Dota 2: Patch 7.24 Meta Hero Spotlight – Batrider

Here is a little bit more info about one of the hottest heroes right now, Batrider.

Dota 2’s Patch 7.24 has been out for a couple of weeks now. During that time, we saw the Los Angeles Major qualifiers and the WePlay! Tug of War: Mad Moon, which was the final tournament of the Tug of War series.

There a couple of days left until the third Major of this DPC begins. Having said that, let’s take a look at one of the most popular heroes right now – Batrider.

Batrider in patch 7.24

Unlike some other heroes, Batrider didn’t suffer any direct changes. In fact, not a single ability of this awesome hero was tweaked in any way. This was due to the fact that Batrider went through a lot of changes before. As a result, IceFrog now believes that he is right where he’s supposed to be.

How does Batrider work right now?

Generally speaking, this hero can be played either as an offlaner or soft support, depending on the lineup. However, he definitely shines the most when he is put on the offlane role. There, he can easily rip through the enemy’s safe lane.

Many people consider Batrider to be one of the strongest laners in Dota 2. That’s due to his first skill that can be stacked numerous times. If you’re not careful enough and let Batider “do his thing”, he can easily stack it up five or more times and then just run you down using Firefly. Usually, when the enemy team has to face Batrider, this lane is either completely forfeited or he has to lane against thee heroes.

Once the laning stage is over, Batrider starts to function like a proper initiation tool. Thanks to his flying ability and ultimate that can disable any hero, Batrider is great whenever you need someone to start the fight. That’s why you can see people trying to get as much movement speed as possible, just so he can be quick in his pick-offs.

Thanks to his ultimate, this hero can do wonders against single-core lineups.

What items to get?

As we’ve mentioned, most Batrider players nowadays tend to buy items that provide movement speed. This is a must because this hero needs to be as fast as possible to be effective. It’s very common to get Drums of Endurance, followed by Boots of Travel so you can initiate even faster.

Apart from that, most intelligence-based items can work very well on this hero. Items such as Shiva’s Guard, Scythe of Vyse, Linkin’s Sphere, and others can be excellent choices.

Of course, let’s also not forget about the two initiating tools – Force Staff and Blink Dagger. You can find those items in around 90% of Batrider’s games because they are just too good to pass on it.

Last, but definitely not least, pretty much all team fight based items are also very good on this hero. You can often see Batrider players buying a Pipe of Insight, especially when they are playing against heavy magical damage dealers.

Counter heroes

Despite being a very stronger laner, there are a couple of heroes that can either stand their ground or even win the laning stage against Batrider. One of the best examples here is Lifestealer. The strength carry has an ability called “Rage”, which allows him to clear the Sticky Napalm stacks off him and slow Batrider. If there is a support hero with a stun nearby, chances are that the annoying offline will be going down.

Another very strong laner against Batrider is Weaver. Due to the nature of this hero, Weaver is actually a nightmare to play against because he is very hard to kill and also does a lot of damage. Even if things are not going well for him, he can always use his second skill and escape, leaving Batrider empty-handed.

Finally, let’s also not forget all the nukers. Heroes such as Zeus, Tinker, Invoker, etc. can all be pretty deadly against Batrider. However, if he buys the proper items, things will change for the better.

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