Dota 2: Dealing with Slark in the current meta

We take a look at a few strategies that might help you win against Slark.

After the amazing Bukovel Minor that took place a couple of days ago, we are now eagerly waiting to see which team will come on top of the amazing DreamLeague Season 13 Major. The group stage of this outstanding tournament has just finished, so we already know who’s going to the upper bracket.

Slark – the “one-man army”

Many things happened during the course of the last two days. However, if there is something that needs to be said, it has to be the fact that Slark is very strong. Ever since the Outlanders Update was released, the pesky hero has risen from the ashes yet again. Currently, Slark is one of the best all-round carries due to his immense fighting capabilities, and his elusiveness.

Thanks to the new meta build with a Diffusal Blade and an Aghanim’s Scepter, this hero is capable of going “in and out” of fights with ease. Even though the patch is out for a while now, it seems like most players don’t know how to deal with Slark. That’s why we decided to put together a couple of methods that might just work against this hero.

Pick the right heroes

The first and most important thing is to pick good heroes against Slark. There are many great choices out there, so it all comes down to the lineup that you’re going to have.

Generally speaking, most AoE heroes work very well against this hero. That’s why you can often see people picking Disruptor and Enigma for example. However, when it comes down to damage dealers, there are not that many heroes that can stand their ground.

One of the best damage-dealers that you can pick against this annoying being is Outworld Devourer. Although he can be weak early on, once he gets a few items, the game changes drastically. Using his insanely-powerful ultimate, OD can literally one-shot Slark in just a matter of seconds. Pair him with a hero such as Omniknight and you have a recipe for success against this deadly Nightcrawler.

Stay together as a team

Although this is a no-brainer, many players in pub games tend to forget this. Slark’s main strength is the fact that he can easily kill you when you’re alone. He is one of the fastest and most agile heroes in Dota 2 and when you combine this with the new item build, escaping from him is pretty much impossible.

Nevertheless, if you always stay near your team-mates, thins will be different. While it’s true that he can still pick you off, it won’t be that easy. After all, he has to take into consideration all other heroes that are near you.

Buy a Eul’s Scepter of Divinity or a Black King Bar

Itemizing properly is one of the most important things in Dota 2. Even though going “full-davai” can be lucrative, it’s not a good idea in the long run.

Having the proper items against Slark can have an immense impact on the course of the game. He is a hero that takes advantage of any weakness, which is why you need to get at least one defensive item. While it’s true that there are many item choices, we believe that the two mentioned above are the best ones.

Black King Bar is a great choice for core players because it gives you the freedom to escape from Pounce. On the other hand, Eul’s + a Glimmer Cape works wonders for supports. After all, Slark will always try to kill them first and gain as much Essence shifts as possible.

Do not prolong the fight

One of the most common mistakes against Slark is long team fights. Sure, sometimes they are inevitable, but you should always try not to make them very long. Slark is one of the heroes that benefit the most from long fights because he can easily engage and then disengage while stealing Essence Shifts along the way. So, in a scenario where a teamfight is going for nearly a minute, he can get as much as 50 Shifts. Needless to say, this is not the ideal situation for you to be in.

Here's the playoff bracket for #DHDL13!

There are some spiiiicy games in there 👀 🌶️ pic.twitter.com/bNe0YFpFdh

— DreamHack Dota (@DreamHackDota) January 19, 2020

Slark is one of the best choices if you want to grind MMR right now. We highly advise you to spam as many games as possible with this hero until he gets nerfed.

Don’t forget to tune in to the Leipzig Major between games when it resumes tomorrow. We will finally know the names of the first teams to be eliminated from this tournament.