What a hard support (pos 5) does
The position 5 is the most selfless role. The hard support babysits the position 1 carry on the safe lane, gives up farm to him, supplies the team with wards and detection, and carries consumables and save items. Pos 5 has the least gold of all, but it is exactly its vision and saves that often decide the outcome of fights and of the whole game.
Early game and lane
How the game starts on position 5:
- You stand on the safe lane together with the carry and protect him.
- You give farm to the core — only last-hit creeps on a leftover basis.
- You place wards and keep vision on key approaches.
- You spend gold on consumables, detection and save items, not on yourself.
Game phases by minute
A position 5 has the least gold, so their phases are defined by jobs rather than items: first the carry, then the map, then surviving fights.
| Time | Main goal | Benchmark |
|---|---|---|
| 0–10 min | Protect the carry, zone enemies off the lane, stack and pull creeps, place the first wards | the carry is alive and farming calmly, you have as few deaths as possible |
| 10–25 min | Wards for the team, smokes before ganks, save items, detection against invisible heroes | first save item (Glimmer Cape or Force Staff) by minute 15–20 |
| 25+ min | Vision around Roshan and on the way to it, stay behind the team and save | wards on objectives before the fight, not after it |
A position 5 death in the late game costs less gold than a carry death, but no less time: while you are respawning, the team fights without saves and without vision.
Key skills
What you need to master to carry games in this role:
- Ward control: knowing where and when to place vision and detection.
- Protecting the carry on the lane — trading aggro, harassing the enemy, controlling the zone.
- Gold discipline: giving farm to the core without greed.
- Saves: using save items and abilities at the right moment.
Progress in any role goes faster when you review your own games. In coaching with a trainer we review exactly your position 5 matches and show you what to improve first.
Position 5 items
A position 5 spends gold on vision and consumables first, and what is left goes into items that save and heal the team. Prices are from official Dota 2 data for patch 7.41f.
Consumables
Observer Ward is free (limited by shop stock), Sentry Ward and Smoke of Deceit cost 50 gold each, Dust of Appearance costs 80 and reveals invisible heroes right in a fight where there is no ward.
Observer Wardfree
Sentry Ward50
Smoke of Deceit50
Dust of Appearance80
Tango90
Healing Salve100
Boots and saves
Tranquil Boots are cheap speed and regeneration, Arcane Boots give mana to the team. Glimmer Cape and Force Staff save an ally, Ghost Scepter saves you from physical damage.
Tranquil Boots900
Arcane Boots1,500
Glimmer Cape2,150
Force Staff2,200
Ghost Scepter1,500
For the team
Mekansm and Guardian Greaves heal everyone nearby, Pavise puts a damage barrier on an ally, Holy Locket amplifies your healing, Boots of Bearing give the team speed for a gank or a retreat.
Mekansm1,775
Pavise1,350
Holy Locket2,250
Guardian Greaves4,450
Boots of Bearing4,225
Where to place wards in each phase of the game — see the warding in Dota 2 guide.
What patch 7.41f changed
Patch 7.41f came out on September 15, 2026. Crystal Maiden, Lion, Shadow Shaman, Dazzle and Witch Doctor were not changed — for the heroes in this guide everything stays the same. Other supports were touched, though:
- Treant Protector nerfed: base intelligence 17 instead of 20, invisibility after leaving trees lingers 1 second instead of 2, Leech Seed now costs 35 mana and converts 10/15/20/25% of its damage into healing instead of 20%, Living Armor minimum block 10 instead of 20.
- Winter Wyvern: Arctic Burn cooldown 29/26/23/20s instead of 26/24/22/20, Cold Embrace heal 1.5/2.5/3.5/4.5% of max health per second instead of 2.25/3/3.75/4.5%.
- Keeper of the Light: base attack speed 90 instead of 100, Chakra Magic reduces cooldowns by 2.5/3.5/4.5/5.5s instead of 3/4/5/6, Illuminate heal in Spirit Form 60% instead of 70%.
- Bane lost one point of base armor, and Undying's Decay costs 110 mana instead of 100.
- Slightly buffed: Warlock (base attack speed 95 instead of 90), Disruptor (+1 base intelligence) and Chen (strength gain 2.2 instead of 2.0, Zealot respawns faster as he levels up).
Support item prices did not change in 7.41f: wards, Glimmer Cape, Force Staff and boots cost the same as before the patch.
Starter heroes
To start, pick classic supports with control and healing — they are simple and useful even without items. Good examples: Crystal Maiden (CM), Lion, Shadow Shaman, Dazzle, Witch Doctor. Many of them feel just as comfortable on the position 4 role, so the skills carry over easily between roles.
Which heroes are strong right now and carry games the easiest — see the hero tier list for MMR boosting.
Common mistakes
What most often holds players back on position 5 and slows down climbing MMR:
- Greed for farm — pos 5 should not take gold away from the carry.
- Poor vision: the team plays blind and gets ganked.
- No saves at the right moment — the core dies for nothing.
- Standing passively instead of trading and harassing on the lane.
Heroes mentioned in this guide:
Crystal Maiden
Lion
Shadow Shaman
Dazzle
Witch Doctor
