Bane
When the gods have nightmares, it is Bane Elemental who brings them. Also known as Atropos, Bane was born from the midnight terrors of the goddess Nyctasha. A force of terror too powerful to be contained by sleep, he surfaced from her slumbers, fed upon her immortality, and stole his vaporous form from her inky blood. He is the essence of fear. Mortals who hear his voice hear their darkest secrets whispered in their ear. He calls to the hidden fear in every Hero's heart. Wakefulness is no protection, for Bane's black blood, continuously dripping, is a tar that traps his enemies in nightmare. In the presence of Bane, every Hero remembers to fear the dark.
Base STR
23 +2.5
Base AGI
23 +2.5
Base INT
23 +2.5
Move Speed
305
Attack Range
425
Base Armor
1
Attack DMG
24–30
Projectile
900
Innate Abilities
Ichor of Nyctasha
Every time Bane kills an enemy hero or they die under the effect of Bane's debuff, they receive a Terror for the rest of the game that decreases their status resistance to Bane's subsequent debuffs.
MAX TERRORS PER HERO:
5
STATUS RESISTANCE PER TERROR:
5%
Abilities
Enfeeble
Cooldown
22 / 17 / 12 / 7s
Mana
100 / 110 / 120 / 130
Deals damage every second and lowers the enemy's total attack damage and cast range.
ATTACK DAMAGE REDUCTION:
55 / 60 / 65 / 70%
CAST RANGE REDUCTION:
30%
DURATION:
9
DAMAGE:
12 / 18 / 24 / 30
Each tendril of fear that Atropos weaves increases the vulnerability of his victims to arcane and unknown arts.
Brain Sap
Cooldown
17 / 15 / 13 / 11s
Mana
120 / 130 / 140 / 150
Feasts on the vital energies of an enemy unit, healing Bane and dealing damage.
HEAL/DAMAGE:
90 / 160 / 230 / 300
Atropos finds no greater pleasure than to harvest the fear he creates.
Nightmare
Cooldown
25 / 22 / 19 / 16s
Mana
120 / 130 / 140 / 150
Puts the target enemy or friendly Hero to sleep. Sleeping units walk in Bane's chosen direction and are awakened when damaged. If the target was directly attacked, the Nightmare passes to the attacking unit. Bane can attack and damage Nightmared targets freely.
Can be put on alt-cast to have the target stand still.
WALK SPEED:
110
DURATION:
3.5 / 4.5 / 5.5 / 6.5
- In the first second of Nightmare, the unit is invulnerable.
- Bane can wake himself from Nightmare.
- On cast, replaced with Nightmare End: Ends all ongoing Nightmares on any affected units.
A stolen prowess from the goddess Nyctasha is to put his prey into forever sleep.
Fiend's Grip
Cooldown
120 / 110 / 100s
Mana
200 / 300 / 400
CHANNELED - Grips an enemy unit, disabling it and causing heavy damage over time, while stealing mana every 0.5 seconds based on the unit's maximum mana.
MANA DRAIN PER SECOND:
5%
DAMAGE:
70 / 110 / 150
DURATION:
4.75 / 5.25 / 5.75
Victims of Atropos are frequently torn apart by vivid conjurations of their own nightmares.
Talents
Aghanim's Scepter
Fiend's Grip
Reduces Fiend's Grip cooldown by %bonus_AbilityCooldown%. Fiend's Grip now creates two uncontrollable illusions that are also channeling Fiend's Grip on the target. Illusions take 0% incoming damage and immediately die if they are interrupted. Damage does not stack.
Aghanim's Shard
Brain Sap
Reduces cooldown by %bonus_AbilityCooldown%. Causes Brain Sap to become a 0 AoE spell. Secondary targets only heal for 0%.
Hero Performance
Median across all public matches · OpenDotaForm
50%
Win rate in recent matches
Performance
61%
KDA ratio (kills + assists / deaths)
Laning
9%
Last hits per minute over full game
Farm
39%
Average gold per minute
Fighting
19%
Average kills + assists per match
Experience
53%
Average XP per minute
Strategy
When to Pick Bane?
Pick Bane as hard support when your team needs strong single-target lockdown and setup for kills in the early and mid game. He is solid in 7.41a with reliable Brain Sap sustain and Nightmare control—he excels at shutting down one key enemy hero during fights or ganks. Great against mobile or high-value targets like Storm Spirit, Queen of Pain, or slippery carries.
He works well with initiators who can follow up after your Fiend's Grip or when your team wants to snowball lanes. Avoid him in heavy AoE magic burst lineups or lineups with many dispels (like Oracle, Abaddon, or strong save heroes) that can remove your disables easily. He also struggles if the enemy has a lot of silence or instant burst that kills you before you can land your combo.
In this patch he is mana-hungry early, so don’t pick him if your team lacks protection or if the game is expected to be very chaotic with constant teamfights from minute 10.
Tips & common mistakes
- Use Nightmare to set up ganks or save allies — don’t waste it randomly on creeps or when no one can follow up.
- Level Brain Sap early for harassment and sustain—it is your main laning tool and keeps you alive in fights.
- Don’t channel Fiend's Grip without protection — always have Nightmare or a teammate nearby to stop interruptions.
- Combine Brain Sap with Enfeeble to reduce enemy damage and right-clicks during fights.
- Build utility items like Glimmer Cape, Force Staff, or Aether Lens instead of going greedy every game.
- Stop using Nightmare on yourself unless you really need to dodge damage—it wastes the slow on enemies.
- Position safely in the backline — you are very squishy, so stay out of range until you land your combo.
- Watch enemy dispels—save your Grip for moments when they have already used their save or escape spells.
Summary
Bane is a strong single-target support who locks down one hero at a time and provides early sustain with Brain Sap. Play patiently, use Nightmare for setup, and land Fiend's Grip on high-priority targets to turn fights. He rewards good coordination and timing—if you hit your disables and stay alive, you can snowball lanes and mid-game hard. Just don’t pick him and then play too aggressively or waste your ultimate without backup.
Strong Against
Popular Items
Starting Items
Early Game
Core
Late Game
Popular Neutral Items
