History FanNickname / Dota2

* Bloodseeker: "Pubseeker", due to his high popularity in public / pickup games. He also goes by the moniker "Bloodcyka" (pronounced "Bloodsuka") for his popularity among [[{{AcceptableTargets}} Russians]] in the low-skill brackets [[note]]the curse word "сука" is synonymous with foul-mouthed or uncooperative Russians in the fan community. In case you're wondering, сука essentially means "bitch"[[/note]]. But, now that he is a viable pick in competitive scene...

* "'HO HO HA HA' era": Patch 6.83 era where the game was considered entering a DorkAge due to the rubberband mechanic and the reigning hero to benefit the patch was Sniper (and Troll Warlord). And so player would hear his [[SignatureLaugh Signature]] AnnoyingLaugh many times when he spammed his Shrapnel a lot to defend the high ground (the most viable strategy back then) and thus leading to a repetition of "HO HO! HA HA!" en masse, thus the patch is referred after that laughter.

* The Satyr Tormentor neutral creep's ''Shockwave'' spell, which it fires off as soon as enough heroes are in the area, is refered to as a [[VideoGame/StreetFighter "Hadouken"]].

* Axe's ultimate, ''Culling Blade'', is colloquially referred to as a "Dunk" due to the jumping motion he makes prior to bringing the weapon down overhead on the target, much like a basketball dunk. It's also referred to as [[BadassBeard Culling Beard]], as part of his manly nature.

* The two main playing styles have their own nicknames: focusing on team fights above objectives is called "Deathballing" or "Caveman Doto", while taking objectives then high-tailing it to whittle down opponents is called "Rat Doto".

* Harbinger's title underwent several changes in ''Dota 2'', going from the original ''Dota's'' "Obsidian Destroyer" to "Outworld Destroyer" and then "Outworld Demolisher" before they settled on the current "Outworld Devourer". Naturally, players have come up with their own joke names to poke fun at the constant name changes, with "Ongoing Developer" and "[[ToiletHumor Outhouse Decorator]]" being among the more prominent.

* Pangolier and Dark Willow, The two heroes revealed at the The International 2017 (a sword-slinging [[BeastMan pangolin man]] with [[WhatTheHellIsThatAccent some sort of French-Hispanic accent]] and a fairy in green) quickly earned the colloquial names "[[Franchise/{{Shrek}} Puss in Boots]]" and "[[Disney/PeterPan Tinker Bell]]" respectively before having their real names revealed.

* Crystal Maiden casting her ultimate, ''Freezing Field'', is sometimes referred to as "[[Disney/{{Frozen}} Let it Go]]".

* A "dieback" is when someone dies, uses their buyback, and then dies again immediately afterward; not only does this expend a lot of gold for little reward, but also puts them out of the fight even longer.

* Enchantress: ''{{Disney/Bambi}}". Her fun name at Dota 1.

* Chaos Knight, Ogre Magi, and Phantom Assassin are respectively referred to as Casino Knight, Casino Magi, and Casino Assassin, due to their RandomNumberGod based abilities.

* Night Stalker: [[DefogOfWar The Legal Map Hack]] for his Aghanim's Scepter upgrade. Sometimes, Batman... because he has bat wings and active at nights.
** Keeper of the Light shares this name, as his Aghanim's Scepter gives him the same effect in daytime as Night Stalker's does at night.
*** Speaking of Keeper of the Light, "Gandalf". Also his fun name in Dota 1.

* Shadow Fiend: "Swagger Fiend" due to his distinctive walk animation in the original ''Dota''. His new character model introduced in the Rekindling Soul update faithfully replicates the walk, and the nickname was acknowledged by Valve with his "Fiendish Swag" taunt.

* The Scythe of Vyse has always been referred to as "The Sheepstick" by players and even some heroes (because it turns a target into sheep), [[ArtifactName even though in DOTA 2]], it turns heroes to pigs. In fact, VideoGame/HeroesOfNewerth has an {{Expy}} called the Kuldra's Sheepstick.

* The Scythe of Vyse has always been referred to as "The Sheepstick" by players and even some heroes (because it turns a target into sheep). In fact, VideoGame/HeroesOfNewerth has an {{Expy}} called the Kuldra's Sheepstick. [[TheArtifact Interestingly]], it turns unit into pigs.

* Pangolier and Dark Willow, The two heroes revealed at the The International 2017 (a sword-slinging [[PettingZooPeople pangolin man]] with [[WhatTheHellIsThatAccent some sort of French-Hispanic accent]] and a fairy in green) quickly earned the colloquial names "[[Franchise/{{Shrek}} Puss in Boots]]" and "[[Disney/PeterPan Tinker Bell]]" respectively before having their real names revealed.

* Dark Seer: "Sonic" or "Sanic" due to the spikes on his back giving him the appearance of a [[SonicTheHedgehog hedgehog]], and his ''Surge'' ability allowing him to '''GO FAST'''.

* Treant Protector: "Tree" or "Treeman" for [[CaptainObvious being a tree person.]]

* The act of playing DOTA until sunrise is known in Spanish as "[=amaneciDOTA=]", which literally means "big all nighter".

** A few other items are referred to by their original names by players and casters who have been in the scene for a long time. Lothar's Edge (Shadow Blade), Sobi Mask (Sage's Mask), and Mask of Death (Morbid Mask) are the most common ones.

* The Ancients of both teams are referred to as "Thrones", due to the Frozen Throne being used as the Scourge (Dire) Ancient in the original mod.

Being the kind of game it is, having a bunch of Fan Nicknames in ''Dota 2'' was inevitable. Beyond simply shortening names for ease of use (eg. Wraith King becomes WK, Abbadon becomes Abba), we have:

* The two heroes revealed at the The International 2017 (a sword-slinging [[PettingZooPeople pangolin man]] with [[WhatTheHellIsThatAccent some sort of French-Hispanic accent]] and a fairy in green) quickly earned the colloquial names "[[Franchise/{{Shrek}} Puss in Boots]]" and "[[Disney/PeterPan Tinker Bell]]" respectively before having their real names revealed.
** "Smarmadillo" is also quite popular for the pangolin fencer, based on the pun and his cocky attitude.

* Witch Doctor: "The Walking Fountain," because of his constant [=AoE=] heal and ultimate. His ultimate is given the name "Dubstep Ward" for its sound effect.

** Similarly, Death Ward is sometimes just referred to as "Look at it go!", which is one of Witch Doctor's possible lines when casting it.

* Warlock's ultimate ''Chaotic Offering'' is sometimes referred to as the "Dropping the Rock" as a nod to its original name in War3 Dota, ''Rain of Chaos'', in which the Infernal would fall from the sky. It was changed to its current form since both ''Rain of Chaos'' and the Infernal are owned by Blizzard.

* The collective effort of the teams to control vision and warding is often called the 'vision game'.

* Axe's ultimate, ''Culling Blade'', is colloquially referred to as a "Dunk" due to the jumping motion he makes prior to bringing the weapon down overhead on the target, much like a basketball dunk. It's also referred to as [[BadassBeard Culling Beard]], as part of his manly nature.
** Earthshaker's ultimate, ''Echo Slam'' is also referred as a "Dunk". Referenced in his voice line, too!
*** And a majorly successful Echo Slam is known as a "[[VideoGame/BarkleyShutUpAndJamGaiden Chaos Dunk]]", to the point that it eventually became an AscendedMeme.

* Chen: The creeps controlled by Chen's ''Holy Persuasion'' are collectively referred to as "the Chen army".
* Crystal Maiden casting her ultimate, ''Freezing Field'', is sometimes referred to as "[[Disney/{{Frozen}} Let it Go]]".

* Faceless Void's ultimate, ''Chronosphere'', is sometimes referred to as a "blueberry" due to its appearance.
** Also, Gorzerk. His fun name in Dota 1.
* The Hellbear neutral camp is referred to as "Tomato and Potato," due to their colors (yellow and red). It even ties in with the term "farming." The big red Hellbear Smasher also gets the moniker "Killer Tomato".

* Although more prevalent in the original ''Defense of the Ancients'', the Iron Branch is sometimes referred to as the "GG Branch" due to its original description: "Wearing one of these ensures a Good Game."

* Lion's Aghanim's Scepter version of ''Finger Of Death'' which has an [=AoE=], shown as multiple beams, is referred to as ''Fist of Death''. Also ties in nicely with the DoubleEntendre of ''"Fingering"''/''"Fisting"'' the enemy.
* Nature's Prophet: His original name in ''[=DotA=]'' was Furion, but this was changed in the transition to ''[=DotA 2=]'' due to copyright reasons. However, his actual name (prior to it being redacted) is very rarely used due to being unpopular and Furion is frequently used instead. The game files still refer to him as Furion.
** Others know him as Nature's [[IncrediblyLamePun Profit]] due to his farming abilities, and people's tendency to exploit them [[ComplacentGamingSyndrome regardless of whether the situation calls for it]].
** There's also "Nature's Rat" for his split-pushing (i.e. "rat") capabilities.

* Speaking of Keeper of the Light, "Gandalf". Also his fun name in Dota 1.

* The item Rod of Atos is sometimes called the "Rod of Aui," after competitive player Aui_2000, one of the few pro players who advocates its utility.
* The Satyr Tormentor neutral creep's ''Shockwave'' spell, which it fires off as soon as enough heroes are in the area, is refered to as a [[VideoGame/StreetFighter "Hadouken"]].

* Venomancer: "Bananamancer", due to his old model's curved posture and bright yellow-green color.
* Warlock's ultimate ''Chaotic Offering'' is sometimes referred to as the "Dropping the Rock" as a nod to its original name in War3 Dota, ''Rain of Chaos'', in which the Infernal would fall from the sky. It was changed to its current form since both ''Rain of Chaos'' and the Infernal are owned by Blizzard.

** "Magic Coconut" is a semi-common name for his Paralyzing Cask spell, especially when it achieves some truly impressive bounces. Acknowledged by Valve with his "Bonker the Mad" Immortal item, that change his Cask into a coconut.

* The Scythe of Vyse has always been referred to as "The Sheepstick" by players and even some heroes (because it turns a target into sheep). In fact, VideoGame/HeroesOfNewerth has an {{Expy}} called the Kuldra's Sheepstick. [[TheArtifact Interestingly]], it turns unit into pigs.

* The two heroes revealed at the Seventh International (a sword-slinging [[PettingZooPeople pangolin man]] with [[WhatTheHellIsThatAccent some sort of French-Hispanic accent]] and a fairy in green) quickly earned the colloquial names "[[Franchise/{{Shrek}} Puss in Boots]]" and "[[Disney/PeterPan Tinker Bell]]" respectively before having their real names revealed.

* The act of playing DOTA until sunrise is known in Spanish as "[=amaneciDOTA=]", which literally means "big all nighter".