Valve released update 7.37 for Dota 2 in the early hours of August 1. This patch introduced changes to several mechanics and abilities, leading to significant buffs for some heroes. We’ve selected three heroes who have notably benefited from the patch and are now dominating in matchmaking.
Medusa
Medusa had not been a popular carry recently, but patch 7.37 has helped her return to the top. Key changes include:
- Venomous Volley: A new aspect replacing Mana Pact. It applies a debuff with every fifth attack, slowing enemies across three parameters: movement speed, spell casting speed, and attack speed. This effect can be stacked with Split Shot, and at level 25 with the talent, it applies to all targets.
- Gorgon's Grasp: A new active skill replacing the mana shield. It inflicts petrification and deals damage within radii around Medusa.
These changes make Medusa more mobile and capable of controlling opponents, even without Eye of Skadi. The win rate has increased by 2.2% after the patch (overall win rate — 53.37%).
Viper
Viper received a new innate ability, Predator, which deals additional damage to an enemy based on their missing HP. The damage increases with level:
- At level one, it deals 0.3 units of damage for each percentage of missing HP.
- At level three, Viper deals 24 additional damage to an enemy with 40% health.
- At level 25, this damage reaches 90 units under the same conditions.
This change significantly boosts Viper’s damage without mana costs. The win rate increased by 5.3% after the patch (overall win rate — 52%).
Kunkka
Kunkka also received important updates:
- Admiral's Rum: A new innate ability providing a bonus to movement speed and delayed damage when HP drops below 65%. The effect activates automatically and lasts for 10 seconds.
- New Aghanim's Scepter: Now allows launching two ships with the ultimate, which deal damage not only at the final point but also while moving. The ships also apply the “rum” effect to allies.
These changes improve Kunkka’s survivability at all stages of the game and enhance his role in team fights. The win rate increased by 6% after the patch (overall win rate — 50.45%).