Lone Druid rose to prominence in the final few days of TI13.
Here, we take a look at the facet that makes him a force to reckon with.
On the last day, Lone Druid was banned in the first phase of all six games.
But alook at the meta based on the 123 games played at TI13suggests that isnt really the case.
But the question is, what makes the hero so good?
The answer is the new facet that was added to his arsenal in Dota 2 patch 7.37 Bear Necessities.
Players began to make Dragon Lance on him and play him like Sniper with a Spirit Bear.
For that small period, the center of gravity of the pair was closer to the hero.
Bear Necessities has a similar effect, although maybe not to that extent.
What does the hero do when he has to make space for bigger items though?
Give all the smaller items to the Spirit Bear.
This process continues throughout the game.
This always provided the team with LD an impetus to fight early with a few items.
And the difference would only be amplified as the game went on.
A Butterfly gives a level 18 Lone Druid 53% evasion as compared to the regular 35%.
The strength of Bear Necessities was not unknown before TI13.
Its hard to say, but there is a good chance that would not be the case.
Teams would have experimented with counters and possibly found a good one.
But the final stage of The International is not the best place to experiment!
Till it is nerfed, it could be a good time to play some Lone Druid.
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