Coaching Challenge (Kind Of)

-UPDATE-

I have figured out what seems to be a good practice routine, and I haven't seen any ones I like online, so I figured I would share it with you all.

First, I pick a game from yesterday, and watch/critique it to decide what I am going to focus on fixing today. Is my CS good? Am I wasting time when I could be farming? Am I overcommitting on kills? Am I taking weird paths to get places? Things like that. To save time, sometimes I watch it at 1.5/2x the speed. This also serves the purpose of getting into what I fondly call "the DOTA zone", setting my brain up for dota, rather than work/school/etc...

Next, I play a few randomed games, usually 1-3, to get used to different heroes and apply what I already know to them while getting warmed up.

After that, it is time to get to work. I decide which hero/heroes I will be playing today, and go into a match or two with them, focusing more than normal on whatever it was I decided to work on after critiquing my game from yesterday.

Finally, it is MMR time. I start going into ranked matches and try to boost the pesky and ever-present MMR. If I lose a game, I step away from the computer for 5-10 minutes, grab a drink, stretch/etc, and try to reset my brain for a fresh match to avoid getting tilted. If I win, I immediately roll into a new game.
One rule that I keep is that if I lose three ranked games in a day, I stop, regardless. This is another way to prevent getting tilted-I can't tank my MMR if I stop playing it. (I tend to get tilted fast and easily, so I have to put a few different preventive measures into my routine.)

After either I have hit my loss cap, or feel that I will not play well in another match, it is goof around time! I play with friends, do Ability Draft, basically play DOTA for the sheer fun of it. I love playing, and there is no reason for me to turn my pastime into a chore. :)

If at any point in these steps I just don't feel like doing them, or want to just goof, I do so. But, I don't progress any further. For instance, if I decided "meh" after my first warmup match, I would not roll immediately into a ranked match. This way, I don't burn out on improving, but I also don't tank my MMR by being impatient or stupid.





Hopefully this helps! I expect an uphill journey to get out of the trenches, but I also expect it to be worth every second.

Also, I have decided to try to document my exploits further in the hopes of helping anyone else who is in the same position as I am, sort of a "comprehensive guide to getting out of the Trench", so stay tuned, as I will be releasing either a website or blog, (along with some other goodies), soon!

I am still open to any coaching, and a shout out to Fleet for volunteering his time!
Updates to come, and as always,
Happy Hunting!

I have about 10 hours free in 2 days so ill play then, you have more time than me lol. I just hop on play 1 or 2 games then sleep then work, then work, then work, then work, then work, then work, then work then it starts again

-UPDATE-

Twitch stream is currently online, there is more information on the page!

http://www.twitch.tv/galadwarder/
Basically, the plan is to stream my play so that anyone interested can view and comment on my performance :)

There is a website still in the works, I really hope that these can help others get out of the Trench! More updates to come, and once the website is live, I will be moving this thread to that so the Playdota forums don't just get spammed with my updates. :)

More info to come, check out the Twitch stream and if anyone you know is in the same place as me, point them my way! :D

You guys rock, Happy Hunting!

-UPDATE-

Website is officially live!

http://galadwarder.com/

I am still getting a blog set up so that future game updates can be there rather than on this forum, but for now the forum can standin :)

I have officially set the challenge-I am going to get to a 4k MMR as fast as I can, and will be documenting everything I learn along the way.
(What works, what doesn't, etc...)

When the challenge is finished, I am going to turn the data I gathered into a Guide to help anyone with the volition to do so to get out of the Trench.


More game updates to come, I have been putting a lot of time into learning Dreamweaver lately ;)

Until next update, Happy Hunting!

really? playboy billionaire....

Yup...that's me!

<_<

>_>

<_<

-UPDATE-

So I have found that I tend to have a fairly solid early game, and a fairly solid late game. However, I tend to feed more than I should during the midgame. After some consult and some replay watching, I realized that it was because I get ballsy.

I execute ganks fine early game, and I play well late game with the items that I get, but the sort of "teenage" timezone from about 12-15 mins to 35ish mins, I overextend constantly.

I think it is because I try to execute midgame kills like early game ganks. In the early game, everyone has similar starting items and stats, (with some deviation obviously), but it means that all you have to check before ganking is your hp and mana, and the target's hp(and ideally mana).

In the midgame, you have to take into account skill builds, items, cooldowns, and mana much more so, on both you and your target. Let alone the possibility of them 2 or 3 manning, since one could argue that the laning phase is over.

What this has been equating to is that I do one of two things:
1) feed just enough for the enemy team to close the level gap, or
2) play so conservatively that I lose my level/ farm advantage.

Basically, it is another balance, one that I haven't been taking into account. Especially when my general strategy is to tip the scales early and carry that advantage, I am basically hamstringing both myself and my team in the midgame.

If I figure out a good or quick way to practice/fix this, I will leave an update on it. So far, I am just trying to be more cognizent of what I can or can't do, and am trying to ride that edge as close as I can without falling over.

If anyone has any ideas, please feel free to leave a post here, or email me at [email protected] :)

-SHAMELESS PLUG-

I am livestreaming relatively frequently now, a set schedule is in the works (evenings are your best bet to see me). Feel free to stop by at twitch.tv/galadwarder , every visit is much appreciated! I always enjoy the company and input!

Also, I really want to get this project more in the air, so any referrals to my Twitch or this thread are hugely appreciated! I want to turn this project of getting to 4k into an actual guide so anyone who wishes can follow in my footsteps, and the best way of getting word around is through all of you with your awesome support!

Finally, if you want to know anything else about me/this project/what I have done so far, stop by my webpage at galadwarder.com ! It is updated frequently, and eventually this thread will be moved there, so check it out!

That's it for tonight, I have a long day of DOTA tomorrow.
You guys rock, and as always, Happy Hunting!

*EDIT* It turns out the twitch.tv and website links were corrupted, they are now fixed. Sorry for the confusion!

-UPDATE-

I will be doing a Twitch-a-thon on Wednesday, May 28th, from 12:00 noon PST to midnight PST as a sort of launch for my website, Twitter, and the challenge that I am undertaking.

For those 12 hours, I plan to be streaming nonstop, answering any questions about me, meet-and-greeting, et cetera.

Spread the word and stop by- the more the merrier!

twitch.tv/galadwarder

See you then! Happy Hunting!

Twitch stream is now LIVE! Due to technical difficulties, it is an hour behind, but it is live for the rest of the day!

-UPDATE-

Hey all! Sorry for the little bit of silence, I have been DOTAing pretty hard.

So far, I have been having a ton of luck with either necro mid, or weaver offlane. Both heroes are fairly different, but I believe they work well in low skill pubs for the same reason: They are incredibly hard to judge.

Necrophos has Death Pulse, which both damages nearby enemies while simultaneously healing himself, Sadist which regens mana and health, Heartstopper, which is effectively a dumbed-down Radiance, and his ult which with Aghanim's can instakill a hero over half health while simultaneously lengthening their respawn time. Since his ult is based on a percentage of max health rather than a set amount of damage, he is also good for coming back in games with ridiculously tanky enemies. (Which is great, because lowskill pubs love to build tanky).

Weaver has his bugs which reduce armor while ticking for damage, which may not seem like much, but in lower tiers, people usually don't estimate the damage they will take with less/no armor effectively. He also has Sekuchi, which gives both free early game lane harrass and mid/late game escape, his crypt swarm, which can make last hitting'harass much easier, and his Time Lapse, which is a giant "screw you" to teams with lots of burst damage, but no sustainable damage output. Time lapse it off, and watch them realize that they are fighting a full health team with all their skills on CD.

Effectively these heroes are the same in that they are both nigh on to impossible for a low/midskill player to gauge when it is safe to go in on them, and are very effective at turning every mistake against the enemy team by punishing it with an instant, teabagging death.


More updates to come, check out my website if you haven't already, sub to my twitter, and check out Twitch to watch me feed in REAL TIME!!! :O

I will be streaming every Wednesday from 12:00 PST for at least two hours, so you are always guaranteed to see me then, and random days as I am able.

You guys rock, happy hunting!

*EDIT* Due to scheduling things that aren't reliable, I will be streaming from 2:00 PST rather than 12:00.