Dota 2 received a major update right after the conclusion of the Leipzig Major. Most notably, Patch 7.24 included map changes and a rework of the neutral item system.
If you want to see the full list of changes you can always visit the official Dota 2 website. In this case, we’ll take a look at some of the most important ones.
Shrines are gone
Dota 2 Patch 7.23e removed half the shrines, leaving only the ones near the Roshan Pit, and 7.24 finished the job. The shrines are no more and I’m sure many players will miss their regenerative capabilities. To make up for this, the outposts have been relocated into the “main jungle” of each side. For Radiant, that would be the bottom one, while for Dire it’s the top. Strategically by default it’s better to have control over the Dire one, since it’s closer to Roshan.
Outpost changes
Outposts have been slightly nerfed as they no longer provide flying vision, but ground vision instead. Also, the vision range is now only 700, down from the old 1400. Teams have control over their respective outpost by default from the start of each match and there’s no longer an activation period. You can capture them even in the first minute. This change essentially reimagined the shrines since outposts are indestructible and it’ll probably be the team with greater control which will benefit the most. The old spot where the outposts used to be, namely the bottom right/top left sides of the map where there was once a secret shop, now lays barren. Whether we’ll see the secret shop make a comeback in an upcoming update remains to be seen, but it would be a nice idea to at least polish that piece of the battlefield a little bit.
Bounty runes
The two bounty runes which once resided near the outposts have been relocated as well. They’re now on the exact opposite side of each outpost. That would be bottom Dire jungle and top Radiant. Meanwhile, the ones in the river remain unchanged but the current placement may take some time getting used to as many Dota 2 players will probably manage to steal one from the enemy and get away with it.
Gold per minute talents
Much like 7.23e which removed all experience talents, Patch 7.24 gets rid of the gold talents. To be fair, it was an expected change ever since Observer wards were made free. That nullified the need for extra gold on the supports and only made them stronger and more battle-ready than the actual cores. GPM talents have been replaced with other options, some good, some bad, some terrible, but at least there’s a choice.
Neutral items
No doubt this is the biggest topic of discussion since their introduction to Dota 2. Are they bad for the game’s balance, do they completely ruin the player experience and many more questions are all hard to answer. Usually, the answers to the two above would lean towards yes. With Patch 7.24, we get some significant changes to how the whole system of neutral items works. First and foremost, there’s a dedicated stash for the neutral items.
Let’s start by saying it looks great. It also stashes any unused neutral items that can be picked up by players at any time. The total number of item drops per tier has been increased from 3 to 4 and players now have a dedicated neutral item slot. As a result, the number of backpack slots goes down from 4 to 3. You can also instantly teleport a neutral item from your inventory to the stash, making it much easier for allies to pick it up.
The dedicated neutral item slot is arguably a step in the right direction since Dota 2 players can now only use one item at a time. Many heroes would often stack a couple of neutral items in the mid game which made them borderline broken and very hard to deal with. This will no longer be possible. On the plus side, everyone now gets an extra slot in the late game and doesn’t have to make a choice between a neutral and a regular item.
Closing thoughts
There’s a whole lot of buffs and nerfs but they all seem rather minor, at least at first glance. Meanwhile, Void Spirit and Snapfirehave finally been added to Captain’s Mode. After going through Patch 7.24, there’s just one question – will it have as many minor patches as the previous one?
