The flamboyant and deceitful Pangolier is one of the flashiest heroes in the game. He has moments where he can singlehandedly turn the tides around in his favor. The unique selling point of Pangolier is his flexibility, as surely he is a consistent mid-pick, he can also be picked in the offlane and roaming support position, where he can excel against the right heroes. The flexibility is not limited to his lanes but also his items, as he can switch builds depending on who he might be facing. His skills deal an excellent amount of damage right from the get-go while also being successful in controlling the crowd quite well. And undoubtedly, he is one of the most charming heroes in Dota.
The swashbuckling Pangolier is an effective pick in the current meta, but there exist heroes who can decimate him with the right spells. We bring you the Best 10 Counters to Pangolier, these heroes are extremely lethal and make sure Pangolier stands no chance right from the early game.
Best general items against Pangolier
- Black King Bar - On usage, it provides spell immunity. This entirely negates the damage from all of Pangolier’s spells, as they all are magical types.
- Force Staff - Allows you to force yourself or the targetted unit 600 units ahead in the direction they are facing, it can be useful to catch or initiate on Pangolier in case he uses Rolling Thunder.
- Eul’s Scepter - It can be used to sweep yourself or Pangolier into the air for 2.5 seconds, making them unable to use spells or move. This can be used to lock down Pangolier or temporarily remove yourself from the fights, it dispels most debuffs upon self-cast.
- Rod of Atos - Locks Pangolier down, making him unable to move or use any spells, allowing you to punish him without having him escape with his Swashbuckle.
- Ghost Scepter - Upon usage, it makes you immune to physical attacks while making you unable to attack at the same time. You also take increased magical damage under its duration. Pangolier does virtually zero damage if you have Ghost Scepter.
- Glimmer Cape/Shadow Blade - Both of these items turn you invisible for a brief duration. Invisibility is always useful against heroes like Pangolier to escape from his lethal physical damage.
- Scythe of Vyse - It can be used to hex Pangolier, essentially making him unable to use spells or items, along with reducing his movement speed for 3.5 seconds. Highly useful to shut him down, making him useless in teamfights without his ultimate.
10. Slark
Slark is a mighty hero against the likes of Pangolier due to his ability to be durable and nimble. He is one of the best counters to Pangolier. He performs well against the squishy and low armor Pangolier, as he offers him increased agility stacks quickly, making it easy for him to deal damage during teamfights and mow her down, gaining more agility. He can easily pounce away from Pangolier’s Multishot channeling and disengage away from the fight with the help of Shadow Dance. Pangolier may farm comparatively faster than Slark but in the late game, Slark leaves no stone unturned as he wreaks havoc on the enemy team with his six-slot farm.
Slark is also known to be a slippery carry hero due to the items he builds, which makes it hard for Pangolier to lock him down. Also, items like Diffusal Blade makes him immensely strong as it causes Pangolier to lose mana while crippling her movement speed and also dealing high damage with the help of Sange and Yasha. He can also purge off Multishot or Frostbite debuff,, which may allow him to turn the tides effectively in his favor in the team fight.
Why is Slark a great hero against Pangolier?
- Dark Pact easily purges away both slow and disarm effects from Lucky Shot.
- With Pounce now applying leash to the target, Pangolier is helpless against Slark since both his Swashbuckle and Rolling Thunder will be disabled.
- Pounce also helps Slark easily escape from Rolling Thunder.
Items to Buy on Slark
- Silver Edge - Provides invisibility which can be used to escape or set up on Pangolier
- Aghanim’s Scepter - Increases Pounce distance by a huge margin, also providing him two charges of the same, allowing him to chase the pesky Pangolier.
- Eye of Skadi - Great for reducing Pangolier’s regen while also providing stats.
- Butterfly - Increased evasion, agility, and movement speed
- Black King Bar - Provides spell immunity
https://dota2.fandom.com/wiki/Slark
9. Storm Spirit
Storm is a charming and electrifying hero in the current meta. Pangolier can’t quite match the wits and charm of this flamboyant spirit. He can’t also match the latter’s dominant gameplay and high crowd control ability. This is due to Storm’s highly active play style and fast farming speed against Pangolier. He is widely regarded as one of the best mid-laners in the game. Storm is mostly played as a fast-tempo mid-hero, meaning he usually rotates to gank other lanes and quickly goes back to farming or taking towers.
Storm’s high mana pool enables him to jump onto Pangolier and catch him off-guard. Late-game Storm is a disaster for the enemy team due to his Aghanim’s Scepter which grants him AoE vortex, allowing him to catch multiple people at once. Orchid’s silence can essentially run Pangolier’s gameplay if he does not have any way to negate it in the late game, reducing all of his impacts and turning him into a melee creep at the best!
What makes Storm Spirit a great counter to Pangolier?
- Storm Spirit is not only a potent Orchid Malevolence carrier, his Electric Vortex provides an additional disable and Overload provides a great slow, stopping Pangolier from using his escape spells
- Ball Lightning not only provides great initiation upon Pangolier from any position at any time but also helps dodge the damage from his spells.
Items to buy on Storm Spirit
- Bloodstone - Upon activation, Bloodstone grants spell lifesteal and converts the same percentage of damage dealt into mana. This is an exceptional item that allows the Storm to be sustainable in the mana department.
- Orchid of Malevolence - Silences the Pangolier for 5 seconds, also dealing him an extra 30% damage at the end of its duration. It can be useful to silence Pangolier and entirely shut him off from the team fight.
- Aghanim’s Scepter - Causes Storm’s Electric Vortex spell to be AoE, allowing him to catch multiple heroes at once.
- Scythe of Vyse - Upon usage it hexes Pangolier, essentially making him unable to use spells or items, along with reducing his movement speed for 3.5 seconds. This is extremely useful to shut down Pangolier while your team slaughters him.
- Kaya and Sange - Increases stats along with increasing mana gain and reducing mana cost, allowing him to cast spells freely against Pangolier.
- Black King Bar - Provides spell immunity, negating all the magical damage being dished out by Pangolier.
https://dota2.fandom.com/wiki/Storm_Spirit
8. Centaur Warruner
Centaur Warruner, the war chieftain has seen many strong enemies including the like of the Pangolier, his forces have destroyed empires and defeated great warriors. Centaur is naturally a great counter to Pangolier due to his ability to gap close with both his ultimate and the Blink Dagger. He can return some serious damage to him and it is further amplified with the Blade Mail. Pangolier can not fight alone or target a farmed and fat Centaur. Alongside, Centaur can use ultimate to run away from Pango’s Rolling Thunder, essentially disengaging and saving his allies as well as himself in teamfights.
Centaur is an effective offlane hero, as he remains powerful throughout the game. His power spikes allow him to both initiate the gank and survive through it with the help of his items. A late-game Centaur can easily catch Pangolier and his allies off guard. Swashbuckle surely deals significant damage in the early game, but it merely pokes the Centaur, making him retaliate with higher damage back at Pangolier.
Why is Centaur Warruner a great counter to Pangolier?
- When Swashbuckle hits Centaur Warrunner, Retaliate will deal significant damage, as it procs off every strike made.
- Stampede helps allies avoid or disengage from Pangolier during Rolling Thunder, as well as neutralizing the slow debuff from Lucky Shot.
Items to buy on Centaur Warruner
- Blink Dagger - Great gap closer against Pangolier
- Blade Mail - Can reflect damage and prevent her from using spells
- Force Staff - Another gap-closing item
- Aghanim’s Scepter and Shard - Can be used to initiate or save allies from ganks across the map
- Pipe of Insight - Provides immense magic damage block on activation, and affects the whole team.
https://dota2.fandom.com/wiki/Centaur_Warrunner
7. Medusa
Medusa, the serpentine warrior is quite a hard nut to crack, her identity and prowess cement her as one of the most lethal carry heroes in the game against Pangolier. Medusa is an ultra late-game hero, even if her early game is disastrous, she can bounce back and turn the game around just with one fight. Her tankiness allows her to be the center of the fight without worrying much about Rolling Thunder, which she can still attack thanks to her immense attack range. If not ganked and ignored, she can perpetually farm and destroy Pangolier and win the game in a 1v5 situation.
Medusa is known to farm faster than Pangolier, agreed, Pango may have mobility, but Medusa has sustainability and effective damage, making her an ideal hero in the later stages of the game due to how well she fares against multiple heroes. This is something that Pangolier can’t excel at. All the attack modifiers and damage are too hot for the Pangolier to handle even in the late game, making most Pangolier players eventually tap out against this serpentine warrior.
Why is Medusa a great counter to Pangolier?
- Split Shot will keep attacking Pangolier even when he is rolling around.
- Stone Gaze stuns Pangolier during Rolling Thunder or forces him to roll away.
Items to buy on Medusa
- Eye of Skadi - Great for reducing Pangolier’s regen while also providing stats.
- Butterfly - Increased evasion, agility, and movement speed
- Daedalus - Immense critical damage
- Hurricane Pike - Allows Medusa to close the gap and deal immense damage to Pangolier, also provides decent stats
- Satanic - Can quickly heal up on physical attacks upon activation, also provides basic dispel from the latter.
- Monkey King Bar - Increased physical damage, also provides true strike on physical attacks
https://dota2.fandom.com/wiki/Medusa
6. Grimstroke
Grimstroke, the doomed artist paints with the blood of his slain foes. His high magic damage is too hard for Pangolier to ignore. Grimstroke is primarily played in the support role against Pangolier as he is known for dealing high AoE magic damage and disabling him with his Silence. The silence is quickly combined with Ink Swell ability, which can prove to be a great way to initiate on the pesky and unaware Pangolier. His ultimate chains him to his teammates, preventing them from escaping away or using any spells, essentially providing his team a way to beat down on them and secure the kill.
The Laning phase never favors Pangolier as he is constantly harassed and shoved out of the lane by the Grimstroke. Sure, the Pangolier is an exceptional late-game hero, but not against Grim as the latter has various ways to stop the ferocious pangolin right in his tracks and render him useless. The magic damage of Grimstroke effectively turns Pangolier into a melee creep! His ultimate prevents him from escaping away or using any spells, essentially providing his team a way to beat down on him and secure the kill as he hilariously keeps on rolling in place while attaching his allies with him!
Why is Grimstroke a great counter to Pangolier?
- Soulbind ignores spell immunity, forcing Pangolier to roll in place during his ultimate as well as anchoring the other victim to his vicinity.
- Deals immense damage and has a low cooldown on all spells, making him a great counter to Pango just by the silence
Items to Buy on Grimstroke
- Aghanim’s Scepter - Creates a Dark Portrait of the targetted enemy, dealing immense damage
- Ghost Scepter - Prevents Pangolier from attacking him with physical damage
- Glimmer Cape - Provides invisibility, and can also be used on allies to escape or to initiate
- Force Staff - Another great tool to close gaps or escape
- Aether Lens - Increased cast range, can catch Pangolier off-guard
https://dota2.fandom.com/wiki/Grimstroke
5. Puck
Puck, the dazzling faerie dragon is a mixture of skill and flamboyance. Although, relatively a weak laner and squishy, Puck can turn the tides around against Pangolier if he manages to secure his early game by farming sufficiently and ganking other lanes. Pangolier may prove to have the higher ground in the early game but in the late game, Puck can triumph with his Aghanim’s Scepter which helps him stop the Rolling Thunder in its tracks with Dream Coil. T
The right items at the right time allow him to sustain himself and deal lethal magical damage without worrying about the damage dished out by Pangolier. Puck is equally nimble and annoying, making it hard for Pangolier to catch him so easily. His items allow him to catch Pangolier off-guard and deal high amounts of damage to him. Aghanim’s Scepter is an exceptional item on Puck which essentially ruins Pangolier’s gameplay and is supposed to be the first priority against him.
Why is Puck a great counter to Pangolier?
- Illusory Orb and Waning Rift provide great mobility, allowing Puck to catch up with Pangolier when he is attempting to disengage with his skills.
- Dream Coil's leash acts almost as a literal silence to Pangolier, disabling half of his arsenal and also piercing his spell immunity during Rolling Thunder.
- Dream Coil's very long duration will make Pangolier waste his entire ultimate rolling in place.
Items to Buy on Puck
- Blink Dagger - Great for gap-closing or initiating
- Aghanim’s Shard and Scepter - Can lock in a spell-immune Pangolier even if he is under Rolling Thunder form and silence her for a longer duration with the Shard.
- Aeon Disk - Saves him from getting burst quickly from Pangolier and also applies a basic dispel
- Witch Blade - Deals increased magical damage over time.
https://dota2.fandom.com/wiki/Puck
4. Treant Protector
By far one of the most underrated heroes in the game has to be Treant Protector. He has all you need for lane support such as heals, disable, crowd control, and even free pathing. His high damage from level can be used to force Pangolier out of the lane, disrupting his farm and XP. Treant can also scout Pangolier as the former can turn invisible around trees, allowing him to call shots and have his allies rotate to gank the bone fletcher.
Treant is also excellent for pushing in the late game as he can just sit in the trees and spam Nature’s Grasp and use Meteor Hammer on enemy towers. He can also safeguard his towers with his heal, making Pangolier fall back and wait for the next wave, only to be disappointed by the tower heal again. The root from Overgrowth pierces Black King Bar, and stops Pangolier right in his tracks, even disarming him for a long duration. Who would've thought such a brave marksman could be disabled by a small tree?
Why is Treant Protector a great counter to Pangolier?
- Pangolier will often roam the map alone, and Treant Protector's Nature's Guise allows him to set up kills with his allies on Pangolier from invisibility.
- Living Armor protects any of Treant's allies ganked by Pangolier.
- In teamfights, Treant Protector's Overgrowth can disarm Pangolier, preventing him from turning invisible and holding him in place even if he has a Black King Bar.
- Leech Seed slows Pangolier, preventing him from repositioning or fleeing away from danger.
Items to Buy as Treant Protector
- Aghanim’s Shard - Turns Treant invisible with Nature’s Guise, allowing him to set ganks on Pangolier and his allies.
- Meteor Hammer - After channeling for a brief duration, a meteor is unleashed on the targetted location, stunning the units in that area and dealing damage over time. It is useful in targeting Pangolier and even pushing towers.
- Blink Dagger - Upon cast, Blink transports Treant 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 to closing the gap and getting on top of Pangolier as he has the range advantage. It can also be used to escape away from him.
- Aghanim’s Scepter - Grants Eye in the Forest ability can be used on trees to give vision surrounding it. If Overgrowth is used then the units surrounding that tree is also rooted. It can be used to lock down Pangolier globally.
- Holy Locket - Upon usage, it can be used to heal allies, based on the charges which are granted based on enemy hero casting spells, basically a glorified Magic Stick. This provides the tiny bit of sustain and healing required to withstand Pangolier’s damage.
- Solar Crest - Grants armor, attack speed, and movement speed to the targetted ally while reducing the same stats if used upon enemy Pangolier. This makes him unable to stand firm in teamfights.
https://dota2.fandom.com/wiki/Treant_Protector
3. Tusk
Tusk, is known to be a constant fighting hero, he was made to brawl and ruffle some feathers! Tusk is an exceptional hero against pretty much any carry hero in the current meta, Pangolier is no exception to that. He is essentially countered by all of Tusk’s spells, as they help him hunt him down and reduce his impact by a margin. Laning is never fun for Pangolier against the Tusk as the latter can snowball (no pun intended) if he gets a few kills on him.
Tusk is known to be a heavy hitter right from the laning phase. His icy disabled and chilling moves paralyze Pangolier and eliminate all his chances of escape. Tusk can hunt him down with his Snowball, which can also be used to save allies by clicking on them, making them get inside the ball! All it takes is one Smoke of Deceit to gank the Pangolier, which can be done quite easily with Snowball and Tag team, essentially ruining her gameplay.
Why is Tusk a great counter to Pangolier?
- Ice Shards can easily interfere with Rolling Thunder, making him stuck inside the arc and wasting his ultimate. Do not panic and use Shield Crash to get out of that position.
- Snowball helps Tusk and his allies follow a fleeing Pangolier, keep in mind that the Pangolier can always counter-initiate with his Rolling Thunder.
- Walrus PUNCH! deals heavy damage even during his Rolling Thunder.
Items to buy on Tusk
- Blink Dagger - Great for gap-closing or initiating
- Desolator - Increased damage and armor corruption
- Drums of Endurance - Provides increased movement and attack speed to Tusk and his allies on the activation
- Force Staff - Another great tool to close gaps or escape from Pangolier
- Aghanim’s Scepter and Shard - Scepter provide Walrus Kick which allows him to kick Pangolier away during teamfights, even if she has BKB on!
- Shadow Blade - Provides invisibility which can be used to escape or set up on Pangolier
https://dota2.fandom.com/wiki/Tusk
2. Void Spirit
Void Spirit has cemented his name as one of the most spammed mid-heroes in the patch against the likes of Pangolier. His swift and lethal moves have made him a threat to the vulnerable Pango. Void Spirit is known to be a complex hero as his skill set may be confusing but once mastered, he can turn the tide to his advantage due to his nimble and quick spells. Void can block most damage coming his way, making Pangolier’s damage extremely useless as he negates most of it. His incredible AoE spells make it easy for him to farm and clear creep waves, allowing him to match and even surpass the farming speed of Pangolier.
Void Spirit’s highly elusive spells make him harder to catch and kill. He is known to be a great laner and an efficient fighter right from the early game as he is more level reliant as opposed to being farm reliant. Void Spirit is also highly picked in the current meta due to his buffs as they allow him to be relevant against other heroes he is facing and not just Pangolier, meaning even if Pangolier succeeds at farming and is having a great time, Void Spirit can decimate his entire team before the former even knows of it!
Why is Void Spirit a great counter to Pangolier?
- Has the extreme potential to stop Pangolier with his spells and also with the help of Orchid, silencing him for a significant duration.
- Pangolier can’t catch up to the farming speed of Void, while also being slightly farm reliant.
- Void Spirit is good at solo killing squishy enemy supports effortlessly
Items to buy on Void Spirit
- Eul's Scepter - Provides a basic dispel, can be used to dodge enemy spells or to set up on them with Remnant
- Octraine Core - Provides spell lifesteal and stats
- Kaya and Sange - Increased mana regen and overall stat gain
- Black King Bar - Provides spell immunity, making you invulnerable in the fight against Pangolier’s spells
- Orchid of Maleovalence - Silences the targetted enemy and makes them take a percentage of the total damage dealt after the duration
https://dota2.fandom.com/wiki/Void_Spirit
1. Bloodseeker
Bloodseeker is is a vicious force against Pangolier. The latter, in theory, should perform better than Bloodseeker due to his damage advantage but is a squishy hero so he finds it extremely hard to withstand the composite damage of the vicious vampire. Bloodseeker can withstand the heavy beatings of Pangolier with the help of his lifesteal as well as his Q which sustains him in the laning phase as well as in the teamfights. Although Pangolier has the range advantage, Bloodseeker has more potential as a carry in the later stages of the game.
Blood Rite is extremely useful to lock Pangolier down and silence him, which allows him to kill him in skirmishes. Pangolier can also fall victim to Rupture which can pierce Black King Bar making him take immense amounts of damage if he moves. as he moves due to his high movement speed. It may result in his instant death or make him low enough for Bloodseeker to hunt him and further neutralize him. Thirst is extremely powerful against Pangolier as it reveals Pangolier’s location if he falls low enough to reach the threshold.
Why is Bloodseeker a great counter to Pangolier?
- Thirst provides constant sight and speed to Bloodseeker, allowing him to catch up with a fleeing Pangolier through all of his mobility.
- Rupture is a great threat to Pangolier, causing him to take heavy damage if he uses Swashbuckle and especially Rolling Thunder, forcing him to stop his ultimate prematurely, or keep rolling to his death.
Items to buy on Bloodseeker
- Black King Bar - Provides spell immunity, making you invulnerable in the fight against Rolling Thunder
- Monkey King Bar - Increased physical damage, also provides true strike
- Mjolnir - Exceptional for pushing lanes and farming quickly
- Sange and Yasha - Provide decent stats and physical damage
- Abyssal Blade - Can be used to quickly lock down Pango after getting on top of him, allowing you to beat him down with the physical damage
https://dota2.fandom.com/wiki/Bloodseeker
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