To Town Portal or Not to Town Portal?

In DOTA 2, I find it important to be in my lane to get as much XP as I can in the begining of the game. But it happens, that I get ganked early on now and then. Often due to no warning from the other lanes.

Should I use a Town Portal scroll to get back into my lane, or would the gold spend in this scroll just be a waste - or should I simply walk back into the lane and spare the gold?

My thoughts on this, is wether its useless to Town Portal back due to such litle XP loss - or wether its highly important to get back into the lane asap.

Solution 1:

As of patch 6.87, the cost of Town Portal Scroll has been reduced to 50 gold which make the answer to this question yes. If you have the gold then TP back to the lane. There are only two things you should concider before porting back to the lane :

• Do I risk to die within 60 seconds upon arrival ? If the answer is yes then you shouldn't probably TP there (at least alone).
• Will my help be needed in another lane within the next minute ? If yes then you should walk back to your lane and be ready to TP to the other lane.

Solution 2:

The rule of thumb I use for this (in public games, not competitive):

If you're supposed to be last hitting on a lane (carry, solo mid) and the lane seems relatively safe, then TP back. Just a few last hits and you get your money back. You also desperately need the experience in these roles.

If you're not expecting to get any last hits (support), or the lane is pushed too far into enemy territory (solo offlane), TPing to that lane might be a waste. An alternative, especially as support, is to TP to a lane where the enemy doesn't expect you, and try to set up a gank there.