Hi and welcome to the 2nd part of my Dota 2 Support guide/tutorial. This time I will be teaching you guys on how to rotate properly around the map. I will be giving some routes you can take when roaming the map. but first I want to tell you guys of some things that you should know in regards to Support rotation.
IMPORTANT THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW
Rotation is a very important part of dota 2. It can give your team very big advantages in the game but it can also put you in a great disadvantage when done incorrectly. As a former Chess player I can compare Rotations to piece positioning in chess. If you move your Queen to a certain part of the board it strengthens that area but at the same it weakens the area it left. If you move your queen towards the enemy area it will give threat to the enemy king but if done wrongly it can also mean danger to your side and might cause you the game. same goes with rotation in dota 2. proper rotation also allows you to ward on important points of the map without the enemy noticing it. on that note, we will be discussing first on the important things to know before you rotate around the map.
KNOW YOUR HERO - in doing a rotation one must know what are the skills of that hero and the effects of the skill (even the smallest detail). Also you should know when your hero is most viable to rotate and when not. we call this Power spike. example, there is a big difference between a level 1 lion with earth spike vs a level 2 lion with an earth spike and hex. so it is best to rotate when both stun and hex are up when you are using lion. another example is Earthshaker. the difference between a level 1 Earthshaker and a level 5 Earthshaker is not that big. But once he gets his Echo Slam at level 6 that gives him more killing and ganking potential by a big margin than when he is at level 5. Furthermore, it increases exponentially once Earthshaker gets his dagger. It helps greatly to know when a support hero hits its power spike cause that is the best time to rotate.
MAP AWARENESS - as a support player you should be the one in the team with the best map awareness cause this tells you the timing and route of your gank. you don't want to gank a hero at the bottom lane when someone is farming near him. That can alert the enemy team and can lead to defensive rotation by the enemy leading to the death of not only you but also your ally at the lane your trying to rotate on.
TIMING IS EVERYTHING - time your gank. make sure you already had your Power spike and also make sure that you will not leave your safelane or offlane hero in danger. One good timing to rotate is when the creep wave meets nearer the enemy tower. just make sure that you advise your ally that you will be rotating for them to be more cautious of their surrounding. you can also plant a safety ward near him before you begin rotating to give him vision of his blind spot. There are not much specific timings I can give you cause it depends on the enemy movements and game circumstances. So practice good judgement
BRING YOUR WARDS - as a support player it is a must that you ward the map. in that sense, It is advisable for you to bring a couple of wards when rotating. You will be passing by some important warding spots on your rotating routes. Its efficient to ward and rotate at the same time. it will save you time.
CHECK YOUR RESOURCES - Make sure you have the proper health and mana when you will be ganking.
BRING YOUR TOWN PORTALS - I myself always have a TP or two in my inventory when rotating. this helps me respond quicker back to my original lane when my safelane/offlane hero needs help and it allows me to go to important spots on the map where my team needs me to be. Also it allows me to get out of tight situations just like when you suddenly encounter enemy heroes on my rotation routes.
GET THOSE ENEMY BOUNTIES AVAILABLE - getting those bounties at the enemy side of the map on your way to your destination is a good habit to have when rotating. You deny the enemy of the free gold and experiences they can get when getting these bounties in addition of you having bonus gold and experience.
ROTATION ROUTES
Now that we have checked everything we need to do and have before ganking, its time to tell you the possible routes that you can use when ganking. Take note that these are my personal routes I use in game. Also I will include here the ward spots you can place a ward at while rotating and hiding spots you can hide when waiting for an opportunity for a kill.
Legend:
O - ward spot
X - Hiding spot
Radiant Rotations
Dire Rotations
These are only early game basic rotations suggested by me. As what I have said earlier use proper judgement in doing rotations and act what's best for your team. these rotations are done usually done by supports only but it is better if a support and an offlane or midlaner would be doing the rotation for it to be more effective. I won't include rotations made during the mid to late game cause it has many possible routes depending on the circumstances
So there you have it guys, this completes my support series tutorials. hope you like it. if you have a comment, suggestion or question, just type it below and I will be more than happy to answer that. Also follow me 