Templar Assassin (TA) has long been a mid-lane staple in Dota 2, known for her burst damage, map control, and snowball potential. But in the hands of 9Class and PARIVISION, she’s proving that even in the support role, TA can shine. In this article, we break down the surprising viability of Support TA in patch 7.38c, highlight why it works, how to play it, and whether or not you should be adding it to your support pool.
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What Makes Support TA Work?
Support TA, especially with the Hidden Reach facet, isn’t just a gimmick. She brings vision, high burst damage, armor reduction, and utility via traps—and all from the support position.
The concept revolves around leveraging meld’s bonus range from Hidden Reach to poke and secure early trades, then scaling into a trap-heavy utility hero that can scout, slow, and silence enemies with ease.
Laning and Early Game Execution
Despite lacking innate control, Support TA is deceptively strong in lane. Meld, when paired with an offlanerwho has any disable (like Enigma or Tide), becomes a reliable kill threat.
- Trading with Hidden Reach: Meld increases TA’s attack range by 400, letting her harass from unexpected angles. It’s ideal for first blood attempts or zone control.
- Harassment Value: TA is tanky with Refraction and trades well in melee matchups. Using Meld into a Refraction body block or double-hit guarantees effective pressure.
- Water Rune Control: With mobility and early boots, TA can bully mid heroes off Water Runes or stack camps.
Her playstyle encourages creativity—using Meld to secure Lotus Pools, running vision traps around river rotations, and baiting multiple enemies by dodging detection.
Mid Game Strengths: Traps, Vision & Utility
Support TA’s traps are the centerpiece of her midgame power. With shard, they become oppressive tools:
- Shard Buffs: Increase max trap count from 5 to 9, add 3s silence, and increase trap vision.
- Global Control: Plant traps on cliffs, jungle camps, river entries, and creep waves for high-value scouting. You become a mobile ward factory.
- Teamfight Setup: Pre-trap flanks or objectives for ambushes. Meld armor reduction (-8.5s with talent) shreds key targets.
Even outside teamfights, TA traps provide unmatched information, allowing carries like Morphling or cores like Kunka to commit without Fear of surprise rotations.
Itemization and Talents
Support TA doesn’t require expensive items to shine, but specific pickups drastically enhance her power curve:
- Core Early Items:
- Boots + Stick
- Blood Grenade (to compensate for lack of innate CC)
- Treads (gives useful stats and attack speed)
- Utility Scaling:
- Dragon Lance (range, stats)
- Shard (priority at ~15 mins)
- Pike (escape and repositioning)
- Lotus Orb or Glimmer (defensive utility)
- Talents:
- Level 10: Meld debuff duration (+2.5s) is a must.
- Level 15+: Max out traps for 9 placements; don’t delay this for minor sideblade range.
Final Verdict: Should You Play Support TA?
Support TA is undeniably niche, but it works—especially in higher MMR where strategic positioning, vision, and coordination matter more.
- Pros:
- Great laner with the right offlaner
- Extremely high vision and map control
- Snowballs into a global silence-dispenser with traps
- Excellent rune control and scaling utility
- Cons:
- No hard disable
- Requires smart trap usage
- Weak if behind
- Less effective in low MMR due to technical playstyle
FAQs
Is support TA good in pubs?
It depends. Above 6-7k MMR, yes. Below that, its technical skill ceiling might hinder consistency.
Should I use the Hidden Reach facet or Refractor?
Both are viable, but Hidden Reach enables more surprise trades and synergizes with her role as a utility scout.
What role does TA play in late game fights?
She shifts from DPS to utility—providing slows, armor reduction, silences, and information.
Is TA support better than classic picks like AA or Jakiro?
Not universally, but as a flex tool and vision-heavy support, she offers unique advantages.
Support TA may not be meta-defining yet, but it’s on the rise. With smart positioning, calculated trades, and aggressive trap placements, it transforms from a greedy core into a powerful, unconventional support.
If you’re looking to shake up your ranked support pool with something unique yet viable, 9Class’s Templar Assassin might just be your next go-to.
