On February 19, 2025, Valve released an update for Dota 2 — patch 7.38 "Wandering Waters." The update affected all aspects of the game: the map was changed, new mechanics were added, and items and the interface were reworked. In this material, we've gathered key changes that will impact gameplay.

New Water Paths and Accelerated Movement

The map has been significantly altered: the river that previously divided the map is now extended to the north and south, forming additional water streams. Moving along the flow of these rivers accelerates heroes towards their easy lane, although moving against the current does not slow down the hero's speed.

New Currency for Creating Neutral Items

A new resource, Madstone, has been introduced, which is used to create unique neutral items. By clearing neutral creep camps, players earn Madstones: two for themselves and one for a random ally. By accumulating enough Madstones, players can create neutral items consisting of two parts: an Artifact, which adds new abilities to your item, and an Enchantment, which provides passive bonuses to stats.

Relocation of Roshan's Den

Two of Roshan's lairs have moved to the river, next to the rune spots. Roshan will spawn in the southern cave at the start of the match and will relocate with the change of day and night. The monster will move on foot, pushing aside any units it encounters.

Reduction in the Number of Tormentors

There is now one Tormentor on the map, which appears in one of two corners of the map depending on the time of day: during the day in the upper corner, at night in the lower. Its location is always opposite Roshan. Additionally, the Tormentor has received a new ability. It will restore HP to heroes after the object is destroyed. A destroyed Tormentor will provide 2% health regeneration per second for 15 seconds. The first Tormentor will appear at 15:00. Now its abilities scale with time and do not depend on the number of deaths.

Changes to Item Visual Effects

New visual effects have been added for many items, including Glimmer Cape and Lotus Orb. It is now easier to identify which hero is the source of their effects.

Interface Improvements

A Roshan timer has been added, allowing players to track Roshan's current location and status. Additionally, when pressing the Alt key, timers for rune and other object spawns are displayed, aiding in team strategy planning. The backpack interface has also been improved: new items can now be immediately moved to the main inventory without delay, allowing for their instant use in battle.

In addition to the listed updates, developers have also made changes to the economy, neutral creeps, heroes, item functionality, and neutral items. More details on the patch can be found in the link.