Hydra's Breath
Blade of Alacrity
Broadsword
Recipe
Specialist's Array in Dota 2: who buys it, when it wins and what it costs
Kevin · Dota2Arena · updated Oct 28, 2026 · numbers live from our scannerSpecialist's Array costs 2,550 gold and shows up in 4% of ranked matches. Players holding it at the end win 33.6% of their games across 82,487 inventories, most often on Vengeful Spirit and Drow Ranger. It wins most in the early game (57.0%) and least in the late game (32.4%).
What Specialist's Array does
Passive: Splitshot
Ranged attacks have a 30% chance to fire additional projectiles at up to 2 nearby enemies with 150 extra range and within a 120 degree angle in front of the attacker. The additional projectiles deal 20 + 75% damage of a normal attack and do not trigger on hit effects. The primary attack deals 20 + 100% damage of a normal attack.
In numbers: +15 agility, +20 damage.
Who buys Specialist's Array
The share says how many games of a hero end with Specialist's Array 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vengeful Spirit | 10% | 34.0% | 20,600 |
| Drow Ranger | 5% | 33.2% | 17,006 |
| Sniper | 2% | 31.5% | 7,328 |
| Morphling | 9% | 23.1% | 6,831 |
| Windranger | 2% | 36.5% | 6,647 |
| Shadow Fiend | 1% | 23.2% | 2,186 |
| Viper | 1% | 37.1% | 2,075 |
| Arc Warden | 2% | 36.3% | 1,809 |
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 | 57.0% | 2,575 |
| Mid game | 25–40 min | 33.1% | 50,661 |
| Late game | over 40 min | 32.4% | 29,306 |
What to combine it with
These items sit in the same final inventory as Specialist's Array 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 |
|---|---|---|
 Power Treads | 78% | 1,400 |
 Dragon Lance | 29% | 1,900 |
 Wraith Band | 27% | 505 |
 Manta Style | 27% | 4,650 |
 Aghanim's Scepter | 26% | 4,200 |
 Butterfly | 17% | 5,450 |
 Black King Bar | 17% | 4,050 |
 Hurricane Pike | 15% | 4,450 |
Frequently asked questions
Is Specialist's Array good right now?
In our window Specialist's Array ends up in winning inventories 33.6% of the time across 82,487 ranked games, below the 50 % mark. It does best in the early game (57.0%) and worst in the late game (32.4%).
Which heroes buy Specialist's Array?
Vengeful Spirit (10% of games), Drow Ranger (5% of games), Sniper (2% of games), Morphling (9% of games), Windranger (2% of games). The highest win rate with it belongs to Dark Willow at 42.0%.
How much does Specialist's Array cost and what do you need?
Specialist's Array costs 2,550 gold in total: Blade of Alacrity (1,000), Broadsword (1,000) and a recipe for 550.
What does Specialist's Array build into?
Specialist's Array is a component of Hydra's Breath (5,900).