As the years pass, many experts from the game development industry are still baffled by the continued success and presence of Dota 2. This MOBA title, which arguably began the mobile online battle arena genre, is still incredibly frequent among all lists of popular games across the world. The same applies not just to some off-chance region, but the entire globe and all gamers on it. Today, years after the game came out, Dota 2 manages to captivate players, both new and old, and bring them into the fold of this engaging online competitive title. Also, things like Dota AutoChess only add to the popularity of the original game, being that they can funnel in players who have so far avoided the game intentionally or by sheer accident. Now, once they get a chance to try Dota AutoChess, they also decide to give Dota 2 a try for the very first time. Most of them, if not all, have very little experience in the same ecosystem, not only the game as a whole but also its minute elements like tactics and strategies. Because of that, many outdated approaches are now suddenly getting a lot of traction online, even though they are presently very ineffective and simply obsolete. But, there is a way to overcome this with some updated information on these strategies. To help with that, here is an updated guide to the famous Dota 1-5 system. With it, anyone will be able to tackle this game and the same system with a lot more success and effectiveness, thus making the entire process of playing the same competitive multiplayer game a lot more fun and engaging.
Introduction to the 1-5 System
Dota 2 can be quite a challenging game to first learn, but even more so when it comes to its master. For years, gamers in such a situation decided to reach for safe, secure, and effective Dota 2 boosting. These are guaranteed to resolve any issue that a player might face in the same game. But, even with boosting, there are some strategies and applied tactics that will be useful to everyone. The 1-5 system is one such setup. While the meta of Dota 2 keeps changing and evolving with each patch, some of the most basic principles still apply. That is why the 1-5 system began a standard occurrence in the game and for good reason. To understand it, first, the process of limited resources in the game should be understood. This title has two limited resorts and these are Experience and Gold. The 1-5 system has been designed to set up priorities for each of the players in a team (and the hero they control) to attain and then distribute the same resources to the team. Here, the number 1 in the system receives most of the resources, while the rest of the 5 players and their heroes receive what is left from the total supply of a team. Through this basic setup, the entire system can now be presented in more detail and with a direct explanation about all additional elements of the procedures, it involves for the successful victory over the opposing team.
Hard Carry – Position 1
The position numbered under 1 is what is called a hard carry role of the team. These are usually found in the safelane – although not exclusively – and they come with the win-condition. However, they demand access to a lot of items and thus a lot of levels to be effective at their given job. Currently, the trend in Dota 2 has moved somewhat towards core roles because these can be active in the ears and middle parts of the game, the full might of hard carry roles is still impressive when either they reach a level-timing event or reach three end-phase items in any game. Both situations will allow hard carry characters on position 1 to completely obliterate the opposition. Because of this, the way a team sets up their individual 1 hero is a compelling sign of their overall plan. There are also common heroes that are seen in the same position and filling the same role. The most often seen are Lifestealer, Spectre, Troll Warlord, and Phantom Lancer. Some of the additional options include Phantom Assassin, Terrorblade, Alchemist, Medusa, and Morphling. When it comes to items that the position 1 heroes hold, these tend to be a mix of objects that accelerate farming in the early game, including Battlefury. Later on, these move into heavy damage-dealing items like Hand of Midas. The position 1 heroes should also hold some defensive items, but these should only be there to ensure survival inside of a fight. The truth is that the possession and choice of items can easily either sink a team or make it powerful enough to win the match. That is why common items including Butterfly and Daedalus are so essential.
Heroes in Position 2
The second place in line according to the priority of the 1 – 5 system is also very important. Formerly a playmaker of the team, the number 2 hero has now become more versatile. Also, many teams began to blend the roles of the position 1 and the position 2 hero. However, a midlaner will almost always inhabit position 2 and define the tempo of play. A lot of teams used the Queen of Pain so that this hero can win the same midlane and then snowball the advantage into a full game win. But, that tactic has changed and farming became more and more important. So, a position 2 hero will need to make sure that the farm processes are all in order. Also, in the professional game, position 2 hero sometimes takes the role of the sacrificial core, like seen in games such as Team Liquid’s Notail and Matumbaman. So, today, this position can regularly be seen in midline as much as in the safelane, and position 2 and position 1 heroes sometimes switch roles. The most common heroes for this are Invoker, Morph, Alch, and Medusa. Items that heroes in this role use the mobility across the map in the early match and enforcing farming. These include drums and Scythe as readily available alternatives.
Heroes in Position 3
The hero in this role has the objective of filling a range of different tasks. They are usually key for team fights and will act as infiltrators. These roles are sometimes labeled aura carriers of the entire team, where they will pick up items like Pipe of Insight, Guardian Greaves, or the powerful Crimson Guard. They are best suited for the offlane, and position 3 heroes will be a lot less useful in the farm role than the first two heroes. The upside is that they are less reliant on the same aspects as well. Once they reach level 6 and attain a single key item – which is more common than not the Blink Dagger, they can leave the offlane and become more active across the entire map. From that point, they can charge the enemy team and put pressure on pickoffs or even initiate main fights. Because of this, well-scaling heroes have been becoming more popular, including Tide, Pango, and Furion. As aura carriers, they will use items like Bloodthorn, which provides them with more offensive capabilities. Besides it, Blin and Euls are also more than useful for position 3 heroes.
Heroes in Position 4
The last two positions of the list belong to the support part of the 1 – 5 system. Position 4 hero has a lot more freedom to do some farming than the last positioned hero. The same role is there to salvage loses and win lanes, which is why the position is often called one of playmaking support. These are also the spots that are most versatile in terms of new updates and metagame changes, as this is the spot where experimenting with heroes is most rewarding and least risky. Position 4 hero will take on lane dominance, as well as exploring its roam potential in the early game. Regular heroes for this role are Nyx, Earth Spirit, Tusk, and Venge. Items that are useful for these heroes are those that either enable the hero’s potential in offense or its overall survival with bad odds. Aether Lens and Solar Crest are some of them, as are Vessel and Lotus.
Heroes in Position 5
Finally, this system includes a strong support hero in the last position. This hero will set a large amount of its gold for the rest of the team, so farming for position 5 heroes will be a challenge. Furthermore, the same situation will mean that these heroes will have very few items at the end of the game, including possibly only one expensive one. So, the advantage goes to heroes who need only the tines among farms and levels to be fully functional. In that process, their objective is to secure a lane for the heavy carry position 1 and 2 heroes. The top choices for this role are Oracle, Warlock, and KotL. In this gold-starved position, items that are the best option are Force Staff and Observer Wards.
