The hero picks, weapon configs, and ability combos that win rounds on The Dota Map in Dota 2. Site-by-site breakdowns + the loadouts that actually pair with them.
Radiant: Safe Lane is the Carry's lane — bottom-left for Radiant, top-right for Dire. Pos 1 (Carry) farms last-hits while Pos 5 (Hard Support) protects + harasses enemy offlaner. Last-hit creep timing: tap right-click when creep is at 1 HP. Deny own creep at 50% HP. Pos 5 buys observer ward + sentry, stacks ancient camp at minute 0:53. Carry should hit level 6 at 6-8 minutes with Battle Fury / Manta Style components. Rotate to roshan or tower take by 15 minutes if lane won; if lane lost, jungle farm + defend tier-1.
Dire: Defending Safe Lane (you're the offlaner harassing): Pos 3 Offlaner pushes wave to enemy tier-1, denies Carry XP / last-hits. Pos 4 Roamer ganks from rune spawn (minute 0:00 + 2:00 rune cycle). Block enemy carry farm with body-blocking + harass. Don't 1v2 the lane; trade XP for damage on Carry's wave. Smoke gank at 5:00 with Pos 4 from jungle. Offlaner Axe Berserker's Call AoE taunt forces Carry death.
Radiant: Mid Lane is the 1v1 highway. Pos 2 (Mid) farms + harasses + rotates. Mid is the snowball role — win lane → roam side lanes → snowball game. Last-hit / deny game: priority is last-hits on enemy creep, denies on own creep (at 50% HP). Mid hits level 6 at 5-7 minutes; rotate to side lane gank on R unlock. Rune control: bottle the runes at 0:00 + 2:00 + 4:00 cycle. Don't TP cancel mid (loses lane priority).
Dire: Defending Mid Lane (you're vs aggressive Pos 2): Outworld Destroyer Astral Imprisonment denies all-in commits. Tinker farm-stays + Heat-Seeking Missile chip damage. Don't fight at mid level 3-4 vs Invoker/Storm Spirit; scale to level 6 for R unlock. Bottle for rune sustain; TP Scroll for tower defense. Mid Lane defense = stalling for scaling carry.
Radiant: Off Lane is the toughest lane — 1v2 vs Pos 1 + Pos 5. Pos 3 (Offlaner) plays defensively, body-blocks for XP, harasses Carry without dying. Don't last-hit; survive + level up. Hit level 6 at 8-10 minutes for ult unlock. Axe Berserker's Call AoE taunt = first kill setup. Smoke gank from jungle at minute 5:00 with Pos 4. Offlaner scales into mid-game team fight role.
Dire: Defending Off Lane vs strong Pos 1: stall + scale. Bristleback Quill Spray damage stacks while back-armor sustains. Tidehunter Anchor Smash + Ravage ult for team fight. Don't trade vs aggressive Pos 5 Roamer; back off, jungle farm. Offlaner late-game is initiator role.
Radiant: Pos 4 Roamer + jungle is the mid-game flex role. Stack ancient camp at 0:53, 1:53, 2:53. Smoke gank at 4:00-5:00 lane. Roam to mid for kill setup. Mirana Sacred Arrow stun is the gank kill button. Pudge Meat Hook pull is the iconic Dota gank. Stack creep camps for Carry jungle farm; rotate ward placements.
Dire: Defending jungle = warding to prevent enemy smoke gank. Treant Protector Living Armor team heal lets carry sustain in lane. Witch Doctor Maledict damage stack for team fight. Plant Sentry Wards at enemy jungle entrance, Observer Wards at high ground / rune spawns. Track enemy Pos 4 position via missing minimap.
Radiant: Roshan = the Aegis of the Immortal (1 free death). Spawns at minute 7:30, then 8-11 minute cycle after death. Setup: 5-man team smoke approach, ward enemy Roshan vision (Observer at high ground + Sentry to deward enemy). Tank Roshan with Pos 3 (Axe / Centaur). Pos 5 mana support during fight. Carry takes Aegis. Force enemy 5-man fight around pit. Roshan armor scales — fight at 15+ minutes only.
Dire: Defending Roshan pit: deny enemy free Aegis. Smoke approach pit from elevated angle. Lion Finger of Death execute on Roshan-low enemy carry. Tidehunter Ravage AoE stun 5-man. Don't dive without smoke; enemy Sentry Ward detects you. Force enemy to commit before they can take Aegis.
Radiant: High Ground siege = attacker tries to break enemy base. Tier-3 tower + barracks + ancient. Setup: 5-man team smoke approach. Ravage / Black Hole / Freezing Field initiation ult. Don't engage without Aegis safety net (Roshan first). Tier-3 tower has damage reflect; back off if low HP. Carry takes barracks for mega creeps.
Dire: Defending High Ground = the comeback mechanic. Tier-3 tower deals reflect damage. Living Armor heals tower. Crystal Maiden Freezing Field AoE damages enemy team. Force enemy to break formation. Backdoor protection: tower regens HP if no creep waves nearby. Aegis-less enemy team = comeback opportunity.
Recon 6 Pro reviews your screenshots and tells you which picks + loadout pieces are actually missing from your last 5 matches on The Dota Map. Not generic meta — specific fixes.