Offlane Chen: A Game-Changing Strategy in Dota 2

Another pub game ruined by your core, but this time, it’s not your fault. Traditional support heroes can make an impact by playing as cores, and Chen is one such hero that’s been winning games at an absurd rate in the offlane.

Chen’s Rise to Prominence

Chen, a common support hero, has been picked frequently in pro games. However, Alliance and player 33 have shown that Chen is also viable as an offlaner in the right hands. In recent memory, Alliance played offlane Chen at the MDL Chengdu Major, winning both games they picked him for.

Win Rate Statistics

On the Dotabuff hero meta page, Chen is ranked #1 in win rate percentage for offlane roles in Divine/Immortal games with a 59.04% win rate and a 1.57% pick rate. In Ancient games, he has a 54.28% win rate with a 0.61% pick rate, placing him 6th best.

Early Game Advantage

At level one, Chen can control enemy range creeps or jungle creeps to gain an advantage in last-hit battles. His ability to provide bonus health regeneration is also helpful in lane. Offlane Chen levels faster than support heroes, allowing him to control neutral creeps like Centaur Conquerors before 10 minutes.

Mid to Late Game Challenges

While Chen’s Centaur creeps can initiate and tank, they don’t scale like heroes do. To scale well into the late game, you’ll need to get an Aghanim’s Scepter and control Ancients for your creeps. However, heroes will still scale better.

Weak Points of Offlane Chen

One weak point is the tilt factor. Your position 4 might dismiss you and try to take the last hits, thinking the farm would be better suited on their Pudge rather than a position 3 Chen. This can lead to a last-hit battle with your enemy and ally, leaving your lane supportless.

Chen also takes time to “come online.” You need to find creeps in the jungle that fit your needs, relying on random chance. If you die or your creeps die, a large part of what you offer to your team disappears, providing an opening for your enemy.

Conclusion

In the right hands and with the right team, offlane Chen brings a lot to the table that can be overwhelming to deal with. If you’re being charged at by four centaur creeps with five enemies behind, you probably want to turn around and run for your life. Chen is one of the most micro-intensive heroes in the game, eliminating a large portion of the player base from playing him. However, if you’re open to the challenge or already good at him, it can be something new that the enemy isn’t used to dealing with, providing a significant advantage.

Has anyone seen an offlane Chen in their game? If you’re a position 4 and your offlaner picked position 3 Chen, would you steal their farm?