Tiny, a Dota 2 hero who has been struggling with poor win rates in ranked play, is making a strong resurgence in the meta, particularly in the mid lane. During the BetBoom Dacha event, Tiny was picked seven times and won six of those matches. He was also banned seven times, indicating his growing popularity among professional players.
This resurgence is in contrast to Tiny’s recent struggles in ranked play, where he holds a meager 44 percent win rate, one of the lowest among all heroes. Patch 7.33 had a significant impact on Tiny, with nerfs to his health, Toss, Tree Grab, and Grow abilities. However, he has received some buffs since then, including improved cooldown on Avalanche and added slow resistance as his ultimate levels up.
In the professional scene, players are favoring a burst damage build for Tiny in the offlane, opting for items like Blink Dagger, Echo Sabre, and Crystalys. This build allows Tiny to quickly burst down enemy carries and has proven effective against popular heroes like Terrorblade, Faceless Void, and Slark.
Tiny’s ability to peak as a burst damage threat in the mid-game makes him a valuable addition to the current meta, where matches tend to end around the 30 to 40-minute mark. As the Dota 2 community eagerly awaits the final patch before The International 12 (TI12) in October, Tiny’s resurgence is worth keeping an eye on, as any adjustments from Valve could impact his standing in the competitive scene.
It remains to be seen if Tiny’s resurgence will continue at DreamLeague and how he will perform in upcoming tournaments leading up to TI12.
