How to play against Largo?

Along with the release of patch 7.40, we also had the announcement and release of Largo, the Frog Bard. He is a tanky support that focuses on relocating and controlling enemies while buffing allies' magic damage, movement speed, and healing.

Now that we have already presented you the hero and the most likely combos you can include him in, it's time to peek at the other possibility. What do you do if Largo is on the enemy team, strumming his songs against you?

His small froggy companions are part of his charm. — Credit: Valve

Largo: Surviving Early Game

The hardest moment to deal with Largo is in the early game due to his repositioning skill. If you want to have a shot at this point in the game, always be aware of your position and of his tongue's reach. Extra points if you have a mobility skill like Blink, Leap or Timber Chain.

During the laning phase, Largo will most likely try to pull you into his core's reach and use Frogstomp to slow your escape. He's very hard to lane against, and if you do not have a mobility skill, your best next shot is a hero that can either stun, silence, or hex.

Hex is the best insurance policy you could possibly want against Largo. — Credit: Steam Community

If you have none of these options at hand, use creep aggro and pull camps to try and stay out of his reach. Also try to rush mobility items such as Force Staff to help yourself and your teammates leave his area of action as soon as possible.

On the aggression side of things, if you're playing a ranged hero, you can poke him from the fog on the sidelanes as long as you mind your positioning at all times and remember that when you attack from the fog, his lick has a big range, and one mistake will definitely get you killed.

Mid-game: Mobility and Disabling

When people start getting their ultimate skills and start roaming more frequently, things change for Largo. He has no mobility skills and no hard stuns, so his only chance to escape is to land a good Frogstomp or buy items.

If he's alone, heroes with high mobility have an advantage. At this point in the game, he might have at least one item. Dota's default hero guide suggests a Glimmer Cape, so you might want to have some Dust of Appearance at hand.

Any good Largo player will most likely prioritize defensive items until the hero is figured out. — Credit: Dota 2

Considering that on top of Glimmer Cape, the suggested item is his Aghanim's Shard, you should also be aware of ganks using it. His shard allows Largo to Glimmer himself and another hero at the same time and come out of the jungle to surprise you while pushing lanes or hitting towers.

Largo has 4 base armor on top of being a strength hero. Removing that would make him vulnerable. Since Glimmer is his go-to item, focusing on armor reduction and physical damage should deliver better results against him in general.

Late-game: Lots of Items

Finally, in the late game, Largo is a proper tank buffing all his allies and most likely accompanied by them at all times. If you want to plan for the late game instead of crushing him early (which is A LOT harder), go for Disruptor and Aghanim's Scepter.

Disruptor will take advantage of teams clustering together, and his Aghs will render Largo completely useless for as long as the Static Storm lasts. If you chose to focus on the early game and need a way to control Largo, build Scythe of Vyse to render him unable to take advantage of his items.

Imagine having to deal with a full team with defensive buffs and all of them on Largo. Nightmare. — Credit: Dota 2

It doesn't matter the situation, Largo will be the team's nanny. If you manage to get rid of him, team fights will be easier. If you let him use an inventory full of unit-target items, he will build a defensive wall around his team and reinforce it with his ultimate.

Closing Thoughts

There is still much to explore and discover on how to play Largo effectively. On the other hand, his loop is pretty straightforward if you keep three things in mind: he will always try to reposition you, he is a chunky boi, and he takes best advantage of defensive items than any hero in Dota 2.

If you build your strategies around these three points, you will most likely have an easier time facing the Frog Bard in your pubs. If you want to stay updated on tournament developments, metagame shifts, hero builds, and unexpected news related to the professional Dota 2 circuit, take a look at the news section on the Strafe website!