44 heroes went unpicked and unbanned at BLAST Slam III – a new record according to Liquipedia

At the BLAST Slam III Dota 2 tournament, which concluded on May 11, 2025, teams completely ignored 44 heroes, neither picking nor banning them in any match. This sets a new record tracked by Liquipedia, whose data goes back to Epicenter Major 2019.

The previous record was set at BLAST Slam II, where 41 heroes were left untouched. The increase in unused heroes may be linked to the event format — 16 out of 25 series were best-of-one, limiting draft diversity and experimentation.

Top 5 most contested heroes (pick + ban total):

• Beastmaster – 13 picks, 30 bans (43 total)
• Bristleback – 6 picks, 36 bans (42)
• Templar Assassin – 3 picks, 39 bans (42)
• Sand King – 13 picks, 28 bans (41)
• Monkey King – 10 picks, 28 bans (38)

The tournament was won by Tundra Esports, who defeated Team Falcons 3:1 in the grand final, earning $400,000. This marks Tundra’s second straight BLAST title.

These stats highlight a significant shift in the Dota 2 meta, where many formerly popular heroes have fallen out of favor in current competitive strategies.