Top 8 favourite Dota 2 Heroes of 2018

One of the great esports games around has to be Dota 2, not only for the increasing popularity but also for the prestigious tournaments in the gaming world like The International that has reached record-breaking prize pools year on year. With only two weeks to go for the prestigious event to take place, pro players are training on heroes and preparing new fighting strategies to represent their team. On top of this, just like sports, you have the possibility to bet on dota 2.

Below is a list of the most picked and favourite dota 2 heroes of 2018 so far.

1.       Pudge, the Butcher

Pudge is a strong dota hero known for his incredible ganking talents, having the power to disable his enemies. The butcher is feared by many for his playstyle and his combination of three abilities, with the potential to kill heroes early in the round or mid-game. In fact, Pudge plays his best as the strong disabler, Initiator and Nuker.  

Pudge is the most picked hero chosen by pro players who play him in dota 2 tournaments. His signature ability is the Meat Hook that is thrown to catch his foe and drag them closer to him, dealing excessive damage. He can resist magical spells with his Flesh Heap and slow down his enemies with a deadly cloud. The more Pudge inflicts damage, he regains his strength with his Dismember ability, disabling his opponent for a few seconds.  

Professional dota player Dendi wore a Pudge costume participating in the All-Star Match at The International 2015. While Pudge hooks his foe, he usually says “Get over here”, a voice line that refers to the similar hooking ability of the scorpion character in the video game franchise, Mortal Kombat.
 

2.       The Sharp-eyed Sniper

Kardel Sharpeye is the best agile sniper from the Mountains of Knollen where people have survived hunting down cliff-dwelling steepstalkers. Due to his age, he has reduced mobility and not fast enough to escape, so Sniper is vulnerable and frail to enemies who confront him at close range. He tries to keep his distance and can shoot to kill his enemies from a long range. Sniper's best positions are the Carry and Nuker, in fact, pro players that play this hero will understand how positioning is the most important thing to bear in mind whether its playing or countering him.

Sniper knows how to design and make his firearms from scratch and talking about weapons; he inherited his father's gun, the Killstealer. The hero name, Kardel Sharpeye is after the professional Counter-Strike gamer Kyle 'Ksharp' Miller from Team 3D, who was well known for his incredible skills as a sniper. The ultimate ability Assassinate has a similar gunshot sound like in the CS: GO rifles.

3.       Invoker’s Knowledge is Power

Invoker is an intelligent wizard who has a unique set of 14 abilities with a combination of three special powers. These are Quas for the manipulation of ice while regaining health, Wex for control over storm elements as well as providing movement and attacking speed. On top of these, Exort which allows the manipulation of fire which inflicts more attacking damage.    

The wizard likes to show off his gifts, and as very versatile with a range of abilities, he can be a carry, ganker, pusher, initiator and support. Invoker can conjure a tornado, building up an ice wall, a deadly Sun Strike or perhaps roaming around invisible with his Ghost Walk are among many of his powers.   

There are moments when Invoker amuses himself, in fact, one of his respawn lines 'Knowing me...Knowing you' refers to the last single with the same name released from Abba. Add to this, his Deafening Blast voice line response 'Sonic Boom!' refers to Guile signature move from the Street Fighter video game series.    

4.    The Phantom Assassin sent by the Veiled Sisters

Mortred, The Phantom Assassin was raised by the Sisters of the Veil, with whom she trained to fight off her foes to bring balance. She is an agility hero, known for her power to inflict distressing harm with a single strike. Mortred can blend in with her surroundings to escape invisibly from awkward situations. Slowing down her opponents, she throws her stifling dagger and ends the encounter with a critical strike of a Coup de Grace to kill opponents.

Mortred has a fun side to her, in fact, one of her scripted lines is ”I’m an immaterial girl!’ that is probably a reference to Madonna’s song Material Girl. The phantom’s name Mortred could remind you of Mordred, a character that betrayed and fought King Arthur in the Camalann Battle.

5.    Zeus, The Lord of Heaven

The Father of the gods, Zeus is famous for his high cast range and the low cooldown on magical spells to be his dominant self, played as the nuker. He can be very controlling, dominating mid-game usually as the semi-carry ganker, disabling and inflicting magical harm on to his enemies.  

Zeus wants to prove to his wife that he is a worthy spouse, so he descended into the world of dota 2 to pursue victory in the battle. The mighty Greek god can summon lightning bolts to destroy his foes while giving true sight to his allies. No enemy can withstand the Thundergod’s Wrath wherever they may be with a surge of a lightning bolt.

Zeus was inspired from ancient Greek mythology and talking of the god of sky and thunder, and coincidentally he happened to be the first hero developed in Dota 2. One of Zeus’ rare voice lines is ‘In Me, I Trust’ which refers to the United States national motto “In God We Trust”.

6.    Lyralei, the Windranger at your Service

The Windranger is an intelligent archer of the wood and the favoured godchild of the wind. She has the power to inflict a physical attack, taking down her enemies. After years of training, she honed her skills by firing arrows on target while roaming across the battlefield as fast as the wind. With her bow she can shoot an arrow, shackling her foe to a tree, then take advantage of the situation, Lyralei can corner her enemy with a flurry of arrows.

Windranger is usually played in the offlane position, however, being versatile she can be a midlaner, support and carry for her escape routes and long-range shots. Some of the professional players like Pain Gaming w33 and Optic Gaming CC&C are famous for playing Windranger in tournaments so you can be rest assured that they know her well enough to give you the option of placing your best bet on dota 2.
 

7.    Juggernaut will carry on the Rites of the Faceless Ones

Yurnero the Juggernaut is an agile hero with an unstoppable force that devastates enemies, making them invulnerable. He is a strong hero on both offensive and defensive with the potential to play as a Carry, by bringing down the opposing towers and escape from death. The Juggernaut deals massive damage with his destructive bladestorm and his quick, deadly omnislashing strikes. In that time of need, Juggernaut can summon a healing ward to all nearby allies boosting their health.

Juggernaut banished from his hometown, the Ancient Isle of Masks that had eventually vanished with vengeful magic. Saved by his banishment, he is the last man from his hometown to continue the traditional rituals and practice swordplay. His backstory is very similar to the fantasy book series ‘Mazalan Book of the Fallen’ written by Steven Erikson. Juggernaut’s voice line ‘My blade is swifter’ refers to another similar character known as Swiftblade in Heroes of Newerth.

8.    Axe is the Reinforcement the Dota Army Needs.

The dota champion, Axe is also known by the name Mogul Khan, a strong initiator famous for creating chaotic confusion on the battlefield. He spent his life rising through the ranks becoming General of the Red Mist Army, but all his troops died in the field of battle. No matter what he has been through, Axe knows that one-person army is the best way for him.  

Axe is best played in the position of a starter, having the strength to withstand blows, can also be a disabler and jungle. He can tease and anger his opponents with the Berserker’s Call that will force them to attack. Khan could conjure up the battle hunger to slow down his foes while boosting his movement speed. With a swing of his axe countering incoming attacks, Mogul Khan can identify weakness is finishing off his enemy with a strike of a Culling Blade.   

The dota 2 hero, Axe portrays an image of ‘one-man army’ which may have been inspired by another character in the Star Trek Series, Khan Noonian Singh. He was often described as a ‘one-man army’ and used to wear red shirts. In the past, Axe was famous as ‘Mogul Kahnt touch this’ a phrase that comes from the famous song by MC Hammer “U can’t touch this”.