How many heroes should one aim to master?

I started six months ago and got deep into it. I know you need to know the skills and basics of every hero so I tried to a-z the list ( not in order but 4 games of a hero and at least one win) Ieended up crossing off a little over 40 heroes and liking harder nuking support. I quickly ran out of those and kinda burnt my self out. I had to leave for 2 months and I'm just coming back trying to play heroes I like only, but I still feel very lacking that I have straight up never played some heroes. So how many heroes are u all great at ... Like pick up when ever and play at a high level. And as a captain how much flexibility do u expect from people?

Well I have like 3 years maybe 3.5 of dota and I can play all heroes, ofcourse some better than the others.

You should try out new stuff maybe you will like a ganker or an escape hero.

I really hate inflexible people, to me dota is all about your flexibility to pay different styles, as a captain i like my team to be flexible and not a bunch of people who can only play a certain hero.

I've been playing dota since about 07 and i can play almost every hero, some i need to have a practice run to remember how to play them (Heroes i don't play frequently i need practice with if i play a ranked game with them). I try to keep in shape with at least 2-3 to each role, carry, middle, offlane, soft support, and hard support. By doing this, it keeps me flexible in case i ever get a team that refuses to play any of the following roles, i can easily sub in.

It depends, everyone's different. You'll also find that there are some heroes you really dislike when you first try them, but might really enjoy later in your development. Try to have at least a few heroes in every area (carry, mid, support) and a reasonable mix of strength/agility/intelligence too.

There's nothing wrong with having some specialisation - if you like nuking supports then play them. You want to have fun, and there's no point being able to play 110 heroes badly rather than 20 effectively. However, you do need to consider the opposition/allied picks too, and try to grab something appropriate.

Personally I've found that you naturally develop over time - you'll find heroes you really like, but then fancy a change after a while, move on to a next one etc. Occasionally randoming can find you a new favourite. After a while you build up a solid knowledge base of what all the heroes can do, even if you haven't played them.

Eventually you should be able to play any "standard" hero - i.e. one without skillshots or big micro requirements - pretty well, whenever required. This just takes time and experience. "Specialist" heroes are much more demanding, and need to be played a lot in order to master them. This can be a fun side project, but you're usually a bit weak while learning them.

E.g.

Pudge
Invoker
Chen
Meepo
Earth Spirit
Lone Druid
Puck
Visage

Personally I play a lot of support heroes, but also a lot of initiators and offlaners. Generally I fill in the roles most pub players don't want to do. Can play mid and carry too where required, but much less practiced. However, good basic skills are transferable - last hitting can translate into denying effectively, being used to rune whoring makes you a good spotter for others, surviving the offlane can make for good support instincts, etc.

One of my biggest weaknesses atm is that I'm terrible at shift-queueing, so I'm less effective with Heroes with Comboes/use Blink Daggers like Puck, Queen of Pain, Magnus, etc. Aside from that though, I feel I can play most Heroes effectively now. A little while back, played Centaur Warrunner for the 1st time, and had no problem chaining his Stun (okay had a little problem the 1st time). I've been playing since 01/01/2013 and I like Burst Nuke Supports too <}3, though I'm starting to lean more towards Tanky arseholes.

As for how many Heroes you need to "master", you can probably get by with 1 or 2. I would try to master at least 1 Hero that Snowballs easily, like Slark, Storm Spirit, etc. as well as your favourite Heroes.

When Captaining, it's always good to take your friends's strengths into account. Got a good Invoker player who wants to go Mid? Pick a tough Safe Lane Farmer so you can have your Supports back him up early on, maybe even picking up a Lich or Enigma to deny the Mid Lane Creeps to ensure he wins his Lane.

Before you even begin searching for the match, communicate with your friends and figure out what kind of strategy is best for the 5 of you. You should have a clear idea of what Heroes you want to draft before the Drafting phase even begins, don't leave it until the last second to consider your options, just go for backup Picks and Bans based on what the other Captain Bans/Picks.

I know how to play all heroes. I play 6 years. I needed only 1 year and a half to master them all.

And if you believe that...I've got this lovely bridge to sell you...

:)

I'm "great" at 1 hero. I can play almost every hero proficiently. But there's only one that is head and shoulders above the rest.

I can play any hero decently but prefer playing my favorite Invoker

I can play all but a few heroes decently, but I have a handful that I simply play at my best at.
My personal favorite is Rubick, but I play a mean Dragon Knight and Timbersaw.