Funny DOTA Article over at PCG

Three Lane Highway

I thought this was quite funny, here's a quick extract:

"FACT #1: Wards exist in a state of quantum uncertainty.

You will note that Dota 2 does not keep track of the amount of gold each player has spent on support items—wards, smoke, courier upgrades and so on. This is not an error. It is impossible for the game to record this information because support items do not exist in the way that you or I readily understand.

Like Schrödinger's cat, wards only exist when they are observed by the rest of the team. Until this happens they are both bought and unbought, placed and unplaced. As a support player you may believe that you have bought and placed wards, but this is not the case until your carry, offlaner or mid agrees that you have done so.

This scenario is complicated by several factors. Every skillshot your team misses reduces the number of wards that you have effectively bought. Every time your carry is killed, your wards cease to exist: you never placed them, they had no warning, and everything—everything!—is your fault.

If an allied Mirana misses enough point blank Sacred Arrows, for example, then it is actually possible to reduce the number of observed wards on the map below zero. Not only did you not ward in the way that this particular player would like, you have not warded in the entire game. In fact you have warded so little that perhaps you are reducing the number of wards in other people's games right now.

"GG support no brain" Mirana might say, as another Sacred Arrow sails past an immobilised enemy three feet away. "Report rubick."

Just as the world seemed complete and unchangeable to the peanut-brained tyrannosaur, Mirana's belief in your failure will be unshakable long past the point where the game is lost. You could protest, but science is on her side: you might think you bought wards, but if you had bought wards, I wouldn't suck so much, now, would I."

I cannot agree more. I had a game last night where one of players was moaning "we have no wards" when there were THREE on the map (y'know more than you can sustain) and TWO sentries up to deward. The number of Wards does indeed come under Quantum Theory, and even the act of observing how many wards are present can change their spin state, making it impossible to truly know.

LMAO, DOTA Science...it's even better than DOTA Math X{D

Lol I had at once time like 8 wards on the map plus 2 sentries when playing against a pudge, guess what I lost , mofo noob team. (Double lol, I was solo support)

Team just kept ignoring wards, pings,vision.

"FACT #3: Regular Dagon usage drains ambient fun from the universe."
A friend of mine has to read this.

Pew Pew

Shots fired, better duck Pu12e :D

This article is so true.


"I had a game last night where one of players was moaning "we have no wards" when there were THREE on the map"

I'm glad this doesn't just happen to me.

The article made me remember a very good thread on the team liquid forum I read a few months ago.

Specifically this bit

If an allied Mirana misses enough point blank Sacred Arrows, for example, then it is actually possible to reduce the number of observed wards on the map below zero. Not only did you not ward in the way that this particular player would like, you have not warded in the entire game. In fact you have warded so little that perhaps you are reducing the number of wards in other people's games right now.


As a Mirana I always and I do actually mean always buy my own wards. I imagine I would do the same if I were playing any skill shot hero for instance Pudge (I don't play him).

This is because you should be roaming anyway so are usually in better positions to place the wards with less chance of a pick off, other heroes that come to mind are Bounty Hunter and Nature's Prophet (2 other heroes I buy wards on). You need wards that are not always obvious to a support. The support will generally place wards that will be defensive like standard rune wards. This doesn't always suit a pudge or mirana who will want them either covering choke points or slightly nearer to towers.

So with that in mind, the thread I mentioned previously "Why doesn't the carry buy wards?" When I first found this thread a few months ago I read it in it's entirety it has some great debate and good arguments made from all sides. SO what do you guys think should core heroes buy wards or other consumables?

If a carry wants them I buy them and give them to that carry. That way they don't have to "waste" gold.