

With TI5 just months away, professional Dota 2 teams are busy getting their act together. Based on the current Meta, almost every top professional team favors the hero supported by the patch.



According to the latest stats, there are some heroes that are being favored over others. We have compiled a list of five heroes who are making waves in competitive Dota 2 world.

Shadow Fiend



First stop is the SwagFiend; a hero that was commonly picked in pubs and competitive Dota 2. After thepatch update when several of the core heroes have been nerfed, teams are now drafting early pick lineups and this can be clearly observed with game mostly ending before the 30 minute mark. However, among these early pick strategies, Shadow Fiend has remaining in the minds of many teams which tend to revolve their strategies around this hero.



SF currently has a very high pick or ban ratio with a recent rise in the hero’s pick rate as well as the overall win rate in competitive as well as Pub matches

IO



A Rat Dota legend of the past has started to pick up pace by flexing his muscles in past competitive matches. IO is also being paired with other heroes by teams who hope that they could come up with a magical combination for future tournaments. This time around, IO is not being paired with any hard carry and this makes him more than just a teleportation toy for the stone guy. Now, IO works magic with Troll, Bristleback, Chaos Knight, Storm Spirit, Juggernaut and almost any eminent hero one might think of.



IO has a 62% win ratio in competitive matches even after the release of patch 6.84. Besides having a 90% Pick-Ban ratio, IO is also the hero who has been banned more times than he was picked. Maybe IO needs a model rework more than this guy.

Bat Rider



The Dota 2 Rodeo has been a huge hit for quite some time now. He knows all the right spots, and that makes him one of the favorite heroes in competitive Dota 2. Bat Rider is one of the best heroes who can easily create 5v4 situations in no time. With team EG currently having the record for the fastest blink on Bat Rider in competitive matches, he is a hero that can be a game changer in almost any situation.



And that’s why he is feared. Bat Rider has somewhat of a normal 50% win rate and a 97% pick or ban ratio. This cowboy also has something more under his belt. He was banned twice the times he was picked in competitive matches. Perhaps, everyone fears this Batman.

Troll Warlord



A forgotten hero has started to pick up his pace in recent times, reserving a place for himself in the list of top five most favorite heroes in competitive Dota 2. Troll is considered a hero now that can literally man-handle an entire team if given the space to farm. Even with minimal tools commonly seen in professional matches, Troll Warlord can outrun almost any carry. However, ever since the patch update of 6.84, Troll has got a slight decrease in its pick rate based over the nerfs the hero received in the patch.



Troll currently sits on a 55 % win rate. He too has been banned more in competitive matches than picked. A hero that can easily snowball in the right circumstances, Troll Warlord is simply a troll at its best.

Bristleback



Bristleback has been a hero with a 60% win rate, especially if the guy is picked up as radiant. Bristleback has really been helpful in the snowball effect of the current Meta which allows him to find a farm at the right place at the same time creating enough space for the carry to farm. With just another roaming support to his back (more recently IO is the most common pick with the hero), Bristleback can devastate entire teams by catching them at a wrong spot. Bristleback was either picked or banned 90% of the times in competitive matches; winning 70% of the total matches he was picked.



Now what Icefrog has in mind for the heroes that are mostly picked by professional teams? Apart from anything else, one thing is clear that whatever impact these heroes have on the current Meta would greatly tell the story of what they can make in TI5.

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