Chen’s win rate increased by 6.5% after patch 7.34d

Chen, the Dota 2 hero who brings an entire zoo to a fight, has gone from being an outcast to being a powerful first-phase pick. It’s extremely likely that we will see him either picked or banned a lot in this upcoming edition of The International.

Chen had been severely nerfed a few patches ago, but Dota 2 patch 7.34d seems to have made him viable again, even though it didn’t even buff him.

According to Dotabuff, Chen’s win rate went from 48.7% to 55.2% in less than a week. His pick rate is still below 1%, but why is he so successful right now?

Chen’s strengths

Chen usually builds Aghanim’s Shard, Solar Crest, Guardian Greaves, and Boots of Bearing. In some games, he goes for a Pipe of Insight, Vladmir’s Offering, or even a Force Staff. For himself, a Glimmer Cape or a Ghost Scepter is also really useful against heroes who heavily rely on physical damage.

Chen’s abilities turn him into an early-game beast. However, he is not that useful after the 35-minute mark because his creeps become less and less relevant, while his other abilities aren’t strong enough to compete with those of enemy support and carry heroes.

Of course, if you’re 10K gold ahead of your opponent, then a farmed Chen will prove to be very useful thanks to his items. Auras and massive AoE heals are always welcome, even though they tend to work best in the first 20 minutes of the game, when 500 HP is a lot.

Chen will hinder a carry’s ability to move using his Penitence. This ability lasts for 8 seconds, slows by 36%, and increases Chen’s attack speed and attack range. The self-buffs are not very useful but the debuffs are.

Divine Favor, when combined with other aura items, will create a significant difference between the two teams when it comes to effective HP. A simple 10 armor difference actually means a 60% effective HP difference. And if you add to that a 500 heal bomb coming from Mekansm and Hand of God, you can quickly turn a fight around.

The biggest weakness of this hero is his need to be with his team on the offensive in the early game. In most MMR brackets, that’s hard to achieve because people just want to farm. They don’t understand what a massive advantage they have thanks to their Chen, so they play for the late game.

Header: Valve