DOTAFire :: DotA 2 Builds & Guides for Hero Strategy

+Rep Report

My little project has progressed sufficiently that I feel it is acceptable to speak of it.

What have I done?

Well, quite a lot actually. I've written down a large chunk of the story in case I ever forget it and continue to write it today. I've created a few other Heroes as well, to keep Anya company in her long journey.

The World

The setting has been fleshed out further. It is decidedly NOT in the Warcraft universe, albeit in one similar.

The known world is ruled by a human kingdom and a line of strong kings. Most of the other species of the world - gnolls, kobolds, minotaurs and the like - seem content with this, as no faction expresses outward hostility towards others. However, tragedy has struck - the king has died, leaving his infantile son too young to rule. To this extent, the king's close friend Lord Sandrus has been appointed as the Regent. He is assisted by the councillor, Lady Alana Kilvarrow. Though the kingdom has entered somewhat of a rocky period, the co-regency seems adept at handling the situation.

This is where the story begins. Much of the land's misfortune is revealed as you progress, but the plot of the first few zones are as such-

Don't read this if you want it a surprise

Anya Sundancer, a half-elven augur rogue, wakes up on the outskirts of a farm suffering from severe amnesia. Unable to remember anything of the past save her name, she speaks to a farmer, who tells her that the town of Stanholme is just up ahead.

Anya proceeds to the town, conversing with the locals. Word has reached the town that the Regent-Lord may have died, leaving the boy king in the power of Lady Alana Kilvarrow. Stirred by the restlessness of the kingdom, bandits have begun raiding the surrounds as well, and even the cold town of Frostridge, far to the north, has been destroyed.

Finally, Anya speaks with a fortune-teller, who says:
"I see a warrior mage, surrounded by flames yet she does not burn. Shadows grasp from the pits, and the warlock does naught but continue to fight."
Here, Anya decides to reclaim her memories, uncertain as to what is happening. First, she decides to assist the town by clearing out the bandits from the surround, hoping that combat would refresh her memories.

After defeating the bandits and their lord, she finds a mysterious letter. Confused as to what this might portent to, she decides to travel onwards.

Eventually, Anya reaches the outpost of Lighthaven, a military base established to secure the region. Although originally denied entry, she is admitted once she shows the guards the letter.

Anya meets a paladin by the name of Kayle Dawnseeker, who escorts her to the commander. After the lead knight inspects the letter, he offers Anya a position as a correspondent, which she accepts.

The commander sends Anya and Kayle into the Cragged Highlands to inspect the land, saying that his last few patrols have not returned from there. From the outset, they are beset by kobolds running from their ancestral grounds in the highlands. Fighting through them, the pair reach the Cairn Stones, a series of menhirs. Enacting a foul ritual in the Stones is a mighty demon who seems to be familiar with the Augur Rogue. Anya and Kayle engage the creature, but after a very short confrontation he leaves.
"A commendable effort, but there is nothing you can do to stop the darkness. No, now that my work here is done, I leave. If you are still so eager to reclaim what was taken from you, then we will see each other again, in the ashes of where it all began.
You are not safe."

Anya speaks to Kayle, who consults the list of known demons and determines that their foe is Anathorne the Wastemaker, one of the Bleak Harbinger caste (a knight or bishop in mortal terms). Anya resolves to follow him, trying to reclaim her memories.

New Allies, New Enemies

Some more Heroes! These follow the same formula as Anya's skills, 30 levels, 4 skills, a passive upgrade to those skills. Let me introduce-

Kayle Dawnseeker the Paladin
Met by Anya after the first zone, Kayle is sent to assist her by his commanding officer. He's a Strength Hero who is based far more around right-clicks than Anya is.
Prismatic {W}hirl - Dancing light spins around the Paladin, inflicting damage to nearby enemies over 1 second.

In{q}uisition (Passive) - Kayle's attacks strike the target with holy energies. Each hit on the target (including the first) deal damage, and increase the damage dealt on subsequent strikes.

Paladin Auras - Upon learning this skill, Kayle gains access to six Auras, of which one can be active at a time. He can toggle between these auras on a short cooldown. The Auras are: Conviction (increases damage by a % of base damage), Holy Fire (damages attackers), Faith (damage reduction/regeneration increase), Resistance (bonus magic resistance), Iron Will (improved armour), and Crusade (damage dealt grants an absorbtion shield).

{D}ivine Plea (Ultimate) - Holy energy fills the Paladin and his allies, healing them and restoring mana.

Anathorne the Wastemaker, a demon of the Bleak Harbinger caste
Fulfills the role of the antagonist in the story. Part of the demonic caste/subspecies known as the Bleak Harbingers (roughly equivalent to a Baron or Duke if we use medieval terminology), he has a series of nefarious plans of whom only he knows the end goal.

{W}ave of Darkness - The Harbinger flaps his wings, sending out a wave of shadows to scour enemies and damage them in a cone.

{F}inger of Hate - Tears at the target with brutal energies, ripping them apart at a molecular level. Deals massive damage.

{T}hrash (Passive) - Gives a chance that an attack will deal bonus damage and stun the target.

Impending {D}oom (Ultimate) - Marks a target with the soul-rending powers of a demon lord. The afflicted unit is silenced and takes damage per second. If it dies, it will summon a great demon.

New Zones

Introduced recently is the military base of Lighthaven and the Cragged Highlands, ancestral home of the gnolls. They look... well, like you'd expect them to look. Military base-y and Highland-y. Again no images as I'm incompetent with uploading them. Maybe later?

Explaining the Title

Kayle's aura-switching mechanic? It's a *****. I used the Hive Workshop, a dedicated modding site, to ask for help, and got help that mostly solved my needs. However, it's still a lot of work just programming it.

Hence I hate auras. Not only does the aura switching need triggering, so do many of the auras. And I still don't get the Blood Coil heal (on the upside... I made . Happy accident, if I ever find a use for it).

I've also attempted to start the triggers regarding the quests that will lead you through the plot, but stopped, deciding that there are more pressing things to do.

In addition to this, I have deleted all melee map initialisation, and this has allowed me to set gold and starting zones as I wish. It's all very good now.

To do

The easy bit is done. Now, I've got the time-consuming bit (terraining) and the hard bit (making the ****ing triggers work).

Still, it's coming along nicely and with any luck there will be more to show for it later.

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(65) |

yeah, you have to set certain parameters (like an AoE skill will trigger if there are X number of enemies in the y dotometers radius.)

(47) |

Do you know how to make the AI use their spell? Because i dont think they will use it without codings.

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