Dota 2 tinker spotlight film

Dota Lore Spotlight #11 – Tinker

GamingHistoria invents an examination of Boush, the Tinker

In a fictional world containing so many magical and otherwise fantastical elements, it’s easy to gloss over the fact that the Dota 2 universe is also rich in natural law and scientific research. Much like how it is in the real world, the world of Dota contains individuals who shun magic and mysticism, and instead choose to swear by the natural sciences and their numerous applications. One of these men of science is Boush, the tinker.

While noted members of countless races such as Demnok Lannik and the Stormcrafter of the Oglodi, Rhasta of the Hill Trolls, and various individuals belonging to mystic sects of humanity have chosen to devote themselves to the art of magic, there exists one race in the Dota universe that condemns its application, instead loyally standing by the principles of science and scientific research. This race is known as the Keenfolk.

We have touched upon the Keen in prior installations of the column. In our article regarding Aurel, the Gyrocopter, we mentioned how the Keen is the race most reminiscent of modern day humanity. The Keen exhibit an innate distrust, often disdain, of magic and the mystic arts, and instead apply their sharp minds to various sciences in order to get by.

As a result, Keenfolk are famous for having constructed a large array of notorious mechanical constructs: the Clockwerk armor constructed by Rattletrap, the saw-suit constructed by the Smallkeen Rizzack, the gyro-copter constructed by Aurel, and perhaps most infamously, the various heralds of pandemonium constructed by Techies Demolitions. More on them later…

But perhaps the sharpest mind of the Keen is that of Boush, commonly known as the Tinker. Boush has always been a highly gifted scientist and inventor, which led to him becoming part of a research team situated in a subterranean laboratory underneath the natural formation known as the Violet Plateau, founded by Boush himself. The team conducted a vast intellectual investigation which included weapons research and experimental portal science, the latter of which would later cause the Violet Plateau incident.

Boush and his team of Keen researchers would often scorn the mages of the world for unleashing the dangers of magic upon the world. Little did they know that their words would come back to bite them; when their ventures into the world of portal science quickly went awry. After an experiment went horribly wrong, the team accidentally opened a portal to an unknown world, ushering in an array of eldritch horrors and horrifying alien creatures, and an accompanying mysterious black mist that surrounds the plateau to this day, shrouding it in perpetual darkness.

Boush believes himself to be the only survivor of the incident, though he hopes to be proven wrong about this one day. Yurnero, the Juggernaut, believes Boush caused the incident, and seeks to hold him criminally responsible for all the casualties that ensued.

Aside from the Violet Plateau incident, Tinker is famous for his brilliant mind and his wide selection of inventions. Boush famously constructed an army of small robotic drones known as Rollermaws. These drones are employed by Tinker in the game, as seen in his “March of the Machines” ability. Tinker also applied his experimental portal technology to create a pair of teleporting boots: the “Boots of Travel.”

Lanaya, the Templar Assassin, visited the ruins of the Violet Plateau laboratory at one point, where she discovered blueprints for the weapon known as the Focal; blades that resonate with the users psyche and channels it into blasts of energy. This weapon made it into the game as an Immortal cosmetic item for Templar Assassin: “Focal Resonance.”

Any Valve-aficionados out there might have noticed a great deal of similarities between the Violet Plateau incident and another occasion from Valve games, where a scientific experiment goes horribly wrong in a similar manner. The whole Violet Plateau is indeed based off of Half-Life’s “Black Mesa” incident, the Resonance Cascade in which an experiment goes wrong and ends up opening a portal, ushering in a horde of malicious aliens. To make these similarities even more striking, the actor who provides the voice of Tinker also appears as Dr. Isaac Kleiner in the Half-Life game series, as well as miscellaneous Black Mesa researchers.

What is this, a crossover episode?

For the latest in gaming and entertainment, be sure to like Gaming Historia on Facebook and follow us on Twitter and Instagram. You can also support us via Patreon, which allows us to create better content for our audience.

Dota Lore Spotlight #11 – Tinker

GamingHistoria invents an examination of Boush, the Tinker

In a fictional world containing so many magical and otherwise fantastical elements, it’s easy to gloss over the fact that the Dota 2 universe is also rich in natural law and scientific research. Much like how it is in the real world, the world of Dota contains individuals who shun magic and mysticism, and instead choose to swear by the natural sciences and their numerous applications. One of these men of science is Boush, the tinker.

While noted members of countless races such as Demnok Lannik and the Stormcrafter of the Oglodi, Rhasta of the Hill Trolls, and various individuals belonging to mystic sects of humanity have chosen to devote themselves to the art of magic, there exists one race in the Dota universe that condemns its application, instead loyally standing by the principles of science and scientific research. This race is known as the Keenfolk.

We have touched upon the Keen in prior installations of the column. In our article regarding Aurel, the Gyrocopter, we mentioned how the Keen is the race most reminiscent of modern day humanity. The Keen exhibit an innate distrust, often disdain, of magic and the mystic arts, and instead apply their sharp minds to various sciences in order to get by.

As a result, Keenfolk are famous for having constructed a large array of notorious mechanical constructs: the Clockwerk armor constructed by Rattletrap, the saw-suit constructed by the Smallkeen Rizzack, the gyro-copter constructed by Aurel, and perhaps most infamously, the various heralds of pandemonium constructed by Techies Demolitions. More on them later…

But perhaps the sharpest mind of the Keen is that of Boush, commonly known as the Tinker. Boush has always been a highly gifted scientist and inventor, which led to him becoming part of a research team situated in a subterranean laboratory underneath the natural formation known as the Violet Plateau, founded by Boush himself. The team conducted a vast intellectual investigation which included weapons research and experimental portal science, the latter of which would later cause the Violet Plateau incident.

Boush and his team of Keen researchers would often scorn the mages of the world for unleashing the dangers of magic upon the world. Little did they know that their words would come back to bite them; when their ventures into the world of portal science quickly went awry. After an experiment went horribly wrong, the team accidentally opened a portal to an unknown world, ushering in an array of eldritch horrors and horrifying alien creatures, and an accompanying mysterious black mist that surrounds the plateau to this day, shrouding it in perpetual darkness.

Boush believes himself to be the only survivor of the incident, though he hopes to be proven wrong about this one day. Yurnero, the Juggernaut, believes Boush caused the incident, and seeks to hold him criminally responsible for all the casualties that ensued.

Aside from the Violet Plateau incident, Tinker is famous for his brilliant mind and his wide selection of inventions. Boush famously constructed an army of small robotic drones known as Rollermaws. These drones are employed by Tinker in the game, as seen in his “March of the Machines” ability. Tinker also applied his experimental portal technology to create a pair of teleporting boots: the “Boots of Travel.”

Lanaya, the Templar Assassin, visited the ruins of the Violet Plateau laboratory at one point, where she discovered blueprints for the weapon known as the Focal; blades that resonate with the users psyche and channels it into blasts of energy. This weapon made it into the game as an Immortal cosmetic item for Templar Assassin: “Focal Resonance.”

Any Valve-aficionados out there might have noticed a great deal of similarities between the Violet Plateau incident and another occasion from Valve games, where a scientific experiment goes horribly wrong in a similar manner. The whole Violet Plateau is indeed based off of Half-Life’s “Black Mesa” incident, the Resonance Cascade in which an experiment goes wrong and ends up opening a portal, ushering in a horde of malicious aliens. To make these similarities even more striking, the actor who provides the voice of Tinker also appears as Dr. Isaac Kleiner in the Half-Life game series, as well as miscellaneous Black Mesa researchers.

What is this, a crossover episode?

For the latest in gaming and entertainment, be sure to like Gaming Historia on Facebook and follow us on Twitter and Instagram. You can also support us via Patreon, which allows us to create better content for our audience.