Nyx Assassin

This page is about the hero. For the goddess in Dota 2 lore, see Nyx.

Hero

 

Strategy

 

Equipment

 

Gear

 

Talents

 

Relics

 

Responses

 

Sounds

 

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Lore

 

Old Abilities

 

Changelogs

 

Known Bugs

 

Nyx Assassin 19 + 2.3 19 + 2.2 18 + 2.1
Level 0 1 15 25 30 Health 120 538 1242 2012 2298 +4.75 +6.65 +9.87 +13.37 +14.72 Mana 75 291 639 1035 1179 +0.9 +1.8 +3.27 +4.92 +5.55 Armor 1 4.17 9.3 14.97 17.13 Magic Resist 25% % % % % Damage Block 16 (50%) Damage 27 31 46 50 76 80 110 114 123 127 Attack Rate 0.59/s 0.7/s 0.88/s 1.08/s 1.16/s Attack Range 150 (600) Attack Speed ▶️ 100 (1.7s BAT) Attack Animation 0.46 + 0.54 Projectile Speed Instant Move Speed ▶️ 295 ( 325) Turn Rate 0.5 Collision Size 24 Bound Radius 24 Vision Range (G) 1800 ( 800) Gib Type Goo Internal Not Provided

Nyx Assassin is a melee agility hero who is feared as one of the most effective gankers and solo-killers in the game. With his powerful burst damage nukes, Nyx Assassin specializes in disabling and killing lone and fragile enemies with little to no warning. He possesses an area nuke and stun ability in Impale, allowing him to disable enemies in a straight line in front of him while dealing damage. His Mana Burn ability can destroy a significant fraction of a target hero's mana pool while dealing the same amount as damage, making him the bane of weak intelligence heroes with lots of mana but very little health. Should the enemy attempt to attack him, Nyx Assassin can dissuade them with Spiked Carapace, stunning any heroes that attack him while reflecting their damage back at them. His ultimate, Vendetta, turns Nyx invisible, allowing him to deal tremendous physical damage to the next target that he strikes out of invisibility. Stalking from the shadows, Nyx Assassin can strike without warning and lay low his foes before they realize that their death is upon them.

Bio

Nyx Assassin

▶️ "The blessing of Nyx gives me all the purpose I require."

Lore:

Deep in the Archive of Ultimyr, shelved between scholarly treatises on dragon cladistics and books of untranslatable spells, there is an ancient tome of entomological curiosities. Compiled by scholars, the book describes the telepathic talents of the zealot scarab, a strange species of social insect with abilities unique to all the seven planes. Unlike most grubs of his colony, Nyx Assassin did not arise from metamorphosis with the plodding thoughts and blunted appendages common to the worker caste of his kind. For his was a special transformation, guided by the grace of Nyx. He was the chosen one, selected from the many and anointed with an extract of the queen goddess herself. Not all survive the dark blessing of the queen’s chamber, but he emerged with a penetrating mind, and dagger-like claws–his razor sharp mandibles raking the air while his thoughts projected directly into the minds of those around him. Of all zealot scarabs, he alone was selected for the highest calling. After his metamorphosis, he was reborn, by grace of Nyx, with abilities which shaped him for one thing and one thing only: to kill in the name of his goddess.

Voice:

Dempsey Pappion (Responses)

Abilities

Impale

▶️QE

Ability
Target Point

Affects
Enemies

Damage
Magical

Rock spikes burst from the earth along a straight path. Enemy units are hurled into the air, then are stunned and take damage when they fall.

Cast Animation: 0.4+0

Cast Range: 700

Spikes Travel Distance: 700

Spikes Radius: 125

Damage: 80/140/200/260 ( )

Stun Duration: 1.6/2/2.4/2.8

 14

 95/115/135/155

Modifiers [?]

Impale

Strong

All zealot scarabs possess intimate knowledge of underground pathways, using them to their advantage.

• The spikes travel at a speed of 1600.

• Hit units are knocked up 350 range for the initial 0.5 seconds of the stun.

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

• The damage is applied upon landing, not upon getting hit.

• While Burrowed, the cast range and travel distance increase to , and the cooldown decreases to seconds.

• Impale can hit units up to ( ) range away (travel distance + radius).

• When Impale hits invisible units, the visual effects below the hit unit are still visible.

Mana Burn

▶️WR

Ability
Target Unit

Affects
Enemy Heroes

Damage
Magical

Destroys the target hero's mana equal to a multiplier of its Intelligence, and deals damage equal to the mana burned.

Cast Animation: 0.4+0

Cast Range: 600

Mana Burned per Intelligence: 3.5/4/4.5/5

Mana Burned as Damage: 100%

 28/20/12/4

 100

The tome in Ultimyr describes one scarab with the ability to eat away at the minds of lesser beings.

• Applies the damage first, and then the mana loss.

• Effectively burns of the target's maximum mana pool, if it has no flat mana bonus.

• Despite dealing the damage first, the damage is based on how much mana the target actually lost from Mana Burn.
  • This means, when cast on an enemy who has for example 5 mana left, it also deals only 5 damage (before reductions).

• Can be cast on creep-heroes, but has no effect on them, since they have no intelligence, wasting mana and cooldown.

• While Burrowed, the cast range increases to .

Spiked Carapace

▶️ED

Ability
No Target

Affects
Enemies

When activated while above ground, Spiked Carapace reflects and negates damage dealt to Nyx Assassin (max once from each source), as well as stunning the source of the damage. Activating Spiked Carapace will not break Vendetta invisibility.
While Burrowed, Spiked Carapace instantly stuns nearby enemies when cast.

Cast Animation: 0+0

Burrow Stun Radius: 300

Damage Reflected: 100% ( %)

Carapace Duration: 2.25

Stun Duration: 0.6/1.2/1.8/2.4

 25/20/15/10

 40

Modifiers [?]

Spiked Carapace

Undispellable

Stunned

Strong

While their carapaces are relatively thin, they're guarded by a retractable field of razor-sharp spikes.

• Spiked Carapace interrupts Nyx Assassin's channeling spells upon cast.

• Can be cast during Vendetta, without breaking the invisibility. Breaks the invisibility of other sources.

• Only reflects player based damage directly towards the damage dealer. A unit can only be affected once per buff.

• The buff from multiple casts of Spiked Carapace does not stack but gets refreshed instead.

• Reflects the same damage type as received.

• Reflects incoming damage before all manipulations. However, damage manipulation on the enemy still affects the damage normally.

• Reflected physical damage is affected by damage block as well.

• Reflected damage has the no-reflection flag, preventing its damage from interacting with other sources of damage with the same flag.

• Fully ignores self-inflicted damage, and damage flagged as HP Removal.

• Spiked Carapace has a global range and affects units through the Fog of War or invisibility.

• Reflected damage cannot be amplified with spell damage amplification and cannot spell lifesteal.

• Spiked Carapace first applies the debuff, then the reflected damage.

• Does not work against wards, buildings and allied units.

• Spiked Carapace fully negates and reflects after all reductions, causing several on-damage effects to not trigger.

• Has a higher priority than Aphotic Shield and Living Armor, but lower than False Promise. However, it still reflects and stuns when combined with False Promise.

• Although the damage dealt to enemies is equal to the amount of damage blocked, the effects work independently from each other.
  • This means Spiked Carapace always blocks one damage instance, even when the source is spell immune or invulnerable.

• When cast while Burrowed, the spell immediately applies its stun to all enemies within a {{#show:#Burrow|?value7#}} radius.
  • Since Spiked Carapace has no base damage, hit units are not damaged upon cast.
  • Nyx Assassin still receives the cast buff normally, which can still reflect damage and stun enemies.
  • However, the buff does not affect enemy units which have been hit by the stun upon cast. They can normally damage Nyx.

Vendetta

▶️RV

Ability
No Target

Affects
Self / Enemies

Damage
Physical

Allows Nyx Assassin to become invisible and gain a speed bonus. If Nyx Assassin attacks to break the invisibility, massive bonus damage is dealt with the attack.

Cast Animation: 0+0

Fade Time: 0

Damage: 250/400/550

Move Speed Bonus: 16%/18%/20%

Duration: 40/50/60

 70/60/50

 140/200/260

Aghanim's Scepter Upgrade:

Grants the Burrow ability.

Modifiers [?]

Vendetta

Undispellable

The scarab kills for the glory of his queen.

• Vendetta does not interrupt Nyx Assassin's channeling spells upon cast.

• The attack out of Vendetta cannot miss.

• The bonus damage is dealt in a separate damage instance, and counts as spell damage.
  • This means it is not affected or considered by anything that works with attack damage.
  • This also means that it fully works with spell damage amplification and spell lifesteal.

• Vendetta's damage is applied before the leading attack's damage is applied.

• The invisibility is broken upon reaching the cast point of spells or items, or upon landing an attack.

• The damage is not applied when attacking wards or buildings.

• Vendetta allows Nyx to pass through other units, including wards, but not through buildings.

• Nyx can pick up, drop or attack items and runes without breaking the invisibility.

• The level 25 talent allows Nyx Assassin to path freely through cliffs and trees, on top of the phased movement.

Burrow

▶️DF

Ability
No Target

Affects
Self

Nyx Assassin buries himself beneath the battlefield over a short duration. Once burrowed, Spiked Carapace instantly stuns nearby enemies when cast, the range of Mana Burn and Impale is increased, and Impale's cooldown is decreased. While burrowed, Nyx Assassin is stationary, unable to attack and invisible. His health and mana regeneration are also increased, and he gains damage reduction from all damage sources.

Cast Animation: 1.5+0.1

Fade Time: 0

Max Health/Mana Regenerated per Second: 1.5%

Incoming Damage Reduction: 40%

Impale Cast/Travel Range Increase: 525

Impale Cooldown Reduction: 7

Mana Burn Cast Range Increase: 450

Spiked Carapace Radius: 300

 0

Modifiers [?]

Burrow

Undispellable

Some castes of Zealot scarab are known to create small burrows to lie in wait, ready to ambush their prey.

• Requires Aghanim's Scepter to be unlocked.

• Turns Nyx Assassin invisible and disarms as well as roots him, preventing him from moving, attacking and using Blink Dagger.

• Burrow lasts until unburrowing or using Vendetta.

• Nyx Assassin can still be moved by spells and can still teleport while burrowed, without getting unburrowed.

• Nyx Assassin still has to turn to cast spells and use items as usual, even if the burrowed (dirt mound) model does not visually turn.

• Health regen and mana regen bonuses which are based on maximum health or mana are not amplified by strength or intelligence.

• Losing Aghanim's Scepter instantly unburrows Nyx.

Unburrow

▶️▶️DF

Ability
No Target

Emerge from the burrow.

Cast Animation: 0+0

 0

Some castes of Zealot scarab are known to create small burrows to lie in wait, ready to ambush their prey.

• Replaces Burrow until used or death.

• Interrupts Nyx Assassin's channeling spells upon cast.

• Instantly reverts all bonuses provided by Burrow.

• Uses a different sound when unburrowing inside the river.

Talents

Hero Talents
Vendetta Unobstructed Pathing	25	+100 Agility
+175 Impale Damage	20	+75% Spiked Carapace Damage
+35 Movement Speed	15	+325 Health
+60 Gold/Min	10	+6% Spell Amplification

Notes:

• Gold granted from the talent is unreliable gold.

• Grants generic bonus outgoing damage amplification. Stacks additively with other generic outgoing damage manipulation sources.
  • Affects only spell damage sourced to Nyx Assassin. Does not amplify damage flagged as HP removal.

• The health talent increases the max health capacity and keeps the current health percentage.

Gameplay

Within the colony of zealot scarabs, the queen goddess Nyx selected a single grub to answer her highest calling. And so, through designed metamorphosis, the Nyx Assassin came into being. The telepathic scarab devours his prey's minds through Mana Burn, while sending out rows of subterranean spikes to Impale them from below. Armored with a Spiked Carapace, he stuns attackers and reflects damage back to their source. But the goddess' servant is deadliest when unseen. A distracted target has no chance to react as the Nyx Assassin pierces its body with massive mandibles, thereby fulfilling an unspoken Vendetta in the name of his queen.
Roles:	Disabler Nuker Initiator Escape
Complexity:
Adjectives:	Legs ( 2 )

Strategy & Tips

Counters &
Matchups

Audio

Responses

Sounds

History

Lore

Old Abilities

Changelogs

Equipment

Nyx Assassin Equipment (expand sets) Sets Alpha Predator Set Bottomfeeder Carapace of the Hidden Hive Set Chitinous Stalker Chosen Larva Set Chosen of the Burning Sand Cicatrix Regalia Cursed Zealot Deviant Metamorphosis Rancorous Nemesis Sacred Orb Set Sapphire Crab Sect of Kaktos Shadow Hunter Set Shards of Meteorite Shimmer of the Anointed Sovereign of the Hive The Age of Gilded Worship Writhing Executioner Weapon Golden Latticean Shards Latticean Shards Latticean Shards of the Crimson Witness Back Crimson Latticean Hierarchy Latticean Hierarchy Misc Nyx Assassin's Dagon

Trivia

• Nyx Assassin's original name was Anub'arak, and he was titled "Nerubian Assassin". Both were changed in the transition to Dota 2 due to copyright reasons.
  • Anub'arak is a character of Blizzard's franchise "Warcraft", who first appeared in the campaign of Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne. He was the king of the Nerubians, a race of malevolent arachnids who were slain and raised as undead.
• Nyx Assassin's fun name in DotA was Anoob'arak.

Gallery

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  Splash artwork

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  Concept art

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  Concept art

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