The 'Solar Crest' in Dota 2 Got Nerfed for Being Too Overpowered

Dota 2 received a new patch that nerfed some recently reworked items for being too overpowered. One of these items is the Solar Crest.

Massively Nerfed

Patch 7.35, which kicked off the Frostivus 2023 Event, has reworked a few items, including Bloodstone, Shiva's Guard, and Solar Crest.

Solar Crest, in particular, is pretty good. It is so good, in fact, that the developers have to step in and make some adjustments because this thing has been the go-to option for many Dota 2 players.

For those who do not know, the Solar Crest has an ability that players can activate called "Shine." Back then, this could not be self-casted, so the buffs the ability provides can only be given to the bearer's allies.

In Patch 7.35, the Solar Crest got reworked in that Shine can now be cast on the bearer of the item. Unsurprisingly, because of this change, players were building this in almost all of the matches. The teams that did not have a Solar Crest are more likely to get beaten by opposing groups that do have it.

Things got so out of hand that the developers made some much-needed adjustments. One of the most notable is that activating Shine now has a mana cost. Not only that but players will have to spend 100 mana to use the ability from now on! This effectively prevents players from abusing Shine, forcing them to make decisions on when they should activate it during a match.

As if that is not bad enough, the armor and attribute bonuses it provides have been reduced by two points, from +6 to +4. This may seem like a small number, but with how scaling works in Dota 2, these adjustments are actually quite noticeable.

And lastly, the bearers of the Solar Crest no longer get bonus attack speed and movement speed when Shine is cast on themselves.

Other Items Not Safe

Aside from the Solar Crest, other items in the game have been nerfed too! The armor bonus provided by Shiva's Guard has been reduced from +20 to +16. Besides that the bonuses to all attributes and health regeneration have been decreased from +8 to +6.

Leshrac players will be saddened by the fact that the developers have also nerfed the Bloodstone. So, what has changed? Well, its inherent "Bloodpact" ability no longer restores mana upon use. And, for a mana-hungry hero like Leshrac, this nerf hits hard.

Highlights

ITEM UPDATES

Eternal Shroud
- Eternal Endurance Stack Duration decreased from 8 seconds to 6 seconds
Helm of Iron Will
- Armor bonus decreased from +6 to +5
- Health Regen bonus decreased from +5 to +4
Kaya and Sange
- Spell Amplification bonus decreased from +16% to +12%
Mage Slayer
- Mage Slayer Spell Damage Debuff increased from 35% to 40%
Manta Style
- Attack Speed bonus increased from +12 to +15
Meteor Hammer
- Recipe cost decreased from 800g to 600g. Total cost decreased from 3,300 to 3,100
Vladimir's Offering
- No longer has a 250g recipe. Total cost decreased from 2450 to 2200
- Can now be disassembled
Yasha and Kaya
- Spell Amplification bonus decreased from +16% to +12%
- Attack Speed bonus increased from +12 to +20

HERO UPDATES

Abaddon

Curse of Avernus
- Curse Duration decreased from 4.5 seconds to 4.0 seconds
- Curse DPS decreased from 30/40/50/60 to 20/30/40/50

Beastmaster

Call of the Wild Boar
- Cooldown decreased from 42/38/34/30 seconds to 30 seconds
Primal Roar
- Cooldown decreased from 100/80/60 seconds to 90/75/60 seconds

Death Prophet

Silence
- Duration rescaled from 3/4/5/6 seconds to 3.5/4/4.5/5 seconds
Spirit Siphon
- Base Charge Restore Time increased from 38 seconds to 40 seconds
- Aghanim's Shard Fear Duration decreased from 1.2 seconds to 1.0 seconds