Pudge Build

1. 1. StartIron BranchIron Branch55 gold+ 1 All Attributesuse: Plant TreeTargets the ground to plant a happy little tree that lasts for 20 seconds.Item data: OpenDota game constants.107 purchases · 20.0% of the phase
2. 2. Early gameBoots of SpeedBoots of Speed500 gold+ 45 Movement SpeedMovement speed bonuses from multiple pairs of boots do not stack.Item data: OpenDota game constants.69 purchases · 24.1% of the phase
3. 3. Mid gameBlink DaggerBlink Dagger2,250 goldactive: BlinkTeleport to a target point up to 1200 units away. Blink Dagger cannot be used for 3 seconds after taking damage from an enemy hero or Roshan.Cooldown 15 sSelf-casting will cause you to teleport in the direction of your team's fountain.Item data: OpenDota game constants.50 purchases · 15.6% of the phase
4. 4. Late gameBlack King BarBlack King Bar4,050 gold+ 10 Strength+ 24 Damageactive: AvatarApplies a basic dispel. Grants 60% magic resistance and immunity to reflected and pure damage. For the duration of the effect, any negative effect from enemy spells has no effect. Duration: 9s Dispel Type: Basic DispelCooldown 95 s · Mana 50Purchasing another Black King Bar will not reset its immunity duration.Item data: OpenDota game constants.25 purchases · 18.8% of the phase

Path cost: 6,855 gold (sum of the item costs in game data).

1. Iron BranchIron Branch55 gold+ 1 All Attributesuse: Plant TreeTargets the ground to plant a happy little tree that lasts for 20 seconds.Item data: OpenDota game constants.107 purchases20.0%
2. TangoTango90 golduse: DevourConsumes a target tree to gain 7 health regeneration for 16 seconds. Consuming an Ironwood Tree doubles the heal duration. Comes with 3 charges. Can be used on an allied hero to give them one Tango. Tree Range: 165Item data: OpenDota game constants.73 purchases13.6%
3. Gauntlets of StrengthGauntlets of Strength140 gold+ 3 StrengthItem data: OpenDota game constants.53 purchases9.9%
4. Blood GrenadeBlood Grenade50 gold+ 50 Healthuse: Throw GrenadeThrow a grenade at the target area. Enemies in the area will take 50 damage on impact, and be slowed by -15% and take 15 damage every 1s for 5 seconds. Radius 300.Cooldown 10 sItem data: OpenDota game constants.38 purchases7.1%
5. Observer WardObserver Ward0 golduse: PlantPlants an Observer Ward, an invisible watcher that gives ground vision in a 1600 radius to your team. Lasts 6 minutes. Hold Control to give one Observer Ward to an allied hero.Cooldown 1 sItem data: OpenDota game constants.35 purchases6.5%

All starting items on the items page

1. Boots of SpeedBoots of Speed500 gold+ 45 Movement SpeedMovement speed bonuses from multiple pairs of boots do not stack.Item data: OpenDota game constants.69 purchases24.1%
2. Tranquil BootsTranquil Boots900 gold+ 65 Movement Speed+ 14 Health Regenerationpassive: BreakWhenever you attack a hero or are attacked by any unit, the bonus 14 HP regen is lost and the movement speed bonus is reduced to 40 for 13 seconds.Cooldown 13 sItem data: OpenDota game constants.43 purchases15.0%
3. BracerBracer505 gold+ 5 Strength+ 2 Agility+ 2 Intelligence+ 0.75 Health Regeneration+ 50 HealthItem data: OpenDota game constants.41 purchases14.3%
4. ChainmailChainmail500 gold+ 4 ArmorItem data: OpenDota game constants.33 purchases11.5%
5. Phase BootsPhase Boots1,450 gold+ 50 Movement Speed+ 18 Damage (MELEE)+ 12 Damage (RANGED)+ 4 Armoractive: PhaseGives 20% increased movement speed on melee heroes, and 10% on ranged heroes, and lets you move through units and turn more quickly for 3 seconds.Cooldown 8 sItem data: OpenDota game constants.29 purchases10.1%

All early game items on the items page

1. Blink DaggerBlink Dagger2,250 goldactive: BlinkTeleport to a target point up to 1200 units away. Blink Dagger cannot be used for 3 seconds after taking damage from an enemy hero or Roshan.Cooldown 15 sSelf-casting will cause you to teleport in the direction of your team's fountain.Item data: OpenDota game constants.50 purchases15.6%
2. Ogre AxeOgre Axe1,000 gold+ 10 StrengthItem data: OpenDota game constants.38 purchases11.8%
3. Staff of WizardryStaff of Wizardry1,000 gold+ 10 IntelligenceItem data: OpenDota game constants.30 purchases9.3%
4. Point BoosterPoint Booster1,200 gold+ 175 Mana+ 175 HealthItem data: OpenDota game constants.26 purchases8.1%
5. Aether LensAether Lens2,275 gold+ 300 Mana+ 2.5 Mana Regeneration+ 225 Cast RangeCast Range bonuses from Aether Lens and Dagon do not stack.Item data: OpenDota game constants.25 purchases7.8%

All mid game items on the items page

1. Black King BarBlack King Bar4,050 gold+ 10 Strength+ 24 Damageactive: AvatarApplies a basic dispel. Grants 60% magic resistance and immunity to reflected and pure damage. For the duration of the effect, any negative effect from enemy spells has no effect. Duration: 9s Dispel Type: Basic DispelCooldown 95 s · Mana 50Purchasing another Black King Bar will not reset its immunity duration.Item data: OpenDota game constants.25 purchases18.8%
2. Shiva's GuardShiva's Guard4,500 gold+ 0 Health Regeneration+ 17 Armor+ 75 Area of Effectactive: Arctic BlastEmits a freezing wave that deals 260 magical damage to enemies and slows their movement by -40% for 4 seconds. Radius: 825passive: Freezing AuraReduces the attack speed of all enemies by -45. Radius: 1200Cooldown 27 s · Mana 75The wave extends at a speed of 400 to a max size of 825. The Arctic Blast follows its caster. Multiple instances of Freezing Aura do not stack. AoE bonuses from multiple Chasm Stones or its upgrades do not stack.Item data: OpenDota game constants.15 purchases11.3%
3. Blink DaggerBlink Dagger2,250 goldactive: BlinkTeleport to a target point up to 1200 units away. Blink Dagger cannot be used for 3 seconds after taking damage from an enemy hero or Roshan.Cooldown 15 sSelf-casting will cause you to teleport in the direction of your team's fountain.Item data: OpenDota game constants.14 purchases10.5%
4. Aghanim's ScepterAghanim's Scepter4,200 gold+ 10 All Attributes+ 175 Health+ 175 Manapassive: Ability UpgradeUpgrades the ultimate, and some abilities, of all heroes.Item data: OpenDota game constants.7 purchases5.3%
5. ReaverReaver2,800 gold+ 25 StrengthItem data: OpenDota game constants.7 purchases5.3%

All late game items on the items page

Patch 7.41 · 400 public Pudge matches · Oct 5, 2026 – Oct 5, 2026 · our sample from OpenDota match details

Which ability Pudge players upgrade at each level, share of matches

Level	Most upgraded	Share
1	Meat Hook	98.5%
2	Rot	96.0%
3	Rot	67.9%
4	Meat Shield	52.3%
5	Rot	68.2%
6	Dismember	98.2%
7	Rot	67.9%
8	Meat Shield	46.0%
9	Meat Shield	47.2%
10	Meat Shield	49.4%

No single skill order reaches 93 matches yet, so no order win rate is shown.

• Meat Hook
• Rot
• Meat Shield
• Flesh Heap
• Dismember

• Pudge Mana ManagementHow to manage mana on Pudge: keep enough for a hook and Dismember before ganks, cancel bad hooks with Stop, and restore mana without losing lane time.
• Which Pudge Abilities Go Through BKB?Meat Hook and Dismember pierce spell immunity; Rot does not. How each Pudge ability works against BKB and how to play when the enemy goes immune.
• Pudge Laning TipsHow to lane as Pudge: where to stand, when to throw Meat Hook, how to use Rot without wasting health, and how to protect your lane partner.
• Pudge itemsFull purchase tables for each game phase.
• Pudge countersHeroes that are hardest for Pudge to play against.