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The International of Dota is near to its start and the teams are already preparing hard to exploit best possible heroes and game winning strategies. It has also been reported that Chinese teams like PSG.LGD have not been allowed mobile phones during their practice sessions to be more focussed on Dota. The stakes are also high for other teams like EG, Team Liquid and defending champions OG, who are expected to be at their best.
Every year The International opens up a ton of ideas not only because the professional players innovate new plans but also because the stakes are so high that we get to see some of the best dota gameplay and strategies throughout the tournament. Last year we saw how OG utilized their buybacks and came back in the finals of The International. We have also seen how professional players stick to a certain group of heroes which work best for them and are in meta. Here we will focus on the best heroes which can be picked in the TI 9 tournament.
#1 Ember Spirit
Ember has been in the patch since 7.22 and has become a popular hero of the meta. Generally played as a mid hero, Ember is an incredibly versatile core. The hero can dish out incredible amounts of physical or magic damage depending upon the player’s build. The best part of Ember is that he comes on really fast in the game and has a good laning presence thanks to Flame Guard and Sleight of Fist.
One of the main reasons professional players prefer Ember is his mobility and ability to push all around the map. Lane pressure and taking good fights are Ember Spirit’s strengths. Additionally, the hero has great talents and an amazing scepter bonus. These positive points make Ember one of the most favorable picks in The International.
#2 Outworld Devourer
Outworld Devourer has not been as famous as other heroes in the pub games but the professional scene has had a different mindset. OD was one of the most contested heroes in the recent professional games of the TI qualifiers. He has a great laning presence in the first few minutes of the game. OD also excels in team fights and offers really great lockdown or save with help of Astral Imprisonment. Additionally, the hero has some amazing talents and even though he was nerfed in the 7.22f patch, OD still remains strong and one of viable picks as a mid core for teams in The International.
#3 Ancient Apparition
Ancient Apparition was one of the most picked heroes in TI’s qualifiers. The hero was also banned 90 times in 159 matches. We saw Wraith King plus AA as a pair in the qualifiers. Ancient Apparition has great damage without spending tons of mana in the early game. The hero provides decent strength to zone out enemy heroes in the laning stages. AA is great against healing heroes and some other popular heroes in the meta like Alchemist and Morphiling which are good options in pro games. Additionally the hero has great talent tree to aid him in the matches.
#4 Beastmaster
Beastmaster is one of the best offlaners in the meta and has been a strong hero since the release of 7.22. The hero has amazing talents, even if he is zoned out of the offlane he can come back after getting the level ten 25% XP gain talent, plus points on Boar damage or six armour are great options so are the level 20 and 25 talents. The best part about Beastmaster is his BKB piercing ultimate ability which is very important and game changing in a professional game of dota 2.
#5 Spirit Breaker
Spirit Breaker was one of the most contested and banned heroes in the TI qualifiers. Not only is the hero extremely annoying in the pubg games it becomes a pain in the ass to deal with Spirit Breaker in the early phases as the hero can completely turn the momentum towards his team at the start of the game. Spirit Breaker is great against some of the in-meta heroes like Night Stalker and Luna as it can gain +600 vision at night time because of its level 10 talent.
