March 14, 2013

The Possibilities - Drow Ranger

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Dota 2  |  Noob  |  Drow
So, I have this secret hate. This burning hate for one hero in particular. I never play her, and curse the enemy team if they decide to employ her services in noob stomping. She's the dark ranger, Drow Ranger.
Now, to start off, you never see a Drow in high-tier or professional games, and there's a reason for it. Drow is a easy kill, DPS hero with an amazing slow ability as well as a Silence. This exceptional skilled hero comes with two passives that increase her raw damage. This makes for a surprisingly easy to play with hero, but she is very weak and dies quickly.

Sadly, she gets played a lot, according to Dotabuff. Most chosen hero in public games. Now, we as the average player will cringe when we have to face this annoying hero in the throes of battle, as we don't know how to deal with heroes like her that are generally considered (by the less pro people) as a 'noob' hero. But really, its a new-player hero. It comes with only 1 real skill, an autocast, and fairly easy way to kill. But, the reason why this hero never comes up in pro games is simple; Drow Ranger is easy to counter. So playing in high-tier CM games will of course never offer up the Drow as a carry, because of how easy she is to kill...if you know how.

But, down here in mid-tier, we struggle with her. One guy accidently dies to her twice, and very often its over. And there's very seldom someone that counter-picks to take her out. The same goes for other heroes of the same caliber, such as Riki, Ursa etc.

What tips can I give to you when you face a Drow Ranger in combat? Mobility. Drow Ranger is a very squishy hero that gives in quickly. The ability to approach her instantly (such as blinking or using invisibility) is a fairly sure-fire way to take her out. If she has a Shadow Blade, there's always wards, dust and gems. Just like Riki, countering her strength brings you victory.

In conclusion, fighting those easy to play heroes is just a matter of practice. I daresay, playing with them will help you realize how to counter them.
So if you have to fight the feared Drow Ranger in combat, just exploit her weakness, very, very squisyness.