Best Nest of Thorns Echelon 8 Guide

Dota 2

Otomo

Nest of Thorns is one of the most popular mini-games in Dota 2. Released as the final part of the Crownfall sage, Nest of Thorns pits one of three characters against the army of Imperia.

Nest of Thorns has multiple difficulty levels, scaling up to Echelon 8 released in the last update of the game. With stronger monsters than ever, it is no easy task to win. Luckily for you, we have a Nest of thorns guide to Echelon 8.

How to beat Nest of Thorns Echelon 8

Vengeful Spirit Blessing of the Crested Umbra

Vengeful Spirit is more stunning than ever. (Credit: Valve)

The first step to beating the game is to pick the right character. While all three are viable, Skywrath Mage is the best choice among them. Thanks to shooting an extra projectile, Skywrath Mage works well with most of the best abilities in the game.

For the purpose of this guide, we will tailor our advice assuming you have picked Skywrath mage.

What upgrades do I need for Nest of Thorns Echelon 8?

The Arcana of Skywrath Mage in Crownfall

Abs and all and he still gets 1 shotted by PA. (Credits: Valve)

The most important upgrade to max out first is the "Extra projectile" upgrades. When maxed out, Skywrath Mage shoots out four projectiles at minimum. That is a game changer, and frankly it's quite difficult to beat Echelon 8 without that upgrade.

After that, we recommend maxing out damage, rerolls, and cooldown reduction for maximum dps and to reduce RNG creating problems. Ideally, you'd max out every skill but that takes a lot of time to grind up and might not be a viable option for everyone.

What abilities do I need for Nest of Thorns Echelon 8?

Valve seems unsure what to do with the hero. (Credit: Valve).

There are a lot of abilities to pick up in Nest of Thorns but the optimal build is fairly rigid.

You'll want Mortimer's Kisses, Magic Missile, Chain Frost, and Track. You can replace Mortimer's Kisses with Spirit and Laguna Blade but ideally you'd stick to this build.

Early on your goal is to get Kisses to level 6. Early creeps are low health and weak to AoE damage, making kisses perfect to invest in early. However, later enemies shrug it off, which is why we don't recommend putting more than a handful of points in the ability and then ignoring it.

Magic Missile should be maxed after Kisses has a few points in. Missiles deal good damage, hit multiple enemies, and scale with the Aghanim Scepter.

Track and Chain Frost should be skilled together, as Track helps increase your score, while Chain Frost is your biggest damage dealing ability. You can focus on Chain Frost first if you're struggling.

Remember that leveling up and upgrading an ability refreshes it's cooldown. If you level up while surrounded, pick Chain Frost to clear enemies.

What abilities do I upgrade with Aghanim's Scepter?

Vengeful Spirit Arcana

Always upgrade Track first, to enable double item pick-ups. Runs are nearly impossible if you don't do this.

After that you upgrade Magic Missile to get maximum scaling out of the ability, and then Chain Frost, as the extra projectiles help clear late game creeps.

What items do I need to beat Echelon 8?

Ranking all Neutral Items in Dota 2 patch 7.35

You're gonna want to pick these up whenever you can.

Certain items are critical to win a run in Echelon 8. Approximately four items are mandatory pickups.

The first is Specialist's Array. Maxing it out gives two extra projectiles per ability. Then you have to pick up Kaya, Octarine Core, and Phylactery in whichever order you find them.

Your goal is to upgrade Kaya to Trident, and Phylactery to Khanda in the late game.

As for the last two spots, you are free to put what you like there. We recommend some durability items, in case you get in a bad spot.

As for gameplay, that would require a bit too much reading, so we made a video guide for how to tackle Nest of Thorns on the highest Echelon level.