"I am the blade of the Goddess."
Hero Introduction
For Luna's statistics (both basic and advanced) as well as a fundamental description of her skills, please see her hero page located here. |
Alt-Tab Mini Guide
Skill Build
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Item Build
Starting Items
For solo:
For dual/trilane:
Core
If you got, then go for a 
can be replaced by 
Core Extension
(Always get all three if you possibly can.)
Luxury
(Get what you think you'll need according to the game at hand.)
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17 - 25.
Item Build
Starting Items
For solo:
For dual/trilane:
Core
If you got
, then go for a can be replaced by Core Extension
(Always get all three if you possibly can.)
Luxury
(Get what you think you'll need according to the game at hand.)
Strengths and Weaknesses
Luna is a hero who can excel in almost any lineup due to her ability to attack both physically and magically. However, she has a few weaknesses that hinder her game somewhat.
Luna's strengths and weaknesses are listed below.
[+] - Powerful at all stages of the game. [+] - Can push, gank, teamfight and carry effectively. [+] - Has a flashfarming skill later in the game. [+] - Is ranged. (Albeit barely). |
As you can see, Luna has some incredible strengths, and when played around them, fills a niche similar to SF in having formidable early nukes, impressive teamfight potential midgame, and impressive carry abilities late. However, she suffers from some of the same weaknesses, which are listed below.
[-] - Has poor range compared to most other dominant solo heroes. [-] - Is highly item dependent. [-] - Lacks a hard disable. (Ministun from Lucent Beam is hardly applicable.) [-] - Lacks an escape mechanism. (Unless you count obscenely high MS as an escape mechanism.) |
With great power comes obscenely low HP. While Luna has amazing damage potential, she can easily die due to her paper HP and lack of a proper escape mechanism. As such, Luna players must be cautious, especially against nukers. A couple of nukes and Luna is replaced with a respawn timer.
Essentially, Luna is a very precise hero, and in the hands of an experienced player, can be a menace even from level 1. The key to playing Luna effectively, and perhaps all heroes effectively, is knowing your limits. Luna may have a higher damage potential than Night Stalker, but she can't dive towers like he can. Luna can out last hit almost any hero in lane, but cannot handle repeated harassment from higher ranged heroes. Ways to counter such harassment, as well as other issues Luna faces will be discussed later in the guide.
Skill Build
1. Lunar Blessing 1 / Lucent Beam 1
2. Lucent Beam 1 / Lunar Blessing 1
3. Lucent Beam 2
4. Lunar Blessing 2
5. Lucent Beam 3
6. Eclipse 1
7. Lucent Beam 4
8. Lunar Blessing 3
9. Lunar Blessing 4
10. Moon Glaives 1
11. Eclipse 2
12. Moon Glaives 2
13. Moon Glaives 3
14. Moon Glaives 4
15. Stats 1
16. Eclipse 3
17 - 25. Stats 2 - 10
This build is the optimal build for Luna. If you're having extreme difficulties in lane or in general, you can supplement stats for Lunar Blessing. However, make sure you get at least the first level of Lunar Blessing. +14 damage at level one or two is wondrous.
Item Build
Starting Items
For solo:
Justification: You might be wondering why you haven't spent 100 of your starting gold, but the answer is simple. You don't need to. This starting build gives you decent Strength to remedy your low HP, as well as enough regen to keep you alive until your next item (which will likely be Bottle if you're soloing mid.) Feel free to pick up some more regen, though in most scenarios you won't need it.
For dual/trilane:
Justification: Once again we're not spending all our gold, and the only difference is a Ring of Protection is purchased instead of Gauntlets of Strength. This is simply because if you have Luna in a dual or trilane she's going to be farming, and she can very easily be on the offensive with +14 damage to her allies in lane. As such, picking up an early Ring of Basilius can help secure your lane dominance, as well as make pushing down the enemy tower considerably easier.
Alternative starting build (solo or lane):
Justification: If you have a remarkably easy lane, or if you are playing hard carry in a trilane, then the Slippers of Agility will boost your last hitting capabilities as well as turning into Wraith Bands or a Poor Man's Shield, both of which are quite useful for Luna early on.
Situationally, it may be more prudent to get things like Magic Stick against Batrider or Zeus, however in a general lane, you'll get your Magic Wand soon enough.
Core
Phase Boots outshine Power Treads in almost every situation. Luna doesn't stand still hitting someone, but instead uses her high MS to animation cancel effectively against the opponent. (This technique will be discussed later in the guide.) The ability to Phase is also incredibly useful on Luna. This is because the MS boost from Phase is percentage based, thus Luna's high MS comes into play, and the zero collision size allows her to chase (especially with Eclipse) relentlessly. If you're having extreme difficulty early though and you need to boost your HP, getting Treads is acceptable. The stats are nice, the AS increase is nice, but if you're doing well Phase Boots is simply better.
Janggo provides everything Luna wants. +9 to all stats to help fix that HP, give a little bit of damage, and give her a little more mana. The aura and active of this item also synergise well with Luna, as it makes her even faster and further boosts her chasing and fleeing capabilities. Definitely a must.
Magic Wand is core on every hero. Luna is no different.
Town Portals are also core on (almost) every hero.
(Also, if you got If you got Ring of Protection, then go for a Ring of Basilius.)
Core Extension
The only reason these three items aren't core is due to their cost. In most situations you'll want to get Ethereal Blade first, as Luna is arguably the best holder of it in the game. The stats are fantastic for her and the active is even better. Ether Blast (the nuke) itself is quite strong in Luna's hands, but the ethereal status is what we're looking for. 44% magic damage amplification and a 50% slow is no joke, especially with Lucent Beam and Eclipse. No hero will survive this combo if they catch the full force of it.
Manta is about as broken on Luna as it is on AM. Her Moon Glaives pass over to her images. this increases her DPS to insane levels and makes her lategame teamfighting and pushing capabilities plain scary. The stats are also fantastic on Luna as is the bonus MS. An absolute must.
It's BKB. Almost every carry is going to get it at some point. I personally dislike BKB because it delays my EPIC PwNz0r DPS items, but it's a necessary evil, I suppose.
Luxury
As with any other carry. Luna likes carry items. Let's see why.
Satanic is a natural luxury for any carry who can use it (in your face, AM!) and Luna is a carry. Makes sense right? She's also kind of forced into it as it is the only orb she can use. Back to the point though. The +25 Strength is fantastic on Luna, as well as the HotD part of it. (Lifesteal is actually worth getting at this point). I'd probably aim for Satanic after I got my BKB, Eblade and Manta.
Butterfly is another generic carry item. You benefit from every part of it and your manta illusions love it as well. God help the enemy team if you've managed to get your hands on this.
Boots of Travel are the standard boots for lategame. 'Nuff said.
Situational
Ahganim's certainly isn't a bad choice for Luna. It provides decent stats and a welcomed boost to your ultimate. However for the same price you could get a BKB, could almost afford a Manta or an Eblade, and generally find better alternatives. It's easy to build up though, so that may make it worth it for harder games.
Blink Dagger is one of those items that can work, but generally is outclassed by what other items offer for Luna. You can do the ninja Eclipse blink and nab a few surprise kills, but it doesn't really offer you any favours in terms of survivability, damage, and general carry potential. Honestly, I believe your MS is mobility enough.
Heart is a luxury but not the best option out there. If you absolutely need to tank up as hard as you can, by all means try to farm one up. However, keep in mind how much better Satanic is overall, and make your decision from there.
Lothar's Edge is an effective item. Being able to invis gives you a (somewhat unreliable in higher level games) escape mechanism, and gives some nice DPS boosts as well. The problem with Lothar's is that it grants no survivability, and is too easily countered by competent players. However, Lothar's can still be effectively used in high level games, just don't expect it to save you every time.
Buriza is a great carrying item, don't get me wrong. But you only have six slots, and I'd rather the core and luxuries already mentioned as they simply work better with Luna. This is because Luna will always get a Manta, and raw damage doesn't transfer to images. This is why Satanic and The Butterfly are simply better for her. That being said, Buriza is probably the next best item after them.
Monkey King Bar is a highly situational item on Luna. The damage doesn't transfer to her images and it grants no survivability. However, against mass evasion it can be helpful. Other than that, I'd probably advise against MKB, it just isn't your thing.
Rejected
Just no.
Gameplay
Early Game
Levels 1 - 11:
First off, choose your lane. Are you going to solo, or are you going to be in a dual/trilane? Will you need to get a BKB first, or a Manta, or an Ethereal Blade? Will you have an easy time farming, or will you need to mass HP? All of these are important questions that you must ask yourself before you leave your base.
In the case of soloing, suss out your opponent. Figure out what kind of hero they're playing, how good they are, and how much regen they're packing. Do they have a superior laner, like Tinker or Lion? Are they a competent player? Are they last hitting and harassing well? Do they have lots of regeneration, or do you stand a chance at trading hits? Once you have these questions answered, adjust your playing stance. If you can trade hits and win from it, play aggressive. If you can't, focus on last hitting and denying, and staying out of harms way.
Also take note of Lucent Beam's range. It's utterly ridiculous. To give you an idea, this is the max range of Lucent Beam:
If you're in a dual/trilane, determine whether your lane is stronger than your opponents. Do they have a trilane or are you against a solo hero? If your lane is indeed stronger, play aggressive. Farm as much as you can, if you can grab a kill or keep an ally alive without endangering yourself, do so. These are once again questions you must ask yourself and adjust accordingly. If your lane is weaker, play defensively. A quote from Pirates of the Carribean is a perfect idea for what you should do.
Take what you can, give nothing back.
Mid Game
Levels 11 - 16:
During mid game, you have an amazing blend of mobility and DPS, both physical and magical. At this stage, you can gank extremely successfully, and farm quite well. Your ability to push, teamfight and gank is near unmatched, provided you had a decent early game. However, you're still squishier than many other heroes, and are a high priority for the enemy team. Play smart, farm when you can, gank when you can, push when you can. And make sure you have your ultimate ready for most, if not all teamfights.
By this stage you should at the very least have your core and be well on your way to your first extension. Once you've completed it, be it any of the three mentioned, you will become an actual carry, and thus begin to overwhelm the opponent.
Make sure you use this time to make your impact, what you do now ultimately effects your end game prowess.
Below is a video showing the correct combo of Eblade + Eclipse + Lucent Beam. This should show you why Ethereal Blade is such a powerful item on Luna.
Late Game
Time for you to really start carrying.
If you've done well in early and mid game, you are now a DPS machine. You have immense mobility, decent HP, and you still have a powerful magical and physical arsenal at your disposal. Your physical damage has overtaken your magical damage at this point, but don't underestimate Eclipse. It will still do obscene amounts of damage if you use it at the right time. Teamfights are all the rage now, and that's just what you want. Try to fight at enemy towers, that way your Glaives will bounce on to the tower with some good positioning, chipping away at them. Remember to try and hit as many enemy heroes as you can with your Glaives, Eblade the opposing carry, make sure you Eclipse in every teamfight you can. Most of the carries in today's metagame can't stand toe to toe with you particularly successfully, not to mention you should have farmed up quite a bit more than them.
Make sure to be mindful of Roshan, and of if you can or need to buyback. Buybacks change games when used right.
Here's a clip that shows you how much damage Luna can do (if very farmed) and also boosts my ego. Enjoy!
Tips and Tricks
Animation Canceling
Animation cancelling is a technique used to maximise the amount of hits you can get on your opponent. All heroes can benefit from it, Luna more than most. Because of Luna's high MS, she can abuse this technique, below is a short video on how to animation cancel.
As you can see, normally the time between attacks is spent standing still. However, by animation canceling, we utilise Luna's high MS by moving after each attack, closing the distance between us and our prey. Proper application of this trick is what separates the good players from the average ones, as many kills can be gained or lost purely from this technique or lack thereof. Not to mention in lane skirmishes where each side trades hits, it can give you a distinct upper hand if they begin to run.
Total Eclipses
Eclipse is a fairly straightforward skill, however the application of it can be amplified or diminished based on the use of it. If you can help it, don't eclipse near creeps, as it hits random enemies and doesn't differentiate between creeps, heroes and neutrals.
As such, trying to catch small bands of heroes alone (1 - 3) is the most prudent way to maximise the effectiveness of Eclipse.
Here is a video of how to Eclipse poorly. Don't do this, please.
Below, however, is how to do a decent Eclipse. This is the best application of your ultimate.
How to Moon Glaive
Moon Glaives are easy to farm with, but a tad trickier to use in a teamfight. As the range of the bounces, while acceptable, is by no means stellar, proper positioning is quintessential to maximising your DPS output. As such, you should focus on staying out of harms way as best you can, while being in a position capable of bouncing your Glaives onto as many of your foes as you can. Remember that the range is 500, which is pretty good.
Allies and Enemies
I'm not really going to bother with the "DISABLERS ARE GOOD AND BAD AND DOOM MAKES YOU SAD" thing. Instead, I'm going to list a handful of specific heroes that synergise well with you or make you cry.
Allies
The best ally I can think of is Vengeful Spirit. She's a hard out support, has a nice stun, lowers armour in a large area, has another damage boosting aura and can swap you out of danger. Me gusta.
Heroes that you also appreciate are heroes that can isolate enemies or bunch them up. In a competitive lineup (obviously not all in the same lineup), the main heroes that come to mind are the aforementioned VS, Clockwerk, Enigma or Dark Seer or anyone packing a DPS boosting aura. Pugna is also a great hero to have along as he also has great pushing and teamfighting potential.
Enemies
Most of Luna's greatest enemies are simply hard nukers, or heroes with Silence. The three biggest threats I can think of early - mid are Lion, Lich and Windrunner. Both of the former heroes have a fairly spammable nuke, 600 range, and devastating ultimates. You are heavily disadvantaged in lane if you solo against these two, as they outlane you in every possible way (Particularly Lich). Windrunner can also be a problem in lane with her incredible harass potential and spammable nuke. Not to mention her high strength gain for an Intelligence hero means Lucent Beam spam isn't going to be as effective as you would like it to be.
When it comes to all game, the other night lover of DotA comes to mind. Night Stalker is a massive pain to you all throughout the game. He's tank, he has a nuke, and he has a silence/miss chance spell to top it off. Not to mention you can't outrun him at night. All in all a hard hero to play against.
Of course traditional anti-heroes like Batrider, Doom, SD, NA etc are all "counters" but there are very few heroes that aren't destroyed by them.
Late game hard carries will outcarry you if they are on equal footing. You're not going to outcarry a Spectre with equal items, nor are you going to outcarry a BKB'ed Void. (If you got very lucky with Eclipse you could take him without BKB, this goes for anyone similar to Void.) However the damage you can deal to an entire team with some good Glaive bounces can put you in a similar category as the behemoths mentioned.
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