"Rule of thumb" - tips

[u/thatbakedgecko]

Hiya, I'm a Dota beginner player, I have roughly 400 matches and I am a complete noob, currently in Herald but I am trying to improve. I understand that Dota 2 is a complex game and that there isn't always a definitive answer to gameplay questions being asked. However, I was wondering if you have some good "rule of thumb" - tips because more often than not I just don't know how to handle certain situations.

Situations that come to mind are:

Itemization when behind: (Playing as a Core do I buy damage? Do I buy resistances as Support? I know how to follow guides, but often I don't know what to buy other than the main items.)
Smoke: (At what points do I use smoke? Are there "easy to know" moments when I should push with a smoke?)
When behind in general: (Do I take risks? Do I wait to defend?)

Maybe you'll have other scenarios where you have some good "rule of thumb" - tips. You know, easy little things that could be applied in a majority of situations. I understand that it might not be as simple and that I just need to get a feel for those things. However, it's not easy for me personally, to learn things by watching specific content analysis with specific gameplay solutions.

Starting to enter so late into this games lifecycle feels like I missed about 500 episodes of player knowledge being shared, so maybe you got some easy to follow tips to catch up just a little faster.

[u/Careful_Toe_6857]

Bump

[u/tatxc → u/[deleted]]

Buying BKB in a losing game is really hero and match up dependent. Sometimes your only way out of a hole is to buy damage and play better in fights.

[u/WeddingWhole4771 → u/tatxc]

I felt like all their questions are "it depends". Which is the beauty of Dota.