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Dota 2 can be an extremely stressful game if played with the sincere will to win.
Sure, its flexible nature may allow players to experiment with unorthodox hero roles and builds. But whether it is a throwaway pub game or a 5-stack rank venture, some heroes just make players temporarily hate Dota 2.
There is no straightforward way to pin the reason down on one element, as they all do so differently.
What makes a Dota 2 hero annoying?
Most of these are potent heroes in their own right. But, of course, there is nothing wrong with being a strong "meta" hero.
What makes them "annoying" is either an element that forces players to play Dota 2 in a restrictive manner, something with little to no counterplay, or elements it just feels unfair to play against.
5) Ogre Magi
Ogre Magi is just a run-of-the-mill Dota 2 support on paper. But when a new Dota 2 player walks into their first lane against this hero, the reality is drastically more sinister.
Ogre’s Ignite (W) seems deceptively underwhelming until suddenly it slows the target to a bog, the enemy core catches up, and it turns into a kill. An early lvl 3 Ignite in the lane can more or less eat all of a support’s health.
But Ignite alone is not what puts Ogre Magi on this list. It is because of Multicast (R). A lowly position 4 Ogre Magi can get a 2x multicast for 480 magic damage Fireblast (Q) when he hits lvl 6.
In Dota 2, no one expects that kind of magic burst from one spell that early on.
4) Windranger
The viability of Windranger as a Dota 2 hero concept is grounds for some debate. With two skillshots and a mobility nuke, Windranger feels more suited to League of Legends.
This debate also extends to the upper echelons of Dota 2 play. She seems to get picked in big-stake DPC fixtures, yet many panelists question whether it is a hero anyone would base a draft on.
Considering that Windranger is possibly curbing her own team’s chances, why is she on the list? Strangely enough, the answer lies in one of her skillshots. Shackleshot (Q) is a fascinating ability on paper. If two targets line up together, it can stun them for nearly 4 seconds at lvl 4.
The justification for such a busted debuff timer is that it is a skillshot. On paper, the 525 search range with a 46-degree angle does not seem that bad. However, in practice, this often causes Shackleshot to latch on to things farther away and at highly odd angles.
With a Javelin, Focus Fire gives Windranger just enough firepower to kill miserable supports. As a result, a Windranger picker can just spam Qs off cooldown and ult when it hits, getting kills and commends without ever doing anything skillful.
3) Tinker
All keen folk heroes can be innately triggering with their annoying nasal laughter, Sniper being the biggest of all. But when it comes to the potential to get extremely irritating, Tinker takes the cake.
Playing Tinker and dealing with the hero is vastly different from any other hero in Dota 2. With an early Teleportation Boot and Blink Dagger, the Tinker Dota 2 tears factory is online.
The opponents of Tinker are looking at constant de-pushes in any unattended lane. When a teamfight breaks out, Tinker equates to a litany of nukes flying off the horizon unless every bit of catch is spent on jumping Tinker.
If this is not enough, Tinker is one of those Dota 2 heroes that gets downright impossible to beat late game without BKB.
Offensively, Tinker can permanently lock someone into a refreshing hex. Defensively, he is one of the strongest high-ground siege heroes, thanks to the nuke spam.
2) Pudge
A missing enemy Pudge is a mortal terror to any Dota 2 support. Meat Hook (Q) is from the rare breed of skills that can put someone out of position. And then it is a tale of being chased down with Rot (W).
If there is no escape spell to cop the target out, a meathook from the fog is almost certain death. Dismember (R) is a long BKB-piercing disable that announces its presence across the map once active.
On top of all this, Pudge is also the highest-picked hero in the lower brackets. Thus, Dota 2 players need to pay extra attention to the map in half their games, lest a pudge is running amok.
1) Techies
Techies is one of those heroes that completely changes how a player approaches Dota 2. With Techies, there is no regular trading in the lane. The battle is one of vision, knowing where the red bombs are, and not getting tilted once those two battles are lost.
In fact, Techies is so infamous that its tinge of annoyance needs no introduction. An absurdly high-damage basic ability that grants free vision, a long silence with which the Techies can deny himself, and a long root trap, his kit is meant to whittle a team down physically and mentally.
And that is excluding the worst nightmare of Dota 2 players, a high ground push against Techies with Minefield.
Note: This article reflects the author's views.
