Many expected a large update following the Chongqing Major, and it’s safe to say Dota 2 Patch 7.21 (January update) lives up to the billing.

In addition to a new Ranked Season, the Dota 2 7.21 patch introduces over 100 balancing changes to heroes, items, barracks, creeps, gameplay and more. The update also continues Valve’s recent push to correct Dota 2’s movement speed issues.

With too many changes to count, here’s what you need to know from the Dota 2 Jan. 29 update.

It’s a New Season

The newest patch officially brings in the new Ranked Season, which resets Ranked Medals and allows players to start anew. This Ranked Season will have seven tiers instead of five. Not only does this make ranking more precise, but it also gives players more opportunities to advance.

For those with Dota Plus Subscriptions, this season also brings a new set of seasonal quests located in the Dota Plus home tab.

General Gameplay Changes

The Dota 2 Jan. 29 update implements gameplay changes that, while not monumental, will alter the strategy of the game. To start, towers and barracks are now slightly more armored and harder to destroy.

• Tier 2 tower armor increased from 14 to 15
• Tier 3 tower armor increased from 12 to 16
• Tower Protection armor bonus for Tier 2/3/4 boosted from 3 to 4
• Melee Barracks armor increased from 13 to 15

Farming may also change due to the modifying of gold rewarded for killing creeps.

• Melee creeps average bounty reduced by 3
• Range Creeps upgrade cycle gold bounty increases by 3 from +3 to +6

Messing with the hero attribute system could have major ramifications, but the update introduces some interesting changes, including a system shift that favors boosting a hero’s overall stats compared to just their primary attributes.

• Heroes will no longer receive an additional 25% benefit for their primary attributes
• All hero attributes are increased by a flat rate of 15%
• Health per strength from 18 to 20.

Correcting Movement Speeds

The Dota 2 Jan. 20 Update (7.21) follows the lead of last November’s 7.20 Update, which emphasized fixing what many consider the most broken element of Dota 2 — hero movement speed.

It’s all too common, especially in the early game, for heroes with slow movement speed to struggle when facing heroes with a high movement speed that can easily run away. To make a more level playing field, Valve is shifting to an attribute system that increases by a flat rate rather than by percentage movement speed, along with simply buffing the speed of certain characters.

• Melee heroes given a 5+ boost in movement speed = Naga Siren, Monkey King, Underlord, Nyx Assassin, Bloodseeker, Riki
• Melee heroes given a 10+ boost in movement speed = Alchemist, Dragon Knight, Meepo
• Melee heroes given a 15+ boost in movement speed = Legion Commander, Lifestealer, Sven, Lycan, Ursa, Wraith King
• Ranged heroes with over 295 in movement speed will have their movement speed reduced by 5.

Balancing, Balancing, and More Balancing

It’s probably a better question to ask what wasn’t balanced in the Dota 2 Jan. 29 Update. Over 100 characters were altered in some form or fashion, some with a single tweak and others with up to five.

Also, 28 items were balanced as well. It appears that many of the item balances were designed to make items less obtainable in the early game, limiting the starting items that can sway the tide of battle.

So those were the main storylines of The Dota 2 Jan. 29 Update. We know this won’t be the last update by any means, but let’s just hope that this one starts the new year on a good note.

For more detailed patch notes see the official release here.