Here's a detailed report of the game from DotaBuff, match ID: 82115869.
I played a Dota 2 match about a month ago and I remember the one team fight that decided the outcome of the game. I don't remember specifics, but I was playing Shadow Shaman and I recall I was constantly getting caught out.
"ss no push gg"
I was laning with Death Prophet against an Ogre Magi and Abaddon- two very tanky heroes that I would have a lot of trouble harassing. I notice that they had blocked our pull camp after a failed stacking attempt and quickly purchased a shiny new Sentry Ward with all my life savings up to that point. I drop the Sentry to to locate their Observer Ward. A quick glance through the camp revealed nothing. I walk to the far side of the camp and drop another Sentry. Nothing. That's 200 gold from my 401K.
I guess I just messed up my stack, I thought to myself. Stacking attempt number two yielded the same result as attempt number one. But surely I got it that time? I didn't see anything blocking the camp! That's when I look inside the camp itself. I had mistaken the enemy Observer Ward's health bar for a camp creep's health bar. How hidden it was!
To put some closure on the chain of endless mistakes, Abaddon and Ogre Magi, both well leveled, ride and waddle up to me as I am dewarding. Ogre Magi stuns, Abaddon's shield blows up, and I'm dead. After a disaster of a laning phase and dying two more times in a similar fashion, the diagnosis came back and the doctor told me I was feeding mercilessly.
Although the rest of my team was doing fairly well, I found it really harsh and embarrassing to know that I was the anchor weighing my team down from a better advantage. I felt useless and I knew the rest of my team could simply win without me. The whole situation reminded me of the section from Ender's Game when Bonzo tucks Ender in the corner and just tells him to not fuck up. But like how Ender managed to find some clutch moments during the fight, I found mine.
So I'm the five position Shadow Shaman who has no levels and no farm. The best I could do is be the custodian of the team, walking through lanes and making sure they're all tidy and drop wards down occasionally. Despite me being the entree to the enemy team, my team has managed to hold pretty well, squeezing out small advantages in level and gold despite essentially being a man down.
And that's when we spotted their Roshan attempt with my ward.
The entire Radiant team is stuffed inside a small confine. This was the moment! My team surrounds the pit and spells fly left and the right. The Serpent Wards go down, trapping two of their heroes as everyone else clashes in the epic fight. Heroes fall and legends are made as the Dire team emerges from the dust. Victory was then in our hands.
It just made me feel great, knowing that my wards spotted that Roshan attempt in an otherwise fairly even game. It could have been the game winning move for the Radiant had they actually got it. So I tell you this: even if you are covered in ketchup, mustard, and presenting yourself on a delicious hot dog bun like the strung out piece of meat you are, there's always something you can do to contribute. Stack camps, leech experience, whatever. Even you teleporting into a fight and dropping your spells once can turn the tide.
And of course, don't forget to ward every once in awhile.
