Known Lag Problems
These problems are reported by real players. If your region or ISP is listed, a network optimizer is likely to help.
Oceania / Australia
30-80ms to SEA, 150ms+ to US- Very low local playerbase — AU queues may require cross-region matchmaking to US West or SEA
- Typical latency 30-80ms to SEA servers, 150-200ms+ to US East
South America
100-200ms to US East- No dedicated Valve SDR nodes in South America for Underlords (unconfirmed)
- SA players likely route through US East SDR relay — 100-180ms typical
How to Fix It
Try these first — they're free and solve the problem for most people.
01 Check your ping with the console or Steam overlay
1. Launch Dota Underlords 2. Try enabling the developer console: right-click the game in Steam → Properties → Launch Options → add -console 3. In-game, press the tilde key (~) to open the console and type: net_graph 1 4. If the console is available, a network overlay appears showing ping in milliseconds 5. Alternatively, use the Steam overlay (Shift+Tab) → Settings → In-Game → 'In-Game Server Browser: Display ping' or check Settings inside Underlords for a 'Display Network Information' toggle 6. Ping above 200ms will cause noticeable delays when purchasing heroes from the shop 7. If ping looks fine but the game freezes periodically, packet loss is the likely cause — check your router logs
Confirms whether the issue is network-related (high ping / packet loss) or server-side (Valve infrastructure). Auto battlers are far less sensitive to ping than action games, so if ping is under 150ms and steady, your network is not the problem.
02 Set your preferred region in settings
1. From the main menu, go to Settings 2. Navigate to the Social or Matchmaking section 3. Set your primary region to the one geographically closest to you 4. Restart matchmaking after changing the region 5. Note: with the game's small playerbase (~780 average concurrent Steam players), setting a region too narrowly may result in very long wait times — if queues are over 3 minutes, try selecting 'Any' or 'All regions'
Selecting the correct region reduces your ping to Valve's SDR relay nodes. With a small playerbase, cross-region matchmaking is common — knowing your region setting explains unexpected ping values.
03 Switch to a wired Ethernet connection
1. Connect a Cat5e or Cat6 cable from your PC to your router 2. Open Windows Settings → Network & Internet → Wi-Fi → turn off Wi-Fi 3. Confirm you're on the wired connection (shows 'Ethernet' in taskbar) 4. Check ping in-game — jitter should drop compared to WiFi
WiFi adds unpredictable jitter to every packet. In Dota Underlords, jitter during preparation phases can cause shop actions to lag or queue up. A wired connection eliminates this with no cost beyond a cable.
Dota Underlords uses Steam Datagram Relay. PingAim optimizes the path your ISP controls.
General network tips (not Dota Underlords-specific)
04 Close background applications using bandwidth
1. Press Ctrl+Shift+Esc → Task Manager → Performance → Open Resource Monitor 2. Click the Network tab — sort by 'Total (B/sec)' 3. Close cloud sync apps (OneDrive, Google Drive, Dropbox), pause Windows Update, stop torrent clients 4. Dota Underlords has low bandwidth needs as an auto battler — but packet loss from a congested home network will still cause visible lag
Packet loss is more damaging to Underlords than raw ping. A busy home network sharing bandwidth can cause brief packet bursts that interrupt shop UI responsiveness even if average ping looks normal.
05 Flush DNS and use Cloudflare DNS
Open Command Prompt as administrator: ipconfig /flushdns Then set DNS: Control Panel → Network → Adapter settings → IPv4 → DNS: 1.1.1.1 (primary), 1.0.0.1 (secondary)
Minor improvement for Steam connection and matchmaking server lookups. Actual in-game traffic is IP-based after connection via SDR, so DNS has no impact on in-game ping — but a faster DNS can improve login and matchmaking connection speed.
Regions with good connectivity
Players in these regions likely won't benefit much from a network optimizer.
- Western Europe — Valve has strong SDR relay presence in Frankfurt and Amsterdam. Most EU players achieve 15-50ms. Historically second-largest Underlords playerbase after US.
- US East Coast — Valve Virginia SDR relay. Low latency for East Coast players — typically 10-40ms. Largest US playerbase.
- Southeast Asia — Singapore SDR relay covers SEA well. 20-80ms for most SEA countries.
Still lagging? The problem is likely your ISP's routing to the game servers.
PingAim detects Dota Underlords automatically
No manual config. PingAim identifies Dota Underlords by process name and routes it through your fastest connection using a kernel-level WFP driver.