Bring a few teammates for these vital Dota 2 objectives.
Dota 2 developers Valve are pushing League of Legends-like objective control into the MOBA, with patch 7.38 seeing two major resources — Wisdom runes and Lotus Pools — converted into more active objectives.
Both have been converted to "Shrines," which require a team to drive away opposing players to secure each of the bounties available. Coupled with huge map changes, Dota players are encouraged to get more active outside of the lanes.
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Wisdom, Lotus Shrines encourage early battle for big rewards
Gone are the simple rune pickups or Lotus captures in patch 7.38. Instead, players will need to enter the Shrines and wait a short moment to collect the rewards (XP for Wisdom Shrines, Lotus Petals for Lotus Shrines).
The shrines have also been moved slightly. Wisdom shrines are much closer to the middle of each lane on either side of the map instead of next to the old Tormentor spots (which have been moved to the old Roshan pits).
Importantly, there isn't a simple one-time pickup for the Wisdom or Lotus Shrines. Heroes will need to stand in the middle of the shrine for a moment to activate, then defend from enemy heroes long enough for the shrines to activate. This makes them easily contestable, encouraging earlier battles for control of the lane.
No other changes were made to Wisdom shrines — they'll respawn every seven minutes as usual — but Lotus Pools will spawn higher-grade Lotuses later in the game. Oftentimes players ignore the Lotuses unless they've been religiously hoarding them throughout a match.
Now, reaching that mythical Block of Cheese in the late game will be a lot easier. Great Lotuses will appear with tier four neutral items, while the pools will spawn Greater Lotuses with tier five neutrals.
This, combined with the new streams in each safe lane and Roshan's return to the river, should mean teams are in constant contest for an objective. Fights over Lotus Petals will favor the safe lane, but they'll need vision of Wisdom Shrines and a large lane shove to battle for that sweet XP.
Patch 7.38 is now live; for more Dota 2 coverage, stay with us at esports.gg.
