Is Hoodwink secretly the best support hero of Dota 2 patch 7.35b?

Forget Lion, Nature's Prophet or Nyx Assassin! Hoodwink is where the real money is for support players in this Dota 2 7.35b patch! A rather complicated hero to execute, Hoodwink grants you compounded MMR gains once you pass the learning curve.

Let's break down the what, why, and when of this crossbow carrying Robin Hood of Dota!

Surprisingly, Hoodwink received no changes when Dota 2 patch 7.35b first came out. Her last update was on 7.35 when both her Acorn Shot and Bushwhack received considerable damage bonuses. Acorn Shot's maximum damage increased from 140 to 160 while Bushwhack's increased from 300 to 360.

Yet, it was the change to Scurry in 7.34, which increased Hoodwink's attack and skill cast range when activated, that made her all the more broken. Ethereal Blade, one of Hoodwink's favorite items, also received changes that made it more desirable.

Now consisting of Aether Lens instead of Kaya, the additional cast range allows Hoodwink to cast the Ethereal Blade and Sharpshooter combo more effectively, making it easier for her to one-shot enemies.

Overall, all of these Dota 2 patch 7.35b changes make Hoodwink one of the best supports with incredible lane pressure and even farming capabilities.

Ethereal Blade is one of the classics to get on Hoodwink. Now consisting Ghost Scepter and Aether Lens, this item fits much better for supports. However, there are other items you can consider when playing support Hoodwink depending on the circumstances.

For instance, if you require more team protection, you can opt for Guardian Greaves. On the other hand, you can also go for Gleipnir if you have the space to go for a more aggressive build or if your team lacks damage. However, there is one item that is currently super popular even for supports in this patch: Mage Slayer.

This item is seeing a huge surge in the meta ever since it started to deal a 20 damage per second on hit and had its spell damage reduction debuff increased to 40 percent. With Hoodwink's Acorn Shot ability, she can apply Mage Slayer's debuffs on all her enemies.

On the first day of the BetBoom Dacha Dubai 2024, Hoodwink was among the top five most-picked heroes. On that day alone, she had the highest win rate of 75 percent--out of four games. Gaimin Gladiators had picked during its series against Team Liquid--So much so that Liquid decided to pick the hero on the second game.

However, Liquid was not able to replicate Gaimin's success on the hero, losing the second game as well. Easy come, easy go.

Stick around with Esports.gg for more news on ongoing and upcoming Dota 2 tournaments and stay up-to-date with the current meta.