YouTube Guide to Mastering Playing as Nature’s Prophet in Dota 2
Many support players in Dota 2 often find themselves in situations where their cores are constantly farming, leaving them uncertain about their role in the game. Nature’s Prophet is currently the most contested support hero in the Dota 2 qualifiers and in patch 7.34. He is either banned or picked in nearly every game, often in the first phase of drafting. In this study, we will discuss why Nature’s Prophet is considered the strongest support in the game.
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Nature’s Prophet Skill Build
Nature’s Prophet is not only strong but also relatively easy to play, as you no longer need to manage your summons as intricately as before. The skill build for Nature’s Prophet in most games, as seen on Dota 2 pro trackers, remains consistent. You should prioritize maxing out your Sprout and Teleportation.
Out-Scaling Every Hero in Lane
Nature’s Profit outscales every other enemy supporting the lane as the s620 attack range is more than almost every other support combined with Sprout, which has a level 1 cast range of 625. This means if you Sprout Enemy Heroes, you can attack them there, but their attack range will fall short and they won’t be able to trade attacks. Sprout also deals damage and has a very low cool down and Mana, making the spell even more impressive as you can spam in its lane without running out of Mana. One broken aspect of Sprout is that even if the enemy eats Tango to get out of Sprout they will not heal and supports don’t usually buy the quilling blade. So either they will have to take all the damage from Sprout and auto attacks, or waste their Tango and get no healing out of it.
Teleport with Nature’s Prophet
Teleport has an amazing ability for everyone now. If you teleport somewhere, you get 36 bonus damage on the first hit, and every single additional hit gives you one armor for 15 seconds. This is insanely strong for the early fights and enables you to gag any lane since teleport is global. The damage and amount of hits increase as you take more divers into the teleport.
Early Itemization
For the starting items, there are two variations. The first one is a set of three Tango, branches, Circlet, Central, and Blood Grenades. This build is preferred if you are playing against heroes like Timbersaw, Morphling, Alchemist, or heroes with high HP pools, where you need to build a Vessel. A Circlet can be converted into Iron and a Nullifier. The Vessel reduces HP regeneration by 45 percent, which is needed against heroes with high HP regen. Sentry can be used to block the enemy’s pull camp or unblock your own big camp. The second variation is a set of Tango, two branches, Blight Stone, Sentry, and Blood Grenades. This build is good for trading in lanes and preferred if you are building an early Medallion and Solar Crest against heroes that deal physical damage.
Laning Stage & Runes
Nature’s Prophet has a good attack range, which helps him easily pressure enemy heroes by auto-attacking and spamming Sprout, which only costs 70 Mana at level 1. During the laning stage, all you need to do is keep your distance from the enemy, spam Sprout, and auto-attack; it’s as simple as that. Sprout is also a point-target spell, which means if you use it by clicking on the enemy, it will always land, so there is no chance of missing. In the case where you made a mistake and have taken damage from multiple enemies, you can teleport back to base and then return to the lane within a few seconds. You can also teleport to any lane where you see kill potential and set up easy kills, but make sure to secure your own lane first. With teleportation, you can secure the Water Rune for your mid-lane and try to contest the Bounty Runes at minutes 7, 14, and 21. However, be sure to use your scan before attempting to steal the Bounty Rune because you don’t want to end up feeding.
Also Read: Dota 2 Lion Guide
Ultimate & Nature’s Call
Nature’s Prophet’s ultimate deals 10 percent more damage per unit if the enemy hero you want to target is at the bottom lane. It’s preferred to use your ultimate on the top lane or any other lane to maximize its damage potential as it bounces and deals more damage.
Getting points in Nature’s Call, which is Nature’s Prophet’s summons, is up to you. If you want to pressure towers with your team, you can invest points in summoning and use them to tank the towers. Otherwise, you can choose to skip it.
How to Itemize On Nature’s Prophet
Nature’s Prophet’s itemization offers various options. You can try different items depending on the heroes you’re up against and tailor your build to fit your playstyle. To give you a general idea, if the enemy team has heroes like Ember Spirit, Storm Spirit, or any other hero that is heavily impacted by roots, you can consider going for Atos. In a scenario where your team lacks catch, Task is also a viable choice. If the enemy team leans towards physical damage, Solar Crest can be a valuable option. Solar Crest also aids in securing an early Roshan. You can use your summons to tank Roshan, and with Solar Crest’s negative armor, your team can easily claim the Aegis.
Building a Vessel is advisable against heroes with strong health regeneration, such as Timber Saw and Morphling. Aghanim’s Scepter is another solid option as it reduces the cooldown of your ultimate and roots the enemy it hits, providing significant utility during team fights or pick-offs on the map. Nature’s Prophet has a wide array of items to choose from, allowing you to experiment and discover which ones suit your preferences and the specific game circumstances.
Scalability with Nature’s Prophet
Most heroes have scalability issues and tend to fall off at certain points in the game. However, Nature’s Prophet, with its extensive item pool, can scale very effectively throughout the entire match. Overall, Nature’s Prophet is considered one of the strongest heroes at the moment.
In the early game, Nature’s Prophet has a strong laning stage. He can easily gank other lanes and has multiple itemization options depending on the specific game circumstances. He can also farm the jungle and transition into a core position as the game progresses.
In the mid-to-late game, Nature’s Prophet can push side lanes and exert pressure on the enemy team. Additionally, with items like Aghanim’s Scepter, he can join fights globally, making him a versatile and impactful presence on the battlefield.
Shard with Nature’s Prophet
Nature’s Prophet’s Shard ability is highly versatile and valuable. In higher-end games and professional matches, players often utilize the “Fork Advantage” to gain an upper hand in team fights. NP’s Shard reveals heroes hiding within a 1200 range, providing crucial information to your team and enabling them to make informed decisions during engagements.
Furthermore, this ability can be employed to punish heroes like Monkey King, who frequently hide in trees to set up ambushes. Nature’s Prophet’s Shard can also serve as a means to slow down enemy heroes in team fights, as the trees it creates can obstruct their movement and disrupt their positioning.
Talents for Nature’s Prophet
For talents, you have the flexibility to choose according to your preferences. If you enjoy playing with summons, then you should opt for the Nature’s Call cooldown reduction talent. Alternatively, you can choose the ultimate’s base damage talent. Both are equally good options.
If you are playing a support role as Nature’s Prophet, I would recommend going for the Trans-Summon Talent. This talent grants you 12 teleportation stacks at level 4, allowing you to teleport freely, and their duration is only 15 seconds. Both level 20 talents are potent, especially when facing heroes like Ember Spirit, Storm Spirit, or Morphling. In such cases, Sprout’s Leash talent can be very effective, as it prevents these heroes from escaping Sprouts.
On the other hand, if you are up against heroes like Drow Medusa, or any strong ranged carry with a 100 percent miss chance, the Proud Chance talent at level 20 could be incredibly powerful.
At level 25, you can consider the Remote Teleportation cooldown talent. This allows you to move anywhere on the map at will with your teleportation ability. The teleportation stacks will also assist you in cutting waves, pushing out lanes, and farming in various locations easily.
