We are six days away from The International 3 and we think it is good for the folks to know the competing teams a little better, not your emotion and love for the team but pure numbers. We pulled the drafts from their games from the 4th of June, the first day of 6.78 patch, until today and from there, we analyze team patterns and their tendency to run certain heroes.
This article will be the first part of a five-series article highlighting team's playstyle.
- Europe
- South East Asia
- Wildcards
- North America
- China
As you can probably observe above, we are starting with European Dota today. Although they are located in Europe, the article does not include Quantic Gaming. They will be included in our fourth article, Wildcards.
We also took enemy ban % against X team ban % to really highlight the sort of respect ban these teams were facing. The higher the number of difference in %, the higher these heroes got respect banned. High numbers also mean how scared the opponents are to go up against these heroes when facing a particular team.
The International 3 Coverage Hub It's the holy grail of The International 3 coverage!Natus Vincere
Na`Vi team photoshoot. Photo by Helena Kristianson.
PicksHeroesPicks % Rubick31.8 Chen31.8 Dark Seer30.3 Puck 27.3 Gyrocopter 25.8 Nyx Assasin22.7 Alchemist21.2 Lifestealer21.2 Visage 16.7 Prophet15.2 BansHeroesEnemy ban %NaVi's ban %Difference in % Chen441.542.5 Rubick28.8325.8 Puck 27.34.522.8Io
56.134.821.3 Dark Seer28.813.615.2 Enchantress21.27.613.6 Storm Spirit13.6013.6 Treant 12.239.2 Bounty Hunter10.61.59.1 Gyrocopter 16.710.66.1
Given their focus on getting early kills and winning teamfights, it's not a surprise to see Rubick (31.8%), Chen (31.8%), Dark Seer (30.3%), Puck (27.3%) and Gyrocopter (25.8%) on top of Na`Vi's picks, all of which are signature heroes of each member of the team. They can be very aggressive early on with Chen and Gyro, and at the same time secure enough AoE with Dark Seer and Puck to control teamfights. Other than that, we see Nyx Assassin, Alchemist (who has become first pick material ever since their trip to China), Lifestealer, Visage being picked quite a few times by the Ukrainian team. They are all about aggression, but sometimes can go for split-pushing with the Prophet as well.
Surprisingly, it was not Dendi who received the most respect bans, but rather Puppey with his extraordinary Chen play. A 44% ban-rate is a strong testament to what he is capable of doing with the hero.
Despite their habit of picking unorthodox heroes here and there, Na`Vi usually stick with what they are comfortable with, always trying to get their hands on at least one or two signature heroes. The top 5 heroes were picked at least 25% or more, which made it easy to ban against NaVi. However, forcing team to commit one or two bans to take out the Chen or Rubick would mean leaving out heroes like Visage or Nyx Assasin which are also very dangerous.
Alliance
Alliance taking gold in G-1 League LAN Final in Shanghai, China. Photo by GosuGamers.
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PicksHeroesPicks % Prophet31.8KotL
29.5 Lifestealer26.1 Lone Druid22.7 Rubick21.6 Visage 21.6 Batrider19.3 Chen19.3 Gyrocopter 17 Clockwerk 15.9 BansHeroesEnemy ban %Alliance's ban %Difference in % Lone Druid60.34.555.8 Chen37.51.136.4 Prophet27.22.324.9Io
503317 Rubick17.11.116 Enchantress14.72.312.4 Alchemist14.84.510.3 Puck 2515.99.1 Storm Spirit12.53.49.1 P.Assassin808
Looking at the picks, we can see that Alliance prioritized picking up AdmiralBulldog's signature heroes (Prophet, Lone Druid) the most, followed by support heroes that Akke is effective on (KotL, Visage, Chen). Alliance is known for picking a wide variety of carry heroes and that' why we only see 2 carries on the list in the name of Lifestealer (26.1%) and Gyrocopter (17%).
The Swedes love their Lone Druid, and opposing teams fear it. Even after the nerf to the Spirit Bear, AdmiralBulldog is still regarded as one of the best if not the best Lone Druid player at the moment, earning his signature hero an astonishing ban-rate of 60.3% while being picked up in 22.7% of their games. In fact, his brilliance on Prophet (banned 27.2% against) and Lone Druid as well as Akke's on Chen (banned 37.5% against) and Enchantress always force the other team to waste bans on those heroes, allowing s4 to pick up whatever solo mid and and carry that he and Loda desire.
Although Alliance is a rather predictable team in terms of drafting, their nearly perfect execution just put the opposing team in a position where they have to ban the same set of heroes every game and opens up space for either s4 or Bulldog to get their hands on their signature heroes. From then on, execution is their key to victory.
Fnatic
Fnatic drafting at EMS One Summer LAN Final. Photo by EMS One
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PicksHeroesPicks % Lifestealer32.5 Gyrocopter27.5 Naga Siren26.3 Dark Seer25.0 KotL22.5 Rubick22.5 Enigma20.0 Dragon Knight18.8 Puck18.8 Visage17.5 BansHeroesEnemy ban %Fnatic's ban %Difference in % Prophet32.57.525.0 Lifestealer26.31511.3 Jakiro11.32.58.8 Nyx Assassin18.810.08.8 Io51.342.58.8Dragon Knight
10.02.57.5Batrider33.726.37.4 Disruptor8.71.37.4 Morphling8.71.33.4 Outworld26.218.87.4
In contrast with the previous teams, Fnatic focused on securing themselves a strong carry for Era firsthand, picking up Lifestealer and Gyrocopter at a combined 60% rate. They also have a tendency of abandoning the off-lane, thus we only see Dark Seer and Enigma (who they often run as a support) up there. Fnatic is a team that is really hard to push into, as they often pick up supports like Naga Siren (26.3%) and KotL (22.5%) who can defend as well as split-push to no end.
Over to the Ban table, Prophet and Lifestealer are banned the most against this team as Trixi and Era are beasts on those two heroes. Most notable, however, is the Disruptor ban. Fnatic uses the hero from time to time to set up devastating combos with Naga, Dark Seer and other Aoe heroes and as a result Disruptor earned himself a place among top heroes banned against Fnatic.
Unlike Alliance, Fnatic's difference in ban-rate compared to other teams is rather low, which means they have a flexible drafting style. They're a unique team, in which members can switch role around if they want to. Coupled with their smart choice of laning, Fnatic usually has the upper-hand and dominate their lanes right from the get-go. If not, they make up for it with their late game discipline and hope to turn the tides during crucial teamfights.
Mousesports
Mouz took 1st place at EMS One Summer LAN Final. Photo by EMS One
PicksHeroesPicks % Puck 35.8 Rubick31.6 Nyx Assasin30.5 Lifestealer29.5 Visage 29.5 Lone Druid25.3 Beastmaster25.3 Gyrocopter 24.2 Anti-Mage23.2 S.Demon22.1 BansHeroesEnemy ban %Mouz's ban %Difference in % Lone Druid48.48.440 Puck 35.82.133.7 KotL30.57.423.1Prophet
31.69.522.1 Anti-Mage26.37.418.9 Nyx Assasin23.17.415.7 Gyrocopter 23.210.512.7 Tinker10.5010.5 Beastmaster10.51.19.4 Batrider43.234.78.5
A team that favors early skirmishes to create space for Black^, Mouz usually opted for aggressive mid heroes such as Puck, Beastmaster (for a combined 61.3%) and supports that can make early rotation like Rubick and Nyx Assassin (for a combined 62.1%). They spread their focus quite evenly accross all positions, which signifies their balance as a team. Although Nyx Assassin is no longer first-ban/pick material, it's still devastating if Mouz can get their hands on the spiked bug, earning him a 23.1% ban-rate.
Interestingly, Mouz is still fond of Shadow Demon (picked once every five-ish games), a strong support that somehow has fallen through the ranks as of late. Looking over to the Ban table, one might be suprised to see the Tinker on the list, being banned exclusively against the German squad. Mouz fans know they sometimes run the off-lane / jungling Tinker as a counter to split-pushing and add to their own split push power as well.
It would be a mistake to not mention the playmaker plus the farming machine of Mouz: FATA- and Black^. FATA- got an impressive 35.8% ban-rate on his Puck, while the Anti-Mage is banned 26.3% of the time because of Black^'s farming skill. These two are the ones that often force certain bans from opposing teams and allow syndereN to have more choice on other positions.
Virtus.Pro
Virtus.Pro at Dreamhack Summer 2013. Photo by GosuGamers.
PicksHeroesPicks % Prophet43.6 Queen of Pain24.4 Outworld23.1 Vengeful21.8 Rubick19.2 Dark Seer17.9 Weaver17.9 Bane16.7 Leshrac16.7 Naga Siren16.7 BansHeroesEnemy ban %VP's ban %Difference in % Naga Siren41.15.136.0 Io56.424.432.0 Disruptor32.01.330.7 Outworld30.811.519.3 Bane16.61.315.3Batrider
39.826.912.9 Leshrac12.81.311.5 Dark Seer30.821.89.0 Treant24.315.48.9 Silencer9.01.37.7
A general look at VP's top picked heroes suggest a well-balanced mix of pushing, ganking and teamfighting. The Russian squad usually focus on wining and ending games during the mid-game, which lead them to pick heroes that shine the most during that phase of the game. Heroes who take control after the 10-15 minute mark like Prophet and Queen of Pain were picked for a combined 68% of their games, followed by the Outworld Devourer who can do wonders with an early Mek and BKB. Their most picked supports are all heroes that can transition very well from early roaming and ganking to pushing / teamfighting such as Vengeful Spirit (who, surprisingly, was picked up 21.8% of the time), Leshrac, Bane and Naga Siren.
Over to the Ban table, we see Naga Siren being banned against VP by opposing teams in 41.1% of their games. The Russian was one of the first teams to bring Naga back to the scene after her buff and has been quite successful with the hero. Another notable ban against VP is the Disruptor, who NS really likes picking up to combo with the Naga. For a support who is considered to be only situational, having a 32% ban-rate says a lot about VP's efficiency with this hero.
At this point, a sharp eyes would have noticed the lack of carries in both tables. This really is a testament to VP's aggressive drafting and playstyle, always looking to end the match early with strong utility, mid-game heroes as well as supports who can roam early. This mindset has built up a very entertaining team to watch, but sometimes it backfire and come back to bite them in the bottom for not having enough firepower to go late.
