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Hero Mastery

Phantom Assassin

A snowball assassin: Stifling Dagger for safe last hits, Immaterial to dodge physical damage, and Coup de Grace crits that delete targets.

Pos 1 · Carry (Safe Lane)
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Mastery parameters

Your GPM, last hits and damage per game against other Phantom Assassin players — average vs Top 20%.

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Learning journey

  1. 1 Know the kit
  2. 2 Win the lane
  3. 3 Timing & rotations
  4. 4 Win the fights
  5. 5 Master

5 stages, each with one target from your own games and one short quiz. Make Phantom Assassin your mastery hero to start — progress shows on Home and Arcana.

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Phase by phase

Laning: last hits above everything

You 80%Team 20%

  • Skills in lane — Pro cores max Stifling Dagger (Q) first — 50% of 174 games since patch 7.41, then Phantom Strike (W). Some max Phantom Strike (W) first instead (49%). First talent at level 10.

  • BKB online — teamfights — Immaterial dodges physical damage, BKB shuts off magic. With both you can dive the enemy backline safely.

Skills 1–7

  1. Q1
  2. W2
  3. Q3
  4. W4
  5. Q5
  6. R6
  7. Q7

Starting items

  • Iron Branch33%
  • Quelling Blade15%
  • Tango15%
  • Magic Stick12%
  • Faerie Fire9%
  • Circlet of Nobility6%

Pros buy this phase

  • Power Treads63%
  • Perseverance33%
  • Battle Fury2%
  • Orb of Corrosion2%
  • Mask of Madness1%
The Carry (Safe Lane)'s job this phase
  • Aim for 45–50 last hits by minute 10 — check that number every game, it's your main KPI.
  • Don't over-harass: trade HP only when it doesn't cost you last hits.
  • Minutes 2 & 4: ask your support to pull so the lane stays near your tower.

Phantom Assassin

Counters & weaknesses

Evasion hero (attacks miss)Passive-reliant heroRight-click carry (physical damage)

The items that shut Phantom Assassin down, 4 heroes that trouble it, and your answer when you play it.

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Why this way? How OpenAI Five learned

  1. One hero, one role first

    OpenAI's first bot played only Shadow Fiend, only mid, until it mastered it. Stay on Phantom Assassin in one role before moving on.

  2. 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.

  3. 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.

  4. 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.