Heroes of Newerth has two game modes that differ quite a bit. One is
Easy Mode and the other is referred to as
Normal mode, although that isn't the same as a Normal game, which everyone refers to as
All Pick. Since S2 hasn't given the non-easy mode a name, that's how we will call it. This guide will explain to you why Easy Mode isn't the way to go if you want to learn the game properly.
1. Frequently Asked Questions about Easy Mode
Q: Why is it bad to start playing Easy Mode as a beginner?A: Easy Mode is completely different to the actual purpose of team-play in this game. You will most likely play with people that don't communicate or help you in any stage of the game. Thus your way of learning the game is false and you'll eventually become one of those players/idols that you've started to play with. The most common mistake by Easy Mode players is getting the item "Marchers" right at the begin of a game and then actually being successful with it.Q: Why is Easy Mode so imbalanced?A: Mainly because you don't need any well thought hero line-ups to actually win a game. In a non-easy mode game you would need a fair share of different types of heroes, for example: one Initiator, one Carry, one Support and two space-filling gankers/roamers/pushers/semi-carries. In an Easy Mode game all you need is a bunch of carries (even five will work out for you) and then farm so insanely quickly that you have all your needed items within 15-20 minutes.Q: Are Easy Mode games really easier?A: Not exactly. Easy Mode games might SEEM easier, but after all you will be an easier victim of more experienced players because you will most likely feed to them and they get a lot more experience from a hero kill, unlike non-easy mode games. So if you actually just started playing the game and have someone on the enemy team, with a hero like Chronos, who played 100+ games already, he will probably kill you more than you'd wish and will give you a bad idea of the true Heroes of Newerth team-play.Q: When can I play Easy Mode games without suffering from getting worse?A: Basically, never, but if you really want to give it a shot, then playing 200+ non-easy mode games first is definitely going to secure your position of remaining decent. It's kind of like succeeding your drivers license before you start driving that Ferrari on a highway.Q: If I chose to play Easy Mode for whatever reason, what would be my best choice of heroes?A: If you really don't want to rely on your non-communicating allies, your best choice would be to pick a nice carry like Magebane, Chronos, Sand Wraith, Maliken and the list goes on... However sometimes it works to have a decent support hero like Accursed that can support ally carries (with shielding, buying a courier/wards and babysitting them) and make them even more powerful against the enemy.Q: How come my allies level much quicker than me in Easy Mode?A: The reason for that is because the experience gain in Easy Mode is much higher than in non-Easy Mode games. You can jump from level 4 to 6 by just killing a level 6 hero. If you get out-leveled, it is probably because someone is feeding your allies/the enemy and just by farming creeps, in that case you just can't keep up to their level. Anything besides carries are highly disadvantaged when it comes to experience gain.Q: Why do I get kicked from Non-Easy Mode games when I try to switch over?A: The problem might be that you already have played quite a lot of Easy Mode games and your EM% (in your stats profile) is extremely high (60%+). Some players really react allergic to people with such a high EM% and thus they will kick you from their games. The reasoning behind this is that the non-Easy Mode players don't trust an Easy Mode player because he learned the game in a wrong way and will make mistakes accordingly in a non-Easy Mode game. Call it unfair, but that is why you should NEVER start off playing Easy Mode games to begin with.Q: Why isn't Easy Mode being played at a competitive level, by let's say clans?A: The lack of team-play, hero line-ups and imbalance are the main reasons for this. Easy Mode basically ignores 60% of the hero pool (by giving the carries a very high advantage of winning a game) and thus you don't need to play as tactically well as in the non-Easy Mode games. So if you want to play the game at a competitive level, do NOT play Easy Mode.2. Comparison to Normal Mode
Easy Mode:
Tier 1 Towers (Towers from all levels are weaker)
Health: 1000
Damage: 90-100
Armor: 18.00
Money Gain: 2 gold per second.
Experience Gain: 1.5x rate.
Non-Easy Mode:
Tier 1 Towers Health: 1300
Damage: 100-120
Armor: 18.00
Money Gain: 1 gold per second.
Experience Gain: Normal rate.
3. Easy Mode Handicaps
You're first thought when playing Easy Mode is that you believe it will be easier and noob-friendly so you won't fail as much as you think you would in a Normal game. However this isn't true especially because Easy Mode is unbalanced. You will have more of a disadvantage against better players in Easy Mode because they will most likely pick heroes that win late-game, the so called
carry heroes. If you are trying to learn support or initiation heroes (such as Nymphora, Tempest, Plague Rider etc.) you are wasting your time in Easy Mode. Chances will be that the enemy picks someone like Magebane and beat you up late-game. Even Scout (considered a bad hero) is strong in Easy Mode because he only needs a few kills to be strong enough for solo runs with the experience and gold gain.
4. Bad Aspects about Easy Mode
Basically what is said about Handicaps applies. You won't ever find a balanced Easy Mode game as heroes who rely more on their abilities and less on items won't scale well into late game (like Torturer, Thunderbringer, Devourer etc...) and on the other side the item dependent heroes such as Night Hound, Scout, Chronos will be a real killer in small time. So if you can't stop the enemy in like the first 10-15 minutes with your nukes/pushes, you will drop like a lemming to those carries. Other bad aspects about Easy Mode is that a death to the enemy team is way worse than it would be in a normal game. If you die in a normal game, you would just get back to the lane and continue without too much penalty (of course a death always hurts). In Easy Mode if you die, you will give the enemy 1-2 levels which helps him kill you even easier every time. So if you die once in Easy Mode, you can still save it, but dying twice makes you a farm object if he isn't half bad.
5. Easy Mode Gameplay
The game starts off as a normal game would, but instead of getting 1 gold every second, you get 2 gold instead which allows you to get much better items in a shorter time span. Last Hitting won't become as important but Denying becomes even more important since you want the enemy to have as little experience gain from the creeps as possible (of course you will want the same in normal games, but in Easy Mode it's a tad harsher). Heroes tend to hit level 6 in already 5-7 minutes into the game, so everything happens much faster. Solo lanes such as mid are usually creating the key heroes for the game because they gain an insane amount of farm/experience there, more than they would in a normal game. Junglers (heroes that live from the neutral creeps) have an easier time farming because they level quicker and thus get their stronger minions/better abilities much faster and have to buy less supplies, so you won't have as much time for ganking them as in a normal game. The most unbalanced thing about Easy Mode is the "carry" hero though. He usually needs to farm for 25-30 minutes to become useful for the team. In Easy Mode 2-3 kills and 10 minutes of farm will make him a beast. So either you will need to play extra safe to not die to him, or play a carry yourself.
You can win with ridiculous teams in Easy Mode such as having five melee carries (Rampage, Scout, Pestilence, Blood Hunter and The Dark Lady for example), even if the enemy team has a more varied line-up. In Normal games such line-ups would never stand a chance if the enemy isn't half bad. What makes that line-up so strong in Easy Mode you ask? Well if all 5 heroes get at least 2 kills and 50 creep-kills, they can dominate you after say 15 minutes.
Here are some ridiculous things we saw you can do in Easy Mode and succeeded, that would never work in a normal game.
Blood Hunter: get 2 Doombringers within 27 minutes and blood-bath the enemy in their fountain.
Electrician: Start with a Bottle and go solo mid lane. Rush a Mock of Brilliance in 12 minutes and blood-bath the enemy.
Nymphora: Go solo mid once again and get yourself a Charged Hammer in less than 20 minutes, you will be able to blood-bath the enemy.
As you see, you can do the most ridiculous things in Easy Mode and still succeed with them, even if the enemy has a brain, little as it may be seeing he's playing Easy Mode. The reason is that Easy Mode isn't really easier for beginners, but for one of the teams to win the game. In normal games you need coordination and teamwork to win, in Easy Mode you can basically run in 1v5 and win with a carry like Chronos.
Conclusion
Easy Mode is like cigarettes, quit before it does too much damage.
