Venomancer Guide

Gameplay

Playstyle
Venomancer   Hero   Strategy   Counters   Equipment   Gear   Responses   Sounds   Lore   Old Abilities   Changelogs     Venomancer 18 + 2.15 22 + 2.8 17 + 1.8 Level Base is a support hero who can deal tremendous damage over time with his spells. He also possesses strong push and counter-push potential in his Plague Wards, allowing him to defend towers and high-ground as well as take enemy towers by himself.
Pros	Cons
Can deal tremendous amounts of damage when his spells are combined. Strong slows and DOTs make him great for early ganks Wards provide lots of utility like free vision, push/counterpush, and a basic ability to jungle	No hard disables Generally poor survivability Has mana problems early and mid game Large portions of his damage can be removed with items like Pipe of Insight or Black King Bar

Info

Hero

Strategy

Counters Play “Many hands make light work.” This article is badly written or needs more information. Please help the community by updating it. Read this formatting guide first.   Hero   Strategy   Counters   Equipment

Equipment   Hero   Strategy   Counters   Equipment   Gear   Responses   Sounds   Lore   Old Abilities   Changelogs     v • d • e Venomancer Equipment (collapse sets)Sets Acid Hydra Corruption of the Virulent Krait Fatal Bloom Ferocious

Gear   Hero   Strategy   Counters   Equipment   Gear   Responses   Sounds   Lore   Old Abilities   Changelogs     This is a list of cosmetic items that reflects Venomancer s design aesthetics.

Responses   Hero   Strategy   Counters   Equipment   Gear   Responses   Sounds   Lore   Old Abilities   Changelogs     v • d • e  Voice responses Hero responses Abaddon Alchemist Ancient Apparition Anti-Mage Arc Warden Axe Bane

Sounds   Hero   Strategy   Counters   Equipment   Gear   Responses   Sounds   Lore   Old Abilities   Changelogs     v • d • e  Dota 2 Sounds Hero Sounds Abaddon Alchemist Ancient Apparition Anti-Mage Arc Warden Axe

Lore   Hero   Strategy   Counters   Equipment   Gear   Responses   Sounds   Lore   Old Abilities   Changelogs     Lesale Deathbringer, the Venomancer In the Acid Jungles of Jidi Isle, poison

Old Abilities   Hero   Strategy   Counters   Equipment   Gear   Responses   Sounds   Lore   Old Abilities   Changelogs     Shadow Strike QD AbilityTarget Unit AffectsEnemies DamageMagical Hurls a poisoned dagger which

Changelogs   Hero   Strategy   Counters   Equipment   Gear   Responses   Sounds   Lore   Old Abilities   Changelogs     Contents 1 Version history 2 Patch history Version history edit] Version Description

Videos

Generic/Support Venomancer

All three of Venomancer`s spells are worth maxing out early. As a support Venomancer, your greatest addition to the team in the early game comes from Venomous Gale`s slow and considerable damage, while your auto-attacks are unreliable at best. keep in mind that Venomous Gale is one of the three abilities that allow "natural" denies (with auto-attacks) and better opponents WILL use this featureSpecial attraction to deny you gold and experience, even in the middle of a fight. As a support, your greatest addition to the team in later stages of the game comes from the vision provided by your Plague Wards and they should be maxed out second to increase their durability after you`ve died.

Focus on the cheaper items as a support. Sometimes nobody on your team will have built a Mekansm   Item   Old Abilities   Changelogs     MekansmB A glowing jewel formed out of assorted parts that somehow fit together perfectly. Cost2375 (900) Bought FromSupport Active Restore Passive Mekansm Aura Bonus +5 Strength+5 , which is a reasonable choice on Venomancer. You will need Arcane Boots   Item   Changelogs     Arcane BootsL Magi equipped with these boots are valued in battle. Cost1300 Bought FromSupport Active Replenish Mana Bonus +250 Mana+50 Movement speed Disassemble? Yes Alert allies? Yes Recipe The to sustain your spells` heavy cost, which will also help out your team. And they can also be disassembled for an Aether Lens   Item   Interactions   Changelogs     Aether Lens Polished with the incantation of his final breath, the gift of a dying mage to his sickly son. Cost2350 (600) Bought FromCaster Passive Spell Range or a Lotus Orb   Item   Interactions   Changelogs     Lotus Orb The jewel at its center still reflects a pale image of its creator. Cost4000 Bought FromArmor Active Echo Shell Bonus +6 Health regeneration+10 Armor+250 Mana+125% . Eul`s Scepter of Divinity For the cosmetic item equipped by Crystal Maiden, see Eul s Scepter of Divinity (Equipment)   Item   Changelogs   Known Bugs     Eul s Scepter of DivinityB A mysterious scepter passed down through the ages, is also a good choice to solve your mana problems and the early Wind Lace   Item   Changelogs     Wind LaceB Hasten to battle on wind-touched heels. Cost250 Bought FromArcane Bonus +20 Movement speed Disassemble? No Alert allies? No Recipe Wind Lace is an item purchasable at the is always nice, or alternatively, Drum of Endurance   Item   Changelogs     Drum of EnduranceB A relic that enchants the bodies of those around it for swifter movement in times of crisis. Cost1640 (575) Bought FromSupport Active Endurance Charges 6 Passive .

Force Staff For the cosmetic item equipped by Crystal Maiden, see Force Staff (Equipment)   Item   Changelogs     Force StaffB Allows you to manipulate others, for good or evil. Cost2250 (400) Bought FromCaster Active Force and Blink Dagger For the cosmetic item equipped by Axe, see Little Blink Dagger.   Item   Changelogs     Blink DaggerBL The fabled dagger used by the fastest assassin ever to walk the lands. Cost2250 Bought FromArcane is always interesting on a support, the latter as a tool to land Poison Nova on as many enemies as possible, the former more versatile.

There are few scenarios where you shouldn`t consider Aghanim`s Scepter   Item   Upgraded Abilities   Old Abilities   Lore   Changelogs     Aghanim s Scepter The scepter of a wizard with demigod-like powers. Cost4200 Bought FromCaster Passive Ultimate Upgrade Bonus +10 Strength+10 Agility+10 Intelligence+175 on Venomancer at some point, and/or Veil of Discord   Item   Changelogs     Veil of DiscordB The headwear of corrupt magi. Cost2240 (400) Bought FromCaster Active Magic Weakness Bonus +6 Strength+6 Agility+12 Intelligence+6 Health regeneration+6 Armor+6 Attack damage Disassemble? No Alert allies? , usually before the scepter since the build-up is nicer.

Mid/Pushing Venomancer

It is very reasonable to aim for early towers with a mid Venomancer that maxes out Plague Wards first. This scenario rests on your opponent`s inability to deal with your wards, and you should give up on trying to push with them if he can out-range them and kill them quickly ( Sniper   Hero   Strategy   Counters   Equipment   Gear   Responses   Sounds   Lore   Old Abilities   Changelogs     Sniper 16 + 2 21 + 2.5 15 + 2.6 Level Base and Drow Ranger For the race in Dota 2 lore, see Drow.   Hero   Strategy   Counters   Equipment   Gear   Responses   Sounds   Lore   Old Abilities   Changelogs   Known Bugs     come to mind). As much as possible, you don`t want to be feeding free gold and Xp to the opposing team. To this effect, you should wait at least until you have 3 points in wards to start pushing, as the level 1 wards will die in at most two auto-attacks, and the level 2 wards don`t do much better. Therefore, you might as well take an early point in Gale to help secure a kill or gank a lane with a trusty Haste Rune   Double Damage   Haste   Illusion   Invisibility   Regeneration   Bounty   Arcane     See more: Runes#List Buff icon Haste Play AbilityNo Target AffectsSelf Increases movement speed to maximum. Haste Speed: 550Duration: .

As a mid Venomancer, your goal should be able to secure early team fights with the massive damage from Poison Nova, and you should consider rushing an Aghanim`s Scepter   Item   Upgraded Abilities   Old Abilities   Lore   Changelogs     Aghanim s Scepter The scepter of a wizard with demigod-like powers. Cost4200 Bought FromCaster Passive Ultimate Upgrade Bonus +10 Strength+10 Agility+10 Intelligence+175 . Bottle   Item   Changelogs     BottleBL An old bottle that survived the ages, the contents placed inside become enchanted. Cost650 Bought FromConsumables Active Regenerate Charges 3 / 1 Passive Store Rune Disassemble? No Alert is rarely a bad idea on the mid lane, but you`ll have nearly enough mana regen to spam your wards with a Ring of Basilius   Item   Changelogs     Ring of BasiliusB Ring given as a reward to the greatest mages. Cost500 Bought FromSupport Passive Basilius Aura Bonus +7 Attack damage Disassemble? Yes Alert allies? No Recipe The that you should probably upgrade into a Ring of Aquila so you can also opt to skip the bottle.

Similarly, Veil of Discord   Item   Changelogs     Veil of DiscordB The headwear of corrupt magi. Cost2240 (400) Bought FromCaster Active Magic Weakness Bonus +6 Strength+6 Agility+12 Intelligence+6 Health regeneration+6 Armor+6 Attack damage Disassemble? No Alert allies? will help you secure the early teamfights and the two Null Talismans it`s built from will help you with your last hits in the lane.

For initiation, you may choose to rely on a Shadow Blade if your farm allows it.

Safelane/Farming Venomancer

Venomancer is mostly seen in the position one or two in the professional scene. Since most professional players know what they`re doing, it`s an option that should be treated with respect.

Worse players will underestimate the damage dealt by maxing out Poison Sting early. But you should never leave your Plague Wards at a single point as it`s a free source of gold and experience for your enemies, and it will also push out the lane. As a carry with low movement speed and no mobility whatsoever, you may opt to skip the earlier teamfights and therefore skip out entirely your ult until level 9 or 10. And you can also skip out Venomous Gale since you won`t have enough mana to spam it.

Since you`re suddenly focusing a bit more on right clicks, plenty of items become good choices, though the previous ones remain note-worthy. Mekansm   Item   Old Abilities   Changelogs     MekansmB A glowing jewel formed out of assorted parts that somehow fit together perfectly. Cost2375 (900) Bought FromSupport Active Restore Passive Mekansm Aura Bonus +5 Strength+5 , Veil of Discord   Item   Changelogs     Veil of DiscordB The headwear of corrupt magi. Cost2240 (400) Bought FromCaster Active Magic Weakness Bonus +6 Strength+6 Agility+12 Intelligence+6 Health regeneration+6 Armor+6 Attack damage Disassemble? No Alert allies? , Eul`s Scepter of Divinity For the cosmetic item equipped by Crystal Maiden, see Eul s Scepter of Divinity (Equipment)   Item   Changelogs   Known Bugs     Eul s Scepter of DivinityB A mysterious scepter passed down through the ages, Blink Dagger For the cosmetic item equipped by Axe, see Little Blink Dagger.   Item   Changelogs     Blink DaggerBL The fabled dagger used by the fastest assassin ever to walk the lands. Cost2250 Bought FromArcane are STILL good items, and Aghanim`s Scepter   Item   Upgraded Abilities   Old Abilities   Lore   Changelogs     Aghanim s Scepter The scepter of a wizard with demigod-like powers. Cost4200 Bought FromCaster Passive Ultimate Upgrade Bonus +10 Strength+10 Agility+10 Intelligence+175 should still be purchased at some point, rather sooner than later.

Manta Style is an expensive, usually ineffective choice on a support Venomancer, but it`s decent if you`re in the safelane. Don`t forget your illusions benefit from Poison Sting. Dragon Lance is a good early item and can be further upgraded into a Hurricane Pike if you need the mobility provided by the Force Staff For the cosmetic item equipped by Crystal Maiden, see Force Staff (Equipment)   Item   Changelogs     Force StaffB Allows you to manipulate others, for good or evil. Cost2250 (400) Bought FromCaster Active Force . Eye of Skadi fully stacks with your passive ( Poison Sting is not an orb effect) and will help you kite melee carries and chase low-mobility enemies.

An early Blight Stone will help you take down a tower when it`s under siege by your wards. The debuff lasts for a long period of time, not unlike your passive. As such, it becomes really important to try to hit every enemy hero ONCE to apply both debuffs, before focusing on a single target. And don`t forget your Plague Wards benefit from a reduced version of Poison Sting that stacks (once) with your right-clicks` version of it.

As for boots, everything gets the green light. You can choose to keep them brown until you upgrade them to Boots of Travel. You can go for Arcane Boots   Item   Changelogs     Arcane BootsL Magi equipped with these boots are valued in battle. Cost1300 Bought FromSupport Active Replenish Mana Bonus +250 Mana+50 Movement speed Disassemble? Yes Alert allies? Yes Recipe The so long as you plan on doing something else with the Energy Booster, like an Octarine Core, or upgrading them into Guardian Greaves. The rest are just as good.

Ability Builds