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Dota 2 · Loadouts

What to Pick — And Why

Real Dota 2 loadouts, weapon priorities, ability combos, and team-comp synergies. Use these before the round starts so you walk in with the right gun, the right ability, and the right plan.

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Position 1-5 Role Catalog

Position assignment + responsibilities

Dota 2 has 5 positions, each with distinct gold/XP priority + responsibilities.

Positions

Pos1

Name

Position 1 — Hard Carry (Safe Lane)

Gold Xp Priority

1st gold + XP priority. Farms last-hits on safe lane.

Playstyle

Late-game damage dealer. Scaling hero. Right-click DPS.

Items
  • Battle Fury / Manta Style → Black King Bar → Skadi → Daedalus → Butterfly
Meta Picks

Anti-Mage, Spectre, Faceless Void, Wraith King, Phantom Assassin

Pos2

Name

Position 2 — Mid Lane

Gold Xp Priority

2nd gold + XP priority. 1v1 mid for rune control.

Playstyle

Snowball + roam role. Mid-game team fight enabler.

Items
  • Bottle → Power Treads → Aghs Shard → Black King Bar → Refresher / Octarine Core
Meta Picks

Invoker, Shadow Fiend, Storm Spirit, Puck, Tinker, Outworld Destroyer

Pos3

Name

Position 3 — Offlaner

Gold Xp Priority

3rd gold + XP priority. Survives 1v2 lane vs Pos 1 + Pos 5.

Playstyle

Mid-game initiator / tank. Team-fight ult priority.

Items
  • Blink Dagger → Black King Bar → Crimson Guard / Pipe → Heart of Tarrasque
Meta Picks

Axe, Centaur Warrunner, Tidehunter, Bristleback, Mars, Dark Seer

Pos4

Name

Position 4 — Soft Support / Roamer

Gold Xp Priority

4th gold + XP priority. Roams to gank mid + side lanes.

Playstyle

Mid-game playmaker. Smoke gank specialist.

Items
  • Smoke of Deceit → Boots → Aether Lens → Force Staff → Glimmer Cape
Meta Picks

Pudge, Mirana, Tusk, Earth Spirit, Bounty Hunter

Pos5

Name

Position 5 — Hard Support

Gold Xp Priority

5th gold + XP priority. Wards + sentries + heals for carry.

Playstyle

Late-game peel + ult save. Vision provider.

Items
  • Observer + Sentry → Tranquil Boots → Aether Lens → Force Staff → Aeon Disk
Meta Picks

Crystal Maiden, Lion, Lich, Warlock, Witch Doctor, Dazzle, Oracle, Treant Protector

Draft Theory

Pick + ban order matters

Dota 2 captains pick / ban heroes in phases. Solo Q draft strategy is just picking what works.

Archetypes

Tempo

Name

Tempo / Snowball Draft

Heroes
  • Storm Spirit (mid)
  • Tusk (Pos 4)
  • Axe (Pos 3)
  • Phantom Assassin (Pos 1)
  • Lion (Pos 5)
Win Condition

Mid-game smoke gank dominance. Win lanes early, snowball to high ground by 25 min.

Weakness

Late-game scaling carries (Spectre, Anti-Mage) outscale tempo by 35 min.

Late Game

Name

Late-Game Scaling Draft

Heroes
  • Anti-Mage (Pos 1)
  • Outworld Destroyer (Pos 2)
  • Tidehunter (Pos 3)
  • Mirana (Pos 4)
  • Treant Protector (Pos 5)
Win Condition

Survive lane phase + mid game. 40-minute Battle Fury + Manta + Skadi 1v9.

Weakness

Tempo draft snowballing before 25 minutes. Force fights mid-game to disrupt scaling.

Team Fight

Name

Team Fight Draft

Heroes
  • Sven (Pos 1)
  • Invoker (Pos 2)
  • Tidehunter (Pos 3)
  • Earth Spirit (Pos 4)
  • Crystal Maiden (Pos 5)
Win Condition

5-man team fight ult chain. Tide Ravage + CM Freezing Field + Invoker Cataclysm.

Weakness

Split-push comps (Tinker / Anti-Mage) that don't team fight.

Split Push

Name

Split Push Draft

Heroes
  • Tinker (Pos 2)
  • Nature's Prophet (Pos 4)
  • Anti-Mage (Pos 1)
  • Dark Seer (Pos 3)
  • Treant Protector (Pos 5)
Win Condition

Split-push side lanes while team holds mid. 4v5 advantage on objectives.

Weakness

Coordinated 5-man teamfight comps (Wombo Combo Tide + Magnus).

Core Item Paths Per Position

Item build per role + matchup

Item path = your win condition. Match to enemy comp.

Paths

Pos1 Carry

Name

Pos 1 Carry (Anti-Mage style)

Starting
  • Iron Branch x3 + Tango + Healing Salve
Early
  • Wraith Band / Magic Stick → Power Treads → Battle Fury
Mid
  • Manta Style → Skadi → Black King Bar
Late
  • Butterfly → Abyssal Blade → Heart of Tarrasque
Situational
  • Linken's Sphere vs single-target (Lion, Pudge)
  • Aegis of the Immortal from Roshan

Pos2 Mid

Name

Pos 2 Mid (Invoker style)

Starting
  • Tango + Iron Branch + Mango
Early
  • Bottle → Boots → Wraith Band
Mid
  • Hand of Midas → Aether Lens → Aghs Shard
Late
  • Refresher Orb → Octarine Core → Hand of Midas Shard
Situational
  • Force Staff for save
  • Black King Bar vs CC
  • Eul's Scepter for setup

Pos3 Offlaner

Name

Pos 3 Offlaner (Axe style)

Starting
  • Iron Branch + Bracer + Quelling Blade
Early
  • Phase Boots → Vanguard → Blade Mail
Mid
  • Blink Dagger → Black King Bar → Crimson Guard
Late
  • Heart of Tarrasque → Aghs Scepter → Lotus Orb
Situational
  • Pipe of Insight vs AP
  • Force Staff for save
  • Eul's Scepter for setup

Pos4 Roamer

Name

Pos 4 Roamer (Mirana style)

Starting
  • Iron Branch + Tango + Smoke of Deceit
Early
  • Boots → Magic Wand → Smoke of Deceit
Mid
  • Aether Lens → Force Staff → Glimmer Cape
Late
  • Octarine Core → Aeon Disk → Aghs Shard
Situational
  • Force Staff for save
  • Glimmer for stealth + dispel
  • Eul's Scepter for setup

Pos5 Hard Support

Name

Pos 5 Hard Support (Crystal Maiden style)

Starting
  • Observer Ward + Sentry Ward + Tango
Early
  • Tranquil Boots → Magic Wand → Force Staff
Mid
  • Aether Lens → Glimmer Cape → Aghs Shard
Late
  • Aeon Disk → Refresher Orb → Octarine Core
Situational
  • Mekansm for team heal
  • Pipe of Insight vs AP
  • Aghs Scepter for ult upgrade

Ward Placement Strategy

Observer / Sentry placement

Wards = vision = wins. Hard Support carries ward responsibility.

Placement

Observer Ward

  • Rune spawn high ground (top + bottom) — minutes 0, 2, 4, 6 cycle
  • Triangle bush (between lane + jungle) — enemy gank vision
  • Ancient camp (jungle) — scout enemy roam
  • Roshan pit (high ground vision) — minute 7+ Aegis prep
  • Tier-2 tower side (enemy jungle entrance) — mid-game ganks

Sentry Ward

  • Anti-Pudge dewarding mid lane
  • Anti-Bounty Hunter / Riki dewarding side lanes
  • Roshan pit deward (deny enemy vision)
  • Smoke gank route (catch invisible enemy)

Roshan Timing & Strategy

Aegis priority + setup

Roshan = 1 free death (Aegis). First spawn 7:30, 8-11 min cycle after.

Rules

  • First Roshan attempt: minute 15-20 with full 5-man team.
  • Setup: smoke approach pit, deward enemy vision, Sentry pit.
  • Pos 3 (Axe / Centaur) tanks Roshan damage.
  • Pos 1 (Carry) takes Aegis last-hit for free life.
  • After Aegis: push high ground siege (5-man).
  • Second Roshan attempt: 5-7 minutes after first (Aegis countdown).
  • Don't fight Rosh under 50% HP team; wait for full team commit.

Rune Management

Mid lane rune control

Runes spawn at 0:00 + 2-minute cycle. Power Runes (Double Damage / Haste / etc.).

Schedule

  • 0:00 — Bounty Rune (Top + Bottom Bounty)
  • 2:00 — Power Rune (1 of 2 random)
  • 4:00, 6:00, 8:00 — Power Rune cycle
  • After 6:00 — Bounty Rune spawns minute 6 + every 5 min

Priority

  • Mid Pos 2 takes 1 power rune (Bottle restore).
  • Pos 4/5 wards rune spawns for vision.
  • Bounty Rune = gold + XP for support.
  • Double Damage rune for gank kill.
  • Haste rune for smoke gank rotation.

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