Every region has its own play-style especially when it comes to the ever evolving meta of Dota 2. Amongst them, Western Europe is always fascinating to watch for its sheer amount of craft and creativity.
But the million dollar question, in this case $500,000, is whether or not WEU’s own arsenal of heroes will suffice to claim the glory?
Let’s find out by analysing three of WEU’s best heroes played in DPC WEU 2021-22 Division I Tour 2 in the current 7.31b patch.
Mars
With an astonishing 56% win rate, Mars has been a staple in the meta across different regions on the globe. Perhaps the perfect Pos. 3 hero from the past two years, Mars has made his presence felt in every pro game – good or bad.
But what makes him so popular? The easy answer is; durability, frontline tank, initiator, damage dealer and stable laner.
Mars with the perfect itemisation can deal tonnes of damage as well as provide much utility to his allies by opting for Pipe of Insight or Crimson Guard.
The same itemisation provides Mars with incredible durability and can sustain quite a bit of incoming damage, thus proving to be the great wall for his allies and a nuisance for his opponents.
Initiating with a Blink Dagger gives Mars the perfect opportunity to set up teamfights with his ultimate and cage every unit within the arena for a prolonged period of time with no means of an escape.
Simultaneously, he’s also a stable laner and can sustain himself in the lane against odds with relative ease.
Death Prophet
Another gem in WEU’s pocket is that of Death Prophet amassing an impressive 58% win rate with a 35% pick rate.
WEU just seems to make this hero work as compared to SEA who more or less isn’t able to utilise her that effectively.
Death Prophet is one of the most perfect heroes to ever exist especially for the mid lane. She is proficient at self-sustainability, and can Siphon off the enemy to gain health and survive under crucial circumstances.
She has the ability to easily push into lanes with Crypt Swarm and clear out creep waves, thus enabling her to farm proficiently and scale effectively into the late game with proper itemisation.
In times of duress, she can make use of her Silence and setback her enemies for a considerable amount of time, whereas she can use Exorcism, her ultimate, to push early into the game and take down enemy buildings thus creating pressure and lane dominance.
She is a complete package.
There’s no reason to NOT pick her.
Sand King
Crixalis, as he is fondly known, has seen quite a surge in competitive play – thanks to the +1 Armour he got in the latest patch. The additional armour during the early stages has resulted in a significant improvement to his laning stage.
The confidence in the hero shines through with a massive 54% win rate and at the same time being at 36% in the pick rate.
Sand King has a high scaling potential owing to his abilities such as caustic finale and sandstorm, that helps him to take stacks easily and itemise properly.
Speaking of itemisation, Sand King can be itemised both; defensively as well as passively, with both options proving to be useful in terms of initiating or sustaining, while providing much crowd control.
Conclusion
Western Europe certainly looks a step ahead in terms of creativity and has all the elements of surprise. This region certainly is one of the frontrunners of winning the Stockholm Dota 2 Major.
