THE HIGHLY anticipated Dota 2 patch 7.31 just came out, bringing with it a new champ called the Primal Beast, a Techies rework, and a whole of changes in the jungle.
The Primal Beast roars in Dota 2
First appearing in the Aghanim’s Labyrinth, the Primal Beast is now available as a playable hero in Patch 7.31.
This massive dinosaur like hero is set to be a tank initiator, and carries one of the most simplistic yet brutal kit.
Its first skill (Q) is Onslaught, where the Primal Beast charges straight to its opponents. The ability is charge-based (meaning you have to hold down the skill) and has a max range of 2000. Enemies caught in the Primal Beast’s path are also stunned for up to 1.6 seconds. Onslaught can also disregard terrain, which can be pretty scary.
Its second skill (W) is Trample, which works a bit similar to Sand King’s Epicenter’s Pulse. For every 140 units travels, it deals up to 50.0 base damage that is multiplied by the Primal Beast’s own attack damage (40%). The downside, however, is that the Primal Beast is disarmed for the duration of the skill (5.5 seconds).
The third skill (E) is Uproar, which has both a passive and active effect. For every damage the hero takes it provides a stack (max of 5) of Uproar. When the skill is activated, he receives additional attack and armor for seven seconds based on the number of stacks he has.
Lastly, the Primal Beast’s ultimate (R) is Pulverize and the closest thing Dota 2 gets to wrestling. The Primal Beast grabs an enemy and slams them to the ground (suplex style!) for 2.3 seconds. The skill also has an area of effect (AoE) and mini-stuns any enemy caught within it.
The new hero has an Aghanim Shard ability called Rock Throw. Pretty much literal in nature, Rock Throw just lets the Primal Beast throw a massive rock and stuns the AoE of where it lands.
Techies changes arsenal
The most anticipated changes in 7.31 might have been a rework of Dota 2’s nightmare – Techies.
The new Techies sees most of his skills changed — most notably, the removal of Stasis Trap and the Remote Mines.
Stasis Trap has been replaced with a new skill called Reactive Tazer. It functions almost the same as Grimstroke’s Ink Swell, but instead of stunning, it disarms those caught in its AoE. Getting an Aghanim’s Scepter allows Techies to cast the ability to his allies.
Techies’ new first skill is now Sticky Bomb, wherein he throws a bomb (like the remote mine) but if an enemy is near the radius of the bomb it will follow/stick to them. When the bomb explodes, it slows the enemies movement by up to 55%.
Proximity Mine is now Techies’ ultimate and deals up to 750 damage. The mines cannot be detected by True Sight, but instead, are now detectable within the 500 AoE radius of the mine. The mines also now deal less damage the further away you are from it.
Jungle changes
Patch 7.31 also comes with some massive jungle changes, including three new jungle creeps.
The first of the jungle changes is the bounty rune placement. From the triangle, it’s now located at the primary jungle.
Three new neutral creeps are also joining the map. The first two, the Ancient Ice Shaman and Ancient Frostbitten Golem, are the newest Ancient creeps to join the map. The third, the Warpine Raider, is a new large camp creep.
Creeps also have new abilities: Piercing for the ranged creep, which deals 150% bonus damage to non-hero units; Reinforce for towers and siege units, which deals 150% bonus damage to fellow reinforced units; and Runty for melee units, which deals 25% less damage to heroes.
Three new items has also been added: Revenant Brooch, Wraith Pact (an upgrade to Vladimir’s Offering), and Boots of Bearing (an upgrade to the Tranquil Boots and Drums of Endurance).
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