Pudge was one of the first heroes to be released in Dota 2. And ever since then, he has become one of the most-picked and talked about heroes in the history of Dota.
For his teammates, he is the savior that can save them from the deadliest situations and a playmaker that can take control of the game from the moment the match starts.
And for his enemies, he is their darkest nightmare.
Pudge’s Sudden Rise in Popularity
Before patch 7.31, Pudge was just a normal Pos 4 hero who either dominated the games or was useless the whole game.
He didn’t have the best kits to set up kills, nor he had the best roaming potentials. And it required a lot of patience and practice to make this hero work.
But, even so, the hero was pretty fun to play.
Fast forward to patch 7.32, and Pudge is now a legit carry hero. Due to his Rot and high base damage, it is near impossible to deny a creep from him, and he even has a decent kill threat in the lane.
Due to his Aghanim’s Scepter and Flesh Heap changes, he is quite a formidable hero when played as a carry.
When to Pick Pudge ?
Pudge is a snowballing hero and you’ll need to be careful when picking this hero on your matches.
People usually consider picking this hero as griefing because the hero is very skill dependent.
You can basically pick this hero in every game but you need to make sure that you have the right heroes on your team, heroes that have stuns and set-up hooks for him, and heroes that have high physical damage to kill enemies during Dismember.
He really struggles against heroes with disables and silences so try to look out for them when picking it.
What Roles Can Pudge be Played In?
He is one of the few heroes in Dota 2 that can be played in every role. Carry, Mid, Support, Offlane – you name it. He is suitable for every role in the game.
Pudge Builds
Carry Build
Pick these abilities for the first 15 levels if you’re playing Pudge as Pos 1.
And pick these talents from the talent tree.
Starting Items
Quelling Blade is good on almost every melee carry hero, and Pudge is no exception. It allows you to secure the last hits on creeps and deny your own.
Early-Game Items
Wraith Band increases your attack speed and gives you additional armor. As Pudge has a very low base armor, it allows you to tank more incoming damage.
Vanguard allows you to be tanky in teamfights and go ham.
Mid-Game Items
Aghanim’s Scepter greatly increases your DPS and team-fighting capability. This is your biggest powerspikes in the game.
You’re now ready to take fights after completing this item. Blink Dagger allows you to initiate on enemies.
Late-Game Items
BKB is a necessary item in almost every game. Shiva’s Guard allows you to negate incoming physical damage a lot and also apply debuffs to enemies around you. Heart allows you to be tankier.
Situational Items
Linken’s Sphere is good against heroes with instant disabilities like hexes or duels. If enemies have heavy physical damage then Etherial Blade is a good item.
Refresher allows you to use BKB twice which is great in the late game.
Mid Build
If you’re playing Pudge as mid then your goal should be to make space for your carry rather than farming for items.
This build allows you to engage very early on in the fight while making you tanky at the same time.
Pick these abilities for the first 15 levels if you’re playing Pudge as mid,
And, pick these talents from the talent tree.
Starting Items
Early-Game Items
Phase Boots allow you to close the gap between you and your enemies. And Blink Dagger is the best initiation item for this hero.
Mid-Game Items
Make either Hood or Vanguard depending on the enemy lineup. The Hood is good against heroes with magical damage while Vanguard is good against heroes with physical damage.
If you’re going for Hood, then upgrading it to Eternal Shrould will give you spell lifesteal as well as block certain magic damage.
Late-Game Items
These items allow you to be tankier while also increasing your DPS.
Situational Items
Blademail is good in early games if the enemies have lots of damage. You can buy other items if your team lacks disables or silences.
Linkens is good if the enemy team has single-target spells that can disrupt your combo.
Offlane Build
If you’re playing Pudge on Offlane then your goal should be to be the tankiest guy in the team and run at enemies.
This build gives you a lot of HP regeneration and damage negation ability.
Pick these abilities for the first 15 levels if you’re playing Pudge as an Offlaner.
And, pick these talents from the talent tree.
Starting Items
The Quelling Blade allows you to last hit better and the Ring of Protection gives you extra armor that will help you withstand right-click damage from the enemy heroes.
Iron Branches are for stats and they can also be combined to build Magic Wand.
Early-Game Items
Phase Boots and Vanguard makes you very tanky and you can join fights from very early on.
If the enemy team has lots of magical damage, then you can switch to Hood from Vanguard.
Either way, they are both essential items if you’re playing Offlane.
Core Items
The Pipe is better than Eternal Shroud in this build as it buffs your whole team rather than a single hero.
Lotus gives you extra armor while also allowing you to dispel many enemy spells.
Situational Items
I’ve put Aghanim’s Scepter in situational items because as an offlaner, you want to focus on being tanky rather than on DPS.
So, unless your team lacks damage to take down enemies, you should build items that allow you to tank in the teamfights.
Support Build
As a support, your only job is to hook enemies(or teammates, if they’re getting ganked).
Pick these abilities for the first 15 levels if you’re playing Pudge as an Offlaner.
And, pick these talents from the talent tree.
Starting Items
Healing Salve and Clarity allow you to stay at full HP and mana, and increase your presence in the lane.
Since Pudge doesn’t have a good HP and mana regeneration early on, it is crucial that you bring a lot of regen items.
Wards help you to spot enemies quicker and hook them easily without them noticing you.
Early Game Item
As I’ve told you, Pudge doesn’t have a good HP and mana regeneration. So, Tranquil boots are the best to support Pudge.
Urn helps you to heal yourself and your allies, and deal damage to enemies. It also gives you decent mana regeneration.
Core Items
As a support player, you lack mobility to engage in fights. Blink Dagger and Force Staff both help you engage in their own way.
Force Staff is also a great saving item. Aghanim’s Shard is the key item for support Pudge as it allows him to save his allies from dire situations.
Situational Items
You may need to purchase these items depending on your team’s matchup.
Luxury Items
Purchasing these items can be very beneficial for your team. However, they are bit expensive so you may need to save up quite a bit of gold before you can purchase them.
Heroes that have Good Synergy with Pudge
Heroes that can dish out a lot of damage during the Dismember duration are very good with Pudge.
And heroes that can set up hooks for him are good with him as well.
Heroes that Are Countered by Pudge
Heroes that lack mobility and have channeling spells are hard countered by Pudge. Illusion-based heroes are also countered by Pudge when he is played as core.
Heroes that Counter Pudge
Heroes with silences and disables are the biggest nightmare of Pudge.
As Pudge mainly relies on his rot and Dismember to do his damage, these spells affect his effectiveness by a lot.
How to Do Instant Hook + Dismember Combo on Pudge?
If you’ve ever wondered how pro Pudges instantly Dismember their enemies after hooking, and want to learn this skill for yourself, here’s a quick video that shows you how to do it.
