The weirdest support picks at the Arlington Major

The Arlington Major has concluded, and fans were treated to some of the best Dota they've seen in a long while. Finally, the best teams in the world were gathered together to play for their chance for a direct invite to The International 11. With so many games played, teams have taken chances with many weird supports throughout the tournament. Here are the top five weirdest supports picked at The Arlington Major. 

Sven 

Fourth position (roaming support) Sven has been picked twice with a 100% win rate throughout the Arlington Major and is one of the most interesting situational picks in the tournament as he isnt your typical support. Sven provides a single target stun, tanky stats and most importantly - Warcry. 

At level 10, with Aghanim’s Shard, Warcry provides 30% movement speed in an area and 22 armour to allies. Against heavy physical damage picks such as Bristleback and Faceless Void, pick the Sven, get the Shard and snowball down a lane. Most teams cannot counter it. 

Game to watch: BOOM Esports vs Entity Game 3 Playoffs 

Dragon Knight 

Dragon Knight is typically a hero that can be flexed into mid or offlane, but rarely ever as a support. Tundra Esports’ Martin "Saksa" Sazdov says otherwise, as he picked it twice in a group stage series against Beast Coast. 

What Dragon Knight provides is simple: A point and click stun and tower push. He buys Blink Dagger and runs around finding pickoffs to convert into objectives. Tundra’s lane with Visage and Dragon Knight in a game against Beast Coast in the group stages shows the potential of the hero in the support position if paired with an early game, ranged hero. 

Game to watch: Beast Coast vs Tundra Esports game 1 - group stage

Viper

The hero lost when it was picked but it was played by PSG.LGD - so how bad can it be? Viper is picked solely to dominate the lane alone to consistently harass the enemies with Poison Attack and zone them from the lane.

Viper works especially well against a Melee core and support combo. With heroes such as Marci, Tiny and Doom being in the metagame, there might be a spot for Viper support in your own pubs. 

Game to watch: PSG.LGD vs OG Esports game 2 - playoffs 

Alchemist 

Alchemist has had a small resurgence in the Arlington Major as a carry. He is one of the most classic carries in Dota, having his Greevil’s Greed passive to gain extra gold. However, PSG.LGD showed even more innovation by taking Alchemist and putting him as a support in the bot lane. 

Despite the loss, Alchemist support works in much the same way as Sven mentioned above. A large body with a stun, but instead of the armor buff from Warcry, he provides a large AOE armor reduction that can help his carry reduce stacks. By buying a Blink Dagger and utility items such as Medallion of Courage, Force Staff and even his Aghanim’s Shard, he is able to be a passable flex pick early in the draft. 

Game to watch: PSG.LGD vs OG Esports game 1 - playoffs 

While this may work in the hands of pros, proceed with caution in your normal pubs! Keep in mind that many of these supports are situational, and making them work will require specific compositions built around them. Hopefully this article will be able to provide you a fun pick when you decide to choose something outside of the box in your next game.