The darling carry of the pro scene: When and how to solo carry Dota 2 games with Terrorblade

There is only one way to win in Dota 2: destroying the enemy Ancient.

Despite the simplicity of the end-game, the way Dota 2 plays out in practice is much more complex and unpredictable. There are too many variables in all of its aspects to make a completely fool-proof draft.

In the current state of the game, teams tend to decide on one big question of drafting: whether to play 'early' or 'late'. There are drafts that excel at creating good momentum in the early to mid-game with strong laners and teamfighting potential. However, there are drafts that prefer stalling the game to eventually outscale the opponent.

And when it comes to raw power late in the game, few can match Terrorblade.

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Terrorblade is the epitome of the standard-issue Dota 2 agility carry

Terrorblade boasts extremely powerful natural armor, decent base damage, and above average mobility. He is, thus, naturally good against heroes that primarily do physical damage, such as Slardar or Bristleback.

At the same time, his counters are burst-damage heroes who can wipe away his tiny health pool easily before he can cast Sunder. Thus, Terrorblade is a risky pick against mobile nukers with AoE disables and magic burst such as Queen of Pain, Puck, or Lina.

As carries in Dota 2 tend to be oriented towards physical damage, opponent carries generally do not pose a threat to Terrorblade. One notable exception is the Phantom Lancer, against whom Terrorblade has next to no chance.

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Skill build

Terrorblade's W (Conjure Image) and E (Metamorphosis) are straightforward. The former creates illusions, while the latter amps his damage and turns him into a ranged hero.

In the early stages of the game, there will only be one dilemma: whether to put points into Q (Reflection) or not. Generally, it is worth doing if it confirms a kill, because a delay in upgrading W and E deters Terrorblade's farm speed.

Proper usage of Terrorblade's ultimate ability, Sunder, at critical moments is what makes or breaks the game. It might be the difference between Terrorblade getting a rampage or dying an anticlimactic death as his team follows suit.

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Playstyle

The point of any hard carry is to outfarm the opponent and hit item timings as early as possible. Terrorblade is adept at both from the onset, on account of having the strongest long-lasting illusions that can push out lanes on their own.

Unlike many greedy carries in Dota 2, Terrorblade is adept at taking down towers on his own if left unpressured. He is also one of the few heroes in Dota 2 who is unfazed by difficult lanes.

Terrorblade can pick up his core items by AFK jungling with his main hero, while spamming illusions to pressure sidelanes.

Generally, Terrorblade's real power spike is when he gets two or three core items. These are the usual stat items for Dota 2 agility cores: Sange and Yasha, Manta Style, Eye of Skadi, Treads, and occasionally, a Black King Bar.

Aghanim's Scepter is also a great purchase after a recent rework. By being ahead in ability, Terrorblade can easily tip the scales of an equal game.

The key to engaging in teamfights is understanding his true power spike: Metamorphosis. There are many Dota 2 heroes which depend on long-cooldown ultimates like Ravage and Black Hole.

Because of its long cooldown and impact, managing Metamorphosis is the most critical part of learning Terrorblade.