Support Tinker Has the Highest Win rate in Dota 2
Support Tinker has emerged as the meta defining hero of Dota 2 patch 7.37. Repair Bots was buffed by 50%, allowing the hero to be played as a healing support who wins the lane and scales into the late-game.
As a result, Support Tinker has a 56% win rate in Divine+ games, a huge jump from the previous update. The trend establishes Tinker as one of the best heroes to grind MMR right now.
Five reasons to play support Tinker
We've come a long way since "Rocket Blink" spam. (Credit: Valve).March of the Machines wins lane trades
The reason support Tinker is booming right now comes down to the strength of March of Machines. The power of that ability is apparent from the laning stage.
March deals damage to enemies while healing Tinker and his allies. Each individual robot damages enemies for up to 44 damage. March summons 24 robots a second for six seconds (seven with talent upgrade).
During the laning stage, March of Machines makes it near impossible for enemies to stand and trade with Tinker. Enemies will be hit by 2-3 robots a second, while Tinker gets healed in return. The heal effect lingers for four seconds after the spell expires.
If trading with Tinker is hard at level one, it's impossible at level two. Laser blinds enemies for three seconds, forcing enemies to run away every time it makes contact.
Tinker is a beast in mid-game skirmishes
Once the laning stage concludes (with Tinker winning of course), the meta dictates that both teams will make space around the map as the carries farm.
This is another very strong point for Support Tinker. With a maxed out March, a couple of points in Defense Matrix, along with Holy Locket, the hero provides a massive power spike for his team.
It is incredibly hard for teams to fight into a field of buffed healing robots and take down a shielded opponent. Enemies will also be spread out and moving around, perfect targets for March of Machines.
Winning the lane and early-mid game skirmishes are support Tinker's strongest points and arguably the most important in a pub game. If you can destroy the enemy's lane (and morale) early then proceed to win a couple of big skirmishes, you'll control the map and often take home the victory.
Defense Matrix is an amazing defensive ability
We have talked a lot about March of Machines and rightly so. However, Tinker has got plenty of other tools in his arsenal and Defense Matrix deserves some attention.
When maxed out and with talents, Matrix takes 445 damage and reduces debuffs by half. The damage block is amplified by armor and magic resistance, so Defense Matrix will block a lot more than 445 points of damage.
The spell adds much to the hero's already incredible utility. Cores can start fights with significant defensive advantages and should the Matrix explode, Tinker can easily reapply it. It's relatively high cast range of 850 allows support Tinker to stay a safe distance away while still helping out his team.
Warp Flare is a damn good Aghanim's Shard upgrade
When picking supports, it's a good idea to look at which heroes come with solid Aghanim's Shard upgrades. Even if they aren't worth buying, most supports will get their Shard from Tormentors anyways, so having that 1400 gold upgrade go into a good cause is worth considering.
Not all supports need a good Shard to function. Tiny has arguably one of the worst upgrades for a support yet remains a staple in the scene, but that's an exception, not the rule.
Tinker's Warp Flare is a pretty great ability. It pushes enemies away from Tinker while dealing damage, rooting, and reducing their attack and cast range. That's a lot of benefits in one single spell.
Tinker scales well into the late-game
As the gold and levels roll in, Tinker has a lot of options to go for as a support.
Players can opt to buy more aura items such as Pipe of Insight and help the team tank up. Individual utility items are also viable, with Glimmer Cape and Solar Crest being the best options.
Or you can opt to go for a more offensive approach, such as the classic Blink and Aghanim's Scepter path and dish out some serious pain.
Regardless of the item build, Tinker's long range spells and impressive farming capabilities ensure he remains a threat even in ultra-late game fights.
Support Tinker is ruling the meta and we highly recommend mastering the hero and climbing the MMR ladder before the next patch comes out and nerfs him. Till then happy Marching!
READ MORE: The Biggest Winners Dota 2 Patch 7.37
Featured Image Source: Valve