with Thunder Strike and follow through with some auto attacks. You can go for Arcane Boots as well, just for the sake of spamming the Thunderstrikes; that way you will win the lane.
Apart from that, Glimpse is an amazing spell. I want to add a short tip, which most of you are probably familiar with, but might still be new for some. Should you get a kill on your rival, he will most likely teleport back towards mid. Just use Glimpse and *zap*: back at the shops, he is (laughs)."

It will take some time until the new heroes are accepted on the Tourney. Still, it seems that many of the newer heroes like Slark or Invoker are not played that often. Please rate the competitve potential of the most recent additions.
-"Wisp and Far Seer are definitely too strong, so if they stay the way they are, they will be played a lot. The Shadow Demon might appear on a Tri-Lane once in a while, but not too often. Likewise with Gyrocopter; he is a bit too weak at the moment.
Concerning older heroes, sure thing is, Ancient Apparition and the Nerubian 'collective' will be picked and played. Especially the Assassins bugs, who are able to scout and silence, are capable of achieving solid victories. About Slark, I dont consider him an option at the moment."

Is it your wish, to have some leagues, which allow the new heroes rather fast? If yes, what benefits do you see in that?
-"Yes of course! I like the new heroes very much and for once they are not that imbalanced. We have them in Inhouse Leages already, but i think the transition will take the tournaments some time. The biggest pro of a fast switch would be a faster development of possible combos, which may even lead to a new style of DotA."

Next to 6.68's new additions, some of the older heroes were modified as well. What are the most important changes for you?
-"Really important for me, was the nerf of Ancient Appirtions ultimate by raising its cooldown; thanks for that! Visage was nerfed as well, but i think its still not enough. Though the best modification in my opinion, was Butchers Hook, which deals pure damage from now on. At last, I like that Aghanims Scepter is compatible on more heroes."

Which heroes should buy Arcane Boots?
"Arcane Boots are great to have on heroes like Shaker , Tiny and Tidehunter - basically Strength heroes who need mana. You can also buy them on the colleagues from the Intelligence Fraction. Having the boots on them makes it easier to spam spells for harrassing, killing and farming."

Thanks a lot for the interview Kevin!
"You're welcome"


Gosugamers would like to thank Kev, Varmendrion and Fragster for this contribution!