Shadow Shaman
Shadow Shaman quickly clears the way for his team's forces to march on the enemy base. Blasting enemies with shocking spells and interrupting attackers with hexes, his powerful serpent wards destroy enemy defenses with ease.
- Win rate
- 51.6%
- Pick rate
- 15.6%
- Armor / MS
- 4.7 / 285
- Range
- 400
Abilities
Mechanics notes (1)
- • Can hit secondary targets up to 1000 distance away.
Mechanics notes (2)
- • Instantly destroys illusions.
- • The target will have a base movement speed of 100, but buffs granting maximum movement speed won't be disabled.
Mechanics notes (2)
- • Lethal Damage from Axe's Culling Blade and Necrophos's Reaper's Scythe will not be prevented.
- • Incoming damage reduction buff will prevent certain sources of HP removal from killing Shadow Shaman.
Our ratings
Aghanim's upgrades
Aghanim's Sceptermedium priority
Aghanim's Shardlow priorityTips & counterplay
Playing as Shadow Shaman
Laning: Ether Shock poke; Shackles for kills.
Kill combo: Hex → Shackles → Serpent Wards.
Staying alive: Hex divers; stay behind creeps.
From real games (OpenDota)- • Most games are in the safe lane (63.9%, 48.5% win rate).
- • Arcane Boots: usually done by 15 min; finishing it by 8 min wins 58.5%.
- • Blink Dagger: usually done by 20 min; finishing it by 12 min wins 59.1%.
- • Aghanim's Shard: usually done by 30 min; finishing it by 25 min wins 61%.
- • Gets stronger the longer the game goes (46.7% before 20 min → 50.9% after 60 min).
Playing against Shadow Shaman
Stuns & disables Black King Bar, Linken's Sphere or Lotus Orb. Spread out so one stun doesn't catch the whole team.
Summons AoE spells and Crimson Guard handle summons. Kill them first; they are worth gold.
Magic burst Black King Bar, Pipe of Insight, Glimmer Cape and Infused Raindrops blunt the burst. Don't stand clumped.
- • Respect Shadow Shaman at Lvl 6: Serpent Wards take towers fast.
- • Respect Shadow Shaman at Blink / Aether Lens: Instant pickoffs.
- • Respect Shadow Shaman at Aghanim's: Multi-target Shackles.
Items that counter it
Heroes that beat it
Talents
Best items
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Power spikes
Best skill build
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Q Ether Shock | Q | Q | Q | Q | ||||||||||||||
| W Hex | W | W | W | W | ||||||||||||||
| E Shackles | E | E | E | E | ||||||||||||||
| R Mass Serpent Ward | R | R | R | |||||||||||||||
| T Talent | ★ | ★ |
Counters
Countered by
Synergies
Best lane partners
Toughest lane opponents
Juggernaut−32
Huskar−17
Earthshaker−15
Sniper−13
Axe−11Live stats OpenDota · 2026-10-14
Public match stats
- Win rate (all ranks)
- 51.6%
- Win rate (Divine+)
- 51.2%
- Pick rate
- 15.6% of matches
- Sample
- 643,998 picks
- Pro
- 2 picks · 50% WR · 0% ban
Lane presence
Win rate by rank
Win rate by game length
Item timings
| Item | Games | Usual | Win % | Best timing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Arcane Boots | 1,620 | 15′ | 49.2% | ≤8′ · 58.5% |
| Blink Dagger | 1,569 | 20′ | 52.1% | ≤12′ · 59.1% |
| Aghanim's Shard | 414 | 30′ | 58.7% | ≤25′ · 61% |
| Glimmer Cape | 410 | 30′ | 50.5% | ≤25′ · 52.4% |
| Aether Lens | 409 | 30′ | 58.7% | ≤30′ · 62.5% |
 Ghost Scepter | 98 | 30′ | 66.3% | ≤25′ · 80% |
| Force Staff | 89 | 30′ | 67.4% | ≤30′ · 65.4% |
 Eul's Scepter of Divinity | 55 | 30′ | 60% | ≤30′ · 64.1% |
| Aghanim's Scepter | 40 | 30′ | 70% | — |
What players actually buy
Best real matchups
Huskar46 games56.5%
Bristleback92 games56.5%Worst real matchups
Sniper123 games40.7%Axe125 games44.8%Recent pro & league games
| League | Result | K / D / A | Length | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DreamLeague Season 30 Qualifiers | Loss | 2 / 7 / 16 | 36′ | 2026-10-13 |
| DreamLeague Season 30 Qualifiers | Loss | 0 / 9 / 3 | 19′ | 2026-10-11 |
| BETBOOM Streamers Battle Dota 15 | Loss | 2 / 7 / 6 | 32′ | 2026-09-27 |
| BETBOOM Streamers Battle Dota 15 | Loss | 1 / 4 / 12 | 31′ | 2026-09-26 |
| PGL Wallachia 2026 Season 9 | Loss | 1 / 12 / 6 | 38′ | 2026-09-25 |
| BETBOOM Streamers Battle Dota 15 | Loss | 0 / 15 / 12 | 56′ | 2026-09-22 |
| PGL Wallachia 2026 Season 9 | Loss | 4 / 7 / 20 | 45′ | 2026-09-19 |
| WINLINE Star Series Season 4 | Win | 2 / 10 / 3 | 30′ | 2026-09-13 |
Lore
Born in the Bleeding Hills, Rhasta was just a starving youngling when picked up by a travelling con-man. For two pins of copper, the old con-man would tell your fortune. For three, he'd castrate your pig, for five, he'd circumcise your sons. For a good meal, he'd don his shaman garb, read from his ancient books, and lay a curse upon your enemies. His strange new youngling, part hill troll, part...something else, worked as assistant and lent an air of the exotic to the con-man's trade. Always one step ahead of cheated customers, one town ahead of a pursuing patronage, the two trekked across the blighted lands until one day the con-man realized that the little youngling could actually do what he only pretended at. His ward had a gift--a gift that customers valued. And so the youngling Rhasta was thrust before the crowds, and the trade-name Shadow Shaman was born. The two continued from town to town, conjuring for money as Shadow Shaman's reputation grew. Eventually, the pair's duplicitous past caught up with them, and they were ambushed by a mob of swindled ex-clients. The con-man was slain, and for the first time, Rhasta used his powers for darkness, massacring the attackers. He buried his beloved master, and now uses his powers to destroy any who would seek to do him harm.