The Best New Facets in Dota 2 patch 7.38

Dota 2 patch 7.38 brought a slew of changes to the game. There's a lot more water on the map, a new way to make neutral items, and a whole bunch of new facets to try out and play.

Not every facet is created equal. Some new facets are incredibly strong, while others need a bit more tweaking to be viable. In this article, we will count down the five best new facets and how to best use them for their hero.

The five best facets in Dota 2 patch 7.38

Alchemist - Dividends

Dude is just handing out money at this point. (Credit: Valve)

The new Alchemist facet provides the hero with 75 GPM for every Aghanim Scepter he gifts to allies. This is in addition to the bonus damage and spell amplification the hero already gets from buffing allies.

Dividends seems to be aimed at helping support Alchemists aid their team, as every Scepter speeds up the next one. It doesn't fit well with a core Alchemist, who need to use gold to buy late-game items.

Dividends has the highest win rate among the three facets and introduces a new way to play the hero. We are not sure how suitable the facet is to high-level gameplay, but we imagine some pros will debut it soon in a tournament.

Magnus - Diminishing Return

A (semi) free Shard? well don't mind if I do. (Credit: Valve)

While both Magnus facets look fun to use, Diminishing Return is a little bit more interesting. Shockwave now has a level five upgrade, which adds 200 range and returns the shockwave, dealing 50% damage on the way back.

Essentially, the new facet is equivalent to buying the former Aghanim's Shard, but instead of paying 1400, you use one skill point instead. A bargain for the hero.

So while it's not exactly a whole new mechanic, it gives Magnus a powerful early game power-spike and allows him to rush Blink Dagger. Overall, this makes support Magnus more fun and one of the best facets in Dota 2 patch 7.38

Night Stalker - Night Reign

Not the guy you'd wanna meet in a dark alley. (Credit: Valve)

Similar to the previous example, Night Stalker also got a level five skill upgrade. However, in his case, the ability gets a free skill point invested at level one.

This allows Night Stalker to start with Hunter in the night, along with a point in Void or Fear for the first bounty rune fight. This makes him a terror to play against before the horn blows.

The spell maxes out with the same amount of movement speed, but with an extra 15 attack speed. On paper, these bonuses seem small, but they have contributed to the hero's 52% win rate, compared to 49% with Voidbringer.

Jakiro - Ice Breaker

Two heads, one dragon. (Credit: Valve)

Perhaps the most fun new facet is Jakiro's Ice Breaker. Ice Path lasts for six seconds now, and can be activated to res-stun enemies while dealing significant damage.

Now, to be fair the second stun is only half a second long, but it is still a second disable that can easily be chained with the first to lock down enemies. The bonus damage is 225, which is nothing to scoff at. And having Ice Path last for an extra few seconds on the ground is very disruptive to any enemy who isn't spell immune.

It's a fun, powerful new facet that currently has a 53% win rate in Dota 2 patch 7.38. If you're a support, Jakiro needs to be at the top of your list of heroes to spam this patch.

Winter Wyvern - Recursive

Thank god for Recursive! (Credit: Valve)

It is somewhat baffling to compare the two new Winter Wyvern facets. One of them enables her to protect (but not heal for some reason) towers with Cold Embrace. It also buffs damage by 60%, which is nice but....

Compared to Recursive, the difference is night and day. Winter Wyvern can now bounce her ultimates between low health enemy heroes, essentially killing them one by one.

In practice, the upgraded Winter's Curse will at best kill two enemies, but it's still a bonus kill and some extra phenomenal lock down. Recursive also buffs Winter Wyvern's damage when using her ultimate, making it much easier to get it to move to the next victim.

It's a no brainer which facet is better and the stats prove it. Recursive is sitting at a comfortable 53% win rate, while Winterproof is barely above 50%.

And that concludes our list for the best new facets in Dota 2 patch 7.38. We hope you try them out and who knows, maybe you'll find a new favorite hero from this list.

READ MORE: The Best Hard Supports to Grind MMR in Dota 2 patch 7.38

Featured Image Source: Valve