Hero Mastery
A single-target locker: Fiend's Grip disables + drains one target for seconds, Nightmare sleeps, Enfeeble weakens damage, and Brain Sap nukes + heals.
Your XP and damage per game against other Bane players — average vs Top 20%. Supports are not graded on GPM.
Members only5 stages, each with one target from your own games and one short quiz. Make Bane your mastery hero to start — progress shows on Home and Arcana.
Sign in through SteamSkills in lane — Pro supports max Nightmare (E) first — 72% of 400 games since patch 7.41, then Enfeeble (Q). Some max Brain Sap (W) first instead (25%). First talent at level 11.
Level 6 — Fiend's Grip — Fiend's Grip locks one target for seconds — long enough for your team to finish them. Target the enemy core.
Skills 1–7
Starting items
Items this phase
Bane
The items that shut Bane down, 3 heroes that trouble it, and your answer when you play it.
Members onlyOne hero, one role first
OpenAI's first bot played only Shadow Fiend, only mid, until it mastered it. Stay on Bane in one role before moving on.
Small, measurable rewards
OpenAI Five was rewarded for last hits and staying alive long before it understood winning. That's why each journey stage has one number to hit.
From yourself to the team
Its 'team spirit' rose over the game: early on, look after yourself; late, play for the team. Each phase's meter shows the split.
Use proven builds
OpenAI Five's builds were hand-written, not trial and error. Start from the pro build, then experiment.
Phase items: what pros buy on this hero (OpenDota). Parameters: percentiles of players on this hero (OpenDota). Item effects checked against Valve's own item data.