After the release of Dota 2 patch 7.36c, Warlock has remained the most successful hero in the game.
This support is incredibly powerful when used properly and in this mini-guide, you will learn why.
Warlock’s Strengths
Warlock’s current win rate is close to 55%. His pick rate is 11.4%. His Chaotic Offering was nerfed in Dota 2 patch 7.36c, but not by much. In fact, at level 1 the golem has 100 HP more than before. Only the late game is a bit harder because of the 200 HP difference.
Warlock’s innate ability is Eldritch Summoning. This ability gives him the option to farm the jungle faster than other support heroes because each time a unit dies under the effect of his abilities, a Minow Imp is spawned.
These imps seek enemies and explode when they reach them. The AoE damage is significant and quickly adds up if enough enemies are under the effect of an ability like Fatal Bonds.
If you choose to play with the Champion of Gorroth facet, your golem will gain Immolation damage from your HP and mana regen. The amount is 90%. So if you have a total of 10 HP and mana regen, the golem will gain +9 Immolation damage per second.
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However, this is not the hero’s strongest point. The strongest point is his Fatal Bonds, which can bond up to six enemies and cause them to take 24% damage from each other’s damage for 18s.
When you catch the enemy team this way and then cast Chaotic Offering and Upheaval, your team doesn’t need to do much to obtain a clean victory.
One thing to keep in mind is that Upheaval’s slow effect starts at 20% and can increase up to 100% after just 5s. This means that if you catch an enemy in it and they are already slowed or stunned, their chances of escaping are slim. Melee heroes without escape mechanisms get completely destroyed by this spell.
In the laning phase, Warlock can use his Shadow Word to give himself or an ally 160 – 400 HP over 10s. You can also use this spell on an enemy but it’s not recommended because the damage is significantly lowered by their magic resistance and HP regen. Over 10s, you could easily lose 33% of the effect.
But, if you’re dealing with a low HP enemy, this ability could help you secure a kill if it’s at least level 2 or 3.
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