Luna Is The Most Popular Carry In 7.35c – Here’s How To Play Her

In 7000+ MMR pubs, Luna is being contested in almost every game and is the most-picked Carry hero for numerous reasons. She maintains a 52% win rate and a contest rate of 46.5%.

What Makes Luna So Good?

Ever since IceFrog and Valve increased the size of the map and placed extra camps on the outskirts, flash-farming Carry heroes have been on the rise. Luna, with her natural abilities, has the capability to farm camps extremely quickly, making maximum use of the map. 

Luna’s third skill, Lunar Blessing, helps her and her laning partner trade effectively with the bonus damage. And even if you’re losing lane as Luna, there’s nothing to worry about as you can abandon the lane and go into the jungle at Level 5.

She farms at insane speeds, and all you need to maximize efficiency is a Mask of Madness, which is less than half the price of a Battle Fury or Radiance. This farming speed allows her to hit her timings faster than enemy players.

The best part about Luna in patch 7.35c is the introduction of the Khanda, which is the perfect item for her play style. Not only does Luna benefit from critical strikes from the Crystalis, but her beams are amplified when the Khanda is completed. This item boosts her damage by an unfair amount and will likely get nerfed in the next big patch. 

Additionally, Luna’s Aghanim’s Shard is S-Tier. With Luna’s ability to print gold, getting her Shard around the 20-minute mark isn’t too tricky and is a great way to increase damage output even further. Luna doesn’t like dealing with enemy melee Carries that can stick onto her, but with her Shard, that mindset changes completely. 

Skill Build

Nowadays, you should not max out Lucent Beam; instead, focus on leveling your passive and aura to maximize your farming speed. 

The proper Luna skill build is starting with 1/0/2 on your first three levels, then getting 1/1/3 by the time you’re level 5. Then, max out your passive and aura before leveling up Lucent Beam further, so your skill build should be 1/4/4.

Most professional players skip her Ultimate until level 14, as the damage from Eclipse is based on the level of your Lucent Beam. Since we’ve kept it at level 1, her Eclipse won’t deal too much damage until Lucent Beam is maxed out.

Item Build

On Luna, it’s essential to get Power Treads and rush a Mask of Madness. These two items are enough to flash-farm in the jungle, even if you’re only level 5 or 6. I prefer buying Dragon Lance, but it is optional. 

Next, Manta Style is a must-buy on Luna. Not only does she benefit from the stats, but Luna is one of the best Illusion heroes, thanks to her high base damage and Glaives. Manta Style can be used to shove waves, helping you get additional farm, but most importantly, create pressure around the map. 

If you have the funds to afford the Aghanim’s Shard, get it as soon as possible.

Now, you will decide on Butterfly or a Black King Bar. If you’re under the threat of chain stuns and high magic damage bursts, then Black King Bar is something you must consider buying. If most of the enemy heroes’ damage is physical, then Butterfly becomes a more attractive choice. 

Khanda is the best choice for your damage item, as discussed earlier. The value you get from this item is way too high to pass up. You’ll be ready to fight when Khanda and a defensive item are completed. 

The remaining items are situational. Some of the best late-game items on Luna include Satanic, Eye of Skadi, Aghanim’s Scepter, Linken’s Sphere, Silver’s Edge, and Disperser.

Gameplay Approach

Like most ranged Carry heroes in the early game, Luna prefers having a melee Support that can act as her meatshield. Since we don’t max Lucent Beam on Luna anymore, her kill potential heavily decreases, so it’s better to focus on last hits and denies. Luna’s base stats and aura ability give her ample damage to out-last hit the enemy laner. 

However, Luna cannot stay in lane for too long, as she becomes susceptible to ganks due to her squishy nature. No problem. Three points in your third skill and one point in your Glaives are already enough to head to the jungle. 

Finish your Power Treads and Mask of Madness, and let the farming begin. Aim to get your Manta Style as fast as possible, and then contribute to the team by pressuring the map with illusions. 

Once your BKB or Butterfly and Khanda is completed, you can join five versus five team fights. After a successful fight, Luna can easily take down objectives such as Roshan and Towers, so try taking fights near said objectives as frequently as possible. 

Luna’s main strength is that she can get six-slotted way faster than most other Carries, so her most significant power spike is when she’s maxed out before anyone else is. You are aiming to end the game during this timing, as she begins to fall off in the late portions of the game (50 minutes and above). 

Try claiming the Aegis once you’ve reached her full potential, and start knocking on the enemy high ground. Once you destroy a Tier 3 tower, her Glaives will start bouncing past the Barracks and other buildings, making sieging bases super easy.