Nessaj the Chaos Knight is a relatively straightforward pick in the hard carry role in Dota 2, with a simple gameplan that both beginners and experts can make full use of. His entire kit is geared towards controlling and immediately removing a single key target from a teamfight.
All four of his abilities synergize perfectly with each other to this end. Chaos Bolt (Q) and Reality Rift (W) provide the magic-based control, while Chaos Strike (E) and Phantasm (R) provide the physical burst damage. Used together, his abilities enable him to wipe a specific hero off the map in the blink of an eye.
The nature of his kit and design does, however, mean that Chaos Knight isn’t suited to carrying in ultra late game situations. His reliance on the illusions from Phantasm to deal the bulk of his physical damage limits his potential in longer games, as teams can just load up on magic damage in order to clear them away. It’s therefore paramount to his success to end games before they get out of hand, preferably around the 40 to 50 minute marks.
But if you fancy a go at sowing chaos yourself on the battlefield, read on to learn how to harness mayhem and havoc to vanquish your enemies in Dota 2!
What Makes Chaos Tick
Before getting into the nitty-gritty of this hero guide, it’s important to discuss what makes Chaos Knight so strong. Understanding his strengths will make the game plan and why it works a lot clearer, which helps with the execution thereof in turn.
Reality Rift and Blink Dagger
Reality Rift has always been one of Chaos Knight’s most important abilities, primarily because it instantly pulls all of his active illusions towards the target. This makes surrounding and bursting them down way easier, and prevents enemy heroes from simply kiting Nessaj and his illusions.
The spell itself does have a limited cast range, though, getting only up to 750 range at max level. This makes it difficult to catch enemy heroes off guard — but this is where Blink Dagger comes in. Reality Rift actually has a 1,375-unit “search” radius, where it pulls any active illusions within that range towards Nessaj and his Reality Rift target
This makes it possible for Chaos Knight to cast Phantasm out of sight, leave the illusions behind, then blink onto an unsuspecting target. The critical strikes from Chaos Strike are typically more than enough to erase supports this way, granting Chaos Knight and his team an immediate teamfight advantage.
Scepter and Shard
Rounding out his mid to late game inventory choices, there’s also his Aghanim’s Scepter and Aghanim’s Shard upgrades — both of which are crazy strong if we’re being honest. The Scepter upgrade practically doubles his team’s damage output, given that Phantasm illusions deal 100 percent damage. Sieging high ground becomes ridiculously easy with so many illusions in play.
The Shard is just fantastic as well, and there’s no reason not to get it in every game. Having an illusion hitting the Chaos Bolt target for six seconds almost entirely unabated is frankly nuts. The cast range bonus is also very welcome, making Chaos Bolt more reliable overall.
Controlling Pandemonium
Though Chaos Knight has a slightly more complex game plan compared to other carries, his playstyle isn’t difficult to master at all. The learning curve is a bit steep but can be overcome after several games of practice
Laning Phase
The first thing to note is that Chaos Knight is primarily played as a safe lane carry, which means that farming is the name of the game for the most part. You’ll want to play to pull the lane back to your tower, making sure to play mostly safe in order to get your early items quickly. This absolutely does not mean however that Chaos Knight is unable to go for kills in the lane.
With the right offensive support by your side (i.e. Crystal Maiden, Shadow Shaman, Grimstroke, etc), both Chaos Bolt and Reality Rift can help you score early kills and quickly capture momentum. All the while, you’ll want to rush Power Treads and Armlet of Mordiggian. We recommend buying the Gloves of Haste first, as the bonus attack speed just makes you a lot stronger in the lane. Chaos Knight has more than enough base movement speed anyway.
Mid Game
Once you have both of these items, it’s time to run around and kill people. You’ll want to coordinate with your team to set up ganks on supports as often as possible, using Phantasm whenever it’s off cooldown. Before hitting that R key though, make sure to turn on your Armlet, as it gives your illusions extra strength — which means extra damage and more HP for their own survivability. And of course, if you have your Blink Dagger by this point, use it to initiate or follow up if your team already has an initiator.
Also, remember that Phantasm only has a 75-second cooldown, which was reduced from 125 many moons ago. This makes it very spammable, especially when it comes to ganking in between farming.
If your team isn’t quite set up to fight often, though, Phantasm can be used to accelerate your farm in the jungle or push out lanes. The latter is especially important, as it keeps your opponents honest and helps you apply pressure without having to commit too much. Just sending your Phantasm illusions to push waves or hit towers is enough to force a response most times.
Your item progression at this stage should be Sange and Yasha into Black King Bar. Both items will help you ramp up in strength significantly and make you harder to lock down overall. Make sure to also get the Aghanim’s Shard when it’s available.
If the situation calls for it, though, you can opt for an Orchid Malevolence instead of Sange and Yasha. Going up against heroes with plenty of escape mechanisms like Anti-Mage with his Blink (W) or Phantom Assassin with her Phantom Strike (W) warrants buying this item. The stats built into it aren’t bad for Chaos Knight either, with the bonus attack speed and mana regeneration being really nice for him.
Late Game
Late game is all about leveraging your incredible burst potential in order to take teamfights on your own terms. Chaos Knight isn’t the fastest farmer in the game, so you’ll want to take fights as often as possible — ideally within each Phantasm cooldown cycle — in order to end the game before your opponents can catch up.
After Blink Dagger, we recommend getting an Aghanim’s Scepter, which will facilitate high ground sieges. Having full-powered illusions of your teammates should not be underestimated. The additional stats are also welcome, given Chaos Knight’s mana issues. Against lineups with armor reduction, definitely get an Assault Cuirass.
The Magic of Chaos
Chaos Knight’s skill and talent progression are both quite clear-cut. Get value points in each of your abilities, with Chaos Bolt going first. Max out Chaos Strike from there, and get Phantasm as soon as it’s available. Max out Reality Rift, then Chaos Bolt. Simple.
Recommended Chaos Knight Build
The recommended skill and talent build is as follows:
- Chaos Bolt
- Chaos Strike
- Reality Rift
- Chaos Strike
- Chaos Strike
- Phantasm
- Chaos Strike
- Max out Reality Rift
- Level 10 Talent: +30% Chaos Strike Lifesteal
- Phantasm
- Chaos Bolt
- Chaos Bolt
- Level 15 Talent: -3 Chaos Bolt Cooldown
- Phantasm
- Level 20 Talent: Reality Rift Pierces Immunity
- Level 25 Talent: +10% Chaos Strike Chance
As for the recommended Facet, most games you’ll want to go for Phantasmagoria. Phantasm illusions taking less damage when they’re near Chaos Knight is great for when teamfights go longer than you would like. And since they will become Strong Illusions with this Facet on, they can’t be instantly killed by things like Lion’s Mana Drain (E).
Irrationality is the less common choice, but still quite viable in the right situations. If you need free and easy access to break, silence, and disarm, against certain heroes then it’s worth considering.
Alternative Anarchy
It’s worth noting that Chaos Knight can also be played from the offlane, leveraging his good laning in order to keep the enemy carry in check. The only difference between carry and offlane, in this case, is that Blink Dagger should be purchased right after Armlet, followed immediately by Aghanim’s Scepter. This allows Chaos Knight to create space on the map by joining the midlaner for ganks. If you are snowballing hard from the offlane though, you can opt to continue with the standard item build as outlined earlier in this guide.
If your team needs a fast space creator, consider putting Chaos Knight in the offlane. Nessaj doesn’t suck up that much farm on his own either, which leaves a lot left over for your actual carry.
