Dota 2

Blade Mail

2,400gdefensivecore

Punish focus fire; great on tanky initiators. Our recommendation

Stats & effects

From Valve’s item data
  • +15 Damage
  • +7 Armor

active Damage Return For 5.5 seconds, return all incoming damage, increasing the percentage by 85%.

passive Damage Return Everytime you are attacked, you return 10 damage plus 15% of the attack damage dealt to you.

Gives ours:ArmorDamageSurvivability

Counters

Enemy traits this item answers Our recommendation
Sustained physical DPSPhysical burst

Situational usage — buy it against:

Timing windows

Our estimate if rushed, from a typical gold-per-minute for each position — not measured
4 minPos 15 minPos 26 minPos 38 minPos 410 minPos 5

Best heroes for this item

Hero needs + role fit + appears in our builds Our recommendation
AxeIn curated build17
Legion CommanderIn curated build17
BristlebackIn curated build14
Anti-MageGood fit9
Phantom AssassinGood fit9
Faceless VoidGood fit9
MarsGood fit9
Centaur WarrunnerGood fit9

Build synergy

Bought together in the same builds of ours Our recommendation
Black King Bar 3 buildsHeart of Tarrasque 3 buildsBlink Dagger 2 buildsAbyssal Blade 2 buildsAssault Cuirass 2 buildsShiva's Guard 2 builds

Alternatives: Crimson Guard