Kunkka

Kunkka
Movement speed	300
Turn rate	0.6
Vision range	1800/800
Attack range	150
Projectile speed	Instant
Attack animation	0.4+0.3
Base attack time	1.7
Magic resistance	25%
Collision size	24
Legs	2

Hero

Strategy

Counters

Equipment

Gear

Responses

Sounds

Lore

Old Abilities

Changelogs

Known Bugs

Kunkka, the Admiral, is a versatile melee strength hero built with an arsenal of powerful area-of-effect (AoE) spells. Two of his active spells are nukes that have long delay times, but can disable and disrupt the enemies' position. He is mostly played as a carry, initiator, or even as a ganking support. Kunkka is known for his Tidebringer sword, giving him the ability to cleave a large area around him with heavy potential damage on his next attack, which refreshes at a given period of time. Torrent calls upon the element of water to rise and burst out, dealing damage, disabling them up high, and slowing them on impact. There's a delay on this ability before it activates, so Kunkka must be wise in using this ability. X Marks the Spot targets any hero or Kunkka himself to be marked on their current position, and after a given time delay, instantly returns to the marked spot. Useful in setting up tricky spells, escape prevention, or even saving allies, X Marks the Spot makes the Admiral a great battle strategist. His ultimate lets him summon a Ghostship, which travels on ground, until it crashes a set distance away, stunning and damaging enemies on that location – potentially crippling the enemy team. The Ghostship also bolsters allies with Kunkka's Rum, granting them bonus movement speed and temporary numbness to damage. Capable of inflicting high burst damage with his spells, controlling their position while being able to survive the mayhem when his spells are used properly, Kunkka is a mighty offensive team fighter, built with strong physical and magical damage output, who can indeed turn the tide of a battle.

Bio[edit]

Kunkka, the Admiral
Play "Step lively now, your Admiral is on board!"
Role:	Carry / Disabler / Initiator / Durable / Nuker
Lore:	As Admiral of the mighty Claddish Navy, Kunkka was charged with protecting the isles of his homeland when the Demons of the Cataract made a concerted grab at the lands of men. After years of small sorties, and increasingly bold and devastating attacks, the Demon Fleet flung all its carnivorous ships at the Trembling Isle. Desperate, the Suicide-Mages of Cladd committed their ultimate rite, summoning a host of ancestral spirits to protect the fleet. Against the Demons, this was just barely enough to turn the tide. As Kunkka watched the Demons take his ships down one by one, he had the satisfaction of wearing away their fleet with his ancestral magic. But at the battle's peak, something in the clash of demons, men and atavistic spirits must have stirred a fourth power that had been slumbering in the depths. The waves rose up in towering spouts around the few remaining ships, and Maelrawn the Tentacular appeared amid the fray. His tendrils wove among the ships, drawing demon and human craft together, churning the water and wind into a raging chaos. What happened in the crucible of that storm, none may truly say. The Cataract roars off into the void, deserted by its former denizens. Kunkka is now Admiral of but one ship, a ghostly rig which endlessly replays the final seconds of its destruction. Whether he died in that crash is anyone's guess. Not even Tidehunter, who summoned Maelrawn, knows for sure.
Voice:	Jon St. John (Responses)

Abilities[edit]

Torrent

Play

Ability
Target Area

Affects
Enemies

Damage
Magical

Summons a rising torrent that, after a short delay, hurls enemy units into the sky, stunning, dealing damage and slowing movement speed.

Cast Animation: +

Cast Range: 1500

Effect Radius: 225 (

425)

Effect Delay: 1.6

Total Damage: 75/150/225/300 (

115/190/265/340)

Move Speed Slow: 35%

Slow Duration: 1.75/2.5/3.25/4

Stun Duration: 1.6

Knockup Duration: 1.53

16/14/12/10

90/100/110/120

Slow persists, and attempts to damage if debuff was placed before spell immunity and when not dispelled.

Modifiers

Torrent: Dispellable with strong dispels.

Torrent Slow: Dispellable with any dispel.

An ancestral rush of water explodes from the center of the world, called upon by the Admiral.

Notes:

The total delay is 2 seconds at all levels (cast time + effect delay).

Torrent can be cast without having to face towards the targeted area.

Units tossed in the air are stunned and still able to be attacked.

While in the air, other units may pass below hit airborne units.

The stun and slow are applied at the same time, so overall, the slow lasts for 3.35/4.1/4.85/5.6 seconds.

The knockup itself lasts 1.53 seconds, so hit units are on the ground for the remaining 0.07 seconds of the stun.

After casting, a visual effect appears at the targeted area and a sound effect plays for the delay period.
- These effects are visible and audible to allies only.

Deals 9.375/18.75/28.125/37.5 damage in 0.2 second intervals, starting 0.2 seconds after the effect delay, resulting in 8 damage instances.

Provides 350 radius ground vision over the targeted area upon cast for 3.13 seconds.

Tidebringer

Play

Ability
Target Unit / Autocast

Affects
Enemies

Damage
Physical

Kunkka's legendary sword grants increased damage and cleaves a large area of effect in front of him for a single strike.

Cast Range: 150

Starting Radius: 150

Distance: 650/800/950/1100

End Radius: 500/550/600/650

Cleave Damage: 100%

Attack Damage Bonus: 25/45/65/85

13/10/7/4

Illusions gain the visual effects and the attack sounds, but they neither gain the damage nor can cleave.

A lost Claddish soul inhabits Kunkka's trusty Tidebringer, empowering it to destroy demons of the Cataract.

Notes:

Upon leveling Tidebringer the first time, it has autocast active by default.

Cleave damage is reduced by armor type but not by armor value.

Cleave damage cannot be amplified with spell damage amplification and cannot spell lifesteal.

Cleave damage is reduced by Damage Block.

The complete area is shaped like an isosceles trapezoid in front of Kunkka.

Unlike other cleaves, Tidebringer's cleave damage is not increased by Quell.
- Kunkka's regular attacks are not affected by Quell either, unless he has leveled and set Tidebringer on autocast.

Fully stacks with other sources of cleave. Each source of cleave works completely independent.

The particle effects on hit enemies are visible on invisible enemies and through the Fog of War.

Cannot target allied units, but applies the bonus damage when attacking while on autocast and off cooldown, without cleaving or going on cooldown.

Does not work against wards and buildings.

Plays an audio effect (only heard by Kunkka) when going off cooldown.

Shows a visual effect on the sword whenever it is ready (visible to allies and enemies).

X Marks the Spot

Play

Ability
Target Unit

Affects
Enemy Heroes / Allied Heroes

Targets a friendly or enemy Hero, marks their position with an X, and returns them to it after several seconds. Kunkka can trigger the return at any time during the duration. Lasts twice as long on allied heroes.

Cast Animation: +

Cast Range: 400/600/800/1000

Enemy Duration: 4

Allies Duration: 8

26/20/14/8

50

Can target and return spell immune allies.
Cannot target or return spell immune enemies.

Blocked upon cast. Not blocked upon returning.

Modifiers

X Marks The Spot: Undispellable.

The Admiral's set of arcane abilities includes some that can be used for battle as well as entertainment.

Notes:

Interrupts channeling spells upon returning.

The affected unit receives a stop command upon returning, canceling all its current orders.

Marks the target's current location with a red X. This X is visible to enemies only when they have vision over the unit, or the X itself.

The affected unit leaves behind a red dotted line while walking, showing which direction it went.
- These lines stop drawing for the enemies if the unit is not visible. However, already drawn lines stay visible.
- Once the unit turns visible again, a straight line of red lines is drawn towards their last known location
- These red lines ignore the actual path the unit took. They simply draw from its current to its previously last known location.

Despite the visual effects, the target does not return to the X after dying and respawning during it.

When the hero is invulnerable, it does not get returned to the X, causing the spell to get wasted.

Provides 300 radius ground vision around the X mark for 5.94 seconds.

Return

Play

Ability
No Target

Affects
Enemy Heroes / Allied Heroes

Returns the marked hero to the X.

Cast Animation: +

1

Can return spell immune allies.
Cannot return spell immune enemies.

Notes:

Replaces X Marks the Spot until the X disappears on the target.

Despite being a sub-spell, Return does proc all on-cast effects like a regular spell.

When the hero is invulnerable, it does not get returned to the X, causing the spell to get wasted.

Ghostship

Play

Ability
Target Point

Affects
Enemies / Allied Heroes

Damage
Magical

Summons a ghostly ship that sails through the battle before smashing apart, damaging and stunning all enemies caught near the wreckage. Allied heroes touched by the Ghostship are given a swig of The Admiral's Rum, receiving bonus movement speed and a delayed reaction to incoming damage.

Cast Animation: +

Cast Range: 1000

Ship Radius: 425

Drag Radius: 0 (

200)

Travel Time: 3.1 (

1.55)

Impact Damage: 400/500/600

Rum Move Speed Bonus: 10%

Rum Damage Reduction: 40%/45%/50%

Rum Duration: 10

Stun Duration: 1.4

60/50/40

125/175/225

Drags enemies with the Ghostship towards the crash site. Enemies are still able to perform actions while being dragged.

Fully affects spell immune allies.
Does not affect spell immune enemies.

Illusions do not get the Rum buff nor its visual effect.

Modifiers

Ghost Ship Damage Absorb: Undispellable.

Ghost Ship Damage Delay: Undispellable.

Stunned: Dispellable with strong dispels.

Ghost Ship Loaded: Undispellable.

Ghost Ship Knockback: Dispellable with any dispel.

The final ship of the Claddish Navy is nothing but a phantom, but it is all too real to the enemies of the Admiral.

Notes:

Ghostship travels at a speed of 650, reaching the crash site in 3.1 ( 1.55) seconds.

The ship spawns 2000 range away from the targeted point, from the opposite direction where Kunkka is facing, and crashes at the targeted point.
- When having Aghanim's Scepter, the ship spawns on Kunkka's location and travels 1000 range towards the targeted direction.
- This means when not upgraded, the targeting determines the ship direction and crash location, but when upgraded, the targeting only determines the ship direction.

A visual indicator appears at the location, showing the ship's destination point and radius. The indicator is only visible to allies.

The Ghost Ship Damage Absorb buff applies to allied heroes that come within 425 range of the ship at any time during its travel.

Once the absorb buff expires, the Ghost Ship Damage Delay buff is placed, which lasts 10 seconds.
- This buff deals 5% of the previously reduced damage as damage in 1 second intervals until all the reduced damage is returned.

The delayed damage dealt after the Rum wears off is flagged as HP Removal. It does not interact with any on-damage effects like consumables.
- Therefore, the delayed damage cannot be avoided by anything. However, it is not lethal.

The Rum does not reduce damage for units under the effect of any damage negating effect.

Rums from multiple casts do not stack, but refresh the duration instead. This delays the Rum wear-off buff.

The Rum buff and Rum wear-off buff do not interact with each other when having both (by recasting while having the wear-off buff).

The ship provides 300 radius flying vision around itself as it travels. This vision does not last.

The ship blocks neutral creep camps. The marker on the ground does not.

When having Aghanim's Scepter, the ship pulls enemy heroes along its travel path towards the crash site.
- Any enemy hero that gets within 200 radius of the ship gets the Ghost Ship Loaded debuff.
- This debuff prevents the hero from getting re-affected by the cast, unless it dies, respawns and gets within range again.
- Together with the loaded debuff, it also receives the Ghost Ship Knockback debuff, which drags the hero along with the ship.
- The hero gets dragged to the center of the ship and along with it towards the crash site.
- The drag does not disable units. They can still turn, attack and use items. Channeling abilities or items are not interrupted by it.
- Only heroes are dragged (including illusions). Non-hero units are not affected by the drag. Treats creep-heroes as creeps.
- Any tree within a 100 radius of the dragged heroes gets destroyed during the drag.

Talents[edit]

Hero Talents
+200 Torrent AoE	25	+35% Magic Resistance
+120 Gold/Min	20	+300 Health
+30 Movement Speed	15	+15 Health Regen
+40 Torrent Damage	10	+30 Damage

Notes:

The attack damage is added as bonus attack damage, and therefore does not benefit illusions.

Upgrading health and mana increases maximum health and mana capacity and keeps the current health and mana percentage.

The health regen is added as a bonus and does not benefit illusions.

Gold granted from the talent is unreliable gold.

The magic resistance stacks multiplicatively with other sources of magic resistance.

The Torrent radius increasing talent changes its visual effect.

Recommended items[edit]

Starting items:

Clarity is very useful on Kunkka as his spells are all very mana-costly. Being able to use Torrent more than once without running completely out of mana greatly increases his ability to lock down foes and score early kills.
Tango and Healing Salve are basic regen requirements in all lanes but mid. Having flexible regen allows Kunkka to remain in lane without being harassed out.
Gauntlets of Strength increase Kunkka's base damage and HP, giving him more resilience and last-hitting power.
Faerie Fire is a useful consumable to purchase as a mid Kunkka. The damage bonus gives him last-hitting power and allows him to splash more damage on his lane opponent with Tidebringer, and consuming it can give him some last-second burst HP regen that can save him during enemy gank attempts.

Early game:

Boots of Speed are important on all heroes, but can be quite important on Kunkka for getting in position to cast X Marks the Spot on foes at early levels.
Magic Stick is useful on all heroes. On Kunkka, it can help alleviate his mana issues by giving him some burst mana regen for casting his spells.
Bottle is effectively mandatory if Kunkka is to be played mid. A Bottle is extremely useful for replenishing Kunkka's small mana pool, and can be easily replenished using X and a teleport to base.
Urn of Shadows gives Kunkka a measure of mana regen and some more HP and base damage, enhancing his power as a roamer-disabler. The item's active can be used to heal yourself or teammates, or add more damage in a gank.

Core items:

Phase Boots are the best boots for Kunkka, as they give him bonus damage with which he can last-hit more easily, as well as increasing the effectiveness of Tidebringer. The active also increases his mobility, allowing him to more easily get into position to cast his spells.
Magic Wand is powerful for all the same reasons as Magic Stick, 255 burst HP regen is very powerful and 255 burst mana is enough to allow Kunkka to cast any of his spells.
Shadow Blade is a very powerful initiating item to get on Kunkka, as it allows him to inflict an additional 175 damage to the entire enemy team when combined with Tidebringer. As well, it can be used for mobility or escape as demanded.
Drum of Endurance gives Kunkka stats and bonus movement speed.
Town Portal Scroll is mandatory on all heroes. On Kunkka, it can be used to show up to teamfights, and in clutch situations be used after casting X Marks the Spot on yourself to temporarily relocate yourself to another part of the map.

Situational items:

Battle Fury increases the cleave percentage of Tidebringer, while also adding a cleave that can be used while Tidebringer is on cooldown. It also gives Kunkka good health and mana regeneration, allowing him to remain out in the field for longer without returning to base.
Black King Bar is useful both for increasing Kunkka's survivability and damage output, especially in situations where the enemy is trying to lock Kunkka down to prevent him from casting his spells.
Daedalus is an extremely powerful damage item in the hands of Kunkka, who can additionally benefit from building more than one to increase the proc chance. If his damage is high enough and he procs a crit alongside Tidebringer, Kunkka can potentially slay multiple enemy heroes with a single slash of his sword.
Heaven's Halberd provides some Strength and evasion, and allows you to disarm the enemy's carry in a teamfight. It is useful for giving Kunkka some damage alongside survivability against physical damage.
Assault Cuirass reduces enemy armor, allowing you and your allies to deal more damage, while giving an armor and attack speed boost at the same time. While it lacks synergy with your spells and abilities, the aura it provides should never be underestimated.
Heart of Tarrasque provides a lot of extra health and regeneration, and helps Kunkka recover from fights almost immediately. It's especially useful if you're always being focused in teamfights. As well, the additional base damage can help you inflict damage with Tidebringer as it can be augmented by percentage-based damage buffs from certain allies.
Silver Edge adds more strength to Kunkka, giving more attack damage and a potential slow to proc on an attack. The Break component of Silver Edge can make killing certain enemy heroes easier, such as Phantom Assassin or Viper.
Blink Dagger, combined with X Marks the Spot, greatly extends Kunkka's reach when attacking with Tidebringer, and is useful no matter what role he plays. He can X himself and then blink forward, casting any spells or attacking with Tidebringer, and then returning to safety. Used by itself, Kunkka can instantly position himself in the best location from which to cleave the enemy, or jump within range to cast X on a foe during an initiation.
Boots of Travel frees up an item slot for Kunkka, giving him room to build another major item if needed, and allows him to use X for temporary returns to base without using 75 gold each time. The ability to globally re-position is also very powerful, and the enhanced movement speed gives him better positioning, chasing and escaping ability.
Aghanim's Scepter improves Kunkka's stats across the board and greatly improves the utility of Ghostship. Because the boat will spawn directly on Kunkka and drag any nearby enemies, it can immediately place the Rum buff on Kunkka and create distance between him and any nearby opponents. Most importantly, halving the impact delay allows Kunkka to use the spell more effectively and greatly improves the odds of landing a successful boat.
Aether Lens boosts Kunkka's casting power, making all of his nukes much more formidable. It improves Kunkka's mana pool and provides mana regen to keep it topped up. The increased casting range on all of his spells allows him to get off disables and nukes from farther away, while the spell damage amplification improves the damage they deal.
Vladmir's Offering is a good mid-game utility item. Its aura provides armor, HP and mana regen, bonus damage and lifesteal to Kunkka and all nearby allies, giving them a useful edge in teamfights. It is very strong when combined with Ghostship's Rum buff, as the armor and lifesteal auras' effectiveness are doubled due to the reduced damage that teammates are taking.
Crimson Guard can be a powerful purchase to enhance Kunkka's survivability. The armor, HP and damage block all work to give Kunkka great resistance against physical damage, allowing him to weather attacks and get his spells off in fights more easily. More importantly though, the item's active ability can be used alongside Ghostship's Rum buff to drastically increase your team's survivability during a fight, as any damage the enemy inflicts will be greatly reduced prior to being halved by Rum.
Divine Rapier is highly situational and very risky, but extremely powerful in Kunkka's hands. Combined with Tidebringer and a Daedalus, Kunkka can deal tremendous amounts of cleave damage and potentially wipe the entire enemy team under the right circumstances.

Gameplay[edit]

Strategy & Tips

Counters &
Matchups

Audio[edit]

Responses

Sounds

History[edit]

Lore

Old Abilities

Changelogs

Equipment[edit]

Trivia[edit]

Kunkka was named in honour of the artist who made numerous pieces of loading screen art for DotA and Dota 2.^[1]
Kunkka's official alternate/fun names were "Daelin Proudmoore", "CoCo", and "Captain Obvious". Daelin Proudmoore was a campaign boss in Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne; his hero model is borrowed by Kunkka in DotA.
In his DotA biography, it is stated that some people called him "Jack Sparrow," but it was never seen as his name in-game. Jack Sparrow is the name of the main character in the Pirates of the Carribean movie franchise.
His rival hero taunts against Slardar, Death Prophet, and Doom, and his allied lines for Windranger and Ancient Apparition, all come from Samuel Taylor Coleridge's poem, The Rime of the Ancient Mariner.
His battle begin line Play "Rough seas ahead, crew. Strap me to the mizzen when I give the word." is likely a reference to The Odyssey, where Odysseus commands his crew to strap him to the mast so he could hear the Sirens sing.