Dragon Knight

--------------------------------------------------------


This guide is mainly for players who play pub games only. Dragon Knight is an awesome carry. He does not have a steep learning curve, so new players pick up rather easily. However, he is a boring hero that needs to farm A LOT in order to reach his true potential as a carry. If you do not like farming, you are at the wrong guide. If you do, read on.

--------------------------------------------------------


Pros:
-High base armor.
-Easy to play.
-High survivability.
-High DPS.(Mid-Late game)
-Stunner.
-Aoe nuke with decent damage.

Cons:
-Mana problems early game.
-Slow movement speed without Elder Dragon Form.
-Low base damage.
-Needs to farm a lot to be efficient as a carry.
-Melee hero.

----------------------------------------------------------

Skills

Refer to http://www.playdota.com/heroes/dragon-knight

My thoughts on the Dragon Knight's skills.

Breathe Fire(F)
This is your farming/KS-ing skill. Do not use it sparingly. Dragon Knight lacks the mana regen to constantly use this skill. If you have the mana and sense that you will not be using it in the near future, go ahead. Use it to farm. Otherwise, save your mana. You should ALWAYS save this skill to KS, unless the the enemy is affected by maledict, and you are unable to get the kill. The AOE is fairly small, so use it well. You can target the ground with it as well.

Dragon Tail(T)
This is the longest level 1 stun in the game, what makes DK so effective early game. Levelling it at 1 point should be sufficient till later on. You can use it to kill opposing heroes on the lane easily if you have a stunner/slower babysitting you early game.

Dragon Blood
This skill is awesome. It gives you the ability to stay on lane longer, which means you can farm longer too. The bonus armor helps against heroes like VS, Slardar, SF. This skill is why Dragon Knight does not need much regeneration items.

Elder Dragon Form(R)
This is why Dragon Knight is so scary. This is why your opponents will fear you. Enough with the flattery, this is an awesome skill that gives you bonus movement speed, turns you into a ranged hero, provides your normal attacks with an AOE.(Level 2 onwards) Use it whenever your team is engaging.

------------------------------------------------------------------

Skill Build

Level 1 - Dragon Tail
Level 2 - Dragon Blood
Level 3 - Dragon Blood
Level 4 - Breathe Fire
Level 5 - Dragon Blood
Level 6 - Breathe Fire
Level 7 - Dragon Blood(Maxed)
Level 8 - Breathe Fire
Level 9 - Breathe Fire(Maxed)
Level 10 - Dragon Tail
Level 11 - Dragon Tail
Level 12 - Dragon Tail(Maxed)
Level 13 - Elder Dragon Form
Level 14 - Elder Dragon Form
Level 15 - Stats
Level 16 - Elder Dragon Form(Maxed)
Level 17-25 - Stats

Justification

Dragon Tail is taken at level 1 to get the first blood, to avoid being the target of first blood. Also, it is the longest level 1 stun in the game at 2.5 seconds. Dragon Blood is maxed next because Dragon Knight needs regeneration and bonus armor to withstand ganks till your teammates arrive to help you. It also helps to survive nukes from the opponent. Dragon Fire is maxed next because it gives you farming and KS-ing ability. As to why I choose not to pump Elder Dragon Form whenever it is available, it is because Dragon Knight lacks the mana to use it early game, you'll be better off saving that mana for a Dragon Tail or to kill with Breathe Fire. DK needs to farm early game, a lot. If you can the kill if it is nearby, go for it. Otherwise just continue farming in lane. You DO NOT need Elder Dragon Form to farm efficiently.

------------------------------------------------------------

Item Build

If you random this hero, which I usually do, get these :
x3

If you picked this hero, get the same items. But without the Boots Of Speed.

First, farm yourself a Power Threads(STR). It is the best boots for DK early game. Gives you IAS, IMS & STR( which means more HP & more DMG). Once you have threads, ALWAYS carry a . I cannot stress the importance of this. It allows you to help teammates being ganked, it allows you to escape single opponents that have no means to disable you while you TP to safety.
Next, get yourself a OR a .
I personally choose BKB in most games. In most games, there will be at least 1 opponent capable of disabling, even in pubs. What BKB does is it allow you to farm with ease. Once I have my BKB, I'll just farm on any lane. When opponents are coming, I activate BKB and TP back to base. I then buy another TP, and proceed to neutral creeps or a safe lane where my allies are to farm. When the cooldown on BKB is up, I'll start farming deep into enemy territory again.

I then go for .
An awesome item that gives you HP, Damage, Attack Speed, Armor, Movement Speed and Maim effect, which stacks with your level 3 Elder Dragon Form's Frost Breath.

The next item that you will want is .
Gives you attack speed, armor as well as reduce opponents armor, what more can you ask for?

Usually by the time you get your , most pub games would have ended. But in the event that it is a draggy game, with both teams at a standstill. Get yourself a .
A carry that dies too fast is not a carry anymore. Heart gives you the extra HP and regen to survive longer, thus dealing more DPS.

If the game still hasn't ended(sigh...), get a Gives you additional DPS while chasing down an enemy hero. Gives you damage. And best of all, it's an anti-blink dagger.

If you feel the need to do so, swap your threads for a Boots of Travel. Only do so after you have your core items.
Your core should look like this:


Try to hit your core by the 30th minute mark. 25th if you're good.

Of course, this is not the only build there is. It is my favorite build and since I mostly play pubs, it is almost always effective. I have seen DKs go for 6 Vanguards ( LOL WHAT A NOOB ), and maintain 0 kills, 0 deaths and over 20 assists. So feel free to experiment with what you think is best.
Some other items that are noteworthy/situational:
Good against PA if you have more HP than him.

Good if you're confident of not dying. Personally, I never get this item on ANY hero I play in ANY game I play. It's too much of a risk to take.

I will take this item over Heart if the opponents have low health, and do not deal much damage to you. Deadly item on DK.

Gives you damage, HP & IAS. Good item overall, but I don't get it since my build doesn't go for lifesteal.

If you have nothing better to buy, gives you Windwalk, as well as bonus damage when you break Windwalk. I never get this on DK. Tried it once, and realised DK doesn't have the mana to efficiently use this item at early or mid game.

Lifesteal is always good. And it's prerequisite, Helm of the Dominator allows you to mind control creeps as well. Mind control a centaur of a furbolg to stun/slow if you're good at micro-ing. Otherwise forget it, you'll just end up blocking yourself.

High DPS, but lacks the survivability that SNY provides.

Good item on almost all heroes. Get it if your team lacks an initiator.

Anti PA, Troll Warlord, Ursa Warrior, Faceless Void.




-------------------------------------------------------------

Gameplay

Early game : Go bottom lane if you're a Sentinel, top if you're scourge. Try to lane with a stunner, preferably ranged so they can harass and deny while you concentrate on farming. Enigma, VS, Demon Witch all make good allies. Try to pull neutral creeps every minute when they respawn. Always let your ranged ally initiate when you are trying to go for the kill. If your tower looks like it is going down, try to deny it only IF YOU CAN SURVIVE. If not, just stay back and continue farming.

Mid game : You should be around level 12 now, and have your Threads, BKB and TP. Farm anywhere, everywhere. Beware though, some opponents like Pudge and Bane Elemental are able to stop you even though you have BKB. Help your allies to gank if you want, but you should only go if you can get the kill with Dragon Breath.

Late game : Around the 45th minute mark, you should be around level 18-20. By then you should have farmed out your SNY and Assault Cuirass. If you have not, you're in deep trouble. Because all you can do is stun, throw in a few hits and then you'll probably die in a mass engage. Never stop farming if there's an opportunity. DO NOT use your Ulti to farm. Use it to kill, to run or push. This is when mass engages occur often, and once 3 players on a team die, it usually means the end of the game. Try your best to survive mass engages, even if your team loses the engage, back up and heal up. A DK with BKB up and full HP can easily take our 3-4 enemies with half HP pushing.

Things to note out for :
-If you're getting ganked mid game while farming by opponents who can sneak up on you with say, blink dagger and continuously disable you, play it safe, farm with an ally. Or watch your minimap and retreat early.

-BKB + TP is your best friend. Remember this!

-If you really really really find DK hard to last hit with because you have low base damage, get a pair of Bracers. I don't recommend that because I personally just endure till I get threads, then life will be much easier.

------------------------------------------------------------------

Good Allies

Special Mention

Once you have your core, get this handsome bloke to repel you and you're unstoppable. If your opponents don't get diffusal blade, that is.

Extremely powerful babysitter early game. Has heal which does damage to nearby opponents, has a slow to help get the kills and has a skill which prevents you from dying for 5 seconds so you can TP to safety. Late game, his ulti syncs well with the assault cuirass that you'll be getting.

Opponents that want to come within melee range will think twice. Also has Surge, which makes you move as 522ms. Chasing an enemy will never be an issue again.

AOE disablers all make good allies.

Bad Allies

Bad if you don't have your Dragon Form yet. Might want to consider pumping it early if you have this guy as a ganker on your team.

Same as above.

Same reasons as above.

Not being able to hit an opponent sucks. And 300 damage plus 40% isn't really a lot late game.

Bad Enemies

Greater bash stops TP. And he can continuously bash you if you're unlucky. ): Ghost scepter counters this boar.

You just can't outdps him. And rage removes your slow effects and makes him immune to stuns. Again, ghost scepter counters this dog.

Silence so you can't stun, void so you can't TP. If he gets a basher, he's irritating late game too. Try to be more cautious when it's night time.

Put a basher on him and you're as good as dead. You need to rely on your teammates against this blind dude.

You can't move. He's a drummer that treats opponents like his drum. Get a ghost scepter if needed.

Chronosphere is all the time he needs to take you down. Try to buy some wards when you're pushing or defending. So you can see when he is gonna jump in and avoid getting Chronosphere-ed. If you can dodge his ulti, you stand a chance.


With a blink dagger, takes you down in 5 seconds or less mid game. Get a ghost scepter or risk not even knowing why you died.

He steals your stats. Get some dust.

You're dead if you're ever at half HP. This guy is your worst nightmare. You can only rely on your teammates to disable him before you get targeted.

------------------------------------------------------------------

I hope that after reading this guide, you'll get a better idea of how to play Dragon Knight. He is a hero that needs lots of farming to be able to kill opponents. Take him out, breathe some fire, fly around the map and enjoy yourself. ^.^