2013-03-21, 08:14 AM
Yeah, it's pretty easy to call some of the metagame changes. PL agi buff from 2.8 to 4.2? Flak Cannon range 800 to 1000 and Rocket Barrage 19 to 23 per hit? The changes just typically take a few months to take root and show up in big matches.
Funny thing is how a lot of people pass off skills or heroes as useless and ignore the massive buffs. I remember when Rocket Barrage scaled 10/12/14/16 and everyone left it at level 1. Gyro didn't have much of an early game presence or late game carry potential, so people didn't consider that he could with the right buffs. I read through a Gyro discussion on r/dota2 (obviously not the place for cutting edge metagame discussion, but hey) late last year after the buffs and people were still like, "Rocket Barrage doesn't scale that well so max the other skills first." That's how you end up with people surprised when a previously useless hero like Nyx Assassin starts showing up in every pro game.
Funny thing is how a lot of people pass off skills or heroes as useless and ignore the massive buffs. I remember when Rocket Barrage scaled 10/12/14/16 and everyone left it at level 1. Gyro didn't have much of an early game presence or late game carry potential, so people didn't consider that he could with the right buffs. I read through a Gyro discussion on r/dota2 (obviously not the place for cutting edge metagame discussion, but hey) late last year after the buffs and people were still like, "Rocket Barrage doesn't scale that well so max the other skills first." That's how you end up with people surprised when a previously useless hero like Nyx Assassin starts showing up in every pro game.