Dota 2 7.31: How to play the reworked Omniknight - Item builds
Omniknight has emerged as one of Dota 2's strongest support heroes after the 7.31 update, which notably gave him his new Hammer of Purity ability.
With this new offensive tool in his skillset, the crusader known as Purist Thunderwrath now boasts a win rate over 55% and is one of our picks for the best support heroes to grind MMR with in the current metagame.
Omniknight is in a great place right now, and support players looking to improve would be wise to add him to their repertoire.
This is the second of our two-part guide on how to play the reworked Omniknight. This part focuses on the hero's item build, so check out the first part on Omniknight's skills and talents if you haven't yet.
Omniknight's item build
One of the best things about Omniknight is that the hero has multiple options for which items to buy, thus giving players flexibility on how to build him according to their preferred playstyle.
The only mandatory item for Purist is Magic Wand. The item provides useful stats and the ability to refill the hero’s health and mana pool in the middle of the fight.
Since Magic Wand is the only must-buy item for Omniknight, players have a variety of item builds, which will vary according to their needs and the state of the game.
Let’s start by examining which boots are viable options for the hero:
The Boots question: Tranquil Boots or Arcane Boots?
Tranquil Boots (925): Boots of Speed (500), Wind Lace (250), Ring of Regeneration (175)
Arcane Boots (1,300): Boots of Speed (500), Energy Booster (800)
When it comes to the ever-important boots slot, Omniknight can choose between Tranquil Boots and Arcane Boots. Power Treads and Phase Boots are more suitable for core heroes and supports who right-click, and Omniknight is neither of those.
Tranquil Boots give Omniknight incredible health regeneration. They are also fairly cheap and can help win the laning stage, notably providing more movement speed than Arcane Boots.
Since Omniknight suffers from mana issues, however, Arcane Boots are also a solid option for him. They are more expensive than Tranquil Boots, but the mana regeneration is a massive boon for the hero and his team if there isn't another hero already building it.
Overall, the choice of boots comes down to personal preference and there is no right or wrong option. Tranquil Boots work well with Soul Ring and can also be upgraded to Boots of Bearing later.
On the other hand, Arcane Boots can be disassembled and the Energy Booster used for Holy Locket. You can also opt to keep the Arcane Boots (or get another one after disassembling the first to build Holy Locket) and upgrade it to Guardian Greaves.
Core Items
With the choice of boots settled, it’s time to look at the core items for the hero. Below are some of the best items to get on Omniknight, and we recommended to buy at least two of these:
Force Staff
Cost: 2,200
Recipe: Staff of Wizardry (1000), Fluffy Hat (250), Recipe (950)
With a Force Staff in hand, Omniknight gains a decent amount of health and intelligence, two coveted stats for the hero. Force Staff also allows Omniknight to push himself, allies, and enemies 600 range in the direction they are facing.
Effectively, this provides Omniknight with 600 bonus cast range when used, as the hero can quickly position himself in range of casting all his spells.
Force Staff also allows Omniknight to escape from enemies, save allies, or even force enemies into bad situations.
Glimmer Cape
Cost: 1,950
Recipe: Shadow Amulet (1000), Cloak (500), Recipe (450)
Another save item for Omniknight, although Glimmer Cape is less versatile and doesn’t provide useful stats.
The item's Glimmer active (which turns the target invisible while providing them with 50% magic resistance bonus) has a lower cooldown and mana cost than Force Staff.
When facing a lineup that has a lot of magical damage, Glimmer Cape might be the better utility item to purchase.
Mekansm
Cost: 1,875
Recipe: Headdress of Regeneration (425), Chainmail (550), Recipe (900)
More heals are always good, and Mekansm is a great healing item to have for the team.
Mekansm heals 275 HP for all allies in 1200 range when activated, all while being cheaper than both Force Staff and Glimmer Cape, as well as having an easier build up.
That said, Mekansm does have some flaws.
It has a cooldown of 65 seconds, so it isn’t always available when needed. The item also doesn’t provide any bonus mana, while the heal costs 100 mana to use, further straining Omniknight’s limited mana pool.
Finally, while a 275 heal is great, it’s easier to save allies by repositioning them with a Force Staff or turning them invisible with Glimmer Cape.
Drum of Endurance
Cost: 1,700
Recipe: Robe of the Magi (450), Belt of Strength (450), Wind Lace (250), Recipe (550)
Probably the most offensive option for Omniknight, the Drum of Endurance passively provides the hero and his allies with bonus movement speed, as well as the use of Endurance charges for additional movement and attack speed.
Drum of Endurance is the cheapest item on this list, and provides Omniknight with bonus Strength and Intelligence.
If players decide to purchase Drum, it’s best to get Tranquil Boots in the early game and combine them into Boots of Bearing later on.
Holy Locket
Cost: 2,400
Recipe: Headdress of Regeneration (425), Fluffy Hat (250), Energy Booster (800), Magic Wand (450), Recipe (475)
Holy Locket is a more expensive item compared to the previous examples, but it's worth its 2,400 gold price tag.
Holy Locket builds from Magic Wand, a core item for Omniknight, while also providing a substantial boost to the hero’s health and mana pools.
That said, Holy Locket’s best feature is its ability to use its Energy Charges to heal allies for 390 health and 300 mana. It also amplifies Omniknight’s Purification spell by 30%.
Using both Purification and 20 Energy charges heals an ally for 780 health, not bad in a pinch.
Since Holy Locket amplifies all heals, it’s best combined with Mekansm whenever possible.
Eul’s Scepter of Divinity
Cost: 2,725
Recipe: Staff of Wizardry (1000), Energy Booster (800), Wind Lace (250), Recipe (650)
The most expensive core item for Omniknight is Eul’s Scepter of Divinity, as it has everything the hero can ask for.
The item provides a substantial boost to the hero’s mana pool and mana regeneration. The bonus movement speed also makes it easier for Omniknight to position himself properly during team fights.
The biggest draw of Eul’s Scepter is, of course, the Cyclone ability. Cyclone can disable enemies for 2.5 seconds and is not affected by status resistance, making it the ideal disable against heroes like Ursa and Tiny.
Eul’s Scepter of Divinity is also the cheapest item Omniknight can get to remove silences on himself.
Late game and Luxury Items
After acquiring one or two core items for Omniknight, the match should be entering the late game stage, at which point it’s a good idea to consider buying bigger items to win the match. Here are some to consider.
Guardian Greaves
Cost: 5,100
Recipe: Mekansm (1,875), Arcane Boots (1,300), Buckler (300), Recipe (1,500)
A natural upgrade for Mekansm and Arcane Boots, Guardian Greaves gives Omniknight a much-needed way to dispel silences on himself in the late game.
Due to his high durability and incredibly potent spells, enemies need to either burst Omniknight at the start of the fight or render him useless with silences.
Not only does Guardian Greaves provide a useful dispel, but it also heals more than Mekansm, frees up an item slot, and has a useful aura for low health allies.
It comes with a hefty price tag, but it’s one of the best late game items for Omniknight
Boots of Bearing
Cost: 4,125
Recipe: Tranquil Boots (925), Drum of Endurance (1,700), Recipe (1,500)
For players who like Tranquil Boots or Drum of Endurance, the Boots of Bearing is the perfect upgrade to get later in the game.
Aside from saving you another item slot, the new boots refresh all of the Drum’s Endurance charges, while also upgrading the Endurance active. To learn more about the Boots of Bearing, check out our guide to the new item.
Lotus Orb
Cost: 3,850
Recipe: Perseverance (1,650), Platemail (1,400), Energy Booster (800)
Lotus Orb is another good late game defensive option for Omniknight, as its Echo Shell active is very useful when facing multiple single-target disables.
The item also comes with a huge amount of mana regeneration, enough to keep Omniknight’s mana pool topped up during engagements.
More importantly, casting the Echo Shell active on yourself also applies a basic dispel that can counter most silences.
Heaven’s Halberd
Cost: 3,550
Recipe: Sange (2,050), Talisman of Evasion (1,300), Recipe (200)
While Omniknight naturally counters heavy physical damage dealers thanks to Guardian Angel, it comes at the cost of a long downtime and the risk of the buff being dispelled.
Heaven’s Halberd allows Omniknight to further neuter right-click carries. Its Disarm cannot be dispelled by enemies and lasts five seconds on ranged enemies.
When facing heroes such as Medusa, Luna, and Gyrocopter, Heaven’s Halberd is a great choice to have in the late game.
Still, it’s not a perfect item. Apart from the Disarm active ability, Omniknight doesn’t benefit from Heaven’s Halberd.
The bonuses to the hero’s survivability are nice, but with good positioning and spell usage, Omniknight should be the last to fall in most engagements, wasting the bonus stats from the item.
Aghanim’s Scepter
Cost: 4,200
Recipe: Point Booster (1,200), Ogre Axe (1,000), Blade of Alacrity (1,000), Staff of Wizardry (1,000)
Omniknight has a fantastic Aghanim's Scepter upgrade, which turns Guardian Angel into a global spell that lasts longer, affects buildings, and provides 40% status resistance. That's a lot of useful bonuses.
Global Guardian Angel means Omniknight can cast the spell from the fountain if needed. During the late game, supports are targeted first and this means Omniknight can be brought down early in the fight.
With a global ultimate, Omniknight can stay as far away from enemies as possible or even buy back after dying to help his team instantly.
The bonus status resistance is a nice buff to the spell that was added in the 7.31 update. Stuns, hexes, slows, and silences are all reduced to almost half their duration.
Whether or not it’s worth buying Aghanim's Scepter, however, depends entirely on the enemy lineup.
Does the enemy have a lot of physical damage dealers with no dispels? Aghanim’s Scepter is perfect.
On the other hand, when facing a magic-heavy lineup with multiple dispel abilities and items, then the item becomes useless and the gold is better spent elsewhere.
Has this guide been useful for you? Keep an eye out for more guides on how to play and itemize certain Dota 2 heroes, and join in the conversation on our social channels.
Otomo is a long-time gaming enthusiast and caster. He has been playing games since he was 10 and is the biggest Dota 2 fan.
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