The first balance patch after TI11 is here in the form of Dota 2 patch 7.32d, and it brings with it a lot of minor and some major changes.
The International 2022 (TI11) ended nearly a month ago (has it really been that long?). Based on the past, no major patch can be expected until the first set of DPC Leagues or the entire first DPC Season is over. The patch will probably arrive in early 2023, and bring the new hero Muerte into the game.
But for now, IceFrog has blessed us with a balance patch in the form of Dota 2 patch 7.32d to shake things up a bit in pubs, and even in the first DPC season of 2022-2023, the open qualifiers for which are set to begin on the 11th of December.
Patch 7.32d is a combination of a few fixes, a few item changes, and more than a few hero changes. The entire set of changes can be found here. We will look at the relatively major changes, that are bound to shake up a stale meta.
Item changes
1) Blade Mail
Nice buffs for Blade Mails. Now you can turn on Blade Mail while Dismembering someone, just in case Pudge didn't feel strong.
2) Guardian Greaves
Even though the current meta is one of relatively longer games, Guardian Greaves is an item that has hardly been seen in professional games recently. But the buffs from 7.32d might make it a bit more viable, especially now that players won't have to be too bothered about making Wraith Pact.
3) Wratih Pact
And why won't players be bothered with making Wraith Pact? Because it has been nerfed to the ground! Wraith Pact has been the most broken item in the game for a while now, and there were a lot of players calling for it to be removed from the game. While it hasn't been literally removed, it feels quite similar with the nerf from 7.32d. No team will want to spend 4050 gold on an item that intermittently provides physical damage reduction. Teams will be better off getting armor and armor aura items.
Hero Changes
Let's looks at a few heroes that will be significantly impacted by patch 7.32d.
1) Alchemist
The reduction in Acid Spray mana cost will help Alchemist spam Acid Spray in the early levels, when his mana pool isn't too big. The buffs to Greevil's Greed multiplier and the increase in damage with Greevil's Greed stacks for the level 15 talent will help ramp up Alch's farm. Alch is a hero that needs to be ahead of the enemy carry, and can't afford to fall behind. The buffs from 7.32d will surely help with that, and make him a more viable hero than he was in 7.32c.
2) Grimstroke
A while ago, Grimstroke's Aghanim's Scepter was extremely popular, but it fell out of favor in recent patches. Maybe it will make a comeback with the buff in 7.32d. It is time to experiment with mid Grimstroke!
3) Leshrac
Leshrac is one of the very few heroes to be hit with a sizable nerf in Dota 2 patch 7.32d, and rightly so. Not only is he hit with direct nerfs, but Bloodstone, an item suited only for Leshrac, has also been nerfed. Leshrac's pick rate and win rate will plummet after these nerfs.
There aren't too many changes in Dota 2 patch 7.32d, but a few of them are significant. Once the dust settles and players get used to the new balance patch, data from high level pubs and the 2022-2023 DPC Winter Tour open qualifiers will give us an idea of how the hero hierarchy has shifted.
