How Axe and Shadow Shaman perform as teammates in Dota 2 7.41e, from ranked matches.
In Dota 2 7.41e, Axe and Shadow Shaman win 51.43% of ranked matches when playing on the same team, over 37,013 matches.
Pairing a support with a lane-dominant Axe is about converting his aggression into kills, and Shadow Shaman is a premier choice for that. Once Axe commits with Berserker's Call, the target is completely helpless. This gives Shadow Shaman a free window to apply either Hex or a full-duration Shackles without any risk of the target running away or turning on him. The combined lockdown is long enough to secure a kill on almost any hero, especially in the early and mid-game, creating a simple and repeatable ganking pattern.
This duo comes online very early and can dominate a lane from the start. The threat of Axe running at you followed by Shaman's disables forces opponents to play passively, giving up farm. This pressure extends across the map as they start to roam. The enemy team has to stay grouped to survive, but a good multi-hero Call can then set up a teamfight win. After the fight, Shadow Shaman's Mass Serpent Ward provides immense pressure on towers, turning a successful gank into a captured objective.
How this pairing performs across skill brackets — the duo's team win rate in recent ranked matches, split by average match rank. Ranks with too few recent matches are omitted. These rows use the last 30 days of quality-filtered ranked matches, all patches in that span combined — a wider window than the patch-scoped count above, so the per-rank match totals can exceed it.
| Rank | Team win rate | Matches |
|---|---|---|
| Herald & Guardian | 55.29% | 2,353 |
| Crusader & Archon | 54.07% | 6,345 |
| Legend & Ancient | 51.74% | 4,470 |
| Divine & Immortal | 49.14% | 1,166 |
This duo's team win rate in each recent balance patch — whether the pairing is trending up or down. Patches without enough matches are omitted.
| Patch | Team win rate | Change | Matches |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7.41e | 51.43% | ▼ -2.3pp | 37,013 |
| 7.41d | 53.68% | ▼ -0.9pp | 422,589 |
| 7.41c | 54.54% | ▲ +0.5pp | 196,104 |
| 7.41b | 54.03% | — | 182,658 |
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Data updated Aug 17, 2026.