The problem really does work itself out if you get high enough in MMR in Dota 2. In order to avoid raging now, I play with two accounts: a troll account that I use with my real life friends (because they don't tryhard) and a real one.
The fake one's MMR is considered high bracket, but it's definitely on the low end of that bracket because my friends and I will lose against mediocre people because they aren't that good or they troll. So as a result when I solo-queue I get terrible games with teams where everyone will pick a carry, where supports won't buy support items, where one fucking guy on the team HAS to play Riki/Gondar/Clinkz, etc.
On my real account, my MMR is significantly better and I get games where no one has to ask for courier or wards and people will usually swallow their pride if someone else picked the carry before them. When I play with another friend whose MMR is high enough to get front page watches, there's never any rage because everyone's MMR is so high that there's no/few stupid mistakes TO rage about.
The problem with getting your MMR high enough to avoid retards is that you usually have to be good enough to outright win games by yourself with retarded teammates so that you can accrue that MMR.
How does the game handle different "MMRs" between a really good player and a beginner who are in the same party?
MMRs are evaluated on a team basis. In an ideal situation, the two team's total MMR is completely equal; the game also attempts to keep everyone's MMR in the game relatively close (but it doesn't work when you have friends with different MMRs who queue together). MMR gain/loss is slightly weighted according to odds: teams with higher chances have lower MMR gain, teams with lower chances have higher gain.
Theoretically teams with the same MMR should have equal chances, but that's empirically not true. I generally find two outcomes most likely. First the team with the best player will win because he's outright dominant, even those his other 4 are all below the average level of the opponent team. However in many cases, the team with the worst player will lose because not even Dendi can win a game with an albatross that constantly feeds gold to the other team and handicaps them in teamfights.
Your personal MMR is supposed to stabilize near your true rating. If you are ranked too high, you will be unable to carry your weight and you will start to lose MMR. If you are ranked too low, you should outperform and you will gain MMR. Win rate thus stabilizes around 50% and your MMR stays within a roughly accurate bracket.
Reading up on some heroes (Slardar to be specific) and a guide on playdota had an interesting article linked:
http://www.playdota.com/forums/showthread.php?p=101401
Is the same PRD mechanism in Dota2? Did they pretty much port everything from WC3 into Dota2, with exception to spirtes/character models? Everything but chokepoint jungling =/
Anyone have a guide for chokepoint jungling in d2? I found two spots practicing around, but nothing else too reliable (1 for each side)
Friend of mine made some Dota 2 videos, thought I'd give him a plug, he does a really nice job with the editing.
Quite a few things have been changed. The way orbs work and interact with certain abilities have been changed. For example, HoTD/Satanic/Morbid Mask now work with Mjollnir, you just don't lifesteal on the attack that lightning procs. Drow and Huskar don't have to jump through hoops to use their orb if they had lifesteal like in WC3, and True Strike from MKB no longer interferes with Sniper's headshot. There are a variety of other changes as well. Basically most of the stuff that was changed were things that were only in dota 1 because of the engine limitations.
Just went up against a team with Ursa, Naix, Drow, Mirana, and BH...
our lineup was me as beastmaster, a stud Juggernaut, Lich, Sandking, and Death Prophet.
We won 41-17. Stole an Ursa rosh (kill + teamfight 4-2 + roshan), and went 9-3-16 on my fourth game as beastmaster.
Scepter on beastmaster? why not. FEELS GOOD MAN.
If any of you guys wanna play sometime, send me a msg (name is mood)
Anyone have links of the dota comics that are either:
(1) actually funny
(2) sometimes meme based/parodies of other comics?
Some of the ones on playdota are just ehhhhhhh fanart. I want funny.
EDIT: like these:
This is from Dota 1; Riki is the more popular pick these days amongst the invis crutches
Rofl @ that Clinkz comic.
Having mana pool issues as ES. Would you pick ring of basilius at start of the game ?
Get more clarities. Your only two real objectives as Earthshaker are quick Arcane Boots/Blink Dagger, anything else is merely a hindrance and since you get very little farm from being a support, it actually hurts you to buy extra items.
Some people opt for getting a Energy Booster first instead of Boots since it solves your mana issues moderately by increasing your pool. I think the standarditem start for an ES is like 4 Clarities/Some Restoratives/Branches or Wards if you're gonna play serious.
Rush mana boots, but for initial buy, some branches, salves/tangos, and clarities.ES can also buy first set of wards or chicken if noone else has. Dagger is next core, then usually people go Agh's, but if you're getting way over farmed, critshaker is fun as hell (95% of the time this isn't an option, but fun as hell when you can pull it off).
I miss doing combat es with battlefury. Created many a lulz at how hard you can hit with enchant. I standard start 3 clarity, 2 tango sets courier since I usually support sinxe my friends are too lazy
Question -- can you put Hand of Midas on Sylla's bear and use its active? Or will it shadow out as though it was on the courier?
Also, Sylla's bear doesn't get the MS+ from Treads, right? So a better combo (though slightly more expensive) would just be plain boots + 2 gloves of haste?
And back to HoMidas, I understand the +1.5x exp, but I'm a fan of popping HoM on small creep. Say you were fighting the big Satyr camp (http://www.dota2wiki.com/wiki/Large_Satyr_Camp) -- Satyr hellcaller, soulstealer, and trickster, I always HoM the soulstealer (the middle-sized, blue one)
1) If you don't HoM/kill the mobs normally, you'd get 139-161 gold total, 284 Exp
2) HoM'ing the smallest creep (trickster) gives you +170~ gold, and +~20 exp total.
3) HoM'ing the soulstealer gives you +150~ gold, and +44 exp total.
4) HoM'ing the hellcaller gives you +50~ gold, and +77 exp total.
I figure, you get much better of a balance of exp/gold if you use it on the soulstealer. Maybe, at low levels, maybe using it on the hellcaller/big mobs will be most advantageous simply because they might be difficult to kill, but I'd say +100 gold is worth the ~33 exp you give up by HoMing the hellcaller, and 20 gold is worth the 20 exp.
You can have two Midas on Sylla, one on hero and one for bear. The caveat is that the 50% XP bonus from the killed creep does not apply to the second Midas.
He does, he doesn't get benefits of stats+ though. I usually keep the bear on regular boots with a Midas. With Rabid up, you really don't need upgraded boots unless you want the IAS.Also, Sylla's bear doesn't get the MS+ from Treads, right? So a better combo (though slightly more expensive) would just be plain boots + 2 gloves of haste?
The purpose of using it on big creeps is to get XP faster so you can snowball faster. This is especially for heroes that do a lot of ganking coming out of the jungle where extra levels are crucial in getting those surprise kills. As the game progresses, I start using it on small creeps, especially the skeleton minions. It's also about killspeed in clearing camps, which has its own snowball effect.I figure, you get much better of a balance of exp/gold if you use it on the soulstealer. Maybe, at low levels, maybe using it on the hellcaller/big mobs will be most advantageous simply because they might be difficult to kill, but I'd say +100 gold is worth the ~33 exp you give up by HoMing the hellcaller, and 20 gold is worth the 20 exp.
http://i.imgur.com/d53Rp.jpg
RIKI CARRY SO GUD. RIKI ES #1 IN BRASIL