A quick look at some of the best heroes you should pick to counter Bane.
Dota 2 is one of the games where the meta changes with every patch. Usually, Valve releases a new update after a big tournament or an undisclosed number of months. However, 2021 was different. The company decided not to release a new update after TI 10. As a result, the current meta has been “alive” for several months now.
A couple of heroes stand out in the current patch, so it probably doesn’t come as a surprise they were among the go-to options for many teams. Apart from Spirit Breaker and Queen of Pain, the most popular name is Bane. The latter is a support hero that can often fit different roles, including a core if needed. Bane is notorious for many things, such as having the option to disable an enemy unit. This makes him a valuable companion, especially versus heroes that are notorious for being elusive.
Speaking of elusiveness, Bane is a hero that can do well in most matchups. However, there are several heroes that can make his life a living hell. Even though most teams don’t pick a specific hero to counter Bane, many people want to know more about how to do that. That’s why we’ve decided to point out a few of the names in Dota 2 that usually work well against him.
Chaos Knight
The first hero on this list is Chaos King, one of the few strength (STR) carries that even pro teams pick every now and then. Despite not being the go-to option in the current meta, CK is a powerful hero that can easily rip through his opponents, especially bane. Due to the fact that the hero has illusions, he can trick Bane, which won’t allow him to use his Nightmare or Fiend’s Grip. Furthermore, CK does a lot of damage, which means he can one-shot the annoying support as long as he has at least a couple of items.
Meepo
Speaking of counters, there is one hero that we have to mention on this list, and that’s Meepo. While it is true that Bane can make his life really hard early on, once Meepo gets a couple of items, he becomes one of the most influential names in the game. That’s one of the reasons why most teams pick a special hero that’s capable of dealing with Meepo.
When it comes down to the clash against Bane, Meepo works really well because the support can’t disable all of the clones. In other words, even if he uses Nightmare and his ultimate, Meepo can efficiently utilize his available clones and kill him in a couple of seconds.
Lone Druid
Lone Druid is one of the more interesting heroes in Dota 2 that even pro teams tend to pick from time to time. He used to be among the meta carriers, but in most cases, Lone Druid is a situational pick that works in specific scenarios.
Regardless of the player who’s picked him chooses the “bear build” or not, LD will always be among the best heroes versus Bane. While it is true that the support hero is capable of disabling his targets, he needs to be close to them. The lack of range puts him in a terrible position against certain heroes, and one of them is Lone Druid. Once Bane decides to use his abilities on the hero, his bear will start attacking him, which will give LD enough time to run. Needless to say, the bear is capable of killing every support hero (including Bane) in a couple of seconds, especially if it has several items.
Lycan
Speaking of killing something fast, one of the heroes that are notorious for his ability to do tons of damage in seconds is Lycan. The latter is also one of the hottest meta carries right now; so he often gets the chance to play against Bane. Needless to say, Lycan has everything he needs to overcome the annoying support hero.
One of the things that makes him extremely dangerous is his ultimate. When used, Lycan becomes an almost unstoppable force that can run (chase), and do loads of damage. Usually, the hero needs to land a couple of attacks on Bane to bring him down.
Besides using his ultimate, he can kill the annoying support with his wolves and Necronomicon. Bane does not have any AoE ability; and the only way to survive is by disabling a target to using Brain Swap to heal. Needless to say, this is not enough to bring down any of Lycan’s minions.
Naga Siren
Naga Siren is a hero that pro teams pick in difficult situations. Unlike most other carries in the game, Naga requires a specific playstyle that allows her to farm as much as possible. Once she gets the item she needs, she is capable of pushing every lane simultaneously while participating in a team fight.
Similar to Meepo, Naga Siren is one of Bane’s arch enemies because she can kill him in seconds. As mentioned above, this support hero does not have an AoE ability, nor something that can help him when he is surrounded by Naga’s illusions.
Beastmaster
Since we’ve already pointed out most heroes that have illusions or minions, it probably doesn’t come as a surprise we have to mention Beastmaster. The latter has been one of the hottest offlaners in Dota 2 for almost a year. BM gives his team the ability to push a lot faster. Moreover, he is one of the few offlaners that can successfully lane against two or even three heroes, depending on the situation.
When it comes down to the matchup against Bane, it is evident that BM is one of the best heroes you can get. His boar allows him to kite, and his ultimate gives him more than enough time to kill the support hero.
Phantom Lancer
Another popular hero that you can get if you want to counter Bane is Phantom Lancer. This is often considered one of the strongest late-game monsters because he becomes almost impossible to kill. PL requires a couple of items and he can easily have more than 3000 HP, which means that his illusions will become even more deadly.
Every support can die in a matter of seconds when PL gets his items, and Bane is not an exception. What makes PL even better than the rest is his illusions, which minimize the risk of Bane using his ultimate on him.
