New DotA v6.85ne14b Map - Changes and Things You Need To Know

[Astros]

A new DotA map has been updated!

Hopefully all is going well with the new map but just in case things aren't, we want to let you guys know that there will be an interim period where we are going to be a bit more lenient on the bans so players can learn and adjust to any changes. This does not mean you can ruin games or perform poorly intentionally but that if you want to try out new items and relevant builds or are just getting used to a farther zoom, you are free to do so.

To help with the learning process, these are some of the changes below:

General Map Changes
-Zoom function through -cam command, [-cam 1] is the standard zoom you are used to. To zoom out further, type a higher number out. Ex: [-cam 1.5]
-Wards can be purchased as singles rather than as a pair
-[Smart Courier] allows your courier to deliver your items to your inventory and combines the items without you having to drop the items in your inventory (if full inventory)
-Ability to ping your courier from your hero portal (helpful if you lose track of your courier)
-Smoother clicking when purchasing items with no delay
-Ability to deny your own creeps by right clicking on the creep [Can change setting on hero portal]
-Bottling rune no longer requires your bottle to be empty to refill (Example: If you have one refill remaining, right clicking the rune will automatically fill your bottle.)
-You can purchase an item fully by purchasing the recipe if you have the gold available to purchase the item (example: If you buy Orchid recipe and have the gold available, double-click the Orchid recipe in your inventory and it will purchase all the items to create Orchid automatically)
-You can disassemble the item by right-clicking it 4x on your inventory (if item stated it can be disassembled)
-You can move items in your inventory that have a cooldown (example: If you used Boots of Travel, no longer do you have to wait for the cooldown to move the item into a different inventory slot)
-Slight changes to the map design
-New map terrains (ex: -terrain highlands, -terrain city2)
-New hero skins (Some heroes have an additional skin that you can alter by typing -skin. The game will let you know if that hero has a skin or not available).
-New and refreshing items
-Siege creeps (Glaive Thrower / Meat Wagon) will now be affected by hero spells. (Example, you can use Chain Lightning to cause damage on them)



Hero Changes: - MOST OF THESE ARE JUST UPGRADED ABILITIES WITH AGHANIM'S SCEPTER
Alchemist:
-You can buy Aghanim's Scepter for your teammates by buying the item and left clicking it on your teammate. Your allied teammate will receive the item buff but no stat increases and the item will not take up inventory space.
-Grabbing bounty on Alchemist will give you more gold.

Batrider:
-Aghanim's Scepter allows your [Flaming Lasso] to grab a target as well as the target's nearest allied hero and deals 100 damage per second.

Centaur:
-Aghanim's Scepter now allows [Stampede] to cause 60% less damage to your allies when attacked.

Furion:
-Aghanim's Scepter allows every unit killed by [Wrath of Nature] to become a Treant and heroes becomes Mega Treants with 3x damage and HP.

Legion Commander:
-Aghanim's Scepter grants your [Duel] to last until someone dies or are pushed away too far from each other.

Naga Siren:
-Aghanim's Scepter allows your ultimate [Song of the Siren] to now heal your allies around you for 8% of their max HP per second until the song is over.



Nerubian Weaver:
-Aghanim's Scepter reduces your [Time Lapse] cooldown and allows you to target allied heroes.

Phoenix:
-Aghanim's Scepter allows you to take an allied hero with you to reborn.


Skeleton King
-Aghanim's Scepter now allows allies who are near Skeleton King (1200 aoe) when they are killed to become wraiths for 7 seconds, delaying their death.

Sven:
-Aghanim's Scepter now increases the damage of allied heroes as well.

Syllabear:
-Aghanim's Scepter allows your bear to attack regardless of whether your hero is nearby and will stay alive even if your hero is dead.

Techies:
-Land mines will no longer cause damage to the enemy when destroyed.
-Land mine damage is decreased but is no longer capped to 20 mines.

Tuskarr:
-Aghanim's Scepter gives you an additional spell [Walrus Kick] which pushes your enemy back.

Undying:
-Tombs are no longer based on health to be destroyed but based on a fixed number of attacks (3 / 4 / 5 / 7)





We are all still getting used to this map so if there is anything we may have missed or you have questions regarding this updated map, post below!

[MIKEJONES]

Some suggestions.

- Play as you usually and normally do. It is really the same thing with new features. Build items that you know works best for your hero and learn/adapt to the new items as you play or when you're ready.

- You may notice new path, hiding spots to maneuver and new places to ward.

- If you can't adjust to the new zoom out feature then type -cam 1 (back to the old map zoom setting) and slowly adjust to -cam 1.5 or higher when you're ready.

- Heros might have been balanced and tweaked over the course of the decade changes from the old map 6.83 to 6.85 (new map)

- This is an adjustment period. Don't try to master it on the first or second game and overwhelm yourself.

I would appreciate if everyone can practice tolerance and consideration to your fellow Dota comrades and help them if you are already acclimated with the new updates.

[EdteOfChaos2]

Oh boy.... Massive slark buffs in this map, we really didn't need that. This is going to be tough now with hunter lmao. I might actually have to repick it every game.

to add for anyone who doesn't know: this map contains the upgraded Lothars Edge which mains the target's movespeed and attackspeed, disables their passive skills, makes their attacks not work for a bit, has much more stats, and way more invis break damage. If you thought slark or lc was bad before just wait until you literally can't fight back at all.

[T-A-Z]

Honest feed back. There are some things I like and some I don’t… the biggest thing for me even tho some will
Say it’s in my head. Is I feel slow and sluggish regardless if I am zoomed out or on normal camera I tried both. I feel slow and sluggish not a fan of that. I would prefer tho old way but that’s me.

[EdteOfChaos2]

Well, I hate to be so negative after one game, but here are my thoughts...

The qol is good. Zoom is good for people who want it (I do). Disassemble anywhere is amazing. Don't care that much about the others, but I know some people will like them. I couldn't get the one-click recipe make to work, maybe it's just the items I tried.

The new visuals are unbelievably ugly and do not look like DotA. In the previous version, visuals were grounded in WC3's art style (being almost entirely default wc3 models and some basic custom ones) and this seems to have completely been ignored as there are super flashy obnoxious effects and mobile-game looking new hero models. Pulse nova looks horrible, how you can go from a big attention-drawing effect for a high impact ultimate to such a boring lame one I'll never know. Especially confusing as no one has ever complained or asked for these things to be changed.

The new items suck and are largely made to buff playstyles that didn't need to be buffed because they were already arguably too strong (lothars assassin with silver edge, int nuke with octarine, more attack range on sniper) or are made for people who already 6 slotted their hero in a 60 minute game and want to be able to jungle for 30 more minutes and get more items. Permanent hero upgrades, new upgrades to previously best items, etc. Can't wait for Titanium to say he needs to farm another 2000 gold before joining the team because there's another boots of travel upgrade now.

Overall, worse experience than the old map. I would like to just have the qol without the other stuff. I'll still give it a chance and play some other heroes.

Edited to add: I tried huskar and this map somehow broke orb-walking. The creeps and tower aggro to you and the skill can get animation cancelled like a standard attack. I think that's a more definitive end to me playing on this map.

[DitchPig]

horrible new version. why not just release the newest version from b net. at least then you might attract newer players. no idea why you decided to release this version. it destroyed sniper. cool down for shrapnel is now 1 minute.

[mk4r32]

We just rolled it out and we all gotta give it a chance. But these mfs are leaving the games complaining lmfao. This tranny being one of em.

[master_pianos]

What is everyone using for hotkeys? I was using this tool called SIH and it no longer works on this map. Anytime I hit an inventory hotkey, it takes me back to base.

[Negro]

Super rough first game lol.

[MIKEJONES]

horrible new version. why not just release the newest version from b net. at least then you might attract newer players. no idea why you decided to release this version. it destroyed sniper. cool down for shrapnel is now 1 minute.

Even in the latest map on BNET your sniper is no longer what it use to be...

We tested unsuccessfully with latest release of this version. The bot was unable to host it for some reason but we'll figure it out later. For now, please give it some time and we understand there is a learning curve.

[DitchPig]

horrible new version. why not just release the newest version from b net. at least then you might attract newer players. no idea why you decided to release this version. it destroyed sniper. cool down for shrapnel is now 1 minute.

Even in the latest map on BNET your sniper is no longer what it use to be...

We tested unsuccessfully with latest release of this version. The bot was unable to host it for some reason but we'll figure it out later. For now, please give it some time and we understand there is a learning curve.

we should switch to the old version until the latest b net one is available. this is just confusing ents regualr base, while not attracting new players. and then they have to adjust to the even newer version once we figure out how to upload it.

[MIKEJONES]

I understand the frustration, and the feedback is fair. Change always feels worse before it feels normal, especially for a community that’s been playing the same version for many years.

That said, reverting back to 6.83 is not something we’re going to do without letting players adjust and evaluate.

A few important points for clarity:

Staying on 6.83 indefinitely is not sustainable.
That map is over a decade old. Every year we stay on it, we fall further behind in compatibility, tooling, bot support, and player expectations. The jump was inevitable, not impulsive.

NOTE: 6.85ne14b is the furthest DotA 1 version that remains stable, hostable on ENT, tool-compatible, and playable at scale.
Anything newer either breaks bots, breaks tooling, or breaks the player experience.

This version modernizes core systems, QoL, camera, inventory handling, and backend behavior while still being closer to classic DotA than current retail versions. It reduces the shock of eventually moving forward again if there is further supportable and stable updates.

This is a deliberate, technical choice made for stability and longevity, not convenience.

Reverting now would create more confusion, not less.
Switching maps multiple times fractures the player base, resets learning every time, and sends the message that any loud enough pushback will undo changes. That’s not healthy for the server long-term.

The adjustment period is intentional.
That’s why bans are being handled with leniency and why feedback is being collected. This isn’t “deal with it or leave.” It’s “learn it together, give it time, then evaluate.”

This change wasn’t made to punish regulars or chase hypothetical new players overnight. It was made to keep ENT functional, hostable, and relevant going forward. No version will ever make everyone happy, but standing still guarantees decline.

Give it more than a handful of games. Let muscle memory catch up. We’ll continue to listen, document issues, and fix what’s actually broken.

Appreciate everyone providing feedback and giving it time.

[MR_Nimbuss]

I like this version and i feel it'll help the ent dota community to a different gameplay perspective unlike the same old boring shit.. this opens opportunity for chances to advance your skills, especially in a player who could be better. I see potential in this move and all it takes is a couple weeks or less to get norm.. I mean updates were happening so much back than that you guys forgot? Do you guys not remember the bmail stack with 100 percent dmg return until the new patch with different tweaks? j/s.

[kunkka]

love the new map!

[dumpster_]

Every year we stay on it, we fall further behind in compatibility, tooling, bot support, and player expectations.

Compatibility with what?
We already have to run an old wc3 version. So what?
Bots were already broken back when reforged came out (or even before then). So what?
More things won't randomly break simply from passage of time if you don't fuck with them.

What does tooling even mean in this context?
The replay parser?
It's already been partially broken for years, and will stay just as but no more broken if left alone.
Nobody cares.
One important thing I can think of is the ability to rewind replays without having to start over, but to my knowledge that doesn't exist no matter the version.

It reduces the shock of eventually moving forward again if there is further supportable and stable updates.

Going further? Good luck with that.
It's not even the same game anymore.
Maybe someone wants to buy this place and make it their own little kingdom?
How else are you going to modernize if admins are AWOL for months at a time?