Dota has various heroes which all have their inherent roles and duties. Some heroes shine bright in the later stages of the game while some dominate early on. Some heroes are consistently relevant throughout the game, and who do not fall off even when the clock ticks beyond 60 minutes, such heroes are often preferred to win a game. Kills matter a ton if you’re playing as a core in the early game, they bring in a ton of gold and XP along with creating a disparity between you and your foes. These heroes have overtaken the current patch and are very much relevant in the meta.

In this article, we bring you the Best 15 Killing Heroes in the current meta, these heroes are known to dominate from the early game, killing mercilessly and staying relevant even in the late game. 

15. Doom

The harbinger of bad news, Doom is a devastating enemy if you are playing a squishy carry hero. This demon has sent countless of his enemies to the realm of hell, and frankly, any hero in this patch is no exception! His abilities are highly lethal, as they deal high damage right off the bat. He is considered to be a great counterpick in the offlane regardless of the hero picked, due to the high early-game damage. The Infernal Blade damage and disable coming from his eponymous ultimate is the stuff nightmares are made of!

Doom is known to fight right from his early levels, courtesy of his devastating spells. He is regarded as one of the most deadly disablers in the current meta. Spell-casting heroes hate disabling as it makes them unable to cast any spells, rendering them useless in fights. Doom’s high base armor provides him sustain while fighting or jungling. All it takes is one Blink and Doom to get the puny enemy carry out of the fight, as most of them virtually have no way to counter Doom for a very long time.

What Makes Doom a Powerful Killer Early And Late Game?

• High strength gain and base armor, making it easy for him to fight without taking much damage.
• Devour kills creeps instantly, granting gold and him the abilities of the creep.
• Scorched Earth deals massive AoE damage which accelerates his impact in fights.
• The ultimate Doom is great against mobile/slippery heroes as it silences and mutes them while making them take damage over time.

Choose this hero if

• Your team lacks a tanky initiator.
• You want an offlaner who can also disable the enemies with his spells.
• Your team lacks a crowd-control hero.

Top 5 Best End-Game items for Doom

• Shadow Blade - Provides invisibility on the cast which can be used to escape or set up on enemies with his ultimate, Doom.
• Blink Dagger - On cast, Blink transports you 1200 units in the distance you are facing, it can’t be used for 3 seconds if you take any form of damage. Blink is used to closing the gap and to get on top of enemies, or it can also be used to escape away from them.
• Shiva’s Guard - Upon activation, it deals damage in an AoE, slowing down the affected targets. It also provides increased armor and reduces enemy armor in an AoE.
• Black King Bar - Provides spell immunity from all enemy magic damage spells, making him invulnerable in the fight
• Refresher’s Orb - Can refresh spells and items and use them again in quick succession to delete enemies from the fight

Doom is strong against

• Tinker - Tinker is heavily dependent on active abilities and Doom prevents him from using any of them.
• Spectre - Doom can entirely disable Spectre from a teamfight. 
• Arc Warden - Arc Warden relies on items and abilities, as well as his Tempest Double, to deal damage to enemies. Doom effectively denies that and makes Arc Warden useless in fights.

Doom is weak against 

• Lifestealer - Rage allows Lifestealer to become spell-immune to negate the magical damage of Infernal Blade and Scorched Earth.
• Medusa - Doom does not disable Mana Shield. As such, Doom's damage is largely mitigated by her mana shield. Additionally, Medusa is not reliant on her abilities to be effective during a teamfight, making Medusa an unproductive hero to target.
• Phantom Lancer - Phantom Lancer's illusions can make it difficult to Doom the original. Should Doom figure out the original hero, the illusions can make it difficult to cast any abilities, as their hitboxes can be used to body-block the Phantom Lancer.

https://dota2.fandom.com/wiki/Doom

14. Templar Assassin

Templar Assassin, the guardian of the temple’s secrets is a lethal force to be reckoned with. She deals some heavy damage while taking barely any in return if she has the Refraction shield on. Laning versus most DoT is quite the task for Templar as she has a very short attack range, making it easy for them to spam spells and deny her the farm. Most experienced TA players occasionally disappear into the jungle to stack and farm as soon as they have the levels and farm. There are various heroes which can cripple under the pressure of Templar once she has the items.

There are various reasons why Templar is an exceptional pick in the current meta. She farms extremely well and fast with her Psi Blades, deals immense damage and armor reduction with Meld which also helps her escape, and she also has Refraction which soaks up a bit of damage dealt to her, allowing her to stand her ground in teamfights without falling off. Her early-game damage may force her mid counterparts out of the lane, which only helps her get stronger to mow them down in the late game.

Why is Templar Assassin a Powerful Killer Early And Late Game? 

• Refraction is a valuable form of defense against enemy spells and damage.
• Psi Blades deals pure damage and spills over instantly. 
• Immense slow from Trap which can be used to neutralize enemy targets by crippling their movement speed.
• She does not fall off in the late game due to her immense damage.

Choose this hero if

• You are looking for high damage dealing core hero
• Your team lacks late-game teamfight potential

Best 5 End-Game items to buy on Templar Assassin

• Desolator - Provides increased damage along with armor corruption on physical attacks. It can also gain stacks and increased the mentioned perks with the increase in stacks. Desolator is ideal to mow down squishy enemies.
• Blink Dagger - On cast, Blink transports Templar 1200 units in the distance she is facing, it can’t be used for 3 seconds if she takes any form of damage. Blink is used by Templar Assassin for closing the gap and getting on top of enemies, or it can also be used to escape away from them.
• Daedalus - Provides a chance to do immense critical damage upon physical attacks.
• Black King Bar - Provides spell immunity from all enemy magic damage spells, making her invulnerable in the fight. It is always a top priority against spell-damage heroes.
• Monkey King Bar - Provides a chance to True Strike upon physical attacks, along with increasing physical damage.

Templar Assassin is strong against

• Shadow Fiend - Shadow Fiend's fragility and lack of a natural escape mechanism make him a great target for Templar’s Meld.
• Zeus - Zeus is a rather squishy hero, falling easily to Templar Assassin's high burst damage.
• Puck - Puck high magical burst is almost completely useless against Refraction. Templar Assassin often buys Orchid Malevolence to render Puck useless in teamfights.

Templar Assassin is weak against

• Windranger - Windranger's Focus Fire tears apart Templar Assassin's refraction very quickly and easily burst her down due to her low health pool against Windranger's immense attack speed.
• Leshrac - Pulse Nova can easily burn Templar Assassin's Refraction charges quickly, and can also hit her with her  Meld.
• Dragon Knight - The damage over time from Dragon Knight's Elder Dragon Form rapidly burns down Refraction, allowing him to attack her.

https://dota2.fandom.com/wiki/Templar_Assassin

13. Necrophos

 

Necrophos is a very annoying laner against most heroes without decent magic resistance, thanks to his passive. His abilities provide him with immense healing while dealing damage to his foes. Though most heroes can outpace Necrophos in the ultra-late game with magic resistance and immunity, so it is ideal to finish the game whenever you get the chance else things can take a turn for the worst!

Squishy heroes are often countered by Necrophos with the help of his rancid spells. The plaguemancer has ravaged all battles, ensuring the greedy dwarf does not stand a chance against his ungodly damage. Such weak heroes can’t fare well against Necrophos in the laning phase as they can’t withstand the insane amounts of magical damage being dished out by him. Necrophos is an exceptional hero when it comes to locking heroes down, courtesy of the Reaper’s Scythe, allowing his allies to beat them down while they are locked up.

Why is Necrophos a Powerful Killer Early And Late Game? 

• Reaper's Scythe can lock down and kill enemies with a little follow-up from Necrophos’ allies.
• Ghost Shroud can prevent enemies from attacking Necrophos, as well as amplify the heals he gets under its duration
• Heartstopper Aura will do damage as long as Necrophos is alive based on health percentage, which is a problem, especially for tanky heroes.
• Death Pulse is highly effective as it allows Necrophos and his allies to sustain in teamfights.

Choose Necrophos if

• You want high magical burst damage potential right from the laning phase
• You want a hero who can sustain himself and the entire team

Items to buy on Necrophos

• Radiance - Burn damage prevents enemies from blinking away, and can also be useful in pushing lanes and farming.
• Guardian Greaves - Heals Necrophos and his entire team, along with providing a basic dispel to him.
• Eternal Shroud - Converts magical damage into mana upon usage and passively offers spell lifesteal. This provides Necrophos with immense sustain against immense DPS heroes.
• Lotus Orb - Reflects targeted spells and hence can also be used to prevent certain spells. It can also be used to dispel certain enemy debuffs.
• Aghanim’s Scepter - Increases Heartstopper aura damage when Ghost Shroud is active. It’s excellent against enemies who have low magic resistance, making them fall prey to increased magic damage from Necrophos.

Necrophos is strong against

• Axe - Frequent healing from Death Pulse makes it difficult for Axe to finish off targets with Culling Blade.
• Bristleback - Heartstopper Aura deals with percentage-based damage flagged as HP removal, so it is not reduced by Bristleback, nor does it trigger passive Quill Sprays.
• Huskar - Huskar is often in low health, making him easy prey for Reaper's Scythe.

Necrophos is weak against

• Ancient Apparition - Ice Blast completely nullifies any healing, making Necrophos unable to stay in a teamfight to sustain his teammates (and himself) or deal gradual damage to the enemy, or else he is faced with a quick death if focused on.
• Pugna - Nether Ward causes Death Pulse to damage Necrophos rather than heal him. Meanwhile, Reaper Scythe's gigantic mana cost while Necrophos is near the Nether Ward can often instantly kill him.
• Nyx Assassin - Using Ghost Shroud also sets Necrophos up for a Mana Burn or Impale.

https://dota2.fandom.com/wiki/Necrophos
 

 

12. Bloodseeker

Bloodseeker is highly relevant right from the laning phase as his damage is significant enough to deal some serious damage right from the get-go. If combined with solid laning support, there is no way the enemy heroes get a chance to escape alive in the initial stages of the game. Even if the game does not go well for Bloodseeker, he can always retreat to the jungle where he can farm and sustain himself quite effortlessly with his spells.

The cold-blooded hunter Bloodseeker is known for his mania and vigor. His blades cut deep into his foes, he leaves them bleeding and heavily wounded. He is a lethal force that can never go unnoticed. Bloodseeker can effortlessly jungle or lane, as he is blessed with high base armor as well as high attack speed. His passive sustain him in the lane, allowing him to play aggressively. He can gank other lanes with the availability of his ultimate, often removing heroes from a team fight. 

What Makes Bloodseeker a Powerful Killer Early And Late Game?

• Thirst provides increased movement speed and vision to hunt and kill low HP enemies.
• Gains a maximum of 25% of unit health as heal after killing them, which makes him sustainable as a jungler.
• Massive AoE of Blood Rite, if used efficiently, can lead to both enemy and neutral kills. 
• High base attack speed is amplified by Bloodrage.

Choose Blooseeker if

• You are looking for high damage dealing core hero.
• Your team lacks late-game teamfight potential.

Top 5 Best End-Game items for Bloodseeker 

• Mjolnir - Provides a chance to do lightning AoE damage to enemies that attack Bloodseeker, while also dealing damage when he is attacking others.
• Black King Bar - Provides spell immunity from all enemy magic damage spells, making Bloodseeker invulnerable in the fight. 
• Sange and Yasha - Provide decent stats, agility, strength, and physical damage. SnY also provides status resistance and increased movement speed, making Bloodseeker fast and stronger against his foes.
• Abyssal Blade - Upon cast, it stuns the targeted hero for 2 seconds. Can be used to quickly lock down enemies, allowing Bloodseeker to beat them down with the physical damage
• Monkey King Bar - Provides a chance to truly strike upon physical attacks while also providing increased damage to Bloodseeker.

Bloodseeker is strong against

• Clinkz - Skeleton Walk is not enough to outrun Bloodseeker, and is detected by Thirst.
• Meepo - Bloodseeker can chase down retreating clones when Meepo tries to cycle weaker clones away from combat.
• Slark -Bloodseeker is one of the hardest counters to Slark. Thirst prevents Slark from healing in the lane with Shadow Dance and may set him up for a kill while in the jungle, or retreating.

Bloodseeker is weak against

• Faceless Void - Chronosphere prevents Bloodseeker from running down and picking off weak enemies during teamfights.
• Omniknight - Guardian Angel's near invulnerability denies Bloodseeker the bonuses from Thirst, preventing him from gaining the upper hand in teamfights.
• Tinker - Laser blinds Bloodseeker, preventing him from getting last hits and denies during the laning stage and preventing him from finishing off enemies.

 https://dota2.fandom.com/wiki/Bloodseeker

11. Ancient Apparition

Ancient Apparition possesses all the quintessential qualities to ruin the enemy’s game with the help of Ice Blast, making it impossible for them to survive the team fight or gain HP or even lifesteal. He is also a great pick due to his flexibility as he can also be played in the mid-lane, which is quite a rare sight but can do wonders if played exceptionally well. Even a fully farmed hero stands no chance in the late game if the mighty Apparition gets his spells off in skirmishes, ensuring the former is sent to the grave within no time. Ancient Apparition is highly recommended against heroes with high HP regen or lifesteal.

The chilling damage of the Ancient Apparition is impossible for squishy heroes to negate. Right from the laning phase, enemies are targeted and thrown around by Ancient Apparition with his decent magical damage, maybe even making sure that they have to either teleport back to base to regen or make the walk of shame back. Farming speed is slowed down for his foes due to the constant annoying harassment being dished out.

What makes Ancient Apparition a Powerful Killer Early And Late Game? 

• Ice Blast cancels out health regeneration, heals, and any sort of lifesteal that enemies may have. 
• Ancient Apparition can also cripple enemy movement speed.
• He also deals high magical damage right off the bat, which is only amplified by the items he purchases.

Choose Ancient Apparition if

• Your team lacks ways to control enemy heroes
• You need a support hero who can contribute to teamfights quickly

Top 5 End Game Items to buy on Ancient Apparition

• Force Staff - Allows you to force yourself or the targeted unit 600 units ahead in the direction they are facing, it can be useful to catch or initiate on enemies.
• Aghanim’s Scepter and Shard - Increase Ice Vortex damage and heal reduction, making enemies unable to heal or lifesteal.
• Rod of Atos - Upon cast, Rod can be used to root the targeted enemy down and prevents them from using any spells. It is extremely helpful with Ice Blast.
• Glimmer Cape - Provides invisibility, can also be used on allies to escape or to initiate on enemies
• Scythe of Vyse - It hexes the targeted unit, essentially making them unable to use spells or items, along with reducing their movement speed for 3.5 seconds. This is extremely useful to shut down enemies while your team slaughters them.

Ancient Apparition is strong against

• Morphling - Ice Blast stops Morphling from gaining additional health with Attribute Shift.
• Alchemist - Ice Blast nullifies the health regeneration granted by Chemical Rage, which Alchemist greatly relies on to stay alive in battle.
• Huskar - Ice Blast prevents Huskar from healing with Berserker's Blood and negates any lifesteal, making him significantly weaker in battle.

Ancient Apparition is weak against

• Anti-Mage -  Anti-Mage can Blink away from Cold Feet or build a Manta Style to dispel it.
• Brewmaster - Primal Split makes Brewmaster invulnerable for the duration, rendering the effects of Cold Feet and Ice Blast useless.
• Riki - Riki can get on top of Ancient Apparition very easily with Blink Strike. This can also double as a way to dodge Ice Blast and Tricks of the Trade.

https://dota2.fandom.com/wiki/Ancient_Apparition

10. Primal Beast

The newest addition to the game, the threatening and ferocious Primal Beast was one of the most picked heroes of the recent International 10. He was highly picked due to his exceptional damage and crowd control, making him an excellent mid-laner. He can easily separate the fights with the help of his Onslaught, and deal loads of damage with Trample. He is quite unavoidable if you see his recent pick rate, it has plummeted after finding success at the International. 

The best part about Primal Beast is that he does not rely on items to get his work done, all he needs is a few levels and voila, you have yourself a grumpy mighty dinosaur! Primal Beast can also retreat to the jungle and farm if somehow his early game is sabotaged by the enemies. It is a rare scenario but he fares extremely well at farming due to his high AoE spells which allow him to decimate the enemy mid-laner within no time.

Why is Primal Beast a Powerful Killer Early And Late Game? 

• Insane farming capability with AoE damage from his spells.
• High physical damage right from the get-go can be used to shove the enemy mid-laner out of the lane, which is only amplified by Uproar.
• Immense base armor and HP right from the laning phase.
• High mobile due to Onslaught, can easily farm jungle camps without much hassle.

Choose Primal Beast if 

• Your team lacks a tanky hero who is durable throughout the game.
• You want a damage-dealing laner who can fill the gap in case the other two cores have a bad game

Best 5 End-Game items to buy on Primal Beast

• Black King Bar - Provides spell immunity from all enemy magic damage spells, making him invulnerable in the fight
• Aghanim’s Scepter - When Primal Beast activates Uproar, he releases 3 waves of 2 projectiles per stack of uproar each in a circle around him. Projectiles deal damage and Break enemies hit. After a short delay, each projectile splinters in two.
• Blink Dagger - Blink transports Primal Beast 1200 units in the distance he is facing, it can’t be used for 3 seconds if he takes any form of damage. Blink is used to closing the gap and to get on top of enemies and follow it up with Trample.
• Assault Cuirass - Increases armor and attack speed for Primal Beast while reducing the same for enemies in an AoE.
• Heaven’s Halberd - It is used to disarm enemies, making them unable to make physical attacks while Primal and others can freely attack him.

Primal Beast is strong against

• Razor - Onslaught prevents all of Razor's abilities from being effective against him during the laning stage.
• Juggernaut - Onslaught can be used to cancel Omnislash, and can escape Juggernaut's, Blade Fury.
• Phantom Assassin - Phantom Assassin is famously known to be weak against bursts of magical damage, and Primal Beast does exactly that with the ability to close long distances.

Primal Beast is weak against

• Death Prophet - Silence can be used to interrupt Primal Beast while he is channeling Pulverize.
• Disruptor - Glimpse can simply send Primal Beast back after using Onslaught to close the gap.
• Faceless Void - Chronosphere stops Primal Beast from casting abilities or stopping Faceless Void from damaging allies within.

https://dota2.fandom.com/wiki/Primal_Beast 

9. Queen of Pain

The seductive Queen of Pain knows how to hunt and haunt her prey. It is obvious that she is quite well-versed when it comes to handling damage, and for sure knows how to deal twice back to the caster. Queen of Pain is quite dominant against most mid-heroes, putting them at the bottom of the barrel when it comes to net worth. Her naturally high magic damage is quite hard for low magic-resistant heroes to tolerate. It also takes them ages to farm magic resistance to negate any sort of damage dished out by the mighty Queen. 

items. You’re at the wrong end of the leash if you face off against the Queen of Pain. There is constant spam and harassment, which is irritating to lane against as if it is overlooked then it can result in your death. She has the perfect skill set to both harass and kills the enemies, her mobility makes her even harder to catch as she can just Blink away if enemies try to initiate on her. Unlike most mid-lane heroes, the Queen of Pain is active as soon as she gets her level 6, allowing her to gank other lanes. 

Why is QoP a Powerful Killer Early And Late Game?

• She is extremely good at wave clear and farming.
• Active hero and a decent early-game ganker.
• Immensely high magical damage on spells that supplement her ability to kill.
• Mobile due to her Blink, which helps her initiate or escape from a teamfight.

Choose QoP if

• You want high magical burst damage potential right from the laning phase
• You want a reliable mid-laner who can win the lane and be relevant right from the early game

Best 5 End-Game items to buy on Queen of Pain

• Scythe of Vyse - Upon usage it hexes the targeted unit, essentially making them unable to use spells or items, along with reducing their movement speed for 3.5 seconds. Refresher’s Orb - Can refresh spells and items and use them again in quick succession to delete enemies from the fight
• Bloodthorn -  Silences the target for 5 seconds, also dealing them an extra 30% damage at the end of its duration. It can be useful to silence spellcasting heroes and entirely shut them off from the team fight.
• Black King Bar - Upon usage, it provides spell immunity. This entirely negates the damage from all magic spells.
• Eul’s Scepter - Can be used to sweep QoP or targeted enemy into the air for 2.5 seconds, making them unable to use spells or move. This can be used to setup up her lethal magical damage abilities.

QoP is strong against

• Drow Ranger - You can burst Drow Ranger down before she has a chance to try and Gust you away. Try to have a teammate bait her Gust out before you Blink and get the drop on her.
• Huskar - Queen can simply blink away after he jumps on her with Life Break.
• Slark - Both Scream of Pain and Sonic Wave hits him during his Shadow Dance.

Qop is weak against 

• Anti-Mage - Because Queen of Pain's spells cost a decent amount of mana, Anti-Mage can easily use Mana Void if she spams her spells recklessly.
• Death Prophet - Silence will prevent the Queen of Pain from using Blink to escape or chase.
• Faceless Void - Chronosphere prevents Queen of Pain from escaping with Blink, and her low survivability makes her an easy kill.

https://dota2.fandom.com/wiki/Queen_of_Pain 

8. Bristleback

Bristleback is an exceptional tanky hero as he can just keep on disrupting his lane by constantly harassing other heroes without much retaliation due to his high armor and tanky nature thanks to his Bristleback ability. Enemies virtually do zero damage to Bristleback as he has decent HP and armor along with decent armor reduction, while most heroes have low armor as they lane against this grumpy porcupine. He also farms exceptionally and does a great deal of damage to squishy heroes right from the early game, while they need more levels to prove any useful against him.

There are many reasons why Bristleback has quite literally been a thorn in the side of most heroes in the current meta. He takes no damage while dealing quite a ton of damage in return to him. He is an obnoxious laner, he is but he is quite the fun hero to play since all he does is spam his spells without thinking too much, which he can do effortlessly as he is backed by his insanely high armor, which makes him such a delight for new players to pick. He makes them feel invincible!

Why is Bristleback a Powerful Killer Early And Late Game?

• High physical damage output due to his ultimate, Warpath
• Bristleback is extremely tanky right off the bat due to his immense base HP, which allows him to sustain in teamfights.
• Low Cooldown on spells, allowing him to spam them on enemies
• Only has two active abilities, but both are extremely strong in the late game
• High base armor and movement speed right off the bat

Choose This Hero if

• Your team lacks a tanky laner.
• You want a fast-fighting hero who relies more on levels as opposed to farms to get the job done.

Top 5 End Game Items for Bristleback 

• Ethereal Shroud - Converts magical damage into mana upon usage and passively offers spell lifesteal, allowing Bristleback to survive those long teamfights and sustain his mana pool.
• Kaya and Sange - Increased mana regen and overall stat gain along with reducing cooldown and mana cost. Allowing more sustain in fights.
• Octraine Core - Provides increased stats along with decent cooldown reduction on both spells and items.
• Blademail - Reflects enemy damage to them upon activation, allowing them to ignore you in teamfights, making you invulnerable.
• Black King Bar - It provides Bristleback spell immunity from all enemy damage spells, making him invulnerable in the fight. It is always a top priority item on Bristleback against magic damage-dealing enemies due to his low magic resistance.

Bristleback is strong against

• Broodmother - Quill Spray destroys spiderlings and hits Broodmother even when she's regenerating in her webs. This makes Bristleback one of her hardest counters in the lane.
• Jakiro - Macropyre's frequent damage ticks cause Bristleback to activate repeatedly, resulting in free damage as long as Bristleback faces away from Jakiro.
• Phantom Lancer - Bristleback's tankiness and damage reduction from the rear makes him very hard for Phantom Lancer to chase and finish off, due to his lack of burst damage.

Bristleback is weak against

• Faceless Void - Chronosphere allows allies to reposition and hit Bristleback from the front, bypassing his defensive bonus from behind.
• Grimstroke - Ink Swell stuns Bristleback and gets allies in position faster with increased movement speed to attack his front, countering his passive ability.
• Lion - Mana Drain is a headache for Bristleback to deal with during the laning stage, as it denies him the ability to get the last hits with Quill Spray.

https://dota2.fandom.com/wiki/Bristleback

7. Lion

The vicious Lion cripples enemies right from the laning phase. He can also drain their mana, turn them into powerless frogs and all in all make them highly useless. Lion also has very lethal nuke damage with his Finger of Death ultimate, which can further be amplified with the number of kills he gets with it, allowing a possibility of one-shotting his foes in the later stages of the game. Most heroes are essentially melee or ranged creep against Lion if they do not have a good start in the game.

Lion is one of those support heroes who fit any matchup, his versatility is highly unparalleled in the current meta. Lion is played by both beginners and professionals, as he works in every single skill bracket. He has multiple spells which can be used to disable his enemies while allowing him to deal damage to them at the same time. He is strong right from the early game as his lockdown followed by some damage from his team can neutralize enemies

What makes Lion a Powerful Killer Early And Late Game? 

• Multiple disables, can be used to chain stun and cripple his enemies right from the early game.
• High burst damage and magical output that scales well in the later stages of the game.
• Highly relevant in any matchup due to his spell combinations.
• Lion is known to have a decent cast range for spells, which is further amplified with the items he gets.

Choose Lion if

• Your team lacks disabling spells.
• Your team needs a team-fighting support hero

Top 5 Best Endgame items for Lion

• Aether Lens - Provides Lion with increased cast range along with providing decent stats and mana. It can further be upgraded into Octraine Core which reduces spell and item cooldowns by 25%.
• Blink Dagger - On cast, Blink transports you 1200 units in the distance you are facing, it can’t be used for 3 seconds if you take any form of damage. Blink is used by Lion to close the gap and to get on top of enemy heroes to chain disable them.
• Force Staff - Allows Lion to force himself or the targeted unit 600 units ahead in the direction they are facing, it can be useful to escape from enemies or initiate on them.
• Aghanim’s Scepter - AoE damage from Finger of Death ultimate, also reduces its cooldown. If enemy heroes stack up together, Lion can neutralize them within no time!
• Aeon Disk - Saves Lion from getting burst quickly in teamfights by making him take no damage for 3 seconds if his health drops below 70%, and also applies a basic dispel, although it has an extremely high cooldown of 180 seconds.

Lion is strong against

• Phantom Assassin - Agreed, Phantom Assassin has immense damage but she can get locked down quickly with all of Lion’s spells. She also has low magic resistance.
• Void Spirit - Considered to be a slippery hero, Lion’s instant cast point can ruin Void’s momentum by locking him down.
• Medusa - Medusa severely lacks mobility, Lion takes advantage of this and cripples her further, allowing his teammates to beat the serpentine warrior down in no time. Lion also steals all of Medusa’s mana which she so desperately requires to stand her ground in teamfights. 

Lion is weak against

• Rubick - The arcane magician can steal Lion’s spells, and give the taste of his own medicine to him, but with increased status duration and magic damage!
• Tidehunter - Tidehunter has immense HP as well as high armor, allowing him to withstand Lion’s harassment in the early game. Kraken also dispels all of Lion’s spells inflicted on him.
• Nyx Assassin - Nyx can deal immense damage to Lion with the combination of all of his spells, while also nullifying the Finger of Death damage dealt to him with the help of his Spiked Carapace.

https://www.dota2.com/hero/lion 

6. Pangolier

Pangolier is one of the most flamboyant heroes in the game, he has spells that make him extremely powerful against squishy heroes in the lane. He is also an extremely powerful laner as he deals high physical damage which may decimate most carry heroes due to their low armor. Most heroes also fall off fast in the late game while Pangolier only gets stronger by then, due to his high physical damage and lightning-fast farming speed. There is no way most enemies can stop Pango’s onslaught once he gets all his core items. Most heroes simply have no tools to contain his onslaught!

Pangolier’s Rolling Thunder ultimate completely negates all the magical damage being dished out by some heroes, while his Shield Crash negates the physical damage he takes, essentially reducing enemy impact and making sure they can’t escape the fights so easily. Pangolier is a great hero to play if you want to have a fun time crushing your opponents. Your average carry hero also is not that mobile enough to catch Pangolier, who has Shield Crash, Swashbuckle, and Rolling Thunder at his disposal to escape.

Why is Pangolier a Powerful Killer Early And Late Game?

• Swashbuckle is an auto attack and therefore it can obliterate an enemy's squishy HP.
• Rolling Thunder makes Pangolier immune to magic damage, making him able to roll in and out of fights and not worry about getting locked down.
• Most heroes fall off in the late game as Pangolier’s physical damage becomes too hard for them to negate, making them get destroyed in fights.

Choose this hero if

• Your team lacks a tanky hero who is durable throughout the game.
• You want a damage-dealing offlaner who can fill the gap in case the other two cores have a bad game
• Your team lacks a crowd-control hero who can fend off enemies and stand their ground

Items to buy on Pangolier

• Eul’s Scepter - It can be used to sweep yourself or enemies into the air for 2.5 seconds, making them unable to use spells or move. This can be used to lock them down or temporarily remove Pango from the fight, it dispels most debuffs upon self-cast. Pangolier can use it to escape from his ultimate if he is trying to gank him with it.
• Skull Basher - Provides a chance to Mini Stun on physical attacks. It can further be upgraded into Abyssal Blade later on in the game.
• Glepnir - Can root multiple enemies and deal damage to them over time upon usage. It is useful as it can be used in tandem with your ultimate, to lock heroes down whilst you hit them.
• Aghanim’s Shard - Allows Pangolier to stop during his Rolling Thunder ultimate and also change directions, all while being spell immune, it is essential in teamfights so you don’t get stuck awkwardly with the ultimate.
• Monkey King Bar - Increases physical damage and provides a true strike on physical attacks, making it an ideal item against squishy heroes or heroes that build evasion.
• Diffusal Blade - Slows down enemies by 100% upon usage and physical attacks. It also burns their mana, making them useless as they cannot cast any spells, essentially turning them into creeps. 

Pangolier is strong against

• Arc Warden - Rolling Thunder hits Arc Warden, his Tempest Double, and any allies through Magnetic Field.
• Broodmother - Swashbuckle and Shield Crash quickly destroys Broodmother's spiderlings and spiderites.
• Meepo - Shield Crash gains its damage reduction bonus from all Meepo clones, and can be used even when rooted, allowing Pangolier to gain a massive amount of damage reduction (even more than 100%).

Pangolier is weak against

• Bloodseeker - Thirst provides constant sight and speed to Bloodseeker, allowing him to catch up with a fleeing Pangolier through all of his mobility.
• Centaur Warrunner - When Swashbuckle hits Centaur Warrunner,  Retaliate will deal significant damage, as it procs off every strike made.
• Faceless Void - Chronosphere's significant obstacle denies Pangolier the room to roll around during teamfights, as well as wasting his ultimate's duration.

https://dota2.fandom.com/wiki/Pangolier 

5. Spirit Breaker

Shadow Fiend is quite a squishy hero against the likes of the Spirit Breaker as he lacks the armor along with the HP to withstand his damage. There is hardly any way to survive the onslaught of Spirit Breaker, as it feels like you’ve been hit by a truck. More than the damage, it is the global potential of SB’s Charge which makes him stay alert at all times, farming only in secure locations and never showing himself too far out on the map. 

Shadow Fiend is known to purchase Black King Bar, but it is seen as a useless item against the likes of Spirit Breaker due to his bashes and ultimate Nether Strike which pierce his spell immunity. Though the late game can be a little difficult for Spirit Breaker as Shadow Fiend eventually catches up with the farm, the former does not rely on items and his job is only to gank the bone fletcher or provide vision for his allies to gank him. Shadow Fiend is deeply annoyed by such interruption and thus can’t optimally play his game.

Why is Spirit Breaker a Powerful Killer Early And Late Game?

• When Spirit Breaker charges onto Shadow Fiend, he can easily use Dust of Appearance to guarantee a reveal on him while stunned.
• Charge of Darkness allows Spirit Breaker to gank Shadow Fiend in the early game, preventing him from getting Necromastery stacks.
• Nether Strike and Charge of Darkness can be used to prevent Shadow Fiend from casting Requiem of Souls.
• Possibly Shadow Fiend's worst enemy. He has many tools to utterly destroy Shadow Fiend, let it be the Bash, Charge, or even Nether Strike.

Choose Spirit Breaker if

• Your team lacks an initiator or a solid team fighter
• Your team lacks a frontliner who can tank fights

Items to buy on Spirit Breaker

• Shadow Blade - Provides invisibility which can be used to escape or set up on Shadow Fiend
• Drums of Endurance - Upon usage, it provides a high attack and movement speed bonus to SB and his allies in an AoE. It can be used while charging to increase his charge speed and damage.
• Black King Bar - Provides spell immunity, making you invulnerable in the fight against Shadow Fiend’s items in case he opts for Orchid or Scythe
• Echo Sabre - Provides immense stat gain along with increased physical damage and attack speed
• Solar Crest - Upon cast, it grants armor, attack speed, and movement speed to the targeted ally while reducing the same stats from enemies. This reduces Shadow Fiend's armor and eventually weakens him, making him unable to stand firm in teamfights.

Spirit Breaker is strong against

• Anti-Mage - Anti-Mage usually relies on Blink to escape, but with a vision from Charge of Darkness it is easier to catch him.
• Clinkz - Once caught with dust, Clinkz could be locked down for a long time by Spirit Breaker and has nowhere to escape.
• Nature's Prophet - Charge of Darkness allows Spirit Breaker to catch Nature's Prophet out when he tries to split push.

Spirit Breaker is strong against

• Disruptor - Glimpse drags Spirit Breaker back from an escaping Charge, or takes him out of a ganking Charge.
• Omniknight - In the early game, Omniknight can look like an easy target for Spirit Breaker, but with Purification and Degen Aura, what could be an opportunity could quickly turn into a disaster.
• Clockwerk - Battery Assault will continuously prevent Spirit Breaker from using Nether Strike, Charge of Darkness, and even right-clicking because of his long attack animation.

https://dota2.fandom.com/wiki/Spirit_Breaker 

4. Techies

Truth be told, Techies isn’t a big hero in the current meta but his exceptional AoE damage and silence are just too hard to ignore if you want to play against illusion-based heroes or spell-reliant heroes. Techies have various ways of ensuring that his laning counterpart has an awful start, his high magic damage is just impossible to negate as most heroes have extremely poor magic resistance in the early game. The silence from the shard upgrade, Blast Off, is significantly longer, making his foes succumb without even being able to use any spells, reducing their teamfight potential!

The master Techies players know the best spots for mining, and you may surely know what happens if you walk over them as a squishy low magic resistance hero. It is a nightmare playing the late game against Techies, due to both his Sticky Bomb and Reactive Taser, making him highly susceptible to the magical damage burst. All the illusion heroes also seem to melt whenever Techies uses his spells on them. If you are playing a squishy carry hero against Techies, you better try your best to end the game as early as you can, or just abandon when it is too late!

Why is Techies a Powerful Killer Early And Late Game?

• Techies deals lots of magical damage with Sticky Bomb, Blast Off!, and Proximity Mines that bypass high armor heroes.
• Sticky Bomb is easy to land on a large clump of enemy illusions and will damage and slow them and all of their illusion, making him excellent against illusion-based heroes.
• Reactive Tazer upgraded with Aghanim's Scepter can be used to protect an ally from getting attacked by enemies.
• Blast Off! silences enemies in an AoE, preventing them from casting spells.

Choose Techies if

• You want high magical burst damage potential right from the laning phase

Top 5 End Game Items to buy on Techies

• Kaya - Increased mana reduction and decent stats along with low mana cost and cooldown reduction on both items and spells.
• Force Staff - Allows you to force yourself or the targeted unit 600 units ahead in the direction they are facing, it can be useful to catch or initiate on enemies in case they use any escape spells or items.
• Eul’s Scepter - Can be used to sweep yourself or the targeted enemy into the air for 2.5 seconds, making them unable to use spells or move. This can be used to lock enemies down or temporarily shut them off from the fights.
• Octraine Core - Provides spell lifesteal and stats along with reducing the cooldown on spells and items by 25%
• Lotus Orb - Reflects targeted spells hence can also be used to reflect enemy spells and help Techies escape sticky situations

Techies are strong against

• Enchantress - Techies does huge amounts of magical damage, which will bypass Untouchable.
• Chaos Knight - Techies have a great AoE (area of effect damage) to deal with Phantasm illusions.
• Morphling - Morphling usually has low max health due to shifting strength into agility, which combined with Blast Off's silence will prevent him from using Waveform and Adaptive Strike (Strength), leaving him defenseless and making him an easy target to burst down.

Techies are weak against

• Anti-Mage - Thanks to Counterspell's magic resistance, Anti-Mage has a good chance of surviving a Blast Off combo.
• Death Prophet - Exorcism's ghosts will automatically clear all Proximity Mines revealed when Death Prophet walks near them, provided that the ghosts do not have a specific target at that time.
• Juggernaut - Juggernaut can trigger Proximity Mines while in Blade Fury, and can walk away from initiation with Blast Off if Blade Fury is activated before the silence.

https://dota2.fandom.com/wiki/Techies 

3. Viper

The venomous Viper knows no bounds and is on the same list when it comes to the most hated heroes in the game. Mid-players can benefit from playing this hero against squishy heroes like Zeus, Puck, and Queen of Pain, as it is a free win! They have to use his spells to the last hit against the eighty Viper which in turn cost them a great deal of mana. The DPS and slow from his spells are also quite annoying to play against as a squishy low HP hero. Viper’s potential is unmatched as he only gets stronger in the late game, allowing him to sustain himself against multiple heroes.

Picking a squishy hero against Viper is essentially just throwing the game away! Most players despise Viper as he makes their presence and impact disappear from the game. Viper has the range advantage so melee can’t freely come within the attack range to the last hit, making them abandon the lane entirely. His ultimate, Viper Strike isn’t even needed to kill certain heroes as only his Poison Attack is enough to do the job. Viper is highly lethal right from the laning phase, and his late game is only amplified by the items he purchases! 

Why is Viper a Powerful Killer Early And Late Game? 

• Relies more on levels than items, making him able to gank right from the early levels
• Immense attack and movement speed right off the bat
• Immense magical damage which enemy heroes find hard to negate in the early game.
• Annoying to squishy heroes with his DoT (Damage over time)

Choose Viper if 

• You want high magical burst damage potential right from the laning phase
• You want a reliable mid-laner who can win the lane and be relevant right from the early game

Best 5 End-Game items to buy on Viper 

• Kaya and Sange - Increases stats along with increasing mana gain and reducing mana cost, allowing him to cast spells freely.
• Aghanim’s Scepter - Decreases Nethertoxin duration and increases damage, destroying the squishy enemies in no time 
• Hurricane Pike - Allows Viper to close the gap and deal immense damage, also provides decent stats and increases attack range
• Blademail - Reflects enemy damage to them upon activation.
• Black King Bar - Provides spell immunity, negating all the magical damage being dished out by enemies.

Viper is strong against

• Axe - Nethertoxin prevents Counter Helix from triggering, which significantly lowers Axe's damage output in the early to mid-game.
• Bristleback - Nethertoxin disables Bristleback and prevents Warpath from building stacks. Besides losing his defensive passive, Bristleback also loses his ability to build up damage over lengthy battles.
• Mars - Nethertoxin disables Bulwark entirely, making Mars far less tanky. Using Nethertoxin inside Arena Of Blood may discourage enemies from following up with Mars' initiation.

Viper is weak against

• Bane - Viper has no solutions to cancel Fiend's Grip and in addition, he hates buying disabling items like Eul's Scepter of Divinity.
• Morphling - Viper has no disable, which means he has no way of preventing Morphling from escaping from any of his abilities or keeping him inside Nethertoxin.
• Rubick - If Rubick can use Spell Steal to take Nethertoxin, he will be able to disable Corrosive Skin, reducing much of Viper's durability.

 https://dota2.fandom.com/wiki/Viper

2. Ursa

Ursa is one of the most played carry heroes in the current meta, the ferocious bear is known for his ability to jungle smoothly and slays Roshan alone. He can also rip through squishy heroes and supports within no time! His Fury Swipes stack up quickly, combined with his second spell, Overpower, make him deal high amounts of physical damage right from the early game. Ursa’s ultimate, Enrage, makes him take less damage from magic spells, making him slightly invulnerable in teamfights along with granting him immense status reduction.

Ursa does not rely much on items, as his spells deal enough damage to rip his foes apart. But buying an early Morbid mask allows him to sustain in lane and turn around a fight swiftly coupled with his ultimate. Ursa almost always purchases a Black King Bar due to his poor natural magic resistance, and doing so against spell-casting heroes is a no-brainer. Most carry heroes stand no chance if Ursa has a smooth early game

What makes Ursa a Powerful Killer Early And Late Game? 

• Menace against squishy heroes.
• Less reliable on items, more reliable on abilities.
• Can easily secure Roshan alone, gaining the Aegis of Immortality quite early on in the game.
• His ultimate makes him take 80% less damage and provides 50% status resistance.
• Aghanim Scepter allows him to use his ultimate even when stunned or silenced, dispelling the enemy spells.

Choose Ursa if

• Your team lacks a tanky initiator
• Your team lacks a team-fighting carry hero

Top 5 Best Endgame items for Ursa 

• Blink Dagger - On cast, Blink transports Ursa 1200 units in the distance he is facing, can’t be used for 3 seconds if he takes any form of damage. Blink is used by Ursa for closing the gap and to get on top of enemies, or it can also be used to escape away from them.
• Diffusal Blade - Slows down enemies by 100% upon casting and physical attack. It also burns their mana, making them useless as they are unable to cast any spells. 
• Satanic - Provides Ursa with increased lifesteal on physical attacks upon activation, also provides basic dispel from the latter, allowing him to stand his ground in teamfights.
• Black King Bar - It provides spell immunity from all of the enemy's magic damage spells, making him invulnerable in the fight. It is always a top-priority item for Ursa as he has poor magic resistance.
• Skull Basher - Provides a chance to Mini Stun on physical attacks. It can further be upgraded into Abyssal Blade later on in the game, allowing Ursa to have that much-needed lockdown in teamfights.

Ursa is strong against

• Timbersaw - Timbersaw's physical survivability revolves around Reactive Armor, which is largely ignored by Fury Swipes due to the extreme amounts of damage it does in very few numbers attacks.
• Pudge - Low armor and lack of escape make Pudge vulnerable to Ursa, especially when he gets his Blink Dagger.
• Medusa - With no escape mechanism and a slow movement speed, getting jumped on by Ursa usually spells a quick end for Medusa in the early game.

Ursa is weak against

• Lion - Lion has two low cast point disables (Hex and Earth Spike) to control Ursa before he buys  Black King Bar.
• Viper - Nethertoxin breaks Fury Swipes, making Viper a decent counter to Ursa in a laning stage.
• Shadow Demon - Shadow Demon's Demonic Purge renders Ursa useless even through Black King Bar as it slows him, continually purges his Overpower charges, and can not be dispelled by Ursa's Enrage.

https://dota2.fandom.com/wiki/Ursa

1. Zeus

Zeus, the Thundergod is quite undoubtedly a great counter-pick to squishy magic resistance heroes. Zeus fares extremely well if he is laning against certain heroes as he can smite them down in the early game as soon as he reaches level six. This allows him to gank other lanes without even being there! Zeus is also an excellent farmer, allowing him to acquire multiple items to help him further dominate the game. The game gets slightly icky if the enemies get magic resistance items but as long as Zeus is in the backlines, he can pump out enough damage to turn the tides in his favor. 

Zeus acquires items like Aether Lens and Veil of Discord, squish mid heroes can’t handle the DPS, which proves to be extremely lethal. Ideally, most heroes do not want to build a BKB, but facing a magical Zeus will force them to opt for it, slowing down their progress on other more useful items, which can give his carry an edge over them in the late game. The late game is where Zeus is known to shine bright like a star.

Why is Zeus a Powerful Killer Early And Late Game? 

• Zeus' abilities deal high amounts of burst magical damage, which ignores the high armor of certain heroes.
• Can reveal invisible heroes with Lighting Bolt.
• His spells deal immense magical damage which enemies find hard to contain in the early stages of the game.
• He is an annoying laner, making his mid-counterpart ferry in regen items or goes back to the base.
• Zeus' Arc Lightning is also a good way to destroy illusions

Choose this hero if 

• You want high magical burst damage potential right from the laning phase
• You want a reliable mid-laner who can win the lane and be relevant right from the early game

Best 5 End-Game items to buy on Zeus 

• Octraine Core - Provides spell lifesteal and stats along with reducing the cooldown of both spells and items by 25%. Octraine Core is highly useful on Zeus as it makes him highly reliable in the teamfights.
• Refresher’s Orb - Can refresh spells and items and use them again in quick succession to delete squishy heroes from the fight, allowing Zeus to use his Nimbus and ultimate combo twice.
• Arcane Blink - Provides all the benefits of the Blink Dagger, along with providing low mana cost on spells and items on usage, and also reducing cooldowns on them for a brief duration.     
• Kaya and Sange - Increases stats along with increasing mana gain and reducing mana cost, allowing Zeus to cast spells freely.
• Aghanim’s Scepter - Provides Nimbus which is essential for teamfights in the late game

Zeus is strong against

• Bounty Hunter- If Bounty Hunter tries to escape a gank by using Shadow Walk, Zeus can gain vision of him with both Lightning Bolt and Thundergod's Wrath.
• Lich - Lich does not pose a big threat to Zeus in teamfights, as his spells don't have great cast range and Zeus should be too far back for a Chain Frost to bounce among him and his allies.
• Necrophos - Necrophos' Ghost Shroud increases the magic damage taken by Necrophos.

Zeus is weak against

• Juggernaut - Blade Fury negates all magical damage from Zeus.
• Faceless Void - Time Dilation can limit Zeus to casting his abilities only once in a fight, effectively serving as a 12-second silence.
• Anti-Mage - Anti-Mage can burn mana, which is a big problem for a spellcaster like Zeus who heavily relies on it.

https://dota2.fandom.com/wiki/Zeus

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