Invoker got three nerfs in a single patch. Kez has longer cooldowns, reduced damage, and a reworked talent. Timbersaw lost attack speed and a chunk of his control. If you’ve been spamming any of these heroes without reading the patch notes — welcome to 7.41d.
Valve dropped the fourth lettered update of version 7.41 — and it’s arguably the most impactful of the 7.41a–7.41d series. Over fifty heroes were touched, neutral items saw significant changes, and a handful of system-level fixes alter everyday mechanics mid-game. Here’s a breakdown of who won, who lost, and what it means for the meta.
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Heroes Nerfed in Patch 7.41d Dota 2
The hardest-hit heroes are those who’ve been sitting comfortably at the top of the meta — especially those built around high burst damage or dominant crowd control.
Invoker — three abilities nerfed in one shot. Ghost Walk now has a 40-second cooldown instead of 32 — a meaningful hit to survivability in teamfights. Chaos Meteor loses contact damage on most Exort levels, and Ice Wall’s slow was restructured: it goes up slightly at early levels (20% → 30%) but drops hard at max (180% → 150%). Net result: Invoker is slightly more predictable and a little less lethal in the late game.
Kez — clearly overstayed his welcome at the top. Kazurai Katana and Shodo Sai both got longer cooldowns (20/15/10/5 → 24/18/12/6 seconds), Switch Discipline’s agility damage bonus was cut from 16% to 12%, and Shodo Sai’s parry duration dropped from 2 to 1.5 seconds. The level 10 talent swaps magic resistance for a style-switch bonus — the hero was essentially standardized and made less oppressive in solo duels.
Faceless Void — Time Dilation’s radius shrinks from 775 to 700, and the Time Lock AoE from Aghanim’s Scepter via Time Walk drops from 400 to 325. Not devastating, but Void becomes slightly less forgiving when Chrono placement isn’t perfect.
Tiny — multiple changes at once: Insurmountable’s slow resistance weakened, Tree Grab cooldown increased by 1 second across the board, Tree Throw range cut from 1200 to 1000. On the upside, Grow’s slow with Aghanim’s Shard is stronger and Tree Volley costs less mana. He becomes a bit slower to execute but marginally tankier as an offlaner.
Timbersaw — loses 10 base attack speed (100 → 90) and the Whirling Death attribute reduction duration got significantly shorter at early levels (11 → 7 seconds at level one). This directly weakens his laning dominance.
Lion — three nerfs in a row: lower movement speed from level 10 talent, weaker Hex cooldown reduction from level 15 talent, and reduced kill stacks on Finger of Death. Lion stays viable but stops being an automatic first-pick.
Heroes Buffed in Patch 7.41d: Who Got Stronger
Alongside the nerfs, several heroes received meaningful buffs — some of which are strong enough to genuinely shift the meta.
Morphling — the most drastic stat change in the patch. Base strength drops from 23 to 16, but base agility jumps from 24 to 33. The result: nine more base damage at level one (36–45 → 45–54). This reshapes his laning phase and early Manta timing — Morphling is now naturally more aggressive from the first minute.
Vengeful Spirit — Magic Missile deals more damage at early levels (85 → 100 at level one) and she gains bonus base health regen. VS was already a solid aggressive support pick — now she’s a bit more dangerous in early rotations.
Arc Warden — Flux received increased cast range and a higher slow at early levels. The hero becomes more reliable in situations where maintaining distance and mid lane control matters.
Warlock — Upheaval’s cooldown dropped significantly (60/50/40/30 → 45/40/35/30 seconds), and the level 25 talent now links one more enemy with Fatal Bonds. Late-game Warlock becomes noticeably more impactful.
Ringmaster — Funhouse Mirror received a massive buff: the illusion now deals 100% damage instead of 28%. It reads like a typo. It’s not.
Other Notable Buffs and Nerfs in 7.41d
Beyond the headline changes, the patch touched dozens more heroes. Here are the ones worth watching:
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Sven — Storm Hammer stuns for up to 1.75 seconds at max level, and God’s Strength now grants 40% slow resistance instead of 30%. Late-game Sven becomes significantly harder to kite.
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Gyrocopter — major rework: night vision increased to 1000, Call Down slow jumps from 50% to 60%, but Side Gunner no longer fires two targets simultaneously when Flak Cannon is active. Gyro shifts toward focused burst over AoE spam.
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Leshrac — Pulse Nova costs less mana per second (20/40/60 vs 25/45/65) and Nihilism’s slow increases to 40%. Good signs for aggressive magic-build Leshrac strategies.
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Spectre — Shadow Step now has a fixed 1000 range and standardized 175% illusion damage, while Haunt costs more mana at later levels. Still powerful, but slightly more resource-dependent.
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Broodmother — Spiderlings gained 25 HP (300 → 325), directly improving solo push tempo.
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Clockwerk — Power Cogs costs more mana, damage was reworked to a linear curve (55/110/165/220 instead of 50/125/200/275), but push and damage now trigger on heroes with no mana — a meaningful mechanical change.
Neutral Item Changes in Dota 2 Patch 7.41d
Neutral items received targeted but impactful changes. The standout is Witchbane — dropping from 150 to 50 mana cost on Cleanse essentially turns it into a completely different item. Expect professionals to build around active dispel in teamfights.
| Item | Change |
|---|---|
| Fallen Sky | Building damage on hit: 75 → 110 |
| Witchbane | Cleanse cast range: 500 → 700; mana cost: 150 → 50 |
| Idol of Scree’auk | False Flight evasion: 25% → 35% |
| Riftshadow Prism | Illusion damage output: 50% → 60% |
| Dezun Bloodrite | Blood Invocation spell radius bonus: 16% → 20% |
| Spider Legs | Skitter cooldown: 20 → 15 sec; duration: 14 → 12 sec |
| Harmonizer | Mana cost reduction per ability on cooldown: 5% → 7% |
| Flayer’s Bota | Bloodrush cast range: 1200 → 1500 |
Facet Changes in Patch 7.41d: Nerfs and Buffs
Alert and Timeless were nerfed — Alert loses night vision and attack range bonuses, while Timeless drops from 6/16% to 5/12% spell damage. This directly hurts heroes who build around these facets.
On the positive side, Vital got a small health regen boost (2 → 2.25) and Titanic‘s attack speed penalty was flattened to a single value of 9% across all tiers — a quiet but useful buff for slower-attacking heroes at higher facet levels.
System Changes in 7.41d: Town Portal and Smoke of Deceit
A few small but practical system-level changes will affect everyday gameplay:
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Town Portal Scroll now partially follows the hero during teleportation — moving after the cast no longer cancels the effect. This reduces accidental TP interruptions from lag or bad micro.
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Smoke of Deceit now sends an allied chat message when used — a small QoL fix that eliminates the classic “I smoked and you didn’t notice” scenario.
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The Rejuvenation Aura radius at the Dark fountain was slightly increased.
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Teleportation now lands the hero slightly closer to the Ancient — a minor standardization for defensive TPs.
Patch 7.41d Meta Impact: What to Expect at The International 2026
This patch dropped on June 5, 2026 — right before The International, which means teams have very little time to adapt. The nerfs to Invoker and Kez were expected: both heroes had been consistently dominant in pro drafts. Meanwhile, Morphling’s nine-point base damage gain is the kind of change that quietly reshapes lane matchups and build priorities overnight.
Witchbane at 50 mana is practically a new item. Watch for teams building active dispel windows into their teamfight execution. Ringmaster with 100% illusion damage is too obvious an exploit to go unnoticed — expect it to show up in competitive drafts quickly.
Overall, patch 7.41d makes the meta slightly less predictable than 7.41c. The nerfs are spread across roles, which means some of the previous automatic first-picks will step aside for heroes whose buffs flew under the radar. Keep an eye on qualifier drafts — that’s where the new meta favorites will surface first.
