Dust of Appearance in Dota 2: who buys it, when it wins and what it costs
Kevin · Dota2Arena · updated Oct 28, 2026 · numbers live from our scannerDust of Appearance costs 80 gold and shows up in 54% of ranked matches. Players holding it at the end win 42.4% of their games across 1,758,558 inventories, most often on Lion and Spirit Breaker. It wins most in the early game (54.7%) and least in the late game (42.0%).
What Dust of Appearance does
Use: Reveal
For 12 seconds, creates an area that reveals and slows invisible heroes by -20% in a 1050 radius where the caster was standing. Invisible units revealed by dust take 25 damage. The debuff effect on enemies lingers for 8s after leaving the area of effect.
- Places a debuff on enemy units in the area that reveals them when they are invisible.
Who buys Dust of Appearance
The share says how many games of a hero end with Dust of Appearance in the inventory, the win rate is that hero's win rate in exactly those games. A high share with an average win rate means the item is standard on the hero; a low share with a high win rate means it is a situational pick that works when it is needed.
| Hero | Share of games | Win rate with it | Games |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lion | 16% | 44.4% | 87,434 |
| Spirit Breaker | 18% | 47.3% | 65,094 |
| Witch Doctor | 17% | 47.8% | 63,258 |
| Pudge | 11% | 42.9% | 62,922 |
| Rubick | 14% | 43.8% | 59,834 |
| Shadow Shaman | 16% | 47.4% | 55,187 |
| Lich | 19% | 50.1% | 46,501 |
| Crystal Maiden | 14% | 47.3% | 44,880 |
When to buy it
Win rate by match length tells you in which kind of game the item pays off. Items that win short games are usually bought early and snowball; items that win long games are late-game purchases or things you buy when the game is already going well, so read the number as "games with this item at this length" rather than as advice to rush it.
| Phase | Match length | Win rate | Games |
|---|---|---|---|
| Early game | under 25 min | 54.7% | 19,209 |
| Mid game | 25–40 min | 42.7% | 792,404 |
| Late game | over 40 min | 42.0% | 948,079 |
What to combine it with
These items sit in the same final inventory as Dust of Appearance most often (based on every 4th match). Boots and other staples appear on almost every list; the interesting entries are the ones specific to this item.
| Item | In the same inventory | Cost |
|---|---|---|
 Blink Dagger | 41% | 2,250 |
 Arcane Boots | 36% | 1,500 |
 Aghanim's Scepter | 25% | 4,200 |
 Glimmer Cape | 21% | 2,150 |
 Tranquil Boots | 18% | 900 |
 Power Treads | 15% | 1,400 |
 Black King Bar | 13% | 4,050 |
 Aether Lens | 12% | 2,275 |
Frequently asked questions
Is Dust of Appearance good right now?
In our window Dust of Appearance ends up in winning inventories 42.4% of the time across 1,758,558 ranked games, below the 50 % mark. It does best in the early game (54.7%) and worst in the late game (42.0%).
Which heroes buy Dust of Appearance?
Lion (16% of games), Spirit Breaker (18% of games), Witch Doctor (17% of games), Pudge (11% of games), Rubick (14% of games). The highest win rate with it belongs to Lich at 50.1%.
How much does Dust of Appearance cost?
Dust of Appearance costs 80 gold and has no recipe; it is bought directly from the consumables section of the shop.