Lion
A 26.8% pick rate makes Lion the single most-played hero in the current patch by a wide margin, and Hex is the reason — a disable that removes every ability and item option from a target while turning them into a harmless, slow-moving creature is one of the strongest single-target tools in the game, at any stage. The read most new players miss is that Finger of Death's empowered melee attack after casting isn't optional flavor, it's a real cleave that can finish off a target the nuke alone doesn't kill, and it gains permanent bonus damage on every hero kill it or the fist secures. Below is the current 7.41e patch, the build that leans into the lockdown-and-burst identity, and the picks that make it much harder to use.
Role and Position Lion Plays
Lion is overwhelmingly a support: 52.1% of his games are hard support and 34.1% support, with mid a smaller but real secondary role at 11.6%.
When to pick Lion:
- your team wants a hero who can completely disable a single dangerous enemy through Hex;
- the draft benefits from a delayed AoE stun combined with a massive single-target burst nuke;
- the game plan rewards patient positioning and clean kill setups over constant aggression.
When to skip him:
- the enemy has strong dispels or spell immunity that can shrug off Hex and Finger of Death both;
- the team needs a hero with more direct sustain or initiation than Lion naturally provides;
- the map favors constant roaming over a more stationary, setup-focused playstyle.
Lion's Strengths
- Hex completely disables a target, removing their ability to cast, use items, or attack effectively, for a strong duration;
- Finger of Death deals massive single-target damage and empowers Lion's next melee attack with a cleave and bonus movement speed;
- Earth Spike provides a reliable AoE stun after a short delay, setting up trades and kill combos;
- Mana Drain channels to steal mana from an enemy while transferring it to Lion, disrupting their resources over time;
- Finger of Death's permanent scaling means every hero kill it or the empowered fist secures makes future casts hit even harder.
Lion's Weaknesses
- Hex and Finger of Death are both single-target, so they can't affect a fight the way an AoE disable would;
- Mana Drain's channel leaves Lion vulnerable and can be interrupted before it drains significant mana;
- relatively fragile if caught without his disables available, especially early in the game;
- no reliable escape of his own beyond positioning and item choices;
- value depends heavily on landing Hex or Finger of Death on the right target — a wasted cast on the wrong hero can lose a fight instead of winning it.
Lion's Abilities
Earth Spike (Q) — after a short delay, spikes erupt from the ground, damaging and stunning enemies in the area.
Hex (W) — transforms an enemy into a harmless, slow-moving creature, unable to attack, cast spells, or use items for the duration.
Mana Drain (E) — channels to steal a percentage of an enemy's current mana every second, transferring it directly to Lion.
Finger of Death (ultimate) — deals massive single-target magic damage after a short delay, and empowers Lion's next attack with a cleaving melee strike; gains permanent bonus damage on every hero kill from either source.
Build, Items, and Strategies
Skill order: start Earth Spike for lane control and the stun, take an early Hex for lockdown potential, and prioritize Finger of Death at every level it's available.
Talents: the level 15 pick reducing Hex's cooldown rewards a more aggressive, disable-heavy playstyle across multiple fights.
Starting items: Tango, Clarity, and wards — Lion's job on the lane is control and disable pressure, not farm.
Utility build — the default path: Glimmer Cape and Force Staff for survivability, since Lion has no built-in escape.
Aggressive-support build — when the game plan wants more kill pressure: an earlier Aghanim's Shard or Scepter, depending on which upgrade the draft needs more.
Reactive items: Force Staff or Glimmer Cape for personal safety, since Mana Drain's channel and general fragility both leave Lion exposed.
Pro tip: save Hex for the enemy's most dangerous hero in a fight rather than the easiest target — removing their ability to respond for several seconds often matters more than the kill itself.
Footnote: exact item order flexes around whether the priority is early lane pressure or scaling toward maximum lockdown reliability.
Timings, Roshan, and Power Spikes
0–10 minutes: control the lane with Earth Spike stuns, using Hex to punish overextensions or set up kills.
10–20 minutes: first power spike — Finger of Death online turns Lion into a genuine kill threat on any target caught without protection.
20–35 minutes: second power spike — with core utility items, Hex and Finger of Death both become significantly safer and more reliable to use.
Roshan window: Earth Spike's stun and Finger of Death's burst both help control positioning around a Roshan attempt.
35+ minutes: use Hex on the enemy's key threat before a fight starts, rather than reactively mid-engagement.
Footnote: these timings depend heavily on landing Earth Spike's delayed stun reliably, since a dodged trap wastes a key part of the combo.
Lion Counters
Any hero with a strong dispel is a strong answer: clearing Hex or dodging Finger of Death both undercut Lion's core lockdown tools.
— Silencer: Global Silence prevents Hex and Finger of Death from being cast at all.
— Any hero with spell immunity: Black King Bar and similar tools let a target ignore Hex's lockdown and Finger of Death's damage.
— Anti-Mage: Blink lets him dodge Earth Spike's stun setup and avoid the follow-up combo.
— Doom: the ultimate blocks item and ability usage, cutting off Lion's ability to react during a fight.
— Any hero who can interrupt Mana Drain's channel: denying the mana steal removes a meaningful resource disruption tool.
Where Lion is strong on his own: against drafts without reliable dispels or spell immunity, where Hex and Finger of Death both land uncontested.
Footnote: most of these counters share a theme — dispelling or ignoring his disables removes almost everything Lion contributes to a fight.
Synergies with Other Heroes
— Any hero with strong follow-up burst: a target Hexed or stunned by Earth Spike is a guaranteed combo window for teammates to finish.
— Tidehunter: Ravage groups enemies together right before Finger of Death picks off the most valuable target.
— Any hero who benefits from removing a threat mid-fight: Hex effectively deletes the enemy's key hero from a fight for its duration.
— Enigma: Black Hole holds enemies in place for a guaranteed Finger of Death on a priority target.
— Any hero with strong initiation: a clean engage sets up Lion's disables on a target who can't easily escape.
These pairings work best around capitalizing on Lion's lockdown — Hex and Earth Spike both set up kills more than they secure them alone.
What Experienced Lion Players Do
- save Hex for the enemy's most dangerous hero rather than the easiest target;
- land Earth Spike before committing Finger of Death, guaranteeing the burst actually connects;
- track enemy dispel and spell immunity cooldowns before committing to a full combo;
- use Mana Drain during downtime to disrupt an enemy's resources before a fight, not just reactively;
- chain Finger of Death kills together when possible, since the permanent damage bonus compounds fast.
Insider insight: the real value of Hex is often the removal itself, not just the disable duration — taking the enemy's most dangerous hero out of a fight for several seconds is frequently worth more than the damage Lion could deal in that time.
Conclusion
Lion rewards a player who thinks about removing threats rather than just dealing damage — Hex's complete lockdown and Finger of Death's burst both work best aimed at the enemy's most dangerous hero, not the easiest target. He's the most-played hero in the current patch for good reason, but dispels and spell immunity both find real ways around his kit. Pick him when the draft lacks those answers; be cautious against lineups stacked with Black King Bars and dispels.
