Cosmetics6 min readUpdated October 9, 2026

Dota 2 Hero Relics Explained: What They Track and How to Get Them

What Dota Plus hero relics track, how many each hero has, how to unlock them and what they cost.

Prepared byDota Ledger Editorial DeskPublished July 6, 2026

Illustration: Dota Ledger

Hero relics are counters in Dota Plus that track what you do on a hero. Each hero has 14 relic slots, ten Common and four Rare, and you unlock them with Reward Shards. They still exist: Valve lists them on its Dota Plus page. Relics are stat trackers on your account, not cosmetics you can sell.

What hero relics do

A relic follows one action on one hero, such as kills, damage from a spell or assists. All the relics you have unlocked for a hero track at the same time. After each match the post-game screen shows how far each relic moved, and during a match you get a notification when a relic hits a milestone.

The counters differ by hero. Spectre’s list, for example, mixes general counters such as Kills, Kill Assists and Triple Kills with hero-specific ones such as Desolate Damage and Dispersion Kills. Open your hero’s relic panel to see exactly what is on offer.

How relics level up

Each relic has set milestones. Valve’s example is Axe’s “Enemies Culled” relic, which levels up every 50 kills with Culling Blade. Every level-up gives your hero Dota Plus XP. In Turbo matches relics earn progress at half the normal rate.

	Common relic	Rare relic
Slots per hero	10	4
Shard cost (2021 update)	1,600 Shards	8,000 Shards
Hero XP for each level-up	5	30
Progress in Turbo	Half speed	Half speed

Costs and XP come from Valve’s Spring 2021 Dota Plus update, and Liquipedia lists the same Shard prices today. Confirm the price in your client before you spend.

How to get relics

You buy them with Reward Shards, either as a random Common or Rare relic. Since the 2021 update a purchase never gives you a duplicate. You can unlock relics for any hero, not only the ones you play.

Shards come from several places, according to Valve’s Dota Plus page:

Each hero level you earn gives Shards.
Winning three games before the weekly timer resets gives 1,000 extra Shards.
The weekly Battle Cup prize is 20,000 Shards.
The Prediction Charm pays Shards for correct predictions.
Tips from other players give 50 Shards each, up to three per game and ten per week.
First-time subscribers get Welcome Quests worth up to 20,000+ Shards.

Do you need Dota Plus?

Relics are part of Dota Plus, which is a paid subscription. Valve groups them under Hero Progression next to hero leveling and hero challenges, and a free-versus-paid overview from Hawk Live lists Hero Relics among the features the free version lacks. Liquipedia says some Shards can be earned without Dota Plus, for example from tips or the three-wins reward, but the relic system is still a Plus feature. Valve’s page does not say what happens to your relic progress if you cancel, so check in the client.

Relics are a hero-profile panel, not Steam inventory items, so there is nothing to trade or list on the market. For other ways to earn rewards without paying, see the guide to free Dota 2 items.

Common or Rare: which first?

A Rare relic costs five times as much as a Common one (8,000 against 1,600 Shards), and each Rare level-up gives six times the hero XP (30 against 5). Purchases are random within the type you pick, so you cannot choose a counter. If you only want a few counters to watch, Commons are the cheaper way to fill slots.

For example, the Welcome Quests for a new subscriber are worth up to 20,000+ Shards. At 1,600 Shards each, that covers twelve Common relics, or two Rare relics and two Common ones. The weekly reward of 1,000 Shards for three wins alone would take two weeks to pay for one Common relic.

What else Dota Plus includes

Relics are one part of the Hero Progression feature set on Valve’s Dota Plus page. The others are hero leveling, hero chat wheel lines, hero challenges and the Plus Rewards Store, where you spend Shards on Plus hero sets, select older hero sets, relics, tools and chat wheel sounds. Plus also gives free Battle Cup entry, access to the current seasonal terrain (see the terrain guide), in-game tipping and the Plus Assistant with item and ability suggestions.

When relics were added

Hero relics launched with Dota Plus in 2018: a GosuGamers overview from that year lists them among the features of the new subscription. Valve reworked them in the Spring 2021 Dota Plus update on 1 March 2021. Before it, relics came as random rewards for playing, according to Esports Edition. Since March 2021 you buy them with Shards at fixed prices, with no duplicates, and each level-up gives hero XP.

Which relic should you unlock first?

Pick a counter that matches what you want to improve on your main hero. Check the number before and after a block of games to see the change. For example, if a counter goes from 900 to 1,200 over 20 matches, you added 300 actions, or 15 per match. Compare that rate rather than the total, because total counts depend on how many matches you played.

A higher count does not always mean better play. A support who spams a spell raises a spell counter without helping the team. Use relics to spot habits, then check your replays.

Relics are not gems

A relic follows a hero. An Inscribed gem sits in a cosmetic item and counts a stat for that item, which gives it Inscribed quality. Buying an Inscribed item does not unlock a relic, and a relic does not change any item. The gems guide explains how item counters work.

Quick answers

Are hero relics still in Dota 2?

Yes. Valve’s Dota Plus page still lists hero relics, with 14 slots per hero, among the features of the subscription.

Do relics work in Turbo?

Yes, at half the normal speed. Twenty Turbo matches move a counter about as far as ten normal matches, so count Turbo games separately when you compare your rate.

How many relics does each hero have?

Fourteen: ten Common and four Rare, per Valve’s Dota Plus page.

How do I unlock a relic in Dota 2?

Spend Reward Shards in the Dota Plus relic panel. Liquipedia lists a Common relic at 1,600 Shards and a Rare relic at 8,000.

Do relics give an advantage in a match?

No. They count actions and give your hero Dota Plus XP, with no effect on abilities or stats.

Can I buy or sell relics?

You buy them with Shards from Valve. They live on your hero profile, so there is no item to sell.