Dota 2 update brings the Bristleback

Dota 2 has been updated with its first new hero in six weeks. Rigwarl the Bristleback is the phlegm chucking pig-hedgehog thing in question. He's kind of what I imagine a dark, gritty reboot of Sonic the Hedgehog would look like. Except yellow. An initiator, Bristleback can slow enemies with a stacked attack, has a 360 degree spike attack, and location-based damage resistance.

Here's what Bristleback's hiding under his spiny sleeves.

  • Viscous Nasal Goo: A mucal discharge attack that lowers armour and reduces movement speed. Gross.
  • Quill Spray: 360 degree projectile attack which gets a damage bonus if you repeat within 10 seconds. Ignores damage blocking items and abilities.
  • Bristeback: This eponymous ability reduces damage from the side and back, and auto Quill Sprays for every 250 damage he takes from the back.
  • Warpath: A passive buff to movement speed and damage that stacks with every spell cast.

And you can see him in action, courtesy of this DotaCinema video:

Also! Vengeful Spirit gets a new model, Wisp gets renamed Io, and Beastmaster has some voice work done. Full patch notes here .

Thanks, PCGamesN .

Phil Savage
Editor-in-Chief

Phil has been writing for PC Gamer for nearly a decade, starting out as a freelance writer covering everything from free games to MMOs. He eventually joined full-time as a news writer, before moving to the magazine to review immersive sims, RPGs and Hitman games. Now he leads PC Gamer's UK team, but still sometimes finds the time to write about his ongoing obsessions with Destiny 2, GTA Online and Apex Legends. When he's not levelling up battle passes, he's checking out the latest tactics game or dipping back into Guild Wars 2. He's largely responsible for the whole Tub Geralt thing, but still isn't sorry.