What players buy
The items bought most in each of Valve’s four game stages
Public matches · each item’s own count
1stMost bought
173 buys
2ndSecond most
122 buys
3rdThird most
86 buys
4thFourth most
52 buys
5thFifth most
49 buysBy GamGem ResearchLast updated 22 Sept 2026
Necrophos
Ranged · Intelligence
- Win rate
- 51.4%
- Pick share
- 1.6%
- Matches
- 738,662
- Patch
- 7.41f
Draft coverage
BringsCarryNukerDurableDisabler
NeedsSupportInitiatorTower damageEscape
Recommendation
Pick
- The game is heading for 0–20 min — that is where this hero measures best, at 52.4% over 2,078 matches.
- You are playing around Herald — its strongest medal, 54.0% over 18,351 picks.
Avoid
- Windranger is on their side — this hero wins 39.8% of 123 matches against it.
- Crystal Maiden is on their side — this hero wins 40.0% of 90 matches against it.
- Ancient Apparition is on their side — this hero wins 33.3% of 36 matches against it.
173 buys122 buys86 buys52 buys49 buys
Skill Order
Which ability to max first, and where each point goes — what most league players on Necrophos took at each level.
QDeath Pulse
Necrophos releases a wave of death around him, dealing damage to enemy units and healing allied units.
No Target · Magical damage
WGhost Shroud
Necrophos slips into the realm that separates the living from the dead.
No Target · Instant Cast
EHeartstopper Aura
Necrophos stills the hearts of his opponents, causing nearby enemy units to lose a percentage of their max health over time.
Passive · Magical damage
RReaper's Scythe
Stuns the target enemy hero, then deals damage based on how much life it is missing.
Unit Target · Magical damageMax Order
QEW
Max Q first, then E, then W. Most took R at 6 / 13.
Level-up Order
- QDeath Pulse
- WGhost Shroud
- EHeartstopper Aura
- RReaper's Scythe
- TTalent
| Ability | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| QDeath Pulse | Q | Q | Q | Q | ||||||||||||
| WGhost Shroud | W | W | W | W | ||||||||||||
| EHeartstopper Aura | E | E | E | E | ||||||||||||
| RReaper's Scythe | R | R | ||||||||||||||
| TTalent | T | T |
Matchup map
How Necrophos performs against every opponent with 30 or more counted games
91 opponents · public matches40%60%Necrophos'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”.
- Stay in lane
Healing, regeneration or lifesteal — not having to walk back. Matched on “healing”.
- Pressure their mana
Burn it, drain it, or take the spell away entirely. Matched on “mana”.
By medal
- Herald54.0%18,351
- Guardian52.6%63,783
- Crusader51.9%111,043
- Archon51.4%152,510
- Legend50.9%161,890
- Ancient50.4%106,738
- Divine49.9%70,313
One count per medal, not one rate split across them; a medal with no counted matches is left out.
By match length
- 0–20 min52.4%2,078
- 20–30 min49.8%5,009
- 30–40 min50.9%2,783
- 40–50 min47.2%1,131
- 50 min +47.9%535
Bands under 120 matches are absent rather than shown small.
Learning Necrophos
Abilities
Death Pulse
No Target · Magical damageNecrophos releases a wave of death around him, dealing damage to enemy units and healing allied units.
Ghost Shroud
No Target · Instant CastNecrophos slips into the realm that separates the living from the dead. Unable to attack or be attacked, he emits an aura that slows enemies around him. He takes additional magic damage in this form, but his restorative powers are amplified.
Heartstopper Aura
Passive · Magical damageNecrophos stills the hearts of his opponents, causing nearby enemy units to lose a percentage of their max health over time.
Death Seeker
Unit Target · Hidden · Magical damageNecrophos turns into a large Death Pulse towards the target unit's position. Once it arrives to the location, the Death Pulse spreads towards nearby enemies and allies.
Sadist
Passive · HiddenNecrophos gains stacking regen for 8 seconds for each unit he kills. Hero kills multiply the effect.
Reaper's Scythe
Unit Target · Magical damageStuns the target enemy hero, then deals damage based on how much life it is missing. If Necrophos kills an enemy this way, he'll permanently gain Health and Mana Regen. Any kill under this effect is credited to Necrophos.
Base attributes
- Strength
- 18 +2.3
- Agility
- 12 +1.3
- Intelligence
- 23 +2.7
- Move · range
- 280 · 500
Talents
- 4Reaper's Scythe Damage Per Missing HPDeath Pulse Cooldown
- 3+75 Spell Area of EffectHeartstopper Regen Reduction
- 2Ghost Shroud Movement SlowDeath Pulse Heal
- 1Ghost Shroud CooldownSadist Stack Duration
Aghanim’s Scepter
Changes Heartstopper Aura
Heartstopper Aura's Health Decay is increased by 50% of Necrophos's current health regeneration.
Aghanim’s Shard
Changes Death Seeker
Necrophos turns into a large Death Pulse towards the target unit's position. Once it arrives to the location, the Death Pulse spreads towards nearby enemies and allies.
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.