What players buy
The items bought most in each of Valve’s four game stages
Public matches · each item’s own count
1stMost bought
148 buys
2ndSecond most
98 buys
3rdThird most
74 buys
4thFourth most
73 buys
5thFifth most
69 buysBy GamGem ResearchLast updated 22 Sept 2026
Lion
Ranged · Intelligence
- Win rate
- 48.9%
- Pick share
- 2.4%
- Matches
- 1,117,737
- Patch
- 7.41f
Draft coverage
BringsSupportDisablerNukerInitiator
NeedsCarryFrontlineTower damageEscape
Recommendation
Pick
- The game is heading for 30–40 min — that is where this hero measures best, at 50.8% over 7,599 matches.
Avoid
- Treant Protector is on their side — this hero wins 35.6% of 104 matches against it.
- Snapfire is on their side — this hero wins 42.4% of 458 matches against it.
- Pangolier is on their side — this hero wins 39.9% of 168 matches against it.
148 buys98 buys74 buys73 buys69 buys
Skill Order
Which ability to max first, and where each point goes — what most league players on Lion took at each level.
QEarth Spike
Rock spikes burst from the earth along a straight path.
Point Target · Unit Target · Magical damage
WHex
Transforms an enemy unit into a harmless beast, with all special abilities disabled.
Unit Target
EMana Drain
CHANNELED - Channels magical energy, taking mana and slowing enemies over time.
Unit Target · Channeled
RFinger of Death
Rips at an enemy unit, trying to turn it inside-out, dealing massive damage to the target.
Unit Target · AOE · Magical damageMax Order
QWE
Max Q first, then W, then E. Most took R at 6 / 13.
Level-up Order
- QEarth Spike
- WHex
- EMana Drain
- RFinger of Death
- TTalent
| Ability | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| QEarth Spike | Q | Q | Q | Q | ||||||||||||
| WHex | W | W | W | W | ||||||||||||
| EMana Drain | E | E | E | E | ||||||||||||
| RFinger of Death | R | R | ||||||||||||||
| TTalent | T | T |
Matchup map
How Lion performs against every opponent with 30 or more counted games
119 opponents · public matches40%60%Lion's win rate
≥ 60%Very favorable
55 – 60%Favorable
50 – 55%Even
45 – 50%Unfavorable
40 – 45%Hard
< 40%Very hard
If this happens, use this
- They are running away
Something that holds them still, or closes the gap yourself. Matched on “slow”, “stun”.
- Kill them in one window
Damage that lands now rather than over a minute. Matched on “magical”.
- Pressure their mana
Burn it, drain it, or take the spell away entirely. Matched on “mana”.
By medal
- Herald48.6%26,453
- Guardian49.2%93,885
- Crusader48.8%167,291
- Archon49.0%238,122
- Legend48.7%253,609
- Ancient48.7%165,818
- Divine48.9%100,127
One count per medal, not one rate split across them; a medal with no counted matches is left out.
By match length
- 0–20 min39.4%5,040
- 20–30 min47.8%13,105
- 30–40 min50.8%7,599
- 40–50 min49.2%3,148
- 50 min +48.7%1,476
Bands under 120 matches are absent rather than shown small.
Learning Lion
Abilities
Earth Spike
Point Target · Unit Target · Magical damageRock spikes burst from the earth along a straight path. Enemy units are hurled into the air, then are stunned and take damage when they fall.
Hex
Unit TargetTransforms an enemy unit into a harmless beast, with all special abilities disabled.
Mana Drain
Unit Target · ChanneledCHANNELED - Channels magical energy, taking mana and slowing enemies over time. If the enemy has no mana remaining, the slow is increased by 15%. Can target allies to give them mana and movement speed at a 50% rate.
To Hell and Back
PassiveLion gains 20% debuff duration after killing or assisting in a Hero kill while that Hero is dead. Lion gains 20% spell amplification for 90s after respawning or resurrecting or until he gets a kill or assist.
Finger of Death
Unit Target · AOE · Magical damageRips at an enemy unit, trying to turn it inside-out, dealing massive damage to the target. After using Finger of Death, Lion's hand becomes empowered, allowing him to use a cleaving melee attack with 250 range with bonus movement speed. Finger of Death gains permanent bonus damage for it and the fist for each enemy Hero it or the fist kills. The melee attack may be disabled by setting the ability to Alt Cast.
Base attributes
- Strength
- 18 +2.4
- Agility
- 15 +1.7
- Intelligence
- 19 +3.5
- Move · range
- 290 · 600
Talents
- 4AoE HexEarth Spike cast range/travel distance
- 3Finger of Death Damage Per KillEarth Spike affects a 30 degree cone
- 2Hex CooldownTo Hell And Back Debuff/Spell Amp
- 1Mana Drain Slow+20 Movement Speed
Aghanim’s Scepter
Changes Finger of Death
Finger of Death gains area of effect damage on the initial cast, and increases duration and cleave damage on its subsequent melee attacks.
Aghanim’s Shard
Changes Mana Drain
Causes Mana Drain to affect up to 2 additional enemies and increases break distance. Lion becomes Debuff Immune with 60% magic resistance while channeling.
Sources
- Kit, talents and upgrades · mechanicalread 22 Sept 2026
Ability names, icons, behaviour, damage type and text, plus the Aghanim’s Scepter and Shard descriptions — as the game itself ships them. Nothing here was counted over matches.
- Win rate by medal · countedread 15 Sept 2026
The same hero at each of Valve’s eight medals, over 4,610,063 public matches. Each medal carries its own sample, because the eight buckets are nothing like the same size.
- Matchups and match length · counted, on a narrower windowread 16 Sept 2026
Win rate against each opponent and across five match-length bands. This channel reports far fewer games than the medal figures above: the median hero pairing is 51 matches and the largest on the whole roster is 707. Rows under 30 games are absent rather than shown small, and the ones that remain are ORDERED by a figure shrunk toward even by its own sample — the rate you see is the real one, the ranking is the careful one.
- What players build · countedread 15 Sept 2026
The five most common items in each of Valve’s four game stages, with each row’s own pick count.
- Skill order · counted, in league matchesread 3 Oct 2026
Where skill points go, read off every player's own learning order in premium and professional league matches on patches 7.41 and 7.40. Each level shows the ability most players took there and the share that did — a column only a third agree on is printed as a third, not as the rule. Heroes under 30 counted games show no path.
- Situation index · derived, and checkableread 22 Sept 2026
Each situation is a phrase match against Valve’s own ability text, and every row shows the phrases that matched. No win rate is attached, because nobody counts one per situation.
Mechanics are the ones Valve publishes for patch 7.41f. GamGem is not affiliated with or endorsed by Valve Corporation.