The most broken strategy for DOTA2 Patch 7.30 detonated an emergency patch to fix things up.
DOTA 2 7.30b patch is now live, nerfing heroes and strategies that were performing much higher than Icefrog's expectations in the Zoo meta.
DOTA 2 7.30b Patch Notes
Biggest Changes
DOTA 2 patch 7.30 was characterized for big item changes; among them, a rework for Helm of Overlord. This item was mostly ignored by players before this patch.
The new Helm of Overlord now provides Vladimir's Aura, supplying a very buffed creep for your team.
The previous patch also buffed Beastmaster and Lycan; two heroes well known for their pushing abilities. The combination of these heroes with the revamp Helm of Overlord was the most successful strategy in the recent ESL One Fall 2021 Tournament.
This was the perfect recipe for the rise of the Zoo meta. Players were rushing Helm of Overlord and picking strong pushing heroes like Chen, BeastMaster and Lycan, which kits coincidentally are related to wild animal power.
Developers recognized the problem and didn't hesitate to address the situation, releasing a new update in less than a week.
Hero Adjustments
Beastmaster
Talents - Level 15 Talent +350 Health Beastmaster Controlled Units reduced to 250
Broodmother
- Attributes, Agility growth increased from 3 to 3.4
- Insatiable Hunger, Damage increased from 35/40/45/50 to 35/45/55/65
Lycan
- Howl - Armor Reduction reduced from 5/6/7/8 to 4/5/6/7
- Talents - Level 10 Talent +20 Summon Wolves Damage reduced to 15
Silencer
- Talents - Level 15 Talent +10% Arcane Curse Slow reduced to +8%
- Level 20 Talent +1.5x Last Word Int Multiplier reduced to +1.2x
Slark
- Dark Pact, Mana Cost increased from 60 to 75
- Talents - Level 15 Talent +80 Dark Pact Damage reduced to 70
Item Updates
Helm of the Overlord
- Recipe cost increased from 1000 to 1250 (total cost increased from 6050 to 6300)
Silver Edge
- Recipe cost from 350 to 500 (total cost increased from 5300 to 5450)
Are these changes actually the end for the Zoo Meta? Unlikely, this strategy is still a wrecking ball, just slower.