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This is part of the [[{{Characters/Dota2}} character sheet]] for ''{{VideoGame/Dota 2}}''. This page contains all '''Radiant Strength''' heroes.
[[center: [- Strength - '''Radiant''' | [[Characters/Dota2DireStrength Dire]] -] ]]
[[center: [- Agility - [[Characters/Dota2RadiantAgility Radiant]] | [[Characters/Dota2DireAgility Dire]] -] ]]
[[center: [- Intelligence - [[Characters/Dota2RadiantIntelligence Radiant]] | [[Characters/Dota2DireIntelligence Dire]]-] ]]
[[center: [- [[Characters/Dota2Neutrals Neutrals]] | [[Characters/Dota2NPCs Others]]-] ]]
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[[foldercontrol]]
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[[folder:Raigor Stonehoof, the Earthshaker]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/earthshaker_3029.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://hydra-images.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/a/a5/Erth_rare_05.mp3 "There may be many earths, but there's only one Earthshaker."]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' John Patrick Lowrie
''"Like a golem or gargoyle, Earthshaker was one with the earth but now walks freely upon it. Unlike those other entities, he created himself through an act of will, and serves no other master. In restless slumbers, encased in a deep seam of stone, he became aware of the life drifting freely above him. He grew curious. During a season of tremors, the peaks of Nishai shook themselves loose of avalanches, shifting the course of rivers and turning shallow valleys into bottomless chasms. When the land finally ceased quaking, Earthshaker stepped from the settling dust, tossing aside massive boulders as if throwing off a light blanket. He had shaped himself in the image of a mortal beast, and named himself Raigor Stonehoof. He bleeds now, and breathes, and therefore he can die. But his spirit is still that of the earth; he carries its power in the magical totem that never leaves him. And on the day he returns to dust, the earth will greet him as a prodigal son."''
Earthshaker is a melee support and initiator hero who flattens his foes with an arsenal of ground-themed nukes and spells. Excelling at area-of-effect damage, his spells suffer from long casting animations but more than make up for it with their raw damage potential and the potential to stun any foe unlucky enough to be on the receiving end of his power. His first spell,''Fissure'', sends out a line of earth in a huge radius and stuns anyone who is caught in the blast, and can block off escape routes and knock dangerous foes out of a team fight. His second spell, ''Enchant Totem'', will temporarily boost his auto attack damage to finish off any survivors. ''Aftershock'' gives all of his abilities bonus damage and very small -ranged area-of-effect stuns - which synchronizes well with ''Enchant Totem'' - and his ultimate, ''Echo Slam'', has Earthshaker slam his totem down on the ground, dealing cumulative bonus damage based on how many enemies are caught in its area of effect, and synergies Aftershock. No matter how overwhelming the odds might seem, a good Earthshaker can quickly level any playing field and leave his opponents eating dirt.
* BadassBaritone: He is quite the ''[[IncrediblyLamePun ear]]''-shaker.
* BadassBeard
* BarrierWarrior: ''Fissure'' can not only stun but also temporarily create an impassible crevasse. Knowing how to use it to trap enemies is vital to mastering Earthshaker.
* BlackMage: Although he's a Strength hero and has good durability, his base auto-attacks are fairly weak and he relies heavily on his spells to support his team.
* CallingYourAttacks:
--> '''Earthshaker (using ''Fissure''):''' ''[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/3/30/Erth_ability_fissure_09.mp3 Fissure!]]''
--> '''Earthshaker (using ''Enchant Totem''):''' ''[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/5/51/Erth_ability_enchant_01.mp3 Enchant!]]''
--> '''Earthshaker (landing a 2/3-man ''Echo Slam''):''' ''[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/b/bc/Erth_ability_echo_02.mp3 Echo Slam!]]''
* CarryABigStick[=/=]TelephonePolearm: His totem.
* ChargedAttack: ''Enchant Totem'' gives him a massive damage boost for one attack, and with ''Aftershock'' can damage and stun every enemy in a small radius.
** ForMassiveDamage: It's one of the few damage amplifiers that stack with critical hits.
** OneHitKill: With Daedalus, his attack damage can be increased ''12 times'', and overlapping cooldown of the spell lets you immediately land another hit on the stunned target. This is enough to burst down not only supports, but carries as well.
* ConservationOfNinjutsu: Invoked on the enemy by ''Echo Slam''. Against a lone hero it's pretty much a glorified stun; against a full team with creeps and summons thrown in, a TotalPartyKill.
* DifficultButAwesome: Earthshaker's bread and butter skill, ''Fissure''. Bad Earthshaker players are prone to use this skill to block teammates, isolating them from the team and netting the enemies an easy kill or leave enemy heroes on the wrong side of the crevasse, allowing them to escape with an easy walk. However, good ''Fissure'' usage can provide great utility, able to block a lane in a gank, stop chasing/escaping enemies, snipe enemy heroes with its extreme range, isolate them from their teammates or otherwise trap them in unpleasant positions.
* DiscOneNuke: One should never underestimate the power of ''Fissure'' at level 1 - the 8-second barrier is probably among the most devastating effects for the heroes with no innate mobility. Unless able to bypass ''Fissure'' with skills like Batrider's ''Firefly'', Timbersaw's ''Timber Chain'',... offlaners have to play extremely careful against an enemy Earthshaker, because they're dead if he could land a good ''Fissure''. It remains extremely useful across the whole game, and is the reason why Earthshaker can get away with being a hard support and getting a late Blink Dagger, unlike similar initiators like Sand King or Tidehunter.
* DishingOutDirt: Well, Raigor is made out of dirt.
* EarthquakesCauseFissures
* EarthquakeMachine: His totem is a supernatural variant.
* EpicFail: He has special responses for landing a ''zero''-man ''Echo Slam''.
--> '''Earthshaker''': ''[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/3/30/Erth_ability_echo_07.mp3 Echo... Slam?]]''
* ForMassiveDamage: Proper usage of his abilities can cause the most burst damage in a few moments any hero is capable of in the entire game.
* AFormYouAreComfortableWith
* GlassCannon: Despite being a Strength hero, Earthshaker is relatively fragile due to his low armour, mediocre Strength and his item build which consists of no durability items whatsoever, instead focusing on supporting and positioning to maximise the disruption from ''Fissure'' and the massive damage potential from ''Echo Slam''.
* GroundShatteringLanding: The animation for his ultimate, ''Echo Slam''
* HerdHittingAttack: ''Echo Slam'' deals bonus damage per every enemy unit within range without an upper limit, so hitting a lot of enemies is a requirement for it.
* InterfaceScrew: ''Fissure'' and ''Echo Slam'' shake the entire screen when cast.
* InvoluntaryGroupSplit: ''Fissure'' can block off enemies from their allies, leaving them at the mercy of your team. Of course, it's also easy to rush this and cause more harm than good - you can easily block off your team mates, save enemy heroes or condemn your own.
* MagmaMan: With the Bindings of Deep Magma cosmetic item, all of Raigor's abilities become magma instead of earth.
* NounVerber
* ObviousRulePatch: Prior to 6.81, Fissure will cause creeps to walk around them. This can be easily exploited by many players who laned him in the Offlane in order to easily pull the creeps into the Ancient jungle thus causing many safelane carries to be starved of their farm when they lose a creep wave. 6.81 patched this exploit by having the creeps simply wait for the Fissure to dissapear, thus limiting the players to merely using Fissure for pulling the wave closer to their tower.
* PowerMakesYourVoiceDeep
* PrimalStance: Despite having arms, Earthshaker stands on all fours.
* RaceLift: He was a [[ALoadOfBull Tauren]] in the first ''[=DotA=]''; this was changed into a more ambiguous gorilla-bull hybrid for the sequel for copyright reasons.
* ShockwaveStomp: With ''Aftershock'', each of his abilities triggers an extra shockwave around him.
* SpamAttack: ''Enchant Totem'', a cheap spell used mostly to trigger ''Aftershock''.
* TopHeavyGuy: To the point that he has to support himself with his hands when walking.
[[/folder]]
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[[folder:Sven, the Rogue Knight]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Sven_2669.png]]\
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/f/fa/Sven_rare_06.mp3 "One man, in a world of foes."]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' David Scully
''"Sven is the bastard son of a Vigil Knight, born of a Pallid Meranth, raised in the Shadeshore Ruins. With his father executed for violating the Vigil Codex, and his mother shunned by her wild race, Sven believes that honor is to be found in no social order -- but only in himself. After tending his mother through a lingering death, he offered himself as a novice to the Vigil Knights, never revealing his identity. For thirteen years he studied in his father's school, mastering the rigid code that declared his existence an abomination. Then, on the day that should have been his In-Swearing, he seized the Outcast Blade, shattered the Sacred Helm, and burned the Codex in the Vigil's Holy Flame. He strode from Vigil Keep, forever solitary, following his private code to the last strict rune. Still a knight, yes... but a Rogue Knight."''
Sven is a melee Strength hero that works well as a Support hero, but can transition into a semi-carry due to his item independence, self-sufficient skills and ability to flash-farm. He boasts a lot of self-buffs that will enhance his incredible strength as he leaps to the enemy ranks and slashing through the enemy heroes, with beefed up stats to deal great damage. His ''Storm Hammer'' is his only ranged skill, where he launches a big magical fist from his gauntlet to a target enemy, stunning the target and anyone on a circular area near the enemy. With his ''Great Cleave'', Sven gains a cleave attack, allowing his normal attacks to damage enemies nearby his target, basically a free Battle Fury or two[[note]]Though Sven can stack a Battle Fury's cleave with his own cleave for a total of 100%.[[/note]], while using his ''Warcry'', has Sven roar out and pumping up his and his allies' armor and movement speed for sturdier advance or escape. Lastly, his ultimate, ''God's Strength'', has Sven channel his strength to incredible levels that he gains a big amount of bonus strength, allowing his normal attacks to deal great damage. Sven is most often seen building Black King Bar, as its spell immunity allows Sven to shove off spells that hinder his movement so he can freely move in and attack anyone in his range with his great strength. Sven's versatility and strength makes him a solid ally, and if he's around, you can be assured that ''he is there to '''pump you up!'''''
* AntiHero: He's a Knight, following HIS code of chivalry. Although not evil, if you ever cross it, you're going to get cleaved. Ask the Vigil Knights of how it turned out.
* TheBerserker: His playstyle emphasizes rushing into the midst of the fight to deal as much damage as possible during his stun and buffs.
* {{BFS}}: The Outcast Blade. His passive, ''Great Cleave'', allows him to spread a percentage of his damage to all nearby enemies every time they attack, ignoring armor.
* BlasphemousBoast: If Sven kills an enemy Zeus, he shows that he has little opinions towards deities in general.
--> '''Sven''': ''[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/e/e2/Sven_rival_05.mp3 Gods were meant to be defied!]]''
* BorrowedCatchPhrase: A hilarious one with Enchantress:
--> '''Sven (killing Enchantress):''' [[UnusualEuphemism Go sproink]] [[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/4/46/Sven_rival_06.mp3 yourself!]]
* ButtMonkey: In Valve's demonstration videos of Hero abilities, Sven is always the Hero used to demonstrate the abilities' effects. This has since spread, with the help of [=DotaCinema=], to fan videos as well.
* CoolHelmet: A knight's helmet with huge horns. Even Kunkka agrees it's cool and wants Sven to be his [[IncrediblyLamePun helmsman]] because of that helmet.
* DarkerAndEdgier: Zig-zagged. Sven in the old [=DotA=] was just a solid defender of justice as a backstory and a BoisterousBruiser with "Pumping Up" jokes in his skillset definitions, but he uses the evil [[VideoGame/{{Warcraft}} Tichondrius]] voice set. In Dota 2, the "Pumping Up" jokes vanish, and he became more rogue-ish, betraying the Vigil Knights and possibly slaying them because they violated his personal honor of being a HalfHumanHybrid (after learning from them) although he would still follow the conduct of a normal knight. However, his voiceset is decidedly more honorable and knight-like (if rather Rogue-ish). He's also more of a solitary loner than a boisterous guy.
* DarkAndTroubledPast: We're only given tiny details, but Sven's childhood is ''definitely'' no walk in park, since he had to endure a lifetime of insults and being considered an abomination because of being a half-Pallid Meranth, his mother being shunned the same way, and his father executed.
* DifficultButAwesome: Actually hitting groups with Storm bolt, thanks to it's fairly slow projectile and unit-targetting requires a fair bit of prediction on which enemies are going where. And then you kill them all with your massive physical DPS.
* FashionableAsymmetry: He has huge armor plates on his left arm. One of the item descriptions explains [[FridgeBrilliance they're a counterweight to his sword]].
* ForMassiveDamage: If he crits for any reason, it ''will'' hurt. A fully farmed Sven with ''God's Strength'' active can hit upwards of over 2000 damage.
* GameplayAndStorySegregation: The skill flavor text of ''Warcry'' says "Calling a few lines from the Vigil Codex fortifies Sven's obedience to his rogue code. So poetic!". Yet, whenever Sven uses ''Warcry'', he's just roaring loudly. So is Sven's roar just that damn poetic, or the Vigil Codex just consists of incoherent roaring?
* GlowingEyesOfDoom: When under the effects of ''God's Strength''.
* GutturalGrowler: Game's prime example.
* HalfHumanHybrid: In [=DotA=], he was half human and half Night Elf. In Dota 2, half [[FishPeople Pallid Meranth]] (mother's side) half Vigil Knight (father's side).
* HerdHittingAttack: ''Great Cleave'' is the single most powerful cleave in the game (barring the cooldown-limited ''Tidebringer''), in both area of effect and percentage damage. In many cases with heroes that can avoid attacks or have extremely high armor, it's actually better to hit people ''near'' your intended target since cleave is affected by neither evasion nor armor. And to note, once Sven learns this skill, it becomes his basic attack without any cooldowns whatsoever (like getting a free Battle Fury).
* HeroicBastard
* HourOfPower: ''God's Strength'' lasts for a limited duration after being activated, and can triple his base damage, making him a prime candidate to build Strength items on.
* ImprobableUseOfAWeapon: How exactly he cleaves large groups by stabbing[=/=] shoving his BFS and making overhand swings, one can only guess wonder at.
* InstantDeathRadius: Getting near a fed enemy Sven is a ''very bad thing''. He doesn't even have to notice you, simply being in his cleave radius for a second or so is often a death sentence for squishier heroes.
* IWorkAlone: Sven has this in his mindset, leading a solitary life following the conducts of a Knight, and one of his quotes if his team is defeated is "Should've done this myself." But since [[WrongGenreSavvy this is an ARTS game...]]
* KnightInSourArmor: Sven will protect the weak as befitting of a knight. However, his years of abuse and isolation for being a half Pallid Meranth left him rather somber and gave him a disdain on typical chivalries, like Omniknight or Chen (although he occasionally would compliment Omniknight).
--> '''Sven (killing Omniknight/Chen):''' ''[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/a/a3/Sven_rivals_omni_01.mp3 What you call 'righteousness', I call 'foolishness']]''
* MagikarpPower: Not particularly dangerous early on, but he gets over it quick, and with 1 or 2 items, is already a threat fully capable of tearing through a team with backup, and can farm extremely rapidly thanks to ''Great Cleave''.
* MightyGlacier: His main weakness is his vulnerability to kiting as he's slightly slower than average at best, and ''Warcry'' isn't all that useful as a speed boost. His usual item choices tend towards fixing this, making him a LightningBruiser in most fights.
* MoneyMultiplier: ''Great Cleave'' lets him clear most camps simply by killing the largest creep, rapidly gaining gold and experience at a time where other carries are still farming for items to help them farm faster.
* OneManArmy: One of the best heroes at getting [[TotalPartyKill Rampages]], even by himself if the enemy is grouped up, thanks to his area stun and damage output.
* PowerUpFullColorChange: Casting his ultimate turns him (and occasionally his sword) red.
* RatedMForManly: His first skill throws a rocket punch made of thunder, and his general playstyle emphasizes he should have no fear of diving in the middle of the enemy team, causing as much damage possible. Sven himself is often considered one of DOTA's manliest heroes, with ''Great Cleave'', every enemies nearby is forced to ''feel'' a portion of Sven's great strength, damaging them (and he needs no cooldown (it's a passive), or money (buy a Battle Fury) for that). If he has Aghanim's Scepter and ''God's Strength'' gives him an aura that increases everyone else's base damage in a certain percentage. Meaning that he's so manly that his presence pumps everyone up!
* RazorWind: To indicate how far the ''Great Cleave'' damage reaches past the sword's length.
* RoaringRampageOfRevenge: In his backstory, Sven kept his hatred to the Vigil Knights as he learned from them. On the day of In-Swearing, Sven pretty much channeled his years worth of pent-up hatred and vengeance to his father's execution by rampaging at the Vigil Knights with the Outcast Blade, slaughtering them. Since he's also a ScreamingWarrior, we assume that there's a lot of literal roaring in the scene of carnage.
* RocketPunch: ''Storm Hammer'' launches his enchanted gauntlet at the enemies.
* RougeAnglesOfSatin
--> '''Sven:''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/f/fe/Sven_rare_09.mp3 "It's Rogue Knight, dammit! It's not rouge knight."]]
** {{Irony}}: ''God's Strength'' turns Sven red. He really is a rogue rouge knight!
* ScreamingWarrior: His ''Warcry'' gives himself and nearby allies a huge speed and armor boost. And he generally screams a lot.
* ShoutOut: His name is a reference to a wrestler, whose signature skill was to get 'Pumped Up'.
* ShockAndAwe: ''Storm Hammer'' has lightning effects, and he gains [[GlowingEyesOfDoom Glowing, lighning-emitting eyes]] and crackling lightning whenever he attacks during ''God's Strength''.
* SimpleYetAwesome: Only has his ranged stun as a direct target spell, and the rest are mostly passive buffs, and his play style is to get near the enemy and then start whacking them dead with normal attacks.
* SophisticatedAsHell
* SuperMode: ''God's Strength'', Sven's ultimate, amplifies his base damage to up to triple its original value for 25 seconds...
** TurnsRed: ...and changes his color to rouge...
** FieldPowerEffect: ...and doubles nearby allies' base damage for its duration as well if he has an Aghanim's Scepter.
* SuperStrength: Sven in a nutshell, excepting Storm Hammer, all of it are about mighty display of absurd levels of strength and toughness. ''Great Cleave'' have him constantly [[HitYouSoHardYourXWillFeelIt slash so powerfully every nearby enemies feel his strength]], ''War Cry'' concentrates his strength onto his body, it pumps up his toughness and his allies' as well. ''God's Strength'' is the most traditional depiction of the trope: Making Sven's already great strength rise up to absurd levels that every slashes is going to hurt a lot harder.
* TestosteronePoisoning: Sven is here to pump you up! With ''Warcry'' (pumps up your toughness and speed) and upgraded ''God's Strength'' (pumps up your strength).
* ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill: If you're far enough ahead in the game that you've got enough money to buy it, Daedalus ''will'' end up turning Sven's autoattacks into this.
--> '''Sven:''' [[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/7/7f/Sven_item_05.mp3 Daedalus!]] [[HilarityEnsues This is going to be absurd.]]
* WouldNotHitAGirl: Zig-zagged. Sven has a quote where he displays displeasure that he had to kill Rylai ("I would not kill a maiden, but you forced the issue.") and in his massive amount of 'kill' quips, he has no special quotes against ladies... except the aforementioned Rylai, and Aiushtha, the latter was more because he's annoyed at her attitude and her skills being detrimental to his play style ("Go sproink yourself!"). Of course, this being is an ARTS game, if you order him to attack a girl hero, he will obey.
[[/folder]]
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[[folder:Tiny, the Stone Giant]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Tiny_2514.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/0/07/Tiny_spawn_07.mp3 "Sticks and stones will break their bones."]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Eric Newsome
''"Coming to life as a chunk of stone, Tiny's origins are a mystery on which he continually speculates. He is a Stone Giant now, but what did he used to be? A splinter broken from a Golem's heel? A shard swept from a gargoyle-sculptor's workshop? A fragment of the Oracular Visage of Garthos? A deep curiosity drives him, and he travels the world tirelessly seeking his origins, his parentage, his people. As he roams, he gathers weight and size; the forces that weather lesser rocks, instead cause Tiny to grow and ever grow."''
Tiny may seem like a weak hero at the beginning of a match, but give him enough time and he'll soon start to throw his weight around. As the game progresses, he bounces from role to role as he levels up; he can push, initiate, gank, or even carry depending on what items he builds and the needs of the team. Boasting a powerful disable and a versatile initiation attack, Tiny can easily stun his foes with his first spell, ''Avalanche'', which causes a huge amount of rocks to bombard the area, dealing damage as long as the opponent is caught inside. Tiny can then throw a random nearby unit into the mayhem with ''Toss'', his second spell, which allows him to pick up and throw a unit, be it friend or foe, in a radius around him. Be warned, however, as the unit he picks up is random in it's radius. Close range attackers will be discouraged by his third spell, a passive called ''Craggy Exterior'', which has a chance of negating an attack and stunning its source, though only works in melee range of about 300 units. As the Stone Giant levels his ultimate, ''Grow'', he'll trade in some of his attack speed for bonus movement speed and attack damage, and prove to his opponents that good things can come in small packages.
* TheBigGuy: With his ultimate maxed out, Tiny is easily the largest character in the game, rivaled only by Undying's ''[[SuperMode Flesh Golem]]''.
* CounterAttack: Enemies that attack Tiny from within 300 units have a chance of being stunned by his passive ''Craggy Exterior''.
** NoSell: ''Craggy Exterior'' stuns attackers when their attack ''begins'' not when it lands, meaning any attack that triggers ''Craggy Exterior'' will ''not'' do damage. This is especially notable against heroes with a bash, Skull Basher or Abyssal Blade, as when both proc, ''Craggy Exterior'' takes precedence.
* DevelopersForesight: You're not likely to make Aghanim's Scepter before you have your ultimate. But if you do, you'll be treated to a sight of Tiny hauling around a comically large tree - twice as big as himself if you didn't level the ultimate at all - with unique animations for all actions.
* DishingOutDirt: As a stone giant, this is to be expected.
* FastballSpecial: ''Toss'' can be used this way to hurl allies into the midst of enemies for teamfight initiation.
* GlowingEyes
* {{Golem}}: Sort of.
* GrievousHarmWithABody: When used against an enemy, ''Toss'' inflicts damage to the tossed unit, and does [=AoE=] damage if targeted on an enemy. If combined with ''Avalanche'', it inflicts double ''Avalanche'''s damage, making Tiny capable of [[OneHitKill one-shotting]] most squishy heroes in the game.
* HerdHittingAttack: Tiny's ''Avalanche'' + ''Toss'' combo and the cleave from his ultimate makes standing close a very bad idea.
* HulkSpeak: One of his lines even deliberately makes a ShoutOut as such.
-->'''Tiny:''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/3/35/Tiny_attack_12.mp3 Tiny smash!]]
** SophisticatedAsHell: However, he could be quite articulate if he wants to.
-->'''Tiny:''' [[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/b/b3/Tiny_rare_04.mp3 Was I a splinter from a golem's heel? A chip from the Oracular Visage of Garthos? I shall not rest until I know from whence I came.]]
* InformedAttribute: Despite being a giant rock monster, Tiny has no armor to speak of, and only gains a slight amount with ''Craggy Exterior''. [[FridgeBrilliance Then again]], that rock is part of his body, meaning that he technically isn't ''wearing'' any armor...
* IronicNickname: Although his name is true at first, Tiny quickly becomes one of the largest characters in the game.
** "Tiny the Stone Giant" is this no matter how you look at it.
* JackOfAllStats[=/=]MagicKnight: Tiny starts the game as a squishy nuker/ganker, then with Aghanim's Scepter becomes a durable, if slow-hitting pusher, and with more attack speed becomes a hard carry. The difference from most other heroes is that he doesn't sacrifice any of these roles for the other; his spells scale well into the lategame, augmenting his slow but damaging melee attacks.
* LightningBruiser: As you level ''Grow'', Tiny actually ''gains'' movement speed, to the point where he can chase most heroes around the map pretty easily, and his innate tankiness and a chance to stun attacking enemies give him incredible survivability.
* MagikarpPower: In the beginning of the game, Tiny is pretty pathetic - he has terrible Agility, two spells that eat his mana very quickly, and fairly poor stat growth. Give him a few levels and a Hyperstone and Aghanim's Scepter, though, and he'll soon transform into a LightningBruiser, capable of smashing entire teams asunder by the mid-to-late game.
* MightyGlacier
* OurGiantsAreBigger: Unlike a typical giant, Tiny is made of stone. He also can't be considered a proper "giant" until ''Grow'' is maxed.
* PrimalStance: Tiny's legs aren't that much bigger than a regular hero's, while his upper body is ''massive''. As a result, he has to use his right hand to steady himself while walking, and when he gets bigger, just standing.
* PowerFist: Tiny's right hand is a giant rock stump with no fingers that he walks on and uses to punch people, although the second use is shown less as Tiny gets bigger, and starts using his smaller left hand for punching.
* QuestForIdentity: His goal is to find his origin.
* RedRightHand: His right hand is a giant stone stump without any fingers that he uses the bludgeon his enemies with, althought it takes a back seat to his smaller left hand once gets to the higher levels of ''Grow'' and needs to use it to steady himself.
* RockMonster
* SiegeEngines: He's ''very'' good at demolishing towers, and pushing down creepwaves to get there once he gets his scepter. Even before, he can sling creeps at it for 100 damage apiece. Not much, but still something.
* SquareCubeLaw: While he starts out more agile and capable of swinging his entire body around, Tiny loses agility as he gets larger ([[IThoughtItMeant not the stat]]), to the point that, at full size, he has to ''constantly'' steady himself with his right hand, even when attacking.
* SurprisinglySuddenDeath: Casting ''Toss'' on a hero while they're being hit by ''Avalanche'' causes them to take double damage from ''Avalanche'', allowing Tiny to annihilate lone enemy heroes ''very'' quickly. Throw in a [[DynamicEntry Blink Dagger]], and pain tends to ensue.
* TelephonePolearm: If given Aghanim's Scepter, Tiny will use A TREE as a bludgeon.
* ThisLooksLikeAJobForAquaman: Tiny's synergy with Io is worth noting: ''Tether'' combined with a Bottle solves his mana problems, allowing him to spam ''Toss'' to farm the jungle, and also helps his mobility, while ''Relocate'' allows him to gank globally every minute and snowball, making Tiny come online much earlier than he normally would. The trade-off is, Tiny is just inferior to other carries without Io, and in professional games he is almost never picked without an allied Io, and is only banned when the enemy team has already picked Io.
* WeirdBeard: Made of moss and later ferns.
* YouHaveResearchedBreathing: The entire advantage to getting an staff once wielded by a demigod-like Wizard for Tiny? Him picking up a ''tree''. Justified in the description of the Crystal Dryad cosmetic tree: the Tree is actually Aghanim's Scepter itself in a form suited for Tiny.
-->''Had the ancient mage but known what corruption his scepter would inflict upon the world, he would have burned and buried it, and sown salt over its cursed grave. For when carried in a fist of stone, Aghanim's scepter unleashes the spirit of the Crystal Dryad, and no foe is safe.''
[[/folder]]
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[[folder:Kunkka, the Admiral]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Kunkka_4108.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/7/75/Kunk_rare_01.mp3 "If the demons of the Cataract couldn't sink my fleet, then this lot doesn't stand a chance."]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' John St. John
''"As Admiral of the mighty Claddish Navy, Kunkka was charged with protecting the isles of his homeland when the Demons of the Cataract made a concerted grab at the lands of men. After years of small sorties, and increasingly bold and devastating attacks, the Demon Fleet flung all its carnivorous ships at the Trembling Isle. Desperate, the Suicide-Mages of Cladd committed their ultimate rite, summoning a host of ancestral spirits to protect the fleet. Against the Demons, this was just barely enough to turn the tide. As Kunkka watched the Demons take his ships down one by one, he had the satisfaction of wearing away their fleet with his ancestral magic. But at the battle's peak, something in the clash of demons, men and atavistic spirits must have stirred a fourth power that had been slumbering in the depths. The waves rose up in towering spouts around the few remaining ships, and Maelrawn the Tentacular appeared amid the fray. His tendrils wove among the ships, drawing demon and human craft together, churning the water and wind into a raging chaos. What happened in the crucible of that storm, none may truly say. The Cataract roars off into the void, deserted by its former denizens. Kunkka is now Admiral of but one ship, a ghostly rig which endlessly replays the final seconds of its destruction. Whether he died in that crash is anyone's guess. Not even Tidehunter, who summoned Maelrawn, knows for sure."''
As both a carry and an initiator, Kunkka strikes a balance between physical prowess and magical offense. Although many of his spells have long cast times and require careful timing and map awareness, good Kunkka players can easily set up teamfights or take a powerful enemy out of commission. ''Tidebringer'', his first spell, a passive and his main source of offensive utility in lane, periodically cleaves on hit, dealing a healthy amount of physical damage to every nearby enemy. His second spell and main nuke, ''Torrent'', damages, stuns, and slows any unwary enemy caught in its area of effect when it activates. ''X Marks the Spot'' will drag any enemy hero back to its original position after a short period of time and synchronizes well with his other spells. His ultimate, ''Ghost Ship'', will not only damage and stun any enemies caught in its path, but will also buff the Admiral and any nearby allies by reducing any incoming damage, turning the Admiral and his mates into a fighting force to be reckoned with.
* AlphaStrike: Because of his extremely limited mana pool, Kunkka players must carefully decide when and where they'll cast their spells, since even a max level Kunkka will easily chew through at least half his mana pool casting only a handful of spells if he hasn't built any mana pool increasing items (as he will likely be building raw damage in order to splash physical damage on the enemy through ''Tidebringer''). If a Kunkka decides to cast all three of his spells in a single teamfight (potentially dealing upwards of 900 area-of-effect magical damage on top of the stuns and disables, and before even factoring in ''Tidebringer''), he'll spend upwards of 500 mana, rendering him unable to use even a Town Portal Scroll afterward.
* ArchEnemy: He and Tidehunter hate each other's guts.
* BadassBeard[=/=]SeadogBeard: A truly magnificent one at that.
* BoozeBasedBuff: The buff provided by his ultimate, ''Ghost Ship'', is called Kunkka's Rum, which reduces all incoming damage by 50% and deals the remainder as non-lethal damage afterward.
* TheCaptain: Admiral, to be exact.
* TheComputerIsACheatingBastard: Before a patch fix Kunkka bots could perfectly aim ''Torrent'' to hit invisible players despite the bot having no legit way of knowing that player was there, to quote the patch note itself "Fixed Kunkka being a dirty cheater when using Torrent."
* CoolSword
* CriticalHitClass: While Kunkka has no natural ability to crit, ''Tidebringer'' splashes all enemies in front of him with 100% cleave damage (meaning that it ignores armor). This means that smart Kunkka players will abuse this by building a Battle Fury (or two) to increase the cleave percentage, a Daedalus (or two) to inflict critical hits (and increase the chances of landing a crit if more than one is bought), a Shadow Blade to initiate (and to apply the 175 bonus damage), and damage items to increase his raw attack power. A lucky crit that also procs ''Tidebringer'' will deal a massive crit damage to all targets in an area, bypassing any armor that they may have and potentially resulting in a TotalPartyKill.
--> '''Kunkka, buying Crystalys:''' [[IncrediblyLamePun "Yes, Fish]] [[http://hydra-images.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/b/be/Kunk_item_10.mp3 and Crits!"]]
* DifficultButAwesome
** Both ''Torrent'' and ''Ghost Ship'' have extremely long delays, so they're very hard to land. However, a good Kunkka can cast ''X Marks the Spot'' and ''Torrent'' combos to lock down enemies, and even toss ''Ghost Ship'' into the mix for a combo that will deal a massive amount of damage to a group of enemies.
** On top of this, ''Ghost Ship'' is a fixed distance spell; unlike other spells which you can cast as near or as far as you'd like within its maximum range, ''Ghost Ship'' will always start exactly 1000 units behind Kunkka, take exactly 3 seconds to travel a fixed 2000 distance, and hit a spot exactly 1000 units in front of Kunkka. This, on top of the long delay, means that hitting an enemy team with ''Ghost Ship'' is an extremely precise art that requires good positioning. Failing to do that, you're more likely to hear this:
-->'''Kunkka''': [[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/8/8f/Kunk_ability_failure_02.mp3 "Now that was a fail-boat."]]
** ''Tidebringer'' is a powerful area cleave, but is hard to bring off due to it only proccing once every few seconds (meaning that you'll have to refrain from attacking until just the right moment). However, properly used, a smart Kunkka player can use nearby creeps (and even enemy summons in a teamfight) to splash through the enemy's armor and hit the entire enemy team at once.
** ''X Marks the Spot'' has more utility than preventing enemy Heroes from escaping. When cast on an allied Hero, it provides double the delay that it would for an enemy Hero, allowing them to either temporarily move to another part of the map to push or counter-push, or initiate on the enemy with a guaranteed method of return (provided that Kunkka can time the return well). This means that a TP scroll can be used to go back to base to quickly heal up and then get back into the fight, an ally can TP to counter-push a tower and then return back to the front lines, or an ally can chase a fleeing enemy and finish them off and then return to safety. Even better, Heroes with invulnerability abilities such as Shadow Demon, Puck, and Outworld Devourer can simply use them to break the return if the X-marked hero doesn't want to.
* EvolvingWeapon: ''Tidebringer'' is both Kunkka's weapon and a levellable passive ability.
* ExactlyWhatIAimedAt: Good Kunkka players don't aim their first shot at a hero if possible, but at a ''creep'' so all 5 heroes take the armor-ignoring cleave damage. He can also do this in chases or to harass, hitting a creep and letting his massive splash hammer the heroes behind it.
* FlyingDutchman: ''Ghost Ship'' summons the ghost of his ship to ram his enemies.
* FourStarBadass
* GhostPirate: It's been hinted at in his BackStory that he might have been killed in the crash, but no one truly knows.
** Also suggested by one of his responses:
--> '''Kunkka, meeting [[OurZombiesAreDifferent Dirge the Undying]]:''' [[http://hydra-images.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/4/45/Kunk_ally_05.mp3 "Ah, Undying, we'll make a ghastly crew."]]
* GoingDownWithTheShip: Referenced in one of his losing responses.
* HerdHittingAttack: ''Tidebringer'' turns his main melee attack into this every once in awhile.
* JackOfAllStats: Because Kunkka has so much damage potential and utility in his spells without the need for farm, he is sometimes played as a support who uses his spells to lock down the enemy for the carries on his team to focus down. The other benefit of a support Kunkka build is that since he isn't spending so much time farming physical damage items to buff up ''Tidebringer'', he can actually build items to extend his mana pool and allow him to cast his spells without limit.
* LeadTheTarget: Both ''Torrent'' and ''Ghost Ship'' have to be manually aimed with fairly long delays.
* MagicKnight: Kunkka has a wide array of powerful magic spells and nukes, but he's also well known for being able to splash absurd amounts of physical damage across the enemy team as well, making him one of the few examples of a Magic Knight who remains strong in both categories throughout a match. His only real limitations are the difficulty of landing his nukes, his relatively low manfight potential and his small mana pool.
* MakingASplash: He is able to summon geysers from underneath his enemies, and his sword is able to splash enemies with water.
* NamedLikeMyName: The hero is named after the artist who did a lot of the splash artwork for the original Dota.
* NamedWeapons[=/=]OddlyShapedSword: Tidebringer
* OfficerAndAGentleman
* PirateParrot: Kunkka's parrot Lieutenant Squawkins, available as a courier.
* RammingAlwaysWorks: ''Ghost Ship'' always destroys itself upon crashing at the targeted point, though it matters little since it ''is'' a FlyingDutchman.
* SoulPower: The lore for ''Tidebringer'':
--> A lost Claddish soul inhabits Kunkka's trusty Tidebringer, empowering it to destroy demons of the Cataract.
* SpellBlade: Kunkka's sword Tidebringer is able to deal bonus cleave damage every few seconds.
* SplashDamageAbuse: Very much so, his play style based on dealing massive SplashDamage with hard-to-land abilities.
* StealthPun: He specalizes in [[HerdHittingAttack Spl]][[MakingASplash ash]] damage.
* TalkLikeAPirate
* TeleportInterdiction: ''X Marks the Spot'' can be used on enemies who are trying to flee, as they will be brought back to the X after up to 4 seconds no matter how far they've gone.
* TotalPartyKill: If a farmed Kunkka lands a ''Torrent'' + ''Ghostship'' combo on your team, don't expect to survive to the end of the stun. Especially if he has [[CriticalHit Daedalus.]]
* TreasureMap: The inspiration for his third skill, ''X Marks the Spot''.
* WaterGeyserVolley: Anyone caught inside a ''Torrent'' will get launched high on the air before slamming into the ground.
* XMarksTheHero: The scar on his forehead. Plus he has a more literal example in ''X Marks the Spot''.
* YouWillNotEvadeMe: ''X Marks the Spot'' helps land his skills by returning an enemy to target location after a few seconds' delay.
** And generally, he has three aimed abilities that let him kill enemies well out of sight.
---> '''Kunkka:''' [[http://hydra-images.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/f/f0/Kunk_ability_torrent_04.mp3 "The fog can't hide ya!"]]
[[/folder]]
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[[folder:Karroch, the Beastmaster]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Beastmaster_928.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/c/c4/Beas_spawn_05.mp3 "Unleash the beasts of war!"]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Sam A. Mowry
''"Karroch was born a child of the stocks. His mother died in childbirth; his father, a farrier for the Mad King of Slom, was trampled to death when he was five. Afterward Karroch was indentured to the king’s menagerie, where he grew up among all the beasts of the royal court: lions, apes, fell-deer, and things less known, things barely believed in. When the lad was seven, an explorer brought in a beast like none before seen. Dragged before the King in chains, the beast spoke, though its mouth moved not. Its words: a plea for freedom. The King only laughed and ordered the beast perform for his amusement; and when it refused, struck it with the Mad Scepter and ordered it dragged to the stocks. Over the coming months, the boy Karroch sneaked food and medicinal draughts to the wounded creature, but only managed to slow its deterioration. Wordlessly, the beast spoke to the boy, and over time their bond strengthened until the boy found he could hold up his end of a conversation--could in fact speak now to all the creatures of the King's menagerie. On the night the beast died, a rage came over the boy. He incited the animals of the court to rebel and threw open their cages to set them amok on the palace grounds. The Mad King was mauled in the mayhem. In the chaos, one regal stag bowed to the boy who had freed him; and with Beastmaster astride him, leapt the high walls of the estate, and escaped. Now a man, Karroch the Beastmaster has not lost his ability to converse with wild creatures. He has grown into a warrior at one with nature’s savagery."''
With one of the longest stuns in the game and two unique summons to help him out, Beastmaster excels at staying alive even against the toughest odds. Though his spells may lack the raw damage potential of other heroes, he makes up for it with their strong versatility and support potential; he can frequently set up advantageous situations for his teammates or save an ally. ''Wild Axes'', his main damage-dealing spell, has him hurl his two axes at any enemy in a medium-large range and damages everything caught in their looping path. It can also slice down trees in their path, meaning that Beastmaster can easily cut a path through normally impassible terrain or remove fog of war on the map. ''Call of the Wild'', his second spell, has two parts; the first part summons a hawk that, while it cannot attack, can provide flying vision to allies and serve as a mobile ward. The second part summons a boar that can fight alongside its master; its normal ranged attack slows enemies. ''Inner Beast'' provides a passive attack speed to every friendly unit in its radius, including his summoned units. His ultimate, ''Primal Roar'', deals magical damage and stuns a target for up to four seconds, providing ample time for the Beastmaster and his wild cohorts to finish off their prey.
* ArmorPiercingAttack: ''Primal Roar'' can stun its target through spell immunity, and knock back spell immune enemies between him and the primary target (although no damage will be dealt to spell immune units and secondary targets won't be slowed after the push). It's one of the most powerful disables in the game since it can be cast from range and will guaranteed stun its target for up to 4 seconds.
* AnAxeToGrind: Beastmaster's WeaponOfChoice is a pair of tomahawks. He can even throw and retrieve them [[ImprobableUseOfAWeapon like a boomerang]] via his first ability, ''Wild Axes''.
--> '''Beastmaster (casting Wild Axes):''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/5/59/Beas_ability_axes_04.mp3 ''Boomeraxe.'']]
** DualWielding
** ImprobableUseOfAWeapon: How can he retrieve his throwing axes is rather inexplicable.
* BadassBeard
** BeardOfBarbarism
* TheBeastmaster
* CallASmeerpARabbit: His boar and hawk don't look like what they're insisted to be. Changing them with cosmetic items will turn them into entirely different species as well.
* DefogOfWar: ''Call of the Wild'''s Scout Hawk is one of the best examples of this. While the Lesser Hawk has only mediocre vision range, it's a flying unit with the associated movement and vision capabilities, meaning that it can fly over cliffs and trees, and see through them as well. It can even see safely into Roshan's pit if positioned properly.
** {{Invisibility}}: The Greater Hawk, if left motionless for 3 seconds, will fade into invisibility over 1 second (though moving it again will break the invisibility), effectively turning it into a mobile Observer Ward that lasts for 60 seconds.
* {{Familiar}}s[=/=]SummonMagic: ''Call of the Wild'' lets Beastmaster summon a hawk and a boar, with varying increases in effectiveness as he levels the skill up. Each lasts for 60 seconds with the skills on a 40 second cooldown each, meaning he can summon up to four units to control at once (even moreso if he purchases a Refresher Orb).
* FieldPowerEffect: ''Inner Beast'' increases the attack speed of Beastmaster and any nearby allies, and is possessed by his illusions as well. While the numbers aren't highly impressive, its strength is in the fact that it stacks on top of existing attack speed buffs and applies to creeps and summons as well, so Beastmaster being in the general area of a teamfight can greatly augment the amount of physical damage the whole team does, including the squishy hard supports.
* JackOfAllStats: Beastmaster can push and semi-carry with ''Call of the Wild'' and ''Inner Beast'', initiate and disable with ''Primal Roar'', and provide utility and carry auras with his inherent tankiness. There are lots of heroes who can do all of these individual tasks better - but very few who can turn their hand to so many. Because of this, he tends to pick up whatever responsibilities his team needs filling the most. For example, if your team didn't have a proper initiator, you'd probably pick up a Blink Dagger and Aghanim's Scepter so that you can provide that. If your team has an AFK jungler and only 1 support, you may well fill in with a Mekansm if the core heroes aren't very interested in one.
* MagicKnight: Beastmaster has a large array of spells that give him vast amounts of utility (''Wild Axes'', for instance, can be used to cut down trees and stack or kill Ancient camps), and ''Inner Beast'' helps to give his physical damage output some impact. However, he's stronger in the casting department than in the fighting department, moreso since he's very mana-independent (his ''Wild Axes'' and ''Primal Roar'' are the only spells he has that consume large amounts of mana), and ''Inner Beast'' isn't a very strong damage steroids.
* MakeMeWannaShout: Beastmaster's ultimate, ''Primal Roar'', pushes aside anyone who stands in the way and stuns the primary target.
* NatureHero
* PoisonousPerson: The boar's attack can inflict a poison that slows attack and movement speeds. The Lesser Boar's slow is not very impressive, but the Greater Boar can slow by more than twice as much.
* [[RaisedByWolves Raised By Beasts Of The Royal Court]]
* SomeDexterityRequired: Because he can summon units with ''Call of the Wild'', proper Beastmaster play revolves around being able to micromanage where you place them and how you use them. Because he can have up to two hawks and boars each active at a time, it takes a lot of dexterity and planning to put them where they're most needed (to say nothing of being able to stack up to three jungle camps at once if you're good enough).
* SpeaksFluentAnimal
* StoneWall: Being a Strength hero with good base armour, Beastmaster is fairly tanky (and can become even more so by building the right items), but his utility-oriented skillset and so-so right-click attack mean that he has trouble dishing out damage to the degree that a true carry can.
* TheyHaveTheScent: Referenced in some of his lines in both the original [=DotA=] and Dota 2.
--> '''Rexxar:''' ''I've got the scent.''
--> '''Karroch:''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/9/9e/Beas_cast_01.mp3 ''Mmm, caught your scent.'']]
* TribalFacePaint
* WalkingShirtlessScene: With bonus LoinCloth.
* WalkingTheEarth: As a wandering vagrant.
[[/folder]]
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[[folder:Davion, the Dragon Knight]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Dragon_Knight_1728.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/9/93/Drag_rare_01.mp3 "Never make a deal with a dragon,]][[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/f/f3/Dragon_rare_01.mp3 unless you're prepared to keep your end of it.]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Tony Todd
''"After years on the trail of a legendary Eldwurm, the skilled dragon-slayer found himself facing a disappointing foe: the dreaded Slyrak had grown ancient and frail, its wings tattered, its few remaining scales stricken with scale-rot, its fangs ground to nubs, and its fire-gouts no more threatening than a pack of wet matchsticks. Seeing no honor to be gained in dragon-murder, the young knight prepared to turn away and leave his old foe to die in peace. But a voice crept into his thoughts, and Slyrak gave a whispered plea that the knight might honor him with death in combat. The knight agreed, and found himself rewarded beyond expectation for his act of mercy: As he sank his blade in Slyrak's breast, the dragon sank a claw into his throat. As their blood mingled, Slyrak sent his power out along the Blood Route, offering all its strength and centuries of wisdom to the knight. The dragon's death sealed their bond, and Dragon Knight was born. The ancient power slumbers in the knight, waking when he calls it; or perhaps it is the Dragon that calls the Knight..."''
Dragon Knight's durability and strength is rivalled only by a handful of other heroes, and few of them can outfight a well-played Davion on the offensive. Unlike other melee carries who are vulnerable in the early game, Dragon Knight can mitigate this weakness with his passive skill ''Dragon Blood'', giving him a permanent armor boost as well as buff to his natural health regeneration, meaning that he can farm with impunity for much of the early game. His two main damaging spells ''Breathe Fire'' and ''Dragon Tail'' . '' Breathe Fire'' deals magic damage in a line, and ''Dragon Tail'' causes Dragon Knight's next attack to stun a single target in melee range. Dragon Knight's real offensive power lies with his ultimate, ''Elder Dragon Form''. Activating this spell temporarily turns the knight into a powerful dragon for sixty seconds, temporarily boosting damage and turning his all of his attacks and ''Dragon Tail'' into ranged damage and giving his attacks a temporary attack modifier which transitions from early game pushing power to late game teamfight dominance as he levels the ability, giving Dragon Knight ample time to tear his enemies apart. As the spell levels up, Dragon Knight will alter his Dragon Form into one of three variants, each getting more powerful and adding more debuffs as he levels it up. The first is a green dragon with ''Corrosive Breath'', which causes poison damage over time. His second form is a red dragon with a splash attack that deals damage to everyone around him, and keeps ''Corrosive Breath'' in this form as well. His final form, a blue dragon, keeps his splash attack and poison damage, but adds a massive slow to the target.
* AmbiguouslyBrown: Not very easy to see under his helmet, nor most of his earlier cosmetics, but it's more notable with his later sets which have more open-faced helmets.
* AchillesHeel: Dragon Knight is very dependent on ''Elder Dragon Form'' to perform well, meaning he's only online half the time and making Aegis and buyback minimally effective.
* BadassBeard: Not quite visible in the image, but more obvious in-game.
* BoringButPractical: Besides ''Elder Dragon Form'' none of his abilities are very flashy, two simple straightforward targetted spells and a defense boost, yet they're highly effective, and can even see him through mid-lane against the usually ranged opposition with far more fancier spells to boot.
* BloodMagic: Slyrak transfered his powers, and possibly even his mind into Davion via mixing their blood.
* BreathWeapon: He can use ''Breathe Fire'' to breathe cones of fire to burn his enemies. In dragon form, this replaces his normal attack.
* ByTheLightsOfTheirEyes: His eyes appear to glow from under his helmet.
* CastFromHitPoints: While he has no abilities that do this naturally, Dragon Knight's high regeneration leads to picking up items that let him do this, such as a Soul Ring to dominate lanes and being one of the few heroes who can justify using Armlet of Mordiggian without any form of Lifesteal.
* CoolHelmet
* CoolSword:
** NamedWeapons: It's named Wyrmblade.
** LittleUselessGun: It's practically the sword equivalent, being a short, one-handed sword of reasonable proportions as opposed to other Strength heroes using much larger and bulkier weapons, which could be the reason for his pitiful base damage.
* DiscOneNuke: ''Dragon Tail'' while being absolutely worthless as a nuke, is ''incredibly'' powerful a stun, with a full 2.5 second duration from level one. Comboing ''Dragon Tail'' with a more easily-landed stun such as ''Telekinesis'' or ''Wraithfire Blast'' can earn a first blood.
* DragonKnight: [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Natch.]]
* EnemyMine: Davion seems to have this going on with Jakiro, as even if Jakiro is a dragon, they don't seem to like each other much. They don't have any ally lines either. Although Jakiro seems to act shocked whenever Davion kills him.
* EyelessFace: With the Kindred of the Iron Dragon cosmetic item, the model of ''Elder Dragon Form'' is turned into an eyeless, armoured iron dragon.
* FusionDance: Between Davion and Slyrak.
* GameplayAndStorySegregation: No matter what element his dragon from's normal BreathWeapon takes, he always uses Fire breath with ''Breath Fire''.
* GradualGrinder: An area slow, high armor, high regeneration, high health, a damage-reducing debuff and a very effective stun let him grind away at enemies, but he lacks straight damage boosts, with his only real "Steroid" being a pitiful 20/s damage over time.
* HealingFactor: ''Dragon Blood'' gives Dragon Knight a significant boost to his health regeneration.
* HeWhoFightsMonsters: He seems quite protective of dragons for a dragon hunter, probably absorbing a part of Slyrak's personality.
--> '''Dragon Knight (Killing Lina):''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/1/1e/Drag_lina_02.mp3 "That's what you get, Lina, for enslaving dragons."]]
* LuckilyMyShieldWillProtectMe: He's one of the game's few heroes with a shield and one of, if not the toughest.
* MightyGlacier: Dragon Knight is incredibly durable with natural stat growth and ''Dragon Blood'', and can deal quite a punch in teamfights thanks to ''Elder Dragon Form'''s splash damage. However, he has one of the worst movement speeds in the game, which is only somewhat alleviated by ''Elder Dragon Form''. Of course, he also has plenty of ways to make the other guy ''slower'' than him to compensate.
* MonsterKnight
* OurDragonsAreDifferent
* PlayingWithFire: Davion can breathe cones of fire with his first ability ''Breathe Fire''.
* PowerGivesYouWings: With the Kindred of the Iron Dragon cosmetic item, Davion briefly gains a pair of transparent red wings when using ''Dragon Tail''.
* PowerLimiter: ''Breathe Fire'' reduces the base damage of its targets, making it difficult for Dragon Knight's lane opponent to last hit and supplementing his tremendous physical damage resistance..
* ThePowerOfBlood: Used by Slyrak to give his power to Davion.
* ShieldBash: ''Dragon Tail''
** TailSlap: When ''Elder Dragon Form'' is active, ''Dragon Tail'' becomes this trope.
* SimpleYetAwesome: Dragon Knight is a very simple strength carry, who nonetheless is potent throughout most stages of the game. Valve themselves picked up on this, and Dragon Knight is used in the new tutorial system to introduce players to Dota.
* StoneWall: He lacks any actual damage-increasing skills, but pulling him down before he does so to you is nevertheless very difficult.
* SplitPersonalityTakeover[=/=]SuperMode: ''Elder Dragon Form'' turns him to a dragon with higher movespeed, ranged attack and stun, and a free orb effect.
** PowerMakesYourVoiceDeep[=/=]PowerEchoes: Dragon Knight's voice in his ''Elder Dragon Form'' is deeper and has more echo than his original voice.
--> '''Dragon Knight''': [[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/a/af/DK_dragon_move_10.mp3 "Who calls the Dragon Knight."]]
** HerdHittingAttack: When ''Elder Dragon Form'' reaches level 2, Davion's attacks in dragon form will deal splash damage in a small radius(a little more than twice melee range).
** PoisonousPerson: When a single point is placed, the Green Dragon gets damage over time in his attack.
** AnIcePerson: And when it's maxed, the level 3 Blue Dragon's attacks also slow enemies' move and attack speed.
* SuperToughness: He has great base armor, and ''Dragon Blood'' gives him absurd amounts of armor and HP regen, before he even starts getting items. It's not uncommon to have over 70% resistance to physical damage, making him nigh-invincible in direct combat.
* VoluntaryShapeshifting: Into Slyrak.
* WhyWontYouDie: All but the most deadly physical damage dealers find dealing with him a chore, as he has a long-duration stun, ranged slow, base damage reduction on his nuke, and can easily have 75% physical damage resistance with the right items. [[FromBadToWorse And then he gets evasion and a Black King Bar]]...
[[/folder]]
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[[folder:Rattletrap, the Clockwerk]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Clockwerk_2349.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/f/f8/Ratt_respawn_10.mp3 "I have a degree in mechanical domineering!"]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Sam A. Mowry
''"Rattletrap descends from the same far-flung kindred as Sniper and Tinker, and like many of the Keen Folk, has offset his diminutive stature through the application of gadgetry and wit. The son of the son of a clockmaker, Rattletrap was many years apprenticed to that trade before war rode down from the mountains and swept the plains villages free of such innocent vocations. Your new trade is battle,” his dying father told him as the village of their ancestors lay in charred and smoking ruins. It is a poor tradesman who blames his tools, and Rattletrap was never one to make excuses. After burying his father among the ruins of their village, he set about to transform himself into the greatest tool of warfare that any world had ever seen. He vowed to never again be caught unprepared, instead using his talents to assemble a suit of powered Clockwerk armor to make the knights of other lands look like tin cans by comparison. Now Rattletrap is alive with devices - a small but deadly warrior whose skills at ambush and destruction have risen to near-automated levels of efficiency. An artisan of death, his mechanizations make short work of the unwary, heralding a new dawn in this age of warfare. What time is it? It's Clockwerk time!"''
Rattletrap is the one-two killing machine. As both an initiator and a ganker, he can get close and start beating his foes like scrap metal and escape without a dent. Clockwerk can prevent foes from counterattacking and teleporting away with ''Battery Assault,'' a passive ability which causes mini-stuns, interrupting channels. Clockwerk's second spell, ''Power Cogs'' summons 8 cogs around him, trapping those who are hit by it, prevents escaping, and pushes away anyone that get close to the traps, damaging and draining mana in the process. His ''Rocket Flare'' ability fires a rocket that damages enemies in the area-of-effect and reveals the struck area. Clockwerk's final ability allows him to enter the fray in seconds with ''Hookshot,'' which fires a harpoon and if it connects to any unit, friend or foe, will pull Clockwerk straight into the area, either to run from an unwinnable fight or to stun and begin beating his foes into recycling.
* AdaptationSpeciesChange: In [=DotA=], he was known as "Clockwerk Goblin". He was changed to Keen in Dota 2, making him the same race as Tinker and Sniper, though the armor design still bears a goblin motif.
* BarrierWarrior: ''Power Cogs'' forms a barrier of eight energised cogs around Clockwerk, trapping nearby units and shocking enemies if they approach.
* CallASmeerpARabbit: Clockwerk refers to mana as fuel.
* ClockPunk
* [[ClockworkCreature Clockwerk Armor]]: His suit of armor is incredibly complex, with many whirring gizmos and ticking parts, albeit gasoline-powered. ClockworkCreature was played straight in the first [=DotA=].
* CoolHelmet
* DefogOfWar: His third ability, ''Rocket Flare'', on top of having global range and dealing damage, lights up the area where it explodes for several seconds, and reveals terrain as it flies over, making it useful for scouting out areas on the other side of the map.
* DifficultButAwesome: Despite its global range, ''Rocket Flare'' travels fairly slowly, meaning that it can be difficult to hit targets that aren't standing still if you're shooting your flare anywhere that isn't on the same screen as Clockwerk. ''Hookshot'' also has a very limited radius of effect, making it hard to latch onto enemy heroes that are actively trying to juke you. But once you master these skills, Clockwerk becomes much deadlier. Flares can push creep lanes from the other side of the map and snipe fleeing enemy heroes in the dark (or simply to deny an enemy's Healing Salve or Clarity during early laning), while ''Hookshot'' can travel across more than a screen to latch enemy heroes who think they're safe, use ''Power Cogs'' to lock them in, and activate ''Battery Assault'' to deal damage over time.
* DynamicEntry: Because ''Hookshot'' has such a massive range (well beyond visual range at all levels), Clockwerk can use it to latch onto enemy heroes who don't even know that he's in the area ("area" being anywhere within two screens). It gets even more absurd if Lifestealer is hitching a ride, since a hero can suddenly get stunned without warning, and find themselves at melee range with a Battery Assaulting Clockwerk '''and''' a very angry Lifestealer, all while being Cogged in.
* FourFingeredHands
* GadgeteerGenius
* GlacierWaif: As a Keen, he is much smaller than most heroes, but his primary role is a ganker/initiator and his stats and skills make him very tanky in combat.
* GrapplingHookPistol: Rattletrap's ultimate, ''Hookshot'', pulls him towards enemies or allies, damaging and stunning enemies he connects with (as well as anything hostile along the way).
* LeadTheTarget: ''Rocket Flare'' will allow players to snipe people from across the map once they get a feel for how much damage it does, and how fast it travels.
* LightningBruiser: On top of having impressive Agility gain and being a Strength hero, he has above-average movement speed, and ''Hookshot'' allows him to instantly close the gap between him and his target, making him extremely mobile.
* ManaBurn: Enemies that touch the ''Power Cogs'' barrier are shocked, losing both health and mana.
* OddNameOut[=/=]TheArtifact: "Rattletrap" isn't exactly a common given name for a [[OurDwarvesAreDifferent Keen]]. It's a leftover from his [=DotA=] character, which was a mechanical goblin.
* OverclockingAttack: Clockwerk's first ability, ''Battery Assault'', overloads the devices he doesn't need, exploding them into enemies' faces. It's a very situational ability though, since the devices explode against random enemies within range, meaning that it does massive damage when chasing a single fleeing enemy hero but can become utterly useless if your target runs through a creep wave.
* PoweredArmor
* PungeonMaster: It's probably easier to list his lines that are ''not'' puns. [[ShoutOut Shout Outs]], or snarks.
--> '''Clockwerk (grappling Tinker):''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/c/c8/Ratt_ability_hook_13.mp3 "Hook, line and Tinker!"]]
* RandomNumberGod: ''Battery Assault'''s greatest weakness is that it hits random targets nearby. This means that while it is extremely powerful against lone opponents, trying to use it in a crowd will spread the damage and mini-stuns out ineffectually.
* ScienceHero
* ShoulderCannon: ''Rocket Flare'' is fired from a device on his left shoulder.
* ShoutOut: One of his death animations is similar to [[{{Franchise/Terminator}} Terminator's death in a vat of molten metal]].
** To TheSixMillionDollarMan:
---> '''Clockwerk (respawning):''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/c/c8/Ratt_respawn_16.mp3 "I'm the six million gold piece man!"]]
** And to VideoGame/TeamFortress2:
---> '''Clockwerk (respawning):''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/4/49/Ratt_respawn_18.mp3 "Bleep bloop, I am a robot. Eh, just kidding."]]
* SuicideAttack: Clockwerk is often played as a suicide initiator, using ''Hookshot'' to fly straight into the enemy team and ''Power Cogs'' to disrupt their positioning and let his allies come in. As a result, he is often focused down and killed quickly, especially in the late game, when he becomes much less durable due to a lack of items since he farms extremely slowly.
* YouWillNotEvadeMe: All of Rattletrap's abilities make him extremely hard to evade once he has you in his sights:
** ''Battery Assault'', on top of dealing loads of damage over time, will mini-stun the enemy every time it connects, forcing them to stop (and cancelling any channeled abilities). This means that a Clockwerk walking alongside a lone opponent can slow them down drastically, on top of the damage.
** ''Power Cogs'' will lock down anybody within a certain radius of Clockwerk, preventing them from moving outside of an extremely small radius (all while being trapped right next to him).
** ''Rocket Flare'' has global range, allowing smart players to spot out enemies, or even kill weakened opponents with good aim.
** ''Hookshot'''s massive cast range allows Clockwerk to instantly latch on to and fly up to opponents that are even remotely near him.
[[/folder]]
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[[folder:Purist Thunderwrath, the Omniknight]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/omniknight_3633.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/8/86/Omni_spawn_05.mp3 "Where piety fails, my hammer falls."]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Bruce Miles
''"Purist Thunderwrath was a hard-fighting, road-worn, deeply committed knight, sworn to the order in which he had grown up as squire to elder knights of great reputation. He had spent his entire life in the service of the Omniscience, the All Seeing One. Theirs was a holy struggle, and so embedded was he in his duty that he never questioned it so long as he had the strength to fight and the impetuous valor that comes with youth. But over the long years of the crusade, as his elders passed away and were buried in sorry graves at the side of muddy tracks, as his bond-brothers fell in battle to uncouth creatures that refused to bow to the Omniscience, as his own squires were chewed away by ambush and plague and bad water, he began to question the meaning of his vows--the meaning of the whole crusade. After deep meditation, he parted ways with his army and commenced a long trek back to the cave-riddled cliffs of Emauracus, and there he set a challenge to the priests of the Omniscience. No knight had ever questioned them before, and they tried to throw him into the pit of sacrifice, but Purist would not be moved. For as he faced them down, he began to glow with a holy light, and they saw that the Omniscience had chosen to reveal Itself to him. The Elder Hierophant led him on a journey of weeks down into the deepest chamber, the holy of holies, where waited not some abstract concept of wisdom and insight, not some carved relic requiring an injection of imagination to believe in, but the old one itself. It had not merely dwelt in those rocks for billions of aeons; no, It had created them. The Omniscience had formed the immense mineral shell of the planet around itself, as a defense against the numerous terrors of space. Thus the All Seeing One claimed to have created the world, and given the other truths revealed to Purist on that day, the knight had no reason to refute the story. Perhaps the Omniscience is a liar, deep in its prison of stone, and not the world's creator at all, but Omniknight never again questioned his faith. His campaign had meaning at last. And there can be no question that the glorious powers that imbue him, and give his companions such strength in battle, are real beyond any doubt."''
Omniknight is '''the''' support hero. He is a very difficult hero to play as due to his slow movement speed and attack speed and high mana cost for his spells, but can wreck an entire enemy team if he is played competently, or give tremendous support to his team and bring them victory, even from the brink of defeat. His primary ability, ''Purification,'' both heals his allies and deals pure damage to any enemies within its area-of-effect. This can be cast on both himself and teammates, allowing him to save his friends from the brink of death. His ''Repel'' can be casted to an unit (and himself) and creates a barrier that prevents any abilities from working on the casted target, be it spells, disables or stuns which can have more duration than the newly-bought Black King Bar. ''Degen Aura'' is a passive which slows all foes within Omniknight's range, and greatly reduces attack speed. His ultimate, ''Guardian Angel,'' protects all units within his range from physical damage and also increases health regeneration. His Aghanim's Scepter upgrade affects ''all'' friendly units on the entire map, even creeps and towers.
* AntiMagic: ''Repel'', hands-down the most powerful magic immunity skill, it only has a 2 second downtime once fully leveled and costs an inconsequential amount of mana to cast.
* AwesomeMcCoolName: Purist Thunderwrath. His name will make you grow a beard as luscious and as manly as him.
* BadassBeard
* BarrierWarrior: Omniknight's second skill, ''Repel'', gives spell immunity to the target, making them invulnerable to most spells. What's more, since it's a targeted ability this means that heroes that normally don't purchase Black King Bar (either because they don't have enough farm, or because they need to buy another item first) can benefit from having spell immunity, and Omniknight can even use it to essentially double the up time for heroes who do have BKB (or allow them to initiate more easily by leading them off with spell immunity to ensure they don't get disabled before activating it). At max level (where it lasts for 12 seconds), he can spam it continuously and only give the enemy a two-second window to cast spells on the target if they don't have any purge abilities. Even late-game where everyone on both teams may be carrying Black King Bars (which become less effective the more you use them, only lasting for 5 seconds at its weakest state), the spammability of the spell (a 14-second cooldown and 50 MP cost) means that you can use it in any situation rather than hold it in reserve for just the right teamfight.
* ChurchMilitant
* ColorCodedWizardry: Was the case before, when his color scheme was blue, which helped indicate him as a healer-type support.
* CombatMedic: His first skill, ''Purification'', instantly heals the target for a massive amount and simultaneously damages everything around for the same amount (which is also Pure damage, meaning that it ignores magic resistance).
* CrystalDragonJesus: The Omniscience.
* DifficultButAwesome
** ''Repel'''s synergy with Omniknight's other spells can be hard to get used to. Its timing is easy to screw up, since you have to remember that certain helpful spells that you and your teammates can cast on each other (such as ''Purification'') are blocked by spell immunity, meaning that if you cast ''Repel'' on an ally to protect them, you can't then heal them with ''Purification''. Additionally, ''Repel'' can be targeted on enemies as well as allies, so a mis-click can cause you to accidentally buff an enemy with spell immunity. But once you learn how to properly order your spells, and that enemies' buffs are purged by ''Repel'', and what spells are blocked by spell immunity, you can use your spells to make split-second saves on teammates, and [[StatusBuffDispel even use ''Repel'' on an enemy to purge positive buffs on them that could make the difference in a teamfight]].
** Equally difficult is the proper use of ''Purification'', which relies on timing it so that your heal target is right next to the enemy, however, using it properly shifts the balance of HP by ''double'' what it states, as it both heals the ally and damages the enemy by that much. This can literally single-handedly cause an gank to backfire, allow good players surprising lane control and pull a first blood when combined with a good ganking hero.
** In general, Omniknight can be hard to cast spells with in split-second situations, since he has a notably long cast animation (0.4 seconds between giving him the order to cast a spell and the spell taking effect, whereas the vast majority of other heroes have cast points of 0.3 seconds or shorter). As such, good Omniknight players have to have good predictive sense, and plan their moves out a bit ahead of time.
** There's even utility in giving heroes spell immunity when they don't want it, [[http://youtu.be/3OWqFH2Ehyg?t=1m23s letting you pull off some pretty unconventional kills]].
* DropTheHammer
** AnAxeToGrind with some unlockables.
* FixedDamageAttack: A well-timed ''Purification'' can deal a huge amount of [=AoE=] Pure damage in a small area of effect, while at the same time healing its target, essentially doubling the difference in HP between the heal target and nearby enemies.
* GoodIsNotDumb: He had the wherewithal to question the higher-ups of the Omniscience, which is why his strength is so real.
* GoodIsNotSoft: One of his quotes imply so, he serves the Omniscience which is referred as merciful... but he's nowhere near its level.
-->'''Omniknight''': ''[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/4/4d/Omni_battlebegins_01.mp3 The Omniscience may spare them, but I will not.]]''
* HelmetsAreHardlyHeroic: Omniknight's default model doesn't wear a helmet.
* HolierThanThou: Has some kill quotes aimed specifically at Chen that berate him for how he uses his holy powers.
-->'''Omniknight:''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/0/00/Omni_rival_02.mp3 "Chen, faith is a tool, not a bludgeon. You would have done well to learn this."]]
* HolyHandGrenade: ''Purification'' is hard to hit an enemy with, but deals a lot of Pure damage, making it a very deadly nuke that simultaneously heals an ally.
* LightIsGood
* MagicKnight: While he isn't an Intelligence caster, Omniknight relies greatly on his spells in order to make an impact in teamfights. However, his right-click abilities suffer as a result, as his Agility and attack animation leave much to be desired.
* MagikarpPower: Omniknight is best described as a late game support. ''Degen Aura'' is a scaling percentage, and ''Repel'' and ''Guardian Angel'' are simple flat-out immunities that don't care if the damage they block in question is the 20 damage hit of a simple creep, or the 4-digit crit of a 6-slotted hard carry, it's still zero. Given that his main weakness, Diffusal Blade, has limited and non-replenishable charges, and he uses farm very well (big items like Refresher Orb and Octarine Core are very good on him) his impact grows more and more notable over time. The trade-off is that he has little lane presence, isn't able to do much outside of babysitting early game, and is very greedy for a support, needing at least Aghanim's Scepter as a core item (without which it's impossible to land a good ''Guardian Angel'').
** ''Repel'' starts off at 6 seconds of spell immunity at level 1, while a BKB starts at 10. But by the late game, BKB's charges can become depleted, dropping down to 5 seconds at its weakest, while ''Repel'' has a 12 second duration and a 14 cooldown (meaning a 2 second downtime). [[FromBadToWorse And then Omniknight gets an Octarine Core]].
** ''Degen Aura'' reduces the enemy's movement speed by a percentage rather than a flat amount, which becomes more pronounced in the late game when that percentage is of a larger number.
** ''Guardian Angel'' becomes more effect the higher physical DPS gets, as this allows the allied carry a proportionally bigger advantage, and nukes fall off later on.
* MightyGlacier: Omniknight's cast time is ''abysmal'' but his spells are some of the highest-impact in the game.
* NighInvulnerability: ''Repel'' makes the target immune to magic and ''Guardian Angel'' makes all allies within a certain radius of him immune to physical damage (with an Aghanim's Scepter, it becomes global). They stack, and putting ''Repel'' and ''Guardian Angel'' on your carry generally causes a MassOhCrap for the enemy team.
* NoCelebritiesWereHarmed: Omniknight bears a striking resemblance to Creator/ChuckNorris, and it was one of his 'funny names' in the original [=DotA=]. With his tendency to make his teammates invincible, the 'funny name' kind of make sense, not to mention both of them are pretty religious. All he's missing is just his roundhouse kick.
* NoExperiencePointsForMedic: He actually still gets XP for kills he is near, but he often doesn't rack up assists because he's melee and only one of his spells damages the enemy, so his final game stats often don't reflect his true contribution.
* NoSell: ''Repel'' blocks all spells that would otherwise affect the targeted unit. ''Guardian Angel'' does the same for physical damage.
* ThePaladin: He certainly gives the vibes of the ultimate guardian knight, and his quotes oozes on protecting people with faith and light.
-->'''Omniknight''': ''[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/7/70/Omni_ability_guard_07.mp3 Fear not, my friends! Our guardian is here!]]''
* PersonalityPowers: An inversion; because of his personality, his third ability, ''Degen Aura'', reduces the movement and attack speed of any enemy near him, because they literally cannot stand being in the presence of one with so much faith.
* PowerGivesYouWings: White angelic wings for the duration of his ultimate. Everyone else affected gains smaller wings too.
* RatedMForManly: A badass priest who carries a large hammer, boasts about protecting his allies, has an incredibly deep and persuasive voice, and hits people with a mighty hammer.
* ReligiousBruiser: He does carry a giant war hammer, after all.
* SchmuckBait: Going after that heavily injured enemy hero? Omniknight just purified him, he's back in fighting shape and you're no longer in fighting shape.
* ShootTheMedicFirst: Picking Omniknight off before a teamfight is crucial, as his global physical immunity can easily tip the scales of a fight, to say nothing of his nigh-permanent (and, with Octarine Core, permanent) BKB he slapped on his carry. Don't kill him and you're in for a bad day.
* StatusBuffDispel: One little-known fact about ''Repel'' is that, not only does it remove purgable debuffs from friendly targets (meaning that, for instance, you can save a teammate who's affected by Slardar's ''Amplify Damage'' and Axe's ''Battle Hunger'', both of which can otherwise last longer than the spell immunity buff), but it can be cast on the enemy to remove their positive buffs. This can be useful in negating some of their most powerful buffs (such as cancelling out a ''Surge'' by Dark Seer, or a Double Damage rune on the hard carry), at the cost of reducing your ability to deal with that target down to only right-clicks, abilities that deal Physical damage, and certain abilities that pierce spell immunity.
* StoneWall: Omniknight is notorious as one of the hardest heroes in the game to kill due to his tankiness, his healing and protective spells, and for his ability to make his teammates equally hard to kill. Unfortunately, his low Agility gain means that he has trouble dishing out damage on the scale that a semi-carry can.
* TestosteronePoisoning: While this trope isn't as strong in the case of Omniknight, his general tankiness and ability to make his team man up by protecting them from harm, as well as his tendency to jump into the thick of the action (due to being a melee hero and needing to be close to the enemy to take advantage of his passive), certainly makes him one of the manliest supports in the game. It's also helped by a glitch when he was first ported to Dota 2, which caused him to spam the voice line [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/f/f8/Omni_ability_repel_03.mp3 "Fear nothing!"]] in just about any situation.
* WeakButSkilled: Omniknight's base stats and stat growth are all horribly mediocre, being at best average or slightly above average for a Strength hero, with his high base armor being his only notably positive trait. Even worse, given how often he has to cast spells, his average-sized mana pool is often strained to the limit to keep his teammates alive. However, all of his spells are extremely powerful, making him a very tough opponent to take down once he overcomes his mana issues.
* WeaksauceWeakness: Omniknight's hardest counter is the fact that ''Repel'' and ''Guardian Angel'' can be purged, which makes him easy to counter by teams who buy Diffusal Blades, or if the enemy heroes have purging abilities.
* WhiteMage: He's almost entirely focused around healing and protecting his teammates from harm, although he's not an Intelligence hero.
* WhyWontYouDie: His main strength is making ''anyone'' on his team this, slowing all attacks by a ''very'' hefty 34%, leaving them immune to almost all spells for a large duration, makes everyone immune to physical damage for up to 10 seconds, and healing them for a major amount.
* YouWillNotEvadeMe: His passive slows every enemy unit in its radius (and sticks on them for a time after they leave it), and slows through spell immunity. This means that all Omniknight needs to do to win chases is to catch up with his victim, walk alongside, then wait for the rest of the team to show up and finish the target off.
[[/folder]]
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[[folder:Huskar, the Sacred Warrior]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Huskar_390.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/7/76/Husk_rare_03.mp3 "Those who are given more in life must not cling to it but risk it all at every moment.."]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Dave Fennoy
''"Emerging from the throes of the sacred Nothl Realm, Huskar opened his eyes to see the prodigal shadow priest Dazzle working a deep incantation over him. Against the ancient rites of the Dezun Order, Huskar’s spirit had been saved from eternity, but like all who encounter the Nothl he found himself irrevocably changed. No longer at the mercy of a mortal body, his very lifeblood became a source of incredible power; every drop spilled was returned tenfold with a fierce, burning energy. However this newfound gift infuriated Huskar, for in his rescue from the Nothl, Dazzle had denied him a place among the gods. He had been denied his own holy sacrifice. In time the elders of the order sought to expand their influence and Huskar, they agreed, would be a formidable tool in their campaign. Yet becoming a mere weapon for the order that denied him his birthright only upset him further. As the first embers of war appeared on the horizon, he fled his ancestral home to find new allies, all the while seeking a cause worthy of unleashing the power his total sacrifice could bring."''
Uniquely one of the three ranged Strength heroes, Huskar is about entering into the fight and killing his foes while he is under fire, soaking up as much damage as he can. When he is in need of emergency health, ''Inner Vitality'' can be casted on himself or his allies to give health based on his attributes and gains more health if the hero is under attack by his foes. He is incredibly dangerous at the peak of his own life, with his ''Berserker's Blood'' which increases his attack speed and magic resistance based on how much health he is missing, to which he can tank a powerful nuke once he is near death. Huskar can lower his health more quickly to benefit his passive by using two of his abilities, ''Burning Spear,'' which causes Huskars basic attacks to deal damage over time at the cost of dealing damage to himself per throw, and his ultimate, ''Life Break,'' wherein he leaps to any foe and cuts their health by half, increasing in damage depending on how much health they are missing. Be warned, however, that Huskar sacrifices a large portion of his own life to use this ability.
* AchillesHeel: Axe's ''Culling Blade'' is this to Huskar. As Huskar needs to be at low health in order to deal sufficient damage, ''Culling Blade'' will almost always be fatal.
** KryptoniteIsEverywhere: Huskar in spite of his resistance to magic is still quite weak to Physical and Pure damage (a weakness that most other Strength heroes in the game do not share), a problem only amplified considering the absurd number of carries compared to supports in an average pub game.
** CantCatchUp: Because of this reason, Huskar scales very badly into the late game - while he has a strong early-mid game presence, he falls off extremely hard in the late game, because any true carry will kill him in a second.
* AmazingTechnicolorPopulation: Blue skin.
* AntiMagic: With maxed ''Berserker's Blood'', Huskar gets up to 98% magic resistance when low HP, making him essentially immune to nukes.
* BackFromTheDead: Although somewhat unwillingly.
* TheBerserker: His entire skillset revolves around intentionally remaining at low health and suicidally charging into the enemy team without much concern for his own safety.
* BladeOnAStick
** JavelinThrower: Like a Javelin throwing Rambo.
* BloodyMurder: His abilities are attributed to his blood being a volatile substance. As he can't actually sling his blood at enemies, he instead douses his spears in the stuff.
* CastFromHitPoints: Huskar spends hit points to use ''Burning Spears'', and his ultimate, ''Life Break'', costs a ton of his current health.
* CombatMedic: Huskar can heal himself and allied heroes with his first skill ''Inner Vitality''.
* CombatSadomasochist
* CombinationAttack: Can create a particularly nasty one with Necrophos if they have Aghanim's Scepter. ''Life Break'' shaves of up to 65% of the target's hp. ''Reaper's Scythe'' deals damage based on missing hp. Unless you have sufficient magic resistance or immunity, they won't care whether you have 1 thousand or 1 million hp.
* CripplingOverspecialization: The huge DPS that Huskar deals comes at the expense of all utility - his heal is subpar for most heroes who are dead meat at low hp and burns up his mana, even with no other skills competing for it, and his slow requires a serious ammount of health and is an all-or-nothing move.
* CriticalStatusBuff: ''Berserker's Blood'' gives Huskar bonus attack speed AND magic resistance for every 7% of his health missing. This stacks up to 14 times (meaning up to losing 98% of his health), so as Huskar gets closer to death, he gets stronger and harder to kill.
* DeathOrGloryAttack: ''Life Break''. Either Huskar, the other Hero, or even ''both'' die once it's used, since it costs a third of his health ''and'' puts him in point-blank range. Often times, however, most players using Huskar know just when and in what situations to use his ult to utterly annihilate their target;
* DeathSeeker: His ultimate goal is to find a fight worth dying in.
* DefectorFromDecadence: Left his people to find a more worthy cause to die for.
* GlowingEyesOfDoom
* HealingFactor: Huskar can use ''Inner Vitality'', drawing upon the target's spirit energy to heal them.
* InASingleBound: ''Life Break'' starts with a fairly magnificent leap that can cover some impressive ground. If he gets Aghanim's Scepter, Huskar can even do this once every ''four seconds''.
* KnifeNut: His offhand weapon is a knife he uses for ''Life Break'' as well as being implied to be how he [[CastFromHitPoints draws his own blood for Burning Spears]].
* MageKiller: Huskar excels at picking off lone enemy heroes (''Life Break'' + a few ''Burning Spear''s = casualty), especially Intelligence nukers. If ''Berserker's Blood'' is fully upgraded and he's down to his last sliver of health, Huskar has a whopping ''98%'' natural magic resistance, making him essentially immune to nukes. They will still hurt him on full health, but it's extremely hard to actually kill him, especially if they do incremental/ongoing damage. If they don't have a good stun or reasonably strong physical/pure damage they're basically dead meat.
* MightyGlacier: Despite being able to dish out loads of damage, Huskar has pitifully low Agility and is one of very few heroes whose base attack time is higher than the standard 1.7 seconds, meaning that he attacks very slowly unless he's at very low health.
** LightningBruiser: On the other hand, he gains great mobility with ''Life Break'', ''lots of attack speed'' with ''Berserker's Blood'' and has a large health pool while hitting fairly hard.
** GlassCannon: Huskar becomes this late game. His damage output is still high, but ''Berserker's Blood'' becomes less useful alongside nukes, and the enemy team's main damage source becomes their carry's right-clicks, which will kill Huskar in a second because of his abysmal armour.
* MutualDisadvantage: Against Razor. ''Eye of the Storm'', which deals physical damage and chooses the enemy with the lowest HP percentage, will melt Huskar because of his low armour and tendency to remain at low HP, but other than that, the main weakness of Razor is that he has no stun, and you *really* need to stun Huskar to stop his DPS. Besides, ''Life Break'' is both a slow and an anti-tank skill and Razor really hates this, but then Blade Mail is pretty good on Razor too. As a 1 vs 1 mid matchup, Razor can steal Huskar's damage but it still won't stop ''Burning Spear'' harass which is Huskar's main damage source early game, and Razor risks getting zoned out.
* PercentDamageAttack: Huskar's ultimate, ''Life Break'', shaves off a percentage of his target's current HP, at the cost of a similar fraction of his own. When he's at low health (which he almost always will be), this lets him cut off half (or more) of a full-health enemy's HP at a cost of a few points of his own, and then immediately regenerate most of it with ''Inner Vitality''. This makes him a massive counter to Strength-based carries, since he can possibly remove over a thousand points of health from his target with a single attack.
* PlayingWithFire: Huskar can light his spears on fire using his hitpoints.
* PointyEars
* TheRival[=/=]BashBrothers: With Dazzle, and justified in both their backstory and gameplay. Dazzle's skills can make Huskar an unstoppable machine of destruction (''Shallow Grave'' + ''Berserker's Blood'' = Game Breaker) -- or make him useless if he's on the enemy team. Huskar apparently sees Axe as this as well, according to his response lines; their love of battle and tendency to charge blindly into the fray, as well as Axe's ability to annihilate Huskar with ''Culling Blade'' or pin a target down for him to effortlessly slaughter with ''Berserker's Call'' makes this occur from a gameplay perspective as well.
--> '''Huskar (killing Axe):''' [[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/5/54/Husk_rival_15.mp3 "Fearlessly into the fray, Axe, in this we are alike."]]
* SituationalSword: Huskar himself is this. At full HP, he's a mediocre hero that doesn't put out a lot of damage outside of his ultimate. However, once he drops down to low enough health and casts ''Inner Vitality'' on himself, he can stack absurd amounts of magic damage on his targets with ''Burning Spear'', deal huge amounts of DPS and shrug off magic nukes with ''Berserker's Blood'', heal about as much damage as he takes, and shave down the cost of his ultimate down to almost nothing.
* SkillGateCharacter: The basic idea with Huskar is that with ''Berserker’s Blood'' he gets stronger attacking power as his HP pool decreases, and both ''Burning Spears'' and ''Life Break'' give him convenient ways to lower his HP. However, having increased damage when hurt is rarely worth it when there are plenty of damage sources that don't involve deliberately crippling oneself, and are always active. The reason Huskar succeeds in pubs is because against poorly organised players he has no problem hanging around a dangerous level of HP. In fact, it's practically an invitation for his opponents to wander in one at a time and be slaughtered. But players who can plan ahead have no issue with waiting for Huskar to give them the perfect opening to dump all of their burst damage into, and by the end of the game a hero with real DPS skills can easily outcarry Huskar while also being able to fight at full HP. In addition to this, he also can't do anything but what he's designed to do (single-target DPS), with little teamfight presence and no utility whatsoever. Because of this, he is extraordinarily rare in competitive Dota, ignominiously being the only Hero who has never been picked at any of The International tournaments.
* SpellBlade: ''Burning Spear'' sets Huskar's spears aflame, dealing damage over time with his regular attack.
* TakingYouWithMe: Even if the target manages to survive his ultimate and kill him, they'll likely have several stacks of ''Burning Spear'' eating away at their low health, meaning that they'll likely die in a few seconds.
* ThisLooksLikeAJobForAquaman: Against a lineup too dependent on magical damage, a surprise last pick Huskar is able to force the enemy team to just accept it's GG already. However, if put up against even only one legit right-clicker, Huskar loses much of his effectiveness since he can't manfight any of them unless with a massive farm advantage. This weakness can be mitigated by Dazzle, making Huskar-Dazzle one of the most terrifying hero combinations in pubs and pros alike. In a Captains Mode game, when you see your opponent picking Dazzle and banning Ancient Apparition (one of the best counters to Huskar and Dazzle alike), you HAVE to ban Huskar since you aren't going to be able to kill him in a teamfight.
* TopHeavyGuy: Huskar's legs seem a little too thin to support his massively-built torso.
* TurnsRed: If Huskar's ''Berserker's Blood'' reaches its maximum stack (meaning that he'll be at extremely low health), Huskar will be about twice his normal size and surrounded by a glowing red aura. He also gains massive attack speed and magic resistance buffs.
* ViolationOfCommonSense: Huskar is at his best when he's at low health. ''Burning Spear'' can quickly eat up Huskar's health. As a result, most Huskar players use ''Burning Spear'' to intentionally nearly kill themselves in order to maximize his damage potential. Likewise, ''Life Break'' is often used to insert Huskar into situations that most heroes would usually run from, such as initiating against a hero that has much more health than he does.
* WalkingShirtlessScene
* WeaksauceWeakness: For all of Huskar's spell resistance, enemies who have high physical damage will likely eviscerate him before he can do too much damage, as he has low armour and needs to be at fairly low health to be effective.
* WhyWontYouDie: Tends to be the general reaction to a well-farmed Huskar at low health. Due to getting massive magic resistance buffs, unless he's getting right-clicked down by the other team's carry, it's near impossible to kill him since burst magic nukes will do almost no damage and he can regenerate very quickly with ''Inner Vitality''.
* WorthyOpponent: Sees Bloodseeker as this. Given that Bloodseeker's kit seems to be tailor-made for fighting Huskar (''Blood Rite'' and ''Rupture'' deal pure damage, which bypasses ''Berserker's Blood'' while preventing and punishing ''Life Break'' respectively, while ''Thirst'' increases Bloodseeker's physical damage output as Huskar's health drops), this is fairly justified.
* YouAreAlreadyDead: ''Burning Spear'' can do up to 140 magic damage per stack, spread out over 7 seconds, and stacks every time the victim is hit with ''Burning Spear'' activated. Combined with Huskar's lightning fast attack speed with ''Berserker's Blood'', enemies who have no way to quickly heal or dispel the status effect are very likely to succumb even if they manage to escape or kill Huskar.
** Furthermore, Huskar's ultimate ''Life Break'' - when used properly - has the potential to be SO incredibly devastating and crippling to its target that being hit with it is often a death sentence for most heroes; [[http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=128817857 a popular guide to Huskar]] describes it best:
--> [[ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill THIS IS YOUR DEATH BUTTON.]]
[[/folder]]
----
[[folder:Razzil Darkbrew, the Alchemist]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Alchemist_3887.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/0/09/Alch_spawn_05.mp3 "I'm the brains!" "And I'm the brawn!"]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Bruce Miles
''"The sacred science of Chymistry was a Darkbrew family tradition, but no Darkbrew had ever shown the kind of creativity, ambition, and recklessness of young Razzil. However, when adulthood came calling he pushed aside the family trade to try his hand at manufacturing gold though Alchemy. In an act of audacity befitting his reputation, Razzil announced he would transmute an entire mountain into gold. Following two decades of research and spending and preparation, he failed spectacularly, quickly finding himself imprisoned for the widespread destruction his experiment wrought. Yet Razzil was never one to take a setback lightly, and sought escape to continue his research. When his new cellmate turned out to be a fierce ogre, he found just the opportunity he needed. After convincing the ogre not to eat him, Razzil set about carefully concocting a tincture for it to drink, made from the moulds and mosses growing in the prison stone work. In a week’s time, it seemed ready. When the ogre drank the potion, it flew into an unstoppable berserker rage, destroying the cell bars and exploding through walls and guards alike. They soon found themselves lost somewhere in the forest surrounding the city with a trail of wreckage in their wake and no signs of pursuit. In the tonic’s afterglow, the ogre seemed serene, happy, and even eager. Resolving to work together, the pair set off to collect the materials needed to attempt Razzil’s Alchemic transmutation once more.''
While other heroes may specialize in magic spells or physical damage, Alchemist (and his trusty ogre sidekick) focus on gold, and accumulating lots of it. With the ability to farm more efficiently than most other heroes, Alchemist can be played in a variety of ways: he can use his early-game gold potential to quickly snowball an item advantage over the other team and carry his side to victory, or he can see use as a support and an initiator, focussing more on his damaging spells to help his team. With ''Greevil's Greed'', a passive ability, Alchemist gains extra gold for every last hit; granting an additive bonus for every last hit in a period of time. With healthy reserves of gold rolling in, Alchemist can quickly gain a head start in purchasing items- but don't think that he can't also go on the offensive. His main damaging spell, ''Unstable Concoction'', is a powerful but unreliable area-of-effect stun that needs to be charged before it's thrown at an enemy hero. Wait too long, however, and the spell will explode on Alchemist himself, stunning and damaging him. His other damaging spell, ''Acid Spray'', creates a pool of toxic liquid that reduces armor and damages foes who are caught in its radius. His ultimate, ''Chemical Rage'', is a versatile status buff, temporarily kicking many of his base stats into overdrive. With huge bonuses to health regeneration, movement speed, mana regen, and attack speed, Alchemist can unleash the power of alchemy to its fullest.
* AcidPool: ''Acid Spray'' can create one in an area.
* AlchemyIsMagic: Razzil's alchemy is apparently able to turn living organisms into gold.
* BadassBeard: Razzil himself.
* TheBerserker: ''Chemical Rage'' gives him high regenerating and speed, encouraging this style of play once he has his items.
* BigDumbBody: Albeit in a more equal relationship than most.
* BladeSpam: With the right items and a fully leveled ''Chemical Rage'', Alchemist can let out upwards of ''five attacks a second''.
* BlingOfWar[=/=]FlamingSword: Alchemist's Immortal Eternal Radiance Blades are a pair of golden, flaming swords.
* BrainsAndBrawn: Razzil and the ogre refer to themselves as the brains and the brawn, respectively.
* ChargedAttack: ''Unstable Concoction'' gains power and stun duration for longer every second after it's activated, and if it's charged to maximum power it can deal more damage and stun for longer than Sven's ''Storm Hammer''.
* DeadlyGas: ''Acid Spray'' creates a large cloud that shreds the armor and health of enemies.
* DualWielding: The ogre unsheathes two swords when using ''Chemical Rage''.
* FatAndSkinny: The ogre and Razzil, respectively.
* GoodOldFisticuffs: The ogre's primary means of attack.
* HealingFactor: Gains a massive one while in the middle of ''Chemical Rage''.
* HoistByHisOwnPetard: Literally, in that ''Unstable Concoction'' will explode in Alchemist's face if he doesn't throw it in time. And yes, he can kill himself with it.
* HollywoodAcid: ''Acid Spray'' is green and reduces enemies' armour.
* HumanResources: According to his voice lines, he's fond of using components of his dead foes as fodder for his experiments.
--> '''Alchemist (killing Pudge):''' [[http://hydra-images.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/e/ec/Alch_rival_02.mp3 "You don't think Pudge will mind if we salvage him for fluids, do you?"]]
--> '''Alchemist (killing Puck):''' [[http://hydra-images.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/e/e6/Alch_rival_05.mp3 "All right! Fairy dragon blood is hard to come by!"]]
--> '''Alchemist (killing Slardar):''' [[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/9/93/Alch_rival_14.mp3 "Thanks to Slardar, I can rig up an excellent mercury switch."]]
* ItemCaddy: When played as a farming carry, Alchemist relies on a six-slotted inventory of powerful items to get kills. This is made easier by ''Greevil's Greed'', which makes farming much faster and easier, so a good Alchemist will probably assemble most of his arsenal by the thirty-minute mark.
* JackOfAllStats: Alchemist is a versatile hero and can be played in the carry, support, or mid roles. He has a strong earlygame which can be capitalized on if one so desires by playing him as a support or a mid. His lategame can also be taken advantage of by playing him as a carry, and he's one of the fastest farmers in the game, allowing him to reach his personal lategame before the enemy team's carries come online. If given enough farm as a support, he can also transition from a support to a carry, but his lategame is not as strong as some other heroes', such as Medusa, Spectre, or Faceless Void, all of who outcarry Alchemist once they have enough farm.
* TheJuggernaut: With ''Chemical Rage'' activated, Alchemist can regenerate health faster than any other hero without a Heart of Tarrasque. As such, he can shrug off all but the most damaging nukes in a few seconds, and walk right over any squishy supports that get in his way.
* LightningBruiser: With ''Chemical Rage'' active, Alchemist possesses ''frighteningly'' high attack speed and runs fairly quickly as well, while easily shrugging off hits with the increased health regeneration.
* MadScientist: Razzil is prone to laughing maniacally or ranting about chemistry while last-hitting, activating ''Chemical Rage'', or killing a hero.
* MagicKnight: Razzil provides the Magic and the Ogre makes for the Knight half of the equation.
* MechanicallyUnusualClass: Alchemist is somewhat different from some other hard carries in that he can farm incredibly quickly with ''Greevil's Greed'', allowing him to grow extremely fast and get 6-slotted before many other carries. However, he can still be outgunned later on by other hard carries, because he can still only carry 6 items, plus an Aghanim's Scepter (which doesn't take up a slot for him) while ''Chemical Rage'' doesn't scale particularly well as a damage steroids. Because of this, unlike other hard carries who peak at ultra-late game, Alchemist's most effective time is at the late-midgame when he becomes 7-slotted.
* MoneyMultiplier: ''Greevil's Greed'' multiplies the gold from Bounty runes and grants bonus gold for every unit killed inside of 30 seconds, allowing him to chain last-hits to give himself up to 36 bonus gold per last hit. Left to farm alone, Alchemist can obtain core items alarmingly quickly.
* MountedCombat: Razzil rides on the back of an ogre. Whilst Razzil does the pointing, the ogre does the punching.
* NiceHat: The ogre's horned hat.
* OurOgresAreHungrier: Razzil's ogre mount seems to be quite different than the ogre mooks found in game, although it does bear a strong resemblance to Ogre Magi.
* PhantasySpelling: Chymistry
* ThePowerOfFriendship: Neither of them would be a match for other heroes by themselves, and it takes using both the Ogre's muscle and Razzil's chemicals to win.
* PurpleIsPowerful: The ogre turns violet when Razzil uses ''Chemical Rage''.
* RaceAgainstTheClock: A minor example with ''Unstable Concoction''. If it's not thrown within 5.5 seconds, it will stun and damage the Alchemist.
* RedEyesTakeWarning: The portrait for his ultimate, ''[[UnstoppableRage Chemical Rage]]''.
* ScienceHero
* SuperEmpowering: Uniquely, Alchemist has the ability to consume an Aghanim's Scepter to grant all of its bonuses to himself or an allied hero, once each, without taking up a slot. It synergises particularly well with someone whose Aghanim's Scepter upgrade is potentially very strong but they either can't afford it or the way their hero plays makes buying it themselves non-optimal. So a support Treant Protector can be given Scepter and starts legally maphacking with ''Eyes in the Forest'', or for Luna who can now drop ''Eclipse'' like Gyrocopter's ''Call Down'' without losing space for Scepter.
* SuperMode: ''Chemical Rage'', which involves the ogre ingesting a SuperSerum.
* SuperPowerMeltdown: The ''Unstable Concoction''. Razzil throws a potion at an enemy that stuns them depending on how long he shakes it up. However, if he holds on to it too long, it will explode and stun himself.
* SuperSerum: When ''Chemical Rage'' is used, Razzil gives the ogre a rage-inducing potion.
* TechnicolorScience: ''Acid Spray'' is green and ''Unstable Concoction'' is purple.
* ThereWasADoor: The ogre simply crashed through the walls of the prison that he and Razzil were stuck in.
* ThrowDownTheBomblet: ''Unstable Concoction'' has Alchemist hurl a beaker of explosive chemicals at the target.
* TookALevelInBadass: Before the 6.75 patch Alchemist had the lowest win rate in the game and was regarded as a JokeCharacter. The 6.75 patch, however, buffed all of his abilities to the point where he is viable and can be a pretty big threat, and in The International 2013 he became a high tier pick. The 6.79 patch damaged his lategame carry potential, but still strengthened his earlygame, allowing him to be more versatile and be played as a support or a mid.
* TransformationIsAFreeAction: Alchemist becomes temporarily invulnerable when activating ''Chemical Rage'', allowing him to disjoint certain stuns.
* UnstoppableRage: When under the effects of ''Chemical Rage'', the ogre runs faster, regenerates health faster, and attacks faster.
* VitriolicBestBuds: They frequently bicker with one another over trivial matters, although many of their voice lines indicate that they really are inseparable underneath it all.
-->''[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/3/39/Alch_immort_02.mp3 Does immortality work for both of us? It better!]]''
* WeakButSkilled: Alchemist has one of the worst attribute growths in the game, but he makes up with his versatile kit, being able to fulfil every role in a team from the #1 carry to the #4-5 support.
* WhatTheHellPlayer: If ''Unstable Concoction'' backfires, the ogre will sometimes berate Razzil, and, by extension the player controlling him, for not throwing it in time.
--> '''Ogre''': [[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/9/9a/Alch_ability_concoc_25.mp3 "Didn't you hear me telling you to throw it?!"]]
[[/folder]]
----
[[folder:Mangix, the Brewmaster]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/brewmaster_5080.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/b/b4/Brew_rare_01.mp3 "Drink and be bleary, for tomorrow we die."]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Nolan North
''"Deep in the Wailing Mountains, in a valley beneath the Ruined City, the ancient Order of the Oyo has for centuries practiced its rights of holy reverie, communing with the spirit realm in grand festivals of drink. Born to a mother’s flesh by a Celestial father, the youth known as Mangix was the first to grow up with the talents of both lineages. He trained with the greatest aesthetes of the Order, eventually earning, through diligent drunkenness, the right to challenge for the title of Brewmaster—that appellation most honored among the contemplative malt-brewing sect. As much drinking competition as mortal combat, Mangix for nine days drank and fought the elder master. For nine nights they stumbled and whirled, chugged and struck, until at last the elder warrior collapsed into a drunken stupor, and a new Brewmaster was named. Now the new, young Brewmaster calls upon the strength of his Oyo forebears to speed his staff. When using magic, it is to his spirit ancestors that he turns. Like all Brewmasters before him, he was sent out from his people with a single mission. He wanders the land, striving toward enlightenment through drink, searching for the answer to the ancient spiritual schism—hoping to think the single thought that will unite the spirit and physical planes again."''
Brewmaster is a very powerful DrunkenMaster, being is able to inflict a lot of damage and take little damage in return. His first ability is ''Drunken Brawler'' which provides an increase to both critical damage and evasion chance. Brewmaster is able to stop his foes from escaping or fighting efficiently by using his ability ''Thunder Clap'' which creates a shockwave around him that slows and decreases movement speed on ground units around him. He can further improve his evasion by using his ability, ''Drunken Daze,'' which causes Brewmaster to throw booze on his enemies which slows and debuffs them, causing some of their attacks to miss. To further make him even trickier to face, his ultimate ability, ''Primal Split'', causes him to split into 3 of himself, each with their own stats and abilities. The three copies are: Earth Spirit, who is tanky and immune to magic and can use ''Boulder'' to stun an enemy and have chance to deal damage in a close radius; Fire Spirit, who is the quickest and a fighter, who burns enemies around him with ''Permanent Immolation,'': and Storm Spirit, the mage copy who can ''Dispel Magic'' which removes positive buffs and deals heavy damage to summoned targets, remove an enemy with ''Cyclone'' and make himself invisible with ''Wind Walk.'' With Aghanim's Sceptor, Earth Spirit inherits ''Thunder Clap,'' Fire Spirit inherits ''Drunken Brawler,'' and Storm Spirit inherits ''Drunken Daze.''
* AchillesHeel: Monkey King Bar is this to Brewmaster, as it completely nullifies both the miss chance from ''Drunken Haze'' and his evasion from ''Drunken Brawler''. He's also particularly vulnerable to silences, since most Brewmaster players will often attempt to wait until the last possible second to cast ''Primal Split'' in order to make the most of a teamfight.
* AlcoholHic
* BigFun
* BewareTheSillyOnes[=/=]CrouchingMoronHiddenBadass: ''Primal Split'' turns him from a slightly goofy inebriated panda-man into a deadly platoon of magical spirit warriors, and he becomes almost unkillable during its duration.
* BoisterousBruiser
* BoozeBasedBuff: Played straight with Brewmaster's ''Drunken Brawler'', which gives him a chance to evade attacks and deal critical damage. Inverted with ''Drunken Haze'', which causes enemies to slow down and miss.
* ContinuityNod:
** Although Storm Spirit is now a human, Brewmaster still labels him as his cousin, likely due to his celestial heritage. In the original [=DotA=], both Brewmaster and Storm Spirit were pandarens.
** While he is a red panda now, his ''Primal Split'' spirits have a giant panda pattern like the original's elemental pandaren.
* CriticalHitClass: His ''Drunken Brawler'' ability gives him a chance to regularly deal critical (200%) damage.
* DecoyGetaway: ''Primal Split'' can be used as one, sending either Earth, for his priority return and slow-immunity, or Storm, for his windwalk, back while the other two wreck havoc on the enemy team and get focused down in an attempt to kill Brewmaster.
* DifficultButAwesome: Storm's second ability ''Dispel Magic''. Used properly, it can remove powerful buffs (like a Double Damage rune or Ogre Magi's ''Bloodlust''), but on the whole enemy team; or save multiple teammates from deadly mass-disables (like Ember Spirit's ''Searing Chains''). Used badly, it can inadvertently help enemies by purging these aforementioned disables from them (which might very well be the ''Thunder Clap'' or ''Drunken Haze'' that you just used), or good buffs from allies. Being able to use ''Dispel Magic'' effectively is what separates a good Brewmaster from an average one.
* DrunkenMaster
* ElementalPowers: After his ultimate (see LiteralSplitPersonality below).
* EpicFlail: An odd combination of what can be called [[FightingWithChucks nunchaku]], but with a [[SimpleStaff staff]] on one end is his WeaponOfChoice. However, [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Two_section_staff it's a real weapon]].
* FragileSpeedster: Fire moves at maximum speed and constantly deals damage to every enemy around him, but is also extremely frail.
* GlowingEyes: His elemental spirits.
* ImprobableWeaponUser: He uses his barrel of booze as much as a weapon as his staff.
* {{Invisibility}}: Storm's ''Wind Walk'' turns him temporarily invisible.
* LiteralSplitPersonality: His ultimate, ''Primal Split'', splits him into three elemental warriors, which function as individual heroes for the duration.
* LockedOutOfTheFight: Storm can do this with ''Cyclone''.
* MagicKnight: Brewmaster is a respectable physical damage dealer and manfighter, since he has abilities that involve negating opposing auto-attacks while strengthening his own; on the other hand, the ''Primal Split'' spirits can provide a plethora of utility from exceptional disables, survivability against magic and physical attacks, to damage output.
* ManySpiritsInsideOfOne: A heroic variant; Mangix sometimes refers to the three spirits as his "drinking buddies".
* MightyGlacier:
** He's slow, but he packs a wallop.
** Earth is the slowest of the three elemental forms, but carries a ranged, damage-dealing stun and has a high chance of dealing bonus AOE damage in a radius.
* NoSell: Earth is immune to magic.
* ObviousRulePatch: During the 6.74 era, the "Primal Spirits" are not considered heroes but rather creep-heroes. This allows pro players to easily escape from its ultimate by [[LoopholeAbuse simply using a "Smoke of Deceit"]] and they will not be revealed unless another hero is present. 6.75 fixes this by making the spirits now appropriately dispel the smoke effect.
* PandaingToTheAudience: His race is very Panda-like. The relation becomes more apparent when you look at his previous skin and ancestral spirits. He even used to be a [[VideoGame/{{Warcraft}} Pandaren]] in the original [=DotA=].
* ShockwaveStomp: ''Thunder Clap'' damages and slows enemies in a huge radius by slamming his barrel into the ground.
* SomeDexterityRequired: As soon as Brewmaster pops his ultimate, you'll have to control three heroes simultaneously, each one with his own separate skills and abilities that work best chained together. If you buy Aghanim's Scepter, you'll have to worry about combo-ing together ''more'' skills. A well-played ''Primal Split'', however can be extremely impressive and deadly.
* StatusBuffDispel: Storm's ''Dispel Magic'' ability, which dispels buffs in an area.
* StoutStrength
* TransformationIsAFreeAction: When performing ''Primal Split'', Brewmaster becomes invulnerable for the duration of the transformation, until after the three elementals are able to move.
* WhyWontYouDie: Brewmaster is a Strength hero with fairly high strength gain and ''the'' highest evasion in the game, if he has both ''Drunken Haze'' and ''Drunken Brawler'' maxed out, only ''18.75%'' of autoattacks will actually hit him at all. This is in addition to dealing with his ultimate, which forces you to either fight them head on for a grand total of 19 seconds, or kill all 3 of them, no easy feat given that one's spell immune, another runs extremely fast, and the last can turn invisible. Escalated even ''further'' with Brewmaster's favored item build of Blink Dagger, Aghanim's Scepter, and Heart of Tarrasque, making his ult even ''harder'' to deal with, and then once it's over, letting him teleport away since Brewmaster himself never took damage during that duration and heal for a 3rd of his health while you were fighting the spirits. ''Yeesh''.
[[/folder]]
----
[[folder:Rooftrellen, the Treant Protector]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Treant_Protector_5599.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/d/db/Treant_respawn_05.mp3 "Think me not ponderous... merely pondering."]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Fred Tatasciore
''"Far to the west, in the mountains beyond the Vale of Augury, lie the remains of an ancient power, a fount of eldritch energy nestled deep in the high woods. It is said that the things that grow here, grow strangely. To the forces of nature this is a sacred place, made to stay hidden and unknown. Many are the traps and dangers of this land--all-consuming grasses and crossbred fauna and poisonous flowers--but none are so fierce as the mighty Treant Protectors. These ageless, titanic beings, charged with keeping the peace in this dangerous land, ensure that none within encroach without reason, and none without poach their secrets. For time untold they tended to their holy ground, uninterrupted, only dimly aware of the changing world beyond. Yet inevitably the wider world grew aware of this untamed land, and with each passing winter the outsiders grew bolder. Soon they arrived with tools to cut and with flames to burn, and often the Treants would ponder: who are these fragile, industrious creatures? What now had become of the wild, green world? There came and went an age of questions and of doubts, a thousand summers of long traditions set to scrutiny, while more and more the outsiders died and fed their earth. When all that bloomed had finally finished their say, curiosity had overcome caution. It was decided: a lone Protector would be sent into the wider world, and instructed to wander until the glaciers arose once more, to observe the changing land and its creatures, and to discover what unknown dangers could threaten their sacred ground."''
This lovable tree is very protective of his allies and fights to defend them. He can protect his allies by using ''Nature's Guise'' to blend them with the forest and become invisible. As long as they are in the forest, they will remain invisible until the duration ends, and can use it on himself and can use abilities while invisible. He can heal allies and buildings with ''Living Armor'', which causes him to cast a protective shield on his allies and grants them bonus regeneration. He can attack his enemies with ''Leech Seed'', which slows an enemy unit, draining their health and healing his allies around the enemy. His ultimate is ''Overgrowth'', which summons vine that roots all enemies around him, preventing movement, blinking, invisibility, or attacking. If he acquires Aghanim's Scepter, he gains the ''Eyes in the Forest'' ability, which enchants a tree to provide vision and will''Overgrowth'' enemies that walk near.
* AllLovingHero: The only one he outright dislikes is Timbersaw, for [[WhenTreesAttack obvious reasons]]. His only quarrel with [[{{Satan}} Doom]] is that Doom's spreading hellfire around the forest.
* ArsonMurderAndJaywalking: His quote upon killing Pugna.
--> '''Treant Protector:''' [[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/d/de/Treant_rival_01.mp3 "You were nasty, brutal, and most of all, short."]]
* AwesomeButImpractical: ''Eyes in the Forest'' effectively grants Treant Protector a free Observer Ward which never expires unless dewarded every 25 seconds. If the enemy jungle is warded, the damage addition to ''Overgrowth'' will allow him to kill any jungle creeps within range of a tree almost every minute as they spawn, giving him easy 700+ GPM. Additionally the Eyes can be placed in the lanes to give him absurd splitpushing potential, possibly wiping out entire lanes of creeps every minute, or placed in strategic teamfighting locations to give him nearly unmatched global disabling and nuking power. However, considering Aghanim's Scepter costs a lot for a support, if ever Treant can afford one it is either because he saved from the beginning of the match, did not support his team in not buying wards or any other support item making him a burden for his team, or because it is very late in the match and it is very likely that his team has stomped, or it will not help much as the enemy team could probably destroy the trees with a Gem and Quelling Blade and handle the extra damage. Subverted when he's on the same team with Alchemist, who can farm it for him, which is made even easier with ''Greevil's Greed''.
* BewareTheNiceOnes: Easily the least violent hero in the game. Also possesses the highest base damage, second highest Strengh growth, and spells that could aid his teammates in a teamfight to great effects.
* BoringButPractical: Out of all of Treant's spells, only ''Leech Seed'' deals damage and is easily outclassed by most damage-dealing spells in the game. His main play style revolves around continually casting ''Living Armor'' on allies and buildings, healing a push with ''Leech Seed'', occasionally initiating a teamfight with ''Overgrowth''... and that's about it.
* BuffySpeak
* CloudCuckooLander[=/=]DissonantSerenity: He is a slow thinker and easily gets distracted either by the [[AttentionDeficitOohShiny beautiful scenery]] or [[ThePhilosopher mysteries of the universe]], and is often [[ComicallyMissingThePoint oblivious to combat around him]].
--> '''Treant Protector (Respawning):''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/8/89/Treant_respawn_09.mp3 "I think I'll go for a nice walk."]]
* CombatMedic: ''Leech Seed'' is an interesting example; it not only damages and slows whatever enemy it's used on, but it will also heal every allied unit in a radius around it. His other utility spell, ''Living Armor'', is unique in that it is one of two spells that can also heal towers from anywhere on the map, turning potential enemy pushes into a slog.
* DeflectorShields: ''Living Armor'' creates a shield around the target that blocks a certain number of damage instances.
* DefogOfWar: ''Eyes in the Forest'' enchants a tree, granting Treant vision around it, essentially giving him a free ward every 25 seconds that lasts indefinitely.
* FreezeFrameBonus: His model has a small carving near his behind, saying "Riki was here".
* FurryConfusion: If he uses a Tango (a consumable item that regenerates your health by destroying a tree) he'll apologize and show mild regret for what he's done, despite the tree being non-sentient.
--> '''Treant Protector (using a tango):''' [[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/a/a3/Treant_tango_01.mp3 "Sorry, friend."]]
* GaiasVengeance: His various plant-themed abilities can aid his team in a teamfight or a push.
* GentleGiant: He is a calm, peaceful treant with abilities focused on protecting allies and disabling enemies. He also has the game's second highest Strength growth and has ludicrous melee attack damage.
** He's also [[AllLovingHero the only completely good hero]].
* GlowingEyes
* GreenThumb: Being a treant, this is to be expected.
* {{Invisibility}}: ''Nature's Guise'' turns a friendly unit invisible near a tree.
* KingMook: Nature's Prophet can summon Treants, which are slightly bigger than an average lane creep. In comparison, Rooftrellen easily towers over most heroes and can cast spells.
* KungFuWizard: Though he's a melee Strength hero, Treant Protector relies heavily on his spells to contribute in teamfights.
* LifeDrain: ''Leech Seed''.
* TheLostWoods: His land of origin.
* MagicKnight
* MagikarpPower: ''Eyes in the Forest'' can turn Treant Protector from a humble support into a force to be reckoned with if he's given enough time to farm up the gold for an Aghanim's Scepter and to place his eyes around the map. Not only does this give him amazing farming potential and farm disruption by seeding the jungle, but the global range allows him to splitpush, disable, and nuke anywhere he can find a tree to convert. With a Scepter and a Refresher Orb (which are [[AwesomeButImpractical pretty much out of reach for a support unless the match drags on long enough) Treant can pin down entire teams for up to 9 seconds at a time (while doing 1650 damage pre-reduction) and wipe entire lanes if he can time it right.
* MoneyMultiplier: Aghanim's Scepter is this for Treant: if he uses ''Eyes in the Forest'' near jungle camps, the damage addition to ''Overgrowth'' will allow him to farm them almost every minute as they spawn, giving him easy 700+ GPM, while at the same time depriving farm from the enemy (and his own team in certain cases).
* MutualDisadvantage: With Nature's Prophet. ''Nature's Call'' can [[AchievementsInIgnorance accidentally pull up Treant Protector's ''Eyes in the Forest'', as well as remove the very trees that ''Nature's Guise'' relies on, possibly exposing a ganking attempt by sheer coincidence.]] In return, Treant Protector's ''Living Armor'' heavily cripples Nature's Prophet's splitpushing abilities, ''Nature's Guise'' can be used to counteract ''Sprout'', and ''Eyes in the Forest'' can expose any attempt of Nature's Prophet to teleport into the treelines, with the option for ''Overgrowth'' to pin him down just for being in the wrong place at the wrong time.
* NatureHero
* NoExperiencePointsForMedic: He actually still gets XP for kills he is near, but like Omniknight, he's melee, only one of his spells damages the enemy, and he doesn't get assists for things like immobilizing or disarming enemies, so his final game stats often don't reflect his true contribution to the team.
* NonStandardSkillLearning: With Aghanim's Scepter, Treant Protector gains a fifth skill, ''Eyes in the Forest''.
* PlantPerson
* TheRedMage
* ShoutOut: To Franchise/{{Pokemon}} with his spell, [[http://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Leech_Seed_%28move%29 Leech Seed.]]
** His appearance and personality are based on Treebeard from Literature/TheLordOfTheRings.
* StealthyColossus: ''Nature's Guise'' when fully upgraded, lasts an entire minute, and takes a minute amount of mana to cast, has a cooldown of 5 seconds, and can work on allies, as Rooftrellen is also usually an initiator and has Blink Dagger, he can just teleport the gap in trees. Given that he can cast and use items without breaking stealth, and he largely relies on said items and abilities to contribute to teamfights, he can actually be invisible throughout an entire fight and still be contributing the whole time.
* StoneWall: Though Treant is very tanky and has very high base damage, his base attack time is the worst in the game (tied with Spirit Breaker and Weaver), meaning that he hits very slowly, and his skills do not deal as much damage either. Even when compared to the ''other'' StoneWall healer of the game, Omniknight, he's still somewhat more defensive.
* TreeCover: ''Nature's Guise'' turns any friendly unit invisible, so long as they remain in proximity to a tree. It's especially useful with surprise-oriented gankers like Pudge, as they can still cast spells while invisible.
* TribalFacePaint
* VampiricDraining: ''Leech Seed'' drains its target's health and constantly restores HP to friendly units around it.
* WeaksauceWeakness: ''Eyes in the Forest'' can be destroyed with a simple 225 gold Quelling Blade, so long as the enemy has any way of utilizing True Sight (Sentry Wards, Gem of True Sight, etc.), meaning that smart placement and regular re-warding are vital if using them. Additionally any ability that destroys trees can accidentally destroy them, even if the enemy doesn't know that they're there.
* WeirdBeard: Branches growing from his face into the shape of a beard.
* WhenTreesAttack
[[/folder]]
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[[folder:Io, the Guardian Wisp]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Io_4337.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/6/66/Wisp_Spawn_respawn.mp3 "..."]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Itself
''"Wisp is everywhere, and in all things. Denounced by enemies as the great unmaker, worshiped by scholars as the twinkling of a divine eye, Wisp occupies all planes at once, the merest fraction of its being crossing into physical existence at any one moment. Like the great twin riders Dark and Light, and yet another ancient traveler whose true history is lost to the ages, Io the Wisp is a Fundamental of the universe—a force older than time, a wanderer from realms far beyond mortal understanding. Wisp is nothing less than the sum of all attractive and repulsive forces within matter, a sentient manifestation of the charge that bind particles together. It is only in the controlled warping of these forces that Wisp's presence can be experienced on the physical plane. A benevolent, cooperative force, Wisp bonds its strength to others so that the power of allies might be enhanced. Its motives inscrutable, its strength unimaginable, moves through the physical plane, the perfect expression of the mysteries of the universe."''
Io is the second of two ranged strength heroes, and excels at controlling his lane with support oriented skills and lots of harass. The first ability that Io has in his arsenal is ''Tether'', which causes a spirit tether to connect Io and another unit. When Io recovers any health or mana, the tethered unit receives 1.5x the amount recovered, and any enemy that cross the tether will be slowed. Io's second ability is ''Spirits'', which causes a ring of five projectiles to spin around Io, and detonate on contact which causes small area of effect damage. Io can cause this projectile ring to increase in size or shrink, which can force foes away from him or provide some protection. His third ability, ''Overcharge'', causes Io to burn his health and mana to get much faster attack speed and resistances. Tethered allies also get the bonuses. His ultimate,''Relocate'' , acts as a temporary teleport. Io and any Tethered ally will be able to teleport to anywhere on the map, but will teleport back from their casting position after 12 seconds.
* AwesomeButImpractical[=/=]IneffectualLoner: Io is probably the most team-dependent hero in the game, the only way to actually play it is in an organised and coordinated setting, something that is nonexistent in pubs. Because of this, it is absurdly unpopular in pubs, but ranks amongst the top picks in competitive.
* CastFromHitPoints: ''Overcharge'' drains 4.5% of Io's max health and mana every second it's active. This actually works to Io's advantage: ''Tether'' won't give regeneration to allies if Io's health and mana are full.
* CombatMedic: When Io gains health or mana, a ''Tether''ed hero gains 1.5x the amount. With healing items like Urn of Shadows, Bottle or Tranquil Boots, as well as ''Overcharge'' to keep its HP under 100%, Io can pump an absurd amount of HP and mana into an allied carry in the middle of a teamfight, while at the same time nullifying their normal disadvantage of being cancelled when taking damage or attacking.
* DifficultButAwesome: Wisp (outside of a few comedy builds) is pretty much the only Hero who can do nothing but support other Heroes. It requires heavy teamwork, but is incredibly powerful when utilized correctly. Because of this, Wisp is one of the most commonly picked or banned heroes in professional tournaments.
** ''Spirits'' must be aimed for the precise distance between Wisp and the target. If someone has trouble landing them, then they're a huge waste of mana. If someone is skilled with landing them though, ''Spirits'' can be an incredible amount of harassment that you can do from 875 range.
** Using ''Relocate'' to its fullest potential is also very difficult, as you'll always need to keep an eye out for potential ganks, ''Tether'' someone and teleport near or onto where you want to gank; yet you also have to be wary if other enemies are missing though, they could be baiting you out. However, it is one of the only two skills in the game which can give global presence to any ally (the other being the yet-to-be-added Abyssal Underlord's ''Dark Rift'', whose cooldown is significantly longer). Using ''Relocate'' to bring you and your lane partner behind unsuspecting enemies in either your own or another lane globally is a huge deal. This can be used to get your carry fed very quickly if your team is competent and you communicate your intentions. In addition to this, ''Relocate'' can be used in a big fight to bring someone to the fight who didn't get there in time, pull someone out who's about to die, or take someone back to heal quickly during the fight. ''Relocate'' requires you to be very cognisant of how your team is doing in a fight and what's needed most.
* DynamicEntry: ''Relocate'', which teleports Io and any tethered hero to any point on the map for a short time, can turn any ally into a global ganking, pushing and counterganking machine.
* EnergyBeing[=/=]CelestialBody: Heck, even the in-game model itself is just particle!
* HappyFunBall: Often called this thanks to the spherical shape and totally unexpected power [[DifficultButAwesome in a coordinated team]].
--> '''Bastion Announcer:''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/2/28/Dlc_bastion_announcer_pick_wisp_follow.mp3 "Hey what's that little glowy ball? Famous last words."]]
* HeroicSacrifice: On a lineup with Io, a carry could farm exposed areas with little risk. Any time the enemy would initiate on him, Io could use ''Relocate'', bail him out and sacrifice himself to save the carry. Oftentimes the return of farming an exposed lane was greater than the damage done by feeding Io.
* JokeCharacter: In public games. Io has one of the worst win rate in pubs because the other 4 people on your team just don't know how to work around it, similar to Shadow Demon, Chen and Enchantress. You can be the best Io player in the world, but you're still going to lose constantly if you try playing Io in solo matchmaking. The usual case scenario is that you ''Tether'' to an allied carry, then ''Relocate'' him to gank a lone farming enemy hero... only to have him break the tether and letting Io teleport alone to the enemy hero, which, seeing how weak Io is without teammates, essentially gives the enemy a free kill.
** LethalJokeCharacter: But in well-coordinated stacks or pro teams, however, Io is considered an excellent support hero that allows the team's carry to gank almost anywhere around the map, heal them to full health 1.5x faster than normal, and powers them up by giving them increased attack speed and damage reduction.
* MechanicallyUnusualClass: Despite being a Strength hero, Io is played very much like a typical Intelligence hero. Rather than relying on innate tankiness and/or strong autoattacks, it is a super-squishy hard support with a powerful nuke and three abilities which can turn any allied hero into a global ganking machine and provide them with an excellent damage steroids.
* NatureSpirit
* NoBiologicalSex
* OverclockingAttack: ''Overcharge'' increases the attack speed and reduces incoming damage of Wisp and its tethered ally at the price of burning away mana and health.
* PowerFloats
* ThePowerOfFriendship: Io can't really do much by itself, but just try to fight both it and a ''carry'' like Chaos Knight at once and see how long you will stand.
* SentientCosmicForce
* TheSpeechless: All the noises he makes can be described as submarine-sounding beeps and boops. Some other characters seem to understand him. Puck especially continuously regrets that people are missing Wisp's puns (unreliable - maybe she's just being [[LittleMissSnarker Puck]]).
* SquishyWizard: Despite being a Strength hero (who are usually renowned for their durability), Wisp has pathetically low base stats and stat growth in all three areas; of all Strength heroes in the game, it has the lowest base Strength (tied with Phoenix) and second-lowest Strength growth, beat out only by Alchemist. On top of all that, it's one of only three Heroes in the game (the others being Phoenix and Visage) that start with '''negative''' base armor. Needless to say, Wisp is very easy to kill if caught without escape.
* TimeAbyss: As a Fundamental, Io is as old as creation itself.
* TimeMaster: The lore of ''Overcharge'':
--> Drawing on the energy of matter from all worlds, Io begins the unravelling of time.
* ViewersAreGeniuses: Its abilities are based on atoms and its backstory implies it's a sentient manifestation of the three major forces of quantum mechanics (Strong, Weak, and Electromagnetism).
[[/folder]]
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[[folder:Bradwarden, the Centaur Warrunner]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/centaur_warrunner_1960.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/b/b8/Cent_battlebegins_01.mp3 "These proving grounds shall be littered with the dead."]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Tom Chantler
''"It's said that a centaur's road is paved with the corpses of the fallen. For the one called Warrunner, it has been a long road indeed. To outsiders, the four-legged clans of Druud are often mistaken for simple, brutish creatures. Their language has no written form; their culture lacks pictographic traditions, structured music, formalized religion. For centaurs, combat is the perfect articulation of thought, the highest expression of self. If killing is an art among centaurs, then Bradwarden the Warrunner is their greatest artist. He rose to dominance on the proving grounds of Omexe, an ancient arena where centaur clans have for millennia gathered to perform their gladiatorial rights. As his fame spread, spectators came from far and wide to see the great centaur in action. Always the first to step into the arena, and the last to leave, he composes a masterpiece in each guttering spray, each thrust of blood-slickened blade-length. It is the poetry of blood on steel, flung in complex patterns across the pale sands of the killing floor. Warrunner defeated warrior after warrior, until the arena boomed with the cheering of his name, and he found himself alone, the uncontested champion of his kind. The great belt of Omexe was bestowed, wrapped around his broad torso, but in his victory, the death-artist found only emptiness. For what is a warrior without a challenge? The great centaur galloped out of Omexe that day with a new goal. To his people, Warrunner is the greatest warrior to ever step into the arena. Now he has set out to prove he is the greatest fighter who has ever lived."''
Centaur Warrunner's home is the battlefield, and all of his abilities show off his affinity for war. His first ability, ''Hoof Stomp'', causes Centaur to slam down onto the ground, stunning and damaging nearby units. Centaur's second ability, ''Double Edge'', causes his next attack to deal greatly increased damage- at the cost of hurting himself. His third ability and a passive, "Return", causes all damage that Warrunner takes to be countered for a fraction and returned to his opponents based on his current strength stat which works on almost anything, including turrets. His ultimate, ''Stampede'', causes every ally hero on the map to gain an incredibly large buff to their movement speed, the ability to walk through any unit, and will stun any enemy that they walk over, dealing damage to the stunned unit as they trample over their bodies.
* AnAxeToGrind
* BadassNormal: Centaur possesses little supernatural power - just a big axe and a lot of brute strength.
* TheBerserker: Thanks to his huge HP pool, a passive that punishes attacks against him, and close-ranged spells, Centaur is played in a very aggressive manner.
* BloodKnight
* CastFromHitPoints: ''Double Edge'' deals up to 400 damage to both Centaur and his target and costs no mana, which means that most Centaur players wind up stacking health regeneration items.
* CounterAttack: ''Return'' deals damage to any unit attacking Centaur. Unlike similar abilites of other heroes, it depends on Centaur's own strength and not the damage taken.
* DifficultButAwesome: ''Stampede'' usage, good Centaur players often use ''Stampede'' when they aren't even doing anything more dangerous than last hitting, but their ''ally'' on the other side of the map is going in for a gank or running from the enemy.
* DynamicEntry: ''Stampede'' boosts Centaur's allies to max movespeed, dealing damage and slow to any units they run through. It works well with a Blink Dagger and ''Hoof Stomp'' stun, turning him into a powerful initiator.
* FangsAreEvil
* GladiatorGames: Is a champion of them.
* HighPressureBlood: ''Double Edge'' causes a jet of blood to squirt out from both Centaur and his targets.
* HornedHumanoid
* LightningBruiser: Not only does he have the highest Strength gain of any hero, but he's also scarily fast -- especially with his ultimate, which lets him and all his allies charge at maximum movespeed for a few seconds.
* MadeOfIron: One of the tankiest heroes in the game.
* MonochromaticEyes
* NaturalWeapon: Bradwarden's hooves, used by ''Hoof Stomp''.
* OurCentaursAreDifferent: Unlike centaurs seen in most other works, Bradwarden has a massive upper torso, horns and out-jutting lower fangs.
* ProudWarriorRaceGuy: His culture has little to it other than violence.
* ShockwaveStomp: ''Hoof Stomp''.
* SuperSpeed: ''Stampede'' temporarily boosts the movement speed of all allies to the cap of 522.
* SuperStrength: He has the highest Strength gain in the game, at 3.8 per level.
* TopHeavyGuy: Contrary to most centaur depictions, his upper torso is even bulkier than the workhorse lower body.
* TrampledUnderfoot: Any poor victim passed over by Centaur's allies when ''Stampede'' is active is slowed and takes damage based on his Strength.
* VictoryIsBoring: His backstory.
* WalkingShirtlessScene
* WorthyOpponent: He regards Magnus as one.
[[/folder]]
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[[folder:Rizzrack, the Timbersaw]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Timbersaw_883.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/6/69/Timb_rare_02.mp3 "I'm not a lumberjack, and no, I'm not okay. I thank you."]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' TJ Ramini
''"Rizzrack could still hear the screams in his mind. He worked, frantically turning wrenches, twisting screws, building and carving and forging. Sleep eluded him; he only built. Months had passed since he had shut himself in his uncle's workshop, and his deliverance was nearly complete. He rubbed his back as his eyes drifted shut, and saw a blanket of flowers floating on the placid waves of Augury Bay before exploding into a cloud of pollen that silenced lives as it seized the lungs. He woke with a choking start. For hours the rhythmic sound of a whetstone filled the shop as he sharpened a set of massive blades, his mind filled with images of strangling vines garroting neighbors, enwrapping homes. The flooding of Augury Bay had been nothing compared to the violent horrors the waters left to take root beyond the city walls. But the saw-suit would make him strong and safe he thought, allowing himself this sliver of hope before the full might of his fear crashed into his fading mind. Branches and blood. When the city fell, Rizzrack fled trees that walked, and fought, and killed. Trees had shattered the gates and swarmed into the city. Trees had crushed and thrashed and stomped the last that Augury Bay could muster in defense, and stalked the few fleeing refugees. In addled silence Rizzrack unspooled the thick chain from the suit's arm, his hands quaking as he inspected each link and ran a trembling finger along the claw attached at its end. The saw-suit was ready. With his hand trembling he sparked the bladed machine to life. Terror drove him, terror of what awaited him and of what he would have to face to have any hope of calming his mind. As the saw-suit shuddered to life he knew he must face this fear, and he knew he wouldn't like it one bit."''
Timbersaw's odd playstyle revolves around using the forest, but in a way completely different from the Treant- rather than use the forest for help, Timbersaw seeks to destroy every tree in his wake. His first ability, ''Whirling Death'', causes a saw to split out the sides of Rizzracks mech, cutting down everyone in a small radius. If a tree is felled in the process, then the attack does Pure damage. ''Timber Chain'' is Rizzracks primary initiation, functioning like Clockwerks ultimate, but instead will only work on trees. As Rizzrack flies, he damages everyone in his wake. His third ability, ''Reactive Armor'', gives Timbersaw more armor and health regen the more times he is attacked. Timersaws ultimate is ''Chakram'', and has Timbersaw sending out a large spinning blade that slows enemies the more health they lack. Upgrading this via Aghanims Scepter causes him to send out two Chakrams at the same time.
* AdaptationNameChange: Rizzrack's name in the original [=DotA=] was Rizzrak (notice the absence of the C).
* AdaptationSpeciesChange: Timbersaw was originally called Goblin Shredder in the original [=DotA=]. However, unlike the other goblin heroes (Alchemist, Tinker, Clockwerk), it is unclear if he is now a Keen (goblin equivalent) or not.
* BucketHelmet: He wears some kind of receptacle with a valve on his head.
* ChainsawGood
* CompanionCube: His ''Chakram'' chainsaw, of all things.
--> '''Rizzrack (casting Chakram Return):''' [[http://hydra-images.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/1/15/Timb_chakramreturn_04.mp3 "Here boy!"]]
* CowardlyLion: Yes, he is crazy, nervous and afraid of pretty harmless plant life. At the same time he is one of the most aggressive solo hard lane heroes, not only easily surviving, but often decimating a superior force, and is an excellent mid-game damage dealer.
* CripplingOverspecialization[=/=]AchillesHeel: Ironically enough, Timbersaw is extremely dependent on trees to deal damage and contribute to teamfights.
* DarkAndTroubledPast: Might be more likely PlayedForLaughs. But it's understandable why he'd act this way, you'll probably get a plant life phobia if you went through [[WhenTreesAttack what Rizzrack went through in the past and costed him his hometown and his sanity]].
* DeadlyDisc: His ultimate, ''Chakram'' fires Timbersaw's main sawblade, rendering him unable to attack until he calls it back.
* DiscOneNuke: ''Timber Chain'' and ''Whirling Death'' both deal pure damage, meaning that Timbersaw can easily dominate a lane with his AOE damage; both spells remain extremely strong and useful for most of the game.
* DynamicEntry: With low mana cost and cooldown, ''Timber Chain'' can be used to zip from tree to tree over and over again in both chase and escape scenarios.
* FaceYourFears: Someone gave him this advice once; he took it UpToEleven.
--> '''Rizzrack on anxiety management:''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/1/10/Timb_rare_01.mp3 "Someone once told me I needed to face fear to get over it, and I thought, well, why not take a step further and cut my fear into little pieces then set my fear on fire then throw the hot ash of my fear into a lake and then poison the lake - simple! "]]
* FinishingMove: ''Chakram'' decreases enemy speed proportional to the health they've lost, slowing almost-dead heroes to a crawl while dealing damage over time.
* FixedDamageAttack: ''All 3'' of his nukes deal Pure damage (though ''Whirling Death'' deals Magical damage without any trees nearby). Even if it doesn't deal Pure damage, ''Whirling Death'' also reduces an enemy's primary attribute by 15%, lowering max health on Strength heroes and armor on Agility heroes (most Intelligence heroes are already quite squishy so it doesn't matter much).
* GadgeteerGenius
* GardenOfEvil: It is strongly implied that the Vale of Augury, Rooftrellen's homeland, is connected with the attack on Rizzrack's home city.
* GogglesDoNothing: While they could be used as protection from sawdust, he's just wearing them on his "helmet".
* GrapplingHookPistol: ''Timber Chain''.
* HearingVoices
--> '''Rizzrack, killing an enemy hero:''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/0/0a/Timb_kill_13.mp3 Mm! That is one less voice in my head.]]
* ItsPersonal: PlayedForLaughs, see RoaringRampageOfRevenge.
* LevelDrain: ''Whirling Death'' will temporarily reduce the primary stat of any enemy hero hit by it by 15%. This makes him an extremely powerful counter against Strength heroes, since they would otherwise be able to shrug off his Pure damage nukes with their massive HP pools.
* LightningBruiser: His health regeneration increases successively with every hit thanks to his third ability, ''Reactive Armour''. His other two abilities focus on gradually reducing enemy stats and movement speed while boosting his own defense, leading to a DeathOfAThousandCuts combat style. He is also one of the most mobile heroes in the game with ''Timber Chain''.
* LovableCoward
* MadnessMantra: Quite a lot of his responses are this.
--> '''Rizzrack, killing an ememy hero:''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/9/9e/Timb_kill_01.mp3 "Cut cut cutcutcutcutcutcutcutcutcutcutcutcutcutcutcutcutCUUUUUT!"]]
* MiniMecha: His "saw suit".
* NervousWreck
* NoMereWindmill[=/=]ProperlyParanoid: He might look like a WindmillCrusader, unless you remember about heroes like [[WhenTreesAttack Nature's Prophet and Treant Protector]]...
** {{Irony}}: ...who are also Radiant heroes, which means Rizzrack is stuck in the same faction as his sworn enemies. You'd think that if he wanted to destroy trees, he would have joined Dire.
* PointyEars
* RingsOfDeath
* RoaringRampageOfRevenge: He went on a forest-chopping rampage after his hometown was destroyed by treants.
--> '''Rizzrack:''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/a/a0/Timb_spawn_05.mp3 "I'm not a lumberjack. This... This is personal."]]
* ScienceHero
* ShoutOut: His gray and orange vest bears some resemblance to [[VideoGame/HalfLife Gordon Freeman's HEV suit]]. He states that [[Series/MontyPythonsFlyingCircus he's not a lumberjack and he is not okay]].
* SoleSurvivor: Of his town.
* SpamAttack: Because all of Timbersaw's abilities have very short cooldowns, if he gets enough mana regeneration he can spam them indefinitely in a teamfight.
* SpinAttack: ''Whirling Death'', although it's only the saw blade in his midsection that's spinning.
* SteamPunk: His (wooden) saw-suit has a large smokestack that continually belches smoke and fire as he moves.
* UnreliableNarrator: He could actually be crazy, as he's been in an insane asylum before:
--> '''Rizzrack, meeting Dark Seer:''' [[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/1/11/Timb_ally_09.mp3 "Ah, Dark Seer. Finally someone who appreciates a wall without padding."]]
* WalkingWasteland: Because his abilities rely on destroying trees en masse, it's very easy to tell where he's been.
* WhenTreesAttack: His hometown apparently fell victim to a treant attack and he has not been the same since then.
* [[WhyDidItHaveToBeSnakes Why Did It Have To Be Trees?]]: His severe dendrophobia is very apparent. He's even afraid of the trees that aren't capable of harming him.
--> '''Rizzrack, beginning the battle:''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/9/95/Timb_begin_02.mp3 "Trees? Well nobody said anything about trees."]]
** Even better: one of his respawn lines is the trope name, word for word.
--> '''Respawning:''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/d/de/Timb_respawn_02.mp3 "Trees? Why did it have to be trees?"]]
* WhyWontYouDie: Due to ''Reactive Armor'' giving him loads of armor and HP regen, Timbersaw is extremely resistant to physical damage. His ability to reduce enemies' primary stats with ''Whirling Death'' (which is used to calculate physical damage output) and to escape quickly using ''Timber Chain'' means that unless you lock him down in place with disables and nuke him with magic spells (which don't scale well late-game), you likely aren't going to be killing him unless you're fighting him five versus one.
[[/folder]]
----
[[folder:Rigwarl, the Bristleback]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Bristleback_317.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/7/7d/Bristle_begin_03.mp3 "Time to mash some faces, I'd say."]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' TJ Ramini
''"Never one to turn his back on a fight, Rigwarl was known for battling the biggest, meanest scrappers he could get his hands on. Christened Bristleback by the drunken crowds, he waded into backroom brawls in every road tavern between Slom and Elze, until his exploits finally caught the eye of a barkeep in need of an enforcer. For a bit of brew, Bristleback was hired to collect tabs, keep the peace, and break the occasional leg or two (or five, in the case of one unfortunate web-hund). After indulging in a night of merriment during which bodily harm was meted out in equal parts upon both delinquent patrons and his own liver, Bristleback finally met his match. “Your tusks offend me, sir,” he was heard to drunkenly slur to one particularly large fellow from the northern wastes whose bill had come due. What followed was a fight for the ages. A dozen fighters jumped in. No stool was left unbroken, and in the end, the impossible happened: the tab went unpaid. Over the weeks that followed, Bristleback's wounds healed, and his quills grew back; but an enforcer's honor can be a prickly thing. He paid the tab from his own coin, vowing to track down this northerner and extract redemption. And then he did something he'd never done before--he actually trained, and in so doing made a startling discovery about himself. A smile peeled back from his teeth as he flexed his quills. Turning his back to a fight might be just the thing."''
* AchillesHeel: Unlike other Strength-based carries, Bristleback is particularly vulnerable to silences, since he needs to constantly cast spells in order to proc ''Warpath'' and ramp up ''Quill Spray'' counters on nearby enemies.
* AdaptationSpeciesChange: He used to be a quillboar in the first [=DotA=], but was changed to a porcupine creature in Dota 2.
* BadassBack: The ''Bristleback'' passive ability, which lets him take less damage from behind while still being able to retaliate with ''Quill Sprays'', both triggered by the passive and triggered manually. It's not uncommon to see Bristleback farming stacked [[EliteMook Ancients]] by walking up to them, turning his back, and spamming ''Quill Spray'' until everything is dead.
* BadassNormal: Ironically, despite having one of the highest Intelligence growths among non-Intelligence heroes, none of his abilities are magical in nature.
* TheBerserker: His playstyle revolves around charging straight into the enemy team, spamming ''Viscous Nasal Goo'' and ''Quill Spray'' everywhere to rack up ''Warpath'', and shrugging off everything the enemy throws at him with ''Bristleback''.
* TheBet: Apparently he was sent to war by the same bartender as Tusk.
--> '''Rigwarl:''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/e/ea/Bristle_rare_01.mp3 "It was a barkeep that got me into this mess. Yeah, I think I'll pay em a visit when this is done."]]
* CombatPragmatist: He uses his ''snot'' as a weapon, which certainly qualifies.
* CounterAttack: If taking damage from the rear, his namesake passive ''Bristleback'' will automatically release a ''Quill Spray''.
* DeathOfAThousandCuts: His only nuke ''Quill Spray'' is very weak, but has low cooldown and increases in power with each subsequent hit.
* EpicFlail: A huge boulder on a chain.
* EyepatchOfPower: As can be seen in his portrait.
* FantasticRacism: For whatever reason, he seriously hate the Keen (Sniper, Tinker, Gyrocopter and Clockwerk).
* GeniusBruiser: He may not look it, but he actually has ''the'' highest Int growth of any non-Intelligence hero, to the point where his actually grows faster than over half of all Intelligence heroes.
* LargeHam: Can compete with Tusk in his sheer hamminess.
* LightningBruiser: A Bristleback with maximum stacks of level 3 ''Warpath'' active will have +35% movement speed and +210 attack damage, while ''Bristleback'' reduces all of his damage taken from the rear by 40%, making him virtually invulnerable unless taking damage from the front (which isn't helped by the fastest turn rate in the game, making the passive easily abusable by a good Bristleback player).
* MagicKnight: Bristleback has the highest Intelligence growth amongst non-Intelligence heroes; he also has two cheap, spammable spells and an ultimate which synergises very well with them.
* NaturalWeapon: His quills and snot.
* NoIndoorVoice
* PunctuatedForEmphasis: Uses this ''a lot''.
--> '''Rigwarl (Killing Doom):''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/b/b8/Bristle_rival_20.mp3 "Who's. Doomed. Now."]]
* TheRival[=/=]BashBrothers: With Tusk. Both of them have several dedicated lines for meeting each other when on the same team, or killing each other otherwise.
* SneezeOfDoom: ''Viscous Nasal Goo'', which launches a ball of snot at a target.
* SpamAttack: Both ''Viscous Nasal Goo'' and ''Quill Spray'' are very spammable with their very short cooldown and low mana cost, synergising well with ''Warpath'', which increases Bristleback's damage and movement speed every time he casts a spell.
* SpikeShooter: He is able to shoot the quills from his back.
* [[SpikeBallsOfDoom Spike Ball of Doom]]: He's a living one.
* UnstoppableRage: His ultimate ''Warpath''.
--> ''Bristleback works himself up into a fury every time he casts a spell, increasing his movement speed and damage.''
* WorthyOpponent: He seems to enjoy fighting the Oglodi heroes.
[[/folder]]
----
[[folder:Ymir, the Tusk]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/tusk_full_3595.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/7/72/Tusk_rare_01.mp3 "It's a great day to do some squat thrusts and lift a barrel of fish, is it not?"]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Tom Chantler
''"It had been a brawl to remember. There stood Ymir, the Tusk, the Terror from the Barrier, the Snowball from Cobalt, the only fighter to have bested the Bristled Bruiser in a fair fight, and now the last man standing in Wolfsden Tavern. What started as a simple bar bet of supremacy ended with four regulars, a blacksmith, and six of the Frost Brigade's best soldiers writhing against the shards and splinters of almost every bottle, mug, and chair in the building. The Tusk boasted and toasted his victory as he emptied his brew.''
''No sooner had the defeated regained consciousness than the cries for double-or-nothing rang out. The Tusk was pleased at the prospect, but none could think of a bet bigger than the one he just conquered. Horrified at the damage to his tavern and desperate to avoid another brawl, the barkeep had an idea. As skilled as he was, Ymir had never taken part in a real battle, never tested himself against the indiscriminate death and chaos of war. He proposed a wager to the fighter: seek out the biggest battle he could find, survive, and win it for whichever side he chose. The stakes? The next round of drinks."''
* AdaptationSpeciesChange: He used to be known as Ymir the Tuskarr in [=DotA=]. For legal reasons, this was changed in Dota 2.
* AnAxeToGrind
* {{Angrish}}: Tends to burst into this when ''Snowball'' misses.
* BarrierWarrior: ''Ice Shards'', Tusk's first ability, create a half-circle of ice around the point of impact. It damages any enemies it passes through, and the shards at the target point cannot be pathed over.
* TheBet: Tusk's entire motivation to go out and fight ghosts, demons, and fundamental forces of the universe? Someone bet him to do it.
** ComicallySmallBribe: For a round of drinks, no less.
* BlownAcrossTheRoom: With Aghanim's Scepter, Tusk gains a fifth skill ''Walrus Kick'', which can be used to kick enemies and allies alike.
* BoisterousBruiser
* CriticalHit: ''Walrus PUNCH!'', Tusk's ultimate, hits the targeted enemy with a guaranteed 3.5x damage crit that disables the target as it flies through the air, then slows it upon landing.
** HomeRunHitter: ''Walrus PUNCH!'' temporarily sends the target flying into the air and off the screen.
** MegatonPunch[=/=]{{Shoryuken}}: If the ''Walrus PUNCH!'' finishes off an enemy, it sends the target flying up out of sight, only to fall back at ridiculous speeds moments later.
** PowerFist
* DynamicEntry: Tusk is one of the most powerful team initiators in the game, as his skills allow him to start off teamfights by placing stuns, path-blocking obstacles and speed debuffs on the enemy team, as well as assisting any teammates who want to get into the thick of the action fast but don't have an initiating item or ability to do so (such as Axe, Centaur Warrunner, Slardar, Tidehunter, and so on).
* EarlyBirdCameo: He first appeared in Dota 2 as a temporary guest announcer during 2012's Greeviling event; he was eventually released as a full-fledged hero in February 2013.
* EyepatchOfPower: With the {{Pirate}}-themed Brawler of the Glacier Sea set.
* FieldPowerEffect[=/=]HostileWeather: ''Frozen Sigil'', Tusk's third ability, creates a snowstorm which slows all enemy units' movement and attack speed within 600 range.
** GeometricMagic
* GrievousHarmWithABody: With the Whisky the Stout Artifact Immortal, Tusk will use a freaking penguin when he uses ''Ice Shards''. Which still deals damage and creates the half-circle of ice, of course.
* HumanSnowball: ''Snowball'', Tusk's second ability, rolls Tusk up into a snowball that launches itself at a target after a short (and optional) delay, damaging and stunning any enemies it passes through as well as the final target if it connects. It can also be used to carry teammates into the middle of a group of enemies, dealing more damage and moving faster the more allied heroes are added to it.
** DashAttack
** HomingBoulders: ''Snowball'' is a unit targeting attack, meaning that it will continue to roll towards its target even if that target turns in a completely different direction.
** RollingAttack
* AnIcePerson
* LargeHam: An exceptional example even among Dota 2 heroes.
** BigFun
** UpToEleven: He has ''eighty-three'' unique response lines just for ''Walrus PUNCH!''.
--> '''Tusk:''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/3/39/Tusk_superpunch_attack_81.mp3 "Here's a bunch of punches!"]]
* MadeOfIndestructium: Heroes inside a ''Snowball'' are completely invulnerable during the delay and the roll. Yes, in Dota [[http://gfycat.com/EuphoricIdealisticHoneybee snow is a stronger force than time]].
* MagicKnight: Tusk's physical damage scales decently by itself, and can completely wreck enemies when combined with his ultimate. His other abilities also make him a powerful crowd controller and initiator that help set up teamfights for his team.
* NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: His real name, Ymir, is the name of the Norse King of the Ice Giants.
* NonStandardSkillLearning: Buying Aghanim's Scepter grants Tusk a fifth skill, ''Walrus Kick''.
* NotTheIntendedUse: ''Snowball'''s original purpose is to gather your team and roll them into the enemy. However, since it also grants invulnerability to all units inside it, ''Snowball'' sees much more use in high-level gameplay as a way to buy time for allies to react, or to dodge abilities like Gyrocopter's ''Call Down''.
* PettingZooPerson: A seal, in this case.
* RedBaron: He's known as the 'Terror from the Barrier'.
* TheRival: The "Bristled Bruiser" in his backstory that he beat is Bristleback, who he shares several rival and ally lines with (depending on which side they're on).
* ShoutOut: Mostly in the form of ''Walrus PUNCH!'' battle cries:
--> '''Tusk:''' [[VideoGame/FZero Falcon]] [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/9/9d/Tusk_superpunch_attack_53.mp3 Punch!]]
--> '''Tusk:''' [[VideoGame/DoubleDragon Double Dragon]] [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/d/d6/Tusk_superpunch_attack_79.mp3 Punch Punch!]]
* SituationalSword: Aghanim's Scepter is this for Tusk. Against low-mobility melee carries like Sven, Ursa or Lifestealer the constant slows from ''Frozen Sigil'', ''Walrus PUNCH!'' and ''Walrus Kick'' combined with the block from ''Ice Shards'' and the knockback itself, all of which bypass BKB, will kite them to death and render them useless. However, it is only good for kiting - and nothing else. If the enemy carry is ranged or otherwise not vulnerable to kiting then there's no point to get Aghanim's Scepter over Force Staff, which provides a similar effect for much less gold.
* SoProudOfYou: He acts like a doting parent to Crystal Maiden. Though not mentioned in either of their backstories, it's implied they used to be friends while Crystal Maiden was training under an ice wizard.
--> '''Tusk, dying to Crystal Maiden, proudly:''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/1/1d/Tusk_death_17.mp3 "Isn't she something."]]
* SummonMagic: ''Frozen Sigil'', which summons a controllable sigil.
* TransformationIsAFreeAction: Tusk and any allies that are within a ''Snowball'' are invulnerable for the duration of the delay and the roll, which can last for a minimum of 3 seconds (excluding the rollout). ''Snowball'' is actually less used to roll into the enemy, and is more often (ab)used for its free invulnerability to dodge certain abilities.
* WrittenSoundEffect: '''WALRUS PUNCH!''' appears above the target, taking up most of the screen if it was the last hit.
* YouWillNotEvadeMe: Besides being a very powerful initiator, Tusk can also pursue enemies over long distances or prevent them from escaping.
** ''Ice Shards'' can block escape paths for up to 5 seconds upon impact. Used properly it can also lock in enemies within the barrier, forcing them to move backwards to escape.
** ''Snowball'' allows Tusk and any allies to home in on a fleeing target, gaining additional speed with every additional person in the snowball. And once the snowball does connect, it stuns the target, stopping it in its tracks.
** ''Frozen Sigil'' has flying movement, so it can be moved fairly easily to place its slow debuff on enemies, hampering their ability to run away.
** ''Walrus PUNCH!'' not only disables the target by sending it flying, but the following slow also prevents the victim from running away reliably.
[[/folder]]
----
[[folder:Elder Titan, the Worldsmith]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ElderTitan_1039.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/f/fa/Elder_battlebegins_01.mp3 "On this alone of seven planes the final war is fought."]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Jim French
''"Well may you ask, "How did this world take its form?" Why of all the worlds in creation, has this one its strange properties, its diverse and motley collection of creatures, cultures and lore? "The answer," One whispers, "lies with the Titans."''
''These original progenitors were there near the Beginning--if not actual witnesses to the creation, then born with it still echoing in their ears. Stamped with the earliest energies of the universe, they wished nothing more than to continue as creators themselves. Thus they bent to the task of shaping matter to their will: hammering and heating, bending and blasting. And when matter proved less challenging than they liked, they turned their tools upon themselves, reshaping their minds and reforging their spirits until they had become beings of great endurance. Reality itself became the ultimate object of their smithing. Yet, along the way, they sometimes erred. In cases of great ambition, mistakes are unavoidable.''
''The one we know as the Elder Titan was a great innovator, one who studied at the forge of creation. In honing his skills, he shattered something that could never be repaired, only thrown aside. He fell into his own broken world, a shattered soul himself. There he dwelt among the jagged shards and fissured planes, along with other lost fragments that had sifted down through the cracks in the early universe. And this is why the world we know resembles an isle of castaways, survivors of a wreck now long forgotten. Forgotten, that is, by all but the One who blames himself. He spends his time forever seeking a way to accomplish the repairs, that he might rejoin the parts of his broken soul, that we and the world alike might all be mended. This is the One we know as Elder Titan."''
* AdaptationSpeciesChange: He was a Tauren in the first ''[=DotA=]'', though for the sequel he was changed to an original design for copyright reasons.
* TheAtoner
* BonusBoss: Before being added in [=DotA=] version 6.60, Tauren Chieftain (the former name of Elder Titan) was a secret bonus boss in 6.59b.
* CatchingSomeZs: Around enemies put to sleep by ''Echo Stomp''.
* ChargedAttack: ''Echo Stomp'' must be channeled for 1.4 seconds before it's released.
* DefogOfWar: As the ''Astral Spirit'' can move through all terrain, it can be used as a scouting mechanism to give vision over anywhere it walks. This makes it crucial for scouting the high ground around the enemy base's tier 3 towers for enemy positioning (as well as gathering bonus damage and movement speed for Elder Titan for any enemies it hits).
* DifficultButAwesome: Many of Elder Titan's spells take skill, timing and micromanagement to use, but utilized properly he can inflict heavy amounts of damage to the enemy team.
** ''Echo Stomp'' channels for 1.4 seconds before it lands the sleep, meaning that alert enemies will often be able to easily dodge it, and it can be easily interrupted by player damage, foiling good initiations. However, it has a fairly wide area of effect, so good positioning of the Astral Spirit (such as in an area that the enemy must walk through in order to escape) will knock the enemy out for up to 5 seconds, on the same tier as Mirana's ''Sacred Arrow''.
** ''Astral Spirit'' lasts for a fairly short duration, and only moves as fast as Elder Titan himself, meaning that unless he builds movement speed items it has a hard time catching foes. However, it can move over impassable terrain, so good players can sneak it through woods to behind the enemy, and then recall it into them to cast ''Echo Stomp''. Additionally, savvy players can pass the spirit through jungle camps, not just creep waves, and align themselves so that on its return it passes through even more targets, meaning that smart Elder Titan players can snag upwards of 150+ bonus damage with good planning.
** It takes practice to get used to hitting with ''Earth Splitter'' - the 3.14 second delay is usually enough time for enemies to avoid it if they are not slowed or disabled. However, it is a very powerful scaling nuke that remains extremely useful throughout the entire game, and can be combined with ''Echo Stomp'' to catch multiple enemy heroes in its wake.
* DishingOutDirt: ''Earth Splitter''.
* DropTheHammer
* EarthquakesCauseFissures: His ultimate, ''Earth Splitter'', creates a fissure that expands very slowly, but upon completing its travel length will severely damage any enemies that happen to be in the area, on top of lining them up with the fissure and slowing them down, making them easy targets for finishing off with [=AoE=] spells.
* EveryoneCallsHimBarkeep: He is only known as the Elder Titan.
* FixedDamageAttack: ''Earth Splitter'' deals damage equal to 35% of the targets' max HP (17.5% Physical, 17.5% Magical).
* HerdHittingAttack: All of Elder Titan's skills deal damage over large areas and make him a very powerful hero in teamfights. Should the enemy team ever bunch up, they stand the danger of all getting hit by the ''Astral Spirit'' (giving Elder Titan a massive amount of bonus damage and movement speed when it returns), getting knocked out by ''Echo Stomp'', and then losing over a third of their maximum HP as ''Earth Splitter'' implodes on them due to Elder Titan reducing their defenses with his ''Natural Order'' aura, all the while he's ready to start chasing and right-clicking them down the moment the crack implodes (along with his teammates).
* HornedHumanoid
* JackOfAllStats: Since Elder Titan is fairly level- and farm-independent (often all he needs is level 11, some mana and a mobility item), and has a good laning stage, he can be played in almost all positions from the solo off-laner to mid to safe lane support - hard carrying being the only role he can't fulfill.
* LeadTheTarget: Both ''Echo Stomp'' and ''Earth Splitter'' have fairly long delays and can be easily avoided, but if pulled off correctly they might sleep enemies for 5 seconds and cut down their HP by 35% respectively.
* LightningBruiser: ''Astral Spirit'' gives Elder Titan bonus damage and movement speed for each enemy it passes through. In the case of enemy heroes, it gives him +5% movement speed and +40 damage per hero, so catching four heroes with the projection (to say nothing of any creeps that happen to be standing around) will give him a minimum of +20% movement speed and +160 attack damage, which, combined with his ''Natural Order'' aura, means that [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ru7V7GETcwY he'll be hitting almost as hard as if he were carrying a Divine Rapier]].
* ALoadOfBull
* LoinCloth
* MagicKnight: Because he can augment his physical damage by using ''Astral Spirit'' and negate his foes' armor with ''Natural Order'', an Elder Titan with large amounts of attack speed can beat down enemy heroes alarmingly quickly if he catches enough of them with his spirit. His array of disables and nukes also allows him to set up kills on the entire enemy team when not built in a right-clicking role.
* MightyGlacier
* MirrorRoutine: Long before making the ''Astral Spirit'' a controllable second unit, the [=DotA=] 1 ''Ancestral Spirit'' would mimic Tauren Chieftain's movements, moving in reverse directions related to him (if you move backwards, it would move away from you, and if you moved left from the casting point it would follow you).
* NiceJobBreakingItHero: He is responsible for the war between Radiant and Dire by shattering the Mad Moon.
--> '''Elder Titan:''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/0/09/Elder_rare_01.mp3 "The Mad Moon rises unbroken above a fledgling world… but only in my dreams."]]
* PhysicalGod
* PowerNullifier[=/=]FieldPowerEffect[=/=]DamageIncreasingDebuff: Elder Titan's third ability and passive, ''Natural Order'', reduces the base armor and any armor gained through Agility of any nearby enemy to zero, on top of effectively nullifying their base magic resistance. This makes him an extremely powerful counter against Agility carries, who tend to rely on their Agility-boosted armor to reduce incoming physical damage, tend not to have the largest health pools due to not being Strength heroes, and are generally already weak against magic nukes anyways.
* SelfDuplication: ''Astral Spirit'' allows Elder Titan to safely initiate teamfights from afar, or to snipe escaping enemy heroes.
* ShockwaveStomp: Elder Titan's first skill, ''Echo Stomp'', channels for a short duration, and upon landing damages all nearby enemy units and knocks them unconscious, causing them to wake up only when the debuff expires or they take player-based damage. It's a unique disable in that it can be used to pick off enemies one by one without worrying about dealing with the rest unless someone casts an [=AoE=] spell.
* ShoutOut: His skills' lore has references to Literature/TheBible.
* SomeDexterityRequired: Playing Elder Titan well requires good micromanagement of the ''Astral Spirit''. It's not nearly as heavy as that needed for other heroes (like Meepo or Chen) however and you won't die if you mess it up.
* SummonMagic
* SupernaturalGoldEyes
* TelephonePolearm: Not only his [[DropTheHammer hammer]], but an [[UpToEleven even bigger]] totem on his back.
* TimeAbyss
* TribalFacepaint
* VampiricDraining: Any unit that gets touched by ''Astral Spirit'' will take damage, and upon returning to Elder Titan, he gains movement speed and attack damage for a short duration based on how many creeps and heroes it managed to pass through.
* WalkingShirtlessScene
[[/folder]]
----
[[folder:Tresdin, the Legion Commander]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/legion_commander_small_1200.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/a/ac/Legcom_spawn_05.mp3 "Whatever they brought, it won't. Be. Enough."]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Merle Dandridge
''"They came without warning. Within the city walls of Stonehall there came a rumble and a terrible sound, and from blackness unknown came a force of beasts numbering beyond count, wielding flame and foul sorcery, slaying and snatching mothers and sons to dark purpose. Of once-mighty Stonehall's military strength only the Bronze Legion, led by the indomitable Commander Tresdin, was near enough to answer the call of battle. They rode into their city, fighting through bloodstained alleyways and burning markets, cutting their way through the monstrous throng to the source of the sudden invasion: an ethereal rift within the city square, and at its precipice thundered their dreaded champion.''
''Enwrapped in a corrosive shimmer, the leader of the abyssal horde swung its massive blade, cleaving a legionnaire in two as his flesh began to spoil. Tresdin lifted her blood-stained sword and settled her sights on the beast. It turned, smiling at her through a maze of teeth. Heedless of the battle raging around them, they charged one another.''
''Deflecting blow after blow, the pair danced their deadly duel as the Bronze Legion met its end around them. Tresdin leapt forward as her foe swung its sword to meet her. The odds turned. The attack smashed into Tresdin suddenly, a brutal thrust from the side, but even as her balance slipped she rallied her strength for another stroke. Blade scraped on blade, beyond the hilt to the gnarled paw below, carving it in two in a fearsome spray of sparks and blood. The vile audience looked on in astonishment as she pressed the attack, driving her blade through her foe's flesh into the stampeding heart within. With a scream that split the clouds above, the beast erupted in a torrent of gore and anguish. The stygian portal wavered, the power sustaining the chasm beyond vanishing as suddenly as it had appeared. The remaining invaders fell quickly to Stonehall steel.''
''Though victorious, the survivors saw little to celebrate: the city lay in ruins, and survivors were few. Fires continued to spread. Unfurling her banners of war, Tresdin gathered what allies she could. Her anger smoldered as she pledged brutal vengeance upon the forces of the abyss, and damned be any who would dare stand in her way."''
* ActionGirl
** AffirmativeActionGirl: Tresdin was a man in the original ''[=DotA=]'', but was changed to a woman in the porting process to Dota 2.
** GenderFlip
* AnAxeToGrind: ''VideoGame/{{Warcraft}}'' [=DotA=] only.
* BearsAreBadNews: If her quotes are to be trusted, Tresdin seems to be even more distrustful to bears than any other creatures. Normally when killing a hero, she'll say "Never Trust An X" in normal speed, but against Ursa or Lone Druid, she will have a small pause before saying 'bear' in disgust.
-->''[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/8/83/Legcom_rival_35.mp3 Never trust a... BEAR!!]]''
* TheBerserker
* BladeOnAStick: Tresdin's weapon, a large polearm.
* BloodKnight: So much she makes Luna look almost peaceful!
* BringIt: ''Duel'''s animation consists of this.
* CombatMedic: ''Press The Attack'' greatly boosts the target's regeneration.
* ConservationOfNinjutsu: ''Overwhelming Odds'' deals more damage and grants Tresdin more speed for every enemy caught within it.
* CoolButInefficient: Getting Aghanim's Scepter will cause ''Duel'' to become a literal DuelToTheDeath: the combatants are locked in the duel until one dies. The problem is there's no point to get it on Legion Commander: she's a right-click carry, making Aghanim's Scepter suboptimal, and if she can't kill her target quickly enough in the ''Duel'' duration then she'll more often than not need to be able to escape, which Aghanim's Scepter completely disables.
* CounterAttack: ''Moment of Courage'' immediately procs an extra attack on whatever enemy Legion Commander is attacking (most often the one that hit her) whenever she's hit by an auto-attack, and lifesteal a portion of that attack.
* DarkerAndEdgier: Her backstory has gone through two drafts, with the first one being significantly less dark than the current one.
* DifficultButAwesome: Knowing when to start a ''Duel'' is one of the most important things a Legion Commander needs to know. Done correctly, Tresdin can easily [[ForMassiveDamage double her base attack damage without items]] before the match is over; done poorly, she'll fall off easily late game, or worse, the other team will have gained plenty of free attack damage. As a result, picking targets requires knowing if she will survive the fight, knowing that she will not be targeted by other members of the enemy team in the interim, and whether the enemy can outclass her without spells or items.
* DuelToTheDeath: Her ultimate forces an enemy hero to fight her in one-on-one combat; neither character can cast spells for its duration. The winner of the fight gains a permanent damage boost.
* FantasticRacism: She's something of a bigot towards non-humans, as evidenced in her ''Duel'' lines or when killing a rival.
** Part of the MythologyGag with her voice lines; [=DotA=]'s Legion Commander used the model and quotes of [[AntiHero Grand Marshal Garithos]], another example of FantasticRacism and a pro-human supremacist.
* FourStarBadass
* HeWhoFightsMonsters: With the Blades of Voth Domosh, swords made by a trickster armorer, she becomes a demonic being herself.
** DualWielding
** FireballEyeballs
** GlowingEyesOfDoom
** MonsterKnight
** TaintedVeins
** WreathedInFlames: Her banners and parts of armor become permanently lit on fire.
* HealingFactor: ''Press The Attack'' greatly increases the target's HP regeneration for a few seconds.
* HerdHittingAttack: ''Overwhelming Odds''. It gains bonus damage for every enemy within its area of effect.
* HonorBeforeReason: ''Duel'' forces both Tresdin and her target to attack each other, regardless of whether they'd survive the resulting fight.
* HotBlooded
* JustYouAndMeAndMyGuards: While ''Duel'' forces both Tresdin and her target to attack each other, [[AintNoRule there's nothing stopping their teammates or summoned units from getting involved.]]
* KnightInSourArmor
* LeeroyJenkins: While successfully winning duels increases her damage, losing duels increases the damage of her enemy. A Legion Commander that continually loses Duels can quickly buff the enemy team to a point where it is nearly impossible to battle back.
* LifeDrain: ''Moment of Courage'' is one of the highest rated lifesteal abilities in the game, allowing Legion Commander to regain up to 80% of the damage she deals as health.
* LightningBruiser: Tresdin has plenty of health, plus the ability to attack and heal quickly with ''Press The Attack'' and ''Moment of Courage'', move faster with ''Overwhelming Odds''. And since she already has a built-in source of damage in the form of ''Duel'', she often needs very few damage items (so she can win ''Duel''s in the mid game) and can focus on durability, disables and mobility.
* MageKiller: While under the effect of ''Duel'', neither Tresdin or her target can cast spells or use items, forcing enemy mages to rely on their ([[KungFuWizard typically]]) weak right-click attack in order to survive. Flavor and lore-wise, some of her dialogue also highlights her disdain of mages.
* MythologyGag: A lot of her voice over lines are call backs to Tresdin in the original [=DotA=].
** Many of her killing blow lines go 'never trust a *insert whatever race/class the killed character was*'. The original Tresdin's dialogue was based on the ''VideoGame/WarcraftIII'' character Grand Marshal Garithos, who was a [[FantasticRacism pro-human racist]] and famously had the joke line 'never trust an elf!'
*** Some of them are pretty ridiculous, which was probably Valve's intent. "Never trust a fish" when killing one of the Slithereen heroes and "Never trust a tree" when killing Treant Protector or Nature's Prophet, for example. If she kills Ursa or Lone Druid she'll say "Never trust a...[[LargeHam BEAR!]]" And then there are certain heroes such as Faceless Void and Morphling whose death prompts the line "Never trust a--what are you anyway?"
** Likewise, Tresdin's old male model (also based on Garithos) had a prominent mustache and beard, and rode a horse. In this game, she has dialogue complimenting people for their mustaches, beards, and mounts.
* PowerNullifier: During a ''Duel'', both Tresdin and her opponent are prohibited from using spells and item active abilities.
* PunctuatedForEmphasis
* RainOfArrows: ''Overwhelming Odds''.
* ScreamingWarrior
* ShoutOut:
** One of her rare lines references a famous line from the VideoGame/{{Fallout}} series.
--> [[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/2/23/Legcom_rare_02.mp3 "War. War always changes."]]
** Another references US General George Patton's famous WWII speech.
--> [[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/b/b5/Legcom_rare_03.mp3 "You won't win the war by dying for your Ancient. You'll win by making the other dumb, unfed bastard die for theirs!"]]
* TheSmurfettePrinciple: Tresdin is the only female Strength hero in the game.
* SociopathicHero
** However, her sound files seem to have hidden selection of dialog implying she is some type of Atoner when having a certain weapon equipped, like with the Blades of Voth Domosh.
* SoloClass: Legion Commander's playstyle revolves around solo killing as many enemy heroes as possible with ''Duel'' and snowball out of control with the bonus damage.
* WeaksauceWeakness: Bane as a whole can ruin her ''Duel'' attempts, but ''Nightmare'' (a spell that could be learned as early as the start of the match) in particular can shut her down due to the invulnerability and sleep status that gets passed around between the duelists every second, resulting in a stalemate that can only be broken by the duel timing out [[HoistByTheirOwnPetard (which ironically enough turns her Aghamin's Scepter buff AGAINST her)]], by outside intervention, or by one of the two duelists dying from the ScratchDamage that ''Nightmare'' inflicts. [[https://youtu.be/yxET_m-edrY?t=35 Case in point.]]
* WhyWontYouDie: With enough farm and Duel victories, Legion Commander can be extremely hard to bring down in a fight since ''Moment of Courage'' allows her to lifesteal a large amount of HP (which gets more effective the more Duels she's won), and ''Press the Attack'' can remove damaging debuffs from her while also increasing her attack speed and giving her a hefty HP regen buff. With enough attack speed and damage (and maybe even a lifesteal attack modifier), she can potentially lifesteal more HP back than the enemy can deal against her.
[[/folder]]
----
[[folder:Kaolin, the Earth Spirit]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/earth_spirit_2079.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/d/d7/Earthspi_firstblood_02.mp3 "In war, a fool's first lesson is his last."]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Nolan North
''Deep amid the Upland crags and cliffs there runs a seam of sacred jade long foresworn by highland minders. From this rare material, the likeness of the great general Kaolin was carved and buried at the head of a stone funerary army ten thousand strong--a force of soldiers and holy men, jesters and acrobats, carved by crafstmen and entombed for millennia in the dark embrace of the Earth. What the craftsmen had not known was that within the strange seam of jade flowed the spirit of the Earth itself--an elemental force at one with the planet. When the force within the carved jade found itself cut off from the life's blood of the world, it gathered its strength over the course of a thousand years and dug itself free and into the light. Now the great Kaolin Earth Spirit strides the Upland roads, fighting for the spirit of the Earth; and in times of need calls forth remnants of his buried army still locked in the loving embrace of the soil.''
* AdaptationSpeciesChange: In the original [=DotA=] Kaolin was a Pandaren, but this had to be changed for Dota 2 as Pandaren are owned by Blizzard.
* AscendedMeme: One of Earth Spirit's responses when meeting an allied Spirit Breaker is this:
-->'''Earth Spirit:''' [[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/f/fe/Earthspi_ally_07.mp3 You aren't half bad, for a space cow.]]
* AsTheGoodBookSays: Upon death, he can sometimes say "The [[IncrediblyLamePun spirit]] is willing, but the flesh is weak."
* BlownAcrossTheRoom: ''Boulder Smash'' can be targeted on any kind of unit, enemies and allies and creeps and heroes alike, as well as on Stone Remnants. It can be used on enemies to either force them away (useful in the case of a melee carry) or to push them towards your teammates to beat down on.
** FastballSpecial: Cast on an ally, it can be used for initiation purposes (800 range is farther than a Force Staff can push). Cast on ''Stone Remnant''s, it can be used to snipe (as they get more than double the range) and stun enemies.
** HeroicSacrifice: One under-appreciated aspect of ''Boulder Smash'' is that it can be used to save allies in situations where you and a teammate are being chased down by the enemy team. Since it can be used to push the target in a certain direction, you can cast it to knock an ally up/down a cliff or further towards safety, [[TakeMeInstead giving yourself the enemy's undivided attention]].
* DifficultButAwesome: All of his skills require management of your stone supply (it takes ''three minutes'' to build up a full 6-stone supply from scratch), '''very''' precise and careful positioning, lining up the shots, and chaining your combos. In particular, ''Boulder Smash'' requires exquisite aiming since, if you stand just a few pixels in a different angle away from a non-Remnant target move your mouse cursor even a few pixels off-course when kicking a Remnant, you can end up hitting the target in a completely different direction. In addition, initiating with ''Rolling Boulder'' can be extremely punishing since it will only stop when colliding with a hero, meaning that missing can send you way beyond your target and potentially feed the enemy a kill. However, masterful Earth Spirits can stun from long range, snipe escaping enemy heroes and give teammates additional initiation power using ''Boulder Smash''; initiate or escape up or down cliffs and stop fleeing enemy heroes in their tracks with ''Rolling Boulder''; save allies from pursuing enemies or silence an entire enemy team with ''Geomagnetic Grip''; and unleash an astonishing amount of magical damage, debuffs and disables on the whole enemy team using all of the above combined with ''Magnetize''. His pub winrate is consistently extremely low, but he is a very effective hero to boost MMR for people who can play him, and he's not available in Captains Mode for a reason.
* DishingOutDirt: He can summon stone sculptures from the earth and manipulate them.
* DynamicEntry: ''Rolling Boulder'' combined with a ''Stone Remnant'' lets him charge onto an enemy, damaging and slowing their movement speed for a couple seconds after impact. It's the third longest ranged non-ulti initiating ability in the game (beat out by Spirit Breaker's ''Charge of Darkness'' and Puck's ''Illusory Orb''). ''Boulder Smash'' can be used on allies for the same purpose.
* FaceOfAThug: Looks rather mean, but is actually a nice guy.
* FantasyCounterpartCulture: His backstory is strongly based on the famous Terracotta Army of Ancient China.
* GeniusBruiser: While his base Intelligence is rather mediocre, Kaolin ties with Timbersaw for having the third-highest Intelligence growth of all Strength heroes (beat out by Bristleback and Undying), and also beats all Agility heroes in this category save Sniper. Combined with the comparatively low mana cost of his spells and the low cooldown on all but his ulti, late game he can cast his spells as often as needed so long as he has the Stone Remnants to back it up.
* GlowingEyes
* {{Golem}}
** LivingStatue: Or, more accurately, a Celestial possessing a statue.
** RockMonster
* GradualGrinder: His ultimate, ''Magnetize'', deals heavy damage over time for 6 seconds, and its duration is refreshed each time an enemy comes in proximity of a Stone Remnant (on top of applying the debuff to other nearby enemies at the same time), allowing for over 30 seconds of continuous magical damage.
** BodyHorror: The ability lore for ''Magnetize'' has some pretty frightening implications.
--> At the Earth Spirit’s call, the minerals in the blood and bones of his enemies rebel against the bodies they find themselves in.
** {{Synchronization}}: ''Magnetize'' passes on slows and silences from ''Rolling Boulder'' and ''Geomagnetic Grip'', respectively, to all Magnetized heroes when one is affected by it. With maximum level ''Rolling Boulder'' and enough Stone Remnants, it's possible to apply an 80% movement speed slow on the entire enemy team half the time, even though ''Rolling Boulder'' can only hit one target at a time.
* GrievousHarmWithABody: ''Boulder Smash'' will damage all enemies that the smashed unit passes through, whether the smashed unit is friendly or enemy. ''Geomagnetic Grip'' can only be used on Stone Remnants and allies, but can be combined with ''Boulder Smash'' using a single Stone Remnant or friendly unit.
* HerdHittingAttack: Both ''Boulder Smash'' and ''Geomagnetic Grip'' can be used to stun and silence enemies in a very large area of effect (''Boulder Smash'' is the second longest ranged stun in the entire game, while ''Geomagnetic Grip'' is the longest ranged non-ultimate silence), meaning that with good aim and crafty positioning it is possible to apply the stun or silence to most of the enemy team. Additionally, since ''Magnetize'' allows Kaolin to place the slow and silence debuffs from his abilities on all Magnetized heroes, you can slow and silence ''the entire enemy team.'' OhCrap indeed.
* ImprovisedWeapon: The Stone Remnants are only consumed when used for ''Rolling Boulder'' and ''Magnetize'', and in the latter case stays on the field for 5 seconds after applying the ''Magnetize'' debuff on nearby enemies. This means that a Stone Remnant that you used for a spell up to two minutes earlier will stay on the field, allowing crafty Earth Spirits to use them multiple times and in multiple teamfights long after the enemy has forgotten about them.
** ''Boulder Smash'' can be cast on both enemies and allies, and ''Geomagnetic Grip'' can be cast on allies (including creeps). This means that not only can you improvise using leftover Stone Remnants, you can use nearby creeps to lay extra damage down with ''Boulder Smash''.
* MagicKnight: He has great survivability, but low physical damage output, relying on powerful skills instead. His Intelligence growth is also the third-highest amongst Strength heroes and fourth-highest amongst non-Intelligence heroes (only beaten by Bristleback, Sniper and Undying).
* NonStandardSkillLearning: Earth Spirit is one of the only heroes in the game that has an "innate" skill; ''Stone Remnant'' becomes available at the start of the game along with one other (normal) skill but can't be levelled further. ''Stone Remnant'' is useless by itself and must be used in tandem with his other skills to form strong combos. He also has a sixth skill, ''Enchant Remnant'', unlocked by purchasing Aghanim's Scepter.
* LimitedLoadout[=/=]TooAwesomeToUse: The most unique aspect of Earth Spirit gameplay is that you have to be extremely careful with your Stone Remnant supply, as opposed to your mana pool, because using too many of them in small skirmishes and ganks can render you useless in a major teamfight. This means that you may be forced to let a fleeing enemy escape just to conserve a Stone Remnant, since you'll need that Stone Remnant to pull off your full combo on the enemy team later.
* PowerTrio: He forms one with Storm Spirit and Ember Spirit.
* RollingAttack: ''Rolling Boulder'' turns Kaolin into a boulder that picks up speed and distance if he hits a Stone Remnant along the way. It stops only when it reaches its full distance or it connects with an enemy hero, greatly slowing the enemy if a Stone Remnant is used. What's more, it stops Kaolin on the opposite side of the impact, meaning that you're in a prime position to use ''Boulder Smash'' to punch the enemy hero back the way you came from.
* SelectiveMagnetism: He can magnetize enemies to the ground or pull rocks and allies toward him.
* SomeDexterityRequired: Earth Spirit is a high APM hero, as his skills are very low cooldown and you may need to summon multiple Stone Remnants in the midst of a teamfight to keep your combo going (all while casting your spells), to say nothing of re-using old Stone Remnants and factoring in item abilities.
* TakenForGranite: ''Enchant Remnant'', an extra ability that is granted when Earth Spirit purchases Aghanim's Scepter, temporarily turns a target hero into a Stone Remnant (making them invulnerable in the process) that can be used to fuel his other abilities. What's so notable about it is that it can be cast on ''enemy heroes'' as well as allies, which can allow Earth Spirit not only to stop an enemy hero in their tracks, but also to reposition them like a Stone Remnant and effectively remove them from a teamfight or greatly displace them in a gank.
* TelephonePolearm: His weapon is a rock pole twice his height with a flexible midsection, [[InstantChucks allowing the use as giant nunchucks]].
* YouWillNotEvadeMe: Earth Spirit is one of only two heroes in the game with both a stun and a silence (Puck being the other), and can cast both in an [=AoE=]. Toss in ''Rolling Boulder'''s slow with the Stone Remnant, and he has a huge amount of disable potential, to say nothing of being able to apply the slow and silence to possibly the whole enemy team.
** ''Rolling Boulder'' can be used to catch up to fleeing enemies easily (and drastically slow them down with a Stone Remnant). And because it places Earth Spirit on the other side of the target, it can then be followed up with ''Boulder Smash'' to force them back in the direction they were fleeing, most often where your other teammates are.
[[/folder]]
----
[[folder:Phoenix]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/phoenix_2024_5039.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/d/da/Phoenix_bird_victory.mp3 "SCREE!"]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Itself
''Alone across an untouched darkness gleamed the Keeper's first sun, a singular point of conscious light fated to spread warmth into the empty void. Through aeons beyond count this blinding beacon set to coalescing its incalculable energy before bursting forth the cataclysmic flare of supernova. From this inferno raced new beacons, star progeny identical to its parent, who journeyed an unlit ocean and settled in constellatory array. In time, they too would be made to propagate through supernova flame. So would this dazzling cycle of birth and rebirth repeat until all skies hewn of Titan toil deigned to twinkle and shine.''
''By this ageless crucible the star that mortals would come to call Phoenix collapsed into being, and like its ancestors was thrust into an endless cosmos to find a place among its stellar brethren. Yet curiosity toward that which the dimming elders comfort in the darkness consumed the fledgling, and so over long cycles it inquired and studied. It learned that among worlds both whole and broken would soon stir a nexus of remarkable variety locked in an enduring conflict of cosmic consequence, a plane which would find itself in need of more influence than a dying sun's distant rays could provide. Thus this infant son of suns took terrestrial form, eagerly travelling to shine its warmth upon those who may need it most, and perhaps seize upon its solar destiny.''
* AchillesHeel: Even if Phoenix places all of its debuffs correctly on the enemy team prior to using ''Supernova'', players have to be wary of heroes with targeted debuff removals or attack speed steroids, since they can dispel the ''Fire Spirits'' attack speed debuff and then quickly right-click down the egg by themselves. Examples of this include Legion Commander's ''Press the Attack'', any fast-attacking hero with a Black King Bar, or a Sniper with a Mask of Madness who stays out of the initial fight and doesn't get hit with any debuffs at all.
* BirthDeathJuxtaposition: It is ThePhoenix after all, especially when he uses his ultimate.
* BonusBoss: Before being added in [=DotA=] version 6.70, Phoenix was a secret bonus boss in 6.69.
* CastFromHitPoints: His first three abilities cost a fraction of his health to activate. His ultimate, ''Supernova'', takes the whole bar, and then gives it back if you survive.
** PercentDamageAttack: Inverted, the cost of his non-ultimate spells are all based on his current HP. This means that while summoning ''Fire Spirits'' and performing ''Icarus Dive'' at full health will shave off almost a third of your maximum health, doing so when you're below 50% HP will cost significantly less. This means that as long as he has mana he can cast any of his spells regardless of what the HP cost is, and he can cast ''Icarus Dive'' no matter what since it costs no mana.
* CoolMask: It's hard to see due to textures and coloring, but Phoenix [[http://i.imgur.com/N9DJ1dO.png actually is wearing a mask]].
* DeathOfAThousandCuts[=/=]GradualGrinder: While Phoenix is classified as a Nuker, none of his spells can do any burst damage. Instead, his abilities deal large amounts of damage over time on top of the debuffs, making him extremely deadly in teamfights where the enemy can't reach him.
* DeathOrGloryAttack: ''Supernova'' will result in either refreshed abilities and a load of damage to the enemy (on top of a stun), or death if the enemy can destroy the egg.
* DifficultButAwesome: In general, playing Phoenix requires good aiming and mechanical skills, as well as health management since all of his spells cost HP in order to use. However, played right, Phoenix can be a very mobile nuker who can apply very strong slow and damage-over-time debuffs to the entire enemy team, swinging teamfights by himself.
** ''Fire Spirits'' have a very small [=AoE=] and require you to aim well in order for them to connect, in addition to staggering the casting in order to get the most out of all four spirits (since it's a damage over time ability, hitting an enemy twice with the spirits only refreshes the debuff duration). However, once it connects, it completely neutralises any autoattacker and does strong damage over time.
** ''Sun Ray'' leaves you completely vulnerable and slow during its duration while costing HP, but used wisely it can allow you to damage enemies while healing your allies, and also grants you the ability to move through impassable terrain.
** ''Supernova'' requires impeccable positioning and timing to get the most out of - bad Phoenix players will probably suffer humiliating deaths thanks to poorly placing the egg. Done right, you deal upwards of 1000 damage on top of a stun, in a whopping 1000 AOE.
* DynamicEntry: ''Icarus Dive''.
* EmpathicHealing: ''Sun Ray'' heals allies that it hits and drains Phoenix's health every second it's active.
* FixedDamageAttack: ''Sun Ray'' deals additional damage that scales with targets' max HP.
* AFormYouAreComfortableWith: He's actually a star. This becomes more apparent during ''Supernova''.
* FrickingLaserBeams: ''Sun Ray''.
* GreatEscape[=/=]SuperPersistentPredator: ''Icarus Dive'' is considered one of the most powerful escape/chasing spells in the game, since it can displace Phoenix by 1400 range very quickly (more than a Blink Dagger, on top of also not requiring any mana or having a forced cooldown upon enemy player damage), and has only a 0.2 second cast animation, on top of the debuff slowing any enemies it hits.
* HotWings
* KillItWithFire
* LeadTheTarget: ''Fire Spirits'' have a slow travel speed upon firing, making them hard to land on enemies who are actively trying to dodge them.
* LongRangeFighter: All of Phoenix's spells have very long ranges, making him very powerful in teamfights as he can close or open the distance between himself and his enemies with ''Icarus Dive'', launch ''Fire Spirits'' from 1400 range away (more than vision range at nighttime!), blast enemies with ''Sun Ray'' from 1300 range away, and apply ''Supernova'''s burn damage from 1000 range away.
* TheNameless: While his [=DotA=] name was Icarus, this was redacted and he is simply referred to as Phoenix in Dota 2.
* NotTheIntendedUse[=/=]ObviousRulePatch: Prior to being patched out, there was [[http://youtu.be/gFE7uQr0Oj0?t=1m41s a very good reason to build Blade Mail on Phoenix]].
* ThePhoenix
* PlayingWithFire
* PowerLimiter: Any targets hit by ''Fire Spirits'' receive a massive 140 attack speed reduction - enough to neutralise their right-click attacks.
* ThePowerOfTheSun: There's ''Sun Ray'', a beam that both damages enemies and heals allies, respectively. And then there's his ultimate ''Supernova''. It sacrifices all of his remaining HP to turn into a glowing sun that deals significant damage over time in a huge 1000-unit radius for six seconds. If the egg survives, it explodes to damage and stun anyone in the burn radius, fills you back up to full hp and mana, and refreshes the cooldowns on your three normal abilities.
* SacrificialRevivalSpell: Inverted. With an Aghanim's Scepter, Phoenix can bring an allied hero into his ''Supernova'' and share its effects. The egg surviving six seconds will refresh the target hero and Phoenix's non-ultimate spells while giving them full HP and mana, while destroying the egg will kill both heroes.
* SadisticChoice: If Phoenix pulls off his combo properly right before using ''Supernova'', such a situation can easily arise. Do you, with your attack speed debuff from ''Fire Spirits'' and movement speed debuff from ''Icarus Dive'', attempt to approach the egg to attack it and kill Phoenix, all the while suffering huge damage over time debuffs and with the enemy team possibly bearing down on you? Or do you leave the egg alive to engage the other enemy players, while suffering all of the previously mentioned debuffs and damage over time, in the hope that you can kill the enemy before the egg explodes and stuns you, forcing you to deal with a full-health Phoenix whose abilities were refreshed by the ''Supernova''?
* SchmuckBait: A well placed ''Supernova'' is this for the other team. A Phoenix that's low on health may look like an easy kill, and even if he uses ''Supernova'', it only takes a few hits to kill the egg... except while the team is gathered around the egg to kill it, they're in a perfect position to be hit hard by teamfight skills like ''Ravage'', ''Black Hole'', ''Reverse Polarity'', ''Epicenter'', and the like.
* SharpenedToASingleAtom: The lore for ''Sun Ray'':
--> ''The vent through which such stellar energy flows is mere atoms wide.''
* ShockwaveStomp: At the end of ''Supernova'', the Phoenix Sun will crash-land, stunning enemies over a large area before Phoenix is reborn.
* TheSpeechless: Like Io, except with bird sounds.
--> [[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/d/da/Phoenix_bird_victory.mp3 "Squawk"]]
* SquishyWizard: Like Wisp, Phoenix does not have a large amount of survivability despite being a Strength hero, since he has negative base armor, low Agility growth, and spends his hit points to cast his spells on a frequent basis.
* StandardStatusEffects: Phoenix's abilities focus on supporting his team by applying powerful debuffs on his enemies. He can slow enemy movement speed, drastically cut down their attack speed, or apply a massive area-of-effect stun.
* SuperSpeed: ''Icarus Dive'' has Phoenix dive forward in an arc in the targeted direction, dealing damage over time and slowing the movement speed of any units he comes into contact with, and then orbiting back to his original position. You can also cancel it partway through if you don't want to return to where you started, making it good for both chasing and getting away.
* TimeAbyss
* WaveMotionGun: ''Sun Ray'' is a beam as wide as Phoenix's entire wingspan and yes it hurts, no matter what level your hp is you still get shredded by it.
* WingsDoNothing: Except during ''Sun Ray''.
[[/folder]]
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[[center: [- Strength - '''Radiant''' | [[Characters/Dota2DireStrength Dire]] -] ]]
[[center: [- Agility - [[Characters/Dota2RadiantAgility Radiant]] | [[Characters/Dota2DireAgility Dire]] -] ]]
[[center: [- Intelligence - [[Characters/Dota2RadiantIntelligence Radiant]] | [[Characters/Dota2DireIntelligence Dire]]-] ]]
[[center: [- [[Characters/Dota2Neutrals Neutrals]] | [[Characters/Dota2NPCs Others]]-] ]]
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[[foldercontrol]]
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[[folder:Raigor Stonehoof, the Earthshaker]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/earthshaker_3029.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://hydra-images.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/a/a5/Erth_rare_05.mp3 "There may be many earths, but there's only one Earthshaker."]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' John Patrick Lowrie
''"Like a golem or gargoyle, Earthshaker was one with the earth but now walks freely upon it. Unlike those other entities, he created himself through an act of will, and serves no other master. In restless slumbers, encased in a deep seam of stone, he became aware of the life drifting freely above him. He grew curious. During a season of tremors, the peaks of Nishai shook themselves loose of avalanches, shifting the course of rivers and turning shallow valleys into bottomless chasms. When the land finally ceased quaking, Earthshaker stepped from the settling dust, tossing aside massive boulders as if throwing off a light blanket. He had shaped himself in the image of a mortal beast, and named himself Raigor Stonehoof. He bleeds now, and breathes, and therefore he can die. But his spirit is still that of the earth; he carries its power in the magical totem that never leaves him. And on the day he returns to dust, the earth will greet him as a prodigal son."''
Earthshaker is a melee support and initiator hero who flattens his foes with an arsenal of ground-themed nukes and spells. Excelling at area-of-effect damage, his spells suffer from long casting animations but more than make up for it with their raw damage potential and the potential to stun any foe unlucky enough to be on the receiving end of his power. His first spell,''Fissure'', sends out a line of earth in a huge radius and stuns anyone who is caught in the blast, and can block off escape routes and knock dangerous foes out of a team fight. His second spell, ''Enchant Totem'', will temporarily boost his auto attack damage to finish off any survivors. ''Aftershock'' gives all of his abilities bonus damage and very small -ranged area-of-effect stuns - which synchronizes well with ''Enchant Totem'' - and his ultimate, ''Echo Slam'', has Earthshaker slam his totem down on the ground, dealing cumulative bonus damage based on how many enemies are caught in its area of effect, and synergies Aftershock. No matter how overwhelming the odds might seem, a good Earthshaker can quickly level any playing field and leave his opponents eating dirt.
* BadassBaritone: He is quite the ''[[IncrediblyLamePun ear]]''-shaker.
* BadassBeard
* BarrierWarrior: ''Fissure'' can not only stun but also temporarily create an impassible crevasse. Knowing how to use it to trap enemies is vital to mastering Earthshaker.
* BlackMage: Although he's a Strength hero and has good durability, his base auto-attacks are fairly weak and he relies heavily on his spells to support his team.
* CallingYourAttacks:
--> '''Earthshaker (using ''Fissure''):''' ''[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/3/30/Erth_ability_fissure_09.mp3 Fissure!]]''
--> '''Earthshaker (using ''Enchant Totem''):''' ''[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/5/51/Erth_ability_enchant_01.mp3 Enchant!]]''
--> '''Earthshaker (landing a 2/3-man ''Echo Slam''):''' ''[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/b/bc/Erth_ability_echo_02.mp3 Echo Slam!]]''
* CarryABigStick[=/=]TelephonePolearm: His totem.
* ChargedAttack: ''Enchant Totem'' gives him a massive damage boost for one attack, and with ''Aftershock'' can damage and stun every enemy in a small radius.
** ForMassiveDamage: It's one of the few damage amplifiers that stack with critical hits.
** OneHitKill: With Daedalus, his attack damage can be increased ''12 times'', and overlapping cooldown of the spell lets you immediately land another hit on the stunned target. This is enough to burst down not only supports, but carries as well.
* ConservationOfNinjutsu: Invoked on the enemy by ''Echo Slam''. Against a lone hero it's pretty much a glorified stun; against a full team with creeps and summons thrown in, a TotalPartyKill.
* DifficultButAwesome: Earthshaker's bread and butter skill, ''Fissure''. Bad Earthshaker players are prone to use this skill to block teammates, isolating them from the team and netting the enemies an easy kill or leave enemy heroes on the wrong side of the crevasse, allowing them to escape with an easy walk. However, good ''Fissure'' usage can provide great utility, able to block a lane in a gank, stop chasing/escaping enemies, snipe enemy heroes with its extreme range, isolate them from their teammates or otherwise trap them in unpleasant positions.
* DiscOneNuke: One should never underestimate the power of ''Fissure'' at level 1 - the 8-second barrier is probably among the most devastating effects for the heroes with no innate mobility. Unless able to bypass ''Fissure'' with skills like Batrider's ''Firefly'', Timbersaw's ''Timber Chain'',... offlaners have to play extremely careful against an enemy Earthshaker, because they're dead if he could land a good ''Fissure''. It remains extremely useful across the whole game, and is the reason why Earthshaker can get away with being a hard support and getting a late Blink Dagger, unlike similar initiators like Sand King or Tidehunter.
* DishingOutDirt: Well, Raigor is made out of dirt.
* EarthquakesCauseFissures
* EarthquakeMachine: His totem is a supernatural variant.
* EpicFail: He has special responses for landing a ''zero''-man ''Echo Slam''.
--> '''Earthshaker''': ''[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/3/30/Erth_ability_echo_07.mp3 Echo... Slam?]]''
* ForMassiveDamage: Proper usage of his abilities can cause the most burst damage in a few moments any hero is capable of in the entire game.
* AFormYouAreComfortableWith
* GlassCannon: Despite being a Strength hero, Earthshaker is relatively fragile due to his low armour, mediocre Strength and his item build which consists of no durability items whatsoever, instead focusing on supporting and positioning to maximise the disruption from ''Fissure'' and the massive damage potential from ''Echo Slam''.
* GroundShatteringLanding: The animation for his ultimate, ''Echo Slam''
* HerdHittingAttack: ''Echo Slam'' deals bonus damage per every enemy unit within range without an upper limit, so hitting a lot of enemies is a requirement for it.
* InterfaceScrew: ''Fissure'' and ''Echo Slam'' shake the entire screen when cast.
* InvoluntaryGroupSplit: ''Fissure'' can block off enemies from their allies, leaving them at the mercy of your team. Of course, it's also easy to rush this and cause more harm than good - you can easily block off your team mates, save enemy heroes or condemn your own.
* MagmaMan: With the Bindings of Deep Magma cosmetic item, all of Raigor's abilities become magma instead of earth.
* NounVerber
* ObviousRulePatch: Prior to 6.81, Fissure will cause creeps to walk around them. This can be easily exploited by many players who laned him in the Offlane in order to easily pull the creeps into the Ancient jungle thus causing many safelane carries to be starved of their farm when they lose a creep wave. 6.81 patched this exploit by having the creeps simply wait for the Fissure to dissapear, thus limiting the players to merely using Fissure for pulling the wave closer to their tower.
* PowerMakesYourVoiceDeep
* PrimalStance: Despite having arms, Earthshaker stands on all fours.
* RaceLift: He was a [[ALoadOfBull Tauren]] in the first ''[=DotA=]''; this was changed into a more ambiguous gorilla-bull hybrid for the sequel for copyright reasons.
* ShockwaveStomp: With ''Aftershock'', each of his abilities triggers an extra shockwave around him.
* SpamAttack: ''Enchant Totem'', a cheap spell used mostly to trigger ''Aftershock''.
* TopHeavyGuy: To the point that he has to support himself with his hands when walking.
[[/folder]]
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[[folder:Sven, the Rogue Knight]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Sven_2669.png]]\
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/f/fa/Sven_rare_06.mp3 "One man, in a world of foes."]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' David Scully
''"Sven is the bastard son of a Vigil Knight, born of a Pallid Meranth, raised in the Shadeshore Ruins. With his father executed for violating the Vigil Codex, and his mother shunned by her wild race, Sven believes that honor is to be found in no social order -- but only in himself. After tending his mother through a lingering death, he offered himself as a novice to the Vigil Knights, never revealing his identity. For thirteen years he studied in his father's school, mastering the rigid code that declared his existence an abomination. Then, on the day that should have been his In-Swearing, he seized the Outcast Blade, shattered the Sacred Helm, and burned the Codex in the Vigil's Holy Flame. He strode from Vigil Keep, forever solitary, following his private code to the last strict rune. Still a knight, yes... but a Rogue Knight."''
Sven is a melee Strength hero that works well as a Support hero, but can transition into a semi-carry due to his item independence, self-sufficient skills and ability to flash-farm. He boasts a lot of self-buffs that will enhance his incredible strength as he leaps to the enemy ranks and slashing through the enemy heroes, with beefed up stats to deal great damage. His ''Storm Hammer'' is his only ranged skill, where he launches a big magical fist from his gauntlet to a target enemy, stunning the target and anyone on a circular area near the enemy. With his ''Great Cleave'', Sven gains a cleave attack, allowing his normal attacks to damage enemies nearby his target, basically a free Battle Fury or two[[note]]Though Sven can stack a Battle Fury's cleave with his own cleave for a total of 100%.[[/note]], while using his ''Warcry'', has Sven roar out and pumping up his and his allies' armor and movement speed for sturdier advance or escape. Lastly, his ultimate, ''God's Strength'', has Sven channel his strength to incredible levels that he gains a big amount of bonus strength, allowing his normal attacks to deal great damage. Sven is most often seen building Black King Bar, as its spell immunity allows Sven to shove off spells that hinder his movement so he can freely move in and attack anyone in his range with his great strength. Sven's versatility and strength makes him a solid ally, and if he's around, you can be assured that ''he is there to '''pump you up!'''''
* AntiHero: He's a Knight, following HIS code of chivalry. Although not evil, if you ever cross it, you're going to get cleaved. Ask the Vigil Knights of how it turned out.
* TheBerserker: His playstyle emphasizes rushing into the midst of the fight to deal as much damage as possible during his stun and buffs.
* {{BFS}}: The Outcast Blade. His passive, ''Great Cleave'', allows him to spread a percentage of his damage to all nearby enemies every time they attack, ignoring armor.
* BlasphemousBoast: If Sven kills an enemy Zeus, he shows that he has little opinions towards deities in general.
--> '''Sven''': ''[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/e/e2/Sven_rival_05.mp3 Gods were meant to be defied!]]''
* BorrowedCatchPhrase: A hilarious one with Enchantress:
--> '''Sven (killing Enchantress):''' [[UnusualEuphemism Go sproink]] [[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/4/46/Sven_rival_06.mp3 yourself!]]
* ButtMonkey: In Valve's demonstration videos of Hero abilities, Sven is always the Hero used to demonstrate the abilities' effects. This has since spread, with the help of [=DotaCinema=], to fan videos as well.
* CoolHelmet: A knight's helmet with huge horns. Even Kunkka agrees it's cool and wants Sven to be his [[IncrediblyLamePun helmsman]] because of that helmet.
* DarkerAndEdgier: Zig-zagged. Sven in the old [=DotA=] was just a solid defender of justice as a backstory and a BoisterousBruiser with "Pumping Up" jokes in his skillset definitions, but he uses the evil [[VideoGame/{{Warcraft}} Tichondrius]] voice set. In Dota 2, the "Pumping Up" jokes vanish, and he became more rogue-ish, betraying the Vigil Knights and possibly slaying them because they violated his personal honor of being a HalfHumanHybrid (after learning from them) although he would still follow the conduct of a normal knight. However, his voiceset is decidedly more honorable and knight-like (if rather Rogue-ish). He's also more of a solitary loner than a boisterous guy.
* DarkAndTroubledPast: We're only given tiny details, but Sven's childhood is ''definitely'' no walk in park, since he had to endure a lifetime of insults and being considered an abomination because of being a half-Pallid Meranth, his mother being shunned the same way, and his father executed.
* DifficultButAwesome: Actually hitting groups with Storm bolt, thanks to it's fairly slow projectile and unit-targetting requires a fair bit of prediction on which enemies are going where. And then you kill them all with your massive physical DPS.
* FashionableAsymmetry: He has huge armor plates on his left arm. One of the item descriptions explains [[FridgeBrilliance they're a counterweight to his sword]].
* ForMassiveDamage: If he crits for any reason, it ''will'' hurt. A fully farmed Sven with ''God's Strength'' active can hit upwards of over 2000 damage.
* GameplayAndStorySegregation: The skill flavor text of ''Warcry'' says "Calling a few lines from the Vigil Codex fortifies Sven's obedience to his rogue code. So poetic!". Yet, whenever Sven uses ''Warcry'', he's just roaring loudly. So is Sven's roar just that damn poetic, or the Vigil Codex just consists of incoherent roaring?
* GlowingEyesOfDoom: When under the effects of ''God's Strength''.
* GutturalGrowler: Game's prime example.
* HalfHumanHybrid: In [=DotA=], he was half human and half Night Elf. In Dota 2, half [[FishPeople Pallid Meranth]] (mother's side) half Vigil Knight (father's side).
* HerdHittingAttack: ''Great Cleave'' is the single most powerful cleave in the game (barring the cooldown-limited ''Tidebringer''), in both area of effect and percentage damage. In many cases with heroes that can avoid attacks or have extremely high armor, it's actually better to hit people ''near'' your intended target since cleave is affected by neither evasion nor armor. And to note, once Sven learns this skill, it becomes his basic attack without any cooldowns whatsoever (like getting a free Battle Fury).
* HeroicBastard
* HourOfPower: ''God's Strength'' lasts for a limited duration after being activated, and can triple his base damage, making him a prime candidate to build Strength items on.
* ImprobableUseOfAWeapon: How exactly he cleaves large groups by stabbing[=/=] shoving his BFS and making overhand swings, one can only guess wonder at.
* InstantDeathRadius: Getting near a fed enemy Sven is a ''very bad thing''. He doesn't even have to notice you, simply being in his cleave radius for a second or so is often a death sentence for squishier heroes.
* IWorkAlone: Sven has this in his mindset, leading a solitary life following the conducts of a Knight, and one of his quotes if his team is defeated is "Should've done this myself." But since [[WrongGenreSavvy this is an ARTS game...]]
* KnightInSourArmor: Sven will protect the weak as befitting of a knight. However, his years of abuse and isolation for being a half Pallid Meranth left him rather somber and gave him a disdain on typical chivalries, like Omniknight or Chen (although he occasionally would compliment Omniknight).
--> '''Sven (killing Omniknight/Chen):''' ''[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/a/a3/Sven_rivals_omni_01.mp3 What you call 'righteousness', I call 'foolishness']]''
* MagikarpPower: Not particularly dangerous early on, but he gets over it quick, and with 1 or 2 items, is already a threat fully capable of tearing through a team with backup, and can farm extremely rapidly thanks to ''Great Cleave''.
* MightyGlacier: His main weakness is his vulnerability to kiting as he's slightly slower than average at best, and ''Warcry'' isn't all that useful as a speed boost. His usual item choices tend towards fixing this, making him a LightningBruiser in most fights.
* MoneyMultiplier: ''Great Cleave'' lets him clear most camps simply by killing the largest creep, rapidly gaining gold and experience at a time where other carries are still farming for items to help them farm faster.
* OneManArmy: One of the best heroes at getting [[TotalPartyKill Rampages]], even by himself if the enemy is grouped up, thanks to his area stun and damage output.
* PowerUpFullColorChange: Casting his ultimate turns him (and occasionally his sword) red.
* RatedMForManly: His first skill throws a rocket punch made of thunder, and his general playstyle emphasizes he should have no fear of diving in the middle of the enemy team, causing as much damage possible. Sven himself is often considered one of DOTA's manliest heroes, with ''Great Cleave'', every enemies nearby is forced to ''feel'' a portion of Sven's great strength, damaging them (and he needs no cooldown (it's a passive), or money (buy a Battle Fury) for that). If he has Aghanim's Scepter and ''God's Strength'' gives him an aura that increases everyone else's base damage in a certain percentage. Meaning that he's so manly that his presence pumps everyone up!
* RazorWind: To indicate how far the ''Great Cleave'' damage reaches past the sword's length.
* RoaringRampageOfRevenge: In his backstory, Sven kept his hatred to the Vigil Knights as he learned from them. On the day of In-Swearing, Sven pretty much channeled his years worth of pent-up hatred and vengeance to his father's execution by rampaging at the Vigil Knights with the Outcast Blade, slaughtering them. Since he's also a ScreamingWarrior, we assume that there's a lot of literal roaring in the scene of carnage.
* RocketPunch: ''Storm Hammer'' launches his enchanted gauntlet at the enemies.
* RougeAnglesOfSatin
--> '''Sven:''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/f/fe/Sven_rare_09.mp3 "It's Rogue Knight, dammit! It's not rouge knight."]]
** {{Irony}}: ''God's Strength'' turns Sven red. He really is a rogue rouge knight!
* ScreamingWarrior: His ''Warcry'' gives himself and nearby allies a huge speed and armor boost. And he generally screams a lot.
* ShoutOut: His name is a reference to a wrestler, whose signature skill was to get 'Pumped Up'.
* ShockAndAwe: ''Storm Hammer'' has lightning effects, and he gains [[GlowingEyesOfDoom Glowing, lighning-emitting eyes]] and crackling lightning whenever he attacks during ''God's Strength''.
* SimpleYetAwesome: Only has his ranged stun as a direct target spell, and the rest are mostly passive buffs, and his play style is to get near the enemy and then start whacking them dead with normal attacks.
* SophisticatedAsHell
* SuperMode: ''God's Strength'', Sven's ultimate, amplifies his base damage to up to triple its original value for 25 seconds...
** TurnsRed: ...and changes his color to rouge...
** FieldPowerEffect: ...and doubles nearby allies' base damage for its duration as well if he has an Aghanim's Scepter.
* SuperStrength: Sven in a nutshell, excepting Storm Hammer, all of it are about mighty display of absurd levels of strength and toughness. ''Great Cleave'' have him constantly [[HitYouSoHardYourXWillFeelIt slash so powerfully every nearby enemies feel his strength]], ''War Cry'' concentrates his strength onto his body, it pumps up his toughness and his allies' as well. ''God's Strength'' is the most traditional depiction of the trope: Making Sven's already great strength rise up to absurd levels that every slashes is going to hurt a lot harder.
* TestosteronePoisoning: Sven is here to pump you up! With ''Warcry'' (pumps up your toughness and speed) and upgraded ''God's Strength'' (pumps up your strength).
* ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill: If you're far enough ahead in the game that you've got enough money to buy it, Daedalus ''will'' end up turning Sven's autoattacks into this.
--> '''Sven:''' [[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/7/7f/Sven_item_05.mp3 Daedalus!]] [[HilarityEnsues This is going to be absurd.]]
* WouldNotHitAGirl: Zig-zagged. Sven has a quote where he displays displeasure that he had to kill Rylai ("I would not kill a maiden, but you forced the issue.") and in his massive amount of 'kill' quips, he has no special quotes against ladies... except the aforementioned Rylai, and Aiushtha, the latter was more because he's annoyed at her attitude and her skills being detrimental to his play style ("Go sproink yourself!"). Of course, this being is an ARTS game, if you order him to attack a girl hero, he will obey.
[[/folder]]
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[[folder:Tiny, the Stone Giant]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Tiny_2514.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/0/07/Tiny_spawn_07.mp3 "Sticks and stones will break their bones."]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Eric Newsome
''"Coming to life as a chunk of stone, Tiny's origins are a mystery on which he continually speculates. He is a Stone Giant now, but what did he used to be? A splinter broken from a Golem's heel? A shard swept from a gargoyle-sculptor's workshop? A fragment of the Oracular Visage of Garthos? A deep curiosity drives him, and he travels the world tirelessly seeking his origins, his parentage, his people. As he roams, he gathers weight and size; the forces that weather lesser rocks, instead cause Tiny to grow and ever grow."''
Tiny may seem like a weak hero at the beginning of a match, but give him enough time and he'll soon start to throw his weight around. As the game progresses, he bounces from role to role as he levels up; he can push, initiate, gank, or even carry depending on what items he builds and the needs of the team. Boasting a powerful disable and a versatile initiation attack, Tiny can easily stun his foes with his first spell, ''Avalanche'', which causes a huge amount of rocks to bombard the area, dealing damage as long as the opponent is caught inside. Tiny can then throw a random nearby unit into the mayhem with ''Toss'', his second spell, which allows him to pick up and throw a unit, be it friend or foe, in a radius around him. Be warned, however, as the unit he picks up is random in it's radius. Close range attackers will be discouraged by his third spell, a passive called ''Craggy Exterior'', which has a chance of negating an attack and stunning its source, though only works in melee range of about 300 units. As the Stone Giant levels his ultimate, ''Grow'', he'll trade in some of his attack speed for bonus movement speed and attack damage, and prove to his opponents that good things can come in small packages.
* TheBigGuy: With his ultimate maxed out, Tiny is easily the largest character in the game, rivaled only by Undying's ''[[SuperMode Flesh Golem]]''.
* CounterAttack: Enemies that attack Tiny from within 300 units have a chance of being stunned by his passive ''Craggy Exterior''.
** NoSell: ''Craggy Exterior'' stuns attackers when their attack ''begins'' not when it lands, meaning any attack that triggers ''Craggy Exterior'' will ''not'' do damage. This is especially notable against heroes with a bash, Skull Basher or Abyssal Blade, as when both proc, ''Craggy Exterior'' takes precedence.
* DevelopersForesight: You're not likely to make Aghanim's Scepter before you have your ultimate. But if you do, you'll be treated to a sight of Tiny hauling around a comically large tree - twice as big as himself if you didn't level the ultimate at all - with unique animations for all actions.
* DishingOutDirt: As a stone giant, this is to be expected.
* FastballSpecial: ''Toss'' can be used this way to hurl allies into the midst of enemies for teamfight initiation.
* GlowingEyes
* {{Golem}}: Sort of.
* GrievousHarmWithABody: When used against an enemy, ''Toss'' inflicts damage to the tossed unit, and does [=AoE=] damage if targeted on an enemy. If combined with ''Avalanche'', it inflicts double ''Avalanche'''s damage, making Tiny capable of [[OneHitKill one-shotting]] most squishy heroes in the game.
* HerdHittingAttack: Tiny's ''Avalanche'' + ''Toss'' combo and the cleave from his ultimate makes standing close a very bad idea.
* HulkSpeak: One of his lines even deliberately makes a ShoutOut as such.
-->'''Tiny:''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/3/35/Tiny_attack_12.mp3 Tiny smash!]]
** SophisticatedAsHell: However, he could be quite articulate if he wants to.
-->'''Tiny:''' [[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/b/b3/Tiny_rare_04.mp3 Was I a splinter from a golem's heel? A chip from the Oracular Visage of Garthos? I shall not rest until I know from whence I came.]]
* InformedAttribute: Despite being a giant rock monster, Tiny has no armor to speak of, and only gains a slight amount with ''Craggy Exterior''. [[FridgeBrilliance Then again]], that rock is part of his body, meaning that he technically isn't ''wearing'' any armor...
* IronicNickname: Although his name is true at first, Tiny quickly becomes one of the largest characters in the game.
** "Tiny the Stone Giant" is this no matter how you look at it.
* JackOfAllStats[=/=]MagicKnight: Tiny starts the game as a squishy nuker/ganker, then with Aghanim's Scepter becomes a durable, if slow-hitting pusher, and with more attack speed becomes a hard carry. The difference from most other heroes is that he doesn't sacrifice any of these roles for the other; his spells scale well into the lategame, augmenting his slow but damaging melee attacks.
* LightningBruiser: As you level ''Grow'', Tiny actually ''gains'' movement speed, to the point where he can chase most heroes around the map pretty easily, and his innate tankiness and a chance to stun attacking enemies give him incredible survivability.
* MagikarpPower: In the beginning of the game, Tiny is pretty pathetic - he has terrible Agility, two spells that eat his mana very quickly, and fairly poor stat growth. Give him a few levels and a Hyperstone and Aghanim's Scepter, though, and he'll soon transform into a LightningBruiser, capable of smashing entire teams asunder by the mid-to-late game.
* MightyGlacier
* OurGiantsAreBigger: Unlike a typical giant, Tiny is made of stone. He also can't be considered a proper "giant" until ''Grow'' is maxed.
* PrimalStance: Tiny's legs aren't that much bigger than a regular hero's, while his upper body is ''massive''. As a result, he has to use his right hand to steady himself while walking, and when he gets bigger, just standing.
* PowerFist: Tiny's right hand is a giant rock stump with no fingers that he walks on and uses to punch people, although the second use is shown less as Tiny gets bigger, and starts using his smaller left hand for punching.
* QuestForIdentity: His goal is to find his origin.
* RedRightHand: His right hand is a giant stone stump without any fingers that he uses the bludgeon his enemies with, althought it takes a back seat to his smaller left hand once gets to the higher levels of ''Grow'' and needs to use it to steady himself.
* RockMonster
* SiegeEngines: He's ''very'' good at demolishing towers, and pushing down creepwaves to get there once he gets his scepter. Even before, he can sling creeps at it for 100 damage apiece. Not much, but still something.
* SquareCubeLaw: While he starts out more agile and capable of swinging his entire body around, Tiny loses agility as he gets larger ([[IThoughtItMeant not the stat]]), to the point that, at full size, he has to ''constantly'' steady himself with his right hand, even when attacking.
* SurprisinglySuddenDeath: Casting ''Toss'' on a hero while they're being hit by ''Avalanche'' causes them to take double damage from ''Avalanche'', allowing Tiny to annihilate lone enemy heroes ''very'' quickly. Throw in a [[DynamicEntry Blink Dagger]], and pain tends to ensue.
* TelephonePolearm: If given Aghanim's Scepter, Tiny will use A TREE as a bludgeon.
* ThisLooksLikeAJobForAquaman: Tiny's synergy with Io is worth noting: ''Tether'' combined with a Bottle solves his mana problems, allowing him to spam ''Toss'' to farm the jungle, and also helps his mobility, while ''Relocate'' allows him to gank globally every minute and snowball, making Tiny come online much earlier than he normally would. The trade-off is, Tiny is just inferior to other carries without Io, and in professional games he is almost never picked without an allied Io, and is only banned when the enemy team has already picked Io.
* WeirdBeard: Made of moss and later ferns.
* YouHaveResearchedBreathing: The entire advantage to getting an staff once wielded by a demigod-like Wizard for Tiny? Him picking up a ''tree''. Justified in the description of the Crystal Dryad cosmetic tree: the Tree is actually Aghanim's Scepter itself in a form suited for Tiny.
-->''Had the ancient mage but known what corruption his scepter would inflict upon the world, he would have burned and buried it, and sown salt over its cursed grave. For when carried in a fist of stone, Aghanim's scepter unleashes the spirit of the Crystal Dryad, and no foe is safe.''
[[/folder]]
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[[folder:Kunkka, the Admiral]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Kunkka_4108.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/7/75/Kunk_rare_01.mp3 "If the demons of the Cataract couldn't sink my fleet, then this lot doesn't stand a chance."]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' John St. John
''"As Admiral of the mighty Claddish Navy, Kunkka was charged with protecting the isles of his homeland when the Demons of the Cataract made a concerted grab at the lands of men. After years of small sorties, and increasingly bold and devastating attacks, the Demon Fleet flung all its carnivorous ships at the Trembling Isle. Desperate, the Suicide-Mages of Cladd committed their ultimate rite, summoning a host of ancestral spirits to protect the fleet. Against the Demons, this was just barely enough to turn the tide. As Kunkka watched the Demons take his ships down one by one, he had the satisfaction of wearing away their fleet with his ancestral magic. But at the battle's peak, something in the clash of demons, men and atavistic spirits must have stirred a fourth power that had been slumbering in the depths. The waves rose up in towering spouts around the few remaining ships, and Maelrawn the Tentacular appeared amid the fray. His tendrils wove among the ships, drawing demon and human craft together, churning the water and wind into a raging chaos. What happened in the crucible of that storm, none may truly say. The Cataract roars off into the void, deserted by its former denizens. Kunkka is now Admiral of but one ship, a ghostly rig which endlessly replays the final seconds of its destruction. Whether he died in that crash is anyone's guess. Not even Tidehunter, who summoned Maelrawn, knows for sure."''
As both a carry and an initiator, Kunkka strikes a balance between physical prowess and magical offense. Although many of his spells have long cast times and require careful timing and map awareness, good Kunkka players can easily set up teamfights or take a powerful enemy out of commission. ''Tidebringer'', his first spell, a passive and his main source of offensive utility in lane, periodically cleaves on hit, dealing a healthy amount of physical damage to every nearby enemy. His second spell and main nuke, ''Torrent'', damages, stuns, and slows any unwary enemy caught in its area of effect when it activates. ''X Marks the Spot'' will drag any enemy hero back to its original position after a short period of time and synchronizes well with his other spells. His ultimate, ''Ghost Ship'', will not only damage and stun any enemies caught in its path, but will also buff the Admiral and any nearby allies by reducing any incoming damage, turning the Admiral and his mates into a fighting force to be reckoned with.
* AlphaStrike: Because of his extremely limited mana pool, Kunkka players must carefully decide when and where they'll cast their spells, since even a max level Kunkka will easily chew through at least half his mana pool casting only a handful of spells if he hasn't built any mana pool increasing items (as he will likely be building raw damage in order to splash physical damage on the enemy through ''Tidebringer''). If a Kunkka decides to cast all three of his spells in a single teamfight (potentially dealing upwards of 900 area-of-effect magical damage on top of the stuns and disables, and before even factoring in ''Tidebringer''), he'll spend upwards of 500 mana, rendering him unable to use even a Town Portal Scroll afterward.
* ArchEnemy: He and Tidehunter hate each other's guts.
* BadassBeard[=/=]SeadogBeard: A truly magnificent one at that.
* BoozeBasedBuff: The buff provided by his ultimate, ''Ghost Ship'', is called Kunkka's Rum, which reduces all incoming damage by 50% and deals the remainder as non-lethal damage afterward.
* TheCaptain: Admiral, to be exact.
* TheComputerIsACheatingBastard: Before a patch fix Kunkka bots could perfectly aim ''Torrent'' to hit invisible players despite the bot having no legit way of knowing that player was there, to quote the patch note itself "Fixed Kunkka being a dirty cheater when using Torrent."
* CoolSword
* CriticalHitClass: While Kunkka has no natural ability to crit, ''Tidebringer'' splashes all enemies in front of him with 100% cleave damage (meaning that it ignores armor). This means that smart Kunkka players will abuse this by building a Battle Fury (or two) to increase the cleave percentage, a Daedalus (or two) to inflict critical hits (and increase the chances of landing a crit if more than one is bought), a Shadow Blade to initiate (and to apply the 175 bonus damage), and damage items to increase his raw attack power. A lucky crit that also procs ''Tidebringer'' will deal a massive crit damage to all targets in an area, bypassing any armor that they may have and potentially resulting in a TotalPartyKill.
--> '''Kunkka, buying Crystalys:''' [[IncrediblyLamePun "Yes, Fish]] [[http://hydra-images.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/b/be/Kunk_item_10.mp3 and Crits!"]]
* DifficultButAwesome
** Both ''Torrent'' and ''Ghost Ship'' have extremely long delays, so they're very hard to land. However, a good Kunkka can cast ''X Marks the Spot'' and ''Torrent'' combos to lock down enemies, and even toss ''Ghost Ship'' into the mix for a combo that will deal a massive amount of damage to a group of enemies.
** On top of this, ''Ghost Ship'' is a fixed distance spell; unlike other spells which you can cast as near or as far as you'd like within its maximum range, ''Ghost Ship'' will always start exactly 1000 units behind Kunkka, take exactly 3 seconds to travel a fixed 2000 distance, and hit a spot exactly 1000 units in front of Kunkka. This, on top of the long delay, means that hitting an enemy team with ''Ghost Ship'' is an extremely precise art that requires good positioning. Failing to do that, you're more likely to hear this:
-->'''Kunkka''': [[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/8/8f/Kunk_ability_failure_02.mp3 "Now that was a fail-boat."]]
** ''Tidebringer'' is a powerful area cleave, but is hard to bring off due to it only proccing once every few seconds (meaning that you'll have to refrain from attacking until just the right moment). However, properly used, a smart Kunkka player can use nearby creeps (and even enemy summons in a teamfight) to splash through the enemy's armor and hit the entire enemy team at once.
** ''X Marks the Spot'' has more utility than preventing enemy Heroes from escaping. When cast on an allied Hero, it provides double the delay that it would for an enemy Hero, allowing them to either temporarily move to another part of the map to push or counter-push, or initiate on the enemy with a guaranteed method of return (provided that Kunkka can time the return well). This means that a TP scroll can be used to go back to base to quickly heal up and then get back into the fight, an ally can TP to counter-push a tower and then return back to the front lines, or an ally can chase a fleeing enemy and finish them off and then return to safety. Even better, Heroes with invulnerability abilities such as Shadow Demon, Puck, and Outworld Devourer can simply use them to break the return if the X-marked hero doesn't want to.
* EvolvingWeapon: ''Tidebringer'' is both Kunkka's weapon and a levellable passive ability.
* ExactlyWhatIAimedAt: Good Kunkka players don't aim their first shot at a hero if possible, but at a ''creep'' so all 5 heroes take the armor-ignoring cleave damage. He can also do this in chases or to harass, hitting a creep and letting his massive splash hammer the heroes behind it.
* FlyingDutchman: ''Ghost Ship'' summons the ghost of his ship to ram his enemies.
* FourStarBadass
* GhostPirate: It's been hinted at in his BackStory that he might have been killed in the crash, but no one truly knows.
** Also suggested by one of his responses:
--> '''Kunkka, meeting [[OurZombiesAreDifferent Dirge the Undying]]:''' [[http://hydra-images.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/4/45/Kunk_ally_05.mp3 "Ah, Undying, we'll make a ghastly crew."]]
* GoingDownWithTheShip: Referenced in one of his losing responses.
* HerdHittingAttack: ''Tidebringer'' turns his main melee attack into this every once in awhile.
* JackOfAllStats: Because Kunkka has so much damage potential and utility in his spells without the need for farm, he is sometimes played as a support who uses his spells to lock down the enemy for the carries on his team to focus down. The other benefit of a support Kunkka build is that since he isn't spending so much time farming physical damage items to buff up ''Tidebringer'', he can actually build items to extend his mana pool and allow him to cast his spells without limit.
* LeadTheTarget: Both ''Torrent'' and ''Ghost Ship'' have to be manually aimed with fairly long delays.
* MagicKnight: Kunkka has a wide array of powerful magic spells and nukes, but he's also well known for being able to splash absurd amounts of physical damage across the enemy team as well, making him one of the few examples of a Magic Knight who remains strong in both categories throughout a match. His only real limitations are the difficulty of landing his nukes, his relatively low manfight potential and his small mana pool.
* MakingASplash: He is able to summon geysers from underneath his enemies, and his sword is able to splash enemies with water.
* NamedLikeMyName: The hero is named after the artist who did a lot of the splash artwork for the original Dota.
* NamedWeapons[=/=]OddlyShapedSword: Tidebringer
* OfficerAndAGentleman
* PirateParrot: Kunkka's parrot Lieutenant Squawkins, available as a courier.
* RammingAlwaysWorks: ''Ghost Ship'' always destroys itself upon crashing at the targeted point, though it matters little since it ''is'' a FlyingDutchman.
* SoulPower: The lore for ''Tidebringer'':
--> A lost Claddish soul inhabits Kunkka's trusty Tidebringer, empowering it to destroy demons of the Cataract.
* SpellBlade: Kunkka's sword Tidebringer is able to deal bonus cleave damage every few seconds.
* SplashDamageAbuse: Very much so, his play style based on dealing massive SplashDamage with hard-to-land abilities.
* StealthPun: He specalizes in [[HerdHittingAttack Spl]][[MakingASplash ash]] damage.
* TalkLikeAPirate
* TeleportInterdiction: ''X Marks the Spot'' can be used on enemies who are trying to flee, as they will be brought back to the X after up to 4 seconds no matter how far they've gone.
* TotalPartyKill: If a farmed Kunkka lands a ''Torrent'' + ''Ghostship'' combo on your team, don't expect to survive to the end of the stun. Especially if he has [[CriticalHit Daedalus.]]
* TreasureMap: The inspiration for his third skill, ''X Marks the Spot''.
* WaterGeyserVolley: Anyone caught inside a ''Torrent'' will get launched high on the air before slamming into the ground.
* XMarksTheHero: The scar on his forehead. Plus he has a more literal example in ''X Marks the Spot''.
* YouWillNotEvadeMe: ''X Marks the Spot'' helps land his skills by returning an enemy to target location after a few seconds' delay.
** And generally, he has three aimed abilities that let him kill enemies well out of sight.
---> '''Kunkka:''' [[http://hydra-images.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/f/f0/Kunk_ability_torrent_04.mp3 "The fog can't hide ya!"]]
[[/folder]]
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[[folder:Karroch, the Beastmaster]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Beastmaster_928.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/c/c4/Beas_spawn_05.mp3 "Unleash the beasts of war!"]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Sam A. Mowry
''"Karroch was born a child of the stocks. His mother died in childbirth; his father, a farrier for the Mad King of Slom, was trampled to death when he was five. Afterward Karroch was indentured to the king’s menagerie, where he grew up among all the beasts of the royal court: lions, apes, fell-deer, and things less known, things barely believed in. When the lad was seven, an explorer brought in a beast like none before seen. Dragged before the King in chains, the beast spoke, though its mouth moved not. Its words: a plea for freedom. The King only laughed and ordered the beast perform for his amusement; and when it refused, struck it with the Mad Scepter and ordered it dragged to the stocks. Over the coming months, the boy Karroch sneaked food and medicinal draughts to the wounded creature, but only managed to slow its deterioration. Wordlessly, the beast spoke to the boy, and over time their bond strengthened until the boy found he could hold up his end of a conversation--could in fact speak now to all the creatures of the King's menagerie. On the night the beast died, a rage came over the boy. He incited the animals of the court to rebel and threw open their cages to set them amok on the palace grounds. The Mad King was mauled in the mayhem. In the chaos, one regal stag bowed to the boy who had freed him; and with Beastmaster astride him, leapt the high walls of the estate, and escaped. Now a man, Karroch the Beastmaster has not lost his ability to converse with wild creatures. He has grown into a warrior at one with nature’s savagery."''
With one of the longest stuns in the game and two unique summons to help him out, Beastmaster excels at staying alive even against the toughest odds. Though his spells may lack the raw damage potential of other heroes, he makes up for it with their strong versatility and support potential; he can frequently set up advantageous situations for his teammates or save an ally. ''Wild Axes'', his main damage-dealing spell, has him hurl his two axes at any enemy in a medium-large range and damages everything caught in their looping path. It can also slice down trees in their path, meaning that Beastmaster can easily cut a path through normally impassible terrain or remove fog of war on the map. ''Call of the Wild'', his second spell, has two parts; the first part summons a hawk that, while it cannot attack, can provide flying vision to allies and serve as a mobile ward. The second part summons a boar that can fight alongside its master; its normal ranged attack slows enemies. ''Inner Beast'' provides a passive attack speed to every friendly unit in its radius, including his summoned units. His ultimate, ''Primal Roar'', deals magical damage and stuns a target for up to four seconds, providing ample time for the Beastmaster and his wild cohorts to finish off their prey.
* ArmorPiercingAttack: ''Primal Roar'' can stun its target through spell immunity, and knock back spell immune enemies between him and the primary target (although no damage will be dealt to spell immune units and secondary targets won't be slowed after the push). It's one of the most powerful disables in the game since it can be cast from range and will guaranteed stun its target for up to 4 seconds.
* AnAxeToGrind: Beastmaster's WeaponOfChoice is a pair of tomahawks. He can even throw and retrieve them [[ImprobableUseOfAWeapon like a boomerang]] via his first ability, ''Wild Axes''.
--> '''Beastmaster (casting Wild Axes):''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/5/59/Beas_ability_axes_04.mp3 ''Boomeraxe.'']]
** DualWielding
** ImprobableUseOfAWeapon: How can he retrieve his throwing axes is rather inexplicable.
* BadassBeard
** BeardOfBarbarism
* TheBeastmaster
* CallASmeerpARabbit: His boar and hawk don't look like what they're insisted to be. Changing them with cosmetic items will turn them into entirely different species as well.
* DefogOfWar: ''Call of the Wild'''s Scout Hawk is one of the best examples of this. While the Lesser Hawk has only mediocre vision range, it's a flying unit with the associated movement and vision capabilities, meaning that it can fly over cliffs and trees, and see through them as well. It can even see safely into Roshan's pit if positioned properly.
** {{Invisibility}}: The Greater Hawk, if left motionless for 3 seconds, will fade into invisibility over 1 second (though moving it again will break the invisibility), effectively turning it into a mobile Observer Ward that lasts for 60 seconds.
* {{Familiar}}s[=/=]SummonMagic: ''Call of the Wild'' lets Beastmaster summon a hawk and a boar, with varying increases in effectiveness as he levels the skill up. Each lasts for 60 seconds with the skills on a 40 second cooldown each, meaning he can summon up to four units to control at once (even moreso if he purchases a Refresher Orb).
* FieldPowerEffect: ''Inner Beast'' increases the attack speed of Beastmaster and any nearby allies, and is possessed by his illusions as well. While the numbers aren't highly impressive, its strength is in the fact that it stacks on top of existing attack speed buffs and applies to creeps and summons as well, so Beastmaster being in the general area of a teamfight can greatly augment the amount of physical damage the whole team does, including the squishy hard supports.
* JackOfAllStats: Beastmaster can push and semi-carry with ''Call of the Wild'' and ''Inner Beast'', initiate and disable with ''Primal Roar'', and provide utility and carry auras with his inherent tankiness. There are lots of heroes who can do all of these individual tasks better - but very few who can turn their hand to so many. Because of this, he tends to pick up whatever responsibilities his team needs filling the most. For example, if your team didn't have a proper initiator, you'd probably pick up a Blink Dagger and Aghanim's Scepter so that you can provide that. If your team has an AFK jungler and only 1 support, you may well fill in with a Mekansm if the core heroes aren't very interested in one.
* MagicKnight: Beastmaster has a large array of spells that give him vast amounts of utility (''Wild Axes'', for instance, can be used to cut down trees and stack or kill Ancient camps), and ''Inner Beast'' helps to give his physical damage output some impact. However, he's stronger in the casting department than in the fighting department, moreso since he's very mana-independent (his ''Wild Axes'' and ''Primal Roar'' are the only spells he has that consume large amounts of mana), and ''Inner Beast'' isn't a very strong damage steroids.
* MakeMeWannaShout: Beastmaster's ultimate, ''Primal Roar'', pushes aside anyone who stands in the way and stuns the primary target.
* NatureHero
* PoisonousPerson: The boar's attack can inflict a poison that slows attack and movement speeds. The Lesser Boar's slow is not very impressive, but the Greater Boar can slow by more than twice as much.
* [[RaisedByWolves Raised By Beasts Of The Royal Court]]
* SomeDexterityRequired: Because he can summon units with ''Call of the Wild'', proper Beastmaster play revolves around being able to micromanage where you place them and how you use them. Because he can have up to two hawks and boars each active at a time, it takes a lot of dexterity and planning to put them where they're most needed (to say nothing of being able to stack up to three jungle camps at once if you're good enough).
* SpeaksFluentAnimal
* StoneWall: Being a Strength hero with good base armour, Beastmaster is fairly tanky (and can become even more so by building the right items), but his utility-oriented skillset and so-so right-click attack mean that he has trouble dishing out damage to the degree that a true carry can.
* TheyHaveTheScent: Referenced in some of his lines in both the original [=DotA=] and Dota 2.
--> '''Rexxar:''' ''I've got the scent.''
--> '''Karroch:''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/9/9e/Beas_cast_01.mp3 ''Mmm, caught your scent.'']]
* TribalFacePaint
* WalkingShirtlessScene: With bonus LoinCloth.
* WalkingTheEarth: As a wandering vagrant.
[[/folder]]
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[[folder:Davion, the Dragon Knight]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Dragon_Knight_1728.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/9/93/Drag_rare_01.mp3 "Never make a deal with a dragon,]][[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/f/f3/Dragon_rare_01.mp3 unless you're prepared to keep your end of it.]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Tony Todd
''"After years on the trail of a legendary Eldwurm, the skilled dragon-slayer found himself facing a disappointing foe: the dreaded Slyrak had grown ancient and frail, its wings tattered, its few remaining scales stricken with scale-rot, its fangs ground to nubs, and its fire-gouts no more threatening than a pack of wet matchsticks. Seeing no honor to be gained in dragon-murder, the young knight prepared to turn away and leave his old foe to die in peace. But a voice crept into his thoughts, and Slyrak gave a whispered plea that the knight might honor him with death in combat. The knight agreed, and found himself rewarded beyond expectation for his act of mercy: As he sank his blade in Slyrak's breast, the dragon sank a claw into his throat. As their blood mingled, Slyrak sent his power out along the Blood Route, offering all its strength and centuries of wisdom to the knight. The dragon's death sealed their bond, and Dragon Knight was born. The ancient power slumbers in the knight, waking when he calls it; or perhaps it is the Dragon that calls the Knight..."''
Dragon Knight's durability and strength is rivalled only by a handful of other heroes, and few of them can outfight a well-played Davion on the offensive. Unlike other melee carries who are vulnerable in the early game, Dragon Knight can mitigate this weakness with his passive skill ''Dragon Blood'', giving him a permanent armor boost as well as buff to his natural health regeneration, meaning that he can farm with impunity for much of the early game. His two main damaging spells ''Breathe Fire'' and ''Dragon Tail'' . '' Breathe Fire'' deals magic damage in a line, and ''Dragon Tail'' causes Dragon Knight's next attack to stun a single target in melee range. Dragon Knight's real offensive power lies with his ultimate, ''Elder Dragon Form''. Activating this spell temporarily turns the knight into a powerful dragon for sixty seconds, temporarily boosting damage and turning his all of his attacks and ''Dragon Tail'' into ranged damage and giving his attacks a temporary attack modifier which transitions from early game pushing power to late game teamfight dominance as he levels the ability, giving Dragon Knight ample time to tear his enemies apart. As the spell levels up, Dragon Knight will alter his Dragon Form into one of three variants, each getting more powerful and adding more debuffs as he levels it up. The first is a green dragon with ''Corrosive Breath'', which causes poison damage over time. His second form is a red dragon with a splash attack that deals damage to everyone around him, and keeps ''Corrosive Breath'' in this form as well. His final form, a blue dragon, keeps his splash attack and poison damage, but adds a massive slow to the target.
* AmbiguouslyBrown: Not very easy to see under his helmet, nor most of his earlier cosmetics, but it's more notable with his later sets which have more open-faced helmets.
* AchillesHeel: Dragon Knight is very dependent on ''Elder Dragon Form'' to perform well, meaning he's only online half the time and making Aegis and buyback minimally effective.
* BadassBeard: Not quite visible in the image, but more obvious in-game.
* BoringButPractical: Besides ''Elder Dragon Form'' none of his abilities are very flashy, two simple straightforward targetted spells and a defense boost, yet they're highly effective, and can even see him through mid-lane against the usually ranged opposition with far more fancier spells to boot.
* BloodMagic: Slyrak transfered his powers, and possibly even his mind into Davion via mixing their blood.
* BreathWeapon: He can use ''Breathe Fire'' to breathe cones of fire to burn his enemies. In dragon form, this replaces his normal attack.
* ByTheLightsOfTheirEyes: His eyes appear to glow from under his helmet.
* CastFromHitPoints: While he has no abilities that do this naturally, Dragon Knight's high regeneration leads to picking up items that let him do this, such as a Soul Ring to dominate lanes and being one of the few heroes who can justify using Armlet of Mordiggian without any form of Lifesteal.
* CoolHelmet
* CoolSword:
** NamedWeapons: It's named Wyrmblade.
** LittleUselessGun: It's practically the sword equivalent, being a short, one-handed sword of reasonable proportions as opposed to other Strength heroes using much larger and bulkier weapons, which could be the reason for his pitiful base damage.
* DiscOneNuke: ''Dragon Tail'' while being absolutely worthless as a nuke, is ''incredibly'' powerful a stun, with a full 2.5 second duration from level one. Comboing ''Dragon Tail'' with a more easily-landed stun such as ''Telekinesis'' or ''Wraithfire Blast'' can earn a first blood.
* DragonKnight: [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Natch.]]
* EnemyMine: Davion seems to have this going on with Jakiro, as even if Jakiro is a dragon, they don't seem to like each other much. They don't have any ally lines either. Although Jakiro seems to act shocked whenever Davion kills him.
* EyelessFace: With the Kindred of the Iron Dragon cosmetic item, the model of ''Elder Dragon Form'' is turned into an eyeless, armoured iron dragon.
* FusionDance: Between Davion and Slyrak.
* GameplayAndStorySegregation: No matter what element his dragon from's normal BreathWeapon takes, he always uses Fire breath with ''Breath Fire''.
* GradualGrinder: An area slow, high armor, high regeneration, high health, a damage-reducing debuff and a very effective stun let him grind away at enemies, but he lacks straight damage boosts, with his only real "Steroid" being a pitiful 20/s damage over time.
* HealingFactor: ''Dragon Blood'' gives Dragon Knight a significant boost to his health regeneration.
* HeWhoFightsMonsters: He seems quite protective of dragons for a dragon hunter, probably absorbing a part of Slyrak's personality.
--> '''Dragon Knight (Killing Lina):''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/1/1e/Drag_lina_02.mp3 "That's what you get, Lina, for enslaving dragons."]]
* LuckilyMyShieldWillProtectMe: He's one of the game's few heroes with a shield and one of, if not the toughest.
* MightyGlacier: Dragon Knight is incredibly durable with natural stat growth and ''Dragon Blood'', and can deal quite a punch in teamfights thanks to ''Elder Dragon Form'''s splash damage. However, he has one of the worst movement speeds in the game, which is only somewhat alleviated by ''Elder Dragon Form''. Of course, he also has plenty of ways to make the other guy ''slower'' than him to compensate.
* MonsterKnight
* OurDragonsAreDifferent
* PlayingWithFire: Davion can breathe cones of fire with his first ability ''Breathe Fire''.
* PowerGivesYouWings: With the Kindred of the Iron Dragon cosmetic item, Davion briefly gains a pair of transparent red wings when using ''Dragon Tail''.
* PowerLimiter: ''Breathe Fire'' reduces the base damage of its targets, making it difficult for Dragon Knight's lane opponent to last hit and supplementing his tremendous physical damage resistance..
* ThePowerOfBlood: Used by Slyrak to give his power to Davion.
* ShieldBash: ''Dragon Tail''
** TailSlap: When ''Elder Dragon Form'' is active, ''Dragon Tail'' becomes this trope.
* SimpleYetAwesome: Dragon Knight is a very simple strength carry, who nonetheless is potent throughout most stages of the game. Valve themselves picked up on this, and Dragon Knight is used in the new tutorial system to introduce players to Dota.
* StoneWall: He lacks any actual damage-increasing skills, but pulling him down before he does so to you is nevertheless very difficult.
* SplitPersonalityTakeover[=/=]SuperMode: ''Elder Dragon Form'' turns him to a dragon with higher movespeed, ranged attack and stun, and a free orb effect.
** PowerMakesYourVoiceDeep[=/=]PowerEchoes: Dragon Knight's voice in his ''Elder Dragon Form'' is deeper and has more echo than his original voice.
--> '''Dragon Knight''': [[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/a/af/DK_dragon_move_10.mp3 "Who calls the Dragon Knight."]]
** HerdHittingAttack: When ''Elder Dragon Form'' reaches level 2, Davion's attacks in dragon form will deal splash damage in a small radius(a little more than twice melee range).
** PoisonousPerson: When a single point is placed, the Green Dragon gets damage over time in his attack.
** AnIcePerson: And when it's maxed, the level 3 Blue Dragon's attacks also slow enemies' move and attack speed.
* SuperToughness: He has great base armor, and ''Dragon Blood'' gives him absurd amounts of armor and HP regen, before he even starts getting items. It's not uncommon to have over 70% resistance to physical damage, making him nigh-invincible in direct combat.
* VoluntaryShapeshifting: Into Slyrak.
* WhyWontYouDie: All but the most deadly physical damage dealers find dealing with him a chore, as he has a long-duration stun, ranged slow, base damage reduction on his nuke, and can easily have 75% physical damage resistance with the right items. [[FromBadToWorse And then he gets evasion and a Black King Bar]]...
[[/folder]]
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[[folder:Rattletrap, the Clockwerk]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Clockwerk_2349.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/f/f8/Ratt_respawn_10.mp3 "I have a degree in mechanical domineering!"]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Sam A. Mowry
''"Rattletrap descends from the same far-flung kindred as Sniper and Tinker, and like many of the Keen Folk, has offset his diminutive stature through the application of gadgetry and wit. The son of the son of a clockmaker, Rattletrap was many years apprenticed to that trade before war rode down from the mountains and swept the plains villages free of such innocent vocations. Your new trade is battle,” his dying father told him as the village of their ancestors lay in charred and smoking ruins. It is a poor tradesman who blames his tools, and Rattletrap was never one to make excuses. After burying his father among the ruins of their village, he set about to transform himself into the greatest tool of warfare that any world had ever seen. He vowed to never again be caught unprepared, instead using his talents to assemble a suit of powered Clockwerk armor to make the knights of other lands look like tin cans by comparison. Now Rattletrap is alive with devices - a small but deadly warrior whose skills at ambush and destruction have risen to near-automated levels of efficiency. An artisan of death, his mechanizations make short work of the unwary, heralding a new dawn in this age of warfare. What time is it? It's Clockwerk time!"''
Rattletrap is the one-two killing machine. As both an initiator and a ganker, he can get close and start beating his foes like scrap metal and escape without a dent. Clockwerk can prevent foes from counterattacking and teleporting away with ''Battery Assault,'' a passive ability which causes mini-stuns, interrupting channels. Clockwerk's second spell, ''Power Cogs'' summons 8 cogs around him, trapping those who are hit by it, prevents escaping, and pushes away anyone that get close to the traps, damaging and draining mana in the process. His ''Rocket Flare'' ability fires a rocket that damages enemies in the area-of-effect and reveals the struck area. Clockwerk's final ability allows him to enter the fray in seconds with ''Hookshot,'' which fires a harpoon and if it connects to any unit, friend or foe, will pull Clockwerk straight into the area, either to run from an unwinnable fight or to stun and begin beating his foes into recycling.
* AdaptationSpeciesChange: In [=DotA=], he was known as "Clockwerk Goblin". He was changed to Keen in Dota 2, making him the same race as Tinker and Sniper, though the armor design still bears a goblin motif.
* BarrierWarrior: ''Power Cogs'' forms a barrier of eight energised cogs around Clockwerk, trapping nearby units and shocking enemies if they approach.
* CallASmeerpARabbit: Clockwerk refers to mana as fuel.
* ClockPunk
* [[ClockworkCreature Clockwerk Armor]]: His suit of armor is incredibly complex, with many whirring gizmos and ticking parts, albeit gasoline-powered. ClockworkCreature was played straight in the first [=DotA=].
* CoolHelmet
* DefogOfWar: His third ability, ''Rocket Flare'', on top of having global range and dealing damage, lights up the area where it explodes for several seconds, and reveals terrain as it flies over, making it useful for scouting out areas on the other side of the map.
* DifficultButAwesome: Despite its global range, ''Rocket Flare'' travels fairly slowly, meaning that it can be difficult to hit targets that aren't standing still if you're shooting your flare anywhere that isn't on the same screen as Clockwerk. ''Hookshot'' also has a very limited radius of effect, making it hard to latch onto enemy heroes that are actively trying to juke you. But once you master these skills, Clockwerk becomes much deadlier. Flares can push creep lanes from the other side of the map and snipe fleeing enemy heroes in the dark (or simply to deny an enemy's Healing Salve or Clarity during early laning), while ''Hookshot'' can travel across more than a screen to latch enemy heroes who think they're safe, use ''Power Cogs'' to lock them in, and activate ''Battery Assault'' to deal damage over time.
* DynamicEntry: Because ''Hookshot'' has such a massive range (well beyond visual range at all levels), Clockwerk can use it to latch onto enemy heroes who don't even know that he's in the area ("area" being anywhere within two screens). It gets even more absurd if Lifestealer is hitching a ride, since a hero can suddenly get stunned without warning, and find themselves at melee range with a Battery Assaulting Clockwerk '''and''' a very angry Lifestealer, all while being Cogged in.
* FourFingeredHands
* GadgeteerGenius
* GlacierWaif: As a Keen, he is much smaller than most heroes, but his primary role is a ganker/initiator and his stats and skills make him very tanky in combat.
* GrapplingHookPistol: Rattletrap's ultimate, ''Hookshot'', pulls him towards enemies or allies, damaging and stunning enemies he connects with (as well as anything hostile along the way).
* LeadTheTarget: ''Rocket Flare'' will allow players to snipe people from across the map once they get a feel for how much damage it does, and how fast it travels.
* LightningBruiser: On top of having impressive Agility gain and being a Strength hero, he has above-average movement speed, and ''Hookshot'' allows him to instantly close the gap between him and his target, making him extremely mobile.
* ManaBurn: Enemies that touch the ''Power Cogs'' barrier are shocked, losing both health and mana.
* OddNameOut[=/=]TheArtifact: "Rattletrap" isn't exactly a common given name for a [[OurDwarvesAreDifferent Keen]]. It's a leftover from his [=DotA=] character, which was a mechanical goblin.
* OverclockingAttack: Clockwerk's first ability, ''Battery Assault'', overloads the devices he doesn't need, exploding them into enemies' faces. It's a very situational ability though, since the devices explode against random enemies within range, meaning that it does massive damage when chasing a single fleeing enemy hero but can become utterly useless if your target runs through a creep wave.
* PoweredArmor
* PungeonMaster: It's probably easier to list his lines that are ''not'' puns. [[ShoutOut Shout Outs]], or snarks.
--> '''Clockwerk (grappling Tinker):''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/c/c8/Ratt_ability_hook_13.mp3 "Hook, line and Tinker!"]]
* RandomNumberGod: ''Battery Assault'''s greatest weakness is that it hits random targets nearby. This means that while it is extremely powerful against lone opponents, trying to use it in a crowd will spread the damage and mini-stuns out ineffectually.
* ScienceHero
* ShoulderCannon: ''Rocket Flare'' is fired from a device on his left shoulder.
* ShoutOut: One of his death animations is similar to [[{{Franchise/Terminator}} Terminator's death in a vat of molten metal]].
** To TheSixMillionDollarMan:
---> '''Clockwerk (respawning):''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/c/c8/Ratt_respawn_16.mp3 "I'm the six million gold piece man!"]]
** And to VideoGame/TeamFortress2:
---> '''Clockwerk (respawning):''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/4/49/Ratt_respawn_18.mp3 "Bleep bloop, I am a robot. Eh, just kidding."]]
* SuicideAttack: Clockwerk is often played as a suicide initiator, using ''Hookshot'' to fly straight into the enemy team and ''Power Cogs'' to disrupt their positioning and let his allies come in. As a result, he is often focused down and killed quickly, especially in the late game, when he becomes much less durable due to a lack of items since he farms extremely slowly.
* YouWillNotEvadeMe: All of Rattletrap's abilities make him extremely hard to evade once he has you in his sights:
** ''Battery Assault'', on top of dealing loads of damage over time, will mini-stun the enemy every time it connects, forcing them to stop (and cancelling any channeled abilities). This means that a Clockwerk walking alongside a lone opponent can slow them down drastically, on top of the damage.
** ''Power Cogs'' will lock down anybody within a certain radius of Clockwerk, preventing them from moving outside of an extremely small radius (all while being trapped right next to him).
** ''Rocket Flare'' has global range, allowing smart players to spot out enemies, or even kill weakened opponents with good aim.
** ''Hookshot'''s massive cast range allows Clockwerk to instantly latch on to and fly up to opponents that are even remotely near him.
[[/folder]]
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[[folder:Purist Thunderwrath, the Omniknight]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/omniknight_3633.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/8/86/Omni_spawn_05.mp3 "Where piety fails, my hammer falls."]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Bruce Miles
''"Purist Thunderwrath was a hard-fighting, road-worn, deeply committed knight, sworn to the order in which he had grown up as squire to elder knights of great reputation. He had spent his entire life in the service of the Omniscience, the All Seeing One. Theirs was a holy struggle, and so embedded was he in his duty that he never questioned it so long as he had the strength to fight and the impetuous valor that comes with youth. But over the long years of the crusade, as his elders passed away and were buried in sorry graves at the side of muddy tracks, as his bond-brothers fell in battle to uncouth creatures that refused to bow to the Omniscience, as his own squires were chewed away by ambush and plague and bad water, he began to question the meaning of his vows--the meaning of the whole crusade. After deep meditation, he parted ways with his army and commenced a long trek back to the cave-riddled cliffs of Emauracus, and there he set a challenge to the priests of the Omniscience. No knight had ever questioned them before, and they tried to throw him into the pit of sacrifice, but Purist would not be moved. For as he faced them down, he began to glow with a holy light, and they saw that the Omniscience had chosen to reveal Itself to him. The Elder Hierophant led him on a journey of weeks down into the deepest chamber, the holy of holies, where waited not some abstract concept of wisdom and insight, not some carved relic requiring an injection of imagination to believe in, but the old one itself. It had not merely dwelt in those rocks for billions of aeons; no, It had created them. The Omniscience had formed the immense mineral shell of the planet around itself, as a defense against the numerous terrors of space. Thus the All Seeing One claimed to have created the world, and given the other truths revealed to Purist on that day, the knight had no reason to refute the story. Perhaps the Omniscience is a liar, deep in its prison of stone, and not the world's creator at all, but Omniknight never again questioned his faith. His campaign had meaning at last. And there can be no question that the glorious powers that imbue him, and give his companions such strength in battle, are real beyond any doubt."''
Omniknight is '''the''' support hero. He is a very difficult hero to play as due to his slow movement speed and attack speed and high mana cost for his spells, but can wreck an entire enemy team if he is played competently, or give tremendous support to his team and bring them victory, even from the brink of defeat. His primary ability, ''Purification,'' both heals his allies and deals pure damage to any enemies within its area-of-effect. This can be cast on both himself and teammates, allowing him to save his friends from the brink of death. His ''Repel'' can be casted to an unit (and himself) and creates a barrier that prevents any abilities from working on the casted target, be it spells, disables or stuns which can have more duration than the newly-bought Black King Bar. ''Degen Aura'' is a passive which slows all foes within Omniknight's range, and greatly reduces attack speed. His ultimate, ''Guardian Angel,'' protects all units within his range from physical damage and also increases health regeneration. His Aghanim's Scepter upgrade affects ''all'' friendly units on the entire map, even creeps and towers.
* AntiMagic: ''Repel'', hands-down the most powerful magic immunity skill, it only has a 2 second downtime once fully leveled and costs an inconsequential amount of mana to cast.
* AwesomeMcCoolName: Purist Thunderwrath. His name will make you grow a beard as luscious and as manly as him.
* BadassBeard
* BarrierWarrior: Omniknight's second skill, ''Repel'', gives spell immunity to the target, making them invulnerable to most spells. What's more, since it's a targeted ability this means that heroes that normally don't purchase Black King Bar (either because they don't have enough farm, or because they need to buy another item first) can benefit from having spell immunity, and Omniknight can even use it to essentially double the up time for heroes who do have BKB (or allow them to initiate more easily by leading them off with spell immunity to ensure they don't get disabled before activating it). At max level (where it lasts for 12 seconds), he can spam it continuously and only give the enemy a two-second window to cast spells on the target if they don't have any purge abilities. Even late-game where everyone on both teams may be carrying Black King Bars (which become less effective the more you use them, only lasting for 5 seconds at its weakest state), the spammability of the spell (a 14-second cooldown and 50 MP cost) means that you can use it in any situation rather than hold it in reserve for just the right teamfight.
* ChurchMilitant
* ColorCodedWizardry: Was the case before, when his color scheme was blue, which helped indicate him as a healer-type support.
* CombatMedic: His first skill, ''Purification'', instantly heals the target for a massive amount and simultaneously damages everything around for the same amount (which is also Pure damage, meaning that it ignores magic resistance).
* CrystalDragonJesus: The Omniscience.
* DifficultButAwesome
** ''Repel'''s synergy with Omniknight's other spells can be hard to get used to. Its timing is easy to screw up, since you have to remember that certain helpful spells that you and your teammates can cast on each other (such as ''Purification'') are blocked by spell immunity, meaning that if you cast ''Repel'' on an ally to protect them, you can't then heal them with ''Purification''. Additionally, ''Repel'' can be targeted on enemies as well as allies, so a mis-click can cause you to accidentally buff an enemy with spell immunity. But once you learn how to properly order your spells, and that enemies' buffs are purged by ''Repel'', and what spells are blocked by spell immunity, you can use your spells to make split-second saves on teammates, and [[StatusBuffDispel even use ''Repel'' on an enemy to purge positive buffs on them that could make the difference in a teamfight]].
** Equally difficult is the proper use of ''Purification'', which relies on timing it so that your heal target is right next to the enemy, however, using it properly shifts the balance of HP by ''double'' what it states, as it both heals the ally and damages the enemy by that much. This can literally single-handedly cause an gank to backfire, allow good players surprising lane control and pull a first blood when combined with a good ganking hero.
** In general, Omniknight can be hard to cast spells with in split-second situations, since he has a notably long cast animation (0.4 seconds between giving him the order to cast a spell and the spell taking effect, whereas the vast majority of other heroes have cast points of 0.3 seconds or shorter). As such, good Omniknight players have to have good predictive sense, and plan their moves out a bit ahead of time.
** There's even utility in giving heroes spell immunity when they don't want it, [[http://youtu.be/3OWqFH2Ehyg?t=1m23s letting you pull off some pretty unconventional kills]].
* DropTheHammer
** AnAxeToGrind with some unlockables.
* FixedDamageAttack: A well-timed ''Purification'' can deal a huge amount of [=AoE=] Pure damage in a small area of effect, while at the same time healing its target, essentially doubling the difference in HP between the heal target and nearby enemies.
* GoodIsNotDumb: He had the wherewithal to question the higher-ups of the Omniscience, which is why his strength is so real.
* GoodIsNotSoft: One of his quotes imply so, he serves the Omniscience which is referred as merciful... but he's nowhere near its level.
-->'''Omniknight''': ''[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/4/4d/Omni_battlebegins_01.mp3 The Omniscience may spare them, but I will not.]]''
* HelmetsAreHardlyHeroic: Omniknight's default model doesn't wear a helmet.
* HolierThanThou: Has some kill quotes aimed specifically at Chen that berate him for how he uses his holy powers.
-->'''Omniknight:''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/0/00/Omni_rival_02.mp3 "Chen, faith is a tool, not a bludgeon. You would have done well to learn this."]]
* HolyHandGrenade: ''Purification'' is hard to hit an enemy with, but deals a lot of Pure damage, making it a very deadly nuke that simultaneously heals an ally.
* LightIsGood
* MagicKnight: While he isn't an Intelligence caster, Omniknight relies greatly on his spells in order to make an impact in teamfights. However, his right-click abilities suffer as a result, as his Agility and attack animation leave much to be desired.
* MagikarpPower: Omniknight is best described as a late game support. ''Degen Aura'' is a scaling percentage, and ''Repel'' and ''Guardian Angel'' are simple flat-out immunities that don't care if the damage they block in question is the 20 damage hit of a simple creep, or the 4-digit crit of a 6-slotted hard carry, it's still zero. Given that his main weakness, Diffusal Blade, has limited and non-replenishable charges, and he uses farm very well (big items like Refresher Orb and Octarine Core are very good on him) his impact grows more and more notable over time. The trade-off is that he has little lane presence, isn't able to do much outside of babysitting early game, and is very greedy for a support, needing at least Aghanim's Scepter as a core item (without which it's impossible to land a good ''Guardian Angel'').
** ''Repel'' starts off at 6 seconds of spell immunity at level 1, while a BKB starts at 10. But by the late game, BKB's charges can become depleted, dropping down to 5 seconds at its weakest, while ''Repel'' has a 12 second duration and a 14 cooldown (meaning a 2 second downtime). [[FromBadToWorse And then Omniknight gets an Octarine Core]].
** ''Degen Aura'' reduces the enemy's movement speed by a percentage rather than a flat amount, which becomes more pronounced in the late game when that percentage is of a larger number.
** ''Guardian Angel'' becomes more effect the higher physical DPS gets, as this allows the allied carry a proportionally bigger advantage, and nukes fall off later on.
* MightyGlacier: Omniknight's cast time is ''abysmal'' but his spells are some of the highest-impact in the game.
* NighInvulnerability: ''Repel'' makes the target immune to magic and ''Guardian Angel'' makes all allies within a certain radius of him immune to physical damage (with an Aghanim's Scepter, it becomes global). They stack, and putting ''Repel'' and ''Guardian Angel'' on your carry generally causes a MassOhCrap for the enemy team.
* NoCelebritiesWereHarmed: Omniknight bears a striking resemblance to Creator/ChuckNorris, and it was one of his 'funny names' in the original [=DotA=]. With his tendency to make his teammates invincible, the 'funny name' kind of make sense, not to mention both of them are pretty religious. All he's missing is just his roundhouse kick.
* NoExperiencePointsForMedic: He actually still gets XP for kills he is near, but he often doesn't rack up assists because he's melee and only one of his spells damages the enemy, so his final game stats often don't reflect his true contribution.
* NoSell: ''Repel'' blocks all spells that would otherwise affect the targeted unit. ''Guardian Angel'' does the same for physical damage.
* ThePaladin: He certainly gives the vibes of the ultimate guardian knight, and his quotes oozes on protecting people with faith and light.
-->'''Omniknight''': ''[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/7/70/Omni_ability_guard_07.mp3 Fear not, my friends! Our guardian is here!]]''
* PersonalityPowers: An inversion; because of his personality, his third ability, ''Degen Aura'', reduces the movement and attack speed of any enemy near him, because they literally cannot stand being in the presence of one with so much faith.
* PowerGivesYouWings: White angelic wings for the duration of his ultimate. Everyone else affected gains smaller wings too.
* RatedMForManly: A badass priest who carries a large hammer, boasts about protecting his allies, has an incredibly deep and persuasive voice, and hits people with a mighty hammer.
* ReligiousBruiser: He does carry a giant war hammer, after all.
* SchmuckBait: Going after that heavily injured enemy hero? Omniknight just purified him, he's back in fighting shape and you're no longer in fighting shape.
* ShootTheMedicFirst: Picking Omniknight off before a teamfight is crucial, as his global physical immunity can easily tip the scales of a fight, to say nothing of his nigh-permanent (and, with Octarine Core, permanent) BKB he slapped on his carry. Don't kill him and you're in for a bad day.
* StatusBuffDispel: One little-known fact about ''Repel'' is that, not only does it remove purgable debuffs from friendly targets (meaning that, for instance, you can save a teammate who's affected by Slardar's ''Amplify Damage'' and Axe's ''Battle Hunger'', both of which can otherwise last longer than the spell immunity buff), but it can be cast on the enemy to remove their positive buffs. This can be useful in negating some of their most powerful buffs (such as cancelling out a ''Surge'' by Dark Seer, or a Double Damage rune on the hard carry), at the cost of reducing your ability to deal with that target down to only right-clicks, abilities that deal Physical damage, and certain abilities that pierce spell immunity.
* StoneWall: Omniknight is notorious as one of the hardest heroes in the game to kill due to his tankiness, his healing and protective spells, and for his ability to make his teammates equally hard to kill. Unfortunately, his low Agility gain means that he has trouble dishing out damage on the scale that a semi-carry can.
* TestosteronePoisoning: While this trope isn't as strong in the case of Omniknight, his general tankiness and ability to make his team man up by protecting them from harm, as well as his tendency to jump into the thick of the action (due to being a melee hero and needing to be close to the enemy to take advantage of his passive), certainly makes him one of the manliest supports in the game. It's also helped by a glitch when he was first ported to Dota 2, which caused him to spam the voice line [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/f/f8/Omni_ability_repel_03.mp3 "Fear nothing!"]] in just about any situation.
* WeakButSkilled: Omniknight's base stats and stat growth are all horribly mediocre, being at best average or slightly above average for a Strength hero, with his high base armor being his only notably positive trait. Even worse, given how often he has to cast spells, his average-sized mana pool is often strained to the limit to keep his teammates alive. However, all of his spells are extremely powerful, making him a very tough opponent to take down once he overcomes his mana issues.
* WeaksauceWeakness: Omniknight's hardest counter is the fact that ''Repel'' and ''Guardian Angel'' can be purged, which makes him easy to counter by teams who buy Diffusal Blades, or if the enemy heroes have purging abilities.
* WhiteMage: He's almost entirely focused around healing and protecting his teammates from harm, although he's not an Intelligence hero.
* WhyWontYouDie: His main strength is making ''anyone'' on his team this, slowing all attacks by a ''very'' hefty 34%, leaving them immune to almost all spells for a large duration, makes everyone immune to physical damage for up to 10 seconds, and healing them for a major amount.
* YouWillNotEvadeMe: His passive slows every enemy unit in its radius (and sticks on them for a time after they leave it), and slows through spell immunity. This means that all Omniknight needs to do to win chases is to catch up with his victim, walk alongside, then wait for the rest of the team to show up and finish the target off.
[[/folder]]
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[[folder:Huskar, the Sacred Warrior]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Huskar_390.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/7/76/Husk_rare_03.mp3 "Those who are given more in life must not cling to it but risk it all at every moment.."]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Dave Fennoy
''"Emerging from the throes of the sacred Nothl Realm, Huskar opened his eyes to see the prodigal shadow priest Dazzle working a deep incantation over him. Against the ancient rites of the Dezun Order, Huskar’s spirit had been saved from eternity, but like all who encounter the Nothl he found himself irrevocably changed. No longer at the mercy of a mortal body, his very lifeblood became a source of incredible power; every drop spilled was returned tenfold with a fierce, burning energy. However this newfound gift infuriated Huskar, for in his rescue from the Nothl, Dazzle had denied him a place among the gods. He had been denied his own holy sacrifice. In time the elders of the order sought to expand their influence and Huskar, they agreed, would be a formidable tool in their campaign. Yet becoming a mere weapon for the order that denied him his birthright only upset him further. As the first embers of war appeared on the horizon, he fled his ancestral home to find new allies, all the while seeking a cause worthy of unleashing the power his total sacrifice could bring."''
Uniquely one of the three ranged Strength heroes, Huskar is about entering into the fight and killing his foes while he is under fire, soaking up as much damage as he can. When he is in need of emergency health, ''Inner Vitality'' can be casted on himself or his allies to give health based on his attributes and gains more health if the hero is under attack by his foes. He is incredibly dangerous at the peak of his own life, with his ''Berserker's Blood'' which increases his attack speed and magic resistance based on how much health he is missing, to which he can tank a powerful nuke once he is near death. Huskar can lower his health more quickly to benefit his passive by using two of his abilities, ''Burning Spear,'' which causes Huskars basic attacks to deal damage over time at the cost of dealing damage to himself per throw, and his ultimate, ''Life Break,'' wherein he leaps to any foe and cuts their health by half, increasing in damage depending on how much health they are missing. Be warned, however, that Huskar sacrifices a large portion of his own life to use this ability.
* AchillesHeel: Axe's ''Culling Blade'' is this to Huskar. As Huskar needs to be at low health in order to deal sufficient damage, ''Culling Blade'' will almost always be fatal.
** KryptoniteIsEverywhere: Huskar in spite of his resistance to magic is still quite weak to Physical and Pure damage (a weakness that most other Strength heroes in the game do not share), a problem only amplified considering the absurd number of carries compared to supports in an average pub game.
** CantCatchUp: Because of this reason, Huskar scales very badly into the late game - while he has a strong early-mid game presence, he falls off extremely hard in the late game, because any true carry will kill him in a second.
* AmazingTechnicolorPopulation: Blue skin.
* AntiMagic: With maxed ''Berserker's Blood'', Huskar gets up to 98% magic resistance when low HP, making him essentially immune to nukes.
* BackFromTheDead: Although somewhat unwillingly.
* TheBerserker: His entire skillset revolves around intentionally remaining at low health and suicidally charging into the enemy team without much concern for his own safety.
* BladeOnAStick
** JavelinThrower: Like a Javelin throwing Rambo.
* BloodyMurder: His abilities are attributed to his blood being a volatile substance. As he can't actually sling his blood at enemies, he instead douses his spears in the stuff.
* CastFromHitPoints: Huskar spends hit points to use ''Burning Spears'', and his ultimate, ''Life Break'', costs a ton of his current health.
* CombatMedic: Huskar can heal himself and allied heroes with his first skill ''Inner Vitality''.
* CombatSadomasochist
* CombinationAttack: Can create a particularly nasty one with Necrophos if they have Aghanim's Scepter. ''Life Break'' shaves of up to 65% of the target's hp. ''Reaper's Scythe'' deals damage based on missing hp. Unless you have sufficient magic resistance or immunity, they won't care whether you have 1 thousand or 1 million hp.
* CripplingOverspecialization: The huge DPS that Huskar deals comes at the expense of all utility - his heal is subpar for most heroes who are dead meat at low hp and burns up his mana, even with no other skills competing for it, and his slow requires a serious ammount of health and is an all-or-nothing move.
* CriticalStatusBuff: ''Berserker's Blood'' gives Huskar bonus attack speed AND magic resistance for every 7% of his health missing. This stacks up to 14 times (meaning up to losing 98% of his health), so as Huskar gets closer to death, he gets stronger and harder to kill.
* DeathOrGloryAttack: ''Life Break''. Either Huskar, the other Hero, or even ''both'' die once it's used, since it costs a third of his health ''and'' puts him in point-blank range. Often times, however, most players using Huskar know just when and in what situations to use his ult to utterly annihilate their target;
* DeathSeeker: His ultimate goal is to find a fight worth dying in.
* DefectorFromDecadence: Left his people to find a more worthy cause to die for.
* GlowingEyesOfDoom
* HealingFactor: Huskar can use ''Inner Vitality'', drawing upon the target's spirit energy to heal them.
* InASingleBound: ''Life Break'' starts with a fairly magnificent leap that can cover some impressive ground. If he gets Aghanim's Scepter, Huskar can even do this once every ''four seconds''.
* KnifeNut: His offhand weapon is a knife he uses for ''Life Break'' as well as being implied to be how he [[CastFromHitPoints draws his own blood for Burning Spears]].
* MageKiller: Huskar excels at picking off lone enemy heroes (''Life Break'' + a few ''Burning Spear''s = casualty), especially Intelligence nukers. If ''Berserker's Blood'' is fully upgraded and he's down to his last sliver of health, Huskar has a whopping ''98%'' natural magic resistance, making him essentially immune to nukes. They will still hurt him on full health, but it's extremely hard to actually kill him, especially if they do incremental/ongoing damage. If they don't have a good stun or reasonably strong physical/pure damage they're basically dead meat.
* MightyGlacier: Despite being able to dish out loads of damage, Huskar has pitifully low Agility and is one of very few heroes whose base attack time is higher than the standard 1.7 seconds, meaning that he attacks very slowly unless he's at very low health.
** LightningBruiser: On the other hand, he gains great mobility with ''Life Break'', ''lots of attack speed'' with ''Berserker's Blood'' and has a large health pool while hitting fairly hard.
** GlassCannon: Huskar becomes this late game. His damage output is still high, but ''Berserker's Blood'' becomes less useful alongside nukes, and the enemy team's main damage source becomes their carry's right-clicks, which will kill Huskar in a second because of his abysmal armour.
* MutualDisadvantage: Against Razor. ''Eye of the Storm'', which deals physical damage and chooses the enemy with the lowest HP percentage, will melt Huskar because of his low armour and tendency to remain at low HP, but other than that, the main weakness of Razor is that he has no stun, and you *really* need to stun Huskar to stop his DPS. Besides, ''Life Break'' is both a slow and an anti-tank skill and Razor really hates this, but then Blade Mail is pretty good on Razor too. As a 1 vs 1 mid matchup, Razor can steal Huskar's damage but it still won't stop ''Burning Spear'' harass which is Huskar's main damage source early game, and Razor risks getting zoned out.
* PercentDamageAttack: Huskar's ultimate, ''Life Break'', shaves off a percentage of his target's current HP, at the cost of a similar fraction of his own. When he's at low health (which he almost always will be), this lets him cut off half (or more) of a full-health enemy's HP at a cost of a few points of his own, and then immediately regenerate most of it with ''Inner Vitality''. This makes him a massive counter to Strength-based carries, since he can possibly remove over a thousand points of health from his target with a single attack.
* PlayingWithFire: Huskar can light his spears on fire using his hitpoints.
* PointyEars
* TheRival[=/=]BashBrothers: With Dazzle, and justified in both their backstory and gameplay. Dazzle's skills can make Huskar an unstoppable machine of destruction (''Shallow Grave'' + ''Berserker's Blood'' = Game Breaker) -- or make him useless if he's on the enemy team. Huskar apparently sees Axe as this as well, according to his response lines; their love of battle and tendency to charge blindly into the fray, as well as Axe's ability to annihilate Huskar with ''Culling Blade'' or pin a target down for him to effortlessly slaughter with ''Berserker's Call'' makes this occur from a gameplay perspective as well.
--> '''Huskar (killing Axe):''' [[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/5/54/Husk_rival_15.mp3 "Fearlessly into the fray, Axe, in this we are alike."]]
* SituationalSword: Huskar himself is this. At full HP, he's a mediocre hero that doesn't put out a lot of damage outside of his ultimate. However, once he drops down to low enough health and casts ''Inner Vitality'' on himself, he can stack absurd amounts of magic damage on his targets with ''Burning Spear'', deal huge amounts of DPS and shrug off magic nukes with ''Berserker's Blood'', heal about as much damage as he takes, and shave down the cost of his ultimate down to almost nothing.
* SkillGateCharacter: The basic idea with Huskar is that with ''Berserker’s Blood'' he gets stronger attacking power as his HP pool decreases, and both ''Burning Spears'' and ''Life Break'' give him convenient ways to lower his HP. However, having increased damage when hurt is rarely worth it when there are plenty of damage sources that don't involve deliberately crippling oneself, and are always active. The reason Huskar succeeds in pubs is because against poorly organised players he has no problem hanging around a dangerous level of HP. In fact, it's practically an invitation for his opponents to wander in one at a time and be slaughtered. But players who can plan ahead have no issue with waiting for Huskar to give them the perfect opening to dump all of their burst damage into, and by the end of the game a hero with real DPS skills can easily outcarry Huskar while also being able to fight at full HP. In addition to this, he also can't do anything but what he's designed to do (single-target DPS), with little teamfight presence and no utility whatsoever. Because of this, he is extraordinarily rare in competitive Dota, ignominiously being the only Hero who has never been picked at any of The International tournaments.
* SpellBlade: ''Burning Spear'' sets Huskar's spears aflame, dealing damage over time with his regular attack.
* TakingYouWithMe: Even if the target manages to survive his ultimate and kill him, they'll likely have several stacks of ''Burning Spear'' eating away at their low health, meaning that they'll likely die in a few seconds.
* ThisLooksLikeAJobForAquaman: Against a lineup too dependent on magical damage, a surprise last pick Huskar is able to force the enemy team to just accept it's GG already. However, if put up against even only one legit right-clicker, Huskar loses much of his effectiveness since he can't manfight any of them unless with a massive farm advantage. This weakness can be mitigated by Dazzle, making Huskar-Dazzle one of the most terrifying hero combinations in pubs and pros alike. In a Captains Mode game, when you see your opponent picking Dazzle and banning Ancient Apparition (one of the best counters to Huskar and Dazzle alike), you HAVE to ban Huskar since you aren't going to be able to kill him in a teamfight.
* TopHeavyGuy: Huskar's legs seem a little too thin to support his massively-built torso.
* TurnsRed: If Huskar's ''Berserker's Blood'' reaches its maximum stack (meaning that he'll be at extremely low health), Huskar will be about twice his normal size and surrounded by a glowing red aura. He also gains massive attack speed and magic resistance buffs.
* ViolationOfCommonSense: Huskar is at his best when he's at low health. ''Burning Spear'' can quickly eat up Huskar's health. As a result, most Huskar players use ''Burning Spear'' to intentionally nearly kill themselves in order to maximize his damage potential. Likewise, ''Life Break'' is often used to insert Huskar into situations that most heroes would usually run from, such as initiating against a hero that has much more health than he does.
* WalkingShirtlessScene
* WeaksauceWeakness: For all of Huskar's spell resistance, enemies who have high physical damage will likely eviscerate him before he can do too much damage, as he has low armour and needs to be at fairly low health to be effective.
* WhyWontYouDie: Tends to be the general reaction to a well-farmed Huskar at low health. Due to getting massive magic resistance buffs, unless he's getting right-clicked down by the other team's carry, it's near impossible to kill him since burst magic nukes will do almost no damage and he can regenerate very quickly with ''Inner Vitality''.
* WorthyOpponent: Sees Bloodseeker as this. Given that Bloodseeker's kit seems to be tailor-made for fighting Huskar (''Blood Rite'' and ''Rupture'' deal pure damage, which bypasses ''Berserker's Blood'' while preventing and punishing ''Life Break'' respectively, while ''Thirst'' increases Bloodseeker's physical damage output as Huskar's health drops), this is fairly justified.
* YouAreAlreadyDead: ''Burning Spear'' can do up to 140 magic damage per stack, spread out over 7 seconds, and stacks every time the victim is hit with ''Burning Spear'' activated. Combined with Huskar's lightning fast attack speed with ''Berserker's Blood'', enemies who have no way to quickly heal or dispel the status effect are very likely to succumb even if they manage to escape or kill Huskar.
** Furthermore, Huskar's ultimate ''Life Break'' - when used properly - has the potential to be SO incredibly devastating and crippling to its target that being hit with it is often a death sentence for most heroes; [[http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=128817857 a popular guide to Huskar]] describes it best:
--> [[ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill THIS IS YOUR DEATH BUTTON.]]
[[/folder]]
----
[[folder:Razzil Darkbrew, the Alchemist]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Alchemist_3887.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/0/09/Alch_spawn_05.mp3 "I'm the brains!" "And I'm the brawn!"]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Bruce Miles
''"The sacred science of Chymistry was a Darkbrew family tradition, but no Darkbrew had ever shown the kind of creativity, ambition, and recklessness of young Razzil. However, when adulthood came calling he pushed aside the family trade to try his hand at manufacturing gold though Alchemy. In an act of audacity befitting his reputation, Razzil announced he would transmute an entire mountain into gold. Following two decades of research and spending and preparation, he failed spectacularly, quickly finding himself imprisoned for the widespread destruction his experiment wrought. Yet Razzil was never one to take a setback lightly, and sought escape to continue his research. When his new cellmate turned out to be a fierce ogre, he found just the opportunity he needed. After convincing the ogre not to eat him, Razzil set about carefully concocting a tincture for it to drink, made from the moulds and mosses growing in the prison stone work. In a week’s time, it seemed ready. When the ogre drank the potion, it flew into an unstoppable berserker rage, destroying the cell bars and exploding through walls and guards alike. They soon found themselves lost somewhere in the forest surrounding the city with a trail of wreckage in their wake and no signs of pursuit. In the tonic’s afterglow, the ogre seemed serene, happy, and even eager. Resolving to work together, the pair set off to collect the materials needed to attempt Razzil’s Alchemic transmutation once more.''
While other heroes may specialize in magic spells or physical damage, Alchemist (and his trusty ogre sidekick) focus on gold, and accumulating lots of it. With the ability to farm more efficiently than most other heroes, Alchemist can be played in a variety of ways: he can use his early-game gold potential to quickly snowball an item advantage over the other team and carry his side to victory, or he can see use as a support and an initiator, focussing more on his damaging spells to help his team. With ''Greevil's Greed'', a passive ability, Alchemist gains extra gold for every last hit; granting an additive bonus for every last hit in a period of time. With healthy reserves of gold rolling in, Alchemist can quickly gain a head start in purchasing items- but don't think that he can't also go on the offensive. His main damaging spell, ''Unstable Concoction'', is a powerful but unreliable area-of-effect stun that needs to be charged before it's thrown at an enemy hero. Wait too long, however, and the spell will explode on Alchemist himself, stunning and damaging him. His other damaging spell, ''Acid Spray'', creates a pool of toxic liquid that reduces armor and damages foes who are caught in its radius. His ultimate, ''Chemical Rage'', is a versatile status buff, temporarily kicking many of his base stats into overdrive. With huge bonuses to health regeneration, movement speed, mana regen, and attack speed, Alchemist can unleash the power of alchemy to its fullest.
* AcidPool: ''Acid Spray'' can create one in an area.
* AlchemyIsMagic: Razzil's alchemy is apparently able to turn living organisms into gold.
* BadassBeard: Razzil himself.
* TheBerserker: ''Chemical Rage'' gives him high regenerating and speed, encouraging this style of play once he has his items.
* BigDumbBody: Albeit in a more equal relationship than most.
* BladeSpam: With the right items and a fully leveled ''Chemical Rage'', Alchemist can let out upwards of ''five attacks a second''.
* BlingOfWar[=/=]FlamingSword: Alchemist's Immortal Eternal Radiance Blades are a pair of golden, flaming swords.
* BrainsAndBrawn: Razzil and the ogre refer to themselves as the brains and the brawn, respectively.
* ChargedAttack: ''Unstable Concoction'' gains power and stun duration for longer every second after it's activated, and if it's charged to maximum power it can deal more damage and stun for longer than Sven's ''Storm Hammer''.
* DeadlyGas: ''Acid Spray'' creates a large cloud that shreds the armor and health of enemies.
* DualWielding: The ogre unsheathes two swords when using ''Chemical Rage''.
* FatAndSkinny: The ogre and Razzil, respectively.
* GoodOldFisticuffs: The ogre's primary means of attack.
* HealingFactor: Gains a massive one while in the middle of ''Chemical Rage''.
* HoistByHisOwnPetard: Literally, in that ''Unstable Concoction'' will explode in Alchemist's face if he doesn't throw it in time. And yes, he can kill himself with it.
* HollywoodAcid: ''Acid Spray'' is green and reduces enemies' armour.
* HumanResources: According to his voice lines, he's fond of using components of his dead foes as fodder for his experiments.
--> '''Alchemist (killing Pudge):''' [[http://hydra-images.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/e/ec/Alch_rival_02.mp3 "You don't think Pudge will mind if we salvage him for fluids, do you?"]]
--> '''Alchemist (killing Puck):''' [[http://hydra-images.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/e/e6/Alch_rival_05.mp3 "All right! Fairy dragon blood is hard to come by!"]]
--> '''Alchemist (killing Slardar):''' [[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/9/93/Alch_rival_14.mp3 "Thanks to Slardar, I can rig up an excellent mercury switch."]]
* ItemCaddy: When played as a farming carry, Alchemist relies on a six-slotted inventory of powerful items to get kills. This is made easier by ''Greevil's Greed'', which makes farming much faster and easier, so a good Alchemist will probably assemble most of his arsenal by the thirty-minute mark.
* JackOfAllStats: Alchemist is a versatile hero and can be played in the carry, support, or mid roles. He has a strong earlygame which can be capitalized on if one so desires by playing him as a support or a mid. His lategame can also be taken advantage of by playing him as a carry, and he's one of the fastest farmers in the game, allowing him to reach his personal lategame before the enemy team's carries come online. If given enough farm as a support, he can also transition from a support to a carry, but his lategame is not as strong as some other heroes', such as Medusa, Spectre, or Faceless Void, all of who outcarry Alchemist once they have enough farm.
* TheJuggernaut: With ''Chemical Rage'' activated, Alchemist can regenerate health faster than any other hero without a Heart of Tarrasque. As such, he can shrug off all but the most damaging nukes in a few seconds, and walk right over any squishy supports that get in his way.
* LightningBruiser: With ''Chemical Rage'' active, Alchemist possesses ''frighteningly'' high attack speed and runs fairly quickly as well, while easily shrugging off hits with the increased health regeneration.
* MadScientist: Razzil is prone to laughing maniacally or ranting about chemistry while last-hitting, activating ''Chemical Rage'', or killing a hero.
* MagicKnight: Razzil provides the Magic and the Ogre makes for the Knight half of the equation.
* MechanicallyUnusualClass: Alchemist is somewhat different from some other hard carries in that he can farm incredibly quickly with ''Greevil's Greed'', allowing him to grow extremely fast and get 6-slotted before many other carries. However, he can still be outgunned later on by other hard carries, because he can still only carry 6 items, plus an Aghanim's Scepter (which doesn't take up a slot for him) while ''Chemical Rage'' doesn't scale particularly well as a damage steroids. Because of this, unlike other hard carries who peak at ultra-late game, Alchemist's most effective time is at the late-midgame when he becomes 7-slotted.
* MoneyMultiplier: ''Greevil's Greed'' multiplies the gold from Bounty runes and grants bonus gold for every unit killed inside of 30 seconds, allowing him to chain last-hits to give himself up to 36 bonus gold per last hit. Left to farm alone, Alchemist can obtain core items alarmingly quickly.
* MountedCombat: Razzil rides on the back of an ogre. Whilst Razzil does the pointing, the ogre does the punching.
* NiceHat: The ogre's horned hat.
* OurOgresAreHungrier: Razzil's ogre mount seems to be quite different than the ogre mooks found in game, although it does bear a strong resemblance to Ogre Magi.
* PhantasySpelling: Chymistry
* ThePowerOfFriendship: Neither of them would be a match for other heroes by themselves, and it takes using both the Ogre's muscle and Razzil's chemicals to win.
* PurpleIsPowerful: The ogre turns violet when Razzil uses ''Chemical Rage''.
* RaceAgainstTheClock: A minor example with ''Unstable Concoction''. If it's not thrown within 5.5 seconds, it will stun and damage the Alchemist.
* RedEyesTakeWarning: The portrait for his ultimate, ''[[UnstoppableRage Chemical Rage]]''.
* ScienceHero
* SuperEmpowering: Uniquely, Alchemist has the ability to consume an Aghanim's Scepter to grant all of its bonuses to himself or an allied hero, once each, without taking up a slot. It synergises particularly well with someone whose Aghanim's Scepter upgrade is potentially very strong but they either can't afford it or the way their hero plays makes buying it themselves non-optimal. So a support Treant Protector can be given Scepter and starts legally maphacking with ''Eyes in the Forest'', or for Luna who can now drop ''Eclipse'' like Gyrocopter's ''Call Down'' without losing space for Scepter.
* SuperMode: ''Chemical Rage'', which involves the ogre ingesting a SuperSerum.
* SuperPowerMeltdown: The ''Unstable Concoction''. Razzil throws a potion at an enemy that stuns them depending on how long he shakes it up. However, if he holds on to it too long, it will explode and stun himself.
* SuperSerum: When ''Chemical Rage'' is used, Razzil gives the ogre a rage-inducing potion.
* TechnicolorScience: ''Acid Spray'' is green and ''Unstable Concoction'' is purple.
* ThereWasADoor: The ogre simply crashed through the walls of the prison that he and Razzil were stuck in.
* ThrowDownTheBomblet: ''Unstable Concoction'' has Alchemist hurl a beaker of explosive chemicals at the target.
* TookALevelInBadass: Before the 6.75 patch Alchemist had the lowest win rate in the game and was regarded as a JokeCharacter. The 6.75 patch, however, buffed all of his abilities to the point where he is viable and can be a pretty big threat, and in The International 2013 he became a high tier pick. The 6.79 patch damaged his lategame carry potential, but still strengthened his earlygame, allowing him to be more versatile and be played as a support or a mid.
* TransformationIsAFreeAction: Alchemist becomes temporarily invulnerable when activating ''Chemical Rage'', allowing him to disjoint certain stuns.
* UnstoppableRage: When under the effects of ''Chemical Rage'', the ogre runs faster, regenerates health faster, and attacks faster.
* VitriolicBestBuds: They frequently bicker with one another over trivial matters, although many of their voice lines indicate that they really are inseparable underneath it all.
-->''[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/3/39/Alch_immort_02.mp3 Does immortality work for both of us? It better!]]''
* WeakButSkilled: Alchemist has one of the worst attribute growths in the game, but he makes up with his versatile kit, being able to fulfil every role in a team from the #1 carry to the #4-5 support.
* WhatTheHellPlayer: If ''Unstable Concoction'' backfires, the ogre will sometimes berate Razzil, and, by extension the player controlling him, for not throwing it in time.
--> '''Ogre''': [[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/9/9a/Alch_ability_concoc_25.mp3 "Didn't you hear me telling you to throw it?!"]]
[[/folder]]
----
[[folder:Mangix, the Brewmaster]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/brewmaster_5080.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/b/b4/Brew_rare_01.mp3 "Drink and be bleary, for tomorrow we die."]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Nolan North
''"Deep in the Wailing Mountains, in a valley beneath the Ruined City, the ancient Order of the Oyo has for centuries practiced its rights of holy reverie, communing with the spirit realm in grand festivals of drink. Born to a mother’s flesh by a Celestial father, the youth known as Mangix was the first to grow up with the talents of both lineages. He trained with the greatest aesthetes of the Order, eventually earning, through diligent drunkenness, the right to challenge for the title of Brewmaster—that appellation most honored among the contemplative malt-brewing sect. As much drinking competition as mortal combat, Mangix for nine days drank and fought the elder master. For nine nights they stumbled and whirled, chugged and struck, until at last the elder warrior collapsed into a drunken stupor, and a new Brewmaster was named. Now the new, young Brewmaster calls upon the strength of his Oyo forebears to speed his staff. When using magic, it is to his spirit ancestors that he turns. Like all Brewmasters before him, he was sent out from his people with a single mission. He wanders the land, striving toward enlightenment through drink, searching for the answer to the ancient spiritual schism—hoping to think the single thought that will unite the spirit and physical planes again."''
Brewmaster is a very powerful DrunkenMaster, being is able to inflict a lot of damage and take little damage in return. His first ability is ''Drunken Brawler'' which provides an increase to both critical damage and evasion chance. Brewmaster is able to stop his foes from escaping or fighting efficiently by using his ability ''Thunder Clap'' which creates a shockwave around him that slows and decreases movement speed on ground units around him. He can further improve his evasion by using his ability, ''Drunken Daze,'' which causes Brewmaster to throw booze on his enemies which slows and debuffs them, causing some of their attacks to miss. To further make him even trickier to face, his ultimate ability, ''Primal Split'', causes him to split into 3 of himself, each with their own stats and abilities. The three copies are: Earth Spirit, who is tanky and immune to magic and can use ''Boulder'' to stun an enemy and have chance to deal damage in a close radius; Fire Spirit, who is the quickest and a fighter, who burns enemies around him with ''Permanent Immolation,'': and Storm Spirit, the mage copy who can ''Dispel Magic'' which removes positive buffs and deals heavy damage to summoned targets, remove an enemy with ''Cyclone'' and make himself invisible with ''Wind Walk.'' With Aghanim's Sceptor, Earth Spirit inherits ''Thunder Clap,'' Fire Spirit inherits ''Drunken Brawler,'' and Storm Spirit inherits ''Drunken Daze.''
* AchillesHeel: Monkey King Bar is this to Brewmaster, as it completely nullifies both the miss chance from ''Drunken Haze'' and his evasion from ''Drunken Brawler''. He's also particularly vulnerable to silences, since most Brewmaster players will often attempt to wait until the last possible second to cast ''Primal Split'' in order to make the most of a teamfight.
* AlcoholHic
* BigFun
* BewareTheSillyOnes[=/=]CrouchingMoronHiddenBadass: ''Primal Split'' turns him from a slightly goofy inebriated panda-man into a deadly platoon of magical spirit warriors, and he becomes almost unkillable during its duration.
* BoisterousBruiser
* BoozeBasedBuff: Played straight with Brewmaster's ''Drunken Brawler'', which gives him a chance to evade attacks and deal critical damage. Inverted with ''Drunken Haze'', which causes enemies to slow down and miss.
* ContinuityNod:
** Although Storm Spirit is now a human, Brewmaster still labels him as his cousin, likely due to his celestial heritage. In the original [=DotA=], both Brewmaster and Storm Spirit were pandarens.
** While he is a red panda now, his ''Primal Split'' spirits have a giant panda pattern like the original's elemental pandaren.
* CriticalHitClass: His ''Drunken Brawler'' ability gives him a chance to regularly deal critical (200%) damage.
* DecoyGetaway: ''Primal Split'' can be used as one, sending either Earth, for his priority return and slow-immunity, or Storm, for his windwalk, back while the other two wreck havoc on the enemy team and get focused down in an attempt to kill Brewmaster.
* DifficultButAwesome: Storm's second ability ''Dispel Magic''. Used properly, it can remove powerful buffs (like a Double Damage rune or Ogre Magi's ''Bloodlust''), but on the whole enemy team; or save multiple teammates from deadly mass-disables (like Ember Spirit's ''Searing Chains''). Used badly, it can inadvertently help enemies by purging these aforementioned disables from them (which might very well be the ''Thunder Clap'' or ''Drunken Haze'' that you just used), or good buffs from allies. Being able to use ''Dispel Magic'' effectively is what separates a good Brewmaster from an average one.
* DrunkenMaster
* ElementalPowers: After his ultimate (see LiteralSplitPersonality below).
* EpicFlail: An odd combination of what can be called [[FightingWithChucks nunchaku]], but with a [[SimpleStaff staff]] on one end is his WeaponOfChoice. However, [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Two_section_staff it's a real weapon]].
* FragileSpeedster: Fire moves at maximum speed and constantly deals damage to every enemy around him, but is also extremely frail.
* GlowingEyes: His elemental spirits.
* ImprobableWeaponUser: He uses his barrel of booze as much as a weapon as his staff.
* {{Invisibility}}: Storm's ''Wind Walk'' turns him temporarily invisible.
* LiteralSplitPersonality: His ultimate, ''Primal Split'', splits him into three elemental warriors, which function as individual heroes for the duration.
* LockedOutOfTheFight: Storm can do this with ''Cyclone''.
* MagicKnight: Brewmaster is a respectable physical damage dealer and manfighter, since he has abilities that involve negating opposing auto-attacks while strengthening his own; on the other hand, the ''Primal Split'' spirits can provide a plethora of utility from exceptional disables, survivability against magic and physical attacks, to damage output.
* ManySpiritsInsideOfOne: A heroic variant; Mangix sometimes refers to the three spirits as his "drinking buddies".
* MightyGlacier:
** He's slow, but he packs a wallop.
** Earth is the slowest of the three elemental forms, but carries a ranged, damage-dealing stun and has a high chance of dealing bonus AOE damage in a radius.
* NoSell: Earth is immune to magic.
* ObviousRulePatch: During the 6.74 era, the "Primal Spirits" are not considered heroes but rather creep-heroes. This allows pro players to easily escape from its ultimate by [[LoopholeAbuse simply using a "Smoke of Deceit"]] and they will not be revealed unless another hero is present. 6.75 fixes this by making the spirits now appropriately dispel the smoke effect.
* PandaingToTheAudience: His race is very Panda-like. The relation becomes more apparent when you look at his previous skin and ancestral spirits. He even used to be a [[VideoGame/{{Warcraft}} Pandaren]] in the original [=DotA=].
* ShockwaveStomp: ''Thunder Clap'' damages and slows enemies in a huge radius by slamming his barrel into the ground.
* SomeDexterityRequired: As soon as Brewmaster pops his ultimate, you'll have to control three heroes simultaneously, each one with his own separate skills and abilities that work best chained together. If you buy Aghanim's Scepter, you'll have to worry about combo-ing together ''more'' skills. A well-played ''Primal Split'', however can be extremely impressive and deadly.
* StatusBuffDispel: Storm's ''Dispel Magic'' ability, which dispels buffs in an area.
* StoutStrength
* TransformationIsAFreeAction: When performing ''Primal Split'', Brewmaster becomes invulnerable for the duration of the transformation, until after the three elementals are able to move.
* WhyWontYouDie: Brewmaster is a Strength hero with fairly high strength gain and ''the'' highest evasion in the game, if he has both ''Drunken Haze'' and ''Drunken Brawler'' maxed out, only ''18.75%'' of autoattacks will actually hit him at all. This is in addition to dealing with his ultimate, which forces you to either fight them head on for a grand total of 19 seconds, or kill all 3 of them, no easy feat given that one's spell immune, another runs extremely fast, and the last can turn invisible. Escalated even ''further'' with Brewmaster's favored item build of Blink Dagger, Aghanim's Scepter, and Heart of Tarrasque, making his ult even ''harder'' to deal with, and then once it's over, letting him teleport away since Brewmaster himself never took damage during that duration and heal for a 3rd of his health while you were fighting the spirits. ''Yeesh''.
[[/folder]]
----
[[folder:Rooftrellen, the Treant Protector]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Treant_Protector_5599.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/d/db/Treant_respawn_05.mp3 "Think me not ponderous... merely pondering."]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Fred Tatasciore
''"Far to the west, in the mountains beyond the Vale of Augury, lie the remains of an ancient power, a fount of eldritch energy nestled deep in the high woods. It is said that the things that grow here, grow strangely. To the forces of nature this is a sacred place, made to stay hidden and unknown. Many are the traps and dangers of this land--all-consuming grasses and crossbred fauna and poisonous flowers--but none are so fierce as the mighty Treant Protectors. These ageless, titanic beings, charged with keeping the peace in this dangerous land, ensure that none within encroach without reason, and none without poach their secrets. For time untold they tended to their holy ground, uninterrupted, only dimly aware of the changing world beyond. Yet inevitably the wider world grew aware of this untamed land, and with each passing winter the outsiders grew bolder. Soon they arrived with tools to cut and with flames to burn, and often the Treants would ponder: who are these fragile, industrious creatures? What now had become of the wild, green world? There came and went an age of questions and of doubts, a thousand summers of long traditions set to scrutiny, while more and more the outsiders died and fed their earth. When all that bloomed had finally finished their say, curiosity had overcome caution. It was decided: a lone Protector would be sent into the wider world, and instructed to wander until the glaciers arose once more, to observe the changing land and its creatures, and to discover what unknown dangers could threaten their sacred ground."''
This lovable tree is very protective of his allies and fights to defend them. He can protect his allies by using ''Nature's Guise'' to blend them with the forest and become invisible. As long as they are in the forest, they will remain invisible until the duration ends, and can use it on himself and can use abilities while invisible. He can heal allies and buildings with ''Living Armor'', which causes him to cast a protective shield on his allies and grants them bonus regeneration. He can attack his enemies with ''Leech Seed'', which slows an enemy unit, draining their health and healing his allies around the enemy. His ultimate is ''Overgrowth'', which summons vine that roots all enemies around him, preventing movement, blinking, invisibility, or attacking. If he acquires Aghanim's Scepter, he gains the ''Eyes in the Forest'' ability, which enchants a tree to provide vision and will''Overgrowth'' enemies that walk near.
* AllLovingHero: The only one he outright dislikes is Timbersaw, for [[WhenTreesAttack obvious reasons]]. His only quarrel with [[{{Satan}} Doom]] is that Doom's spreading hellfire around the forest.
* ArsonMurderAndJaywalking: His quote upon killing Pugna.
--> '''Treant Protector:''' [[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/d/de/Treant_rival_01.mp3 "You were nasty, brutal, and most of all, short."]]
* AwesomeButImpractical: ''Eyes in the Forest'' effectively grants Treant Protector a free Observer Ward which never expires unless dewarded every 25 seconds. If the enemy jungle is warded, the damage addition to ''Overgrowth'' will allow him to kill any jungle creeps within range of a tree almost every minute as they spawn, giving him easy 700+ GPM. Additionally the Eyes can be placed in the lanes to give him absurd splitpushing potential, possibly wiping out entire lanes of creeps every minute, or placed in strategic teamfighting locations to give him nearly unmatched global disabling and nuking power. However, considering Aghanim's Scepter costs a lot for a support, if ever Treant can afford one it is either because he saved from the beginning of the match, did not support his team in not buying wards or any other support item making him a burden for his team, or because it is very late in the match and it is very likely that his team has stomped, or it will not help much as the enemy team could probably destroy the trees with a Gem and Quelling Blade and handle the extra damage. Subverted when he's on the same team with Alchemist, who can farm it for him, which is made even easier with ''Greevil's Greed''.
* BewareTheNiceOnes: Easily the least violent hero in the game. Also possesses the highest base damage, second highest Strengh growth, and spells that could aid his teammates in a teamfight to great effects.
* BoringButPractical: Out of all of Treant's spells, only ''Leech Seed'' deals damage and is easily outclassed by most damage-dealing spells in the game. His main play style revolves around continually casting ''Living Armor'' on allies and buildings, healing a push with ''Leech Seed'', occasionally initiating a teamfight with ''Overgrowth''... and that's about it.
* BuffySpeak
* CloudCuckooLander[=/=]DissonantSerenity: He is a slow thinker and easily gets distracted either by the [[AttentionDeficitOohShiny beautiful scenery]] or [[ThePhilosopher mysteries of the universe]], and is often [[ComicallyMissingThePoint oblivious to combat around him]].
--> '''Treant Protector (Respawning):''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/8/89/Treant_respawn_09.mp3 "I think I'll go for a nice walk."]]
* CombatMedic: ''Leech Seed'' is an interesting example; it not only damages and slows whatever enemy it's used on, but it will also heal every allied unit in a radius around it. His other utility spell, ''Living Armor'', is unique in that it is one of two spells that can also heal towers from anywhere on the map, turning potential enemy pushes into a slog.
* DeflectorShields: ''Living Armor'' creates a shield around the target that blocks a certain number of damage instances.
* DefogOfWar: ''Eyes in the Forest'' enchants a tree, granting Treant vision around it, essentially giving him a free ward every 25 seconds that lasts indefinitely.
* FreezeFrameBonus: His model has a small carving near his behind, saying "Riki was here".
* FurryConfusion: If he uses a Tango (a consumable item that regenerates your health by destroying a tree) he'll apologize and show mild regret for what he's done, despite the tree being non-sentient.
--> '''Treant Protector (using a tango):''' [[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/a/a3/Treant_tango_01.mp3 "Sorry, friend."]]
* GaiasVengeance: His various plant-themed abilities can aid his team in a teamfight or a push.
* GentleGiant: He is a calm, peaceful treant with abilities focused on protecting allies and disabling enemies. He also has the game's second highest Strength growth and has ludicrous melee attack damage.
** He's also [[AllLovingHero the only completely good hero]].
* GlowingEyes
* GreenThumb: Being a treant, this is to be expected.
* {{Invisibility}}: ''Nature's Guise'' turns a friendly unit invisible near a tree.
* KingMook: Nature's Prophet can summon Treants, which are slightly bigger than an average lane creep. In comparison, Rooftrellen easily towers over most heroes and can cast spells.
* KungFuWizard: Though he's a melee Strength hero, Treant Protector relies heavily on his spells to contribute in teamfights.
* LifeDrain: ''Leech Seed''.
* TheLostWoods: His land of origin.
* MagicKnight
* MagikarpPower: ''Eyes in the Forest'' can turn Treant Protector from a humble support into a force to be reckoned with if he's given enough time to farm up the gold for an Aghanim's Scepter and to place his eyes around the map. Not only does this give him amazing farming potential and farm disruption by seeding the jungle, but the global range allows him to splitpush, disable, and nuke anywhere he can find a tree to convert. With a Scepter and a Refresher Orb (which are [[AwesomeButImpractical pretty much out of reach for a support unless the match drags on long enough) Treant can pin down entire teams for up to 9 seconds at a time (while doing 1650 damage pre-reduction) and wipe entire lanes if he can time it right.
* MoneyMultiplier: Aghanim's Scepter is this for Treant: if he uses ''Eyes in the Forest'' near jungle camps, the damage addition to ''Overgrowth'' will allow him to farm them almost every minute as they spawn, giving him easy 700+ GPM, while at the same time depriving farm from the enemy (and his own team in certain cases).
* MutualDisadvantage: With Nature's Prophet. ''Nature's Call'' can [[AchievementsInIgnorance accidentally pull up Treant Protector's ''Eyes in the Forest'', as well as remove the very trees that ''Nature's Guise'' relies on, possibly exposing a ganking attempt by sheer coincidence.]] In return, Treant Protector's ''Living Armor'' heavily cripples Nature's Prophet's splitpushing abilities, ''Nature's Guise'' can be used to counteract ''Sprout'', and ''Eyes in the Forest'' can expose any attempt of Nature's Prophet to teleport into the treelines, with the option for ''Overgrowth'' to pin him down just for being in the wrong place at the wrong time.
* NatureHero
* NoExperiencePointsForMedic: He actually still gets XP for kills he is near, but like Omniknight, he's melee, only one of his spells damages the enemy, and he doesn't get assists for things like immobilizing or disarming enemies, so his final game stats often don't reflect his true contribution to the team.
* NonStandardSkillLearning: With Aghanim's Scepter, Treant Protector gains a fifth skill, ''Eyes in the Forest''.
* PlantPerson
* TheRedMage
* ShoutOut: To Franchise/{{Pokemon}} with his spell, [[http://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Leech_Seed_%28move%29 Leech Seed.]]
** His appearance and personality are based on Treebeard from Literature/TheLordOfTheRings.
* StealthyColossus: ''Nature's Guise'' when fully upgraded, lasts an entire minute, and takes a minute amount of mana to cast, has a cooldown of 5 seconds, and can work on allies, as Rooftrellen is also usually an initiator and has Blink Dagger, he can just teleport the gap in trees. Given that he can cast and use items without breaking stealth, and he largely relies on said items and abilities to contribute to teamfights, he can actually be invisible throughout an entire fight and still be contributing the whole time.
* StoneWall: Though Treant is very tanky and has very high base damage, his base attack time is the worst in the game (tied with Spirit Breaker and Weaver), meaning that he hits very slowly, and his skills do not deal as much damage either. Even when compared to the ''other'' StoneWall healer of the game, Omniknight, he's still somewhat more defensive.
* TreeCover: ''Nature's Guise'' turns any friendly unit invisible, so long as they remain in proximity to a tree. It's especially useful with surprise-oriented gankers like Pudge, as they can still cast spells while invisible.
* TribalFacePaint
* VampiricDraining: ''Leech Seed'' drains its target's health and constantly restores HP to friendly units around it.
* WeaksauceWeakness: ''Eyes in the Forest'' can be destroyed with a simple 225 gold Quelling Blade, so long as the enemy has any way of utilizing True Sight (Sentry Wards, Gem of True Sight, etc.), meaning that smart placement and regular re-warding are vital if using them. Additionally any ability that destroys trees can accidentally destroy them, even if the enemy doesn't know that they're there.
* WeirdBeard: Branches growing from his face into the shape of a beard.
* WhenTreesAttack
[[/folder]]
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[[folder:Io, the Guardian Wisp]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Io_4337.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/6/66/Wisp_Spawn_respawn.mp3 "..."]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Itself
''"Wisp is everywhere, and in all things. Denounced by enemies as the great unmaker, worshiped by scholars as the twinkling of a divine eye, Wisp occupies all planes at once, the merest fraction of its being crossing into physical existence at any one moment. Like the great twin riders Dark and Light, and yet another ancient traveler whose true history is lost to the ages, Io the Wisp is a Fundamental of the universe—a force older than time, a wanderer from realms far beyond mortal understanding. Wisp is nothing less than the sum of all attractive and repulsive forces within matter, a sentient manifestation of the charge that bind particles together. It is only in the controlled warping of these forces that Wisp's presence can be experienced on the physical plane. A benevolent, cooperative force, Wisp bonds its strength to others so that the power of allies might be enhanced. Its motives inscrutable, its strength unimaginable, moves through the physical plane, the perfect expression of the mysteries of the universe."''
Io is the second of two ranged strength heroes, and excels at controlling his lane with support oriented skills and lots of harass. The first ability that Io has in his arsenal is ''Tether'', which causes a spirit tether to connect Io and another unit. When Io recovers any health or mana, the tethered unit receives 1.5x the amount recovered, and any enemy that cross the tether will be slowed. Io's second ability is ''Spirits'', which causes a ring of five projectiles to spin around Io, and detonate on contact which causes small area of effect damage. Io can cause this projectile ring to increase in size or shrink, which can force foes away from him or provide some protection. His third ability, ''Overcharge'', causes Io to burn his health and mana to get much faster attack speed and resistances. Tethered allies also get the bonuses. His ultimate,''Relocate'' , acts as a temporary teleport. Io and any Tethered ally will be able to teleport to anywhere on the map, but will teleport back from their casting position after 12 seconds.
* AwesomeButImpractical[=/=]IneffectualLoner: Io is probably the most team-dependent hero in the game, the only way to actually play it is in an organised and coordinated setting, something that is nonexistent in pubs. Because of this, it is absurdly unpopular in pubs, but ranks amongst the top picks in competitive.
* CastFromHitPoints: ''Overcharge'' drains 4.5% of Io's max health and mana every second it's active. This actually works to Io's advantage: ''Tether'' won't give regeneration to allies if Io's health and mana are full.
* CombatMedic: When Io gains health or mana, a ''Tether''ed hero gains 1.5x the amount. With healing items like Urn of Shadows, Bottle or Tranquil Boots, as well as ''Overcharge'' to keep its HP under 100%, Io can pump an absurd amount of HP and mana into an allied carry in the middle of a teamfight, while at the same time nullifying their normal disadvantage of being cancelled when taking damage or attacking.
* DifficultButAwesome: Wisp (outside of a few comedy builds) is pretty much the only Hero who can do nothing but support other Heroes. It requires heavy teamwork, but is incredibly powerful when utilized correctly. Because of this, Wisp is one of the most commonly picked or banned heroes in professional tournaments.
** ''Spirits'' must be aimed for the precise distance between Wisp and the target. If someone has trouble landing them, then they're a huge waste of mana. If someone is skilled with landing them though, ''Spirits'' can be an incredible amount of harassment that you can do from 875 range.
** Using ''Relocate'' to its fullest potential is also very difficult, as you'll always need to keep an eye out for potential ganks, ''Tether'' someone and teleport near or onto where you want to gank; yet you also have to be wary if other enemies are missing though, they could be baiting you out. However, it is one of the only two skills in the game which can give global presence to any ally (the other being the yet-to-be-added Abyssal Underlord's ''Dark Rift'', whose cooldown is significantly longer). Using ''Relocate'' to bring you and your lane partner behind unsuspecting enemies in either your own or another lane globally is a huge deal. This can be used to get your carry fed very quickly if your team is competent and you communicate your intentions. In addition to this, ''Relocate'' can be used in a big fight to bring someone to the fight who didn't get there in time, pull someone out who's about to die, or take someone back to heal quickly during the fight. ''Relocate'' requires you to be very cognisant of how your team is doing in a fight and what's needed most.
* DynamicEntry: ''Relocate'', which teleports Io and any tethered hero to any point on the map for a short time, can turn any ally into a global ganking, pushing and counterganking machine.
* EnergyBeing[=/=]CelestialBody: Heck, even the in-game model itself is just particle!
* HappyFunBall: Often called this thanks to the spherical shape and totally unexpected power [[DifficultButAwesome in a coordinated team]].
--> '''Bastion Announcer:''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/2/28/Dlc_bastion_announcer_pick_wisp_follow.mp3 "Hey what's that little glowy ball? Famous last words."]]
* HeroicSacrifice: On a lineup with Io, a carry could farm exposed areas with little risk. Any time the enemy would initiate on him, Io could use ''Relocate'', bail him out and sacrifice himself to save the carry. Oftentimes the return of farming an exposed lane was greater than the damage done by feeding Io.
* JokeCharacter: In public games. Io has one of the worst win rate in pubs because the other 4 people on your team just don't know how to work around it, similar to Shadow Demon, Chen and Enchantress. You can be the best Io player in the world, but you're still going to lose constantly if you try playing Io in solo matchmaking. The usual case scenario is that you ''Tether'' to an allied carry, then ''Relocate'' him to gank a lone farming enemy hero... only to have him break the tether and letting Io teleport alone to the enemy hero, which, seeing how weak Io is without teammates, essentially gives the enemy a free kill.
** LethalJokeCharacter: But in well-coordinated stacks or pro teams, however, Io is considered an excellent support hero that allows the team's carry to gank almost anywhere around the map, heal them to full health 1.5x faster than normal, and powers them up by giving them increased attack speed and damage reduction.
* MechanicallyUnusualClass: Despite being a Strength hero, Io is played very much like a typical Intelligence hero. Rather than relying on innate tankiness and/or strong autoattacks, it is a super-squishy hard support with a powerful nuke and three abilities which can turn any allied hero into a global ganking machine and provide them with an excellent damage steroids.
* NatureSpirit
* NoBiologicalSex
* OverclockingAttack: ''Overcharge'' increases the attack speed and reduces incoming damage of Wisp and its tethered ally at the price of burning away mana and health.
* PowerFloats
* ThePowerOfFriendship: Io can't really do much by itself, but just try to fight both it and a ''carry'' like Chaos Knight at once and see how long you will stand.
* SentientCosmicForce
* TheSpeechless: All the noises he makes can be described as submarine-sounding beeps and boops. Some other characters seem to understand him. Puck especially continuously regrets that people are missing Wisp's puns (unreliable - maybe she's just being [[LittleMissSnarker Puck]]).
* SquishyWizard: Despite being a Strength hero (who are usually renowned for their durability), Wisp has pathetically low base stats and stat growth in all three areas; of all Strength heroes in the game, it has the lowest base Strength (tied with Phoenix) and second-lowest Strength growth, beat out only by Alchemist. On top of all that, it's one of only three Heroes in the game (the others being Phoenix and Visage) that start with '''negative''' base armor. Needless to say, Wisp is very easy to kill if caught without escape.
* TimeAbyss: As a Fundamental, Io is as old as creation itself.
* TimeMaster: The lore of ''Overcharge'':
--> Drawing on the energy of matter from all worlds, Io begins the unravelling of time.
* ViewersAreGeniuses: Its abilities are based on atoms and its backstory implies it's a sentient manifestation of the three major forces of quantum mechanics (Strong, Weak, and Electromagnetism).
[[/folder]]
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[[folder:Bradwarden, the Centaur Warrunner]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/centaur_warrunner_1960.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/b/b8/Cent_battlebegins_01.mp3 "These proving grounds shall be littered with the dead."]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Tom Chantler
''"It's said that a centaur's road is paved with the corpses of the fallen. For the one called Warrunner, it has been a long road indeed. To outsiders, the four-legged clans of Druud are often mistaken for simple, brutish creatures. Their language has no written form; their culture lacks pictographic traditions, structured music, formalized religion. For centaurs, combat is the perfect articulation of thought, the highest expression of self. If killing is an art among centaurs, then Bradwarden the Warrunner is their greatest artist. He rose to dominance on the proving grounds of Omexe, an ancient arena where centaur clans have for millennia gathered to perform their gladiatorial rights. As his fame spread, spectators came from far and wide to see the great centaur in action. Always the first to step into the arena, and the last to leave, he composes a masterpiece in each guttering spray, each thrust of blood-slickened blade-length. It is the poetry of blood on steel, flung in complex patterns across the pale sands of the killing floor. Warrunner defeated warrior after warrior, until the arena boomed with the cheering of his name, and he found himself alone, the uncontested champion of his kind. The great belt of Omexe was bestowed, wrapped around his broad torso, but in his victory, the death-artist found only emptiness. For what is a warrior without a challenge? The great centaur galloped out of Omexe that day with a new goal. To his people, Warrunner is the greatest warrior to ever step into the arena. Now he has set out to prove he is the greatest fighter who has ever lived."''
Centaur Warrunner's home is the battlefield, and all of his abilities show off his affinity for war. His first ability, ''Hoof Stomp'', causes Centaur to slam down onto the ground, stunning and damaging nearby units. Centaur's second ability, ''Double Edge'', causes his next attack to deal greatly increased damage- at the cost of hurting himself. His third ability and a passive, "Return", causes all damage that Warrunner takes to be countered for a fraction and returned to his opponents based on his current strength stat which works on almost anything, including turrets. His ultimate, ''Stampede'', causes every ally hero on the map to gain an incredibly large buff to their movement speed, the ability to walk through any unit, and will stun any enemy that they walk over, dealing damage to the stunned unit as they trample over their bodies.
* AnAxeToGrind
* BadassNormal: Centaur possesses little supernatural power - just a big axe and a lot of brute strength.
* TheBerserker: Thanks to his huge HP pool, a passive that punishes attacks against him, and close-ranged spells, Centaur is played in a very aggressive manner.
* BloodKnight
* CastFromHitPoints: ''Double Edge'' deals up to 400 damage to both Centaur and his target and costs no mana, which means that most Centaur players wind up stacking health regeneration items.
* CounterAttack: ''Return'' deals damage to any unit attacking Centaur. Unlike similar abilites of other heroes, it depends on Centaur's own strength and not the damage taken.
* DifficultButAwesome: ''Stampede'' usage, good Centaur players often use ''Stampede'' when they aren't even doing anything more dangerous than last hitting, but their ''ally'' on the other side of the map is going in for a gank or running from the enemy.
* DynamicEntry: ''Stampede'' boosts Centaur's allies to max movespeed, dealing damage and slow to any units they run through. It works well with a Blink Dagger and ''Hoof Stomp'' stun, turning him into a powerful initiator.
* FangsAreEvil
* GladiatorGames: Is a champion of them.
* HighPressureBlood: ''Double Edge'' causes a jet of blood to squirt out from both Centaur and his targets.
* HornedHumanoid
* LightningBruiser: Not only does he have the highest Strength gain of any hero, but he's also scarily fast -- especially with his ultimate, which lets him and all his allies charge at maximum movespeed for a few seconds.
* MadeOfIron: One of the tankiest heroes in the game.
* MonochromaticEyes
* NaturalWeapon: Bradwarden's hooves, used by ''Hoof Stomp''.
* OurCentaursAreDifferent: Unlike centaurs seen in most other works, Bradwarden has a massive upper torso, horns and out-jutting lower fangs.
* ProudWarriorRaceGuy: His culture has little to it other than violence.
* ShockwaveStomp: ''Hoof Stomp''.
* SuperSpeed: ''Stampede'' temporarily boosts the movement speed of all allies to the cap of 522.
* SuperStrength: He has the highest Strength gain in the game, at 3.8 per level.
* TopHeavyGuy: Contrary to most centaur depictions, his upper torso is even bulkier than the workhorse lower body.
* TrampledUnderfoot: Any poor victim passed over by Centaur's allies when ''Stampede'' is active is slowed and takes damage based on his Strength.
* VictoryIsBoring: His backstory.
* WalkingShirtlessScene
* WorthyOpponent: He regards Magnus as one.
[[/folder]]
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[[folder:Rizzrack, the Timbersaw]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Timbersaw_883.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/6/69/Timb_rare_02.mp3 "I'm not a lumberjack, and no, I'm not okay. I thank you."]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' TJ Ramini
''"Rizzrack could still hear the screams in his mind. He worked, frantically turning wrenches, twisting screws, building and carving and forging. Sleep eluded him; he only built. Months had passed since he had shut himself in his uncle's workshop, and his deliverance was nearly complete. He rubbed his back as his eyes drifted shut, and saw a blanket of flowers floating on the placid waves of Augury Bay before exploding into a cloud of pollen that silenced lives as it seized the lungs. He woke with a choking start. For hours the rhythmic sound of a whetstone filled the shop as he sharpened a set of massive blades, his mind filled with images of strangling vines garroting neighbors, enwrapping homes. The flooding of Augury Bay had been nothing compared to the violent horrors the waters left to take root beyond the city walls. But the saw-suit would make him strong and safe he thought, allowing himself this sliver of hope before the full might of his fear crashed into his fading mind. Branches and blood. When the city fell, Rizzrack fled trees that walked, and fought, and killed. Trees had shattered the gates and swarmed into the city. Trees had crushed and thrashed and stomped the last that Augury Bay could muster in defense, and stalked the few fleeing refugees. In addled silence Rizzrack unspooled the thick chain from the suit's arm, his hands quaking as he inspected each link and ran a trembling finger along the claw attached at its end. The saw-suit was ready. With his hand trembling he sparked the bladed machine to life. Terror drove him, terror of what awaited him and of what he would have to face to have any hope of calming his mind. As the saw-suit shuddered to life he knew he must face this fear, and he knew he wouldn't like it one bit."''
Timbersaw's odd playstyle revolves around using the forest, but in a way completely different from the Treant- rather than use the forest for help, Timbersaw seeks to destroy every tree in his wake. His first ability, ''Whirling Death'', causes a saw to split out the sides of Rizzracks mech, cutting down everyone in a small radius. If a tree is felled in the process, then the attack does Pure damage. ''Timber Chain'' is Rizzracks primary initiation, functioning like Clockwerks ultimate, but instead will only work on trees. As Rizzrack flies, he damages everyone in his wake. His third ability, ''Reactive Armor'', gives Timbersaw more armor and health regen the more times he is attacked. Timersaws ultimate is ''Chakram'', and has Timbersaw sending out a large spinning blade that slows enemies the more health they lack. Upgrading this via Aghanims Scepter causes him to send out two Chakrams at the same time.
* AdaptationNameChange: Rizzrack's name in the original [=DotA=] was Rizzrak (notice the absence of the C).
* AdaptationSpeciesChange: Timbersaw was originally called Goblin Shredder in the original [=DotA=]. However, unlike the other goblin heroes (Alchemist, Tinker, Clockwerk), it is unclear if he is now a Keen (goblin equivalent) or not.
* BucketHelmet: He wears some kind of receptacle with a valve on his head.
* ChainsawGood
* CompanionCube: His ''Chakram'' chainsaw, of all things.
--> '''Rizzrack (casting Chakram Return):''' [[http://hydra-images.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/1/15/Timb_chakramreturn_04.mp3 "Here boy!"]]
* CowardlyLion: Yes, he is crazy, nervous and afraid of pretty harmless plant life. At the same time he is one of the most aggressive solo hard lane heroes, not only easily surviving, but often decimating a superior force, and is an excellent mid-game damage dealer.
* CripplingOverspecialization[=/=]AchillesHeel: Ironically enough, Timbersaw is extremely dependent on trees to deal damage and contribute to teamfights.
* DarkAndTroubledPast: Might be more likely PlayedForLaughs. But it's understandable why he'd act this way, you'll probably get a plant life phobia if you went through [[WhenTreesAttack what Rizzrack went through in the past and costed him his hometown and his sanity]].
* DeadlyDisc: His ultimate, ''Chakram'' fires Timbersaw's main sawblade, rendering him unable to attack until he calls it back.
* DiscOneNuke: ''Timber Chain'' and ''Whirling Death'' both deal pure damage, meaning that Timbersaw can easily dominate a lane with his AOE damage; both spells remain extremely strong and useful for most of the game.
* DynamicEntry: With low mana cost and cooldown, ''Timber Chain'' can be used to zip from tree to tree over and over again in both chase and escape scenarios.
* FaceYourFears: Someone gave him this advice once; he took it UpToEleven.
--> '''Rizzrack on anxiety management:''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/1/10/Timb_rare_01.mp3 "Someone once told me I needed to face fear to get over it, and I thought, well, why not take a step further and cut my fear into little pieces then set my fear on fire then throw the hot ash of my fear into a lake and then poison the lake - simple! "]]
* FinishingMove: ''Chakram'' decreases enemy speed proportional to the health they've lost, slowing almost-dead heroes to a crawl while dealing damage over time.
* FixedDamageAttack: ''All 3'' of his nukes deal Pure damage (though ''Whirling Death'' deals Magical damage without any trees nearby). Even if it doesn't deal Pure damage, ''Whirling Death'' also reduces an enemy's primary attribute by 15%, lowering max health on Strength heroes and armor on Agility heroes (most Intelligence heroes are already quite squishy so it doesn't matter much).
* GadgeteerGenius
* GardenOfEvil: It is strongly implied that the Vale of Augury, Rooftrellen's homeland, is connected with the attack on Rizzrack's home city.
* GogglesDoNothing: While they could be used as protection from sawdust, he's just wearing them on his "helmet".
* GrapplingHookPistol: ''Timber Chain''.
* HearingVoices
--> '''Rizzrack, killing an enemy hero:''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/0/0a/Timb_kill_13.mp3 Mm! That is one less voice in my head.]]
* ItsPersonal: PlayedForLaughs, see RoaringRampageOfRevenge.
* LevelDrain: ''Whirling Death'' will temporarily reduce the primary stat of any enemy hero hit by it by 15%. This makes him an extremely powerful counter against Strength heroes, since they would otherwise be able to shrug off his Pure damage nukes with their massive HP pools.
* LightningBruiser: His health regeneration increases successively with every hit thanks to his third ability, ''Reactive Armour''. His other two abilities focus on gradually reducing enemy stats and movement speed while boosting his own defense, leading to a DeathOfAThousandCuts combat style. He is also one of the most mobile heroes in the game with ''Timber Chain''.
* LovableCoward
* MadnessMantra: Quite a lot of his responses are this.
--> '''Rizzrack, killing an ememy hero:''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/9/9e/Timb_kill_01.mp3 "Cut cut cutcutcutcutcutcutcutcutcutcutcutcutcutcutcutcutCUUUUUT!"]]
* MiniMecha: His "saw suit".
* NervousWreck
* NoMereWindmill[=/=]ProperlyParanoid: He might look like a WindmillCrusader, unless you remember about heroes like [[WhenTreesAttack Nature's Prophet and Treant Protector]]...
** {{Irony}}: ...who are also Radiant heroes, which means Rizzrack is stuck in the same faction as his sworn enemies. You'd think that if he wanted to destroy trees, he would have joined Dire.
* PointyEars
* RingsOfDeath
* RoaringRampageOfRevenge: He went on a forest-chopping rampage after his hometown was destroyed by treants.
--> '''Rizzrack:''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/a/a0/Timb_spawn_05.mp3 "I'm not a lumberjack. This... This is personal."]]
* ScienceHero
* ShoutOut: His gray and orange vest bears some resemblance to [[VideoGame/HalfLife Gordon Freeman's HEV suit]]. He states that [[Series/MontyPythonsFlyingCircus he's not a lumberjack and he is not okay]].
* SoleSurvivor: Of his town.
* SpamAttack: Because all of Timbersaw's abilities have very short cooldowns, if he gets enough mana regeneration he can spam them indefinitely in a teamfight.
* SpinAttack: ''Whirling Death'', although it's only the saw blade in his midsection that's spinning.
* SteamPunk: His (wooden) saw-suit has a large smokestack that continually belches smoke and fire as he moves.
* UnreliableNarrator: He could actually be crazy, as he's been in an insane asylum before:
--> '''Rizzrack, meeting Dark Seer:''' [[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/1/11/Timb_ally_09.mp3 "Ah, Dark Seer. Finally someone who appreciates a wall without padding."]]
* WalkingWasteland: Because his abilities rely on destroying trees en masse, it's very easy to tell where he's been.
* WhenTreesAttack: His hometown apparently fell victim to a treant attack and he has not been the same since then.
* [[WhyDidItHaveToBeSnakes Why Did It Have To Be Trees?]]: His severe dendrophobia is very apparent. He's even afraid of the trees that aren't capable of harming him.
--> '''Rizzrack, beginning the battle:''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/9/95/Timb_begin_02.mp3 "Trees? Well nobody said anything about trees."]]
** Even better: one of his respawn lines is the trope name, word for word.
--> '''Respawning:''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/d/de/Timb_respawn_02.mp3 "Trees? Why did it have to be trees?"]]
* WhyWontYouDie: Due to ''Reactive Armor'' giving him loads of armor and HP regen, Timbersaw is extremely resistant to physical damage. His ability to reduce enemies' primary stats with ''Whirling Death'' (which is used to calculate physical damage output) and to escape quickly using ''Timber Chain'' means that unless you lock him down in place with disables and nuke him with magic spells (which don't scale well late-game), you likely aren't going to be killing him unless you're fighting him five versus one.
[[/folder]]
----
[[folder:Rigwarl, the Bristleback]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Bristleback_317.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/7/7d/Bristle_begin_03.mp3 "Time to mash some faces, I'd say."]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' TJ Ramini
''"Never one to turn his back on a fight, Rigwarl was known for battling the biggest, meanest scrappers he could get his hands on. Christened Bristleback by the drunken crowds, he waded into backroom brawls in every road tavern between Slom and Elze, until his exploits finally caught the eye of a barkeep in need of an enforcer. For a bit of brew, Bristleback was hired to collect tabs, keep the peace, and break the occasional leg or two (or five, in the case of one unfortunate web-hund). After indulging in a night of merriment during which bodily harm was meted out in equal parts upon both delinquent patrons and his own liver, Bristleback finally met his match. “Your tusks offend me, sir,” he was heard to drunkenly slur to one particularly large fellow from the northern wastes whose bill had come due. What followed was a fight for the ages. A dozen fighters jumped in. No stool was left unbroken, and in the end, the impossible happened: the tab went unpaid. Over the weeks that followed, Bristleback's wounds healed, and his quills grew back; but an enforcer's honor can be a prickly thing. He paid the tab from his own coin, vowing to track down this northerner and extract redemption. And then he did something he'd never done before--he actually trained, and in so doing made a startling discovery about himself. A smile peeled back from his teeth as he flexed his quills. Turning his back to a fight might be just the thing."''
* AchillesHeel: Unlike other Strength-based carries, Bristleback is particularly vulnerable to silences, since he needs to constantly cast spells in order to proc ''Warpath'' and ramp up ''Quill Spray'' counters on nearby enemies.
* AdaptationSpeciesChange: He used to be a quillboar in the first [=DotA=], but was changed to a porcupine creature in Dota 2.
* BadassBack: The ''Bristleback'' passive ability, which lets him take less damage from behind while still being able to retaliate with ''Quill Sprays'', both triggered by the passive and triggered manually. It's not uncommon to see Bristleback farming stacked [[EliteMook Ancients]] by walking up to them, turning his back, and spamming ''Quill Spray'' until everything is dead.
* BadassNormal: Ironically, despite having one of the highest Intelligence growths among non-Intelligence heroes, none of his abilities are magical in nature.
* TheBerserker: His playstyle revolves around charging straight into the enemy team, spamming ''Viscous Nasal Goo'' and ''Quill Spray'' everywhere to rack up ''Warpath'', and shrugging off everything the enemy throws at him with ''Bristleback''.
* TheBet: Apparently he was sent to war by the same bartender as Tusk.
--> '''Rigwarl:''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/e/ea/Bristle_rare_01.mp3 "It was a barkeep that got me into this mess. Yeah, I think I'll pay em a visit when this is done."]]
* CombatPragmatist: He uses his ''snot'' as a weapon, which certainly qualifies.
* CounterAttack: If taking damage from the rear, his namesake passive ''Bristleback'' will automatically release a ''Quill Spray''.
* DeathOfAThousandCuts: His only nuke ''Quill Spray'' is very weak, but has low cooldown and increases in power with each subsequent hit.
* EpicFlail: A huge boulder on a chain.
* EyepatchOfPower: As can be seen in his portrait.
* FantasticRacism: For whatever reason, he seriously hate the Keen (Sniper, Tinker, Gyrocopter and Clockwerk).
* GeniusBruiser: He may not look it, but he actually has ''the'' highest Int growth of any non-Intelligence hero, to the point where his actually grows faster than over half of all Intelligence heroes.
* LargeHam: Can compete with Tusk in his sheer hamminess.
* LightningBruiser: A Bristleback with maximum stacks of level 3 ''Warpath'' active will have +35% movement speed and +210 attack damage, while ''Bristleback'' reduces all of his damage taken from the rear by 40%, making him virtually invulnerable unless taking damage from the front (which isn't helped by the fastest turn rate in the game, making the passive easily abusable by a good Bristleback player).
* MagicKnight: Bristleback has the highest Intelligence growth amongst non-Intelligence heroes; he also has two cheap, spammable spells and an ultimate which synergises very well with them.
* NaturalWeapon: His quills and snot.
* NoIndoorVoice
* PunctuatedForEmphasis: Uses this ''a lot''.
--> '''Rigwarl (Killing Doom):''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/b/b8/Bristle_rival_20.mp3 "Who's. Doomed. Now."]]
* TheRival[=/=]BashBrothers: With Tusk. Both of them have several dedicated lines for meeting each other when on the same team, or killing each other otherwise.
* SneezeOfDoom: ''Viscous Nasal Goo'', which launches a ball of snot at a target.
* SpamAttack: Both ''Viscous Nasal Goo'' and ''Quill Spray'' are very spammable with their very short cooldown and low mana cost, synergising well with ''Warpath'', which increases Bristleback's damage and movement speed every time he casts a spell.
* SpikeShooter: He is able to shoot the quills from his back.
* [[SpikeBallsOfDoom Spike Ball of Doom]]: He's a living one.
* UnstoppableRage: His ultimate ''Warpath''.
--> ''Bristleback works himself up into a fury every time he casts a spell, increasing his movement speed and damage.''
* WorthyOpponent: He seems to enjoy fighting the Oglodi heroes.
[[/folder]]
----
[[folder:Ymir, the Tusk]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/tusk_full_3595.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/7/72/Tusk_rare_01.mp3 "It's a great day to do some squat thrusts and lift a barrel of fish, is it not?"]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Tom Chantler
''"It had been a brawl to remember. There stood Ymir, the Tusk, the Terror from the Barrier, the Snowball from Cobalt, the only fighter to have bested the Bristled Bruiser in a fair fight, and now the last man standing in Wolfsden Tavern. What started as a simple bar bet of supremacy ended with four regulars, a blacksmith, and six of the Frost Brigade's best soldiers writhing against the shards and splinters of almost every bottle, mug, and chair in the building. The Tusk boasted and toasted his victory as he emptied his brew.''
''No sooner had the defeated regained consciousness than the cries for double-or-nothing rang out. The Tusk was pleased at the prospect, but none could think of a bet bigger than the one he just conquered. Horrified at the damage to his tavern and desperate to avoid another brawl, the barkeep had an idea. As skilled as he was, Ymir had never taken part in a real battle, never tested himself against the indiscriminate death and chaos of war. He proposed a wager to the fighter: seek out the biggest battle he could find, survive, and win it for whichever side he chose. The stakes? The next round of drinks."''
* AdaptationSpeciesChange: He used to be known as Ymir the Tuskarr in [=DotA=]. For legal reasons, this was changed in Dota 2.
* AnAxeToGrind
* {{Angrish}}: Tends to burst into this when ''Snowball'' misses.
* BarrierWarrior: ''Ice Shards'', Tusk's first ability, create a half-circle of ice around the point of impact. It damages any enemies it passes through, and the shards at the target point cannot be pathed over.
* TheBet: Tusk's entire motivation to go out and fight ghosts, demons, and fundamental forces of the universe? Someone bet him to do it.
** ComicallySmallBribe: For a round of drinks, no less.
* BlownAcrossTheRoom: With Aghanim's Scepter, Tusk gains a fifth skill ''Walrus Kick'', which can be used to kick enemies and allies alike.
* BoisterousBruiser
* CriticalHit: ''Walrus PUNCH!'', Tusk's ultimate, hits the targeted enemy with a guaranteed 3.5x damage crit that disables the target as it flies through the air, then slows it upon landing.
** HomeRunHitter: ''Walrus PUNCH!'' temporarily sends the target flying into the air and off the screen.
** MegatonPunch[=/=]{{Shoryuken}}: If the ''Walrus PUNCH!'' finishes off an enemy, it sends the target flying up out of sight, only to fall back at ridiculous speeds moments later.
** PowerFist
* DynamicEntry: Tusk is one of the most powerful team initiators in the game, as his skills allow him to start off teamfights by placing stuns, path-blocking obstacles and speed debuffs on the enemy team, as well as assisting any teammates who want to get into the thick of the action fast but don't have an initiating item or ability to do so (such as Axe, Centaur Warrunner, Slardar, Tidehunter, and so on).
* EarlyBirdCameo: He first appeared in Dota 2 as a temporary guest announcer during 2012's Greeviling event; he was eventually released as a full-fledged hero in February 2013.
* EyepatchOfPower: With the {{Pirate}}-themed Brawler of the Glacier Sea set.
* FieldPowerEffect[=/=]HostileWeather: ''Frozen Sigil'', Tusk's third ability, creates a snowstorm which slows all enemy units' movement and attack speed within 600 range.
** GeometricMagic
* GrievousHarmWithABody: With the Whisky the Stout Artifact Immortal, Tusk will use a freaking penguin when he uses ''Ice Shards''. Which still deals damage and creates the half-circle of ice, of course.
* HumanSnowball: ''Snowball'', Tusk's second ability, rolls Tusk up into a snowball that launches itself at a target after a short (and optional) delay, damaging and stunning any enemies it passes through as well as the final target if it connects. It can also be used to carry teammates into the middle of a group of enemies, dealing more damage and moving faster the more allied heroes are added to it.
** DashAttack
** HomingBoulders: ''Snowball'' is a unit targeting attack, meaning that it will continue to roll towards its target even if that target turns in a completely different direction.
** RollingAttack
* AnIcePerson
* LargeHam: An exceptional example even among Dota 2 heroes.
** BigFun
** UpToEleven: He has ''eighty-three'' unique response lines just for ''Walrus PUNCH!''.
--> '''Tusk:''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/3/39/Tusk_superpunch_attack_81.mp3 "Here's a bunch of punches!"]]
* MadeOfIndestructium: Heroes inside a ''Snowball'' are completely invulnerable during the delay and the roll. Yes, in Dota [[http://gfycat.com/EuphoricIdealisticHoneybee snow is a stronger force than time]].
* MagicKnight: Tusk's physical damage scales decently by itself, and can completely wreck enemies when combined with his ultimate. His other abilities also make him a powerful crowd controller and initiator that help set up teamfights for his team.
* NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: His real name, Ymir, is the name of the Norse King of the Ice Giants.
* NonStandardSkillLearning: Buying Aghanim's Scepter grants Tusk a fifth skill, ''Walrus Kick''.
* NotTheIntendedUse: ''Snowball'''s original purpose is to gather your team and roll them into the enemy. However, since it also grants invulnerability to all units inside it, ''Snowball'' sees much more use in high-level gameplay as a way to buy time for allies to react, or to dodge abilities like Gyrocopter's ''Call Down''.
* PettingZooPerson: A seal, in this case.
* RedBaron: He's known as the 'Terror from the Barrier'.
* TheRival: The "Bristled Bruiser" in his backstory that he beat is Bristleback, who he shares several rival and ally lines with (depending on which side they're on).
* ShoutOut: Mostly in the form of ''Walrus PUNCH!'' battle cries:
--> '''Tusk:''' [[VideoGame/FZero Falcon]] [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/9/9d/Tusk_superpunch_attack_53.mp3 Punch!]]
--> '''Tusk:''' [[VideoGame/DoubleDragon Double Dragon]] [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/d/d6/Tusk_superpunch_attack_79.mp3 Punch Punch!]]
* SituationalSword: Aghanim's Scepter is this for Tusk. Against low-mobility melee carries like Sven, Ursa or Lifestealer the constant slows from ''Frozen Sigil'', ''Walrus PUNCH!'' and ''Walrus Kick'' combined with the block from ''Ice Shards'' and the knockback itself, all of which bypass BKB, will kite them to death and render them useless. However, it is only good for kiting - and nothing else. If the enemy carry is ranged or otherwise not vulnerable to kiting then there's no point to get Aghanim's Scepter over Force Staff, which provides a similar effect for much less gold.
* SoProudOfYou: He acts like a doting parent to Crystal Maiden. Though not mentioned in either of their backstories, it's implied they used to be friends while Crystal Maiden was training under an ice wizard.
--> '''Tusk, dying to Crystal Maiden, proudly:''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/1/1d/Tusk_death_17.mp3 "Isn't she something."]]
* SummonMagic: ''Frozen Sigil'', which summons a controllable sigil.
* TransformationIsAFreeAction: Tusk and any allies that are within a ''Snowball'' are invulnerable for the duration of the delay and the roll, which can last for a minimum of 3 seconds (excluding the rollout). ''Snowball'' is actually less used to roll into the enemy, and is more often (ab)used for its free invulnerability to dodge certain abilities.
* WrittenSoundEffect: '''WALRUS PUNCH!''' appears above the target, taking up most of the screen if it was the last hit.
* YouWillNotEvadeMe: Besides being a very powerful initiator, Tusk can also pursue enemies over long distances or prevent them from escaping.
** ''Ice Shards'' can block escape paths for up to 5 seconds upon impact. Used properly it can also lock in enemies within the barrier, forcing them to move backwards to escape.
** ''Snowball'' allows Tusk and any allies to home in on a fleeing target, gaining additional speed with every additional person in the snowball. And once the snowball does connect, it stuns the target, stopping it in its tracks.
** ''Frozen Sigil'' has flying movement, so it can be moved fairly easily to place its slow debuff on enemies, hampering their ability to run away.
** ''Walrus PUNCH!'' not only disables the target by sending it flying, but the following slow also prevents the victim from running away reliably.
[[/folder]]
----
[[folder:Elder Titan, the Worldsmith]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ElderTitan_1039.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/f/fa/Elder_battlebegins_01.mp3 "On this alone of seven planes the final war is fought."]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Jim French
''"Well may you ask, "How did this world take its form?" Why of all the worlds in creation, has this one its strange properties, its diverse and motley collection of creatures, cultures and lore? "The answer," One whispers, "lies with the Titans."''
''These original progenitors were there near the Beginning--if not actual witnesses to the creation, then born with it still echoing in their ears. Stamped with the earliest energies of the universe, they wished nothing more than to continue as creators themselves. Thus they bent to the task of shaping matter to their will: hammering and heating, bending and blasting. And when matter proved less challenging than they liked, they turned their tools upon themselves, reshaping their minds and reforging their spirits until they had become beings of great endurance. Reality itself became the ultimate object of their smithing. Yet, along the way, they sometimes erred. In cases of great ambition, mistakes are unavoidable.''
''The one we know as the Elder Titan was a great innovator, one who studied at the forge of creation. In honing his skills, he shattered something that could never be repaired, only thrown aside. He fell into his own broken world, a shattered soul himself. There he dwelt among the jagged shards and fissured planes, along with other lost fragments that had sifted down through the cracks in the early universe. And this is why the world we know resembles an isle of castaways, survivors of a wreck now long forgotten. Forgotten, that is, by all but the One who blames himself. He spends his time forever seeking a way to accomplish the repairs, that he might rejoin the parts of his broken soul, that we and the world alike might all be mended. This is the One we know as Elder Titan."''
* AdaptationSpeciesChange: He was a Tauren in the first ''[=DotA=]'', though for the sequel he was changed to an original design for copyright reasons.
* TheAtoner
* BonusBoss: Before being added in [=DotA=] version 6.60, Tauren Chieftain (the former name of Elder Titan) was a secret bonus boss in 6.59b.
* CatchingSomeZs: Around enemies put to sleep by ''Echo Stomp''.
* ChargedAttack: ''Echo Stomp'' must be channeled for 1.4 seconds before it's released.
* DefogOfWar: As the ''Astral Spirit'' can move through all terrain, it can be used as a scouting mechanism to give vision over anywhere it walks. This makes it crucial for scouting the high ground around the enemy base's tier 3 towers for enemy positioning (as well as gathering bonus damage and movement speed for Elder Titan for any enemies it hits).
* DifficultButAwesome: Many of Elder Titan's spells take skill, timing and micromanagement to use, but utilized properly he can inflict heavy amounts of damage to the enemy team.
** ''Echo Stomp'' channels for 1.4 seconds before it lands the sleep, meaning that alert enemies will often be able to easily dodge it, and it can be easily interrupted by player damage, foiling good initiations. However, it has a fairly wide area of effect, so good positioning of the Astral Spirit (such as in an area that the enemy must walk through in order to escape) will knock the enemy out for up to 5 seconds, on the same tier as Mirana's ''Sacred Arrow''.
** ''Astral Spirit'' lasts for a fairly short duration, and only moves as fast as Elder Titan himself, meaning that unless he builds movement speed items it has a hard time catching foes. However, it can move over impassable terrain, so good players can sneak it through woods to behind the enemy, and then recall it into them to cast ''Echo Stomp''. Additionally, savvy players can pass the spirit through jungle camps, not just creep waves, and align themselves so that on its return it passes through even more targets, meaning that smart Elder Titan players can snag upwards of 150+ bonus damage with good planning.
** It takes practice to get used to hitting with ''Earth Splitter'' - the 3.14 second delay is usually enough time for enemies to avoid it if they are not slowed or disabled. However, it is a very powerful scaling nuke that remains extremely useful throughout the entire game, and can be combined with ''Echo Stomp'' to catch multiple enemy heroes in its wake.
* DishingOutDirt: ''Earth Splitter''.
* DropTheHammer
* EarthquakesCauseFissures: His ultimate, ''Earth Splitter'', creates a fissure that expands very slowly, but upon completing its travel length will severely damage any enemies that happen to be in the area, on top of lining them up with the fissure and slowing them down, making them easy targets for finishing off with [=AoE=] spells.
* EveryoneCallsHimBarkeep: He is only known as the Elder Titan.
* FixedDamageAttack: ''Earth Splitter'' deals damage equal to 35% of the targets' max HP (17.5% Physical, 17.5% Magical).
* HerdHittingAttack: All of Elder Titan's skills deal damage over large areas and make him a very powerful hero in teamfights. Should the enemy team ever bunch up, they stand the danger of all getting hit by the ''Astral Spirit'' (giving Elder Titan a massive amount of bonus damage and movement speed when it returns), getting knocked out by ''Echo Stomp'', and then losing over a third of their maximum HP as ''Earth Splitter'' implodes on them due to Elder Titan reducing their defenses with his ''Natural Order'' aura, all the while he's ready to start chasing and right-clicking them down the moment the crack implodes (along with his teammates).
* HornedHumanoid
* JackOfAllStats: Since Elder Titan is fairly level- and farm-independent (often all he needs is level 11, some mana and a mobility item), and has a good laning stage, he can be played in almost all positions from the solo off-laner to mid to safe lane support - hard carrying being the only role he can't fulfill.
* LeadTheTarget: Both ''Echo Stomp'' and ''Earth Splitter'' have fairly long delays and can be easily avoided, but if pulled off correctly they might sleep enemies for 5 seconds and cut down their HP by 35% respectively.
* LightningBruiser: ''Astral Spirit'' gives Elder Titan bonus damage and movement speed for each enemy it passes through. In the case of enemy heroes, it gives him +5% movement speed and +40 damage per hero, so catching four heroes with the projection (to say nothing of any creeps that happen to be standing around) will give him a minimum of +20% movement speed and +160 attack damage, which, combined with his ''Natural Order'' aura, means that [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ru7V7GETcwY he'll be hitting almost as hard as if he were carrying a Divine Rapier]].
* ALoadOfBull
* LoinCloth
* MagicKnight: Because he can augment his physical damage by using ''Astral Spirit'' and negate his foes' armor with ''Natural Order'', an Elder Titan with large amounts of attack speed can beat down enemy heroes alarmingly quickly if he catches enough of them with his spirit. His array of disables and nukes also allows him to set up kills on the entire enemy team when not built in a right-clicking role.
* MightyGlacier
* MirrorRoutine: Long before making the ''Astral Spirit'' a controllable second unit, the [=DotA=] 1 ''Ancestral Spirit'' would mimic Tauren Chieftain's movements, moving in reverse directions related to him (if you move backwards, it would move away from you, and if you moved left from the casting point it would follow you).
* NiceJobBreakingItHero: He is responsible for the war between Radiant and Dire by shattering the Mad Moon.
--> '''Elder Titan:''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/0/09/Elder_rare_01.mp3 "The Mad Moon rises unbroken above a fledgling world… but only in my dreams."]]
* PhysicalGod
* PowerNullifier[=/=]FieldPowerEffect[=/=]DamageIncreasingDebuff: Elder Titan's third ability and passive, ''Natural Order'', reduces the base armor and any armor gained through Agility of any nearby enemy to zero, on top of effectively nullifying their base magic resistance. This makes him an extremely powerful counter against Agility carries, who tend to rely on their Agility-boosted armor to reduce incoming physical damage, tend not to have the largest health pools due to not being Strength heroes, and are generally already weak against magic nukes anyways.
* SelfDuplication: ''Astral Spirit'' allows Elder Titan to safely initiate teamfights from afar, or to snipe escaping enemy heroes.
* ShockwaveStomp: Elder Titan's first skill, ''Echo Stomp'', channels for a short duration, and upon landing damages all nearby enemy units and knocks them unconscious, causing them to wake up only when the debuff expires or they take player-based damage. It's a unique disable in that it can be used to pick off enemies one by one without worrying about dealing with the rest unless someone casts an [=AoE=] spell.
* ShoutOut: His skills' lore has references to Literature/TheBible.
* SomeDexterityRequired: Playing Elder Titan well requires good micromanagement of the ''Astral Spirit''. It's not nearly as heavy as that needed for other heroes (like Meepo or Chen) however and you won't die if you mess it up.
* SummonMagic
* SupernaturalGoldEyes
* TelephonePolearm: Not only his [[DropTheHammer hammer]], but an [[UpToEleven even bigger]] totem on his back.
* TimeAbyss
* TribalFacepaint
* VampiricDraining: Any unit that gets touched by ''Astral Spirit'' will take damage, and upon returning to Elder Titan, he gains movement speed and attack damage for a short duration based on how many creeps and heroes it managed to pass through.
* WalkingShirtlessScene
[[/folder]]
----
[[folder:Tresdin, the Legion Commander]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/legion_commander_small_1200.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/a/ac/Legcom_spawn_05.mp3 "Whatever they brought, it won't. Be. Enough."]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Merle Dandridge
''"They came without warning. Within the city walls of Stonehall there came a rumble and a terrible sound, and from blackness unknown came a force of beasts numbering beyond count, wielding flame and foul sorcery, slaying and snatching mothers and sons to dark purpose. Of once-mighty Stonehall's military strength only the Bronze Legion, led by the indomitable Commander Tresdin, was near enough to answer the call of battle. They rode into their city, fighting through bloodstained alleyways and burning markets, cutting their way through the monstrous throng to the source of the sudden invasion: an ethereal rift within the city square, and at its precipice thundered their dreaded champion.''
''Enwrapped in a corrosive shimmer, the leader of the abyssal horde swung its massive blade, cleaving a legionnaire in two as his flesh began to spoil. Tresdin lifted her blood-stained sword and settled her sights on the beast. It turned, smiling at her through a maze of teeth. Heedless of the battle raging around them, they charged one another.''
''Deflecting blow after blow, the pair danced their deadly duel as the Bronze Legion met its end around them. Tresdin leapt forward as her foe swung its sword to meet her. The odds turned. The attack smashed into Tresdin suddenly, a brutal thrust from the side, but even as her balance slipped she rallied her strength for another stroke. Blade scraped on blade, beyond the hilt to the gnarled paw below, carving it in two in a fearsome spray of sparks and blood. The vile audience looked on in astonishment as she pressed the attack, driving her blade through her foe's flesh into the stampeding heart within. With a scream that split the clouds above, the beast erupted in a torrent of gore and anguish. The stygian portal wavered, the power sustaining the chasm beyond vanishing as suddenly as it had appeared. The remaining invaders fell quickly to Stonehall steel.''
''Though victorious, the survivors saw little to celebrate: the city lay in ruins, and survivors were few. Fires continued to spread. Unfurling her banners of war, Tresdin gathered what allies she could. Her anger smoldered as she pledged brutal vengeance upon the forces of the abyss, and damned be any who would dare stand in her way."''
* ActionGirl
** AffirmativeActionGirl: Tresdin was a man in the original ''[=DotA=]'', but was changed to a woman in the porting process to Dota 2.
** GenderFlip
* AnAxeToGrind: ''VideoGame/{{Warcraft}}'' [=DotA=] only.
* BearsAreBadNews: If her quotes are to be trusted, Tresdin seems to be even more distrustful to bears than any other creatures. Normally when killing a hero, she'll say "Never Trust An X" in normal speed, but against Ursa or Lone Druid, she will have a small pause before saying 'bear' in disgust.
-->''[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/8/83/Legcom_rival_35.mp3 Never trust a... BEAR!!]]''
* TheBerserker
* BladeOnAStick: Tresdin's weapon, a large polearm.
* BloodKnight: So much she makes Luna look almost peaceful!
* BringIt: ''Duel'''s animation consists of this.
* CombatMedic: ''Press The Attack'' greatly boosts the target's regeneration.
* ConservationOfNinjutsu: ''Overwhelming Odds'' deals more damage and grants Tresdin more speed for every enemy caught within it.
* CoolButInefficient: Getting Aghanim's Scepter will cause ''Duel'' to become a literal DuelToTheDeath: the combatants are locked in the duel until one dies. The problem is there's no point to get it on Legion Commander: she's a right-click carry, making Aghanim's Scepter suboptimal, and if she can't kill her target quickly enough in the ''Duel'' duration then she'll more often than not need to be able to escape, which Aghanim's Scepter completely disables.
* CounterAttack: ''Moment of Courage'' immediately procs an extra attack on whatever enemy Legion Commander is attacking (most often the one that hit her) whenever she's hit by an auto-attack, and lifesteal a portion of that attack.
* DarkerAndEdgier: Her backstory has gone through two drafts, with the first one being significantly less dark than the current one.
* DifficultButAwesome: Knowing when to start a ''Duel'' is one of the most important things a Legion Commander needs to know. Done correctly, Tresdin can easily [[ForMassiveDamage double her base attack damage without items]] before the match is over; done poorly, she'll fall off easily late game, or worse, the other team will have gained plenty of free attack damage. As a result, picking targets requires knowing if she will survive the fight, knowing that she will not be targeted by other members of the enemy team in the interim, and whether the enemy can outclass her without spells or items.
* DuelToTheDeath: Her ultimate forces an enemy hero to fight her in one-on-one combat; neither character can cast spells for its duration. The winner of the fight gains a permanent damage boost.
* FantasticRacism: She's something of a bigot towards non-humans, as evidenced in her ''Duel'' lines or when killing a rival.
** Part of the MythologyGag with her voice lines; [=DotA=]'s Legion Commander used the model and quotes of [[AntiHero Grand Marshal Garithos]], another example of FantasticRacism and a pro-human supremacist.
* FourStarBadass
* HeWhoFightsMonsters: With the Blades of Voth Domosh, swords made by a trickster armorer, she becomes a demonic being herself.
** DualWielding
** FireballEyeballs
** GlowingEyesOfDoom
** MonsterKnight
** TaintedVeins
** WreathedInFlames: Her banners and parts of armor become permanently lit on fire.
* HealingFactor: ''Press The Attack'' greatly increases the target's HP regeneration for a few seconds.
* HerdHittingAttack: ''Overwhelming Odds''. It gains bonus damage for every enemy within its area of effect.
* HonorBeforeReason: ''Duel'' forces both Tresdin and her target to attack each other, regardless of whether they'd survive the resulting fight.
* HotBlooded
* JustYouAndMeAndMyGuards: While ''Duel'' forces both Tresdin and her target to attack each other, [[AintNoRule there's nothing stopping their teammates or summoned units from getting involved.]]
* KnightInSourArmor
* LeeroyJenkins: While successfully winning duels increases her damage, losing duels increases the damage of her enemy. A Legion Commander that continually loses Duels can quickly buff the enemy team to a point where it is nearly impossible to battle back.
* LifeDrain: ''Moment of Courage'' is one of the highest rated lifesteal abilities in the game, allowing Legion Commander to regain up to 80% of the damage she deals as health.
* LightningBruiser: Tresdin has plenty of health, plus the ability to attack and heal quickly with ''Press The Attack'' and ''Moment of Courage'', move faster with ''Overwhelming Odds''. And since she already has a built-in source of damage in the form of ''Duel'', she often needs very few damage items (so she can win ''Duel''s in the mid game) and can focus on durability, disables and mobility.
* MageKiller: While under the effect of ''Duel'', neither Tresdin or her target can cast spells or use items, forcing enemy mages to rely on their ([[KungFuWizard typically]]) weak right-click attack in order to survive. Flavor and lore-wise, some of her dialogue also highlights her disdain of mages.
* MythologyGag: A lot of her voice over lines are call backs to Tresdin in the original [=DotA=].
** Many of her killing blow lines go 'never trust a *insert whatever race/class the killed character was*'. The original Tresdin's dialogue was based on the ''VideoGame/WarcraftIII'' character Grand Marshal Garithos, who was a [[FantasticRacism pro-human racist]] and famously had the joke line 'never trust an elf!'
*** Some of them are pretty ridiculous, which was probably Valve's intent. "Never trust a fish" when killing one of the Slithereen heroes and "Never trust a tree" when killing Treant Protector or Nature's Prophet, for example. If she kills Ursa or Lone Druid she'll say "Never trust a...[[LargeHam BEAR!]]" And then there are certain heroes such as Faceless Void and Morphling whose death prompts the line "Never trust a--what are you anyway?"
** Likewise, Tresdin's old male model (also based on Garithos) had a prominent mustache and beard, and rode a horse. In this game, she has dialogue complimenting people for their mustaches, beards, and mounts.
* PowerNullifier: During a ''Duel'', both Tresdin and her opponent are prohibited from using spells and item active abilities.
* PunctuatedForEmphasis
* RainOfArrows: ''Overwhelming Odds''.
* ScreamingWarrior
* ShoutOut:
** One of her rare lines references a famous line from the VideoGame/{{Fallout}} series.
--> [[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/2/23/Legcom_rare_02.mp3 "War. War always changes."]]
** Another references US General George Patton's famous WWII speech.
--> [[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/b/b5/Legcom_rare_03.mp3 "You won't win the war by dying for your Ancient. You'll win by making the other dumb, unfed bastard die for theirs!"]]
* TheSmurfettePrinciple: Tresdin is the only female Strength hero in the game.
* SociopathicHero
** However, her sound files seem to have hidden selection of dialog implying she is some type of Atoner when having a certain weapon equipped, like with the Blades of Voth Domosh.
* SoloClass: Legion Commander's playstyle revolves around solo killing as many enemy heroes as possible with ''Duel'' and snowball out of control with the bonus damage.
* WeaksauceWeakness: Bane as a whole can ruin her ''Duel'' attempts, but ''Nightmare'' (a spell that could be learned as early as the start of the match) in particular can shut her down due to the invulnerability and sleep status that gets passed around between the duelists every second, resulting in a stalemate that can only be broken by the duel timing out [[HoistByTheirOwnPetard (which ironically enough turns her Aghamin's Scepter buff AGAINST her)]], by outside intervention, or by one of the two duelists dying from the ScratchDamage that ''Nightmare'' inflicts. [[https://youtu.be/yxET_m-edrY?t=35 Case in point.]]
* WhyWontYouDie: With enough farm and Duel victories, Legion Commander can be extremely hard to bring down in a fight since ''Moment of Courage'' allows her to lifesteal a large amount of HP (which gets more effective the more Duels she's won), and ''Press the Attack'' can remove damaging debuffs from her while also increasing her attack speed and giving her a hefty HP regen buff. With enough attack speed and damage (and maybe even a lifesteal attack modifier), she can potentially lifesteal more HP back than the enemy can deal against her.
[[/folder]]
----
[[folder:Kaolin, the Earth Spirit]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/earth_spirit_2079.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/d/d7/Earthspi_firstblood_02.mp3 "In war, a fool's first lesson is his last."]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Nolan North
''Deep amid the Upland crags and cliffs there runs a seam of sacred jade long foresworn by highland minders. From this rare material, the likeness of the great general Kaolin was carved and buried at the head of a stone funerary army ten thousand strong--a force of soldiers and holy men, jesters and acrobats, carved by crafstmen and entombed for millennia in the dark embrace of the Earth. What the craftsmen had not known was that within the strange seam of jade flowed the spirit of the Earth itself--an elemental force at one with the planet. When the force within the carved jade found itself cut off from the life's blood of the world, it gathered its strength over the course of a thousand years and dug itself free and into the light. Now the great Kaolin Earth Spirit strides the Upland roads, fighting for the spirit of the Earth; and in times of need calls forth remnants of his buried army still locked in the loving embrace of the soil.''
* AdaptationSpeciesChange: In the original [=DotA=] Kaolin was a Pandaren, but this had to be changed for Dota 2 as Pandaren are owned by Blizzard.
* AscendedMeme: One of Earth Spirit's responses when meeting an allied Spirit Breaker is this:
-->'''Earth Spirit:''' [[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/f/fe/Earthspi_ally_07.mp3 You aren't half bad, for a space cow.]]
* AsTheGoodBookSays: Upon death, he can sometimes say "The [[IncrediblyLamePun spirit]] is willing, but the flesh is weak."
* BlownAcrossTheRoom: ''Boulder Smash'' can be targeted on any kind of unit, enemies and allies and creeps and heroes alike, as well as on Stone Remnants. It can be used on enemies to either force them away (useful in the case of a melee carry) or to push them towards your teammates to beat down on.
** FastballSpecial: Cast on an ally, it can be used for initiation purposes (800 range is farther than a Force Staff can push). Cast on ''Stone Remnant''s, it can be used to snipe (as they get more than double the range) and stun enemies.
** HeroicSacrifice: One under-appreciated aspect of ''Boulder Smash'' is that it can be used to save allies in situations where you and a teammate are being chased down by the enemy team. Since it can be used to push the target in a certain direction, you can cast it to knock an ally up/down a cliff or further towards safety, [[TakeMeInstead giving yourself the enemy's undivided attention]].
* DifficultButAwesome: All of his skills require management of your stone supply (it takes ''three minutes'' to build up a full 6-stone supply from scratch), '''very''' precise and careful positioning, lining up the shots, and chaining your combos. In particular, ''Boulder Smash'' requires exquisite aiming since, if you stand just a few pixels in a different angle away from a non-Remnant target move your mouse cursor even a few pixels off-course when kicking a Remnant, you can end up hitting the target in a completely different direction. In addition, initiating with ''Rolling Boulder'' can be extremely punishing since it will only stop when colliding with a hero, meaning that missing can send you way beyond your target and potentially feed the enemy a kill. However, masterful Earth Spirits can stun from long range, snipe escaping enemy heroes and give teammates additional initiation power using ''Boulder Smash''; initiate or escape up or down cliffs and stop fleeing enemy heroes in their tracks with ''Rolling Boulder''; save allies from pursuing enemies or silence an entire enemy team with ''Geomagnetic Grip''; and unleash an astonishing amount of magical damage, debuffs and disables on the whole enemy team using all of the above combined with ''Magnetize''. His pub winrate is consistently extremely low, but he is a very effective hero to boost MMR for people who can play him, and he's not available in Captains Mode for a reason.
* DishingOutDirt: He can summon stone sculptures from the earth and manipulate them.
* DynamicEntry: ''Rolling Boulder'' combined with a ''Stone Remnant'' lets him charge onto an enemy, damaging and slowing their movement speed for a couple seconds after impact. It's the third longest ranged non-ulti initiating ability in the game (beat out by Spirit Breaker's ''Charge of Darkness'' and Puck's ''Illusory Orb''). ''Boulder Smash'' can be used on allies for the same purpose.
* FaceOfAThug: Looks rather mean, but is actually a nice guy.
* FantasyCounterpartCulture: His backstory is strongly based on the famous Terracotta Army of Ancient China.
* GeniusBruiser: While his base Intelligence is rather mediocre, Kaolin ties with Timbersaw for having the third-highest Intelligence growth of all Strength heroes (beat out by Bristleback and Undying), and also beats all Agility heroes in this category save Sniper. Combined with the comparatively low mana cost of his spells and the low cooldown on all but his ulti, late game he can cast his spells as often as needed so long as he has the Stone Remnants to back it up.
* GlowingEyes
* {{Golem}}
** LivingStatue: Or, more accurately, a Celestial possessing a statue.
** RockMonster
* GradualGrinder: His ultimate, ''Magnetize'', deals heavy damage over time for 6 seconds, and its duration is refreshed each time an enemy comes in proximity of a Stone Remnant (on top of applying the debuff to other nearby enemies at the same time), allowing for over 30 seconds of continuous magical damage.
** BodyHorror: The ability lore for ''Magnetize'' has some pretty frightening implications.
--> At the Earth Spirit’s call, the minerals in the blood and bones of his enemies rebel against the bodies they find themselves in.
** {{Synchronization}}: ''Magnetize'' passes on slows and silences from ''Rolling Boulder'' and ''Geomagnetic Grip'', respectively, to all Magnetized heroes when one is affected by it. With maximum level ''Rolling Boulder'' and enough Stone Remnants, it's possible to apply an 80% movement speed slow on the entire enemy team half the time, even though ''Rolling Boulder'' can only hit one target at a time.
* GrievousHarmWithABody: ''Boulder Smash'' will damage all enemies that the smashed unit passes through, whether the smashed unit is friendly or enemy. ''Geomagnetic Grip'' can only be used on Stone Remnants and allies, but can be combined with ''Boulder Smash'' using a single Stone Remnant or friendly unit.
* HerdHittingAttack: Both ''Boulder Smash'' and ''Geomagnetic Grip'' can be used to stun and silence enemies in a very large area of effect (''Boulder Smash'' is the second longest ranged stun in the entire game, while ''Geomagnetic Grip'' is the longest ranged non-ultimate silence), meaning that with good aim and crafty positioning it is possible to apply the stun or silence to most of the enemy team. Additionally, since ''Magnetize'' allows Kaolin to place the slow and silence debuffs from his abilities on all Magnetized heroes, you can slow and silence ''the entire enemy team.'' OhCrap indeed.
* ImprovisedWeapon: The Stone Remnants are only consumed when used for ''Rolling Boulder'' and ''Magnetize'', and in the latter case stays on the field for 5 seconds after applying the ''Magnetize'' debuff on nearby enemies. This means that a Stone Remnant that you used for a spell up to two minutes earlier will stay on the field, allowing crafty Earth Spirits to use them multiple times and in multiple teamfights long after the enemy has forgotten about them.
** ''Boulder Smash'' can be cast on both enemies and allies, and ''Geomagnetic Grip'' can be cast on allies (including creeps). This means that not only can you improvise using leftover Stone Remnants, you can use nearby creeps to lay extra damage down with ''Boulder Smash''.
* MagicKnight: He has great survivability, but low physical damage output, relying on powerful skills instead. His Intelligence growth is also the third-highest amongst Strength heroes and fourth-highest amongst non-Intelligence heroes (only beaten by Bristleback, Sniper and Undying).
* NonStandardSkillLearning: Earth Spirit is one of the only heroes in the game that has an "innate" skill; ''Stone Remnant'' becomes available at the start of the game along with one other (normal) skill but can't be levelled further. ''Stone Remnant'' is useless by itself and must be used in tandem with his other skills to form strong combos. He also has a sixth skill, ''Enchant Remnant'', unlocked by purchasing Aghanim's Scepter.
* LimitedLoadout[=/=]TooAwesomeToUse: The most unique aspect of Earth Spirit gameplay is that you have to be extremely careful with your Stone Remnant supply, as opposed to your mana pool, because using too many of them in small skirmishes and ganks can render you useless in a major teamfight. This means that you may be forced to let a fleeing enemy escape just to conserve a Stone Remnant, since you'll need that Stone Remnant to pull off your full combo on the enemy team later.
* PowerTrio: He forms one with Storm Spirit and Ember Spirit.
* RollingAttack: ''Rolling Boulder'' turns Kaolin into a boulder that picks up speed and distance if he hits a Stone Remnant along the way. It stops only when it reaches its full distance or it connects with an enemy hero, greatly slowing the enemy if a Stone Remnant is used. What's more, it stops Kaolin on the opposite side of the impact, meaning that you're in a prime position to use ''Boulder Smash'' to punch the enemy hero back the way you came from.
* SelectiveMagnetism: He can magnetize enemies to the ground or pull rocks and allies toward him.
* SomeDexterityRequired: Earth Spirit is a high APM hero, as his skills are very low cooldown and you may need to summon multiple Stone Remnants in the midst of a teamfight to keep your combo going (all while casting your spells), to say nothing of re-using old Stone Remnants and factoring in item abilities.
* TakenForGranite: ''Enchant Remnant'', an extra ability that is granted when Earth Spirit purchases Aghanim's Scepter, temporarily turns a target hero into a Stone Remnant (making them invulnerable in the process) that can be used to fuel his other abilities. What's so notable about it is that it can be cast on ''enemy heroes'' as well as allies, which can allow Earth Spirit not only to stop an enemy hero in their tracks, but also to reposition them like a Stone Remnant and effectively remove them from a teamfight or greatly displace them in a gank.
* TelephonePolearm: His weapon is a rock pole twice his height with a flexible midsection, [[InstantChucks allowing the use as giant nunchucks]].
* YouWillNotEvadeMe: Earth Spirit is one of only two heroes in the game with both a stun and a silence (Puck being the other), and can cast both in an [=AoE=]. Toss in ''Rolling Boulder'''s slow with the Stone Remnant, and he has a huge amount of disable potential, to say nothing of being able to apply the slow and silence to possibly the whole enemy team.
** ''Rolling Boulder'' can be used to catch up to fleeing enemies easily (and drastically slow them down with a Stone Remnant). And because it places Earth Spirit on the other side of the target, it can then be followed up with ''Boulder Smash'' to force them back in the direction they were fleeing, most often where your other teammates are.
[[/folder]]
----
[[folder:Phoenix]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/phoenix_2024_5039.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/d/da/Phoenix_bird_victory.mp3 "SCREE!"]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Itself
''Alone across an untouched darkness gleamed the Keeper's first sun, a singular point of conscious light fated to spread warmth into the empty void. Through aeons beyond count this blinding beacon set to coalescing its incalculable energy before bursting forth the cataclysmic flare of supernova. From this inferno raced new beacons, star progeny identical to its parent, who journeyed an unlit ocean and settled in constellatory array. In time, they too would be made to propagate through supernova flame. So would this dazzling cycle of birth and rebirth repeat until all skies hewn of Titan toil deigned to twinkle and shine.''
''By this ageless crucible the star that mortals would come to call Phoenix collapsed into being, and like its ancestors was thrust into an endless cosmos to find a place among its stellar brethren. Yet curiosity toward that which the dimming elders comfort in the darkness consumed the fledgling, and so over long cycles it inquired and studied. It learned that among worlds both whole and broken would soon stir a nexus of remarkable variety locked in an enduring conflict of cosmic consequence, a plane which would find itself in need of more influence than a dying sun's distant rays could provide. Thus this infant son of suns took terrestrial form, eagerly travelling to shine its warmth upon those who may need it most, and perhaps seize upon its solar destiny.''
* AchillesHeel: Even if Phoenix places all of its debuffs correctly on the enemy team prior to using ''Supernova'', players have to be wary of heroes with targeted debuff removals or attack speed steroids, since they can dispel the ''Fire Spirits'' attack speed debuff and then quickly right-click down the egg by themselves. Examples of this include Legion Commander's ''Press the Attack'', any fast-attacking hero with a Black King Bar, or a Sniper with a Mask of Madness who stays out of the initial fight and doesn't get hit with any debuffs at all.
* BirthDeathJuxtaposition: It is ThePhoenix after all, especially when he uses his ultimate.
* BonusBoss: Before being added in [=DotA=] version 6.70, Phoenix was a secret bonus boss in 6.69.
* CastFromHitPoints: His first three abilities cost a fraction of his health to activate. His ultimate, ''Supernova'', takes the whole bar, and then gives it back if you survive.
** PercentDamageAttack: Inverted, the cost of his non-ultimate spells are all based on his current HP. This means that while summoning ''Fire Spirits'' and performing ''Icarus Dive'' at full health will shave off almost a third of your maximum health, doing so when you're below 50% HP will cost significantly less. This means that as long as he has mana he can cast any of his spells regardless of what the HP cost is, and he can cast ''Icarus Dive'' no matter what since it costs no mana.
* CoolMask: It's hard to see due to textures and coloring, but Phoenix [[http://i.imgur.com/N9DJ1dO.png actually is wearing a mask]].
* DeathOfAThousandCuts[=/=]GradualGrinder: While Phoenix is classified as a Nuker, none of his spells can do any burst damage. Instead, his abilities deal large amounts of damage over time on top of the debuffs, making him extremely deadly in teamfights where the enemy can't reach him.
* DeathOrGloryAttack: ''Supernova'' will result in either refreshed abilities and a load of damage to the enemy (on top of a stun), or death if the enemy can destroy the egg.
* DifficultButAwesome: In general, playing Phoenix requires good aiming and mechanical skills, as well as health management since all of his spells cost HP in order to use. However, played right, Phoenix can be a very mobile nuker who can apply very strong slow and damage-over-time debuffs to the entire enemy team, swinging teamfights by himself.
** ''Fire Spirits'' have a very small [=AoE=] and require you to aim well in order for them to connect, in addition to staggering the casting in order to get the most out of all four spirits (since it's a damage over time ability, hitting an enemy twice with the spirits only refreshes the debuff duration). However, once it connects, it completely neutralises any autoattacker and does strong damage over time.
** ''Sun Ray'' leaves you completely vulnerable and slow during its duration while costing HP, but used wisely it can allow you to damage enemies while healing your allies, and also grants you the ability to move through impassable terrain.
** ''Supernova'' requires impeccable positioning and timing to get the most out of - bad Phoenix players will probably suffer humiliating deaths thanks to poorly placing the egg. Done right, you deal upwards of 1000 damage on top of a stun, in a whopping 1000 AOE.
* DynamicEntry: ''Icarus Dive''.
* EmpathicHealing: ''Sun Ray'' heals allies that it hits and drains Phoenix's health every second it's active.
* FixedDamageAttack: ''Sun Ray'' deals additional damage that scales with targets' max HP.
* AFormYouAreComfortableWith: He's actually a star. This becomes more apparent during ''Supernova''.
* FrickingLaserBeams: ''Sun Ray''.
* GreatEscape[=/=]SuperPersistentPredator: ''Icarus Dive'' is considered one of the most powerful escape/chasing spells in the game, since it can displace Phoenix by 1400 range very quickly (more than a Blink Dagger, on top of also not requiring any mana or having a forced cooldown upon enemy player damage), and has only a 0.2 second cast animation, on top of the debuff slowing any enemies it hits.
* HotWings
* KillItWithFire
* LeadTheTarget: ''Fire Spirits'' have a slow travel speed upon firing, making them hard to land on enemies who are actively trying to dodge them.
* LongRangeFighter: All of Phoenix's spells have very long ranges, making him very powerful in teamfights as he can close or open the distance between himself and his enemies with ''Icarus Dive'', launch ''Fire Spirits'' from 1400 range away (more than vision range at nighttime!), blast enemies with ''Sun Ray'' from 1300 range away, and apply ''Supernova'''s burn damage from 1000 range away.
* TheNameless: While his [=DotA=] name was Icarus, this was redacted and he is simply referred to as Phoenix in Dota 2.
* NotTheIntendedUse[=/=]ObviousRulePatch: Prior to being patched out, there was [[http://youtu.be/gFE7uQr0Oj0?t=1m41s a very good reason to build Blade Mail on Phoenix]].
* ThePhoenix
* PlayingWithFire
* PowerLimiter: Any targets hit by ''Fire Spirits'' receive a massive 140 attack speed reduction - enough to neutralise their right-click attacks.
* ThePowerOfTheSun: There's ''Sun Ray'', a beam that both damages enemies and heals allies, respectively. And then there's his ultimate ''Supernova''. It sacrifices all of his remaining HP to turn into a glowing sun that deals significant damage over time in a huge 1000-unit radius for six seconds. If the egg survives, it explodes to damage and stun anyone in the burn radius, fills you back up to full hp and mana, and refreshes the cooldowns on your three normal abilities.
* SacrificialRevivalSpell: Inverted. With an Aghanim's Scepter, Phoenix can bring an allied hero into his ''Supernova'' and share its effects. The egg surviving six seconds will refresh the target hero and Phoenix's non-ultimate spells while giving them full HP and mana, while destroying the egg will kill both heroes.
* SadisticChoice: If Phoenix pulls off his combo properly right before using ''Supernova'', such a situation can easily arise. Do you, with your attack speed debuff from ''Fire Spirits'' and movement speed debuff from ''Icarus Dive'', attempt to approach the egg to attack it and kill Phoenix, all the while suffering huge damage over time debuffs and with the enemy team possibly bearing down on you? Or do you leave the egg alive to engage the other enemy players, while suffering all of the previously mentioned debuffs and damage over time, in the hope that you can kill the enemy before the egg explodes and stuns you, forcing you to deal with a full-health Phoenix whose abilities were refreshed by the ''Supernova''?
* SchmuckBait: A well placed ''Supernova'' is this for the other team. A Phoenix that's low on health may look like an easy kill, and even if he uses ''Supernova'', it only takes a few hits to kill the egg... except while the team is gathered around the egg to kill it, they're in a perfect position to be hit hard by teamfight skills like ''Ravage'', ''Black Hole'', ''Reverse Polarity'', ''Epicenter'', and the like.
* SharpenedToASingleAtom: The lore for ''Sun Ray'':
--> ''The vent through which such stellar energy flows is mere atoms wide.''
* ShockwaveStomp: At the end of ''Supernova'', the Phoenix Sun will crash-land, stunning enemies over a large area before Phoenix is reborn.
* TheSpeechless: Like Io, except with bird sounds.
--> [[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/d/da/Phoenix_bird_victory.mp3 "Squawk"]]
* SquishyWizard: Like Wisp, Phoenix does not have a large amount of survivability despite being a Strength hero, since he has negative base armor, low Agility growth, and spends his hit points to cast his spells on a frequent basis.
* StandardStatusEffects: Phoenix's abilities focus on supporting his team by applying powerful debuffs on his enemies. He can slow enemy movement speed, drastically cut down their attack speed, or apply a massive area-of-effect stun.
* SuperSpeed: ''Icarus Dive'' has Phoenix dive forward in an arc in the targeted direction, dealing damage over time and slowing the movement speed of any units he comes into contact with, and then orbiting back to his original position. You can also cancel it partway through if you don't want to return to where you started, making it good for both chasing and getting away.
* TimeAbyss
* WaveMotionGun: ''Sun Ray'' is a beam as wide as Phoenix's entire wingspan and yes it hurts, no matter what level your hp is you still get shredded by it.
* WingsDoNothing: Except during ''Sun Ray''.
[[/folder]]
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to:
[[center: [- Strength - '''Radiant''' | [[Characters/Dota2DireStrength Dire]] -] ]]
[[center: [- Agility - [[Characters/Dota2RadiantAgility Radiant]] | [[Characters/Dota2DireAgility Dire]] -] ]]
[[center: [- Intelligence - [[Characters/Dota2RadiantIntelligence Radiant]] | [[Characters/Dota2DireIntelligence Dire]]-] ]]
[[center: [- [[Characters/Dota2Neutrals Neutrals]] | [[Characters/Dota2NPCs Others]]-] ]]
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[[foldercontrol]]
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[[folder:Raigor Stonehoof, the Earthshaker]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/earthshaker_3029.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://hydra-images.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/a/a5/Erth_rare_05.mp3 "There may be many earths, but there's only one Earthshaker."]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' John Patrick Lowrie
''"Like a golem or gargoyle, Earthshaker was one with the earth but now walks freely upon it. Unlike those other entities, he created himself through an act of will, and serves no other master. In restless slumbers, encased in a deep seam of stone, he became aware of the life drifting freely above him. He grew curious. During a season of tremors, the peaks of Nishai shook themselves loose of avalanches, shifting the course of rivers and turning shallow valleys into bottomless chasms. When the land finally ceased quaking, Earthshaker stepped from the settling dust, tossing aside massive boulders as if throwing off a light blanket. He had shaped himself in the image of a mortal beast, and named himself Raigor Stonehoof. He bleeds now, and breathes, and therefore he can die. But his spirit is still that of the earth; he carries its power in the magical totem that never leaves him. And on the day he returns to dust, the earth will greet him as a prodigal son."''
Earthshaker is a melee support and initiator hero who flattens his foes with an arsenal of ground-themed nukes and spells. Excelling at area-of-effect damage, his spells suffer from long casting animations but more than make up for it with their raw damage potential and the potential to stun any foe unlucky enough to be on the receiving end of his power. His first spell,''Fissure'', sends out a line of earth in a huge radius and stuns anyone who is caught in the blast, and can block off escape routes and knock dangerous foes out of a team fight. His second spell, ''Enchant Totem'', will temporarily boost his auto attack damage to finish off any survivors. ''Aftershock'' gives all of his abilities bonus damage and very small -ranged area-of-effect stuns - which synchronizes well with ''Enchant Totem'' - and his ultimate, ''Echo Slam'', has Earthshaker slam his totem down on the ground, dealing cumulative bonus damage based on how many enemies are caught in its area of effect, and synergies Aftershock. No matter how overwhelming the odds might seem, a good Earthshaker can quickly level any playing field and leave his opponents eating dirt.
* BadassBaritone: He is quite the ''[[IncrediblyLamePun ear]]''-shaker.
* BadassBeard
* BarrierWarrior: ''Fissure'' can not only stun but also temporarily create an impassible crevasse. Knowing how to use it to trap enemies is vital to mastering Earthshaker.
* BlackMage: Although he's a Strength hero and has good durability, his base auto-attacks are fairly weak and he relies heavily on his spells to support his team.
* CallingYourAttacks:
--> '''Earthshaker (using ''Fissure''):''' ''[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/3/30/Erth_ability_fissure_09.mp3 Fissure!]]''
--> '''Earthshaker (using ''Enchant Totem''):''' ''[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/5/51/Erth_ability_enchant_01.mp3 Enchant!]]''
--> '''Earthshaker (landing a 2/3-man ''Echo Slam''):''' ''[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/b/bc/Erth_ability_echo_02.mp3 Echo Slam!]]''
* CarryABigStick[=/=]TelephonePolearm: His totem.
* ChargedAttack: ''Enchant Totem'' gives him a massive damage boost for one attack, and with ''Aftershock'' can damage and stun every enemy in a small radius.
** ForMassiveDamage: It's one of the few damage amplifiers that stack with critical hits.
** OneHitKill: With Daedalus, his attack damage can be increased ''12 times'', and overlapping cooldown of the spell lets you immediately land another hit on the stunned target. This is enough to burst down not only supports, but carries as well.
* ConservationOfNinjutsu: Invoked on the enemy by ''Echo Slam''. Against a lone hero it's pretty much a glorified stun; against a full team with creeps and summons thrown in, a TotalPartyKill.
* DifficultButAwesome: Earthshaker's bread and butter skill, ''Fissure''. Bad Earthshaker players are prone to use this skill to block teammates, isolating them from the team and netting the enemies an easy kill or leave enemy heroes on the wrong side of the crevasse, allowing them to escape with an easy walk. However, good ''Fissure'' usage can provide great utility, able to block a lane in a gank, stop chasing/escaping enemies, snipe enemy heroes with its extreme range, isolate them from their teammates or otherwise trap them in unpleasant positions.
* DiscOneNuke: One should never underestimate the power of ''Fissure'' at level 1 - the 8-second barrier is probably among the most devastating effects for the heroes with no innate mobility. Unless able to bypass ''Fissure'' with skills like Batrider's ''Firefly'', Timbersaw's ''Timber Chain'',... offlaners have to play extremely careful against an enemy Earthshaker, because they're dead if he could land a good ''Fissure''. It remains extremely useful across the whole game, and is the reason why Earthshaker can get away with being a hard support and getting a late Blink Dagger, unlike similar initiators like Sand King or Tidehunter.
* DishingOutDirt: Well, Raigor is made out of dirt.
* EarthquakesCauseFissures
* EarthquakeMachine: His totem is a supernatural variant.
* EpicFail: He has special responses for landing a ''zero''-man ''Echo Slam''.
--> '''Earthshaker''': ''[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/3/30/Erth_ability_echo_07.mp3 Echo... Slam?]]''
* ForMassiveDamage: Proper usage of his abilities can cause the most burst damage in a few moments any hero is capable of in the entire game.
* AFormYouAreComfortableWith
* GlassCannon: Despite being a Strength hero, Earthshaker is relatively fragile due to his low armour, mediocre Strength and his item build which consists of no durability items whatsoever, instead focusing on supporting and positioning to maximise the disruption from ''Fissure'' and the massive damage potential from ''Echo Slam''.
* GroundShatteringLanding: The animation for his ultimate, ''Echo Slam''
* HerdHittingAttack: ''Echo Slam'' deals bonus damage per every enemy unit within range without an upper limit, so hitting a lot of enemies is a requirement for it.
* InterfaceScrew: ''Fissure'' and ''Echo Slam'' shake the entire screen when cast.
* InvoluntaryGroupSplit: ''Fissure'' can block off enemies from their allies, leaving them at the mercy of your team. Of course, it's also easy to rush this and cause more harm than good - you can easily block off your team mates, save enemy heroes or condemn your own.
* MagmaMan: With the Bindings of Deep Magma cosmetic item, all of Raigor's abilities become magma instead of earth.
* NounVerber
* ObviousRulePatch: Prior to 6.81, Fissure will cause creeps to walk around them. This can be easily exploited by many players who laned him in the Offlane in order to easily pull the creeps into the Ancient jungle thus causing many safelane carries to be starved of their farm when they lose a creep wave. 6.81 patched this exploit by having the creeps simply wait for the Fissure to dissapear, thus limiting the players to merely using Fissure for pulling the wave closer to their tower.
* PowerMakesYourVoiceDeep
* PrimalStance: Despite having arms, Earthshaker stands on all fours.
* RaceLift: He was a [[ALoadOfBull Tauren]] in the first ''[=DotA=]''; this was changed into a more ambiguous gorilla-bull hybrid for the sequel for copyright reasons.
* ShockwaveStomp: With ''Aftershock'', each of his abilities triggers an extra shockwave around him.
* SpamAttack: ''Enchant Totem'', a cheap spell used mostly to trigger ''Aftershock''.
* TopHeavyGuy: To the point that he has to support himself with his hands when walking.
[[/folder]]
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[[folder:Sven, the Rogue Knight]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Sven_2669.png]]\
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/f/fa/Sven_rare_06.mp3 "One man, in a world of foes."]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' David Scully
''"Sven is the bastard son of a Vigil Knight, born of a Pallid Meranth, raised in the Shadeshore Ruins. With his father executed for violating the Vigil Codex, and his mother shunned by her wild race, Sven believes that honor is to be found in no social order -- but only in himself. After tending his mother through a lingering death, he offered himself as a novice to the Vigil Knights, never revealing his identity. For thirteen years he studied in his father's school, mastering the rigid code that declared his existence an abomination. Then, on the day that should have been his In-Swearing, he seized the Outcast Blade, shattered the Sacred Helm, and burned the Codex in the Vigil's Holy Flame. He strode from Vigil Keep, forever solitary, following his private code to the last strict rune. Still a knight, yes... but a Rogue Knight."''
Sven is a melee Strength hero that works well as a Support hero, but can transition into a semi-carry due to his item independence, self-sufficient skills and ability to flash-farm. He boasts a lot of self-buffs that will enhance his incredible strength as he leaps to the enemy ranks and slashing through the enemy heroes, with beefed up stats to deal great damage. His ''Storm Hammer'' is his only ranged skill, where he launches a big magical fist from his gauntlet to a target enemy, stunning the target and anyone on a circular area near the enemy. With his ''Great Cleave'', Sven gains a cleave attack, allowing his normal attacks to damage enemies nearby his target, basically a free Battle Fury or two[[note]]Though Sven can stack a Battle Fury's cleave with his own cleave for a total of 100%.[[/note]], while using his ''Warcry'', has Sven roar out and pumping up his and his allies' armor and movement speed for sturdier advance or escape. Lastly, his ultimate, ''God's Strength'', has Sven channel his strength to incredible levels that he gains a big amount of bonus strength, allowing his normal attacks to deal great damage. Sven is most often seen building Black King Bar, as its spell immunity allows Sven to shove off spells that hinder his movement so he can freely move in and attack anyone in his range with his great strength. Sven's versatility and strength makes him a solid ally, and if he's around, you can be assured that ''he is there to '''pump you up!'''''
* AntiHero: He's a Knight, following HIS code of chivalry. Although not evil, if you ever cross it, you're going to get cleaved. Ask the Vigil Knights of how it turned out.
* TheBerserker: His playstyle emphasizes rushing into the midst of the fight to deal as much damage as possible during his stun and buffs.
* {{BFS}}: The Outcast Blade. His passive, ''Great Cleave'', allows him to spread a percentage of his damage to all nearby enemies every time they attack, ignoring armor.
* BlasphemousBoast: If Sven kills an enemy Zeus, he shows that he has little opinions towards deities in general.
--> '''Sven''': ''[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/e/e2/Sven_rival_05.mp3 Gods were meant to be defied!]]''
* BorrowedCatchPhrase: A hilarious one with Enchantress:
--> '''Sven (killing Enchantress):''' [[UnusualEuphemism Go sproink]] [[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/4/46/Sven_rival_06.mp3 yourself!]]
* ButtMonkey: In Valve's demonstration videos of Hero abilities, Sven is always the Hero used to demonstrate the abilities' effects. This has since spread, with the help of [=DotaCinema=], to fan videos as well.
* CoolHelmet: A knight's helmet with huge horns. Even Kunkka agrees it's cool and wants Sven to be his [[IncrediblyLamePun helmsman]] because of that helmet.
* DarkerAndEdgier: Zig-zagged. Sven in the old [=DotA=] was just a solid defender of justice as a backstory and a BoisterousBruiser with "Pumping Up" jokes in his skillset definitions, but he uses the evil [[VideoGame/{{Warcraft}} Tichondrius]] voice set. In Dota 2, the "Pumping Up" jokes vanish, and he became more rogue-ish, betraying the Vigil Knights and possibly slaying them because they violated his personal honor of being a HalfHumanHybrid (after learning from them) although he would still follow the conduct of a normal knight. However, his voiceset is decidedly more honorable and knight-like (if rather Rogue-ish). He's also more of a solitary loner than a boisterous guy.
* DarkAndTroubledPast: We're only given tiny details, but Sven's childhood is ''definitely'' no walk in park, since he had to endure a lifetime of insults and being considered an abomination because of being a half-Pallid Meranth, his mother being shunned the same way, and his father executed.
* DifficultButAwesome: Actually hitting groups with Storm bolt, thanks to it's fairly slow projectile and unit-targetting requires a fair bit of prediction on which enemies are going where. And then you kill them all with your massive physical DPS.
* FashionableAsymmetry: He has huge armor plates on his left arm. One of the item descriptions explains [[FridgeBrilliance they're a counterweight to his sword]].
* ForMassiveDamage: If he crits for any reason, it ''will'' hurt. A fully farmed Sven with ''God's Strength'' active can hit upwards of over 2000 damage.
* GameplayAndStorySegregation: The skill flavor text of ''Warcry'' says "Calling a few lines from the Vigil Codex fortifies Sven's obedience to his rogue code. So poetic!". Yet, whenever Sven uses ''Warcry'', he's just roaring loudly. So is Sven's roar just that damn poetic, or the Vigil Codex just consists of incoherent roaring?
* GlowingEyesOfDoom: When under the effects of ''God's Strength''.
* GutturalGrowler: Game's prime example.
* HalfHumanHybrid: In [=DotA=], he was half human and half Night Elf. In Dota 2, half [[FishPeople Pallid Meranth]] (mother's side) half Vigil Knight (father's side).
* HerdHittingAttack: ''Great Cleave'' is the single most powerful cleave in the game (barring the cooldown-limited ''Tidebringer''), in both area of effect and percentage damage. In many cases with heroes that can avoid attacks or have extremely high armor, it's actually better to hit people ''near'' your intended target since cleave is affected by neither evasion nor armor. And to note, once Sven learns this skill, it becomes his basic attack without any cooldowns whatsoever (like getting a free Battle Fury).
* HeroicBastard
* HourOfPower: ''God's Strength'' lasts for a limited duration after being activated, and can triple his base damage, making him a prime candidate to build Strength items on.
* ImprobableUseOfAWeapon: How exactly he cleaves large groups by stabbing[=/=] shoving his BFS and making overhand swings, one can only guess wonder at.
* InstantDeathRadius: Getting near a fed enemy Sven is a ''very bad thing''. He doesn't even have to notice you, simply being in his cleave radius for a second or so is often a death sentence for squishier heroes.
* IWorkAlone: Sven has this in his mindset, leading a solitary life following the conducts of a Knight, and one of his quotes if his team is defeated is "Should've done this myself." But since [[WrongGenreSavvy this is an ARTS game...]]
* KnightInSourArmor: Sven will protect the weak as befitting of a knight. However, his years of abuse and isolation for being a half Pallid Meranth left him rather somber and gave him a disdain on typical chivalries, like Omniknight or Chen (although he occasionally would compliment Omniknight).
--> '''Sven (killing Omniknight/Chen):''' ''[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/a/a3/Sven_rivals_omni_01.mp3 What you call 'righteousness', I call 'foolishness']]''
* MagikarpPower: Not particularly dangerous early on, but he gets over it quick, and with 1 or 2 items, is already a threat fully capable of tearing through a team with backup, and can farm extremely rapidly thanks to ''Great Cleave''.
* MightyGlacier: His main weakness is his vulnerability to kiting as he's slightly slower than average at best, and ''Warcry'' isn't all that useful as a speed boost. His usual item choices tend towards fixing this, making him a LightningBruiser in most fights.
* MoneyMultiplier: ''Great Cleave'' lets him clear most camps simply by killing the largest creep, rapidly gaining gold and experience at a time where other carries are still farming for items to help them farm faster.
* OneManArmy: One of the best heroes at getting [[TotalPartyKill Rampages]], even by himself if the enemy is grouped up, thanks to his area stun and damage output.
* PowerUpFullColorChange: Casting his ultimate turns him (and occasionally his sword) red.
* RatedMForManly: His first skill throws a rocket punch made of thunder, and his general playstyle emphasizes he should have no fear of diving in the middle of the enemy team, causing as much damage possible. Sven himself is often considered one of DOTA's manliest heroes, with ''Great Cleave'', every enemies nearby is forced to ''feel'' a portion of Sven's great strength, damaging them (and he needs no cooldown (it's a passive), or money (buy a Battle Fury) for that). If he has Aghanim's Scepter and ''God's Strength'' gives him an aura that increases everyone else's base damage in a certain percentage. Meaning that he's so manly that his presence pumps everyone up!
* RazorWind: To indicate how far the ''Great Cleave'' damage reaches past the sword's length.
* RoaringRampageOfRevenge: In his backstory, Sven kept his hatred to the Vigil Knights as he learned from them. On the day of In-Swearing, Sven pretty much channeled his years worth of pent-up hatred and vengeance to his father's execution by rampaging at the Vigil Knights with the Outcast Blade, slaughtering them. Since he's also a ScreamingWarrior, we assume that there's a lot of literal roaring in the scene of carnage.
* RocketPunch: ''Storm Hammer'' launches his enchanted gauntlet at the enemies.
* RougeAnglesOfSatin
--> '''Sven:''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/f/fe/Sven_rare_09.mp3 "It's Rogue Knight, dammit! It's not rouge knight."]]
** {{Irony}}: ''God's Strength'' turns Sven red. He really is a rogue rouge knight!
* ScreamingWarrior: His ''Warcry'' gives himself and nearby allies a huge speed and armor boost. And he generally screams a lot.
* ShoutOut: His name is a reference to a wrestler, whose signature skill was to get 'Pumped Up'.
* ShockAndAwe: ''Storm Hammer'' has lightning effects, and he gains [[GlowingEyesOfDoom Glowing, lighning-emitting eyes]] and crackling lightning whenever he attacks during ''God's Strength''.
* SimpleYetAwesome: Only has his ranged stun as a direct target spell, and the rest are mostly passive buffs, and his play style is to get near the enemy and then start whacking them dead with normal attacks.
* SophisticatedAsHell
* SuperMode: ''God's Strength'', Sven's ultimate, amplifies his base damage to up to triple its original value for 25 seconds...
** TurnsRed: ...and changes his color to rouge...
** FieldPowerEffect: ...and doubles nearby allies' base damage for its duration as well if he has an Aghanim's Scepter.
* SuperStrength: Sven in a nutshell, excepting Storm Hammer, all of it are about mighty display of absurd levels of strength and toughness. ''Great Cleave'' have him constantly [[HitYouSoHardYourXWillFeelIt slash so powerfully every nearby enemies feel his strength]], ''War Cry'' concentrates his strength onto his body, it pumps up his toughness and his allies' as well. ''God's Strength'' is the most traditional depiction of the trope: Making Sven's already great strength rise up to absurd levels that every slashes is going to hurt a lot harder.
* TestosteronePoisoning: Sven is here to pump you up! With ''Warcry'' (pumps up your toughness and speed) and upgraded ''God's Strength'' (pumps up your strength).
* ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill: If you're far enough ahead in the game that you've got enough money to buy it, Daedalus ''will'' end up turning Sven's autoattacks into this.
--> '''Sven:''' [[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/7/7f/Sven_item_05.mp3 Daedalus!]] [[HilarityEnsues This is going to be absurd.]]
* WouldNotHitAGirl: Zig-zagged. Sven has a quote where he displays displeasure that he had to kill Rylai ("I would not kill a maiden, but you forced the issue.") and in his massive amount of 'kill' quips, he has no special quotes against ladies... except the aforementioned Rylai, and Aiushtha, the latter was more because he's annoyed at her attitude and her skills being detrimental to his play style ("Go sproink yourself!"). Of course, this being is an ARTS game, if you order him to attack a girl hero, he will obey.
[[/folder]]
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[[folder:Tiny, the Stone Giant]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Tiny_2514.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/0/07/Tiny_spawn_07.mp3 "Sticks and stones will break their bones."]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Eric Newsome
''"Coming to life as a chunk of stone, Tiny's origins are a mystery on which he continually speculates. He is a Stone Giant now, but what did he used to be? A splinter broken from a Golem's heel? A shard swept from a gargoyle-sculptor's workshop? A fragment of the Oracular Visage of Garthos? A deep curiosity drives him, and he travels the world tirelessly seeking his origins, his parentage, his people. As he roams, he gathers weight and size; the forces that weather lesser rocks, instead cause Tiny to grow and ever grow."''
Tiny may seem like a weak hero at the beginning of a match, but give him enough time and he'll soon start to throw his weight around. As the game progresses, he bounces from role to role as he levels up; he can push, initiate, gank, or even carry depending on what items he builds and the needs of the team. Boasting a powerful disable and a versatile initiation attack, Tiny can easily stun his foes with his first spell, ''Avalanche'', which causes a huge amount of rocks to bombard the area, dealing damage as long as the opponent is caught inside. Tiny can then throw a random nearby unit into the mayhem with ''Toss'', his second spell, which allows him to pick up and throw a unit, be it friend or foe, in a radius around him. Be warned, however, as the unit he picks up is random in it's radius. Close range attackers will be discouraged by his third spell, a passive called ''Craggy Exterior'', which has a chance of negating an attack and stunning its source, though only works in melee range of about 300 units. As the Stone Giant levels his ultimate, ''Grow'', he'll trade in some of his attack speed for bonus movement speed and attack damage, and prove to his opponents that good things can come in small packages.
* TheBigGuy: With his ultimate maxed out, Tiny is easily the largest character in the game, rivaled only by Undying's ''[[SuperMode Flesh Golem]]''.
* CounterAttack: Enemies that attack Tiny from within 300 units have a chance of being stunned by his passive ''Craggy Exterior''.
** NoSell: ''Craggy Exterior'' stuns attackers when their attack ''begins'' not when it lands, meaning any attack that triggers ''Craggy Exterior'' will ''not'' do damage. This is especially notable against heroes with a bash, Skull Basher or Abyssal Blade, as when both proc, ''Craggy Exterior'' takes precedence.
* DevelopersForesight: You're not likely to make Aghanim's Scepter before you have your ultimate. But if you do, you'll be treated to a sight of Tiny hauling around a comically large tree - twice as big as himself if you didn't level the ultimate at all - with unique animations for all actions.
* DishingOutDirt: As a stone giant, this is to be expected.
* FastballSpecial: ''Toss'' can be used this way to hurl allies into the midst of enemies for teamfight initiation.
* GlowingEyes
* {{Golem}}: Sort of.
* GrievousHarmWithABody: When used against an enemy, ''Toss'' inflicts damage to the tossed unit, and does [=AoE=] damage if targeted on an enemy. If combined with ''Avalanche'', it inflicts double ''Avalanche'''s damage, making Tiny capable of [[OneHitKill one-shotting]] most squishy heroes in the game.
* HerdHittingAttack: Tiny's ''Avalanche'' + ''Toss'' combo and the cleave from his ultimate makes standing close a very bad idea.
* HulkSpeak: One of his lines even deliberately makes a ShoutOut as such.
-->'''Tiny:''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/3/35/Tiny_attack_12.mp3 Tiny smash!]]
** SophisticatedAsHell: However, he could be quite articulate if he wants to.
-->'''Tiny:''' [[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/b/b3/Tiny_rare_04.mp3 Was I a splinter from a golem's heel? A chip from the Oracular Visage of Garthos? I shall not rest until I know from whence I came.]]
* InformedAttribute: Despite being a giant rock monster, Tiny has no armor to speak of, and only gains a slight amount with ''Craggy Exterior''. [[FridgeBrilliance Then again]], that rock is part of his body, meaning that he technically isn't ''wearing'' any armor...
* IronicNickname: Although his name is true at first, Tiny quickly becomes one of the largest characters in the game.
** "Tiny the Stone Giant" is this no matter how you look at it.
* JackOfAllStats[=/=]MagicKnight: Tiny starts the game as a squishy nuker/ganker, then with Aghanim's Scepter becomes a durable, if slow-hitting pusher, and with more attack speed becomes a hard carry. The difference from most other heroes is that he doesn't sacrifice any of these roles for the other; his spells scale well into the lategame, augmenting his slow but damaging melee attacks.
* LightningBruiser: As you level ''Grow'', Tiny actually ''gains'' movement speed, to the point where he can chase most heroes around the map pretty easily, and his innate tankiness and a chance to stun attacking enemies give him incredible survivability.
* MagikarpPower: In the beginning of the game, Tiny is pretty pathetic - he has terrible Agility, two spells that eat his mana very quickly, and fairly poor stat growth. Give him a few levels and a Hyperstone and Aghanim's Scepter, though, and he'll soon transform into a LightningBruiser, capable of smashing entire teams asunder by the mid-to-late game.
* MightyGlacier
* OurGiantsAreBigger: Unlike a typical giant, Tiny is made of stone. He also can't be considered a proper "giant" until ''Grow'' is maxed.
* PrimalStance: Tiny's legs aren't that much bigger than a regular hero's, while his upper body is ''massive''. As a result, he has to use his right hand to steady himself while walking, and when he gets bigger, just standing.
* PowerFist: Tiny's right hand is a giant rock stump with no fingers that he walks on and uses to punch people, although the second use is shown less as Tiny gets bigger, and starts using his smaller left hand for punching.
* QuestForIdentity: His goal is to find his origin.
* RedRightHand: His right hand is a giant stone stump without any fingers that he uses the bludgeon his enemies with, althought it takes a back seat to his smaller left hand once gets to the higher levels of ''Grow'' and needs to use it to steady himself.
* RockMonster
* SiegeEngines: He's ''very'' good at demolishing towers, and pushing down creepwaves to get there once he gets his scepter. Even before, he can sling creeps at it for 100 damage apiece. Not much, but still something.
* SquareCubeLaw: While he starts out more agile and capable of swinging his entire body around, Tiny loses agility as he gets larger ([[IThoughtItMeant not the stat]]), to the point that, at full size, he has to ''constantly'' steady himself with his right hand, even when attacking.
* SurprisinglySuddenDeath: Casting ''Toss'' on a hero while they're being hit by ''Avalanche'' causes them to take double damage from ''Avalanche'', allowing Tiny to annihilate lone enemy heroes ''very'' quickly. Throw in a [[DynamicEntry Blink Dagger]], and pain tends to ensue.
* TelephonePolearm: If given Aghanim's Scepter, Tiny will use A TREE as a bludgeon.
* ThisLooksLikeAJobForAquaman: Tiny's synergy with Io is worth noting: ''Tether'' combined with a Bottle solves his mana problems, allowing him to spam ''Toss'' to farm the jungle, and also helps his mobility, while ''Relocate'' allows him to gank globally every minute and snowball, making Tiny come online much earlier than he normally would. The trade-off is, Tiny is just inferior to other carries without Io, and in professional games he is almost never picked without an allied Io, and is only banned when the enemy team has already picked Io.
* WeirdBeard: Made of moss and later ferns.
* YouHaveResearchedBreathing: The entire advantage to getting an staff once wielded by a demigod-like Wizard for Tiny? Him picking up a ''tree''. Justified in the description of the Crystal Dryad cosmetic tree: the Tree is actually Aghanim's Scepter itself in a form suited for Tiny.
-->''Had the ancient mage but known what corruption his scepter would inflict upon the world, he would have burned and buried it, and sown salt over its cursed grave. For when carried in a fist of stone, Aghanim's scepter unleashes the spirit of the Crystal Dryad, and no foe is safe.''
[[/folder]]
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[[folder:Kunkka, the Admiral]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Kunkka_4108.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/7/75/Kunk_rare_01.mp3 "If the demons of the Cataract couldn't sink my fleet, then this lot doesn't stand a chance."]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' John St. John
''"As Admiral of the mighty Claddish Navy, Kunkka was charged with protecting the isles of his homeland when the Demons of the Cataract made a concerted grab at the lands of men. After years of small sorties, and increasingly bold and devastating attacks, the Demon Fleet flung all its carnivorous ships at the Trembling Isle. Desperate, the Suicide-Mages of Cladd committed their ultimate rite, summoning a host of ancestral spirits to protect the fleet. Against the Demons, this was just barely enough to turn the tide. As Kunkka watched the Demons take his ships down one by one, he had the satisfaction of wearing away their fleet with his ancestral magic. But at the battle's peak, something in the clash of demons, men and atavistic spirits must have stirred a fourth power that had been slumbering in the depths. The waves rose up in towering spouts around the few remaining ships, and Maelrawn the Tentacular appeared amid the fray. His tendrils wove among the ships, drawing demon and human craft together, churning the water and wind into a raging chaos. What happened in the crucible of that storm, none may truly say. The Cataract roars off into the void, deserted by its former denizens. Kunkka is now Admiral of but one ship, a ghostly rig which endlessly replays the final seconds of its destruction. Whether he died in that crash is anyone's guess. Not even Tidehunter, who summoned Maelrawn, knows for sure."''
As both a carry and an initiator, Kunkka strikes a balance between physical prowess and magical offense. Although many of his spells have long cast times and require careful timing and map awareness, good Kunkka players can easily set up teamfights or take a powerful enemy out of commission. ''Tidebringer'', his first spell, a passive and his main source of offensive utility in lane, periodically cleaves on hit, dealing a healthy amount of physical damage to every nearby enemy. His second spell and main nuke, ''Torrent'', damages, stuns, and slows any unwary enemy caught in its area of effect when it activates. ''X Marks the Spot'' will drag any enemy hero back to its original position after a short period of time and synchronizes well with his other spells. His ultimate, ''Ghost Ship'', will not only damage and stun any enemies caught in its path, but will also buff the Admiral and any nearby allies by reducing any incoming damage, turning the Admiral and his mates into a fighting force to be reckoned with.
* AlphaStrike: Because of his extremely limited mana pool, Kunkka players must carefully decide when and where they'll cast their spells, since even a max level Kunkka will easily chew through at least half his mana pool casting only a handful of spells if he hasn't built any mana pool increasing items (as he will likely be building raw damage in order to splash physical damage on the enemy through ''Tidebringer''). If a Kunkka decides to cast all three of his spells in a single teamfight (potentially dealing upwards of 900 area-of-effect magical damage on top of the stuns and disables, and before even factoring in ''Tidebringer''), he'll spend upwards of 500 mana, rendering him unable to use even a Town Portal Scroll afterward.
* ArchEnemy: He and Tidehunter hate each other's guts.
* BadassBeard[=/=]SeadogBeard: A truly magnificent one at that.
* BoozeBasedBuff: The buff provided by his ultimate, ''Ghost Ship'', is called Kunkka's Rum, which reduces all incoming damage by 50% and deals the remainder as non-lethal damage afterward.
* TheCaptain: Admiral, to be exact.
* TheComputerIsACheatingBastard: Before a patch fix Kunkka bots could perfectly aim ''Torrent'' to hit invisible players despite the bot having no legit way of knowing that player was there, to quote the patch note itself "Fixed Kunkka being a dirty cheater when using Torrent."
* CoolSword
* CriticalHitClass: While Kunkka has no natural ability to crit, ''Tidebringer'' splashes all enemies in front of him with 100% cleave damage (meaning that it ignores armor). This means that smart Kunkka players will abuse this by building a Battle Fury (or two) to increase the cleave percentage, a Daedalus (or two) to inflict critical hits (and increase the chances of landing a crit if more than one is bought), a Shadow Blade to initiate (and to apply the 175 bonus damage), and damage items to increase his raw attack power. A lucky crit that also procs ''Tidebringer'' will deal a massive crit damage to all targets in an area, bypassing any armor that they may have and potentially resulting in a TotalPartyKill.
--> '''Kunkka, buying Crystalys:''' [[IncrediblyLamePun "Yes, Fish]] [[http://hydra-images.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/b/be/Kunk_item_10.mp3 and Crits!"]]
* DifficultButAwesome
** Both ''Torrent'' and ''Ghost Ship'' have extremely long delays, so they're very hard to land. However, a good Kunkka can cast ''X Marks the Spot'' and ''Torrent'' combos to lock down enemies, and even toss ''Ghost Ship'' into the mix for a combo that will deal a massive amount of damage to a group of enemies.
** On top of this, ''Ghost Ship'' is a fixed distance spell; unlike other spells which you can cast as near or as far as you'd like within its maximum range, ''Ghost Ship'' will always start exactly 1000 units behind Kunkka, take exactly 3 seconds to travel a fixed 2000 distance, and hit a spot exactly 1000 units in front of Kunkka. This, on top of the long delay, means that hitting an enemy team with ''Ghost Ship'' is an extremely precise art that requires good positioning. Failing to do that, you're more likely to hear this:
-->'''Kunkka''': [[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/8/8f/Kunk_ability_failure_02.mp3 "Now that was a fail-boat."]]
** ''Tidebringer'' is a powerful area cleave, but is hard to bring off due to it only proccing once every few seconds (meaning that you'll have to refrain from attacking until just the right moment). However, properly used, a smart Kunkka player can use nearby creeps (and even enemy summons in a teamfight) to splash through the enemy's armor and hit the entire enemy team at once.
** ''X Marks the Spot'' has more utility than preventing enemy Heroes from escaping. When cast on an allied Hero, it provides double the delay that it would for an enemy Hero, allowing them to either temporarily move to another part of the map to push or counter-push, or initiate on the enemy with a guaranteed method of return (provided that Kunkka can time the return well). This means that a TP scroll can be used to go back to base to quickly heal up and then get back into the fight, an ally can TP to counter-push a tower and then return back to the front lines, or an ally can chase a fleeing enemy and finish them off and then return to safety. Even better, Heroes with invulnerability abilities such as Shadow Demon, Puck, and Outworld Devourer can simply use them to break the return if the X-marked hero doesn't want to.
* EvolvingWeapon: ''Tidebringer'' is both Kunkka's weapon and a levellable passive ability.
* ExactlyWhatIAimedAt: Good Kunkka players don't aim their first shot at a hero if possible, but at a ''creep'' so all 5 heroes take the armor-ignoring cleave damage. He can also do this in chases or to harass, hitting a creep and letting his massive splash hammer the heroes behind it.
* FlyingDutchman: ''Ghost Ship'' summons the ghost of his ship to ram his enemies.
* FourStarBadass
* GhostPirate: It's been hinted at in his BackStory that he might have been killed in the crash, but no one truly knows.
** Also suggested by one of his responses:
--> '''Kunkka, meeting [[OurZombiesAreDifferent Dirge the Undying]]:''' [[http://hydra-images.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/4/45/Kunk_ally_05.mp3 "Ah, Undying, we'll make a ghastly crew."]]
* GoingDownWithTheShip: Referenced in one of his losing responses.
* HerdHittingAttack: ''Tidebringer'' turns his main melee attack into this every once in awhile.
* JackOfAllStats: Because Kunkka has so much damage potential and utility in his spells without the need for farm, he is sometimes played as a support who uses his spells to lock down the enemy for the carries on his team to focus down. The other benefit of a support Kunkka build is that since he isn't spending so much time farming physical damage items to buff up ''Tidebringer'', he can actually build items to extend his mana pool and allow him to cast his spells without limit.
* LeadTheTarget: Both ''Torrent'' and ''Ghost Ship'' have to be manually aimed with fairly long delays.
* MagicKnight: Kunkka has a wide array of powerful magic spells and nukes, but he's also well known for being able to splash absurd amounts of physical damage across the enemy team as well, making him one of the few examples of a Magic Knight who remains strong in both categories throughout a match. His only real limitations are the difficulty of landing his nukes, his relatively low manfight potential and his small mana pool.
* MakingASplash: He is able to summon geysers from underneath his enemies, and his sword is able to splash enemies with water.
* NamedLikeMyName: The hero is named after the artist who did a lot of the splash artwork for the original Dota.
* NamedWeapons[=/=]OddlyShapedSword: Tidebringer
* OfficerAndAGentleman
* PirateParrot: Kunkka's parrot Lieutenant Squawkins, available as a courier.
* RammingAlwaysWorks: ''Ghost Ship'' always destroys itself upon crashing at the targeted point, though it matters little since it ''is'' a FlyingDutchman.
* SoulPower: The lore for ''Tidebringer'':
--> A lost Claddish soul inhabits Kunkka's trusty Tidebringer, empowering it to destroy demons of the Cataract.
* SpellBlade: Kunkka's sword Tidebringer is able to deal bonus cleave damage every few seconds.
* SplashDamageAbuse: Very much so, his play style based on dealing massive SplashDamage with hard-to-land abilities.
* StealthPun: He specalizes in [[HerdHittingAttack Spl]][[MakingASplash ash]] damage.
* TalkLikeAPirate
* TeleportInterdiction: ''X Marks the Spot'' can be used on enemies who are trying to flee, as they will be brought back to the X after up to 4 seconds no matter how far they've gone.
* TotalPartyKill: If a farmed Kunkka lands a ''Torrent'' + ''Ghostship'' combo on your team, don't expect to survive to the end of the stun. Especially if he has [[CriticalHit Daedalus.]]
* TreasureMap: The inspiration for his third skill, ''X Marks the Spot''.
* WaterGeyserVolley: Anyone caught inside a ''Torrent'' will get launched high on the air before slamming into the ground.
* XMarksTheHero: The scar on his forehead. Plus he has a more literal example in ''X Marks the Spot''.
* YouWillNotEvadeMe: ''X Marks the Spot'' helps land his skills by returning an enemy to target location after a few seconds' delay.
** And generally, he has three aimed abilities that let him kill enemies well out of sight.
---> '''Kunkka:''' [[http://hydra-images.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/f/f0/Kunk_ability_torrent_04.mp3 "The fog can't hide ya!"]]
[[/folder]]
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[[folder:Karroch, the Beastmaster]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Beastmaster_928.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/c/c4/Beas_spawn_05.mp3 "Unleash the beasts of war!"]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Sam A. Mowry
''"Karroch was born a child of the stocks. His mother died in childbirth; his father, a farrier for the Mad King of Slom, was trampled to death when he was five. Afterward Karroch was indentured to the king’s menagerie, where he grew up among all the beasts of the royal court: lions, apes, fell-deer, and things less known, things barely believed in. When the lad was seven, an explorer brought in a beast like none before seen. Dragged before the King in chains, the beast spoke, though its mouth moved not. Its words: a plea for freedom. The King only laughed and ordered the beast perform for his amusement; and when it refused, struck it with the Mad Scepter and ordered it dragged to the stocks. Over the coming months, the boy Karroch sneaked food and medicinal draughts to the wounded creature, but only managed to slow its deterioration. Wordlessly, the beast spoke to the boy, and over time their bond strengthened until the boy found he could hold up his end of a conversation--could in fact speak now to all the creatures of the King's menagerie. On the night the beast died, a rage came over the boy. He incited the animals of the court to rebel and threw open their cages to set them amok on the palace grounds. The Mad King was mauled in the mayhem. In the chaos, one regal stag bowed to the boy who had freed him; and with Beastmaster astride him, leapt the high walls of the estate, and escaped. Now a man, Karroch the Beastmaster has not lost his ability to converse with wild creatures. He has grown into a warrior at one with nature’s savagery."''
With one of the longest stuns in the game and two unique summons to help him out, Beastmaster excels at staying alive even against the toughest odds. Though his spells may lack the raw damage potential of other heroes, he makes up for it with their strong versatility and support potential; he can frequently set up advantageous situations for his teammates or save an ally. ''Wild Axes'', his main damage-dealing spell, has him hurl his two axes at any enemy in a medium-large range and damages everything caught in their looping path. It can also slice down trees in their path, meaning that Beastmaster can easily cut a path through normally impassible terrain or remove fog of war on the map. ''Call of the Wild'', his second spell, has two parts; the first part summons a hawk that, while it cannot attack, can provide flying vision to allies and serve as a mobile ward. The second part summons a boar that can fight alongside its master; its normal ranged attack slows enemies. ''Inner Beast'' provides a passive attack speed to every friendly unit in its radius, including his summoned units. His ultimate, ''Primal Roar'', deals magical damage and stuns a target for up to four seconds, providing ample time for the Beastmaster and his wild cohorts to finish off their prey.
* ArmorPiercingAttack: ''Primal Roar'' can stun its target through spell immunity, and knock back spell immune enemies between him and the primary target (although no damage will be dealt to spell immune units and secondary targets won't be slowed after the push). It's one of the most powerful disables in the game since it can be cast from range and will guaranteed stun its target for up to 4 seconds.
* AnAxeToGrind: Beastmaster's WeaponOfChoice is a pair of tomahawks. He can even throw and retrieve them [[ImprobableUseOfAWeapon like a boomerang]] via his first ability, ''Wild Axes''.
--> '''Beastmaster (casting Wild Axes):''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/5/59/Beas_ability_axes_04.mp3 ''Boomeraxe.'']]
** DualWielding
** ImprobableUseOfAWeapon: How can he retrieve his throwing axes is rather inexplicable.
* BadassBeard
** BeardOfBarbarism
* TheBeastmaster
* CallASmeerpARabbit: His boar and hawk don't look like what they're insisted to be. Changing them with cosmetic items will turn them into entirely different species as well.
* DefogOfWar: ''Call of the Wild'''s Scout Hawk is one of the best examples of this. While the Lesser Hawk has only mediocre vision range, it's a flying unit with the associated movement and vision capabilities, meaning that it can fly over cliffs and trees, and see through them as well. It can even see safely into Roshan's pit if positioned properly.
** {{Invisibility}}: The Greater Hawk, if left motionless for 3 seconds, will fade into invisibility over 1 second (though moving it again will break the invisibility), effectively turning it into a mobile Observer Ward that lasts for 60 seconds.
* {{Familiar}}s[=/=]SummonMagic: ''Call of the Wild'' lets Beastmaster summon a hawk and a boar, with varying increases in effectiveness as he levels the skill up. Each lasts for 60 seconds with the skills on a 40 second cooldown each, meaning he can summon up to four units to control at once (even moreso if he purchases a Refresher Orb).
* FieldPowerEffect: ''Inner Beast'' increases the attack speed of Beastmaster and any nearby allies, and is possessed by his illusions as well. While the numbers aren't highly impressive, its strength is in the fact that it stacks on top of existing attack speed buffs and applies to creeps and summons as well, so Beastmaster being in the general area of a teamfight can greatly augment the amount of physical damage the whole team does, including the squishy hard supports.
* JackOfAllStats: Beastmaster can push and semi-carry with ''Call of the Wild'' and ''Inner Beast'', initiate and disable with ''Primal Roar'', and provide utility and carry auras with his inherent tankiness. There are lots of heroes who can do all of these individual tasks better - but very few who can turn their hand to so many. Because of this, he tends to pick up whatever responsibilities his team needs filling the most. For example, if your team didn't have a proper initiator, you'd probably pick up a Blink Dagger and Aghanim's Scepter so that you can provide that. If your team has an AFK jungler and only 1 support, you may well fill in with a Mekansm if the core heroes aren't very interested in one.
* MagicKnight: Beastmaster has a large array of spells that give him vast amounts of utility (''Wild Axes'', for instance, can be used to cut down trees and stack or kill Ancient camps), and ''Inner Beast'' helps to give his physical damage output some impact. However, he's stronger in the casting department than in the fighting department, moreso since he's very mana-independent (his ''Wild Axes'' and ''Primal Roar'' are the only spells he has that consume large amounts of mana), and ''Inner Beast'' isn't a very strong damage steroids.
* MakeMeWannaShout: Beastmaster's ultimate, ''Primal Roar'', pushes aside anyone who stands in the way and stuns the primary target.
* NatureHero
* PoisonousPerson: The boar's attack can inflict a poison that slows attack and movement speeds. The Lesser Boar's slow is not very impressive, but the Greater Boar can slow by more than twice as much.
* [[RaisedByWolves Raised By Beasts Of The Royal Court]]
* SomeDexterityRequired: Because he can summon units with ''Call of the Wild'', proper Beastmaster play revolves around being able to micromanage where you place them and how you use them. Because he can have up to two hawks and boars each active at a time, it takes a lot of dexterity and planning to put them where they're most needed (to say nothing of being able to stack up to three jungle camps at once if you're good enough).
* SpeaksFluentAnimal
* StoneWall: Being a Strength hero with good base armour, Beastmaster is fairly tanky (and can become even more so by building the right items), but his utility-oriented skillset and so-so right-click attack mean that he has trouble dishing out damage to the degree that a true carry can.
* TheyHaveTheScent: Referenced in some of his lines in both the original [=DotA=] and Dota 2.
--> '''Rexxar:''' ''I've got the scent.''
--> '''Karroch:''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/9/9e/Beas_cast_01.mp3 ''Mmm, caught your scent.'']]
* TribalFacePaint
* WalkingShirtlessScene: With bonus LoinCloth.
* WalkingTheEarth: As a wandering vagrant.
[[/folder]]
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[[folder:Davion, the Dragon Knight]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Dragon_Knight_1728.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/9/93/Drag_rare_01.mp3 "Never make a deal with a dragon,]][[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/f/f3/Dragon_rare_01.mp3 unless you're prepared to keep your end of it.]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Tony Todd
''"After years on the trail of a legendary Eldwurm, the skilled dragon-slayer found himself facing a disappointing foe: the dreaded Slyrak had grown ancient and frail, its wings tattered, its few remaining scales stricken with scale-rot, its fangs ground to nubs, and its fire-gouts no more threatening than a pack of wet matchsticks. Seeing no honor to be gained in dragon-murder, the young knight prepared to turn away and leave his old foe to die in peace. But a voice crept into his thoughts, and Slyrak gave a whispered plea that the knight might honor him with death in combat. The knight agreed, and found himself rewarded beyond expectation for his act of mercy: As he sank his blade in Slyrak's breast, the dragon sank a claw into his throat. As their blood mingled, Slyrak sent his power out along the Blood Route, offering all its strength and centuries of wisdom to the knight. The dragon's death sealed their bond, and Dragon Knight was born. The ancient power slumbers in the knight, waking when he calls it; or perhaps it is the Dragon that calls the Knight..."''
Dragon Knight's durability and strength is rivalled only by a handful of other heroes, and few of them can outfight a well-played Davion on the offensive. Unlike other melee carries who are vulnerable in the early game, Dragon Knight can mitigate this weakness with his passive skill ''Dragon Blood'', giving him a permanent armor boost as well as buff to his natural health regeneration, meaning that he can farm with impunity for much of the early game. His two main damaging spells ''Breathe Fire'' and ''Dragon Tail'' . '' Breathe Fire'' deals magic damage in a line, and ''Dragon Tail'' causes Dragon Knight's next attack to stun a single target in melee range. Dragon Knight's real offensive power lies with his ultimate, ''Elder Dragon Form''. Activating this spell temporarily turns the knight into a powerful dragon for sixty seconds, temporarily boosting damage and turning his all of his attacks and ''Dragon Tail'' into ranged damage and giving his attacks a temporary attack modifier which transitions from early game pushing power to late game teamfight dominance as he levels the ability, giving Dragon Knight ample time to tear his enemies apart. As the spell levels up, Dragon Knight will alter his Dragon Form into one of three variants, each getting more powerful and adding more debuffs as he levels it up. The first is a green dragon with ''Corrosive Breath'', which causes poison damage over time. His second form is a red dragon with a splash attack that deals damage to everyone around him, and keeps ''Corrosive Breath'' in this form as well. His final form, a blue dragon, keeps his splash attack and poison damage, but adds a massive slow to the target.
* AmbiguouslyBrown: Not very easy to see under his helmet, nor most of his earlier cosmetics, but it's more notable with his later sets which have more open-faced helmets.
* AchillesHeel: Dragon Knight is very dependent on ''Elder Dragon Form'' to perform well, meaning he's only online half the time and making Aegis and buyback minimally effective.
* BadassBeard: Not quite visible in the image, but more obvious in-game.
* BoringButPractical: Besides ''Elder Dragon Form'' none of his abilities are very flashy, two simple straightforward targetted spells and a defense boost, yet they're highly effective, and can even see him through mid-lane against the usually ranged opposition with far more fancier spells to boot.
* BloodMagic: Slyrak transfered his powers, and possibly even his mind into Davion via mixing their blood.
* BreathWeapon: He can use ''Breathe Fire'' to breathe cones of fire to burn his enemies. In dragon form, this replaces his normal attack.
* ByTheLightsOfTheirEyes: His eyes appear to glow from under his helmet.
* CastFromHitPoints: While he has no abilities that do this naturally, Dragon Knight's high regeneration leads to picking up items that let him do this, such as a Soul Ring to dominate lanes and being one of the few heroes who can justify using Armlet of Mordiggian without any form of Lifesteal.
* CoolHelmet
* CoolSword:
** NamedWeapons: It's named Wyrmblade.
** LittleUselessGun: It's practically the sword equivalent, being a short, one-handed sword of reasonable proportions as opposed to other Strength heroes using much larger and bulkier weapons, which could be the reason for his pitiful base damage.
* DiscOneNuke: ''Dragon Tail'' while being absolutely worthless as a nuke, is ''incredibly'' powerful a stun, with a full 2.5 second duration from level one. Comboing ''Dragon Tail'' with a more easily-landed stun such as ''Telekinesis'' or ''Wraithfire Blast'' can earn a first blood.
* DragonKnight: [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Natch.]]
* EnemyMine: Davion seems to have this going on with Jakiro, as even if Jakiro is a dragon, they don't seem to like each other much. They don't have any ally lines either. Although Jakiro seems to act shocked whenever Davion kills him.
* EyelessFace: With the Kindred of the Iron Dragon cosmetic item, the model of ''Elder Dragon Form'' is turned into an eyeless, armoured iron dragon.
* FusionDance: Between Davion and Slyrak.
* GameplayAndStorySegregation: No matter what element his dragon from's normal BreathWeapon takes, he always uses Fire breath with ''Breath Fire''.
* GradualGrinder: An area slow, high armor, high regeneration, high health, a damage-reducing debuff and a very effective stun let him grind away at enemies, but he lacks straight damage boosts, with his only real "Steroid" being a pitiful 20/s damage over time.
* HealingFactor: ''Dragon Blood'' gives Dragon Knight a significant boost to his health regeneration.
* HeWhoFightsMonsters: He seems quite protective of dragons for a dragon hunter, probably absorbing a part of Slyrak's personality.
--> '''Dragon Knight (Killing Lina):''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/1/1e/Drag_lina_02.mp3 "That's what you get, Lina, for enslaving dragons."]]
* LuckilyMyShieldWillProtectMe: He's one of the game's few heroes with a shield and one of, if not the toughest.
* MightyGlacier: Dragon Knight is incredibly durable with natural stat growth and ''Dragon Blood'', and can deal quite a punch in teamfights thanks to ''Elder Dragon Form'''s splash damage. However, he has one of the worst movement speeds in the game, which is only somewhat alleviated by ''Elder Dragon Form''. Of course, he also has plenty of ways to make the other guy ''slower'' than him to compensate.
* MonsterKnight
* OurDragonsAreDifferent
* PlayingWithFire: Davion can breathe cones of fire with his first ability ''Breathe Fire''.
* PowerGivesYouWings: With the Kindred of the Iron Dragon cosmetic item, Davion briefly gains a pair of transparent red wings when using ''Dragon Tail''.
* PowerLimiter: ''Breathe Fire'' reduces the base damage of its targets, making it difficult for Dragon Knight's lane opponent to last hit and supplementing his tremendous physical damage resistance..
* ThePowerOfBlood: Used by Slyrak to give his power to Davion.
* ShieldBash: ''Dragon Tail''
** TailSlap: When ''Elder Dragon Form'' is active, ''Dragon Tail'' becomes this trope.
* SimpleYetAwesome: Dragon Knight is a very simple strength carry, who nonetheless is potent throughout most stages of the game. Valve themselves picked up on this, and Dragon Knight is used in the new tutorial system to introduce players to Dota.
* StoneWall: He lacks any actual damage-increasing skills, but pulling him down before he does so to you is nevertheless very difficult.
* SplitPersonalityTakeover[=/=]SuperMode: ''Elder Dragon Form'' turns him to a dragon with higher movespeed, ranged attack and stun, and a free orb effect.
** PowerMakesYourVoiceDeep[=/=]PowerEchoes: Dragon Knight's voice in his ''Elder Dragon Form'' is deeper and has more echo than his original voice.
--> '''Dragon Knight''': [[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/a/af/DK_dragon_move_10.mp3 "Who calls the Dragon Knight."]]
** HerdHittingAttack: When ''Elder Dragon Form'' reaches level 2, Davion's attacks in dragon form will deal splash damage in a small radius(a little more than twice melee range).
** PoisonousPerson: When a single point is placed, the Green Dragon gets damage over time in his attack.
** AnIcePerson: And when it's maxed, the level 3 Blue Dragon's attacks also slow enemies' move and attack speed.
* SuperToughness: He has great base armor, and ''Dragon Blood'' gives him absurd amounts of armor and HP regen, before he even starts getting items. It's not uncommon to have over 70% resistance to physical damage, making him nigh-invincible in direct combat.
* VoluntaryShapeshifting: Into Slyrak.
* WhyWontYouDie: All but the most deadly physical damage dealers find dealing with him a chore, as he has a long-duration stun, ranged slow, base damage reduction on his nuke, and can easily have 75% physical damage resistance with the right items. [[FromBadToWorse And then he gets evasion and a Black King Bar]]...
[[/folder]]
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[[folder:Rattletrap, the Clockwerk]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Clockwerk_2349.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/f/f8/Ratt_respawn_10.mp3 "I have a degree in mechanical domineering!"]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Sam A. Mowry
''"Rattletrap descends from the same far-flung kindred as Sniper and Tinker, and like many of the Keen Folk, has offset his diminutive stature through the application of gadgetry and wit. The son of the son of a clockmaker, Rattletrap was many years apprenticed to that trade before war rode down from the mountains and swept the plains villages free of such innocent vocations. Your new trade is battle,” his dying father told him as the village of their ancestors lay in charred and smoking ruins. It is a poor tradesman who blames his tools, and Rattletrap was never one to make excuses. After burying his father among the ruins of their village, he set about to transform himself into the greatest tool of warfare that any world had ever seen. He vowed to never again be caught unprepared, instead using his talents to assemble a suit of powered Clockwerk armor to make the knights of other lands look like tin cans by comparison. Now Rattletrap is alive with devices - a small but deadly warrior whose skills at ambush and destruction have risen to near-automated levels of efficiency. An artisan of death, his mechanizations make short work of the unwary, heralding a new dawn in this age of warfare. What time is it? It's Clockwerk time!"''
Rattletrap is the one-two killing machine. As both an initiator and a ganker, he can get close and start beating his foes like scrap metal and escape without a dent. Clockwerk can prevent foes from counterattacking and teleporting away with ''Battery Assault,'' a passive ability which causes mini-stuns, interrupting channels. Clockwerk's second spell, ''Power Cogs'' summons 8 cogs around him, trapping those who are hit by it, prevents escaping, and pushes away anyone that get close to the traps, damaging and draining mana in the process. His ''Rocket Flare'' ability fires a rocket that damages enemies in the area-of-effect and reveals the struck area. Clockwerk's final ability allows him to enter the fray in seconds with ''Hookshot,'' which fires a harpoon and if it connects to any unit, friend or foe, will pull Clockwerk straight into the area, either to run from an unwinnable fight or to stun and begin beating his foes into recycling.
* AdaptationSpeciesChange: In [=DotA=], he was known as "Clockwerk Goblin". He was changed to Keen in Dota 2, making him the same race as Tinker and Sniper, though the armor design still bears a goblin motif.
* BarrierWarrior: ''Power Cogs'' forms a barrier of eight energised cogs around Clockwerk, trapping nearby units and shocking enemies if they approach.
* CallASmeerpARabbit: Clockwerk refers to mana as fuel.
* ClockPunk
* [[ClockworkCreature Clockwerk Armor]]: His suit of armor is incredibly complex, with many whirring gizmos and ticking parts, albeit gasoline-powered. ClockworkCreature was played straight in the first [=DotA=].
* CoolHelmet
* DefogOfWar: His third ability, ''Rocket Flare'', on top of having global range and dealing damage, lights up the area where it explodes for several seconds, and reveals terrain as it flies over, making it useful for scouting out areas on the other side of the map.
* DifficultButAwesome: Despite its global range, ''Rocket Flare'' travels fairly slowly, meaning that it can be difficult to hit targets that aren't standing still if you're shooting your flare anywhere that isn't on the same screen as Clockwerk. ''Hookshot'' also has a very limited radius of effect, making it hard to latch onto enemy heroes that are actively trying to juke you. But once you master these skills, Clockwerk becomes much deadlier. Flares can push creep lanes from the other side of the map and snipe fleeing enemy heroes in the dark (or simply to deny an enemy's Healing Salve or Clarity during early laning), while ''Hookshot'' can travel across more than a screen to latch enemy heroes who think they're safe, use ''Power Cogs'' to lock them in, and activate ''Battery Assault'' to deal damage over time.
* DynamicEntry: Because ''Hookshot'' has such a massive range (well beyond visual range at all levels), Clockwerk can use it to latch onto enemy heroes who don't even know that he's in the area ("area" being anywhere within two screens). It gets even more absurd if Lifestealer is hitching a ride, since a hero can suddenly get stunned without warning, and find themselves at melee range with a Battery Assaulting Clockwerk '''and''' a very angry Lifestealer, all while being Cogged in.
* FourFingeredHands
* GadgeteerGenius
* GlacierWaif: As a Keen, he is much smaller than most heroes, but his primary role is a ganker/initiator and his stats and skills make him very tanky in combat.
* GrapplingHookPistol: Rattletrap's ultimate, ''Hookshot'', pulls him towards enemies or allies, damaging and stunning enemies he connects with (as well as anything hostile along the way).
* LeadTheTarget: ''Rocket Flare'' will allow players to snipe people from across the map once they get a feel for how much damage it does, and how fast it travels.
* LightningBruiser: On top of having impressive Agility gain and being a Strength hero, he has above-average movement speed, and ''Hookshot'' allows him to instantly close the gap between him and his target, making him extremely mobile.
* ManaBurn: Enemies that touch the ''Power Cogs'' barrier are shocked, losing both health and mana.
* OddNameOut[=/=]TheArtifact: "Rattletrap" isn't exactly a common given name for a [[OurDwarvesAreDifferent Keen]]. It's a leftover from his [=DotA=] character, which was a mechanical goblin.
* OverclockingAttack: Clockwerk's first ability, ''Battery Assault'', overloads the devices he doesn't need, exploding them into enemies' faces. It's a very situational ability though, since the devices explode against random enemies within range, meaning that it does massive damage when chasing a single fleeing enemy hero but can become utterly useless if your target runs through a creep wave.
* PoweredArmor
* PungeonMaster: It's probably easier to list his lines that are ''not'' puns. [[ShoutOut Shout Outs]], or snarks.
--> '''Clockwerk (grappling Tinker):''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/c/c8/Ratt_ability_hook_13.mp3 "Hook, line and Tinker!"]]
* RandomNumberGod: ''Battery Assault'''s greatest weakness is that it hits random targets nearby. This means that while it is extremely powerful against lone opponents, trying to use it in a crowd will spread the damage and mini-stuns out ineffectually.
* ScienceHero
* ShoulderCannon: ''Rocket Flare'' is fired from a device on his left shoulder.
* ShoutOut: One of his death animations is similar to [[{{Franchise/Terminator}} Terminator's death in a vat of molten metal]].
** To TheSixMillionDollarMan:
---> '''Clockwerk (respawning):''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/c/c8/Ratt_respawn_16.mp3 "I'm the six million gold piece man!"]]
** And to VideoGame/TeamFortress2:
---> '''Clockwerk (respawning):''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/4/49/Ratt_respawn_18.mp3 "Bleep bloop, I am a robot. Eh, just kidding."]]
* SuicideAttack: Clockwerk is often played as a suicide initiator, using ''Hookshot'' to fly straight into the enemy team and ''Power Cogs'' to disrupt their positioning and let his allies come in. As a result, he is often focused down and killed quickly, especially in the late game, when he becomes much less durable due to a lack of items since he farms extremely slowly.
* YouWillNotEvadeMe: All of Rattletrap's abilities make him extremely hard to evade once he has you in his sights:
** ''Battery Assault'', on top of dealing loads of damage over time, will mini-stun the enemy every time it connects, forcing them to stop (and cancelling any channeled abilities). This means that a Clockwerk walking alongside a lone opponent can slow them down drastically, on top of the damage.
** ''Power Cogs'' will lock down anybody within a certain radius of Clockwerk, preventing them from moving outside of an extremely small radius (all while being trapped right next to him).
** ''Rocket Flare'' has global range, allowing smart players to spot out enemies, or even kill weakened opponents with good aim.
** ''Hookshot'''s massive cast range allows Clockwerk to instantly latch on to and fly up to opponents that are even remotely near him.
[[/folder]]
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[[folder:Purist Thunderwrath, the Omniknight]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/omniknight_3633.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/8/86/Omni_spawn_05.mp3 "Where piety fails, my hammer falls."]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Bruce Miles
''"Purist Thunderwrath was a hard-fighting, road-worn, deeply committed knight, sworn to the order in which he had grown up as squire to elder knights of great reputation. He had spent his entire life in the service of the Omniscience, the All Seeing One. Theirs was a holy struggle, and so embedded was he in his duty that he never questioned it so long as he had the strength to fight and the impetuous valor that comes with youth. But over the long years of the crusade, as his elders passed away and were buried in sorry graves at the side of muddy tracks, as his bond-brothers fell in battle to uncouth creatures that refused to bow to the Omniscience, as his own squires were chewed away by ambush and plague and bad water, he began to question the meaning of his vows--the meaning of the whole crusade. After deep meditation, he parted ways with his army and commenced a long trek back to the cave-riddled cliffs of Emauracus, and there he set a challenge to the priests of the Omniscience. No knight had ever questioned them before, and they tried to throw him into the pit of sacrifice, but Purist would not be moved. For as he faced them down, he began to glow with a holy light, and they saw that the Omniscience had chosen to reveal Itself to him. The Elder Hierophant led him on a journey of weeks down into the deepest chamber, the holy of holies, where waited not some abstract concept of wisdom and insight, not some carved relic requiring an injection of imagination to believe in, but the old one itself. It had not merely dwelt in those rocks for billions of aeons; no, It had created them. The Omniscience had formed the immense mineral shell of the planet around itself, as a defense against the numerous terrors of space. Thus the All Seeing One claimed to have created the world, and given the other truths revealed to Purist on that day, the knight had no reason to refute the story. Perhaps the Omniscience is a liar, deep in its prison of stone, and not the world's creator at all, but Omniknight never again questioned his faith. His campaign had meaning at last. And there can be no question that the glorious powers that imbue him, and give his companions such strength in battle, are real beyond any doubt."''
Omniknight is '''the''' support hero. He is a very difficult hero to play as due to his slow movement speed and attack speed and high mana cost for his spells, but can wreck an entire enemy team if he is played competently, or give tremendous support to his team and bring them victory, even from the brink of defeat. His primary ability, ''Purification,'' both heals his allies and deals pure damage to any enemies within its area-of-effect. This can be cast on both himself and teammates, allowing him to save his friends from the brink of death. His ''Repel'' can be casted to an unit (and himself) and creates a barrier that prevents any abilities from working on the casted target, be it spells, disables or stuns which can have more duration than the newly-bought Black King Bar. ''Degen Aura'' is a passive which slows all foes within Omniknight's range, and greatly reduces attack speed. His ultimate, ''Guardian Angel,'' protects all units within his range from physical damage and also increases health regeneration. His Aghanim's Scepter upgrade affects ''all'' friendly units on the entire map, even creeps and towers.
* AntiMagic: ''Repel'', hands-down the most powerful magic immunity skill, it only has a 2 second downtime once fully leveled and costs an inconsequential amount of mana to cast.
* AwesomeMcCoolName: Purist Thunderwrath. His name will make you grow a beard as luscious and as manly as him.
* BadassBeard
* BarrierWarrior: Omniknight's second skill, ''Repel'', gives spell immunity to the target, making them invulnerable to most spells. What's more, since it's a targeted ability this means that heroes that normally don't purchase Black King Bar (either because they don't have enough farm, or because they need to buy another item first) can benefit from having spell immunity, and Omniknight can even use it to essentially double the up time for heroes who do have BKB (or allow them to initiate more easily by leading them off with spell immunity to ensure they don't get disabled before activating it). At max level (where it lasts for 12 seconds), he can spam it continuously and only give the enemy a two-second window to cast spells on the target if they don't have any purge abilities. Even late-game where everyone on both teams may be carrying Black King Bars (which become less effective the more you use them, only lasting for 5 seconds at its weakest state), the spammability of the spell (a 14-second cooldown and 50 MP cost) means that you can use it in any situation rather than hold it in reserve for just the right teamfight.
* ChurchMilitant
* ColorCodedWizardry: Was the case before, when his color scheme was blue, which helped indicate him as a healer-type support.
* CombatMedic: His first skill, ''Purification'', instantly heals the target for a massive amount and simultaneously damages everything around for the same amount (which is also Pure damage, meaning that it ignores magic resistance).
* CrystalDragonJesus: The Omniscience.
* DifficultButAwesome
** ''Repel'''s synergy with Omniknight's other spells can be hard to get used to. Its timing is easy to screw up, since you have to remember that certain helpful spells that you and your teammates can cast on each other (such as ''Purification'') are blocked by spell immunity, meaning that if you cast ''Repel'' on an ally to protect them, you can't then heal them with ''Purification''. Additionally, ''Repel'' can be targeted on enemies as well as allies, so a mis-click can cause you to accidentally buff an enemy with spell immunity. But once you learn how to properly order your spells, and that enemies' buffs are purged by ''Repel'', and what spells are blocked by spell immunity, you can use your spells to make split-second saves on teammates, and [[StatusBuffDispel even use ''Repel'' on an enemy to purge positive buffs on them that could make the difference in a teamfight]].
** Equally difficult is the proper use of ''Purification'', which relies on timing it so that your heal target is right next to the enemy, however, using it properly shifts the balance of HP by ''double'' what it states, as it both heals the ally and damages the enemy by that much. This can literally single-handedly cause an gank to backfire, allow good players surprising lane control and pull a first blood when combined with a good ganking hero.
** In general, Omniknight can be hard to cast spells with in split-second situations, since he has a notably long cast animation (0.4 seconds between giving him the order to cast a spell and the spell taking effect, whereas the vast majority of other heroes have cast points of 0.3 seconds or shorter). As such, good Omniknight players have to have good predictive sense, and plan their moves out a bit ahead of time.
** There's even utility in giving heroes spell immunity when they don't want it, [[http://youtu.be/3OWqFH2Ehyg?t=1m23s letting you pull off some pretty unconventional kills]].
* DropTheHammer
** AnAxeToGrind with some unlockables.
* FixedDamageAttack: A well-timed ''Purification'' can deal a huge amount of [=AoE=] Pure damage in a small area of effect, while at the same time healing its target, essentially doubling the difference in HP between the heal target and nearby enemies.
* GoodIsNotDumb: He had the wherewithal to question the higher-ups of the Omniscience, which is why his strength is so real.
* GoodIsNotSoft: One of his quotes imply so, he serves the Omniscience which is referred as merciful... but he's nowhere near its level.
-->'''Omniknight''': ''[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/4/4d/Omni_battlebegins_01.mp3 The Omniscience may spare them, but I will not.]]''
* HelmetsAreHardlyHeroic: Omniknight's default model doesn't wear a helmet.
* HolierThanThou: Has some kill quotes aimed specifically at Chen that berate him for how he uses his holy powers.
-->'''Omniknight:''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/0/00/Omni_rival_02.mp3 "Chen, faith is a tool, not a bludgeon. You would have done well to learn this."]]
* HolyHandGrenade: ''Purification'' is hard to hit an enemy with, but deals a lot of Pure damage, making it a very deadly nuke that simultaneously heals an ally.
* LightIsGood
* MagicKnight: While he isn't an Intelligence caster, Omniknight relies greatly on his spells in order to make an impact in teamfights. However, his right-click abilities suffer as a result, as his Agility and attack animation leave much to be desired.
* MagikarpPower: Omniknight is best described as a late game support. ''Degen Aura'' is a scaling percentage, and ''Repel'' and ''Guardian Angel'' are simple flat-out immunities that don't care if the damage they block in question is the 20 damage hit of a simple creep, or the 4-digit crit of a 6-slotted hard carry, it's still zero. Given that his main weakness, Diffusal Blade, has limited and non-replenishable charges, and he uses farm very well (big items like Refresher Orb and Octarine Core are very good on him) his impact grows more and more notable over time. The trade-off is that he has little lane presence, isn't able to do much outside of babysitting early game, and is very greedy for a support, needing at least Aghanim's Scepter as a core item (without which it's impossible to land a good ''Guardian Angel'').
** ''Repel'' starts off at 6 seconds of spell immunity at level 1, while a BKB starts at 10. But by the late game, BKB's charges can become depleted, dropping down to 5 seconds at its weakest, while ''Repel'' has a 12 second duration and a 14 cooldown (meaning a 2 second downtime). [[FromBadToWorse And then Omniknight gets an Octarine Core]].
** ''Degen Aura'' reduces the enemy's movement speed by a percentage rather than a flat amount, which becomes more pronounced in the late game when that percentage is of a larger number.
** ''Guardian Angel'' becomes more effect the higher physical DPS gets, as this allows the allied carry a proportionally bigger advantage, and nukes fall off later on.
* MightyGlacier: Omniknight's cast time is ''abysmal'' but his spells are some of the highest-impact in the game.
* NighInvulnerability: ''Repel'' makes the target immune to magic and ''Guardian Angel'' makes all allies within a certain radius of him immune to physical damage (with an Aghanim's Scepter, it becomes global). They stack, and putting ''Repel'' and ''Guardian Angel'' on your carry generally causes a MassOhCrap for the enemy team.
* NoCelebritiesWereHarmed: Omniknight bears a striking resemblance to Creator/ChuckNorris, and it was one of his 'funny names' in the original [=DotA=]. With his tendency to make his teammates invincible, the 'funny name' kind of make sense, not to mention both of them are pretty religious. All he's missing is just his roundhouse kick.
* NoExperiencePointsForMedic: He actually still gets XP for kills he is near, but he often doesn't rack up assists because he's melee and only one of his spells damages the enemy, so his final game stats often don't reflect his true contribution.
* NoSell: ''Repel'' blocks all spells that would otherwise affect the targeted unit. ''Guardian Angel'' does the same for physical damage.
* ThePaladin: He certainly gives the vibes of the ultimate guardian knight, and his quotes oozes on protecting people with faith and light.
-->'''Omniknight''': ''[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/7/70/Omni_ability_guard_07.mp3 Fear not, my friends! Our guardian is here!]]''
* PersonalityPowers: An inversion; because of his personality, his third ability, ''Degen Aura'', reduces the movement and attack speed of any enemy near him, because they literally cannot stand being in the presence of one with so much faith.
* PowerGivesYouWings: White angelic wings for the duration of his ultimate. Everyone else affected gains smaller wings too.
* RatedMForManly: A badass priest who carries a large hammer, boasts about protecting his allies, has an incredibly deep and persuasive voice, and hits people with a mighty hammer.
* ReligiousBruiser: He does carry a giant war hammer, after all.
* SchmuckBait: Going after that heavily injured enemy hero? Omniknight just purified him, he's back in fighting shape and you're no longer in fighting shape.
* ShootTheMedicFirst: Picking Omniknight off before a teamfight is crucial, as his global physical immunity can easily tip the scales of a fight, to say nothing of his nigh-permanent (and, with Octarine Core, permanent) BKB he slapped on his carry. Don't kill him and you're in for a bad day.
* StatusBuffDispel: One little-known fact about ''Repel'' is that, not only does it remove purgable debuffs from friendly targets (meaning that, for instance, you can save a teammate who's affected by Slardar's ''Amplify Damage'' and Axe's ''Battle Hunger'', both of which can otherwise last longer than the spell immunity buff), but it can be cast on the enemy to remove their positive buffs. This can be useful in negating some of their most powerful buffs (such as cancelling out a ''Surge'' by Dark Seer, or a Double Damage rune on the hard carry), at the cost of reducing your ability to deal with that target down to only right-clicks, abilities that deal Physical damage, and certain abilities that pierce spell immunity.
* StoneWall: Omniknight is notorious as one of the hardest heroes in the game to kill due to his tankiness, his healing and protective spells, and for his ability to make his teammates equally hard to kill. Unfortunately, his low Agility gain means that he has trouble dishing out damage on the scale that a semi-carry can.
* TestosteronePoisoning: While this trope isn't as strong in the case of Omniknight, his general tankiness and ability to make his team man up by protecting them from harm, as well as his tendency to jump into the thick of the action (due to being a melee hero and needing to be close to the enemy to take advantage of his passive), certainly makes him one of the manliest supports in the game. It's also helped by a glitch when he was first ported to Dota 2, which caused him to spam the voice line [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/f/f8/Omni_ability_repel_03.mp3 "Fear nothing!"]] in just about any situation.
* WeakButSkilled: Omniknight's base stats and stat growth are all horribly mediocre, being at best average or slightly above average for a Strength hero, with his high base armor being his only notably positive trait. Even worse, given how often he has to cast spells, his average-sized mana pool is often strained to the limit to keep his teammates alive. However, all of his spells are extremely powerful, making him a very tough opponent to take down once he overcomes his mana issues.
* WeaksauceWeakness: Omniknight's hardest counter is the fact that ''Repel'' and ''Guardian Angel'' can be purged, which makes him easy to counter by teams who buy Diffusal Blades, or if the enemy heroes have purging abilities.
* WhiteMage: He's almost entirely focused around healing and protecting his teammates from harm, although he's not an Intelligence hero.
* WhyWontYouDie: His main strength is making ''anyone'' on his team this, slowing all attacks by a ''very'' hefty 34%, leaving them immune to almost all spells for a large duration, makes everyone immune to physical damage for up to 10 seconds, and healing them for a major amount.
* YouWillNotEvadeMe: His passive slows every enemy unit in its radius (and sticks on them for a time after they leave it), and slows through spell immunity. This means that all Omniknight needs to do to win chases is to catch up with his victim, walk alongside, then wait for the rest of the team to show up and finish the target off.
[[/folder]]
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[[folder:Huskar, the Sacred Warrior]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Huskar_390.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/7/76/Husk_rare_03.mp3 "Those who are given more in life must not cling to it but risk it all at every moment.."]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Dave Fennoy
''"Emerging from the throes of the sacred Nothl Realm, Huskar opened his eyes to see the prodigal shadow priest Dazzle working a deep incantation over him. Against the ancient rites of the Dezun Order, Huskar’s spirit had been saved from eternity, but like all who encounter the Nothl he found himself irrevocably changed. No longer at the mercy of a mortal body, his very lifeblood became a source of incredible power; every drop spilled was returned tenfold with a fierce, burning energy. However this newfound gift infuriated Huskar, for in his rescue from the Nothl, Dazzle had denied him a place among the gods. He had been denied his own holy sacrifice. In time the elders of the order sought to expand their influence and Huskar, they agreed, would be a formidable tool in their campaign. Yet becoming a mere weapon for the order that denied him his birthright only upset him further. As the first embers of war appeared on the horizon, he fled his ancestral home to find new allies, all the while seeking a cause worthy of unleashing the power his total sacrifice could bring."''
Uniquely one of the three ranged Strength heroes, Huskar is about entering into the fight and killing his foes while he is under fire, soaking up as much damage as he can. When he is in need of emergency health, ''Inner Vitality'' can be casted on himself or his allies to give health based on his attributes and gains more health if the hero is under attack by his foes. He is incredibly dangerous at the peak of his own life, with his ''Berserker's Blood'' which increases his attack speed and magic resistance based on how much health he is missing, to which he can tank a powerful nuke once he is near death. Huskar can lower his health more quickly to benefit his passive by using two of his abilities, ''Burning Spear,'' which causes Huskars basic attacks to deal damage over time at the cost of dealing damage to himself per throw, and his ultimate, ''Life Break,'' wherein he leaps to any foe and cuts their health by half, increasing in damage depending on how much health they are missing. Be warned, however, that Huskar sacrifices a large portion of his own life to use this ability.
* AchillesHeel: Axe's ''Culling Blade'' is this to Huskar. As Huskar needs to be at low health in order to deal sufficient damage, ''Culling Blade'' will almost always be fatal.
** KryptoniteIsEverywhere: Huskar in spite of his resistance to magic is still quite weak to Physical and Pure damage (a weakness that most other Strength heroes in the game do not share), a problem only amplified considering the absurd number of carries compared to supports in an average pub game.
** CantCatchUp: Because of this reason, Huskar scales very badly into the late game - while he has a strong early-mid game presence, he falls off extremely hard in the late game, because any true carry will kill him in a second.
* AmazingTechnicolorPopulation: Blue skin.
* AntiMagic: With maxed ''Berserker's Blood'', Huskar gets up to 98% magic resistance when low HP, making him essentially immune to nukes.
* BackFromTheDead: Although somewhat unwillingly.
* TheBerserker: His entire skillset revolves around intentionally remaining at low health and suicidally charging into the enemy team without much concern for his own safety.
* BladeOnAStick
** JavelinThrower: Like a Javelin throwing Rambo.
* BloodyMurder: His abilities are attributed to his blood being a volatile substance. As he can't actually sling his blood at enemies, he instead douses his spears in the stuff.
* CastFromHitPoints: Huskar spends hit points to use ''Burning Spears'', and his ultimate, ''Life Break'', costs a ton of his current health.
* CombatMedic: Huskar can heal himself and allied heroes with his first skill ''Inner Vitality''.
* CombatSadomasochist
* CombinationAttack: Can create a particularly nasty one with Necrophos if they have Aghanim's Scepter. ''Life Break'' shaves of up to 65% of the target's hp. ''Reaper's Scythe'' deals damage based on missing hp. Unless you have sufficient magic resistance or immunity, they won't care whether you have 1 thousand or 1 million hp.
* CripplingOverspecialization: The huge DPS that Huskar deals comes at the expense of all utility - his heal is subpar for most heroes who are dead meat at low hp and burns up his mana, even with no other skills competing for it, and his slow requires a serious ammount of health and is an all-or-nothing move.
* CriticalStatusBuff: ''Berserker's Blood'' gives Huskar bonus attack speed AND magic resistance for every 7% of his health missing. This stacks up to 14 times (meaning up to losing 98% of his health), so as Huskar gets closer to death, he gets stronger and harder to kill.
* DeathOrGloryAttack: ''Life Break''. Either Huskar, the other Hero, or even ''both'' die once it's used, since it costs a third of his health ''and'' puts him in point-blank range. Often times, however, most players using Huskar know just when and in what situations to use his ult to utterly annihilate their target;
* DeathSeeker: His ultimate goal is to find a fight worth dying in.
* DefectorFromDecadence: Left his people to find a more worthy cause to die for.
* GlowingEyesOfDoom
* HealingFactor: Huskar can use ''Inner Vitality'', drawing upon the target's spirit energy to heal them.
* InASingleBound: ''Life Break'' starts with a fairly magnificent leap that can cover some impressive ground. If he gets Aghanim's Scepter, Huskar can even do this once every ''four seconds''.
* KnifeNut: His offhand weapon is a knife he uses for ''Life Break'' as well as being implied to be how he [[CastFromHitPoints draws his own blood for Burning Spears]].
* MageKiller: Huskar excels at picking off lone enemy heroes (''Life Break'' + a few ''Burning Spear''s = casualty), especially Intelligence nukers. If ''Berserker's Blood'' is fully upgraded and he's down to his last sliver of health, Huskar has a whopping ''98%'' natural magic resistance, making him essentially immune to nukes. They will still hurt him on full health, but it's extremely hard to actually kill him, especially if they do incremental/ongoing damage. If they don't have a good stun or reasonably strong physical/pure damage they're basically dead meat.
* MightyGlacier: Despite being able to dish out loads of damage, Huskar has pitifully low Agility and is one of very few heroes whose base attack time is higher than the standard 1.7 seconds, meaning that he attacks very slowly unless he's at very low health.
** LightningBruiser: On the other hand, he gains great mobility with ''Life Break'', ''lots of attack speed'' with ''Berserker's Blood'' and has a large health pool while hitting fairly hard.
** GlassCannon: Huskar becomes this late game. His damage output is still high, but ''Berserker's Blood'' becomes less useful alongside nukes, and the enemy team's main damage source becomes their carry's right-clicks, which will kill Huskar in a second because of his abysmal armour.
* MutualDisadvantage: Against Razor. ''Eye of the Storm'', which deals physical damage and chooses the enemy with the lowest HP percentage, will melt Huskar because of his low armour and tendency to remain at low HP, but other than that, the main weakness of Razor is that he has no stun, and you *really* need to stun Huskar to stop his DPS. Besides, ''Life Break'' is both a slow and an anti-tank skill and Razor really hates this, but then Blade Mail is pretty good on Razor too. As a 1 vs 1 mid matchup, Razor can steal Huskar's damage but it still won't stop ''Burning Spear'' harass which is Huskar's main damage source early game, and Razor risks getting zoned out.
* PercentDamageAttack: Huskar's ultimate, ''Life Break'', shaves off a percentage of his target's current HP, at the cost of a similar fraction of his own. When he's at low health (which he almost always will be), this lets him cut off half (or more) of a full-health enemy's HP at a cost of a few points of his own, and then immediately regenerate most of it with ''Inner Vitality''. This makes him a massive counter to Strength-based carries, since he can possibly remove over a thousand points of health from his target with a single attack.
* PlayingWithFire: Huskar can light his spears on fire using his hitpoints.
* PointyEars
* TheRival[=/=]BashBrothers: With Dazzle, and justified in both their backstory and gameplay. Dazzle's skills can make Huskar an unstoppable machine of destruction (''Shallow Grave'' + ''Berserker's Blood'' = Game Breaker) -- or make him useless if he's on the enemy team. Huskar apparently sees Axe as this as well, according to his response lines; their love of battle and tendency to charge blindly into the fray, as well as Axe's ability to annihilate Huskar with ''Culling Blade'' or pin a target down for him to effortlessly slaughter with ''Berserker's Call'' makes this occur from a gameplay perspective as well.
--> '''Huskar (killing Axe):''' [[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/5/54/Husk_rival_15.mp3 "Fearlessly into the fray, Axe, in this we are alike."]]
* SituationalSword: Huskar himself is this. At full HP, he's a mediocre hero that doesn't put out a lot of damage outside of his ultimate. However, once he drops down to low enough health and casts ''Inner Vitality'' on himself, he can stack absurd amounts of magic damage on his targets with ''Burning Spear'', deal huge amounts of DPS and shrug off magic nukes with ''Berserker's Blood'', heal about as much damage as he takes, and shave down the cost of his ultimate down to almost nothing.
* SkillGateCharacter: The basic idea with Huskar is that with ''Berserker’s Blood'' he gets stronger attacking power as his HP pool decreases, and both ''Burning Spears'' and ''Life Break'' give him convenient ways to lower his HP. However, having increased damage when hurt is rarely worth it when there are plenty of damage sources that don't involve deliberately crippling oneself, and are always active. The reason Huskar succeeds in pubs is because against poorly organised players he has no problem hanging around a dangerous level of HP. In fact, it's practically an invitation for his opponents to wander in one at a time and be slaughtered. But players who can plan ahead have no issue with waiting for Huskar to give them the perfect opening to dump all of their burst damage into, and by the end of the game a hero with real DPS skills can easily outcarry Huskar while also being able to fight at full HP. In addition to this, he also can't do anything but what he's designed to do (single-target DPS), with little teamfight presence and no utility whatsoever. Because of this, he is extraordinarily rare in competitive Dota, ignominiously being the only Hero who has never been picked at any of The International tournaments.
* SpellBlade: ''Burning Spear'' sets Huskar's spears aflame, dealing damage over time with his regular attack.
* TakingYouWithMe: Even if the target manages to survive his ultimate and kill him, they'll likely have several stacks of ''Burning Spear'' eating away at their low health, meaning that they'll likely die in a few seconds.
* ThisLooksLikeAJobForAquaman: Against a lineup too dependent on magical damage, a surprise last pick Huskar is able to force the enemy team to just accept it's GG already. However, if put up against even only one legit right-clicker, Huskar loses much of his effectiveness since he can't manfight any of them unless with a massive farm advantage. This weakness can be mitigated by Dazzle, making Huskar-Dazzle one of the most terrifying hero combinations in pubs and pros alike. In a Captains Mode game, when you see your opponent picking Dazzle and banning Ancient Apparition (one of the best counters to Huskar and Dazzle alike), you HAVE to ban Huskar since you aren't going to be able to kill him in a teamfight.
* TopHeavyGuy: Huskar's legs seem a little too thin to support his massively-built torso.
* TurnsRed: If Huskar's ''Berserker's Blood'' reaches its maximum stack (meaning that he'll be at extremely low health), Huskar will be about twice his normal size and surrounded by a glowing red aura. He also gains massive attack speed and magic resistance buffs.
* ViolationOfCommonSense: Huskar is at his best when he's at low health. ''Burning Spear'' can quickly eat up Huskar's health. As a result, most Huskar players use ''Burning Spear'' to intentionally nearly kill themselves in order to maximize his damage potential. Likewise, ''Life Break'' is often used to insert Huskar into situations that most heroes would usually run from, such as initiating against a hero that has much more health than he does.
* WalkingShirtlessScene
* WeaksauceWeakness: For all of Huskar's spell resistance, enemies who have high physical damage will likely eviscerate him before he can do too much damage, as he has low armour and needs to be at fairly low health to be effective.
* WhyWontYouDie: Tends to be the general reaction to a well-farmed Huskar at low health. Due to getting massive magic resistance buffs, unless he's getting right-clicked down by the other team's carry, it's near impossible to kill him since burst magic nukes will do almost no damage and he can regenerate very quickly with ''Inner Vitality''.
* WorthyOpponent: Sees Bloodseeker as this. Given that Bloodseeker's kit seems to be tailor-made for fighting Huskar (''Blood Rite'' and ''Rupture'' deal pure damage, which bypasses ''Berserker's Blood'' while preventing and punishing ''Life Break'' respectively, while ''Thirst'' increases Bloodseeker's physical damage output as Huskar's health drops), this is fairly justified.
* YouAreAlreadyDead: ''Burning Spear'' can do up to 140 magic damage per stack, spread out over 7 seconds, and stacks every time the victim is hit with ''Burning Spear'' activated. Combined with Huskar's lightning fast attack speed with ''Berserker's Blood'', enemies who have no way to quickly heal or dispel the status effect are very likely to succumb even if they manage to escape or kill Huskar.
** Furthermore, Huskar's ultimate ''Life Break'' - when used properly - has the potential to be SO incredibly devastating and crippling to its target that being hit with it is often a death sentence for most heroes; [[http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=128817857 a popular guide to Huskar]] describes it best:
--> [[ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill THIS IS YOUR DEATH BUTTON.]]
[[/folder]]
----
[[folder:Razzil Darkbrew, the Alchemist]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Alchemist_3887.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/0/09/Alch_spawn_05.mp3 "I'm the brains!" "And I'm the brawn!"]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Bruce Miles
''"The sacred science of Chymistry was a Darkbrew family tradition, but no Darkbrew had ever shown the kind of creativity, ambition, and recklessness of young Razzil. However, when adulthood came calling he pushed aside the family trade to try his hand at manufacturing gold though Alchemy. In an act of audacity befitting his reputation, Razzil announced he would transmute an entire mountain into gold. Following two decades of research and spending and preparation, he failed spectacularly, quickly finding himself imprisoned for the widespread destruction his experiment wrought. Yet Razzil was never one to take a setback lightly, and sought escape to continue his research. When his new cellmate turned out to be a fierce ogre, he found just the opportunity he needed. After convincing the ogre not to eat him, Razzil set about carefully concocting a tincture for it to drink, made from the moulds and mosses growing in the prison stone work. In a week’s time, it seemed ready. When the ogre drank the potion, it flew into an unstoppable berserker rage, destroying the cell bars and exploding through walls and guards alike. They soon found themselves lost somewhere in the forest surrounding the city with a trail of wreckage in their wake and no signs of pursuit. In the tonic’s afterglow, the ogre seemed serene, happy, and even eager. Resolving to work together, the pair set off to collect the materials needed to attempt Razzil’s Alchemic transmutation once more.''
While other heroes may specialize in magic spells or physical damage, Alchemist (and his trusty ogre sidekick) focus on gold, and accumulating lots of it. With the ability to farm more efficiently than most other heroes, Alchemist can be played in a variety of ways: he can use his early-game gold potential to quickly snowball an item advantage over the other team and carry his side to victory, or he can see use as a support and an initiator, focussing more on his damaging spells to help his team. With ''Greevil's Greed'', a passive ability, Alchemist gains extra gold for every last hit; granting an additive bonus for every last hit in a period of time. With healthy reserves of gold rolling in, Alchemist can quickly gain a head start in purchasing items- but don't think that he can't also go on the offensive. His main damaging spell, ''Unstable Concoction'', is a powerful but unreliable area-of-effect stun that needs to be charged before it's thrown at an enemy hero. Wait too long, however, and the spell will explode on Alchemist himself, stunning and damaging him. His other damaging spell, ''Acid Spray'', creates a pool of toxic liquid that reduces armor and damages foes who are caught in its radius. His ultimate, ''Chemical Rage'', is a versatile status buff, temporarily kicking many of his base stats into overdrive. With huge bonuses to health regeneration, movement speed, mana regen, and attack speed, Alchemist can unleash the power of alchemy to its fullest.
* AcidPool: ''Acid Spray'' can create one in an area.
* AlchemyIsMagic: Razzil's alchemy is apparently able to turn living organisms into gold.
* BadassBeard: Razzil himself.
* TheBerserker: ''Chemical Rage'' gives him high regenerating and speed, encouraging this style of play once he has his items.
* BigDumbBody: Albeit in a more equal relationship than most.
* BladeSpam: With the right items and a fully leveled ''Chemical Rage'', Alchemist can let out upwards of ''five attacks a second''.
* BlingOfWar[=/=]FlamingSword: Alchemist's Immortal Eternal Radiance Blades are a pair of golden, flaming swords.
* BrainsAndBrawn: Razzil and the ogre refer to themselves as the brains and the brawn, respectively.
* ChargedAttack: ''Unstable Concoction'' gains power and stun duration for longer every second after it's activated, and if it's charged to maximum power it can deal more damage and stun for longer than Sven's ''Storm Hammer''.
* DeadlyGas: ''Acid Spray'' creates a large cloud that shreds the armor and health of enemies.
* DualWielding: The ogre unsheathes two swords when using ''Chemical Rage''.
* FatAndSkinny: The ogre and Razzil, respectively.
* GoodOldFisticuffs: The ogre's primary means of attack.
* HealingFactor: Gains a massive one while in the middle of ''Chemical Rage''.
* HoistByHisOwnPetard: Literally, in that ''Unstable Concoction'' will explode in Alchemist's face if he doesn't throw it in time. And yes, he can kill himself with it.
* HollywoodAcid: ''Acid Spray'' is green and reduces enemies' armour.
* HumanResources: According to his voice lines, he's fond of using components of his dead foes as fodder for his experiments.
--> '''Alchemist (killing Pudge):''' [[http://hydra-images.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/e/ec/Alch_rival_02.mp3 "You don't think Pudge will mind if we salvage him for fluids, do you?"]]
--> '''Alchemist (killing Puck):''' [[http://hydra-images.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/e/e6/Alch_rival_05.mp3 "All right! Fairy dragon blood is hard to come by!"]]
--> '''Alchemist (killing Slardar):''' [[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/9/93/Alch_rival_14.mp3 "Thanks to Slardar, I can rig up an excellent mercury switch."]]
* ItemCaddy: When played as a farming carry, Alchemist relies on a six-slotted inventory of powerful items to get kills. This is made easier by ''Greevil's Greed'', which makes farming much faster and easier, so a good Alchemist will probably assemble most of his arsenal by the thirty-minute mark.
* JackOfAllStats: Alchemist is a versatile hero and can be played in the carry, support, or mid roles. He has a strong earlygame which can be capitalized on if one so desires by playing him as a support or a mid. His lategame can also be taken advantage of by playing him as a carry, and he's one of the fastest farmers in the game, allowing him to reach his personal lategame before the enemy team's carries come online. If given enough farm as a support, he can also transition from a support to a carry, but his lategame is not as strong as some other heroes', such as Medusa, Spectre, or Faceless Void, all of who outcarry Alchemist once they have enough farm.
* TheJuggernaut: With ''Chemical Rage'' activated, Alchemist can regenerate health faster than any other hero without a Heart of Tarrasque. As such, he can shrug off all but the most damaging nukes in a few seconds, and walk right over any squishy supports that get in his way.
* LightningBruiser: With ''Chemical Rage'' active, Alchemist possesses ''frighteningly'' high attack speed and runs fairly quickly as well, while easily shrugging off hits with the increased health regeneration.
* MadScientist: Razzil is prone to laughing maniacally or ranting about chemistry while last-hitting, activating ''Chemical Rage'', or killing a hero.
* MagicKnight: Razzil provides the Magic and the Ogre makes for the Knight half of the equation.
* MechanicallyUnusualClass: Alchemist is somewhat different from some other hard carries in that he can farm incredibly quickly with ''Greevil's Greed'', allowing him to grow extremely fast and get 6-slotted before many other carries. However, he can still be outgunned later on by other hard carries, because he can still only carry 6 items, plus an Aghanim's Scepter (which doesn't take up a slot for him) while ''Chemical Rage'' doesn't scale particularly well as a damage steroids. Because of this, unlike other hard carries who peak at ultra-late game, Alchemist's most effective time is at the late-midgame when he becomes 7-slotted.
* MoneyMultiplier: ''Greevil's Greed'' multiplies the gold from Bounty runes and grants bonus gold for every unit killed inside of 30 seconds, allowing him to chain last-hits to give himself up to 36 bonus gold per last hit. Left to farm alone, Alchemist can obtain core items alarmingly quickly.
* MountedCombat: Razzil rides on the back of an ogre. Whilst Razzil does the pointing, the ogre does the punching.
* NiceHat: The ogre's horned hat.
* OurOgresAreHungrier: Razzil's ogre mount seems to be quite different than the ogre mooks found in game, although it does bear a strong resemblance to Ogre Magi.
* PhantasySpelling: Chymistry
* ThePowerOfFriendship: Neither of them would be a match for other heroes by themselves, and it takes using both the Ogre's muscle and Razzil's chemicals to win.
* PurpleIsPowerful: The ogre turns violet when Razzil uses ''Chemical Rage''.
* RaceAgainstTheClock: A minor example with ''Unstable Concoction''. If it's not thrown within 5.5 seconds, it will stun and damage the Alchemist.
* RedEyesTakeWarning: The portrait for his ultimate, ''[[UnstoppableRage Chemical Rage]]''.
* ScienceHero
* SuperEmpowering: Uniquely, Alchemist has the ability to consume an Aghanim's Scepter to grant all of its bonuses to himself or an allied hero, once each, without taking up a slot. It synergises particularly well with someone whose Aghanim's Scepter upgrade is potentially very strong but they either can't afford it or the way their hero plays makes buying it themselves non-optimal. So a support Treant Protector can be given Scepter and starts legally maphacking with ''Eyes in the Forest'', or for Luna who can now drop ''Eclipse'' like Gyrocopter's ''Call Down'' without losing space for Scepter.
* SuperMode: ''Chemical Rage'', which involves the ogre ingesting a SuperSerum.
* SuperPowerMeltdown: The ''Unstable Concoction''. Razzil throws a potion at an enemy that stuns them depending on how long he shakes it up. However, if he holds on to it too long, it will explode and stun himself.
* SuperSerum: When ''Chemical Rage'' is used, Razzil gives the ogre a rage-inducing potion.
* TechnicolorScience: ''Acid Spray'' is green and ''Unstable Concoction'' is purple.
* ThereWasADoor: The ogre simply crashed through the walls of the prison that he and Razzil were stuck in.
* ThrowDownTheBomblet: ''Unstable Concoction'' has Alchemist hurl a beaker of explosive chemicals at the target.
* TookALevelInBadass: Before the 6.75 patch Alchemist had the lowest win rate in the game and was regarded as a JokeCharacter. The 6.75 patch, however, buffed all of his abilities to the point where he is viable and can be a pretty big threat, and in The International 2013 he became a high tier pick. The 6.79 patch damaged his lategame carry potential, but still strengthened his earlygame, allowing him to be more versatile and be played as a support or a mid.
* TransformationIsAFreeAction: Alchemist becomes temporarily invulnerable when activating ''Chemical Rage'', allowing him to disjoint certain stuns.
* UnstoppableRage: When under the effects of ''Chemical Rage'', the ogre runs faster, regenerates health faster, and attacks faster.
* VitriolicBestBuds: They frequently bicker with one another over trivial matters, although many of their voice lines indicate that they really are inseparable underneath it all.
-->''[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/3/39/Alch_immort_02.mp3 Does immortality work for both of us? It better!]]''
* WeakButSkilled: Alchemist has one of the worst attribute growths in the game, but he makes up with his versatile kit, being able to fulfil every role in a team from the #1 carry to the #4-5 support.
* WhatTheHellPlayer: If ''Unstable Concoction'' backfires, the ogre will sometimes berate Razzil, and, by extension the player controlling him, for not throwing it in time.
--> '''Ogre''': [[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/9/9a/Alch_ability_concoc_25.mp3 "Didn't you hear me telling you to throw it?!"]]
[[/folder]]
----
[[folder:Mangix, the Brewmaster]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/brewmaster_5080.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/b/b4/Brew_rare_01.mp3 "Drink and be bleary, for tomorrow we die."]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Nolan North
''"Deep in the Wailing Mountains, in a valley beneath the Ruined City, the ancient Order of the Oyo has for centuries practiced its rights of holy reverie, communing with the spirit realm in grand festivals of drink. Born to a mother’s flesh by a Celestial father, the youth known as Mangix was the first to grow up with the talents of both lineages. He trained with the greatest aesthetes of the Order, eventually earning, through diligent drunkenness, the right to challenge for the title of Brewmaster—that appellation most honored among the contemplative malt-brewing sect. As much drinking competition as mortal combat, Mangix for nine days drank and fought the elder master. For nine nights they stumbled and whirled, chugged and struck, until at last the elder warrior collapsed into a drunken stupor, and a new Brewmaster was named. Now the new, young Brewmaster calls upon the strength of his Oyo forebears to speed his staff. When using magic, it is to his spirit ancestors that he turns. Like all Brewmasters before him, he was sent out from his people with a single mission. He wanders the land, striving toward enlightenment through drink, searching for the answer to the ancient spiritual schism—hoping to think the single thought that will unite the spirit and physical planes again."''
Brewmaster is a very powerful DrunkenMaster, being is able to inflict a lot of damage and take little damage in return. His first ability is ''Drunken Brawler'' which provides an increase to both critical damage and evasion chance. Brewmaster is able to stop his foes from escaping or fighting efficiently by using his ability ''Thunder Clap'' which creates a shockwave around him that slows and decreases movement speed on ground units around him. He can further improve his evasion by using his ability, ''Drunken Daze,'' which causes Brewmaster to throw booze on his enemies which slows and debuffs them, causing some of their attacks to miss. To further make him even trickier to face, his ultimate ability, ''Primal Split'', causes him to split into 3 of himself, each with their own stats and abilities. The three copies are: Earth Spirit, who is tanky and immune to magic and can use ''Boulder'' to stun an enemy and have chance to deal damage in a close radius; Fire Spirit, who is the quickest and a fighter, who burns enemies around him with ''Permanent Immolation,'': and Storm Spirit, the mage copy who can ''Dispel Magic'' which removes positive buffs and deals heavy damage to summoned targets, remove an enemy with ''Cyclone'' and make himself invisible with ''Wind Walk.'' With Aghanim's Sceptor, Earth Spirit inherits ''Thunder Clap,'' Fire Spirit inherits ''Drunken Brawler,'' and Storm Spirit inherits ''Drunken Daze.''
* AchillesHeel: Monkey King Bar is this to Brewmaster, as it completely nullifies both the miss chance from ''Drunken Haze'' and his evasion from ''Drunken Brawler''. He's also particularly vulnerable to silences, since most Brewmaster players will often attempt to wait until the last possible second to cast ''Primal Split'' in order to make the most of a teamfight.
* AlcoholHic
* BigFun
* BewareTheSillyOnes[=/=]CrouchingMoronHiddenBadass: ''Primal Split'' turns him from a slightly goofy inebriated panda-man into a deadly platoon of magical spirit warriors, and he becomes almost unkillable during its duration.
* BoisterousBruiser
* BoozeBasedBuff: Played straight with Brewmaster's ''Drunken Brawler'', which gives him a chance to evade attacks and deal critical damage. Inverted with ''Drunken Haze'', which causes enemies to slow down and miss.
* ContinuityNod:
** Although Storm Spirit is now a human, Brewmaster still labels him as his cousin, likely due to his celestial heritage. In the original [=DotA=], both Brewmaster and Storm Spirit were pandarens.
** While he is a red panda now, his ''Primal Split'' spirits have a giant panda pattern like the original's elemental pandaren.
* CriticalHitClass: His ''Drunken Brawler'' ability gives him a chance to regularly deal critical (200%) damage.
* DecoyGetaway: ''Primal Split'' can be used as one, sending either Earth, for his priority return and slow-immunity, or Storm, for his windwalk, back while the other two wreck havoc on the enemy team and get focused down in an attempt to kill Brewmaster.
* DifficultButAwesome: Storm's second ability ''Dispel Magic''. Used properly, it can remove powerful buffs (like a Double Damage rune or Ogre Magi's ''Bloodlust''), but on the whole enemy team; or save multiple teammates from deadly mass-disables (like Ember Spirit's ''Searing Chains''). Used badly, it can inadvertently help enemies by purging these aforementioned disables from them (which might very well be the ''Thunder Clap'' or ''Drunken Haze'' that you just used), or good buffs from allies. Being able to use ''Dispel Magic'' effectively is what separates a good Brewmaster from an average one.
* DrunkenMaster
* ElementalPowers: After his ultimate (see LiteralSplitPersonality below).
* EpicFlail: An odd combination of what can be called [[FightingWithChucks nunchaku]], but with a [[SimpleStaff staff]] on one end is his WeaponOfChoice. However, [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Two_section_staff it's a real weapon]].
* FragileSpeedster: Fire moves at maximum speed and constantly deals damage to every enemy around him, but is also extremely frail.
* GlowingEyes: His elemental spirits.
* ImprobableWeaponUser: He uses his barrel of booze as much as a weapon as his staff.
* {{Invisibility}}: Storm's ''Wind Walk'' turns him temporarily invisible.
* LiteralSplitPersonality: His ultimate, ''Primal Split'', splits him into three elemental warriors, which function as individual heroes for the duration.
* LockedOutOfTheFight: Storm can do this with ''Cyclone''.
* MagicKnight: Brewmaster is a respectable physical damage dealer and manfighter, since he has abilities that involve negating opposing auto-attacks while strengthening his own; on the other hand, the ''Primal Split'' spirits can provide a plethora of utility from exceptional disables, survivability against magic and physical attacks, to damage output.
* ManySpiritsInsideOfOne: A heroic variant; Mangix sometimes refers to the three spirits as his "drinking buddies".
* MightyGlacier:
** He's slow, but he packs a wallop.
** Earth is the slowest of the three elemental forms, but carries a ranged, damage-dealing stun and has a high chance of dealing bonus AOE damage in a radius.
* NoSell: Earth is immune to magic.
* ObviousRulePatch: During the 6.74 era, the "Primal Spirits" are not considered heroes but rather creep-heroes. This allows pro players to easily escape from its ultimate by [[LoopholeAbuse simply using a "Smoke of Deceit"]] and they will not be revealed unless another hero is present. 6.75 fixes this by making the spirits now appropriately dispel the smoke effect.
* PandaingToTheAudience: His race is very Panda-like. The relation becomes more apparent when you look at his previous skin and ancestral spirits. He even used to be a [[VideoGame/{{Warcraft}} Pandaren]] in the original [=DotA=].
* ShockwaveStomp: ''Thunder Clap'' damages and slows enemies in a huge radius by slamming his barrel into the ground.
* SomeDexterityRequired: As soon as Brewmaster pops his ultimate, you'll have to control three heroes simultaneously, each one with his own separate skills and abilities that work best chained together. If you buy Aghanim's Scepter, you'll have to worry about combo-ing together ''more'' skills. A well-played ''Primal Split'', however can be extremely impressive and deadly.
* StatusBuffDispel: Storm's ''Dispel Magic'' ability, which dispels buffs in an area.
* StoutStrength
* TransformationIsAFreeAction: When performing ''Primal Split'', Brewmaster becomes invulnerable for the duration of the transformation, until after the three elementals are able to move.
* WhyWontYouDie: Brewmaster is a Strength hero with fairly high strength gain and ''the'' highest evasion in the game, if he has both ''Drunken Haze'' and ''Drunken Brawler'' maxed out, only ''18.75%'' of autoattacks will actually hit him at all. This is in addition to dealing with his ultimate, which forces you to either fight them head on for a grand total of 19 seconds, or kill all 3 of them, no easy feat given that one's spell immune, another runs extremely fast, and the last can turn invisible. Escalated even ''further'' with Brewmaster's favored item build of Blink Dagger, Aghanim's Scepter, and Heart of Tarrasque, making his ult even ''harder'' to deal with, and then once it's over, letting him teleport away since Brewmaster himself never took damage during that duration and heal for a 3rd of his health while you were fighting the spirits. ''Yeesh''.
[[/folder]]
----
[[folder:Rooftrellen, the Treant Protector]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Treant_Protector_5599.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/d/db/Treant_respawn_05.mp3 "Think me not ponderous... merely pondering."]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Fred Tatasciore
''"Far to the west, in the mountains beyond the Vale of Augury, lie the remains of an ancient power, a fount of eldritch energy nestled deep in the high woods. It is said that the things that grow here, grow strangely. To the forces of nature this is a sacred place, made to stay hidden and unknown. Many are the traps and dangers of this land--all-consuming grasses and crossbred fauna and poisonous flowers--but none are so fierce as the mighty Treant Protectors. These ageless, titanic beings, charged with keeping the peace in this dangerous land, ensure that none within encroach without reason, and none without poach their secrets. For time untold they tended to their holy ground, uninterrupted, only dimly aware of the changing world beyond. Yet inevitably the wider world grew aware of this untamed land, and with each passing winter the outsiders grew bolder. Soon they arrived with tools to cut and with flames to burn, and often the Treants would ponder: who are these fragile, industrious creatures? What now had become of the wild, green world? There came and went an age of questions and of doubts, a thousand summers of long traditions set to scrutiny, while more and more the outsiders died and fed their earth. When all that bloomed had finally finished their say, curiosity had overcome caution. It was decided: a lone Protector would be sent into the wider world, and instructed to wander until the glaciers arose once more, to observe the changing land and its creatures, and to discover what unknown dangers could threaten their sacred ground."''
This lovable tree is very protective of his allies and fights to defend them. He can protect his allies by using ''Nature's Guise'' to blend them with the forest and become invisible. As long as they are in the forest, they will remain invisible until the duration ends, and can use it on himself and can use abilities while invisible. He can heal allies and buildings with ''Living Armor'', which causes him to cast a protective shield on his allies and grants them bonus regeneration. He can attack his enemies with ''Leech Seed'', which slows an enemy unit, draining their health and healing his allies around the enemy. His ultimate is ''Overgrowth'', which summons vine that roots all enemies around him, preventing movement, blinking, invisibility, or attacking. If he acquires Aghanim's Scepter, he gains the ''Eyes in the Forest'' ability, which enchants a tree to provide vision and will''Overgrowth'' enemies that walk near.
* AllLovingHero: The only one he outright dislikes is Timbersaw, for [[WhenTreesAttack obvious reasons]]. His only quarrel with [[{{Satan}} Doom]] is that Doom's spreading hellfire around the forest.
* ArsonMurderAndJaywalking: His quote upon killing Pugna.
--> '''Treant Protector:''' [[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/d/de/Treant_rival_01.mp3 "You were nasty, brutal, and most of all, short."]]
* AwesomeButImpractical: ''Eyes in the Forest'' effectively grants Treant Protector a free Observer Ward which never expires unless dewarded every 25 seconds. If the enemy jungle is warded, the damage addition to ''Overgrowth'' will allow him to kill any jungle creeps within range of a tree almost every minute as they spawn, giving him easy 700+ GPM. Additionally the Eyes can be placed in the lanes to give him absurd splitpushing potential, possibly wiping out entire lanes of creeps every minute, or placed in strategic teamfighting locations to give him nearly unmatched global disabling and nuking power. However, considering Aghanim's Scepter costs a lot for a support, if ever Treant can afford one it is either because he saved from the beginning of the match, did not support his team in not buying wards or any other support item making him a burden for his team, or because it is very late in the match and it is very likely that his team has stomped, or it will not help much as the enemy team could probably destroy the trees with a Gem and Quelling Blade and handle the extra damage. Subverted when he's on the same team with Alchemist, who can farm it for him, which is made even easier with ''Greevil's Greed''.
* BewareTheNiceOnes: Easily the least violent hero in the game. Also possesses the highest base damage, second highest Strengh growth, and spells that could aid his teammates in a teamfight to great effects.
* BoringButPractical: Out of all of Treant's spells, only ''Leech Seed'' deals damage and is easily outclassed by most damage-dealing spells in the game. His main play style revolves around continually casting ''Living Armor'' on allies and buildings, healing a push with ''Leech Seed'', occasionally initiating a teamfight with ''Overgrowth''... and that's about it.
* BuffySpeak
* CloudCuckooLander[=/=]DissonantSerenity: He is a slow thinker and easily gets distracted either by the [[AttentionDeficitOohShiny beautiful scenery]] or [[ThePhilosopher mysteries of the universe]], and is often [[ComicallyMissingThePoint oblivious to combat around him]].
--> '''Treant Protector (Respawning):''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/8/89/Treant_respawn_09.mp3 "I think I'll go for a nice walk."]]
* CombatMedic: ''Leech Seed'' is an interesting example; it not only damages and slows whatever enemy it's used on, but it will also heal every allied unit in a radius around it. His other utility spell, ''Living Armor'', is unique in that it is one of two spells that can also heal towers from anywhere on the map, turning potential enemy pushes into a slog.
* DeflectorShields: ''Living Armor'' creates a shield around the target that blocks a certain number of damage instances.
* DefogOfWar: ''Eyes in the Forest'' enchants a tree, granting Treant vision around it, essentially giving him a free ward every 25 seconds that lasts indefinitely.
* FreezeFrameBonus: His model has a small carving near his behind, saying "Riki was here".
* FurryConfusion: If he uses a Tango (a consumable item that regenerates your health by destroying a tree) he'll apologize and show mild regret for what he's done, despite the tree being non-sentient.
--> '''Treant Protector (using a tango):''' [[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/a/a3/Treant_tango_01.mp3 "Sorry, friend."]]
* GaiasVengeance: His various plant-themed abilities can aid his team in a teamfight or a push.
* GentleGiant: He is a calm, peaceful treant with abilities focused on protecting allies and disabling enemies. He also has the game's second highest Strength growth and has ludicrous melee attack damage.
** He's also [[AllLovingHero the only completely good hero]].
* GlowingEyes
* GreenThumb: Being a treant, this is to be expected.
* {{Invisibility}}: ''Nature's Guise'' turns a friendly unit invisible near a tree.
* KingMook: Nature's Prophet can summon Treants, which are slightly bigger than an average lane creep. In comparison, Rooftrellen easily towers over most heroes and can cast spells.
* KungFuWizard: Though he's a melee Strength hero, Treant Protector relies heavily on his spells to contribute in teamfights.
* LifeDrain: ''Leech Seed''.
* TheLostWoods: His land of origin.
* MagicKnight
* MagikarpPower: ''Eyes in the Forest'' can turn Treant Protector from a humble support into a force to be reckoned with if he's given enough time to farm up the gold for an Aghanim's Scepter and to place his eyes around the map. Not only does this give him amazing farming potential and farm disruption by seeding the jungle, but the global range allows him to splitpush, disable, and nuke anywhere he can find a tree to convert. With a Scepter and a Refresher Orb (which are [[AwesomeButImpractical pretty much out of reach for a support unless the match drags on long enough) Treant can pin down entire teams for up to 9 seconds at a time (while doing 1650 damage pre-reduction) and wipe entire lanes if he can time it right.
* MoneyMultiplier: Aghanim's Scepter is this for Treant: if he uses ''Eyes in the Forest'' near jungle camps, the damage addition to ''Overgrowth'' will allow him to farm them almost every minute as they spawn, giving him easy 700+ GPM, while at the same time depriving farm from the enemy (and his own team in certain cases).
* MutualDisadvantage: With Nature's Prophet. ''Nature's Call'' can [[AchievementsInIgnorance accidentally pull up Treant Protector's ''Eyes in the Forest'', as well as remove the very trees that ''Nature's Guise'' relies on, possibly exposing a ganking attempt by sheer coincidence.]] In return, Treant Protector's ''Living Armor'' heavily cripples Nature's Prophet's splitpushing abilities, ''Nature's Guise'' can be used to counteract ''Sprout'', and ''Eyes in the Forest'' can expose any attempt of Nature's Prophet to teleport into the treelines, with the option for ''Overgrowth'' to pin him down just for being in the wrong place at the wrong time.
* NatureHero
* NoExperiencePointsForMedic: He actually still gets XP for kills he is near, but like Omniknight, he's melee, only one of his spells damages the enemy, and he doesn't get assists for things like immobilizing or disarming enemies, so his final game stats often don't reflect his true contribution to the team.
* NonStandardSkillLearning: With Aghanim's Scepter, Treant Protector gains a fifth skill, ''Eyes in the Forest''.
* PlantPerson
* TheRedMage
* ShoutOut: To Franchise/{{Pokemon}} with his spell, [[http://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Leech_Seed_%28move%29 Leech Seed.]]
** His appearance and personality are based on Treebeard from Literature/TheLordOfTheRings.
* StealthyColossus: ''Nature's Guise'' when fully upgraded, lasts an entire minute, and takes a minute amount of mana to cast, has a cooldown of 5 seconds, and can work on allies, as Rooftrellen is also usually an initiator and has Blink Dagger, he can just teleport the gap in trees. Given that he can cast and use items without breaking stealth, and he largely relies on said items and abilities to contribute to teamfights, he can actually be invisible throughout an entire fight and still be contributing the whole time.
* StoneWall: Though Treant is very tanky and has very high base damage, his base attack time is the worst in the game (tied with Spirit Breaker and Weaver), meaning that he hits very slowly, and his skills do not deal as much damage either. Even when compared to the ''other'' StoneWall healer of the game, Omniknight, he's still somewhat more defensive.
* TreeCover: ''Nature's Guise'' turns any friendly unit invisible, so long as they remain in proximity to a tree. It's especially useful with surprise-oriented gankers like Pudge, as they can still cast spells while invisible.
* TribalFacePaint
* VampiricDraining: ''Leech Seed'' drains its target's health and constantly restores HP to friendly units around it.
* WeaksauceWeakness: ''Eyes in the Forest'' can be destroyed with a simple 225 gold Quelling Blade, so long as the enemy has any way of utilizing True Sight (Sentry Wards, Gem of True Sight, etc.), meaning that smart placement and regular re-warding are vital if using them. Additionally any ability that destroys trees can accidentally destroy them, even if the enemy doesn't know that they're there.
* WeirdBeard: Branches growing from his face into the shape of a beard.
* WhenTreesAttack
[[/folder]]
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[[folder:Io, the Guardian Wisp]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Io_4337.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/6/66/Wisp_Spawn_respawn.mp3 "..."]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Itself
''"Wisp is everywhere, and in all things. Denounced by enemies as the great unmaker, worshiped by scholars as the twinkling of a divine eye, Wisp occupies all planes at once, the merest fraction of its being crossing into physical existence at any one moment. Like the great twin riders Dark and Light, and yet another ancient traveler whose true history is lost to the ages, Io the Wisp is a Fundamental of the universe—a force older than time, a wanderer from realms far beyond mortal understanding. Wisp is nothing less than the sum of all attractive and repulsive forces within matter, a sentient manifestation of the charge that bind particles together. It is only in the controlled warping of these forces that Wisp's presence can be experienced on the physical plane. A benevolent, cooperative force, Wisp bonds its strength to others so that the power of allies might be enhanced. Its motives inscrutable, its strength unimaginable, moves through the physical plane, the perfect expression of the mysteries of the universe."''
Io is the second of two ranged strength heroes, and excels at controlling his lane with support oriented skills and lots of harass. The first ability that Io has in his arsenal is ''Tether'', which causes a spirit tether to connect Io and another unit. When Io recovers any health or mana, the tethered unit receives 1.5x the amount recovered, and any enemy that cross the tether will be slowed. Io's second ability is ''Spirits'', which causes a ring of five projectiles to spin around Io, and detonate on contact which causes small area of effect damage. Io can cause this projectile ring to increase in size or shrink, which can force foes away from him or provide some protection. His third ability, ''Overcharge'', causes Io to burn his health and mana to get much faster attack speed and resistances. Tethered allies also get the bonuses. His ultimate,''Relocate'' , acts as a temporary teleport. Io and any Tethered ally will be able to teleport to anywhere on the map, but will teleport back from their casting position after 12 seconds.
* AwesomeButImpractical[=/=]IneffectualLoner: Io is probably the most team-dependent hero in the game, the only way to actually play it is in an organised and coordinated setting, something that is nonexistent in pubs. Because of this, it is absurdly unpopular in pubs, but ranks amongst the top picks in competitive.
* CastFromHitPoints: ''Overcharge'' drains 4.5% of Io's max health and mana every second it's active. This actually works to Io's advantage: ''Tether'' won't give regeneration to allies if Io's health and mana are full.
* CombatMedic: When Io gains health or mana, a ''Tether''ed hero gains 1.5x the amount. With healing items like Urn of Shadows, Bottle or Tranquil Boots, as well as ''Overcharge'' to keep its HP under 100%, Io can pump an absurd amount of HP and mana into an allied carry in the middle of a teamfight, while at the same time nullifying their normal disadvantage of being cancelled when taking damage or attacking.
* DifficultButAwesome: Wisp (outside of a few comedy builds) is pretty much the only Hero who can do nothing but support other Heroes. It requires heavy teamwork, but is incredibly powerful when utilized correctly. Because of this, Wisp is one of the most commonly picked or banned heroes in professional tournaments.
** ''Spirits'' must be aimed for the precise distance between Wisp and the target. If someone has trouble landing them, then they're a huge waste of mana. If someone is skilled with landing them though, ''Spirits'' can be an incredible amount of harassment that you can do from 875 range.
** Using ''Relocate'' to its fullest potential is also very difficult, as you'll always need to keep an eye out for potential ganks, ''Tether'' someone and teleport near or onto where you want to gank; yet you also have to be wary if other enemies are missing though, they could be baiting you out. However, it is one of the only two skills in the game which can give global presence to any ally (the other being the yet-to-be-added Abyssal Underlord's ''Dark Rift'', whose cooldown is significantly longer). Using ''Relocate'' to bring you and your lane partner behind unsuspecting enemies in either your own or another lane globally is a huge deal. This can be used to get your carry fed very quickly if your team is competent and you communicate your intentions. In addition to this, ''Relocate'' can be used in a big fight to bring someone to the fight who didn't get there in time, pull someone out who's about to die, or take someone back to heal quickly during the fight. ''Relocate'' requires you to be very cognisant of how your team is doing in a fight and what's needed most.
* DynamicEntry: ''Relocate'', which teleports Io and any tethered hero to any point on the map for a short time, can turn any ally into a global ganking, pushing and counterganking machine.
* EnergyBeing[=/=]CelestialBody: Heck, even the in-game model itself is just particle!
* HappyFunBall: Often called this thanks to the spherical shape and totally unexpected power [[DifficultButAwesome in a coordinated team]].
--> '''Bastion Announcer:''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/2/28/Dlc_bastion_announcer_pick_wisp_follow.mp3 "Hey what's that little glowy ball? Famous last words."]]
* HeroicSacrifice: On a lineup with Io, a carry could farm exposed areas with little risk. Any time the enemy would initiate on him, Io could use ''Relocate'', bail him out and sacrifice himself to save the carry. Oftentimes the return of farming an exposed lane was greater than the damage done by feeding Io.
* JokeCharacter: In public games. Io has one of the worst win rate in pubs because the other 4 people on your team just don't know how to work around it, similar to Shadow Demon, Chen and Enchantress. You can be the best Io player in the world, but you're still going to lose constantly if you try playing Io in solo matchmaking. The usual case scenario is that you ''Tether'' to an allied carry, then ''Relocate'' him to gank a lone farming enemy hero... only to have him break the tether and letting Io teleport alone to the enemy hero, which, seeing how weak Io is without teammates, essentially gives the enemy a free kill.
** LethalJokeCharacter: But in well-coordinated stacks or pro teams, however, Io is considered an excellent support hero that allows the team's carry to gank almost anywhere around the map, heal them to full health 1.5x faster than normal, and powers them up by giving them increased attack speed and damage reduction.
* MechanicallyUnusualClass: Despite being a Strength hero, Io is played very much like a typical Intelligence hero. Rather than relying on innate tankiness and/or strong autoattacks, it is a super-squishy hard support with a powerful nuke and three abilities which can turn any allied hero into a global ganking machine and provide them with an excellent damage steroids.
* NatureSpirit
* NoBiologicalSex
* OverclockingAttack: ''Overcharge'' increases the attack speed and reduces incoming damage of Wisp and its tethered ally at the price of burning away mana and health.
* PowerFloats
* ThePowerOfFriendship: Io can't really do much by itself, but just try to fight both it and a ''carry'' like Chaos Knight at once and see how long you will stand.
* SentientCosmicForce
* TheSpeechless: All the noises he makes can be described as submarine-sounding beeps and boops. Some other characters seem to understand him. Puck especially continuously regrets that people are missing Wisp's puns (unreliable - maybe she's just being [[LittleMissSnarker Puck]]).
* SquishyWizard: Despite being a Strength hero (who are usually renowned for their durability), Wisp has pathetically low base stats and stat growth in all three areas; of all Strength heroes in the game, it has the lowest base Strength (tied with Phoenix) and second-lowest Strength growth, beat out only by Alchemist. On top of all that, it's one of only three Heroes in the game (the others being Phoenix and Visage) that start with '''negative''' base armor. Needless to say, Wisp is very easy to kill if caught without escape.
* TimeAbyss: As a Fundamental, Io is as old as creation itself.
* TimeMaster: The lore of ''Overcharge'':
--> Drawing on the energy of matter from all worlds, Io begins the unravelling of time.
* ViewersAreGeniuses: Its abilities are based on atoms and its backstory implies it's a sentient manifestation of the three major forces of quantum mechanics (Strong, Weak, and Electromagnetism).
[[/folder]]
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[[folder:Bradwarden, the Centaur Warrunner]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/centaur_warrunner_1960.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/b/b8/Cent_battlebegins_01.mp3 "These proving grounds shall be littered with the dead."]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Tom Chantler
''"It's said that a centaur's road is paved with the corpses of the fallen. For the one called Warrunner, it has been a long road indeed. To outsiders, the four-legged clans of Druud are often mistaken for simple, brutish creatures. Their language has no written form; their culture lacks pictographic traditions, structured music, formalized religion. For centaurs, combat is the perfect articulation of thought, the highest expression of self. If killing is an art among centaurs, then Bradwarden the Warrunner is their greatest artist. He rose to dominance on the proving grounds of Omexe, an ancient arena where centaur clans have for millennia gathered to perform their gladiatorial rights. As his fame spread, spectators came from far and wide to see the great centaur in action. Always the first to step into the arena, and the last to leave, he composes a masterpiece in each guttering spray, each thrust of blood-slickened blade-length. It is the poetry of blood on steel, flung in complex patterns across the pale sands of the killing floor. Warrunner defeated warrior after warrior, until the arena boomed with the cheering of his name, and he found himself alone, the uncontested champion of his kind. The great belt of Omexe was bestowed, wrapped around his broad torso, but in his victory, the death-artist found only emptiness. For what is a warrior without a challenge? The great centaur galloped out of Omexe that day with a new goal. To his people, Warrunner is the greatest warrior to ever step into the arena. Now he has set out to prove he is the greatest fighter who has ever lived."''
Centaur Warrunner's home is the battlefield, and all of his abilities show off his affinity for war. His first ability, ''Hoof Stomp'', causes Centaur to slam down onto the ground, stunning and damaging nearby units. Centaur's second ability, ''Double Edge'', causes his next attack to deal greatly increased damage- at the cost of hurting himself. His third ability and a passive, "Return", causes all damage that Warrunner takes to be countered for a fraction and returned to his opponents based on his current strength stat which works on almost anything, including turrets. His ultimate, ''Stampede'', causes every ally hero on the map to gain an incredibly large buff to their movement speed, the ability to walk through any unit, and will stun any enemy that they walk over, dealing damage to the stunned unit as they trample over their bodies.
* AnAxeToGrind
* BadassNormal: Centaur possesses little supernatural power - just a big axe and a lot of brute strength.
* TheBerserker: Thanks to his huge HP pool, a passive that punishes attacks against him, and close-ranged spells, Centaur is played in a very aggressive manner.
* BloodKnight
* CastFromHitPoints: ''Double Edge'' deals up to 400 damage to both Centaur and his target and costs no mana, which means that most Centaur players wind up stacking health regeneration items.
* CounterAttack: ''Return'' deals damage to any unit attacking Centaur. Unlike similar abilites of other heroes, it depends on Centaur's own strength and not the damage taken.
* DifficultButAwesome: ''Stampede'' usage, good Centaur players often use ''Stampede'' when they aren't even doing anything more dangerous than last hitting, but their ''ally'' on the other side of the map is going in for a gank or running from the enemy.
* DynamicEntry: ''Stampede'' boosts Centaur's allies to max movespeed, dealing damage and slow to any units they run through. It works well with a Blink Dagger and ''Hoof Stomp'' stun, turning him into a powerful initiator.
* FangsAreEvil
* GladiatorGames: Is a champion of them.
* HighPressureBlood: ''Double Edge'' causes a jet of blood to squirt out from both Centaur and his targets.
* HornedHumanoid
* LightningBruiser: Not only does he have the highest Strength gain of any hero, but he's also scarily fast -- especially with his ultimate, which lets him and all his allies charge at maximum movespeed for a few seconds.
* MadeOfIron: One of the tankiest heroes in the game.
* MonochromaticEyes
* NaturalWeapon: Bradwarden's hooves, used by ''Hoof Stomp''.
* OurCentaursAreDifferent: Unlike centaurs seen in most other works, Bradwarden has a massive upper torso, horns and out-jutting lower fangs.
* ProudWarriorRaceGuy: His culture has little to it other than violence.
* ShockwaveStomp: ''Hoof Stomp''.
* SuperSpeed: ''Stampede'' temporarily boosts the movement speed of all allies to the cap of 522.
* SuperStrength: He has the highest Strength gain in the game, at 3.8 per level.
* TopHeavyGuy: Contrary to most centaur depictions, his upper torso is even bulkier than the workhorse lower body.
* TrampledUnderfoot: Any poor victim passed over by Centaur's allies when ''Stampede'' is active is slowed and takes damage based on his Strength.
* VictoryIsBoring: His backstory.
* WalkingShirtlessScene
* WorthyOpponent: He regards Magnus as one.
[[/folder]]
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[[folder:Rizzrack, the Timbersaw]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Timbersaw_883.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/6/69/Timb_rare_02.mp3 "I'm not a lumberjack, and no, I'm not okay. I thank you."]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' TJ Ramini
''"Rizzrack could still hear the screams in his mind. He worked, frantically turning wrenches, twisting screws, building and carving and forging. Sleep eluded him; he only built. Months had passed since he had shut himself in his uncle's workshop, and his deliverance was nearly complete. He rubbed his back as his eyes drifted shut, and saw a blanket of flowers floating on the placid waves of Augury Bay before exploding into a cloud of pollen that silenced lives as it seized the lungs. He woke with a choking start. For hours the rhythmic sound of a whetstone filled the shop as he sharpened a set of massive blades, his mind filled with images of strangling vines garroting neighbors, enwrapping homes. The flooding of Augury Bay had been nothing compared to the violent horrors the waters left to take root beyond the city walls. But the saw-suit would make him strong and safe he thought, allowing himself this sliver of hope before the full might of his fear crashed into his fading mind. Branches and blood. When the city fell, Rizzrack fled trees that walked, and fought, and killed. Trees had shattered the gates and swarmed into the city. Trees had crushed and thrashed and stomped the last that Augury Bay could muster in defense, and stalked the few fleeing refugees. In addled silence Rizzrack unspooled the thick chain from the suit's arm, his hands quaking as he inspected each link and ran a trembling finger along the claw attached at its end. The saw-suit was ready. With his hand trembling he sparked the bladed machine to life. Terror drove him, terror of what awaited him and of what he would have to face to have any hope of calming his mind. As the saw-suit shuddered to life he knew he must face this fear, and he knew he wouldn't like it one bit."''
Timbersaw's odd playstyle revolves around using the forest, but in a way completely different from the Treant- rather than use the forest for help, Timbersaw seeks to destroy every tree in his wake. His first ability, ''Whirling Death'', causes a saw to split out the sides of Rizzracks mech, cutting down everyone in a small radius. If a tree is felled in the process, then the attack does Pure damage. ''Timber Chain'' is Rizzracks primary initiation, functioning like Clockwerks ultimate, but instead will only work on trees. As Rizzrack flies, he damages everyone in his wake. His third ability, ''Reactive Armor'', gives Timbersaw more armor and health regen the more times he is attacked. Timersaws ultimate is ''Chakram'', and has Timbersaw sending out a large spinning blade that slows enemies the more health they lack. Upgrading this via Aghanims Scepter causes him to send out two Chakrams at the same time.
* AdaptationNameChange: Rizzrack's name in the original [=DotA=] was Rizzrak (notice the absence of the C).
* AdaptationSpeciesChange: Timbersaw was originally called Goblin Shredder in the original [=DotA=]. However, unlike the other goblin heroes (Alchemist, Tinker, Clockwerk), it is unclear if he is now a Keen (goblin equivalent) or not.
* BucketHelmet: He wears some kind of receptacle with a valve on his head.
* ChainsawGood
* CompanionCube: His ''Chakram'' chainsaw, of all things.
--> '''Rizzrack (casting Chakram Return):''' [[http://hydra-images.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/1/15/Timb_chakramreturn_04.mp3 "Here boy!"]]
* CowardlyLion: Yes, he is crazy, nervous and afraid of pretty harmless plant life. At the same time he is one of the most aggressive solo hard lane heroes, not only easily surviving, but often decimating a superior force, and is an excellent mid-game damage dealer.
* CripplingOverspecialization[=/=]AchillesHeel: Ironically enough, Timbersaw is extremely dependent on trees to deal damage and contribute to teamfights.
* DarkAndTroubledPast: Might be more likely PlayedForLaughs. But it's understandable why he'd act this way, you'll probably get a plant life phobia if you went through [[WhenTreesAttack what Rizzrack went through in the past and costed him his hometown and his sanity]].
* DeadlyDisc: His ultimate, ''Chakram'' fires Timbersaw's main sawblade, rendering him unable to attack until he calls it back.
* DiscOneNuke: ''Timber Chain'' and ''Whirling Death'' both deal pure damage, meaning that Timbersaw can easily dominate a lane with his AOE damage; both spells remain extremely strong and useful for most of the game.
* DynamicEntry: With low mana cost and cooldown, ''Timber Chain'' can be used to zip from tree to tree over and over again in both chase and escape scenarios.
* FaceYourFears: Someone gave him this advice once; he took it UpToEleven.
--> '''Rizzrack on anxiety management:''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/1/10/Timb_rare_01.mp3 "Someone once told me I needed to face fear to get over it, and I thought, well, why not take a step further and cut my fear into little pieces then set my fear on fire then throw the hot ash of my fear into a lake and then poison the lake - simple! "]]
* FinishingMove: ''Chakram'' decreases enemy speed proportional to the health they've lost, slowing almost-dead heroes to a crawl while dealing damage over time.
* FixedDamageAttack: ''All 3'' of his nukes deal Pure damage (though ''Whirling Death'' deals Magical damage without any trees nearby). Even if it doesn't deal Pure damage, ''Whirling Death'' also reduces an enemy's primary attribute by 15%, lowering max health on Strength heroes and armor on Agility heroes (most Intelligence heroes are already quite squishy so it doesn't matter much).
* GadgeteerGenius
* GardenOfEvil: It is strongly implied that the Vale of Augury, Rooftrellen's homeland, is connected with the attack on Rizzrack's home city.
* GogglesDoNothing: While they could be used as protection from sawdust, he's just wearing them on his "helmet".
* GrapplingHookPistol: ''Timber Chain''.
* HearingVoices
--> '''Rizzrack, killing an enemy hero:''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/0/0a/Timb_kill_13.mp3 Mm! That is one less voice in my head.]]
* ItsPersonal: PlayedForLaughs, see RoaringRampageOfRevenge.
* LevelDrain: ''Whirling Death'' will temporarily reduce the primary stat of any enemy hero hit by it by 15%. This makes him an extremely powerful counter against Strength heroes, since they would otherwise be able to shrug off his Pure damage nukes with their massive HP pools.
* LightningBruiser: His health regeneration increases successively with every hit thanks to his third ability, ''Reactive Armour''. His other two abilities focus on gradually reducing enemy stats and movement speed while boosting his own defense, leading to a DeathOfAThousandCuts combat style. He is also one of the most mobile heroes in the game with ''Timber Chain''.
* LovableCoward
* MadnessMantra: Quite a lot of his responses are this.
--> '''Rizzrack, killing an ememy hero:''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/9/9e/Timb_kill_01.mp3 "Cut cut cutcutcutcutcutcutcutcutcutcutcutcutcutcutcutcutCUUUUUT!"]]
* MiniMecha: His "saw suit".
* NervousWreck
* NoMereWindmill[=/=]ProperlyParanoid: He might look like a WindmillCrusader, unless you remember about heroes like [[WhenTreesAttack Nature's Prophet and Treant Protector]]...
** {{Irony}}: ...who are also Radiant heroes, which means Rizzrack is stuck in the same faction as his sworn enemies. You'd think that if he wanted to destroy trees, he would have joined Dire.
* PointyEars
* RingsOfDeath
* RoaringRampageOfRevenge: He went on a forest-chopping rampage after his hometown was destroyed by treants.
--> '''Rizzrack:''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/a/a0/Timb_spawn_05.mp3 "I'm not a lumberjack. This... This is personal."]]
* ScienceHero
* ShoutOut: His gray and orange vest bears some resemblance to [[VideoGame/HalfLife Gordon Freeman's HEV suit]]. He states that [[Series/MontyPythonsFlyingCircus he's not a lumberjack and he is not okay]].
* SoleSurvivor: Of his town.
* SpamAttack: Because all of Timbersaw's abilities have very short cooldowns, if he gets enough mana regeneration he can spam them indefinitely in a teamfight.
* SpinAttack: ''Whirling Death'', although it's only the saw blade in his midsection that's spinning.
* SteamPunk: His (wooden) saw-suit has a large smokestack that continually belches smoke and fire as he moves.
* UnreliableNarrator: He could actually be crazy, as he's been in an insane asylum before:
--> '''Rizzrack, meeting Dark Seer:''' [[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/1/11/Timb_ally_09.mp3 "Ah, Dark Seer. Finally someone who appreciates a wall without padding."]]
* WalkingWasteland: Because his abilities rely on destroying trees en masse, it's very easy to tell where he's been.
* WhenTreesAttack: His hometown apparently fell victim to a treant attack and he has not been the same since then.
* [[WhyDidItHaveToBeSnakes Why Did It Have To Be Trees?]]: His severe dendrophobia is very apparent. He's even afraid of the trees that aren't capable of harming him.
--> '''Rizzrack, beginning the battle:''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/9/95/Timb_begin_02.mp3 "Trees? Well nobody said anything about trees."]]
** Even better: one of his respawn lines is the trope name, word for word.
--> '''Respawning:''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/d/de/Timb_respawn_02.mp3 "Trees? Why did it have to be trees?"]]
* WhyWontYouDie: Due to ''Reactive Armor'' giving him loads of armor and HP regen, Timbersaw is extremely resistant to physical damage. His ability to reduce enemies' primary stats with ''Whirling Death'' (which is used to calculate physical damage output) and to escape quickly using ''Timber Chain'' means that unless you lock him down in place with disables and nuke him with magic spells (which don't scale well late-game), you likely aren't going to be killing him unless you're fighting him five versus one.
[[/folder]]
----
[[folder:Rigwarl, the Bristleback]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Bristleback_317.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/7/7d/Bristle_begin_03.mp3 "Time to mash some faces, I'd say."]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' TJ Ramini
''"Never one to turn his back on a fight, Rigwarl was known for battling the biggest, meanest scrappers he could get his hands on. Christened Bristleback by the drunken crowds, he waded into backroom brawls in every road tavern between Slom and Elze, until his exploits finally caught the eye of a barkeep in need of an enforcer. For a bit of brew, Bristleback was hired to collect tabs, keep the peace, and break the occasional leg or two (or five, in the case of one unfortunate web-hund). After indulging in a night of merriment during which bodily harm was meted out in equal parts upon both delinquent patrons and his own liver, Bristleback finally met his match. “Your tusks offend me, sir,” he was heard to drunkenly slur to one particularly large fellow from the northern wastes whose bill had come due. What followed was a fight for the ages. A dozen fighters jumped in. No stool was left unbroken, and in the end, the impossible happened: the tab went unpaid. Over the weeks that followed, Bristleback's wounds healed, and his quills grew back; but an enforcer's honor can be a prickly thing. He paid the tab from his own coin, vowing to track down this northerner and extract redemption. And then he did something he'd never done before--he actually trained, and in so doing made a startling discovery about himself. A smile peeled back from his teeth as he flexed his quills. Turning his back to a fight might be just the thing."''
* AchillesHeel: Unlike other Strength-based carries, Bristleback is particularly vulnerable to silences, since he needs to constantly cast spells in order to proc ''Warpath'' and ramp up ''Quill Spray'' counters on nearby enemies.
* AdaptationSpeciesChange: He used to be a quillboar in the first [=DotA=], but was changed to a porcupine creature in Dota 2.
* BadassBack: The ''Bristleback'' passive ability, which lets him take less damage from behind while still being able to retaliate with ''Quill Sprays'', both triggered by the passive and triggered manually. It's not uncommon to see Bristleback farming stacked [[EliteMook Ancients]] by walking up to them, turning his back, and spamming ''Quill Spray'' until everything is dead.
* BadassNormal: Ironically, despite having one of the highest Intelligence growths among non-Intelligence heroes, none of his abilities are magical in nature.
* TheBerserker: His playstyle revolves around charging straight into the enemy team, spamming ''Viscous Nasal Goo'' and ''Quill Spray'' everywhere to rack up ''Warpath'', and shrugging off everything the enemy throws at him with ''Bristleback''.
* TheBet: Apparently he was sent to war by the same bartender as Tusk.
--> '''Rigwarl:''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/e/ea/Bristle_rare_01.mp3 "It was a barkeep that got me into this mess. Yeah, I think I'll pay em a visit when this is done."]]
* CombatPragmatist: He uses his ''snot'' as a weapon, which certainly qualifies.
* CounterAttack: If taking damage from the rear, his namesake passive ''Bristleback'' will automatically release a ''Quill Spray''.
* DeathOfAThousandCuts: His only nuke ''Quill Spray'' is very weak, but has low cooldown and increases in power with each subsequent hit.
* EpicFlail: A huge boulder on a chain.
* EyepatchOfPower: As can be seen in his portrait.
* FantasticRacism: For whatever reason, he seriously hate the Keen (Sniper, Tinker, Gyrocopter and Clockwerk).
* GeniusBruiser: He may not look it, but he actually has ''the'' highest Int growth of any non-Intelligence hero, to the point where his actually grows faster than over half of all Intelligence heroes.
* LargeHam: Can compete with Tusk in his sheer hamminess.
* LightningBruiser: A Bristleback with maximum stacks of level 3 ''Warpath'' active will have +35% movement speed and +210 attack damage, while ''Bristleback'' reduces all of his damage taken from the rear by 40%, making him virtually invulnerable unless taking damage from the front (which isn't helped by the fastest turn rate in the game, making the passive easily abusable by a good Bristleback player).
* MagicKnight: Bristleback has the highest Intelligence growth amongst non-Intelligence heroes; he also has two cheap, spammable spells and an ultimate which synergises very well with them.
* NaturalWeapon: His quills and snot.
* NoIndoorVoice
* PunctuatedForEmphasis: Uses this ''a lot''.
--> '''Rigwarl (Killing Doom):''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/b/b8/Bristle_rival_20.mp3 "Who's. Doomed. Now."]]
* TheRival[=/=]BashBrothers: With Tusk. Both of them have several dedicated lines for meeting each other when on the same team, or killing each other otherwise.
* SneezeOfDoom: ''Viscous Nasal Goo'', which launches a ball of snot at a target.
* SpamAttack: Both ''Viscous Nasal Goo'' and ''Quill Spray'' are very spammable with their very short cooldown and low mana cost, synergising well with ''Warpath'', which increases Bristleback's damage and movement speed every time he casts a spell.
* SpikeShooter: He is able to shoot the quills from his back.
* [[SpikeBallsOfDoom Spike Ball of Doom]]: He's a living one.
* UnstoppableRage: His ultimate ''Warpath''.
--> ''Bristleback works himself up into a fury every time he casts a spell, increasing his movement speed and damage.''
* WorthyOpponent: He seems to enjoy fighting the Oglodi heroes.
[[/folder]]
----
[[folder:Ymir, the Tusk]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/tusk_full_3595.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/7/72/Tusk_rare_01.mp3 "It's a great day to do some squat thrusts and lift a barrel of fish, is it not?"]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Tom Chantler
''"It had been a brawl to remember. There stood Ymir, the Tusk, the Terror from the Barrier, the Snowball from Cobalt, the only fighter to have bested the Bristled Bruiser in a fair fight, and now the last man standing in Wolfsden Tavern. What started as a simple bar bet of supremacy ended with four regulars, a blacksmith, and six of the Frost Brigade's best soldiers writhing against the shards and splinters of almost every bottle, mug, and chair in the building. The Tusk boasted and toasted his victory as he emptied his brew.''
''No sooner had the defeated regained consciousness than the cries for double-or-nothing rang out. The Tusk was pleased at the prospect, but none could think of a bet bigger than the one he just conquered. Horrified at the damage to his tavern and desperate to avoid another brawl, the barkeep had an idea. As skilled as he was, Ymir had never taken part in a real battle, never tested himself against the indiscriminate death and chaos of war. He proposed a wager to the fighter: seek out the biggest battle he could find, survive, and win it for whichever side he chose. The stakes? The next round of drinks."''
* AdaptationSpeciesChange: He used to be known as Ymir the Tuskarr in [=DotA=]. For legal reasons, this was changed in Dota 2.
* AnAxeToGrind
* {{Angrish}}: Tends to burst into this when ''Snowball'' misses.
* BarrierWarrior: ''Ice Shards'', Tusk's first ability, create a half-circle of ice around the point of impact. It damages any enemies it passes through, and the shards at the target point cannot be pathed over.
* TheBet: Tusk's entire motivation to go out and fight ghosts, demons, and fundamental forces of the universe? Someone bet him to do it.
** ComicallySmallBribe: For a round of drinks, no less.
* BlownAcrossTheRoom: With Aghanim's Scepter, Tusk gains a fifth skill ''Walrus Kick'', which can be used to kick enemies and allies alike.
* BoisterousBruiser
* CriticalHit: ''Walrus PUNCH!'', Tusk's ultimate, hits the targeted enemy with a guaranteed 3.5x damage crit that disables the target as it flies through the air, then slows it upon landing.
** HomeRunHitter: ''Walrus PUNCH!'' temporarily sends the target flying into the air and off the screen.
** MegatonPunch[=/=]{{Shoryuken}}: If the ''Walrus PUNCH!'' finishes off an enemy, it sends the target flying up out of sight, only to fall back at ridiculous speeds moments later.
** PowerFist
* DynamicEntry: Tusk is one of the most powerful team initiators in the game, as his skills allow him to start off teamfights by placing stuns, path-blocking obstacles and speed debuffs on the enemy team, as well as assisting any teammates who want to get into the thick of the action fast but don't have an initiating item or ability to do so (such as Axe, Centaur Warrunner, Slardar, Tidehunter, and so on).
* EarlyBirdCameo: He first appeared in Dota 2 as a temporary guest announcer during 2012's Greeviling event; he was eventually released as a full-fledged hero in February 2013.
* EyepatchOfPower: With the {{Pirate}}-themed Brawler of the Glacier Sea set.
* FieldPowerEffect[=/=]HostileWeather: ''Frozen Sigil'', Tusk's third ability, creates a snowstorm which slows all enemy units' movement and attack speed within 600 range.
** GeometricMagic
* GrievousHarmWithABody: With the Whisky the Stout Artifact Immortal, Tusk will use a freaking penguin when he uses ''Ice Shards''. Which still deals damage and creates the half-circle of ice, of course.
* HumanSnowball: ''Snowball'', Tusk's second ability, rolls Tusk up into a snowball that launches itself at a target after a short (and optional) delay, damaging and stunning any enemies it passes through as well as the final target if it connects. It can also be used to carry teammates into the middle of a group of enemies, dealing more damage and moving faster the more allied heroes are added to it.
** DashAttack
** HomingBoulders: ''Snowball'' is a unit targeting attack, meaning that it will continue to roll towards its target even if that target turns in a completely different direction.
** RollingAttack
* AnIcePerson
* LargeHam: An exceptional example even among Dota 2 heroes.
** BigFun
** UpToEleven: He has ''eighty-three'' unique response lines just for ''Walrus PUNCH!''.
--> '''Tusk:''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/3/39/Tusk_superpunch_attack_81.mp3 "Here's a bunch of punches!"]]
* MadeOfIndestructium: Heroes inside a ''Snowball'' are completely invulnerable during the delay and the roll. Yes, in Dota [[http://gfycat.com/EuphoricIdealisticHoneybee snow is a stronger force than time]].
* MagicKnight: Tusk's physical damage scales decently by itself, and can completely wreck enemies when combined with his ultimate. His other abilities also make him a powerful crowd controller and initiator that help set up teamfights for his team.
* NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: His real name, Ymir, is the name of the Norse King of the Ice Giants.
* NonStandardSkillLearning: Buying Aghanim's Scepter grants Tusk a fifth skill, ''Walrus Kick''.
* NotTheIntendedUse: ''Snowball'''s original purpose is to gather your team and roll them into the enemy. However, since it also grants invulnerability to all units inside it, ''Snowball'' sees much more use in high-level gameplay as a way to buy time for allies to react, or to dodge abilities like Gyrocopter's ''Call Down''.
* PettingZooPerson: A seal, in this case.
* RedBaron: He's known as the 'Terror from the Barrier'.
* TheRival: The "Bristled Bruiser" in his backstory that he beat is Bristleback, who he shares several rival and ally lines with (depending on which side they're on).
* ShoutOut: Mostly in the form of ''Walrus PUNCH!'' battle cries:
--> '''Tusk:''' [[VideoGame/FZero Falcon]] [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/9/9d/Tusk_superpunch_attack_53.mp3 Punch!]]
--> '''Tusk:''' [[VideoGame/DoubleDragon Double Dragon]] [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/d/d6/Tusk_superpunch_attack_79.mp3 Punch Punch!]]
* SituationalSword: Aghanim's Scepter is this for Tusk. Against low-mobility melee carries like Sven, Ursa or Lifestealer the constant slows from ''Frozen Sigil'', ''Walrus PUNCH!'' and ''Walrus Kick'' combined with the block from ''Ice Shards'' and the knockback itself, all of which bypass BKB, will kite them to death and render them useless. However, it is only good for kiting - and nothing else. If the enemy carry is ranged or otherwise not vulnerable to kiting then there's no point to get Aghanim's Scepter over Force Staff, which provides a similar effect for much less gold.
* SoProudOfYou: He acts like a doting parent to Crystal Maiden. Though not mentioned in either of their backstories, it's implied they used to be friends while Crystal Maiden was training under an ice wizard.
--> '''Tusk, dying to Crystal Maiden, proudly:''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/1/1d/Tusk_death_17.mp3 "Isn't she something."]]
* SummonMagic: ''Frozen Sigil'', which summons a controllable sigil.
* TransformationIsAFreeAction: Tusk and any allies that are within a ''Snowball'' are invulnerable for the duration of the delay and the roll, which can last for a minimum of 3 seconds (excluding the rollout). ''Snowball'' is actually less used to roll into the enemy, and is more often (ab)used for its free invulnerability to dodge certain abilities.
* WrittenSoundEffect: '''WALRUS PUNCH!''' appears above the target, taking up most of the screen if it was the last hit.
* YouWillNotEvadeMe: Besides being a very powerful initiator, Tusk can also pursue enemies over long distances or prevent them from escaping.
** ''Ice Shards'' can block escape paths for up to 5 seconds upon impact. Used properly it can also lock in enemies within the barrier, forcing them to move backwards to escape.
** ''Snowball'' allows Tusk and any allies to home in on a fleeing target, gaining additional speed with every additional person in the snowball. And once the snowball does connect, it stuns the target, stopping it in its tracks.
** ''Frozen Sigil'' has flying movement, so it can be moved fairly easily to place its slow debuff on enemies, hampering their ability to run away.
** ''Walrus PUNCH!'' not only disables the target by sending it flying, but the following slow also prevents the victim from running away reliably.
[[/folder]]
----
[[folder:Elder Titan, the Worldsmith]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ElderTitan_1039.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/f/fa/Elder_battlebegins_01.mp3 "On this alone of seven planes the final war is fought."]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Jim French
''"Well may you ask, "How did this world take its form?" Why of all the worlds in creation, has this one its strange properties, its diverse and motley collection of creatures, cultures and lore? "The answer," One whispers, "lies with the Titans."''
''These original progenitors were there near the Beginning--if not actual witnesses to the creation, then born with it still echoing in their ears. Stamped with the earliest energies of the universe, they wished nothing more than to continue as creators themselves. Thus they bent to the task of shaping matter to their will: hammering and heating, bending and blasting. And when matter proved less challenging than they liked, they turned their tools upon themselves, reshaping their minds and reforging their spirits until they had become beings of great endurance. Reality itself became the ultimate object of their smithing. Yet, along the way, they sometimes erred. In cases of great ambition, mistakes are unavoidable.''
''The one we know as the Elder Titan was a great innovator, one who studied at the forge of creation. In honing his skills, he shattered something that could never be repaired, only thrown aside. He fell into his own broken world, a shattered soul himself. There he dwelt among the jagged shards and fissured planes, along with other lost fragments that had sifted down through the cracks in the early universe. And this is why the world we know resembles an isle of castaways, survivors of a wreck now long forgotten. Forgotten, that is, by all but the One who blames himself. He spends his time forever seeking a way to accomplish the repairs, that he might rejoin the parts of his broken soul, that we and the world alike might all be mended. This is the One we know as Elder Titan."''
* AdaptationSpeciesChange: He was a Tauren in the first ''[=DotA=]'', though for the sequel he was changed to an original design for copyright reasons.
* TheAtoner
* BonusBoss: Before being added in [=DotA=] version 6.60, Tauren Chieftain (the former name of Elder Titan) was a secret bonus boss in 6.59b.
* CatchingSomeZs: Around enemies put to sleep by ''Echo Stomp''.
* ChargedAttack: ''Echo Stomp'' must be channeled for 1.4 seconds before it's released.
* DefogOfWar: As the ''Astral Spirit'' can move through all terrain, it can be used as a scouting mechanism to give vision over anywhere it walks. This makes it crucial for scouting the high ground around the enemy base's tier 3 towers for enemy positioning (as well as gathering bonus damage and movement speed for Elder Titan for any enemies it hits).
* DifficultButAwesome: Many of Elder Titan's spells take skill, timing and micromanagement to use, but utilized properly he can inflict heavy amounts of damage to the enemy team.
** ''Echo Stomp'' channels for 1.4 seconds before it lands the sleep, meaning that alert enemies will often be able to easily dodge it, and it can be easily interrupted by player damage, foiling good initiations. However, it has a fairly wide area of effect, so good positioning of the Astral Spirit (such as in an area that the enemy must walk through in order to escape) will knock the enemy out for up to 5 seconds, on the same tier as Mirana's ''Sacred Arrow''.
** ''Astral Spirit'' lasts for a fairly short duration, and only moves as fast as Elder Titan himself, meaning that unless he builds movement speed items it has a hard time catching foes. However, it can move over impassable terrain, so good players can sneak it through woods to behind the enemy, and then recall it into them to cast ''Echo Stomp''. Additionally, savvy players can pass the spirit through jungle camps, not just creep waves, and align themselves so that on its return it passes through even more targets, meaning that smart Elder Titan players can snag upwards of 150+ bonus damage with good planning.
** It takes practice to get used to hitting with ''Earth Splitter'' - the 3.14 second delay is usually enough time for enemies to avoid it if they are not slowed or disabled. However, it is a very powerful scaling nuke that remains extremely useful throughout the entire game, and can be combined with ''Echo Stomp'' to catch multiple enemy heroes in its wake.
* DishingOutDirt: ''Earth Splitter''.
* DropTheHammer
* EarthquakesCauseFissures: His ultimate, ''Earth Splitter'', creates a fissure that expands very slowly, but upon completing its travel length will severely damage any enemies that happen to be in the area, on top of lining them up with the fissure and slowing them down, making them easy targets for finishing off with [=AoE=] spells.
* EveryoneCallsHimBarkeep: He is only known as the Elder Titan.
* FixedDamageAttack: ''Earth Splitter'' deals damage equal to 35% of the targets' max HP (17.5% Physical, 17.5% Magical).
* HerdHittingAttack: All of Elder Titan's skills deal damage over large areas and make him a very powerful hero in teamfights. Should the enemy team ever bunch up, they stand the danger of all getting hit by the ''Astral Spirit'' (giving Elder Titan a massive amount of bonus damage and movement speed when it returns), getting knocked out by ''Echo Stomp'', and then losing over a third of their maximum HP as ''Earth Splitter'' implodes on them due to Elder Titan reducing their defenses with his ''Natural Order'' aura, all the while he's ready to start chasing and right-clicking them down the moment the crack implodes (along with his teammates).
* HornedHumanoid
* JackOfAllStats: Since Elder Titan is fairly level- and farm-independent (often all he needs is level 11, some mana and a mobility item), and has a good laning stage, he can be played in almost all positions from the solo off-laner to mid to safe lane support - hard carrying being the only role he can't fulfill.
* LeadTheTarget: Both ''Echo Stomp'' and ''Earth Splitter'' have fairly long delays and can be easily avoided, but if pulled off correctly they might sleep enemies for 5 seconds and cut down their HP by 35% respectively.
* LightningBruiser: ''Astral Spirit'' gives Elder Titan bonus damage and movement speed for each enemy it passes through. In the case of enemy heroes, it gives him +5% movement speed and +40 damage per hero, so catching four heroes with the projection (to say nothing of any creeps that happen to be standing around) will give him a minimum of +20% movement speed and +160 attack damage, which, combined with his ''Natural Order'' aura, means that [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ru7V7GETcwY he'll be hitting almost as hard as if he were carrying a Divine Rapier]].
* ALoadOfBull
* LoinCloth
* MagicKnight: Because he can augment his physical damage by using ''Astral Spirit'' and negate his foes' armor with ''Natural Order'', an Elder Titan with large amounts of attack speed can beat down enemy heroes alarmingly quickly if he catches enough of them with his spirit. His array of disables and nukes also allows him to set up kills on the entire enemy team when not built in a right-clicking role.
* MightyGlacier
* MirrorRoutine: Long before making the ''Astral Spirit'' a controllable second unit, the [=DotA=] 1 ''Ancestral Spirit'' would mimic Tauren Chieftain's movements, moving in reverse directions related to him (if you move backwards, it would move away from you, and if you moved left from the casting point it would follow you).
* NiceJobBreakingItHero: He is responsible for the war between Radiant and Dire by shattering the Mad Moon.
--> '''Elder Titan:''' [[http://dota2.gamepedia.com/images/0/09/Elder_rare_01.mp3 "The Mad Moon rises unbroken above a fledgling world… but only in my dreams."]]
* PhysicalGod
* PowerNullifier[=/=]FieldPowerEffect[=/=]DamageIncreasingDebuff: Elder Titan's third ability and passive, ''Natural Order'', reduces the base armor and any armor gained through Agility of any nearby enemy to zero, on top of effectively nullifying their base magic resistance. This makes him an extremely powerful counter against Agility carries, who tend to rely on their Agility-boosted armor to reduce incoming physical damage, tend not to have the largest health pools due to not being Strength heroes, and are generally already weak against magic nukes anyways.
* SelfDuplication: ''Astral Spirit'' allows Elder Titan to safely initiate teamfights from afar, or to snipe escaping enemy heroes.
* ShockwaveStomp: Elder Titan's first skill, ''Echo Stomp'', channels for a short duration, and upon landing damages all nearby enemy units and knocks them unconscious, causing them to wake up only when the debuff expires or they take player-based damage. It's a unique disable in that it can be used to pick off enemies one by one without worrying about dealing with the rest unless someone casts an [=AoE=] spell.
* ShoutOut: His skills' lore has references to Literature/TheBible.
* SomeDexterityRequired: Playing Elder Titan well requires good micromanagement of the ''Astral Spirit''. It's not nearly as heavy as that needed for other heroes (like Meepo or Chen) however and you won't die if you mess it up.
* SummonMagic
* SupernaturalGoldEyes
* TelephonePolearm: Not only his [[DropTheHammer hammer]], but an [[UpToEleven even bigger]] totem on his back.
* TimeAbyss
* TribalFacepaint
* VampiricDraining: Any unit that gets touched by ''Astral Spirit'' will take damage, and upon returning to Elder Titan, he gains movement speed and attack damage for a short duration based on how many creeps and heroes it managed to pass through.
* WalkingShirtlessScene
[[/folder]]
----
[[folder:Tresdin, the Legion Commander]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/legion_commander_small_1200.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/a/ac/Legcom_spawn_05.mp3 "Whatever they brought, it won't. Be. Enough."]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Merle Dandridge
''"They came without warning. Within the city walls of Stonehall there came a rumble and a terrible sound, and from blackness unknown came a force of beasts numbering beyond count, wielding flame and foul sorcery, slaying and snatching mothers and sons to dark purpose. Of once-mighty Stonehall's military strength only the Bronze Legion, led by the indomitable Commander Tresdin, was near enough to answer the call of battle. They rode into their city, fighting through bloodstained alleyways and burning markets, cutting their way through the monstrous throng to the source of the sudden invasion: an ethereal rift within the city square, and at its precipice thundered their dreaded champion.''
''Enwrapped in a corrosive shimmer, the leader of the abyssal horde swung its massive blade, cleaving a legionnaire in two as his flesh began to spoil. Tresdin lifted her blood-stained sword and settled her sights on the beast. It turned, smiling at her through a maze of teeth. Heedless of the battle raging around them, they charged one another.''
''Deflecting blow after blow, the pair danced their deadly duel as the Bronze Legion met its end around them. Tresdin leapt forward as her foe swung its sword to meet her. The odds turned. The attack smashed into Tresdin suddenly, a brutal thrust from the side, but even as her balance slipped she rallied her strength for another stroke. Blade scraped on blade, beyond the hilt to the gnarled paw below, carving it in two in a fearsome spray of sparks and blood. The vile audience looked on in astonishment as she pressed the attack, driving her blade through her foe's flesh into the stampeding heart within. With a scream that split the clouds above, the beast erupted in a torrent of gore and anguish. The stygian portal wavered, the power sustaining the chasm beyond vanishing as suddenly as it had appeared. The remaining invaders fell quickly to Stonehall steel.''
''Though victorious, the survivors saw little to celebrate: the city lay in ruins, and survivors were few. Fires continued to spread. Unfurling her banners of war, Tresdin gathered what allies she could. Her anger smoldered as she pledged brutal vengeance upon the forces of the abyss, and damned be any who would dare stand in her way."''
* ActionGirl
** AffirmativeActionGirl: Tresdin was a man in the original ''[=DotA=]'', but was changed to a woman in the porting process to Dota 2.
** GenderFlip
* AnAxeToGrind: ''VideoGame/{{Warcraft}}'' [=DotA=] only.
* BearsAreBadNews: If her quotes are to be trusted, Tresdin seems to be even more distrustful to bears than any other creatures. Normally when killing a hero, she'll say "Never Trust An X" in normal speed, but against Ursa or Lone Druid, she will have a small pause before saying 'bear' in disgust.
-->''[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/8/83/Legcom_rival_35.mp3 Never trust a... BEAR!!]]''
* TheBerserker
* BladeOnAStick: Tresdin's weapon, a large polearm.
* BloodKnight: So much she makes Luna look almost peaceful!
* BringIt: ''Duel'''s animation consists of this.
* CombatMedic: ''Press The Attack'' greatly boosts the target's regeneration.
* ConservationOfNinjutsu: ''Overwhelming Odds'' deals more damage and grants Tresdin more speed for every enemy caught within it.
* CoolButInefficient: Getting Aghanim's Scepter will cause ''Duel'' to become a literal DuelToTheDeath: the combatants are locked in the duel until one dies. The problem is there's no point to get it on Legion Commander: she's a right-click carry, making Aghanim's Scepter suboptimal, and if she can't kill her target quickly enough in the ''Duel'' duration then she'll more often than not need to be able to escape, which Aghanim's Scepter completely disables.
* CounterAttack: ''Moment of Courage'' immediately procs an extra attack on whatever enemy Legion Commander is attacking (most often the one that hit her) whenever she's hit by an auto-attack, and lifesteal a portion of that attack.
* DarkerAndEdgier: Her backstory has gone through two drafts, with the first one being significantly less dark than the current one.
* DifficultButAwesome: Knowing when to start a ''Duel'' is one of the most important things a Legion Commander needs to know. Done correctly, Tresdin can easily [[ForMassiveDamage double her base attack damage without items]] before the match is over; done poorly, she'll fall off easily late game, or worse, the other team will have gained plenty of free attack damage. As a result, picking targets requires knowing if she will survive the fight, knowing that she will not be targeted by other members of the enemy team in the interim, and whether the enemy can outclass her without spells or items.
* DuelToTheDeath: Her ultimate forces an enemy hero to fight her in one-on-one combat; neither character can cast spells for its duration. The winner of the fight gains a permanent damage boost.
* FantasticRacism: She's something of a bigot towards non-humans, as evidenced in her ''Duel'' lines or when killing a rival.
** Part of the MythologyGag with her voice lines; [=DotA=]'s Legion Commander used the model and quotes of [[AntiHero Grand Marshal Garithos]], another example of FantasticRacism and a pro-human supremacist.
* FourStarBadass
* HeWhoFightsMonsters: With the Blades of Voth Domosh, swords made by a trickster armorer, she becomes a demonic being herself.
** DualWielding
** FireballEyeballs
** GlowingEyesOfDoom
** MonsterKnight
** TaintedVeins
** WreathedInFlames: Her banners and parts of armor become permanently lit on fire.
* HealingFactor: ''Press The Attack'' greatly increases the target's HP regeneration for a few seconds.
* HerdHittingAttack: ''Overwhelming Odds''. It gains bonus damage for every enemy within its area of effect.
* HonorBeforeReason: ''Duel'' forces both Tresdin and her target to attack each other, regardless of whether they'd survive the resulting fight.
* HotBlooded
* JustYouAndMeAndMyGuards: While ''Duel'' forces both Tresdin and her target to attack each other, [[AintNoRule there's nothing stopping their teammates or summoned units from getting involved.]]
* KnightInSourArmor
* LeeroyJenkins: While successfully winning duels increases her damage, losing duels increases the damage of her enemy. A Legion Commander that continually loses Duels can quickly buff the enemy team to a point where it is nearly impossible to battle back.
* LifeDrain: ''Moment of Courage'' is one of the highest rated lifesteal abilities in the game, allowing Legion Commander to regain up to 80% of the damage she deals as health.
* LightningBruiser: Tresdin has plenty of health, plus the ability to attack and heal quickly with ''Press The Attack'' and ''Moment of Courage'', move faster with ''Overwhelming Odds''. And since she already has a built-in source of damage in the form of ''Duel'', she often needs very few damage items (so she can win ''Duel''s in the mid game) and can focus on durability, disables and mobility.
* MageKiller: While under the effect of ''Duel'', neither Tresdin or her target can cast spells or use items, forcing enemy mages to rely on their ([[KungFuWizard typically]]) weak right-click attack in order to survive. Flavor and lore-wise, some of her dialogue also highlights her disdain of mages.
* MythologyGag: A lot of her voice over lines are call backs to Tresdin in the original [=DotA=].
** Many of her killing blow lines go 'never trust a *insert whatever race/class the killed character was*'. The original Tresdin's dialogue was based on the ''VideoGame/WarcraftIII'' character Grand Marshal Garithos, who was a [[FantasticRacism pro-human racist]] and famously had the joke line 'never trust an elf!'
*** Some of them are pretty ridiculous, which was probably Valve's intent. "Never trust a fish" when killing one of the Slithereen heroes and "Never trust a tree" when killing Treant Protector or Nature's Prophet, for example. If she kills Ursa or Lone Druid she'll say "Never trust a...[[LargeHam BEAR!]]" And then there are certain heroes such as Faceless Void and Morphling whose death prompts the line "Never trust a--what are you anyway?"
** Likewise, Tresdin's old male model (also based on Garithos) had a prominent mustache and beard, and rode a horse. In this game, she has dialogue complimenting people for their mustaches, beards, and mounts.
* PowerNullifier: During a ''Duel'', both Tresdin and her opponent are prohibited from using spells and item active abilities.
* PunctuatedForEmphasis
* RainOfArrows: ''Overwhelming Odds''.
* ScreamingWarrior
* ShoutOut:
** One of her rare lines references a famous line from the VideoGame/{{Fallout}} series.
--> [[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/2/23/Legcom_rare_02.mp3 "War. War always changes."]]
** Another references US General George Patton's famous WWII speech.
--> [[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/b/b5/Legcom_rare_03.mp3 "You won't win the war by dying for your Ancient. You'll win by making the other dumb, unfed bastard die for theirs!"]]
* TheSmurfettePrinciple: Tresdin is the only female Strength hero in the game.
* SociopathicHero
** However, her sound files seem to have hidden selection of dialog implying she is some type of Atoner when having a certain weapon equipped, like with the Blades of Voth Domosh.
* SoloClass: Legion Commander's playstyle revolves around solo killing as many enemy heroes as possible with ''Duel'' and snowball out of control with the bonus damage.
* WeaksauceWeakness: Bane as a whole can ruin her ''Duel'' attempts, but ''Nightmare'' (a spell that could be learned as early as the start of the match) in particular can shut her down due to the invulnerability and sleep status that gets passed around between the duelists every second, resulting in a stalemate that can only be broken by the duel timing out [[HoistByTheirOwnPetard (which ironically enough turns her Aghamin's Scepter buff AGAINST her)]], by outside intervention, or by one of the two duelists dying from the ScratchDamage that ''Nightmare'' inflicts. [[https://youtu.be/yxET_m-edrY?t=35 Case in point.]]
* WhyWontYouDie: With enough farm and Duel victories, Legion Commander can be extremely hard to bring down in a fight since ''Moment of Courage'' allows her to lifesteal a large amount of HP (which gets more effective the more Duels she's won), and ''Press the Attack'' can remove damaging debuffs from her while also increasing her attack speed and giving her a hefty HP regen buff. With enough attack speed and damage (and maybe even a lifesteal attack modifier), she can potentially lifesteal more HP back than the enemy can deal against her.
[[/folder]]
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[[folder:Kaolin, the Earth Spirit]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/earth_spirit_2079.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/d/d7/Earthspi_firstblood_02.mp3 "In war, a fool's first lesson is his last."]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Nolan North
''Deep amid the Upland crags and cliffs there runs a seam of sacred jade long foresworn by highland minders. From this rare material, the likeness of the great general Kaolin was carved and buried at the head of a stone funerary army ten thousand strong--a force of soldiers and holy men, jesters and acrobats, carved by crafstmen and entombed for millennia in the dark embrace of the Earth. What the craftsmen had not known was that within the strange seam of jade flowed the spirit of the Earth itself--an elemental force at one with the planet. When the force within the carved jade found itself cut off from the life's blood of the world, it gathered its strength over the course of a thousand years and dug itself free and into the light. Now the great Kaolin Earth Spirit strides the Upland roads, fighting for the spirit of the Earth; and in times of need calls forth remnants of his buried army still locked in the loving embrace of the soil.''
* AdaptationSpeciesChange: In the original [=DotA=] Kaolin was a Pandaren, but this had to be changed for Dota 2 as Pandaren are owned by Blizzard.
* AscendedMeme: One of Earth Spirit's responses when meeting an allied Spirit Breaker is this:
-->'''Earth Spirit:''' [[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/f/fe/Earthspi_ally_07.mp3 You aren't half bad, for a space cow.]]
* AsTheGoodBookSays: Upon death, he can sometimes say "The [[IncrediblyLamePun spirit]] is willing, but the flesh is weak."
* BlownAcrossTheRoom: ''Boulder Smash'' can be targeted on any kind of unit, enemies and allies and creeps and heroes alike, as well as on Stone Remnants. It can be used on enemies to either force them away (useful in the case of a melee carry) or to push them towards your teammates to beat down on.
** FastballSpecial: Cast on an ally, it can be used for initiation purposes (800 range is farther than a Force Staff can push). Cast on ''Stone Remnant''s, it can be used to snipe (as they get more than double the range) and stun enemies.
** HeroicSacrifice: One under-appreciated aspect of ''Boulder Smash'' is that it can be used to save allies in situations where you and a teammate are being chased down by the enemy team. Since it can be used to push the target in a certain direction, you can cast it to knock an ally up/down a cliff or further towards safety, [[TakeMeInstead giving yourself the enemy's undivided attention]].
* DifficultButAwesome: All of his skills require management of your stone supply (it takes ''three minutes'' to build up a full 6-stone supply from scratch), '''very''' precise and careful positioning, lining up the shots, and chaining your combos. In particular, ''Boulder Smash'' requires exquisite aiming since, if you stand just a few pixels in a different angle away from a non-Remnant target move your mouse cursor even a few pixels off-course when kicking a Remnant, you can end up hitting the target in a completely different direction. In addition, initiating with ''Rolling Boulder'' can be extremely punishing since it will only stop when colliding with a hero, meaning that missing can send you way beyond your target and potentially feed the enemy a kill. However, masterful Earth Spirits can stun from long range, snipe escaping enemy heroes and give teammates additional initiation power using ''Boulder Smash''; initiate or escape up or down cliffs and stop fleeing enemy heroes in their tracks with ''Rolling Boulder''; save allies from pursuing enemies or silence an entire enemy team with ''Geomagnetic Grip''; and unleash an astonishing amount of magical damage, debuffs and disables on the whole enemy team using all of the above combined with ''Magnetize''. His pub winrate is consistently extremely low, but he is a very effective hero to boost MMR for people who can play him, and he's not available in Captains Mode for a reason.
* DishingOutDirt: He can summon stone sculptures from the earth and manipulate them.
* DynamicEntry: ''Rolling Boulder'' combined with a ''Stone Remnant'' lets him charge onto an enemy, damaging and slowing their movement speed for a couple seconds after impact. It's the third longest ranged non-ulti initiating ability in the game (beat out by Spirit Breaker's ''Charge of Darkness'' and Puck's ''Illusory Orb''). ''Boulder Smash'' can be used on allies for the same purpose.
* FaceOfAThug: Looks rather mean, but is actually a nice guy.
* FantasyCounterpartCulture: His backstory is strongly based on the famous Terracotta Army of Ancient China.
* GeniusBruiser: While his base Intelligence is rather mediocre, Kaolin ties with Timbersaw for having the third-highest Intelligence growth of all Strength heroes (beat out by Bristleback and Undying), and also beats all Agility heroes in this category save Sniper. Combined with the comparatively low mana cost of his spells and the low cooldown on all but his ulti, late game he can cast his spells as often as needed so long as he has the Stone Remnants to back it up.
* GlowingEyes
* {{Golem}}
** LivingStatue: Or, more accurately, a Celestial possessing a statue.
** RockMonster
* GradualGrinder: His ultimate, ''Magnetize'', deals heavy damage over time for 6 seconds, and its duration is refreshed each time an enemy comes in proximity of a Stone Remnant (on top of applying the debuff to other nearby enemies at the same time), allowing for over 30 seconds of continuous magical damage.
** BodyHorror: The ability lore for ''Magnetize'' has some pretty frightening implications.
--> At the Earth Spirit’s call, the minerals in the blood and bones of his enemies rebel against the bodies they find themselves in.
** {{Synchronization}}: ''Magnetize'' passes on slows and silences from ''Rolling Boulder'' and ''Geomagnetic Grip'', respectively, to all Magnetized heroes when one is affected by it. With maximum level ''Rolling Boulder'' and enough Stone Remnants, it's possible to apply an 80% movement speed slow on the entire enemy team half the time, even though ''Rolling Boulder'' can only hit one target at a time.
* GrievousHarmWithABody: ''Boulder Smash'' will damage all enemies that the smashed unit passes through, whether the smashed unit is friendly or enemy. ''Geomagnetic Grip'' can only be used on Stone Remnants and allies, but can be combined with ''Boulder Smash'' using a single Stone Remnant or friendly unit.
* HerdHittingAttack: Both ''Boulder Smash'' and ''Geomagnetic Grip'' can be used to stun and silence enemies in a very large area of effect (''Boulder Smash'' is the second longest ranged stun in the entire game, while ''Geomagnetic Grip'' is the longest ranged non-ultimate silence), meaning that with good aim and crafty positioning it is possible to apply the stun or silence to most of the enemy team. Additionally, since ''Magnetize'' allows Kaolin to place the slow and silence debuffs from his abilities on all Magnetized heroes, you can slow and silence ''the entire enemy team.'' OhCrap indeed.
* ImprovisedWeapon: The Stone Remnants are only consumed when used for ''Rolling Boulder'' and ''Magnetize'', and in the latter case stays on the field for 5 seconds after applying the ''Magnetize'' debuff on nearby enemies. This means that a Stone Remnant that you used for a spell up to two minutes earlier will stay on the field, allowing crafty Earth Spirits to use them multiple times and in multiple teamfights long after the enemy has forgotten about them.
** ''Boulder Smash'' can be cast on both enemies and allies, and ''Geomagnetic Grip'' can be cast on allies (including creeps). This means that not only can you improvise using leftover Stone Remnants, you can use nearby creeps to lay extra damage down with ''Boulder Smash''.
* MagicKnight: He has great survivability, but low physical damage output, relying on powerful skills instead. His Intelligence growth is also the third-highest amongst Strength heroes and fourth-highest amongst non-Intelligence heroes (only beaten by Bristleback, Sniper and Undying).
* NonStandardSkillLearning: Earth Spirit is one of the only heroes in the game that has an "innate" skill; ''Stone Remnant'' becomes available at the start of the game along with one other (normal) skill but can't be levelled further. ''Stone Remnant'' is useless by itself and must be used in tandem with his other skills to form strong combos. He also has a sixth skill, ''Enchant Remnant'', unlocked by purchasing Aghanim's Scepter.
* LimitedLoadout[=/=]TooAwesomeToUse: The most unique aspect of Earth Spirit gameplay is that you have to be extremely careful with your Stone Remnant supply, as opposed to your mana pool, because using too many of them in small skirmishes and ganks can render you useless in a major teamfight. This means that you may be forced to let a fleeing enemy escape just to conserve a Stone Remnant, since you'll need that Stone Remnant to pull off your full combo on the enemy team later.
* PowerTrio: He forms one with Storm Spirit and Ember Spirit.
* RollingAttack: ''Rolling Boulder'' turns Kaolin into a boulder that picks up speed and distance if he hits a Stone Remnant along the way. It stops only when it reaches its full distance or it connects with an enemy hero, greatly slowing the enemy if a Stone Remnant is used. What's more, it stops Kaolin on the opposite side of the impact, meaning that you're in a prime position to use ''Boulder Smash'' to punch the enemy hero back the way you came from.
* SelectiveMagnetism: He can magnetize enemies to the ground or pull rocks and allies toward him.
* SomeDexterityRequired: Earth Spirit is a high APM hero, as his skills are very low cooldown and you may need to summon multiple Stone Remnants in the midst of a teamfight to keep your combo going (all while casting your spells), to say nothing of re-using old Stone Remnants and factoring in item abilities.
* TakenForGranite: ''Enchant Remnant'', an extra ability that is granted when Earth Spirit purchases Aghanim's Scepter, temporarily turns a target hero into a Stone Remnant (making them invulnerable in the process) that can be used to fuel his other abilities. What's so notable about it is that it can be cast on ''enemy heroes'' as well as allies, which can allow Earth Spirit not only to stop an enemy hero in their tracks, but also to reposition them like a Stone Remnant and effectively remove them from a teamfight or greatly displace them in a gank.
* TelephonePolearm: His weapon is a rock pole twice his height with a flexible midsection, [[InstantChucks allowing the use as giant nunchucks]].
* YouWillNotEvadeMe: Earth Spirit is one of only two heroes in the game with both a stun and a silence (Puck being the other), and can cast both in an [=AoE=]. Toss in ''Rolling Boulder'''s slow with the Stone Remnant, and he has a huge amount of disable potential, to say nothing of being able to apply the slow and silence to possibly the whole enemy team.
** ''Rolling Boulder'' can be used to catch up to fleeing enemies easily (and drastically slow them down with a Stone Remnant). And because it places Earth Spirit on the other side of the target, it can then be followed up with ''Boulder Smash'' to force them back in the direction they were fleeing, most often where your other teammates are.
[[/folder]]
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[[folder:Phoenix]]
[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/phoenix_2024_5039.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:[-[[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/d/da/Phoenix_bird_victory.mp3 "SCREE!"]]-] ]]
->'''Voiced by: ''' Itself
''Alone across an untouched darkness gleamed the Keeper's first sun, a singular point of conscious light fated to spread warmth into the empty void. Through aeons beyond count this blinding beacon set to coalescing its incalculable energy before bursting forth the cataclysmic flare of supernova. From this inferno raced new beacons, star progeny identical to its parent, who journeyed an unlit ocean and settled in constellatory array. In time, they too would be made to propagate through supernova flame. So would this dazzling cycle of birth and rebirth repeat until all skies hewn of Titan toil deigned to twinkle and shine.''
''By this ageless crucible the star that mortals would come to call Phoenix collapsed into being, and like its ancestors was thrust into an endless cosmos to find a place among its stellar brethren. Yet curiosity toward that which the dimming elders comfort in the darkness consumed the fledgling, and so over long cycles it inquired and studied. It learned that among worlds both whole and broken would soon stir a nexus of remarkable variety locked in an enduring conflict of cosmic consequence, a plane which would find itself in need of more influence than a dying sun's distant rays could provide. Thus this infant son of suns took terrestrial form, eagerly travelling to shine its warmth upon those who may need it most, and perhaps seize upon its solar destiny.''
* AchillesHeel: Even if Phoenix places all of its debuffs correctly on the enemy team prior to using ''Supernova'', players have to be wary of heroes with targeted debuff removals or attack speed steroids, since they can dispel the ''Fire Spirits'' attack speed debuff and then quickly right-click down the egg by themselves. Examples of this include Legion Commander's ''Press the Attack'', any fast-attacking hero with a Black King Bar, or a Sniper with a Mask of Madness who stays out of the initial fight and doesn't get hit with any debuffs at all.
* BirthDeathJuxtaposition: It is ThePhoenix after all, especially when he uses his ultimate.
* BonusBoss: Before being added in [=DotA=] version 6.70, Phoenix was a secret bonus boss in 6.69.
* CastFromHitPoints: His first three abilities cost a fraction of his health to activate. His ultimate, ''Supernova'', takes the whole bar, and then gives it back if you survive.
** PercentDamageAttack: Inverted, the cost of his non-ultimate spells are all based on his current HP. This means that while summoning ''Fire Spirits'' and performing ''Icarus Dive'' at full health will shave off almost a third of your maximum health, doing so when you're below 50% HP will cost significantly less. This means that as long as he has mana he can cast any of his spells regardless of what the HP cost is, and he can cast ''Icarus Dive'' no matter what since it costs no mana.
* CoolMask: It's hard to see due to textures and coloring, but Phoenix [[http://i.imgur.com/N9DJ1dO.png actually is wearing a mask]].
* DeathOfAThousandCuts[=/=]GradualGrinder: While Phoenix is classified as a Nuker, none of his spells can do any burst damage. Instead, his abilities deal large amounts of damage over time on top of the debuffs, making him extremely deadly in teamfights where the enemy can't reach him.
* DeathOrGloryAttack: ''Supernova'' will result in either refreshed abilities and a load of damage to the enemy (on top of a stun), or death if the enemy can destroy the egg.
* DifficultButAwesome: In general, playing Phoenix requires good aiming and mechanical skills, as well as health management since all of his spells cost HP in order to use. However, played right, Phoenix can be a very mobile nuker who can apply very strong slow and damage-over-time debuffs to the entire enemy team, swinging teamfights by himself.
** ''Fire Spirits'' have a very small [=AoE=] and require you to aim well in order for them to connect, in addition to staggering the casting in order to get the most out of all four spirits (since it's a damage over time ability, hitting an enemy twice with the spirits only refreshes the debuff duration). However, once it connects, it completely neutralises any autoattacker and does strong damage over time.
** ''Sun Ray'' leaves you completely vulnerable and slow during its duration while costing HP, but used wisely it can allow you to damage enemies while healing your allies, and also grants you the ability to move through impassable terrain.
** ''Supernova'' requires impeccable positioning and timing to get the most out of - bad Phoenix players will probably suffer humiliating deaths thanks to poorly placing the egg. Done right, you deal upwards of 1000 damage on top of a stun, in a whopping 1000 AOE.
* DynamicEntry: ''Icarus Dive''.
* EmpathicHealing: ''Sun Ray'' heals allies that it hits and drains Phoenix's health every second it's active.
* FixedDamageAttack: ''Sun Ray'' deals additional damage that scales with targets' max HP.
* AFormYouAreComfortableWith: He's actually a star. This becomes more apparent during ''Supernova''.
* FrickingLaserBeams: ''Sun Ray''.
* GreatEscape[=/=]SuperPersistentPredator: ''Icarus Dive'' is considered one of the most powerful escape/chasing spells in the game, since it can displace Phoenix by 1400 range very quickly (more than a Blink Dagger, on top of also not requiring any mana or having a forced cooldown upon enemy player damage), and has only a 0.2 second cast animation, on top of the debuff slowing any enemies it hits.
* HotWings
* KillItWithFire
* LeadTheTarget: ''Fire Spirits'' have a slow travel speed upon firing, making them hard to land on enemies who are actively trying to dodge them.
* LongRangeFighter: All of Phoenix's spells have very long ranges, making him very powerful in teamfights as he can close or open the distance between himself and his enemies with ''Icarus Dive'', launch ''Fire Spirits'' from 1400 range away (more than vision range at nighttime!), blast enemies with ''Sun Ray'' from 1300 range away, and apply ''Supernova'''s burn damage from 1000 range away.
* TheNameless: While his [=DotA=] name was Icarus, this was redacted and he is simply referred to as Phoenix in Dota 2.
* NotTheIntendedUse[=/=]ObviousRulePatch: Prior to being patched out, there was [[http://youtu.be/gFE7uQr0Oj0?t=1m41s a very good reason to build Blade Mail on Phoenix]].
* ThePhoenix
* PlayingWithFire
* PowerLimiter: Any targets hit by ''Fire Spirits'' receive a massive 140 attack speed reduction - enough to neutralise their right-click attacks.
* ThePowerOfTheSun: There's ''Sun Ray'', a beam that both damages enemies and heals allies, respectively. And then there's his ultimate ''Supernova''. It sacrifices all of his remaining HP to turn into a glowing sun that deals significant damage over time in a huge 1000-unit radius for six seconds. If the egg survives, it explodes to damage and stun anyone in the burn radius, fills you back up to full hp and mana, and refreshes the cooldowns on your three normal abilities.
* SacrificialRevivalSpell: Inverted. With an Aghanim's Scepter, Phoenix can bring an allied hero into his ''Supernova'' and share its effects. The egg surviving six seconds will refresh the target hero and Phoenix's non-ultimate spells while giving them full HP and mana, while destroying the egg will kill both heroes.
* SadisticChoice: If Phoenix pulls off his combo properly right before using ''Supernova'', such a situation can easily arise. Do you, with your attack speed debuff from ''Fire Spirits'' and movement speed debuff from ''Icarus Dive'', attempt to approach the egg to attack it and kill Phoenix, all the while suffering huge damage over time debuffs and with the enemy team possibly bearing down on you? Or do you leave the egg alive to engage the other enemy players, while suffering all of the previously mentioned debuffs and damage over time, in the hope that you can kill the enemy before the egg explodes and stuns you, forcing you to deal with a full-health Phoenix whose abilities were refreshed by the ''Supernova''?
* SchmuckBait: A well placed ''Supernova'' is this for the other team. A Phoenix that's low on health may look like an easy kill, and even if he uses ''Supernova'', it only takes a few hits to kill the egg... except while the team is gathered around the egg to kill it, they're in a perfect position to be hit hard by teamfight skills like ''Ravage'', ''Black Hole'', ''Reverse Polarity'', ''Epicenter'', and the like.
* SharpenedToASingleAtom: The lore for ''Sun Ray'':
--> ''The vent through which such stellar energy flows is mere atoms wide.''
* ShockwaveStomp: At the end of ''Supernova'', the Phoenix Sun will crash-land, stunning enemies over a large area before Phoenix is reborn.
* TheSpeechless: Like Io, except with bird sounds.
--> [[http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/dota2.gamepedia.com/d/da/Phoenix_bird_victory.mp3 "Squawk"]]
* SquishyWizard: Like Wisp, Phoenix does not have a large amount of survivability despite being a Strength hero, since he has negative base armor, low Agility growth, and spends his hit points to cast his spells on a frequent basis.
* StandardStatusEffects: Phoenix's abilities focus on supporting his team by applying powerful debuffs on his enemies. He can slow enemy movement speed, drastically cut down their attack speed, or apply a massive area-of-effect stun.
* SuperSpeed: ''Icarus Dive'' has Phoenix dive forward in an arc in the targeted direction, dealing damage over time and slowing the movement speed of any units he comes into contact with, and then orbiting back to his original position. You can also cancel it partway through if you don't want to return to where you started, making it good for both chasing and getting away.
* TimeAbyss
* WaveMotionGun: ''Sun Ray'' is a beam as wide as Phoenix's entire wingspan and yes it hurts, no matter what level your hp is you still get shredded by it.
* WingsDoNothing: Except during ''Sun Ray''.
[[/folder]]
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