What's the secret of Pudge's powerness?
What's inside
Pudge is a one-of-a-kind character in Dota 2. He can play all positions at the same time and none at all. You never want to see him either for yourself or against you because an excellent ability to Hook on this character allows you to turn the game in your favor, and the lack of skill on Pudge, on the contrary, helps you lose faster.
All these words are worth nothing in the new patch because patch 7.32c gave us a Pudge on the core position, which we are not shy about playing in Pro Dota. Cyber-sport.io prepared a full-fledged “Butcher” guide and an explanation of meeting a hero you never wanted to see for yourself.
How was Pudge brought back to life?
Butcher can confidently laning and "sponging" hits with the opponent thanks to the rework of his passive ability, Flesh Heap, without being as afraid as before or trying to hook someone from behind the trees. The new Flesh Heap buff increased his damage block while increasing his base damage, turning him into a good laner.
The reworking of this skill has opened up a new role for Pudge, from now on, he will simply frontline, go forward, slow down, and eat everything that comes his way. His new Aghanim Scepter will help him in this - this fantastic artifact grants the character an additional slowdown from the second skill and increases his radius at times, which does not allow run out from his hands.
Early game (until 15 min)
Starting purchase: in most cases, the price you see on the picture will be universal. It includes Tango, 2x Gauntlets of Strength, 2x branches, and Quelling Blade. Items that can be replaced are Branches and Gauntlets. In addition, you can buy Magic Stick instead of these two. In any case, Quelling Blade and 1x Gauntlets of Strength will be required. Quelling Blade will allow us to confidently make the last hit in conjunction with the second skill. Gauntlets of Strength will also increase our stats and allow us to upgrade faster into a Soul Ring/Bracer- it will increase our mana pool or HP bar for constantly stressing enemy heroes.
Slots: As previously stated, picking up a soul ring or bracer from your existing gauntlets of strength is worth picking up. I recommend the first option because it allows us to hit any target, be it a creep, a hero, or a neutral creep, without mana loss. Naturally, Boots of Speed is bought further, and we always collect Phase Boots. They will increase damage and the ability to use Rot to chase down opponents. After that, we can collect Vanguard and Hood or buy Aghanim in parts. Vanguard is a viable option against groups with a lot of physical damage. Hood of Defiance works well with Rot, can be upgraded into Eternal Shroud later for more spell lifesteal, and changes our mana pool.
It is worth emphasizing that in the first two levels, you should always take the hook, then the Rot, pick the 2nd skill, then take the third skill. As a result, the buildup at level 5 will look like Hook x1, Rot x3, Flash Hip x1, and, at level 6, of course, the ultimate.
Mid-game (15-30 min)
Here, Pudge's task is to collect Aghanim's Scepter. After completing the Aghanim's Scepter build, items that will help you quickly jump into the fight or stay in it for a long time will be vital. Blink Dagger - choice for initiation, Black King Bar and Shiva's Guard, Lotus Orb - stamina that allows you to keep dealing damage in fights.
As with any carry, farming is the most critical task. We can eliminate opponents one at a time if we have a good chance of killing them. The mechanics of this core-Pudge come from the second skill, not the Hook. To slow down an opponent, you can stand still and press Rot for a split second. Then use Rot+Hook to kill the character.
The main task of Pudge is to go forward with Rot turned on and kill, so the opponents will not have a chance, and you should not forget about the farm, of course.
Late game (30+ min)
The style of the game is fading away. At this stage, you should have too many Flash Heap charges so that the enemies can somehow kill you. Collect items to increase your character's density and mobility. It is worth buying Heart of Tarrasque, Aghanim’s Shard, Overwhelming Blink, and other items. In most cases, the game will already be over.
As you read above, playing such Pudge does not require special skills, it will be pretty easy for him to defeat the thinnest melee carry and weak heroes in general, heroes will be dangerous for him, which will not allow him to eat off and quickly bring / stack damage – Ursa, Monkey King, Storm Spirit, Terrorblade.
Pudge has always been a fun character to play with, but in this patch, he can be implemented as a killer in this patch. I wish you all good Hooks in the darkness! What is your fav Pudge role? Share your minds with Cyber-sport.io. Subscribe and follow the latest eSports news!
