Among Dota 2 players there is a common observation: if Sniper starts Assassinate (his ultimate — an aimed shot with a delay for targeting) and then cancels the order, the hero still gets the gold and the assist after the target dies. It sounds like a loophole, and that is exactly why it should be handled carefully: first the test, then the conclusions.
An important point: the description of the trick still rests on players' retellings. There is no official clarification from the developer in the sources, so everything below is a way to verify it yourself, not a ready-made recipe.
What supposedly happens
An assist in Dota 2 is credited to a hero who recently affected an enemy before its death. If the combo works the way it is described, then a started and canceled cast of the ultimate leaves enough of a "trace" on the target to count as participation. Hence the gold and the assist points without an actual hit.
Why this is interesting in practice: Sniper is a hero who often lacks gold and involvement in fights in the early game. Any extra income in such moments is noticeable.
How to test the trick in five minutes
1. Start a practice game with bots or in lobby cheats mode. There is no need to play ranked just to test this.
2. Pick Sniper and make sure your ultimate is available.
3. Ask (or place) an enemy hero with low health next to an ally who will finish it off.
4. Launch Assassinate on the target, cancel the order, and see who lands the last hit.
5. After the target dies, open the stats and check assists and gold. Repeat three or four times: a single result may be random.
If the assist and gold are not credited, then the retelling is inaccurate or the behavior depends on conditions. That is also a useful result.
What you risk if you build your game on this
First, the mechanic can disappear in any patch. If your plan depends on a trick that the developer considers a flaw, then on the day of the fix you are left without a plan.
Second, the trick costs resources. You spend the ultimate's cooldown and mana for the sake of an assist, not for actual damage. If a fight is going on nearby at that moment where the shot could have killed, you played worse than you could have.
Third, in a ranked game with teammates such a trick looks strange. The team sees a hero wasting a key ability without a kill, and it is easy to mistake this for throwing the game.
How to treat finds like this
The value of the find is not in the trick itself but in the habit. A good practice: if you notice unusual mechanic behavior in a retelling, test it in a practice game, record the conditions under which it works, and only then decide whether you need it. It is also useful to write down the client version: if the behavior changes after the next patch, you will have a reference point.
The same attitude is worth taking toward any "secrets" about heroes: a strong trick can be used, but the game is won by positioning, timings, and decisions. A gold loophole may add a hundred or two coins, while choosing the right moment for a real shot can win the whole fight.
