The Top Lane in Dota is quite a chaotic lane, similar to the top lane, but there are certain heroes which work exceptionally well in the Radiant Hardlane and the Dire Safelane. These heroes range from carry to even support and offlane heroes. The strengths of these heroes are unmatched by any other in the current meta.
To help you pick the right heroes for your ranked adventures, we bring you the Best 10 Top Lane Heroes. These heroes are very relevant in the current meta and assure you nothing but victory and domination over your foes!
10. Doom
Doom is back in the meta! This demon has sent countless of his enemies to the realm of hell. His abilities ensure nothing but pain and agony, his fearful presence wins him wars, he is the almighty Doom! Doom is known to farm the jungle effortlessly right from level one. His high base armor provides him sustain while fighting or laning. He is regarded as one of the most played offlaners in the current meta. While he can jungle and offlane, Doom can also be played as roaming support, ganking and catching his enemies by surprise!
What makes Doom a great top lane hero?
- Devour kills creeps instantly, granting gold and him the abilities of the creep.
- Scorched Earth deals massive AoE damage which accelerates his farming speed.
- The ultimate Doom is great against mobile/slippery heroes.
- Amazing talent tree that scales well with item builds.
Items to buy on Doom
- Shadow Blade
- Blink Dagger
- Shiva’s Guard
- Black King Bar
- Refresher’s Orb
Doom full details: https://dota2.fandom.com/wiki/Doom
9. Tidehunter
Tidehunter does exceptionally well against melee heroes, especially against the squishy ones with low armor. With little to no damage being dealt by his laning carry due to Anchor Smash and high base armor, they have no choice but to ignore this melon man during teamfights! But this does not mean that Tide ignores them, he ferociously pounces on him to ravage and decimate his carriers and eventually wipe off the entire team.
Why is Tidehunter a great initiator?
- Kraken Shell and Anchor Smash make it very difficult for enemies to damage Tidehunter.
- Ravage will lock the whole enemy team down.
- Anchor Smash reduces base damage, which is the majority of a carry hero’s auto-attack damage.
- An Aghanim's Scepter upgraded Gush slows down and reduces the armor of all heroes.
Items to Buy on Tidehunter
- Blink Dagger
- Shiva’s Guard
- Lotus Orb
- Aghanim’s Scepter and Shard
- Force Staff
8. Sand King
Sand King fares well against most heroes, especially if they are melee. He may have a hard time getting harassed himself, but not when his opponents can’t see him! Sand King can farm and deal damage quite effortlessly without even moving. Apart from dealing lethal AoE damage, SK farms fairly quickly and is ready to rotate to other parts of the map. All it takes is one Blink Dagger or Veil of Discord for him to dominate and destroy his enemies!
Why is Sand King great in the top lane?
- All of Sand King's abilities deal AoE damage.
- Epicenter will usually deal insane damage with Caustic Finale.
- High potential to get stun-locked if initiated by Sand King
Items to Buy on Sand King
- Blink Dagger/Overwhelming Blink
- Shiva’s Guard
- Veil of Discord
- Aghanim’s Scepter and Shard
- Eul’s Scepter
Sand King full details: https://dota2.fandom.com/wiki/Sand_King
7. Mars
The first son of heaven, Mars, is somewhat of a new addition to the game. His impressive and damage-dealing spells rank him very high on this list. Mars is exceptional if you want a great wave clear and someone to tank out all the damage and lead the charge for your team. He synergizes well with most heroes, making him a flexible pick in every game, and can withstand hordes with his flexible and reliable item build.
Why is Mars a great top lane hero?
- High physical damage with God’s Rebuke
- Can withstand and tank opponents with Bulwark and Arena.
- Low CD on spells
- Great at wave clear
Items to buy as Mars
- Blink Dagger
- Lotus Orb
- Crimson Guard
- Blademail
- Shiva’s Guard
6. Juggernaut
Juggernaut is a masked Samurai that is better left untamed. It is impossible to contain him if he unleashes his true potential. Juggernaut is considered to be a beginner-friendly hero but only the advanced players understand the true potential and mechanics of this hero. If you were an experienced League player, then you would absolutely love playing Juggernaut. Not only is he great at farming, but he can also control the tempo with his ultimate. He is also known as one of the most flexible heroes in the game in terms of item builds, which explains his pick rate.
Why is Juggernaut a great hero for top lane?
- Does more with levels as opposed to farm.
- Great base movement speed, armor, and attack speed.
- Great talent tree that scales well with items.
Items to buy on Juggernaut
- Diffusal Blade
- Sange and Yasha
- Aghanim’s Scepter and shard
- Butterfly
- Eye of Skadi
Juggernaut full details: https://dota2.fandom.com/wiki/Juggernaut
5. Magnus
The strength of the hoof and horns has bestowed Magnus with a great ton of power. Magnus can be picked first as he can be mended and put into any lane. He works best in the offlane where he can compete and quite effortlessly out farm his enemy carry with empower. In the later stages of the game, Magnus is more spell and level reliant as opposed to farm, as all it takes is one Blink Dagger to ruin the enemy’s tempo. A successful blink into RP followed up by his team can guarantee the game victory.
Why is Magnus a great top lane hero?
- Requires minimal farm to get online
- Immense crowd control
- Great laner
Items to buy as Magnus
- Blink Dagger
- Aghanim’s Shard
- Black King Bar
- Force Staff
- Eul’s Scepter
Magnus full details: https://dota2.fandom.com/wiki/Magnus
4. Drow Ranger
This skilled markswoman is very precise and deadly. Her cool and calm demeanor is deceiving due to her lethal force on the battlefield. Drow might be a slow laner but her late-game potential is unmatched. She can deal heavy damage with just a few items in her inventory! She can destroy enemies effortlessly as she acquires items and gains levels. Having a high attack range provides her with an edge over her foes!
What makes Drow Ranger a great top-lane hero?
- Can mow down towers and squishy heroes easily
- Aghanim’s Scepter works wonders on her
- High physical damage output and movement speed
Items to buy on Drow Ranger
- Hurricane Pike
- Silver Edge
- Satanic
- Butterfly
- Manta Style
3. Phantom Assassin
All support heroes fear the presence of Phantom Assassin as she is known to obliterate them with only a few hits! She is agile and silent in her moves, as an assassin should be! Phantom Assassin is one of the most played heroes in the game. She has great base movement and attack speed, which is rarely found in a carry hero. Her spells may seem underwhelming in the early game but as she reaches the late game mark, she can do a lot with just one Stifling Dagger.
Why is Phantom Assassin a great top lane hero?
- Has great mobility with the Phantom Strike spell, can be used both defensively and offensively.
- The damage is supplemented with allies that provide armor reduction spells or abilities.
- The Blur spell provides up to 50% evasion, which is a great spell in the early game.
- Is capable of dealing over 2k critical damage!
Items to buy on Phantom Assassin
- Desolator
- Skull Basher
- Satanic
- Butterfly
- Monkey King Bar
PA full details: https://dota2.fandom.com/wiki/Phantom_Assassin
2. Centaur Warruner
The war chieftain has seen many strong enemies, his forces have destroyed empires and defeated great warriors. Centaur is naturally a great counter to any ranged hero due to his ability to gap close with both his ultimate and the Blink Dagger. He can return some serious damage back to his enemies and it is further amplified with the Blade Mail. Sniper can not fight alone or target a farmed and fat Centaur.
Why is Centaur Warruner a great top lane hero?
- Blink Dagger combined with Hoof Stomp can be used to catch heroes.
- Centaur can also utilize Stampede to cover the distance.
- Double Edge can easily finish off enemies after Centaur initiates on him.
Items to buy on Centaur Warruner
- Blink Dagger
- Blade Mail
- Force Staff
- Aghanim’s Scepter and Shard
- Crimson Guard
1. Batrider
Batrider is quite the favorite of most initiators and harass in the current meta, as he is picked to provide great early game domination and control potential. His laning phase is quite impeccable due to the sheer amount of magical damage output that he provides, shoving the enemies out of the lane. If you aren’t careful enough, then you may be susceptible to heavy damage courtesy of the napalm stacks! Along with dominating the laning phase, Batrider is successful in dominating the late game if not contained!
Why is Batrider a great top-lane hero?
- Low CD on spells, effectively spamming and slowing his foes.
- Great AoE magical damage that can further be amplified.
- Great flex pick, can initiate well regardless of the role
Items to buy on Batrider
- Blink Dagger
- Black King Bar
- Boots of Travel
- Force Staff
- Aghanim’s Scepter
- Refresher’s Orb
Batrider full details: https://dota2.fandom.com/wiki/Batrider
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