Defense of the Ancients (commonly known as DotA) is a custom scenario for the real-time strategy video game Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos and its expansion, Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne.

Some one may say, it's just a RPG map in Warcraft III. But in fact, Dota is not same as  normal Warcraft. Warcraft III is the third title in the Warcraft series of real-time strategy games developed by Blizzard Entertainment. As with Warcraft II, Blizzard included a free "world editor" in the game that allows players to create custom scenarios or "maps" for the game, which can be played online with other players through Battle.net. These custom scenarios can be simple terrain changes, which play like normal Warcraft games, or they can be entirely new game scenarios with custom objectives, units, items, and events, like Defense of the Ancients.

Dota is not just a RTS game, it's fun because it has the elements of the RPG and MMO. Defense of the Ancients pits two teams of players against each other: the Sentinel and the Scourge. Players on the Sentinel team are based at the southwest corner of the map, and those on the Scourge team are based at the northeast corner. Each base is defended by towers and waves of units which guard the main paths leading to their base. In the center of each base is the "Ancient", a building that must be destroyed to win the game.
The Each human player controls one Hero, a powerful unit with unique abilities. In DotA, players on each side choose one of 101 heroes, each with different abilities and tactical advantages over other heroes. The scenario is highly team-oriented; it is difficult for one player to carry the team to victory alone.

It's normally 5v5 game, and each game lasts about 30-50 mins. Because the gameplay revolves around strengthening individual heroes, it does not require one to focus on resource management and base-building, unlike most traditional real-time strategy games. Killing computer-controlled or neutral units earns the player experience points; when enough experience is accumulated, the player gains a level. Leveling up  improves the hero's toughness and the damage it can inflict, and allows players to upgrade their spells or skills. In addition to accumulating experience, players also manage a single resource: gold. heroes earn gold by killing hostile units, base structures, and enemy heroes. This has caused emphasis on a technique called "last-hitting," which is when the player attacks a hostile unit when "its hit points are low enough to kill it with one blow".  Using gold, players buy items to strengthen their hero and gain abilities; certain items can be combined with recipes to create more powerful items. Buying items that suit one's hero is an important tactical element of the scenario.  Item choice also effects play style, as any given item may increase one statistic (for example, attack per minute) while leaving another (damage per attack) alone.

Based on the different heroes and the item they purchased, players' roles are different during the whole game. Do the right thing in the right time will be really important during the game and that will help u to win the game. For example, in Team fight, the position of heroes is very important. The tank should be in the front of team to protect the DPS(damage per second, the one who can much damage in a short time), the magician should be in the back to spell and avoid being killed. The assassin should blink in the right time into the enemy team to try to kill the most important hero in enemy team, and then fall back...That will make the game really fun, and that's why so many people are so into it.

The balance of the game is quite good to make competition is quite awesome. There is no such an imbalance hero or item. And in every version of dota, the Editor, Icefrog, always did tiny little change to make the game more banlanced.


Summery, the Competition make the game really fun, and the kind of RPG system(level up, purchase items) make players are so into it. It's popular now, and it's an event in many game competition, such as WCG.


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