Dota 2: Is Doom a Viable Pick in the Current Meta?
| Tags: Dota 2
| Author Zlosterr
Let’s take a look at one of the most interesting heroes in Dota 2 that is notorious for his ultimate — Doom.
Usually, people who play pub and professional Dota 2 games want to abuse the meta heroes as much as possible. This probably doesn’t come as a surprise because these heroes are usually much stronger than others.
Despite the fact that some meta heroes are really good, there are several heroes in Dota 2 who can work in almost every patch. One of them is Doom, a hero people often forget. He used to be one of the most popular meta offlaners many years ago, but since then he's pick rate has dropped quite a bit.
While it's true that he has his weaknesses, he's also got plenty of things make him special. Let’s go over a few reasons why doom is a viable pick in the current meta and how to make him work.
Look at the hero he's going up against
One of the things that makes Doom dangerous to go up against is his unpredictability. Similar to other heroes in Dota 2, he can take loads of roles, including a position four support. However, most Doom players prefer to take the offlaner or the mid-lane. We’ve also seen the hero being played as a carry in the hands of Roman “RAMZES666” Kushnarev, and he works pretty well.
The thing that makes Doom so dangerous is his farming capabilities. Even if you don’t get Hands of Midas, the hero can quickly outfarm almost everyone in the game, except for Alchemist. This allows him to purchase his core items much faster than usual, which makes him dangerous in the mid-game.
That single-target ultimate
Although the hero probably shines the most in the offlane, where he can easily go up against a dangerous duo, he can be an excellent mid laner. Doom might not be the tankiest hero in the game, but he has the ability to harras his opponents from very early on. As a result, every melee hero that has to go up against him will have to spend a lot of gold on regens.
The fact that Doom is one of the faster farmers in the game allows him to vary dangerous. However, people often forget that he also has one of the best single-target ultimates in the entire game, which is called “Doom”.
While it is true that most Dota 2 teams do not go for the so-called “4 protect 1” tactic, you can often find this lineup in PUBs, as well as pro games. This is where Doom shines the most because he can singlehandedly remove one of the heroes from the team fight by using his ultimate. Besides doing loads of damage, this ability completely shuts down the hero because it can’t use any of its capabilities.
Even if the opposing team does not have this one hero that needs to be eliminated, Doom can always disrupt the team fight. However, landing this ultimate is easier said than done because Doom needs to position himself in a way to cast this spell. Besides positioning, the hero must be aware of other things, such as Linkin’s Sphere.
The item build
The last thing that we’d like to point out in this article is Doom’s item build. It is important to realize that this hero can play different roles, which means that almost every item in the game can work, as long as he really needs it.
If Doom has to be a mid laner or the team’s carry, he can often go for a Radiance because this item is really practical early on. Apart from working well in conjunction with Scorched Earth, it also allows the hero to farm faster than usual. Needless to say, this will help him snowball easily and do as much damage as possible.
Shadow Blade is another good item for Doom, especially in pubs. Since the enemy team will rarely use things, such as Sentry Wards or Dust of Appearance, he can quickly initiate team fights or escape when needed.
Speaking of escaping, Doom is one of the heroes with the lowest armor in the game. In other words, every core Doom player needs to get something that gives him armor. Assault Cuirass is the most popular option, but some people also purchase Shiva’s Guard, as well as other things.
Apart from the core item build, Doom can also be a viable tempo controller. If that’s the hero’s position, he needs to get items, such as Drums of Endurance, Pipe of Insight, Guardian Greaves, and more. After all, the hero needs to get items that can work well for the entire team.