Attributes
Combat
Resources
Win Rate by Rank
Bar scale: 40% – 60% win rate range
Herald
0–770
Guardian
770–1540
Crusader
1540–2310
Archon
2310–3080
Legend
3080–3850
Ancient
3850–4620
Divine + Immortal
5000+
Tusk Hero Guide
Without current win rate data for patch 7.41e, Tusk appears to occupy a niche position as a mobile initiator and ganker who thrives in chaotic, teamfight-heavy metas. His strength lies in his ability to create picks and control fights through positioning and crowd control, making him valuable when teams need a playmaker rather than a traditional carry or support. The hero's viability depends heavily on the prevalence of heroes he can effectively jump on and the farm priority your team can afford to give him.
Tusk wins through early aggression and maintaining relevance as games progress. Core items should prioritize mobility and survivability early, with items like Blink Dagger and Pipe of Insight enabling him to dive into fights without immediately dying. As games extend, he benefits from items that amplify his crowd control and damage output, allowing him to remain the primary engagement tool for his team even when opponents build defensive items. The key is staying active on the map during the midgame transition period when your team needs objective control.
Tusk struggles most when drafted into teams with consistent kiting potential or when enemies have multiple heroes with reliable escape tools that make his engagements backfire. Games that stall into ultra-lategame scenarios are problematic since his impact often diminishes when opponents are fully itemized and grouped defensively. Additionally, if your team lacks followup damage or lockdown after Tusk initiates, you become a sacrificial playmaker rather than a game-winner, making hero synergy crucial to avoid picking him into uncooperative lineups.
Meta Insight
Meta insight unavailable.
Duration data unavailable.
The soft support (Position 4) plays from behind the carry, securing kills and creating space through crowd control and initiation rather than farm priority. Tusk is a playmaker and disruptor—your job is to set up kills, protect your team, and turn fights through precise ability use. See the Fundamentals page for the full position breakdown.
Full position breakdown → FundamentalsTusk's early game (0–15 min) revolves around lane presence and roaming setup. The data shows 59.1% win rate in the first 10 minutes, suggesting strong early aggression pays off—prioritize Phase Boots around the 10-minute mark to enable chase and kiting. Winning Tusk players leverage Snowball for gank setup and Ice Shards for lane control, avoiding extended trades with heavily-armored heroes. By 15 minutes, expect to rotate away from lane and position for mid-game playmaking.
Tusk hits his critical spike between 20–25 minutes when Blink Dagger and Aghanim's Scepter come online (53.5% and 58.7% win rate respectively). With Blink, winning Tusk players shift to coordinated smoke ganks (ambushes using a smoke of deceit consumable) on isolated targets, using Snowball to lock enemies in place while allies collapse. Aghanim's Scepter amplifies this by granting Walrus Punch a second charge—use it to burst high-value targets and retreat before the enemy teamfight forms. The 20–25 minute window is Tusk's highest leverage period; games where this spike converts to map control and kills maintain ~49% win rate into the 25–30 minute bracket.
After 30 minutes, Tusk's win condition shifts from pick-off initiation to frontline disruption and teamfight positioning. The data shows a soft decline from 49.5% to 48.2% by 40 minutes—Tusk struggles in ultra-late scenarios where positioning mistakes are more punishing. Winning late-game Tusk players stay at the back of fights, using Force Staff and Cyclone (both purchased around 25 min at 54.4% and 53.5% win rate) for survival while waiting for Blink-in opportunities on vulnerable targets. The goal is to secure one high-impact engagement before the enemy's carry scales; avoid long, stalled fights where Tusk's utility is exhausted.
Based on 505 pro matches — ESL One Birmingham 2026 + PGL Wallachia Season 8 + DreamLeague Season 29 + BLAST Slam VII
View full research → Research page⚠️ Item timing data reflects all public matchmaking games and may not reflect professional or high-MMR patterns where timings are typically faster and itemization is more varied.
