Venomancer is a hideous monstrosity who casts an assortment of toxins to bring down his enemies. He uses a fast Venomous Gale attack to project his poison at all enemies in a narrow path in front of him, slowing victims greatly and dealing damage over time. His attacks are coated with Poisonous Stingers that both slow and damage afflicted enemies. He can summon Plague Wards to do his bidding-deploying them either far out in front of him to scout, or in the heart of the bloody battle itself, to fight and weaken enemies. The wards can also be used to push and block off routes of attack or escape. His ultimate attack, Poison Nova, unleashes a potent toxin in a large ring around his body, infecting everyone it hits, dealing large damage, but over a long time. Though this toxin isn't lethal, every other poison he carries is. He is exceptional at weakening enemies, and slowing them down so that they don't stand a chance in team fights.
Hide description
Lion is a strong offensive spellcaster with excellent disabling capabilities. Although his primary attack spell, Spike, deals relatively low damage, it has a long stun and can hit multiple targets easily. Its low damage is more than compensated for by Lion's Finger of Death, which deals very high damage to a single enemy target. Finger of Death is an excellent finishing spell for injured enemies. Although Spike alone is a good disabling spell, Lion has a second strong disable: Hex. Hex can transform an enemy hero into a critter for a few seconds, allowing Lion and his allies time to finish them off. Lion's spells all cost quite a bit of mana, but he can quickly regain it using Mana Drain. This spell is effective for draining an enemy hero's mana, or giving Lion a quick mana boost from a ranged creep. This hero is a good choice for newer players, but at the same time he is fragile and must walk a fine line between caution and aggression to emerge victorious.
Hide description
Faceless Void is a master of time and space, often bending it to his will. He can Time Walk short distances, effectively jumping forward to a new location while slowing the movement speed of enemies near his destination point. This allows him to both surprise attack more effectively and escape situations where other heroes would be doomed. He is also able to passively revert quickly to a past moment to avoid damage, and to stun enemies by locking time on them so he can bash them without missing a beat. For his ultimate weapon, Faceless Void can create a Chronosphere in space time that halts all units inside it, except for himself. This can sometimes trap allied heroes as well, but deals no damage. Once his enemies are immobilized, he can then wreak havoc as he pleases. While he is initially weak, you should never underestimate a hero with great damage potential that also has the ability to stop time. Never.
Hide description
Ancient Apparition is a versatile spellcaster with the unusual ability to strike enemies at long distances. With practice, his Ice Blast can strike any point on the battlefield, and deals damage in a wide diameter. It's perfect for laying waste to enemies clumped together in a fight and allows Ancient Apparition to be an integral part of team fights even when he's on the other side of the map. Cold Feet is useful to slow the movement speed of targets, and if afflicted enemies can't get safely out of range within four seconds, they'll be frozen in their tracks. This is particularly beneficial in team fights because an enemy that is frozen is an enemy that can't fight back. Ice Vortex is another of Ancient Apparition's abilities that focuses on immobilizing his enemies. Ice Vortex condenses Ancient Apparition's frost power into a single spinning vortex of ice that slows enemies while they are standing inside it and increases all magic damage taken. But Ancient Apparition's spells aren't limited just to increasing his own effectiveness in battle. Chilling Touch enchants allied heroes and gives bonus magical attack damage to your teammates.
Hide description
Although she is an intelligence hero, Windrunner's gameplay style resembles that of an agility hero in many ways. Most of the time she relies on her physical attack. Her archery skills are powerful to start with but also enjoys a steadily increasing rate of fire. Deadly Power Shots not only pierce the nearest target with massive damage, but continue on to damage any units in the line of fire. Due to its exceedingly long range, Power Shot is also excellent for picking off injured heroes as they flee. To stop enemies from fleeing in the first place, Windrunner has Shackleshot--one of the best single-target stuns in the game. Shackleshot allows Windrunner to shackle a target either to a tree or to another enemy unit, potentially stunning two heroes. Her third skill, Windrun, allows her to escape dangerous situations, position herself for good Shackleshots, and catch up to fleeing enemies. If Powershot isn't enough to take down a target, she can use Focus Fire. This powerful ability makes her attack a single enemy at the fastest possible rate; while it reduces her total damage, it has a long duration. Focus Fire is also highly effective against buildings and other stationary targets--and woe to the enemy hero who is first hit by Shackleshot, since they are now essentially a stationary target themselves.
Hide description
Anti-Mage's passive Mana Break allows him to deal extra damage and deplete a spellcaster's supply of mana. As he grows into his powers, his Spell Shield makes him more resilient against magical attacks. Meanwhile, Blink gives him the ability to teleport across short distances for superb maneuverability. Seeking out weary casters, he uses Mana Void to inflict immense damage on those who are low on mana. Although Anti-Mage is disadvantaged against casters in the early game, his powers grow quickly, and there is no one better suited for destroying the greatest spellcasters at what ought to be their moment of triumph.
Hide description
Beastmaster is a well-rounded fighter, with many tactical options available for all types of combat. Although his physical attacks are melee, he can throw his axes at long range to slice through enemies, dealing lethal damage. His Primal Roar can turn the most organized defense into chaos, allowing Beastmaster and his allies to move in for the kill. His summoning skills serve as effective support for his blitz-style combat. Beastmaster's agile Hawk flies above the battlefield scouting for enemies, and the powerful slowing abilities of his Boar's spines give him time to finish off fleeing foes. A skilled Beastmaster is a deadly foe, capable of fighting any enemy on any terms and crushing them to a pulp.
Hide description
Mighty Lich is one of the best heroes at controlling a lane, thanks to his Frost Nova and Sacrifice spells. Frost Blast is a strong nuke that slows its target, giving Lich a good harassment tool. Repeatedly casting Frost Blast and harassing with physical attacks is a surefire way to quickly bring an enemy hero to his knees. However, Frost Blast becomes even more dangerous when coupled with Sacrifice. This spell allows Lich to destroy an allied creep and gain mana based on its life. Using this spell helps Lich by giving him limitless mana for Frost Blast, and hinders his enemies by denying them the experience or gold they would have gained from the destroyed creep. By using Frost Blast and Sacrifice liberally, the Lich can quickly force any opponent to retreat from his lane. Later in the game Lich tends to slide into a support role, using his Ice Armor spell to buff the survivability of his allies, and deploying his devastating Chain Frost to damage his foes in team battles.
Hide description
The Sand King emphasizes area of effect damage more than most. All four of his abilities can damage multiple foes at once. Burrowstrike, his mainstay, damages and stuns targets in a line. In addition, when using this ability, the Sand King burrows to the target location which sets him up for additional attacks or spells. This can get him into trouble though, and to help evade counter attacks he uses Sand Storm. While active, this ability makes the Sand King invisible in the middle of a swirling storm of dust. Although he is unable to move while remaining invisible, nearby enemies will take damage as long as they remain in the storm. The Sand King can finish off groups off units with his Caustic Finale passive skill, which causes a deadly explosion every time he kills a unit with his physical attack. Epicenter, arguably Sand King's most deadly ability, creates a pulsing earthquake centered on his location. When combined with Burrowstrike, this ability is often fatal to fragile heroes, and leaves tougher enemies wounded and limping for safety.
Hide description
Loved by aggressive players everywhere, Puck is one of the best heroes for starting fights. Puck's highly flexible skill set is useful in any situation, making Puck a great hero in both support and offensive roles. Illusory Orb functions like a regular line damage spell--yet at any point along its course, Puck can use Ethereal Jaunt to instantly teleport to Illusory Orb's position. This makes the spell useful for both attacking and escaping. It also meshes perfectly with Puck's offensive spell, Waning Rift. Waning Rift deals damage and silence in an area around Puck, making it the natural choice for use after an Illusory Orb and Ethereal Jaunt. Puck's final offensive spell, Dream Coil, can be used either before or after this combo with great effect. Trapping enemies in a small area, Dream Coil forces them to remain near the target point or take damage and get stunned. Phase Shift, meanwhile, renders Puck invulnerable for several seconds--a highly useful skill on the frequent occasions when Puck ends up right in the middle of the fray. Puck is a relatively easy hero to pick up, and a highly rewarding one to master.
Hide description