Dota4Newbie
    • Start LearningStart here — your step-by-step path
    • HeroesStats & power for every hero
    • ItemsItem details & builds
    • Patch NotesLatest game changes
    • GuidesTutorials & full strategies
  • ArcanaArcana Insights
    • MatchesRecent pro results, tournament by tournament.
    • ScheduleWhen the next pro matches play, in your own time zone.
    • ForumDiscuss with the community
    • Hero ConceptsOriginal hero ideas
    • BuildsPro player verified builds
    • CoachingLevel up your skills with experienced coaches. Sessions guaranteed via escrow.
    • Team RecruitmentFind a team or player for ranked, tournaments or casual.
    • ScrimFind scrim opponents for your team.
    • TournamentsCreate & join tournaments with custom brackets.
    • ThornfallNewSurvive a thorn-struck Dota map: 16 heroes, bosses, ultimates
    • Courier RunGet the BKB to your carry, beat Roshan & Zeus
    • Lord of HeavenPlay Zeus and take your lightning back from Doom
    • Spit OutSpit heroes at Dire forts with Snapfire
    • Rolling ThunderRoll like Sonic as Pangolier and wreck Tinker's machines
    • FireflyFlap through the night as Batrider and beat Night Stalker
    • All games
✦ Become Arcana Member
Sign In
Dota4Newbie

Verified by Dalul — Ex Rekonix

Arcana MembershipA coach built from your matches

Pricing·Refund Policy

Learn

  • Patch Notes
  • Start Learning
  • Heroes
  • Items
  • Guides

E-Sports & Community

  • Matches
  • Schedule
  • Forum
  • Builds
  • Hero Concepts

Pro Hub

  • Coaching
  • Become a Coach
  • Team Recruitment
  • Scrim
  • Tournaments

More

  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
  • Terms
  • Partnerships

© 2025–2026 Dota4Newbie. Made with for the Indonesian Dota 2 community.

Match data: OpenDota & STRATZ. Dota 2 is a trademark of Valve Corporation.

Pick another hero

Hero Mastery

Shadow Demon

A soul tormentor: Disruption banishes an ally (save) or an enemy + illusions, Shadow Poison stacks a nuke, Disseminate shares damage with everyone nearby, and Demonic Purge heavily slows + dispels.

Pos 4 · Soft SupportPos 5 · Hard Support
Sign in through Steam

Mastery parameters

Your XP and damage per game against other Shadow Demon players — average vs Top 20%. Supports are not graded on GPM.

Members only

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 Shadow Demon your mastery hero to start — progress shows on Home and Arcana.

Sign in through Steam

Phase by phase

Laning: zone their carry with your offlaner

You 40%Team 60%

  • Skills in lane — Pro supports max Shadow Poison (E) first — 57% of 388 games since patch 7.41, then Disseminate (W). Some max Disseminate (W) first instead (27%). First talent at level 11.

  • Shadow Poison stacks — Stack Shadow Poison 4–5 times then release — an AoE burst that melts an enemy group.

Skills 1–7

  1. Q1
  2. E2
  3. E3
  4. W4
  5. E5
  6. R6
  7. E7

Starting items

  • Iron Branch23%
  • Tango15%
  • Blood Grenade15%
  • Faerie Fire13%
  • Sentry Ward9%
  • Smoke of Deceit6%

Pros buy this phase

  • Arcane Boots55%
  • Tranquil Boots45%
The Soft Support's job this phase
  • Stand between the enemy carry and the creeps — make them choose between XP and HP.
  • Secure the minute-6 power rune for your mid — that's your first rotation.
  • Place Observers on rune spots or enemy rotation paths, not random cliffs.

Shadow Demon

Counters & weaknesses

Fragile hero (easy to catch)

The items that shut Shadow Demon down, 3 heroes that trouble it, and your answer when you play it.

Members only
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 Shadow Demon 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.