How to Learn DotA

Create or join a game of "DotA" on Blizzard's Battle.net and study the abilities of all heroes you have to option of selecting. Every character has unique abilities and even if you aren't interested in using a particular character, it is important to know what abilities those characters have in case your opponent selects them.

Select a hero and begin playing. There are three entrances/exits to each base. You must help your teammates defend your entrances while attacking the enemies entrances. Keep an eye on your mini-map at all times. Opponents love to sneak up on other players anytime they can.

Kill the enemy creeps (monsters) to gain experience points and level up. You will also earn gold with each kill that you can use to purchase items at the shop in your base. Items are a critical part of the game and you should read what benefits an item offers very carefully before you make any purchases. Experiment a little until you find items that work well for your hero. Not all items are useful on every hero.

Ask your teammates for help if you experience difficulty. Not communicating with teammates is one of the biggest mistakes new players make. You can ask them to send backup to your location and ask for advice on what items you should buy for your hero.

Click the "Save Replay" button at the end of each game to save a playable record of the entire game. This is one of the most useful things you can do to speed up the learning process. You can look back at how you performed and see where you went wrong. You can also see what your opponents did throughout the whole game and what type of items they used on their hero. If a player did well with a particular hero, you can see exactly how he did it.