HERO / GET TO KNOW THEM

Pudge

Abilities, roles and builds with an explanation for every purchase.

VALVE · 7.41fChecked 06.10.2026Game data source ↗

HERO GAME PLAN

Ruslan Ukrainskyi· OOPS DOTA

What I want to do in the game

I catch an isolated target and hold it with Dismember; offlane requires items for sustained engagement.

Each carefully aimed throw of Pudge's signature hook strikes fear into his foes. Pulling his enemies near to carve them with his cleavers, he gains additional health and damage with every kill, and soon becomes an unstoppable killer.

Abilities at hand

Meat Hook

Rot

Meat Shield

Dismember

01 / ROLE IN THE TEAM

A pick is not a plan yet.

My recommendation is a starting point. We choose another position together with the team and for its needs.

Support · position 4

Initial recommendation

I contribute through laning, control and movement. I adapt the expensive core route to my budget.

Offlane · position 3

My resource is the team's space: I hold the lane and build for initiation or team protection.

MY VIEW OF THE HERO

Pick for a purpose. Play with a plan.

When I pick

I choose this to catch a single target or reliably hold them after an ally's disable. In a core role, I need the resources to survive close combat.

What I watch out for

A Hook from fog can end in meeting the entire enemy team. Dismember interrupts and healing reduction worsen my usual survival.

What I do in combat

Before the hook, I check who will be nearby after it hits. If saving is the priority, I keep the tool for an ally and do not change the task mid-fight.

What I check first

Hook can pull an ally to safety or ruin their position: I check its flight path.

02 / ITEMS FOR A PURPOSE

What I buy and why.

This is an editorial starting plan based on hero mechanics. It is not presented as a match I have already tested or a popularity ranking.

Support · position 4

My starting plan

Here is my initial plan: I do my role's job first, then choose the items the team needs. I adapt the order and expensive purchases to the opponent.

01 / First stepArcane Boots
Provide mana for laning and regular ability use.
02 / FoundationBlink Dagger
Changes the entry angle and lets me reach a target quickly. Damage taken can prevent its use.
03 / FoundationAether Lens
Lets you use targeted abilities and items from a safer distance.
04 / Next choiceGlimmer Cape
Adds a protective tool and hides the chosen ally; invisibility does not replace escaping detection.
05 / Next choiceAghanim's Shard
Unlocks or upgrades Meat Hook. The exact effects are shown below in the abilities section.

What I change for the situation 3 options

Aghanim's Scepter ↗

Unlocks or upgrades Rot. The exact effects are shown below in the abilities section.

Pipe of Insight ↗

Provides team protection against substantial magical damage.

Black King Bar ↗

Provides a window for my actions against eligible magical damage and disables. I check effects that pierce the protection.

I see the minute on the clock. And the situation too.

I do not assign one ‘correct’ minute to every purchase. I look at my gold, the next fight and the problem: am I missing mana, target access, control or protection? If an expensive slot will arrive too late, I get a useful answer earlier.

03 / HERO ABILITIES

Abilities. As in the game.

Original Valve icons and descriptions. Cooldowns and mana are shown by level from the data snapshot; talents and upgrades can change the values.

Ability

Meat Hook

Launches a bloody hook toward a unit or location. The hook will snag the first unit it encounters, dragging the unit back to Pudge, killing it if it's a non-ancient creep and dealing damage if it is an enemy otherwise.

↻ 18 / 16 / 14 / 12 sec.Mana 120

Details and upgrades

Aghanim’s Shard

Pulling an enemy deals additional damage based on the distance traveled on the hook. Hitting an ally reduces this ability’s cooldown by 50%.

Ability

Rot

A toxic cloud that deals intense damage and slows movement--harming not only enemy units but Pudge himself.

Details and upgrades

A toxic cloud that deals intense damage and slows movement--harming not only enemy units but Pudge himself.

Aghanim’s Scepter

Increases the ability’s radius by 200 and damage by 90. Reduces health restoration received by victims by 20%.

Ability

Meat Shield

Pudge covers himself with a layer of flesh that blocks damage of any type taken from any source.

↻ 20 / 19 / 18 / 17 sec.Mana 65 / 70 / 75 / 80

Ability

Dismember

CHANNELED — the hero devours an enemy alive, stunning it and dealing damage over time based on the ability owner’s strength, healing himself for the same amount of damage dealt.

↻ 30 / 25 / 20 sec.Mana 100 / 130 / 170

Details

CHANNELED - Pudge chows down on an enemy unit, disabling it and dealing damage over time. Damage is increased by Pudge's Strength and heals him for the total amount. Pudge pulls the unit at a rate of 75 units, up to a minimum of 125 range.

Innates, upgrades and other forms1 ability +

These abilities are not necessarily available at the same time. I check the condition beside the name: innate ability, another form or an Aghanim purchase.

Innate

Flesh Heap

Pudge's skin thickens permanently every time he kills an enemy Hero, gaining 2 bonus Strength for each stack.

Full description

Pudge's skin thickens permanently every time he kills an enemy Hero, gaining 2 bonus Strength for each stack.

Valve base stats +

Health · base: 670
Mana · base: 267
Damage · Valve field: 70–76
Armour · Valve field: 2.17
Movement speed: 280
Attack range: 175
Strength · base / gain: 25 / 3
Agility · base / gain: 13 / 1.4
Intelligence · base / gain: 16 / 1.8

These are fields from the official source. The hero's final values in the client account for attributes and other active mechanics.

KEEP EXPLORING

One hero. Many decisions.

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