Dragon Knight
After years on the trail of a legendary Eldwurm, the Knight Davion found himself facing a disappointing foe: the dreaded Slyrak had grown ancient and frail, its wings tattered, its few remaining scales stricken with scale-rot, its fangs ground to nubs, and its fire-gouts no more threatening than a pack of wet matchsticks. <br><br>Seeing no honor to be gained in dragon-murder, Knight Davion prepared to turn away and leave his old foe to die in peace. But a voice crept into his thoughts, and Slyrak gave a whispered plea that Davion might honor him with death in combat. Davion agreed, and found himself rewarded beyond expectation for his act of mercy: As he sank his blade in Slyrak's breast, the dragon pierced Davion's throat with a talon. As their blood mingled, Slyrak sent his power out along the Blood Route, sending all its strength and centuries of wisdom to the knight. The dragon's death sealed their bond and Dragon Knight was born. The ancient power slumbers in the Dragon Knight Davion, waking when he calls it. Or perhaps it is the Dragon that calls the Knight...
Base STR
21 +3.2
Base AGI
14 +2
Base INT
18 +1.7
Move Speed
310
Attack Range
150
Base Armor
0
Attack DMG
34–40
Projectile
900
Innate Abilities
Dragon Blood
The life blood of the Dragon improves Dragon Knight's health regeneration and armor.
Regen and armor are increased by 50% during Elder Dragon Form.
BONUS HP REGEN:
2
BONUS ARMOR:
2
Slyrak's blood still courses through Davion's veins, giving him twice the vitality of an ordinary knight.
Abilities
Breathe Fire
Cooldown
14 / 13 / 12 / 11s
Mana
90 / 95 / 100 / 105
Unleashes a breath of fire in front of Dragon Knight that burns enemies and reduces the damage their attacks deal.
START RADIUS:
150
END RADIUS:
250
DAMAGE:
80 / 160 / 240 / 320
DAMAGE REDUCTION:
20 / 24 / 28 / 32%
REDUCTION DURATION:
11
- Does not trigger spell block or spell reflect.
Knight Davion's breath has become that of the mighty Eldwurm Slyrak, remembered for burning numerous other knights to a crisp.
Dragon Tail
Cooldown
16 / 14 / 12 / 10s
Mana
70 / 80 / 90 / 100
Dragon Knight smites an enemy unit with his shield, stunning and damaging it and units close to it.
STUN DURATION:
1.8 / 2 / 2.2 / 2.4
DAMAGE:
60 / 90 / 120 / 150
AOE:
25
Davion's combination of dragon talents and knightly skills makes him a vicious opponent in melee combat.
Wyrm's Wrath
The life blood of the Dragon improves Dragon Knight's abilities and items to have increased AoE and causes his attacks to deal additional magic damage to enemy units.
MAGIC DAMAGE:
10 / 20 / 30 / 40
AOE BONUS:
25 / 50 / 75 / 100
Slyrak's blood still courses through Davion's veins, giving him twice the vitality of an ordinary knight.
Elder Dragon Form
Cooldown
100s
Mana
50
Dragon Knight assumes the form of the Elder Dragon, increasing the range of his abilities, gaining bonus movement speed, and a ranged attack with various properties. The Dragon evolves per level. The bonuses are cumulative.
Level 1 Green: Grants a corrosive damage over time that can also damage buildings.
Level 2 Red: Grants splash damage to the dragon's attacks.
Level 3 Blue: Grants a debuff immunity piercing movement and attack frost slow on attack.
DURATION:
60
BONUS MOVE SPEED:
25 / 30 / 35 / 40
BONUS ATTACK RANGE:
350
BONUS ABILITY RANGE:
350
<font color="#9acd32">CORROSIVE DURATION:</font>
3
<font color="#9acd32">CORROSIVE DAMAGE:</font>
25 / 25 / 25 / 35
<font color="#FF0000">SPLASH DAMAGE:</font>
0 / 75 / 75 / 100%
<font color="#FF0000">SPLASH RADIUS:</font>
0 / 275 / 275 / 350
<font color="#87ceeb">FROST DURATION:</font>
0 / 0 / 3 / 3
<font color="#87ceeb">FROST MOVEMENT SLOW:</font>
0 / 0 / 30 / 45%
<font color="#87ceeb">FROST ATTACK SLOW:</font>
0 / 0 / 50 / 65
- Cooldowns of items that are different for ranged and melee units will be based on which form Dragon Knight was in when the item was used.
The dormant dragon power springs forth from within Davion, combining the powers of a legendary knight with a legendary Eldwurm.
Talents
Aghanim's Scepter
Elder Dragon Form
Increases the current level of Dragon Form by one. Adds a Level 4 Black Dragon that has free pathing, bonus magic resistance, and increased other bonuses.
Aghanim's Shard
Fireball
Cooldown
20s
Mana
80
Ignites an area, dealing damage over time that lingers on enemies in it. Has reduced cast range when melee.
RADIUS:
275
DAMAGE PER SECOND:
85
DURATION:
6
LINGER DURATION:
2
Most Dragon Knights name no greater horror than the scourge of dragon's fire.
Hero Performance
Median across all public matches · OpenDotaForm
48%
Win rate in recent matches
Performance
88%
KDA ratio (kills + assists / deaths)
Laning
45%
Last hits per minute over full game
Farm
63%
Average gold per minute
Fighting
28%
Average kills + assists per match
Experience
79%
Average XP per minute
Strategy
When to Pick Dragon Knight?
Pick Dragon Knight when your team needs a carry that wins the lane, doesn't die, pushes towers like they are made of cardboard, and becomes a literal dragon that the enemy team needs five heroes and every cooldown they own just to bring down—because that is exactly what this hero does when he is played correctly, and right now he is absolutely dominating in the right hands.
He is very strong right now, and honestly, the stats speak for themselves—in a meta where tanky, right-click carries that can take and deal punishment simultaneously are thriving, Dragon Knight sits right at the top of that conversation, and people are still somehow surprised every time he pops off.
Breathe Fire in the laning phase is one of the best harassment tools any carry has access to—it reduces the enemy carry's damage output, clears the wave, and lets DK dominate a lane that most other carries would struggle in.
He is disgusting in lineups that have strong auras and armor buffs—Assault Cuirass, Vladmir's Offering, Witch Doctor—because Dragon Knight already hits like a truck, and every point of armor reduction or attack speed buff turns him into something the enemy carry simply cannot trade against in a straight fight.
He thrives in fast-paced, objective-focused lineups that want to take towers and end the game before the enemy's fancy late-game carry comes fully online—because nobody in Dota 2 takes down a tower faster than a Dragon Knight in Elder Dragon Form with a Radiance or an Assault Cuirass sitting in his inventory.
He pairs beautifully with heroes that have strong crowd control and can keep the enemy in place long enough for DK to right-click them into the ground—Shadow Shaman, Witch Doctor, and Bane—because Dragon Knight's damage output during Elder Dragon Form is absolutely obscene if the target cannot move or reposition away from him.
Avoid picking him into heavy kiting lineups that can just dance around him all game and never commit to a straight fight—Windranger, Puck, Storm Spirit—heroes that will just dodge his spells, avoid his Dragon Tail stun, and chip him down from a distance without ever standing still long enough for him to get value out of his right-clicks.
Also feels genuinely terrible to play Huskar in the laning phase—that hero will just run at DK, ignore everything he does, and out-trade him at low HP in a way that makes the lane almost unwinnable without support help. And if the enemy has a lot of magical burst that can nuke Dragon Knight down before Elder Dragon Form makes him magic immune at level three?
Be very careful about your positioning in the early- to mid-game, because before that upgrade, DK is significantly more vulnerable to magic damage than people give him credit for.
Tips & common mistakes
- People activate Elder Dragon Form and immediately run into the enemy team like they are completely unkillable. You are tanky, not immortal—at level one and level two Elder Dragon Form you are NOT magic immune yet, and a Zeus or a Lina will remind you of that very painfully if you overextend without checking your dragon level first.
- Dragon Tail can be cast from Dragon Form at a much longer range than people realize. Stop walking directly next to the enemy to stun them like you are playing a melee hero with no range—use the extended cast range in Elder Dragon Form to stun from a safe distance and then close the gap.
- Breathe Fire reduces the enemy's damage output, and people completely forget to use it in the laning phase as an aggressive harass tool. Hit the enemy carry with it every time it is off cooldown and watch their last-hitting become absolutely miserable while your HP stays perfectly healthy.
- Dragon Blood gives DK insane HP regen and armor passively — this means you can play significantly more aggressively in the lane than most carries without needing to buy as many regen items. Use this advantage to dominate the lane and deny the enemy carry every creep you possibly can.
- Stop building Dragon Knight the same way every single game. Yes, Blink Dagger into Assault Cuirass is strong—but if the enemy has no armor and you need to end the game fast, Aghanim's Scepter gives you a corrosive breath that melts buildings AND applies a slow that makes kiting you significantly harder. Read the game and adjust your build accordingly.
- Elder Dragon Form's level three Frost Breath slows the enemy's attack and movement speed on every hit. This means in the late game, DK becomes one of the best anti-kiting carries in the entire pool — once he gets on top of you, you are not running away. Build items that help him close the gap, and the flow will handle the rest.
- You are a carry that also functions as an initiator. Stop waiting for your supports to start every fight—Dragon Tail into Blink is a legitimate initiation that can set up your entire team. Be proactive, take fights when you have your cooldowns ready, and don't just stand in the back right-clicking like a passive farmer who needs babysitting.
Summary
Dragon Knight is one of those carries that makes the enemy team genuinely miserable to play against — he wins the lane, tanks everything they throw at him, destroys every tower he looks at, and then transforms into an actual dragon that slows, burns, and right-clicks the enemy into complete submission.
He is very strong right now because everything about this meta rewards exactly what DK does best, and if you are drafting him into the right lineup with the right follow-up, you are giving yourself one of the most reliable paths to victory that Dota 2 has to offer.
Dominate the laning phase with Breathe Fire, hit your Elder Dragon Form timing, and make the enemy team spend every single teamfight trying to deal with a giant dragon that refuses to die and refuses to stop hitting their buildings.
Just don't forget that you are not actually invincible before level three Elder Dragon Form—because a Dragon Knight who overestimates his own tankiness before that magic immunity kicks in is just a big slow hero with a single target stun walking directly into his own death and wondering why the Lina just deleted half his HP bar in two seconds flat.
Popular Items
Starting Items
Early Game
Core
Late Game
Popular Neutral Items
Pro Players Known For This Hero
![No[o]ne](https://segblxwrbtupwiueqnsw.supabase.co/storage/v1/object/public/images/players/noone.png)
