Sand King
The sands of the Scintillant Waste are alive and sentient--the whole vast desert speaks to itself, thinking thoughts only such a vastness can conceive. But when it needs must find a form to communicate with those of more limited scope, it frees a fragment of itself, and fills a carapace of magic armor formed by the cunning Djinn of Qaldin. This essential identity calls itself Crixalis, meaning 'Soul of the Sand,' but others know it as Sand King. Sand King takes the form of a huge arachnid, inspired by the Scintillant Waste's small but ubiquitous denizens; and this is a true outward expression of his ferocious nature. Guardian, warrior, ambassador--Sand King is all of these things, inseparable from the endless desert that gave him life.
Hero lore
The sands of the Scintillant Waste are alive and sentient--the whole vast desert speaks to itself, thinking thoughts only such a vastness can conceive. But when it needs must find a form to communicate with those of more limited scope, it frees a fragment of itself, and fills a carapace of magic armor formed by the cunning Djinn of Qaldin. This essential identity calls itself Crixalis, meaning 'Soul of the Sand,' but others know it as Sand King. Sand King takes the form of a huge arachnid, inspired by the Scintillant Waste's small but ubiquitous denizens; and this is a true outward expression of his ferocious nature. Guardian, warrior, ambassador--Sand King is all of these things, inseparable from the endless desert that gave him life.
Compact stat and ability fields shown here were checked against patch 7.41e where this model represents the changed field. Talents and full mechanics remain in the official notes.
Sand King abilities
Sand King burrows into the ground and tunnels forward, damaging and stunning enemy units above him as he resurfaces. Adds Caustic Finale poison to heroes hit Can be put on alt-cast to immediately cast in the desired direction, without walking towards the targ…
Sand King creates a fearsome sandstorm that damages enemy units and grants Sand King Invisibility while he is in it. The effect ends when Sand King leaves the area.
Sand King strikes an area, performing an attack on all enemies in the area of effect, dealing extra damage to each. Enemies within an innermost radius of 125 take 40% extra damage. Applies Caustic Finale and a slow to all enemies hit.
Sand King's attacks inject a venom that causes enemy units to violently explode when they die that does a flat amount of damage and an additional amount based on the dying units max health.
Passive, Hidden
After a cast point of 2 seconds, Sand King sends a disturbance into the earth, causing it to shudder violently. All enemies caught within range will take damage and become slowed. Each subsequent pulse increases the radius of damage dealt.
Popular items by game phase
OpenDota professional-match aggregate as of Jul 21, 2026, 9:50 PM UTC. Popularity rows are independent phase totals, not a coherent build, sequence, or win-rate advice.
Starting
6 items- 1
Iron Branch332 selections · 51.9% - 2
Tango92 selections · 14.4% - 3
Observer Ward48 selections · 7.5% - 4
Circlet39 selections · 6.1% - 5
Quelling Blade31 selections · 4.8% - 6
Faerie Fire28 selections · 4.4%
Early
6 items- 1
Boots of Speed100 selections · 26% - 2
Bottle64 selections · 16.6% - 3
Chainmail63 selections · 16.4% - 4
Phase Boots60 selections · 15.6% - 5
Bracer32 selections · 8.3% - 6
Power Treads21 selections · 5.5%
Mid
6 items- 1
Ogre Axe125 selections · 18.9% - 2
Staff of Wizardry95 selections · 14.3% - 3
Blink Dagger87 selections · 13.1% - 4
Point Booster87 selections · 13.1% - 5
Blade of Alacrity82 selections · 12.4% - 6
Aghanim's Scepter78 selections · 11.8%
Late
6 items- 1
Black King Bar43 selections · 16.9% - 2
Crystalys24 selections · 9.4% - 3
Demon Edge21 selections · 8.3% - 4
Shiva's Guard21 selections · 8.3% - 5
Soul Booster19 selections · 7.5% - 6
Daedalus19 selections · 7.5%
More heroes to explore
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Sand King — frequently asked
What are Sand King's abilities in Dota 2?
Sand King's abilities are Burrowstrike, Sand Storm, Stinger, Caustic Finale, Epicenter. It is a Universal melee hero played as Initiator, Disabler, Support.
What is Sand King's primary attribute?
Sand King is a Universal hero, starting with 23 strength (+2.3/lvl), 19 agility (+2/lvl) and 17 intelligence (+2/lvl), and a base move speed of 290.
What do the popular Sand King item phases mean?
The saved OpenDota aggregate is dated 2026-07-22. The phase lists summarize professional-match item popularity; they are not one coherent build, a recommended sequence, or win-rate advice.