Dota 2 Warlock Guide – Tips and Tricks
| Tags: Dota 2
| Author Zlosterr
This Dota 2 Warlock Guide will unveil the secrets of one of the interesting supports in the game.
Despite not being the most popular support hero in Dota 2, Warlock is a name that is often one of the preferred options. The hero is mostly played in PUBs, but there have been metas where he was also a top-tier midder. With that said, this Warlock Dota 2 guide will reveal everything about him.
Warlock is a ranged Intelligence hero with 300 movement speed, 2.7 armor, and 49-59 damage. As mentioned, he will almost always be the team’s support, but there might be situations where the hero can take on the mid lane. With that said, let’s learn more about him.
Contents
Abilities
Besides learning more about the Dota 2 Warlock Voice lines, you should also know a thing or two about the abilities, so let’s go through them.
- Fatal Bonds – This thing binds up to 6 units together for 25s. During that time, they share 24% of the damage. Furthermore, units that die while under the effect of the ability will spawn an impo for 15s. This imp can't be controlled but it will chase nearby units and deal 18 damage per attack.
- Shadow Word – This is Warlock’s ability to heal and do up to 45 damage per second for 10s. The ability will heal or do damage, depending on the target you’ve chosen.
- Upheaval – This ability slows down enemies by up to 100% for 10s, and it also does damage.
- Chaotic Offering – The ultimate allows the hero to summon a Golem that lasts for 60s. This golem has a lot of HP and damage, as well as a lot of HP regen and armor, and Warlock can control it.
Those who get the Dota 2 Warlock shard will be able to spawn imps from the current level of Fatal Bonds while casting Upheaval. The latter will also last 15s, and enemies that die will do damage to all of their nearby allies. As for Aghanim’s Scepter, this ability will allow the hero to call 2 Golems that have reduced stats and bounty.
Talents
After revealing the Warlock Dota 2 skills, the next important thing is to check the talents.
- Level 10 – +Upheaval Radius or +4% Damage to Fatal Bonds
- Level 15 – Shadow Word will do +18 Damage/Heal or Upheaval will grant +12 Attack Speed to allies
- Level 20 – Shadow Word gets +450 AoE or Warlock will summon a Golem when dying
- Level 25 = Chaotic Offering Golems will have 80% Magic Resistance or Chaotic Offerings get +20 armor
Dota 2 Warlock Guide – Tips
Before checking the Warlock Dota 2 Wiki, you should know that this hero is not as hard to play as it seems. He is going to be the team’s position 5, meaning that players need to focus on helping their carries during the laning stage. Since he has a healing ability, he can do pretty well with some of the carries that require babysitting.
Speaking of that abilities, Shadow Word can also do damage, meaning that Warlock can be a solid option for zoning players out of the lane. He can also be incredibly annoying when using Fatal Bonds, especially if he manages to bind a big Neutral Creep to a squishy hero.
Other than that, there isn’t really anything specific about Warlock other than the fact that he needs to use his ultimate as soon as possible. His ult can make a difference because it also stuns on impact, and since he will be the go-to target of the enemy team, his job is to use the ult as fast as possible during a team fight. Once that happens, he will impact the game even if he dies.
The Golems do a lot of damage and are also good for pushing, but Warlock players need to be careful because they also have a bounty.
Warlock Dota 2 Guide – Pros and Cons
Choosing the proper Warlock Dota 2 build will help you be more successful when playing. However, there are a couple of important pros and cons that you have to know before picking him.
Pros:
- The hero is easy to play
- You don’t need any specific Dota 2 Warlock items to be effective
- Excellent during the laning stage
- Good at pushing
Cons:
- Very easy to kill
- The hero does not work in all situations
Dota 2 Warlock Guide – Items
The Warlock Dota 2 voice lines are interesting, but you also need to know what items to get for the hero so you can be more effective. Luckily, there are a couple of options that deserve more attention, and we’ll take a look at them.
Starting items
Like all position 5 support heroes, Warlock starts the game with Tangoes and some Mana regen, as well as a few branches.
Early Game
In addition to Boots of Speed, Warlock should try to get a Magic Wand or an Urn of Shadows.
Mid-game
Ideally, Warlock should aim to have at least a Force Staff or a Glimmer Cape for the mid-game because this will make him way more effective. That said, those who play a core Warlock will want to get an Aghanim’s Scepter.
Late game
Aghanim is the way to go for the late-game, but in a perfect scenario, the hero will also have a Refresher’s Orb. This will allow him to summon 4 Golems, which is really strong.
Dota 2 Warlock counters
Since he is usually a position 5 support, there is more than one Warlock Dota 2 counter you need to know about. Let’s learn more information below.
- Slark – Slark can kill Warlock whenever he wants to, and the latter can’t do much to stop him.
- Tinker – Warlock is weak against magical damage, which is why heroes like Tinker are really good.
- Huskar – Huskar’s ability to do a lot of damage and the fact that he is very tanky against magical damage makes him an excellent option versus this hero.
Conclusion
Whether you get the shard to summon the Dota 2 Warlock imp or decide to use the classic build, there is no arguing that this hero is fun. He is an incredible support that can work in every meta, which is always a plus.