The Dota Pro Circuit 2018 – 2019: announcements and changes

The creation of the Dota Pro Circuit was a much needed innovation that made the 2017-2018 competitive season a lot more transparent for players and fans alike. For the first time ever, Dota 2 had entered a points-based system that showed everyone how well a team performed throughout a season.

Now, Dota Pro Circuit is entering its second year and several changes have already been announced.

Key adjustments

One of the main changes to the Dota Pro Circuit 2018-2019 is related to the number of tournaments that will be held during the season. Instead of the 20+ LAN events we had last season, we’ll only have 10 events this time. And they’re scheduled so that a team can either participate in a Minor or its corresponding Major, but not both. Except for the winner of the Minor, who gets a spot at the Major as a reward. So basically, most teams will take part in just 5 DPC tournaments throughout the entire season.

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Of course, other tournaments besides these 10 will probably be organized, but they won’t offer any qualification points for The International 2019.

Another big change has to do with the qualifier system used for Dota Pro Circuit events. In 2018-2019, every single team participating in a DPC event will have to qualify for it. So no more free meals for the top contenders. Every single competitor will have to prove its worth every single time. And that is a guaranteed way of keeping teams and players motivated throughout the year.

Minors offer just 500 points in total, while Majors offer 15.000. At the same time, Minors are required to have at least 8 teams while Majors at least 16.

Player transfer rules for the 2018-2019 competitive season have been loosened. Teams are no longer conditioned by hard roster locks. Furthermore, making roster changes during the season no longer nullifies a team’s DPC performance and qualification points for The International. Instead, teams lose 20% of their points whenever they make a change. Of course, this also means that points are no longer earned per player. They are now earned only by teams.

First Major of the Dota Pro Circuit 2018-2019

The dates for each tournament and its respective qualifiers have already been announced. We also know the name of the first Major and its location. The tournament will be held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and is called The Kuala Lumpur Major. This first important event of the new season is scheduled to take place between November 9th – 18th and its qualifiers will be held between September 17th – 21st.
As you can see from the dates, Majors have a much better format this season and last for more than 10 days. That means we’ll get to see a lot more matches each time and get a much fiercer battle between the teams.