Nyx Assassin

Nyx Assassin is a melee Agility Hero who is a dedicated ganker until the end. Rather than focusing on enhancing his physical attacks like most Agility carries Heroes, Nyx Assassin specializes in killing lone and fragile victims with his high burst damage and various disables. Unfarmed carries, supports and many Intelligence spellcasting heroes with a low healthpool are easy prey for Nyx; he can open with a devastating backstab attack, followed by a painful stun and mana burn to deal even more damage and prevent retaliation. The Nyx Assassin also has a fantastic defense mechanism that not only blocks an instance of damage, but reflects it back onto the enemy with a stun effect to boot. With his short cooldowns, the Nyx Assassin can constantly and systematically dispatch key enemy targets, removing their ability and will to fight their impending death.

Nyx Assassin's skills have a simple vibe, but are highly effective in securing kills. However, knowing when to engage will determine whether Nyx himself can survive the fight. He is recommended for new to intermediate players.

Tips

 * Impale's effective range is longer than its casting range. It can be necessary to target the spell on the ground to hit targets just out of normal reach.
 * As Vendetta's invisibility dispels only when your attack connects the enemy, it is nearly always best to deal your backstab damage before your Impale and Mana Burn follow-up.
 * Use Spiked Carapace only just before your Impale's stun times out, so as to reduce the enemy's chances of noticing the effect and holding back their counterattacks until the Carapace expires.
 * If you know that you are targeted for a delayed or long-range nuke (such as Sniper's Assassinate or Invoker's Sun Strike), it can be a good idea to purposefully time your Spiked Carapace to reflect the incoming damage. This will aid your team by disabling or even killing the caster.
 * Vendetta's fade time into invisibility is instant, and can be used to dodge many spells provided the enemy does not possess True Sight.
 * It can sometimes be necessary to not use Vendetta to open ganks or fights, leaving the spell to chase down a fleeing enemy with the high speed boost. Vendetta is also a great escape mechanism if need be.

Trivia

 * Nyx Assassin's original name was Anub'arak, and he was titled "Nerubian Assassin". Both were changed in the transition to Dota 2 due to copyright reasons.