Sven
Hero
Sven
    22 + 3.2
21 + 2
16 + 1.3
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Sven, the Rogue Knight, is a versatile melee strength hero with superior physical power coupled with powerful utility abilities. He can fulfill various roles, but is often played as a semi-carry due to his high utility even without items. He possesses a versatile arsenal, from Warcry, which hastens allies and shields them from attacks, to the throwable Storm Hammer that stuns enemies around the targeted unit. With enough items, Sven has the potential to be a strong late-game carry due to his ultimate, which increases his damage, making him hit up to three times as hard, which can then be used in conjunction with his Great Cleave to secure multiple kills with just a few swings of his sword. This immense power granted to him solely by his ultimate makes him one of strongest late-game carries in the game, and arguably the strongest semi-carry of all, as his killing presence remains even if he decides to build more supportive and tanky utility items. A truly frightening enemy to go up against if farmed, strong and versatile, Sven is a solid addition to almost every team composition.
Contents
Bio[edit]
Sven, the Rogue Knight▶️ "May my enemies share the fate of the Shattered Helm."
Lore:
Sven is the bastard son of a Vigil Knight, born of a Pallid Meranth, raised in the Shadeshore Ruins. With his father executed for violating the Vigil Codex, and his mother shunned by her wild race, Sven believes that honor is to be found in no social order, but only in himself. After tending his mother through a lingering death, he offered himself as a novice to the Vigil Knights, never revealing his identity. For thirteen years he studied in his father's school, mastering the rigid code that declared his existence an abomination. Then, on the day that should have been his In-Swearing, he seized the Outcast Blade, shattered the Sacred Helm, and burned the Codex in the Vigil's Holy Flame. He strode from Vigil Keep, forever solitary, following his private code to the last strict rune. Still a knight, yes...but a Rogue Knight. He answers only to himself.
Voice:
Abilities[edit]
Sven unleashes his magical gauntlet that deals damage and stuns enemy units in a small area around the target.
Cast Animation: 0.3+0
Cast Range: 600 (
950)
950)Effect Radius: 255
Damage: 110/180/250/320
Stun Duration: 1.25/1.5/1.75/2 (
2.25/2.5/2.75/3)
2.25/2.5/2.75/3)
18/ 13/11/9/7)
110/
Increases cast range and transports Sven along the storm hammer.
Storm Hammer now applies a dispel on enemies.
Cannot target spell immune units. When the projectile connects with a spell immune unit, it still affects other units within the radius.
Blocked fully only when primary target. Blocked upon impact.
Disjointing the projectile still applies area effect.Modifiers
modifier_projectile_vision: Undispellable. Persists death. modifier_sven_stormbolt_hide: Dispellable with death only.
modifier_stunned: Dispellable with strong dispels.The Rogue Knight's iron gauntlet, taken from the school of his father, strikes his foes to their core.
Notes:
- The targeting reticule must be centered over an enemy unit.
- Storm Hammer travels at a speed of 1000.
- Turning invulnerable or hidden does not prevent it from affecting the area around the target.
- Storm Hammer first applies the damage, then the debuff.
- With Aghanim's Shard, the dispel is applied first.
- The projectile has 225 radius flying vision. This vision does not last.
- Sven's sword emits some particles during the cast time, visible to everyone.
- Storm Hammer can be cast on invulnerable enemies, but does not affect them.
- When upgraded, Sven is moved along with the projectile.
- While being moved, Sven is fully disabled, untargetable and invulnerable.
- If the movement gets interrupted (with e.g. a teleport), Sven is no longer disabled, untargetable and invulnerable.
- Sven stops moving along with the projectile if Storm Hammer is disjointed, if the distance between him and the target exceeds 2200, or when Sven dies.
Great Cleave
Starting Radius: 150
Distance: 700
End Radius: 360
Cleave Damage: 30%/50%/70%/90%
Modifiers
modifier_sven_great_cleave: Undispellable. Persists death.The Vigil Knights still seek to reclaim the stolen Outcast Blade from Sven, a weapon capable of cutting wide swaths through lesser warriors.
Notes:
- 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 Sven.
- Fully stacks with other sources of cleaves. Each source of cleave works completely independent.
- Does not cleave upon attacking wards, buildings or allied units. Wards and buildings are unaffected by cleave.
- Despite the visual effect, cleave damage is applied instantly in the whole area.
Warcry
Ability
No Target
No Target
Affects
Allies
Allies
Sven's Warcry heartens his allied heroes for battle, increasing their armor and movement speed. Lasts 8 seconds.
Cast Animation: 0+0
Effect Radius: 700
Movement Speed Bonus: 8%/12%/16%/20%
Armor Bonus: 6/9/12/15
Duration: 8 ( 12)
12) 32/ 30/Modifiers
modifier_sven_warcry: Dispellable with any dispel.Calling a few lines from the Vigil Codex fortifies Sven's obedience to his rogue code. So poetic!
Notes:
- Interrupts Sven's channeling spells upon cast.
- Only affects allied heroes, including clones, illusions and creep-heroes.
Ability
No Target
No Target
Affects
Self
Self
Sven channels his rogue strength, granting bonus damage for 40 seconds.
Cast Animation: 0.3+0
Attack Damage Bonus: 100%/140%/180% ( 150%/190%/230%)
150%/190%/230%)Duration: 40
110 100/Modifiers
modifier_sven_gods_strength: Dispellable with death only.With the strength that shattered the Sacred Helm, the Rogue Knight stands unopposed in melee combat.
Notes:
- Only increases base damage and that given by the primary attribute of Sven. Raw bonus damage is not increased.
- Checks Sven's main attack damage periodically and adapts the attack damage bonus instantly.
Talents[edit]
| Hero Talents | ||
|---|---|---|
| +1s Storm Hammer Stun Duration | 25 | +50% God's Strength Damage |
| -5s Storm Hammer Cooldown | 20 | +25 Movement Speed |
| +4s Warcry Duration | 15 | 15% Lifesteal |
| +2.5 Mana Regen | 10 | +7 Strength |
Notes:
- The strength talent effectively grants Sven 140 health, 0.7 health regen, and 7 attack damage.
- The lifesteal talent stacks additively with other sources of lifesteal.
Recent Changes[edit]
Main Article: Sven/Changelogs
Version
Description
- Reduced God's Strength attack damage bonus from 110%/160%/210% to 100%/140%/180%.
- Aghanim's Scepter upgrade:
- Storm Hammer
- No longer applies an instant attack on the primary target upon hit.
- Reduced cast range bonus from 500 to 350.
- Storm Hammer
- Added Aghanim's Shard upgrade for Sven:
- Causes Storm Hammer to apply a basic dispel on all hit enemies.
- Talents:
- Level 15 left talent changed: Storm Hammer applies basic dispel ➜ +4s Warcry duration.
- Increased base movement speed from 315 to 325.
- Storm Hammer can now be cast on invulnerable units. [?]
- Warcry
- No longer grants 12/16/20/24 attack damage.
- Now grants the movement speed to allies as well.
- Reduced movement speed bonus from 10%/14%/18%/22% to 8%/12%/16%/20%.
- Reduced mana cost from 60 on each level to 30/40/50/60.
- Increased Great Cleave distance from 650 to 700.
- God's Strength
- No longer grants 10/20/30 strength bonus.
- Increased attack damage bonus from 80%/120%/160% to 110%/160%/210%.
- Increased duration from 25 to 40.
- Talents:
- Level 25 right talent changed: +32 God's Strength strength ➜ +50% God's Strength attack damage.
- Reduced Storm Hammer cooldown from 19/17/15/13 to 18/16/14/12.
- Talents:
- Level 10 right talent: +6 strength increased to +7.
- Level 15 right talent changed: +25 movement speed ➜ 15% lifesteal.
- Level 20 right talent changed: 20% lifesteal ➜ +25 movement speed.
Recommended items[edit]
Starting items:
- Iron Branch gives Sven attributes, and additional regeneration when combined with Tango.
- Tango supplies early health regeneration to survive the laning stage.
- Healing Salve gives health restoration as well.
- Enchanted Mango helps Sven stay in lane, and allows for an additional Storm Hammer in a pinch.
Early game:
- Quelling Blade helps Sven last hit more efficiently in early game.
- Boots of Speed is needed on all heroes.
- Magic Stick provides burst health and mana, useful to keep Sven alive and using abilities.
Mid game:
- Magic Wand is a good choice to consolidate Magic Stick's functionality and the minor attribute boosts when starting with Iron Branches.
- Power Treads give bonuses in attack speed and strength; he can switch to intelligence for more mana to use abilities.
- Mask of Madness compensates for Sven's low attack and move speed and allows to farm faster.
- Blink Dagger greatly improves Sven's mobility, allowing him to initiate teamfights as well as gank unsuspecting enemies, which can make a big difference in game outcomes.
- Black King Bar is the most important core item for Sven. It is his only defense against disables, and provides a good boost to damage and strength.
Late game:
- Daedalus is a must for Sven, as it gives the critical chance that allows him to destroy enemies in just a few hits, becoming even stronger while his ultimate is activated.
- Assault Cuirass can be considered in the late game, as the negative armor debuff, attack speed and massive armor gain allow for Sven to truly become a tank.
Situational items:
- Armlet of Mordiggian is a good early teamfight item as it provides overall growth in damage and attack speed as well as additional health and armor while active.
- Echo Sabre essentially acts as a crit, allowing Sven's burst to increase significantly for a cheap price. Paired with Daedalus, Echo Sabre gives Sven twice the chance to crit and to kill an fragile enemy in two or three hits.
- Drum of Endurance enables Sven to quickly get into combat and survive teamfights. It can be bought if Sven's early game does not go well enough to afford bigger items.
- Boots of Travel is a natural pickup in late game.
- Monkey King Bar is often necessary to counter heroes who purchase evasion items against Sven.
- Satanic provides Sven with a good amount of survivability and damage. The active synergizes well with Sven's high damage, ensuring that he will be able to get back into full health in just a few hits.
- Silver Edge, an upgrade for Echo Sabre provides reliable attack speed and damage, and its break helps Sven against passive defenses.
- Sange and Yasha is an easy item to build if Sven is struggling to build up gold. Its extra movement speed makes it harder for enemies to kite Sven.
- Moon Shard grants a huge boost in attack speed. It is a powerful luxury item that ensures Sven's continued dominance in a winning game.
- Heart of Tarrasque not only provides Sven with much better survivability, it also gives a lot strength bonus, which greatly increases the damage from God's Strength.
Gameplay[edit]
| Roles: | Carry Disabler Initiator Durable Nuker |
|---|---|
| Complexity: | ★☆☆ |
| Playstyle: | The Rogue Knight lives by two creeds: Honor, as ordained by his own personal code, and solitude. Using his iron gauntlet, Sven throws out the Storm Hammer to stun multiple foes, then closes in to cut them down with Great Cleave. In the heat of battle, the Rogue Knight calls upon God's Strength, greatly increasing his power as he descends on hapless opponents with his gargantuan blade. |
Audio[edit]
History[edit]
Equipment[edit]
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Trivia[edit]
- Sven is named after Danish bodybuilder and actor Sven-Ole Thorsen.
- In earlier versions of DotA, Sven had the fun name "Arnold Schwarzenegger".
- The phrases "▶️ Twas only a flesh wound" and "▶️ It was but a scratch" are references to the Black Knight from Monty Python and the Holy Grail.
- The phrases "▶️ Blame the host" and "▶️ Bad host" are references to the original Warcraft III DotA gameplay when game stability depended on the quality of internet connection on the host player.
- Storm Hammer was named Storm Bolt in the early beta phases and was renamed into Storm Hammer at one point. It is also its original name in DotA 1 and reflected in one of Sven's cast responses in Dota 2, where he is referring to it as ▶️ "Storm Bolt".
- Rubick also has the same response when stealing Storm Hammer.
Gallery[edit]
Concept art
Sven's default weapon, the Outcast Blade
Early model of the Outcast Blade
Ability icon progress
Hero icon progress
