Dota 2 Guide: Damage Types

This video goes over the 6 different damage types in Dota 2 and how they can be reduced or nullified.

Physical - Reduced by physical resistance (armor) and damage block items such as stout shield or Vanguard.

Magical - Reduced by magic resistance (cloak or hood, please note items with magic resistance don't stack). Does 33% extra damage to ethereal form units (ghost scepter/decrepify). Does not damage magic immune units. Most spells in the game are magical damage.

Pure - Magical damage that is not reduced by any type of resistance (300 pure damage will always do 300 damage if they aren't magic immune). In a similar fashion, it is not increased by ethereal units either. Does not affect magic immune units.

Composite - Physical damage that is also reduced by magic resistance (armor, damage block and magic resistance). Since it is still considered physical damage, it goes through magic immunity.

HP Removal - Damage type that is neither magical or physical. It directly subtracts HP from the unit. Damage goes through magic immunity and is never reduced by any resistance.

Universal - Magical damage that goes through magic immunity (basically it will hit you no matter what). Damage is reduced by magic resistance, while ethereal units take 40% extra damage.

Thanks for watching! My next guide will be a list of all the debuffs/stuns that go through magic immunity. In the future, I am planning on starting a weekly stream with treasure keys as prizes. Stay tuned!