Hero Discussion of the Day: Chaos Knight (June 8, 2012)
Chaos Knight was last discussed on December 13.
Chaos Knight
Chaos Knight is a melee strength Hero famous for his unorthodox disables and is most commonly played as a semi-carry and ganker. His core abilities all have effects that are based on randomness: Reality Rift, for example, pulls Chaos Knight and his target to a randomly chosen point along the line between the two at the time of casting. The random factor of these abilities mean that they can be extremely powerful if the random number generator is in your favor. This is especially true for Chaos Bolt, which at max rank has a chance to be a 4 second targeted stun, which in turn is almost a guaranteed kill early in the game (4 seconds is equivalent to Black Hole). This ability makes Chaos Knight into a very strong roamer in the early-mid game. At the same time, Chaos Knight's Chaos Strike and Phantasm abilities both scale well with items, giving the Chaos Knight presence even in the late stages of the game. He is recommended for new and intermediate players.
Lore:
The veteran of a countless battles on a thousand worlds, Chaos Knight hails from a far upstream plane where the fundamental laws of the universe have found sentient expression. Of all the ancient Fundamentals, he is the oldest and most tireless—endlessly searching out a being he knows only as “The Light.” Long ago the Light ventured out from the progenitor realm, in defiance of the first covenant. Now Chaos Knight shifts from plane to plane, always on the hunt to extinguish the Light wherever he finds it. A thousand times he has snuffed out the source, and always he slides into another plane to continue his search anew.
Upon his steed Armageddon he rides, wading into battle with maniacal frenzy, drawing strength from the disorder of the universe. A physical manifestation of chaos itself, in times of need he calls upon other versions of himself from other planes, and together these dark horsemen ride into battle, as unstoppable as any force of nature. Only when the last Light of the world is scoured from existence will the search be ended. Where rides the Chaos Knight, death soon follows.
"All creation is order which must be scattered to the wind."
Role: Carry / Disabler / Durable / Pusher
| Strength | Agility | Intelligence |
|---|---|---|
| 20 + 2.9 | 14 + 2.1 | 16 + 1.2 |
| Damage | Armor | Movespeed |
| 49 - 79 | 3.96 | 325 |
| Attack Range | Base Attack Time | Missile Speed |
| 128 (melee) | 1.7 | N/A |
| Soundset | Icon |
Chaos Bolt
Throws a mysterious bolt of energy at the target unit. It stuns for a random duration and deals random damage.
| Level | Mana Cost | Cooldown | Casting Range | Area | Duration | Effects |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 140 | 10 | 500 | N/A | 1-2 seconds | Deals 1-200 damage and stuns |
| 2 | 140 | 10 | 500 | N/A | 1-3 seconds | Deals 50-225 damage and stuns |
| 3 | 140 | 10 | 500 | N/A | 1-4 seconds | Deals 75-250 damage and stuns |
| 4 | 140 | 10 | 500 | N/A | 2-4 seconds | Deals 100-275 damage and stuns |
- Damage type: magic
- Stun duration and damage appears above targeted unit's head (visible to allies and enemies).
- Partially blocked by Linken's Sphere: A ministun will occur instead of the full stun. Damage is not blocked.
Reality Rift
Teleports you, any images you have and the target unit to a random point along the line between the two of you. Gives you bonus attack damage for one attack.
| Level | Mana Cost | Cooldown | Casting Range | Area | Duration | Effects |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 70 | 24 | 550 | None | None | Teleportation and 25 bonus attack damage |
| 2 | 70 | 18 | 600 | None | None | Teleportation and 50 bonus attack damage |
| 3 | 70 | 12 | 650 | None | None | Teleportation and 75 bonus attack damage |
| 4 | 70 | 6 | 700 | None | None | Teleportation and 100 bonus attack damage |
- Teleports Chaos Knight to a random point on the line between the units (between 30% and 80% of the distance).
- Teleports the target unit to the same location as Chaos Knight, offset by 25 units towards Chaos Knight's original position.
- Any illusions of Chaos Knight owned by the same player as Chaos Knight within a 1400 radius are also teleported to Chaos Knight's new position.
- Chaos Knight and the target unit are made to face each other, and Chaos Knight and all teleported illusions are issued an attack order against the target unit.
Critical Strike
Chaos Knight's mojo gives him a chance to deal bonus damage.
| Level | Mana Cost | Cooldown | Casting Range | Area | Duration | Effects |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | 10% chance to deal 1.5 times normal damage |
| 2 | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | 10% chance to deal 2 times normal damage |
| 3 | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | 10% chance to deal 2.5 times normal damage |
| 4 | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | 10% chance to deal 3 times normal damage |
Phantasm
Summons several copies of the Chaos Knight from alternate dimensions. The illusions deal full damage, but take double damage.
| Level | Mana Cost | Cooldown | Casting Range | Area | Duration | Effects |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 125 | 140 | N/A | N/A | 24 seconds | Summons 1 Image, takes 200% normal damage |
| 2 | 200 | 140 | N/A | N/A | 24 seconds | Summons 2 Images, takes 200% normal damage |
| 3 | 275 | 140 | N/A | N/A | 24 seconds | Summons 3 Images, takes 200% normal damage |
- This ability removes most buffs from Chaos Knight.
Gamesbass did a great in-depth Hero Analysis of Chaos Knight and check out the reddit thread here.
Be sure to take a look at DotaCinema's video overview of CK.
As always, check out yesterday's discussion of Phantom Assassin or the complete HDotD archives.
Posted Jun 8, 2012, 2:29 PM UTC