PC console

Rubick

Posted on by Manh Vinh
dota 2 rubick
18
Sep

Rubick, the Grand Magus, is a ranged intelligence hero best known for his ability to copy the spells of his enemies and use them as his own. Although he is mostly played as a support and is extremely fragile the entire length of the game, he can still prove to be one of the most influential heroes if he utilizes good positioning and well-timed usage of his ultimate, Spell Steal. Spell Steal allows Rubick to cast an enemy hero’s most recently used spell, giving him supreme versatility throughout the game. By stealing the right abilities, the Grand Magus can aid himself and allies by casting crippling disables, applying curses, unleashing powerful nukes, disorienting the enemy team, supporting his allies with buffs, escaping from rough situations, or even enhancing his own physical attacks. His other abilities are just as worthy of a Magus: Telekinesis lets Rubick magically lift an enemy into the air, rendering the target helpless and vulnerable, before hurling the lifted enemy to the ground up to a short distance away and stunning nearby foes on impact. Fade Bolt blasts enemies with a stream of arcane energy which bounces to all enemies nearby, dealing damage and reducing their attack damage. Arcane Supremacy is a passive ability, which increases cast range and amplifies the spell damage of Rubick’s stolen spells. Rubick’s versatile ability-set and his infamous Spell Steal make him a flexible and powerful hero that can work in any lineup although he does suffer from long cooldowns and the surfacing predictability of his ultimate.

Bio[]

Rubick, the Grand Magus

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▶️ “No sorcery lies beyond my grasp.”

Any mage can cast a spell or two, and a few may even study long enough to become a wizard, but only the most talented are allowed to be recognized as a Magus. Yet as with any sorcerer’s circle, a sense of community has never guaranteed competitive courtesy.

Already a renowned duelist and scholar of the grander world of sorcery, it had never occurred to Rubick that he might perhaps be Magus material until he was in the midst of his seventh assassination attempt. As he casually tossed the twelfth of a string of would-be killers from a high balcony, it dawned on him how utterly unimaginative the attempts on his life had become. Where once the interruption of a fingersnap or firehand might have put a cheerful spring in his step, it had all become so very predictable. He craved greater competition. Therefore, donning his combat mask, he did what any wizard seeking to ascend the ranks would do: he announced his intention to kill a Magus.

Rubick quickly discovered that to threaten one Magus is to threaten them all, and they fell upon him in force. Each antagonist’s spell was an unstoppable torrent of energy, and every attack a calculated killing blow. But very soon something occurred that Rubick’s foes found unexpected: their arts appeared to turn against them. Inside the magic maelstrom, Rubick chuckled, subtly reading and replicating the powers of one in order to cast it against another, sowing chaos among those who had allied against him. Accusations of betrayal began to fly, and soon the sorcerers turned one upon another without suspecting who was behind their undoing.

When the battle finally drew to a close, all were singed and frozen, soaked and cut and pierced. More than one lay dead by an ally’s craft. Rubick stood apart, sore but delighted in the week’s festivities. None had the strength to argue when he presented his petition of assumption to the Hidden Council, and the Insubstantial Eleven agreed as one to grant him the title of Grand Magus.

Abilities[]

Affects

Enemies

( Allies)

Rubick uses his telekinetic powers to lift the enemy into the air briefly and then hurls them back at the ground. The unit lands on the ground with such force that it stuns nearby enemies.

Cast Animation: 0.1+0.97

Cast Range: 550/575/600/625

Stun Radius: 325

Lift Duration: 0.8/1.2/1.6/2 ( 1.4/1.8/2.2/2.6)

Stun Duration: 1.2/1.4/1.6/1.8

 Landing Damage: 175

28/26/24/22 ( 16/14/12/10) ( 19.6/18.2/16.8/15.4,  11.2/9.8/8.4/7)

125

Allows you to target yourself or allies with Telekinesis. Throw range is 85% longer and cooldown is reduced by 30% when targeting allies. Throw delay reduced to 0.5 seconds.

Lift persists if debuff was placed before spell immunity and when not dispelled.

Blocked fully only when primary target.

Modifiers

modifier_rubick_telekinesis: Dispellable with strong dispels.

modifier_rubick_telekinesis_stun: Dispellable with strong dispels.

Even the Grandest Magus may use his powers for enjoyment.

Notes:

  • The lift duration consists of 0.5/0.9/1.3/1.7 seconds static air time and 0.3 seconds landing time.
  • The lifted unit is stunned while in the air and is not affected by the area stun upon landing.
    • The stun modifier is always placed as a debuff, while the main modifier is based on the alliance of the target.
    • With Aghanim’s Shard, this means the stun can be dispelled with strong dispels when casting on allies or self, while the lift itself cannot.
    • Since the lift itself does not disable the target, allies can attack, turn, and cast abilities and items during the lift if the stun gets dispelled.
  • While in the air, other units may pass below the lifted unit.
  • When the lift ends prematurely, the lifted unit instantly lands and applies the area stun.
  • Destroys trees within 150 radius of the lifted target upon landing.
  • Cannot lift Roshan, he will be stunned for the lift duration instead.
  • With Aghanim’s Shard, uses the reduced cooldown when targeting self or allies, and the regular cooldown when targeting enemies.
    • ↓↓ Double-tapping automatically targets self.
  • Has the following cast ranges with Arcane Supremacy on each level:
    • Level 1: 650/700/750/800 cast range.
    • Level 2: 675/725/775/825 cast range.
    • Level 3: 700/750/800/850 cast range.
    • Level 4: 725/775/825/875 cast range.

Telekinesis Land

QZ

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Chooses the location the target will land when Telekinesis finishes.

Cast Animation: 0.1+1.07

Cast Range: Global

Max Throw Distance: 375 ( 615)

Stun Radius: 325

Stun Duration: 1.2/1.4/1.6/1.8

 Landing Damage: 175

0

0

Notes:

  • Replaces Telekinesis when it is cast on an enemy, and stays until the lifted unit lands.
  • Allows Rubick to determine where the lifted enemy will land after the lift duration. Does not prematurely end the lift.
  • Can be cast multiple times during the lift. The enemy lands on the last chosen location.
    • When cast while the target is already being moved to a previously targeted point, it continues moving to that point, but gets instantly moved to the last targeted point at the end.
  • The center of the targeted area is marked with green particles, which are visible to allies only.

Telekinesis Land (Aghanim’s Shard)

QZ

Chooses the location you will land when Telekinesis finishes.

Cast Animation: 0+0

Cast Range: Global

Max Throw Distance: 693.75 ( 1137.75)

Stun Radius: 325

Throw Delay: 0.5

Stun Duration: 1.2/1.4/1.6/1.8

 Landing Damage: 175

0

0

Notes:

  • Replaces Telekinesis when it is cast on an ally or on self, and stays until the lifted unit lands.
  • Allows Rubick to determine where the lifted ally or himself will land. Reduces the remaining lift duration to 0.5 when used.
  • When cast, the ability turns inactive, so it can be only cast once.
  • Can be used while stunned, cycloned, slept, taunted, hidden, or during Forced Movement.
  • Cannot be used while silenced, hexed or prevented from acting.
    • Rubick cannot ⇧ Shift-queue this ability.
  • The center of the targeted area is marked with green particles, which are visible to allies only.

Rubick creates a powerful stream of arcane energy that travels between enemy units, dealing damage and reducing their attack damage. Each jump deals less damage.

Cast Animation: 0.1+0.93

Cast Range: 800

Bounce Distance: 440

Number of Bounces: Infinite

Base Damage: 100/175/250/325

Bounce Damage Reduction: 7%

Attack Damage Reduction: 14%/21%/28%/35% ( 24%/31%/38%/45%)

Duration: 10

16/14/12/10 ( 12/10/8/6)

120/130/140/150

Attack damage reduction persists if debuff was placed before spell immunity and when not dispelled.

Blocked fully only when primary target.

Modifiers

modifier_rubick_fade_bolt: Undispellable. Persists death.

Rubick’s favorite spell for dispatching would-be assassins is a rather simple conjuration.

Notes:

  • Fade Bolt has no bounce limit. Bounces in 0.25-second intervals. Each bounce decreases the bolt’s current damage by 7%.
    • Does not bounce on invisible units or units in the Fog of War.
    • Can never hit the same unit twice per cast.
  • Only reduces base attack damage and damage granted by primary attributes of affected units. It does not reduce bonus attack damage.
    • Each hit enemy hero creates a new buff on Rubick. The buffs always use the default duration, no matter how long the debuffs on the enemies actually last.
    • Only counts heroes, including clones, excluding illusions and creep-heroes.
  • For how much damage each bounce Fade Bolt deals, and for the total damage up to the first 10 bounces deal on each level, please refer to the chart below.
    • The total damage for the first 10 bounces are 737.2/1290/1842.9/2395.8.
    • Fade Bolt will take 65/73/78/81 bounces to reach 1 damage.
  • The bolt first applies the damage, then the debuff.
  • Has a cast range of 900/950/1000/1050 with Arcane Supremacy on each level.

Rubick’s mastery of the arcane allows him to have a larger cast range and increased potency.

Cast Range Bonus: 100/150/200/250

Spell Damage Amplification: 14%/18%/22%/26%

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Modifiers

modifier_rubick_arcane_supremacy: Undispellable. Persists death.

Not every magus can be a Grand Magus…

A popup appears on the right side of the screen whenever an allied Rubick steals an ability.

Rubick studies the trace magical essence of one enemy hero, learning the secrets of the last spell the hero cast. Rubick can use this spell as his own for several minutes or until he dies.

Cast Animation: 0.1+0.93

Cast Range: 1000 ( 1400)

Stolen Spell Cast Time: 0.15

Stolen Spell Debuff Duration Amplification: 10%/20%/30%

Spell Duration: 180/240/300

 Stolen Spell Cooldown Reduction: 25%

 Stolen Spell Damage Amplification: 40%

20/15/10 ( 6/4/2)

25

Decreases cooldown, increases cast range and upgrades the spell to the Scepter level.

The debuff duration amplification, spell damage amplification,and cooldown reduction are not disabled by Break.

Modifiers

modifier_rubick_spell_steal: Dispellable with death only.

…but even their lesser magics can be a source of much utility.

Notes:

  • A full list of unique interactions with Spell Steal can be found here.
  • This ability is not available in Ability Draft.
  • The stolen ability travels as a projectile towards Rubick at a speed of 1200. Rubick gains the new ability and loses the previous stolen ability as the projectile reaches him.
  • Cannot steal passive abilities, item abilities, or active attack modifiers (except Walrus PUNCH!). Can only steal from heroes (including clones, excluding illusions).
  • Cannot steal the following abilities: Stone Remnant, Quas, Wex, Exort, Invoke, Divided We Stand, Mischief, Morph, Hunter in the Night, Juxtapose, Necromastery, Minefield Sign, Gravekeeper’s Cloak and Stone Form.
  • The stolen ability’s level is based on its level on the enemy as it was stolen. The level only updates upon stealing it again. Talent bonuses to abilities are not copied.
  • The cooldown of all stolen abilities used by Rubick is saved. When re-acquiring a lost ability which was used recently, it may still be on cooldown from previously.
    • Cooldown reseting effects have no effect on the cooldowns of abilities Rubick currently does not have.
  • Rubick has a fixed cast time of 0.15 for stolen abilities, except for the abilities listed in here. For these abilities, the original cast time is used.
  • Cannot have more than 1 stolen ability at a time. Sub-abilities from abilities are automatically acquired and cannot be manually stolen.
  • The debuff duration amplification only affects the duration of debuffs of stolen abilities placed on enemies.
    • A debuff is identified by the red border on the status icon. Follows the same rules as status resistance.
  • The spell damage amplification talent only amplify the outgoing spell damage of stolen abilities.
  • The cooldown reduction talent only cooldown of stolen abilities.
  • The stolen ability is lost upon death.
  • Has a cast range of 1100/1150/1200/1250 with Arcane Supremacy on each level.

Fade Bolt Calculations[]

Base 2x 3x 4x 5x 6x 7x 8x 9x 10x
Level 1 100 93 86.5 80.4 74.8 69.6 64.7 60.2 56 52
Σ Dmg / Hit Target 193 279.5 359.9 434.7 504.3 569 629.2 685.1 737.2
Level 2 175 162.8 151.4 140.8 130.9 121.7 113.2 105.3 97.9 91.1
Σ Dmg / Hit Target 337.8 489.1 629.9 760.8 882.5 995.7 1101 1199 1290
Level 3 250 232.5 216.2 201.1 187 173.9 161.7 150.4 139.9 130.1
Σ Dmg / Hit Target 482.5 698.7 899.8 1086.8 1260.7 1422.5 1572.9 1712.8 1842.9
Level 4 325 302.3 281.1 261.4 243.1 226.1 210.3 195.6 181.9 169.1
Σ Dmg / Hit Target 627.3 908.3 1169.8 1412.9 1639 1849.2 2044.8 2226.7 2395.8

Talents[]

Recent Changes[]

  • Increased mana regeneration from 0 to 0.5.
  • Fade Bolt
    • Increased attack damage reduction from 10%/18%/26%/34% to 14%/21%/28%/35%.
    • Reduced bounce damage reduction from 8% to 7%.
  • Increased Telekinesis stun duration from 1/1.25/1.5/1.75 to 1.2/1.4/1.6/1.8.

Recommended Items[]

Starting items:

Early game:

Mid game:

  • Arcane Boots are useful on Rubick due to his ability to steal the enemy’s spells. They increase the size of his mana pool and allow him to replenish his and allies’ mana as needed.
  • Blink Dagger is a crucial item to purchase on Rubick, and should be rushed if possible. Being able to instantly reposition himself greatly increases Rubick’s survivability, as well as his ability to jump in and use Spell Steal, or any spells stolen by it, when the opportunity presents itself.
  • Force Staff serves a very similar purpose to Blink Dagger for Rubick with the added benefits of more Intelligence and HP regen. It is much easier to build, and can serve either as a supplementary repositioning tool after Blink Dagger, or a cheaper substitute if you are having trouble farming. Also unlike Blink Dagger, it can be used on teammates to give them additional mobility for initiation or escape, and can be used on enemies to disposition them or break their Linken’s Sphere before casting a disable on them.
  • Glimmer Cape is a situational item that mainly provides utility, but can be very strong if used properly. The active can allow Rubick to initiate by walking in invisibly instead of using his Blink Dagger, or can be used to shield himself or an ally from enemy magic nukes (or to help them escape). It can be particularly useful for utilizing stolen channeling spells, as it helps to prevent easy interruption.

Late game:

Situational items:

  • Faerie Fire can be a strong consumable to purchase as mid Rubick. It grants a small amount of bonus damage, increasing last-hitting power, and can be consumed as a last-second life-saver in the event of an enemy gank.
  • Null Talisman is beneficial on a mid Rubick as a starting item, giving him more last-hitting power to allow him to compete against the enemy mid.
  • Bottle can be crucial to purchase early on as a mid Rubick as well. It allows him to replenish his HP and mana to go toe-to-toe against his lane opponent, using his spells to disable and nuke as needed. Past the laning stage, it can fuel Rubick’s mana pool to allow him to utilize stolen spells to their utmost.
  • Sentry Ward denies the enemy map vision, giving you leeway for initiating on them and stealing their spells.
  • Urn of Shadows can serve as a useful utility and survivability item when playing as a roamer. The extra strength and armor gives you more survivability while the mana regen bonus helps to maintain your mana pool. The item’s active adds another damage nuke to the mix, or can be used to heal yourself or teammates after successful ganks.
  • Tranquil Boots are generally not very strong on Rubick, but can be situationally built as a support or roamer. The passive HP regen helps to give Rubick survivability, and the increased base movement speed allows him to position himself for casting his spells more easily.
  • Drum of Endurance gives Rubick stats across the board, most importantly Strength and Intelligence.
  • Ghost Scepter is a useful item to purchase on any support, and is no exception for Rubick. Being able to become immune to physical damage can buy Rubick more time in the face of the enemy’s carries to steal or cast stolen spells in order to change the course of a teamfight.
  • Eul’s Scepter of Divinity is a comparatively cheap item that will give you great mana regen, a bigger mana pool, more movement speed for mobility, as well as a useful disable. The active can also be used on yourself to disjoint enemy spells you wish to grab, or remove debuffs such as silence from yourself.
  • Veil of Discord can be a useful utility item to purchase. It provides a large amount of intelligence to boost Rubick’s mana pool, additional HP and armor, and the active ability can work alongside Arcane Supremacy to increase his nuking power. It can be useful depending on what types of spells can be stolen from the enemy, as well as if your team also has a plethora of magic nukes.
  • Solar Crest is a strong support item that can greatly benefit Rubick’s team. By itself, the item grants mana regen as well as survivability due to a combination of armor and attributes. The active allows Rubick to manipulate the armor, attack speed, and movement speed of target allies and enemies in ganks.
  • Rod of Atos greatly improves both Rubick’s health pool and mana pool, allowing him to do more in teamfights. Furthermore, the active ability can be used to root an enemy from a very long distance away, helpful for fleeing from single enemies or catching foes out of position for further disables.
  • Pipe of Insight is a good utility support item to pick up, as it can outright shield allies from magic damage. The increased HP regeneration helps Rubick to maintain his health pool somewhat, while the increased magic resistance (from the item as well as the aura) gives him and his teammates further survivability against magic nukes.
  • Scythe of Vyse allows Rubick to instantly disable an enemy, adding to his already powerful arsenal of disables. It also greatly increases the size of his mana pool and gives him a hefty amount of mana regeneration, greatly increasing his ability to cast mana-expensive stolen spells.
  • Shiva’s Guard increases the size of Rubick’s mana pool, and gives him great survivability against physical damage. As well, the active can be helpful while initiating, as it can slow enemies down long enough for you to get within range of them to disable or steal their spells.
  • Bloodstone can be built by disassembling already-purchased Arcane Boots. Rubick’s mana pool is normally strained to the limit in any situation, but may be more so if he intends to steal highly expensive or spammable spells such as Mystic Flare, Crypt Swarm, and so on. Bloodstone gives Rubick both mana and HP, enhancing his survivability as well as giving him a regenerating source of mana for continuing to cast spells.
  • Refresher Orb is a very situational item to purchase, and should depend on if the enemy has a major teamfight ultimate that can benefit from it. However, as with a Refresher Orb purchased on any hero with a major teamfight ultimate, it can mean the difference between victory and defeat in the right situation.

Gameplay[]

Audio[]

History[]

Equipment[]

Trivia[]

  • In both DotA and Dota 2, he is the son of Aghanim. He also possesses an imitation of Aghanim’s scepter as one of his cosmetic items.
  • Upon using Walrus PUNCH!, Rubick launches a projectile of himself, spinning and with head ahead, towards the target. When his target is Tusk, the overhead text on the target reads “Sucker Punch!” in green colors. The text reads “Stolen Punch! on other targets.
  • Rubick is named after Ernő Rubik, the Hungarian inventor who designed the “Magic Cube” (now more commonly called as the “Rubik’s Cube”), a popular combination puzzle. His response, ▶️ “Now, where’s my cube?“, and his cosmetic item, Staff of Perplex, are also references to the Rubik’s Cube.
  • In DotA, Rubick couldn’t steal several spells due to several reasons:
    • Transformation spells caused various issues, so they all could not be stolen. The following abilities are transformation spells and thus unstealable in DotA:
      Chemical Rage, God’s Strength, Elder Dragon Form, Shapeshift, Flesh Golem, Flak Cannon, True Form, Berserker’s Rage, Split Shot, Metamorphosis, Spirit Form, Firefly and Arctic Burn
    • Besides transformation spells, several other spells could also not be stolen due to either engine errors or other coding conflicts:
      Morph, Summon Spirit Bear, Spin Web, Soul Assumption, Refraction, Borrowed Time, Overcharge, Spirits, Insatiable Hunger, Devour, Fire Remnant, Activate Fire Remnant, Rolling Boulder and Tempest Double
    • Since DotA only uses legacy hotkeys, he could not steal any spell which uses the hotkey X, Z and Q. The following abilities could not be stolen due to hotkey conflicts:
      Abilities with hotkey X: X Marks the Spot, Shadowraze (Medium), Tornado, Exorcism
      Abilities with hotkey Z: Shadowraze (Near), Alacrity
      Abilities with hotkey Q: None
  • Due to Rubick’s nature of using spells of other heroes, he has many custom animations for a lot of spells. He has custom animations for all spells of the following heroes, and for the following individual spells:
    • Anti-Mage, Crystal Maiden, Dark Willow, Earthshaker, Lina, Monkey King, Nature’s Prophet, Omniknight, Queen of Pain, Shadow Fiend, Sniper, Storm Spirit, Sven, Ursa and Venomancer.
    • Culling Blade, Brain Sap, Fiend’s Grip, Firefly, Wild Axes, Primal Roar, Wall of Replica, Black Hole, Blade Fury, Omnislash, Earth Spike, Mana Drain, Finger of Death, Leap, Void, Crippling Fear, Darkness, Shield Crash, Rolling Thunder, Meat Hook, Dismember, Life Drain, Burrowstrike, Charge of Darkness, Nether Strike, Ravage, Tree Grab, Tree Throw, Viper Strike, Shackleshot, Powershot, Windrun, Arctic Burn and Death Ward.
    • All other spells share 2 generic animations and 1 generic channel animation.

Gallery[]

  • Splash artwork

  • Rubick in-game

  • Concept art

  • Ability icon progress

  • Hero icon progress

References[]

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Scores: 5 (18 votes)

Manh Vinh