HOME > DOTA > MECHANICS
DOTA CORE MECHANICS & RULES
Complete esports compendium for Dota 2: Hero attributes and Universal scaling, armor and damage reduction formulas, buyback calculations, map objectives, Roshan migration, and dispel tiers.
40% Larger
New Frontiers Map Twin Gates & Tormentors
0.7 Dmg/Stat
Universal Heroes All-Attribute Scaling
Day/Night
Roshan Migration South / North Pits
Primary Attributes & Universal Scaling
Every point of Strength, Agility, and Intelligence grants foundational defensive and offensive statistics.
Strength
AttributeHealth, Regeneration & Resistance
Per Attribute Point:
- •+22 Max Health (HP)
- •+0.10 HP Health Regeneration per second
- •+0.10% Base Magic Resistance
Primary Benefit:+1 Base Attack Damage per point (Strength heroes)
Notable Heroes:
Axe, Earthshaker, Tiny, Pudge, Sven, Tidehunter
Agility
AttributeAttack Speed, Armor & Movement
Per Attribute Point:
- •+1 Attack Speed rating
- •+0.167 Physical Armor (approx. 1 Armor per 6 Agi)
- •+0.05% Movement Speed
Primary Benefit:+1 Base Attack Damage per point (Agility heroes)
Notable Heroes:
Anti-Mage, Juggernaut, Phantom Assassin, Drow Ranger, Terrorblade, Slark
Intelligence
AttributeMana Pool, Mana Regen & Spell Amp
Per Attribute Point:
- •+12 Max Mana Pool
- •+0.05 Mana Regeneration per second
- •+0.10% Base Magic Resistance
Primary Benefit:+1 Base Attack Damage per point (Intelligence heroes)
Notable Heroes:
Crystal Maiden, Invoker, Rubick, Storm Spirit, Shadow Shaman, Witch Doctor
Universal
AttributeFlexible Multi-Stat Attack Scaling
Per Attribute Point:
- •Inherits normal stat benefits from Str, Agi, and Int
- •+0.7 Base Attack Damage per point in ANY attribute
- •+2.1 Attack Damage for every +1 to all stats (e.g. Iron Branch, Ultimate Orb)
Primary Benefit:No single primary stat — scales massively from all-stat items (Eye of Skadi, Linken's Sphere)
Notable Heroes:
Bane, Enigma, Invoker, Marci, Mirana, Nyx Assassin, Snapfire, Windranger
Combat Calculations & Mathematical Formulas
Exact formulas governing physical armor reduction, magic resistance, buyback cost, and dispel interactions.
Physical Armor & Damage Reduction
Every point of positive armor increases Effective HP (EHP) by 6%. Negative armor amplifies physical damage up to a maximum multiplier of 200%.
Buyback Cost & Penalty
Incurs a 480-second cooldown (8 minutes) and adds 25 seconds to the hero's next death timer. Reliable gold is deducted first, then unreliable gold.
Magic Resistance & Spell Amp
All standard heroes possess 25% innate magic resistance. Additional resistance items (Cloak, Glimmer Cape, Pipe of Insight) stack multiplicatively, preventing 100% immunity.
Debuff Immunity & Dispels
Debuff Immunity (e.g. Black King Bar) provides 50% magic damage resistance and prevents spell debuffs from applying unless the spell explicitly states it pierces Debuff Immunity.
The New Frontiers: Map Objectives & Timings
Roshan pit migration, Tormentor shard spawns, Lotus pools, and vision shrine mechanics.
Roshan Migration & Drop Tiers
Roshan resides in the South Pit during Day (0:00-5:00, 10:00-15:00...) and migrates via Twin Gates to the North Pit during Night (5:00-10:00, 15:00-20:00...). Respawns 8-11 minutes after death.
Progression & Rewards:
- •Kill 1: Aegis of the Immortal (grants free reincarnation within 5 minutes).
- •Kill 2: Aegis + Cheese (Night pit) OR Aghanim's Scepter Blessing (Day pit).
- •Kill 3+: Aegis + Cheese + Aghanim's Blessing + Refresher Shard / Roshan's Banner.
Tormentor Shard Shrines
Stationed near each base's offlane edge. Possesses a 2,500 damage barrier (+200 per respawn) and reflects 70% of all incoming damage back to nearby attackers as magical damage.
Progression & Rewards:
- •Reward: Awards an Aghanim's Shard (1,400 gold value) to one of the 2 lowest net worth allied heroes.
- •Team Bounty: Once all 5 heroes possess a Shard, each defeat grants 280 gold and 280 experience to every player.
Lotus Pools & Healing Fruits
Located at the map's outer river edges. Players can channel for 5 seconds to pluck Healing Lotuses. Fruits can be stacked in the inventory into powerful restorative items.
Progression & Rewards:
- •Healing Lotus: Restores 125 Health and 125 Mana.
- •Great Lotus (3 Lotuses): Restores 400 Health and 400 Mana, grants a 400 HP damage barrier.
- •Cheese Lotus (Cheese + 3 Great Lotuses): Grants a permanent 500 HP shield block.
Watchers & Map Shrines
8 neutral vision structures scattered across Roshan pits and jungle camps. Channeling a neutral Watcher activates it for 7 minutes, granting 800 flying vision for the controlling team.
Progression & Rewards:
- •Neutral / Contested: Enemies can channel an active enemy Watcher for 1.5s to destroy its sight and put it on a 2-minute cooldown.
- •Tormentor Vision: Slaying a Tormentor automatically activates the adjacent Watcher for your team.
Twin Gates Portals
Located in the northwest and southeast corners of the map right beside Roshan's pits. Provides immediate inter-lane rotations between safe lane and offlane without using a Town Portal Scroll.
Progression & Rewards:
- •Mana Cost: Consumes 75 Mana on arrival.
- •Interruption: Taking player damage or disables cancels the channel, putting the gate on cooldown.
Runes Timetable
Runes dictate mid-lane resource pacing and team-wide power spikes across the match.
Progression & Rewards:
- •Wisdom Runes (7:00, 14:00, 21:00...): Grants massive team experience directly to the lowest level hero.
- •Power Runes (6:00, 8:00, 10:00...): Double Damage, Haste, Invisibility, Illusion, Regeneration, Arcane, Shield.
- •Bounty Runes (0:00, 3:00, 6:00...): Grants reliable gold to all 5 team members.
Creep Equilibrium & Denying
Allied lane creeps below 50% HP can be attacked. Successful denies grant a gold reward to the denier and restrict enemy heroes in range to only 50% experience.
High Ground & Vision Rules
Standard heroes have 1,800 Day Vision and 800 Night Vision. Attackers firing uphill from low ground suffer a mandatory 25% miss chance against elevated targets.
Tower Protection & Glyphs
Towers gain bonus armor when multiple enemy heroes surround them and possess Backdoor Protection (rapidly regenerating 90 HP/s and taking 40% reduced damage if enemy creeps are absent).