Dota 4 Life

2006-06-08T03:45:00.000-07:00

Anti mage

The Antimage- no other hero can chase his enemies as he can. Every caster or even strength hero fears a good Antimage and that�€™s what the Antimage wants them to do. He is a deadly assassin, able to chase, kill and retreat fast. Of course, he is not easy to play and if you play against a good team, it can be difficult. He needs much experience to play as well, and you need to know ALL heros in DotAand how dangerous they can be for you. At the end of this guide you should know how to play him but the true way to own with him comes from a lot of game experience. I think I can call myself, -PhoEniX-, a quite experienced Antimage player. I've done lots of games with him, testing items, guides, strategies and counters to nearly every hero. I have played him in publics as well in privates. For sure, I read most guides for him like the great one of dota-sensei, but in my opinion these entire guide writers think that their item and skill build is the only way to kill everyone. I think that as any other hero the items to get and the skill build is very situational. However, this guide is not for total DotAbeginners. You should know the basics like conduct as a melee hero in beginning to get exp and money and you should know where the secret shop is

This is is the concept you should learn again and again until you have mastered it. It means that you blink directly behind a hero (most time in early game to harass them).
Do so; while blinking right-click on your target and start hitting. Your target will loose hp and mana rapidly, forcing him to retreat. This tactic should be used up to lv 2 mana break and as often as possible. Here you need the game experience and the knowledge about ALL heros of DotAas I told you.
Blinking in a 1v2 situation behind a maiden and a lion while both have full hp and mana is not a good idea. You have to know what your enemy(s) in your lane will do. If he is a stunner he will stun you and run or in most cases hit you and so you will loose more hp than him and have to retreat. You have to time your blink&break really well. Wait for them to stun you. Than run back for a second, so they have to follow you. Blink behind them and start hitting until they are out of range or you know that they will be able to use their stun again soon. Beware of ultimates, since on early levels you won't be able to blink out as soon as needed. Examples: Maiden, Slayer, Tauren....
High-power-nukers like Zeus or Lich are very dangerous to use blink&break against in early game. Best way to respond them is to play passiv and carefully try to empty their manapool by either dodging spells or blink&break if it is possible. You may also use the �€˜noob-in-disguise�€™ tactic which I will talk about in the next section of the guide.
Some people are really nice to be against, especially if it is a 1v1 lane. Simply blink behind them everytime they show their ugly face and make them fear you! If they have some experience with playing vs an Antimage they will retreat once you blink to them so you can only do about 2 hits until they are out of range. Better enemys will fire some shots after you when you run back, but you should still take less dmg than you did to them and in addition not every enemy buys regeneration as you will do.
Follow these easy preys if you have to heal or the enemy that comes to your lane is a problem for you. Examples: Bone(1vs1: Bone WILL change lane or he will be only at lv 8 when you are at lv 11); Medusa, Drow (a bit dangerous because they will slow you on your retreat), Sniper, Troll (take care for their ultis!)....
Of course there are also some strong melee heros facing you. They will try to last hit like you will do; try carefully to hit them without blinking to them when they do so. When their manapool is empty you can start to blink and keep them out of money or even exp distance. Examples: Sand King, Leroic (only without crit at the beginning!), Chaos Knight (also only witout crit), Naix....
Some of these melee heros have a warstomp-kind spell which can be a real problem for you if you don't take care. The key is to run towards them making them think you are going to attack them. Your enemy will press stomp, but you will blink away a bit and hit him sometimes. This is not easily done; you need some experiece to know when this warstomper is going to stun you and you will have to calculate delay. Examples: centaur, slardar....
In general: Take care for stunners, heros with criticals and ugly ultimates when aiming for blink&break. Know your enemys and how dangerous they can be to you early game.

Those were the basics about blink&break. Here are some scenarios:
1v1: Use the tactics I told you in the text above. In general this is your best way to make your enemies fear you. Know your enemy's hero to know when you can blink to him. If someone comes to ambush you you will hopefully be able to blink away.
2v1: Nice as well, especially if you are with an allied stunner. Be careful when you face a single strength hero; use the tactic I told you in the above shown text. Your enemy will hug the tower a lot but with a good ally you can still kill him!
2v2: A good point of time is when both retreat from your tower. Blink to them and hit one of them about 2 times. When both turn around to fight you, your next wave of creeps and your ally will help you (if he is not a complete noob^^). An ally with stun works well with you again. In general you have to think a bit when the best point of time to blink in is. Dont try to blink to one while both are next to each other. They will both throw their spells and stuns at you, and before your ally is able to help you, you will be dead or at the red.
1v2: Can be difficult because you won't be able to hold your tower. Blink&break is not the tactic you should use primary, instead use noob-in-diguise and stay passive. Blink&break can still be done well when your enemies reach your tower because your tower will attack them when they face you next to it. Worst situation is 1v2 if you are against 2 stunners. Spell shield will help you against the stun dmg but not against the hits you take while stunned... Play extra carefully and dodge incoming stuns.

To sum up, blink&break needs some experience. I can not stress this enough: Know your enemies, know what they will do when you blink in to break, know your allies and try to rate their game experience (look at their last hit skill, their movements etc.). Tell them what you are going to do, and ask them to support you. If you have problems in your lane, call for help! If an ally despairs because of a zeus, help him! If you think that this medusa becomes too strong, go to her lane before she does. DotAis a team game, and even with 10-0 stats you won�€™t be able to win a game vs a 5 lv higher medusa with a divine rapier and aegis.
A solo lane is not needed. I prefer the top lane for sentinel and bottom lane for scourge. Most time there is only one enemy so you can farm easier to reach your 1500 gold as soon as possible. Sometimes you get a 1v1 lane here which is nice too.
If you want to play offensive, go for middle lane. Maybe with 2 ror or one roh and an allied stunner...? You won't get your money that fast, but you can force your enemys back again and again and you can look at both lanes next to yours for kills when you got your aimed money. Note that at mid there are often the ugliest heros; 2 man teams like to choose mid for insane combos like Maiden+Slayer/Bane+Goblin.
Bottom lane for sentinel and top lane for scourge is a bad choice. Most time you will have to fight alone vs 2 enemys, making it impossible for you to farm or harass efficiently. In addition it's a quite long way to your fountain and since you have no Boots this way will waste your time. The most important point is that you don�€™t really need a solo lane for high levels, this should be granted to someone like Bone. A fast level 6 won�€™t help you if you don�€™t have the items required to start a successful hunt.

c ) Item Build(s)

Primary setups
a ) The Anti-Stunner-Setup
1. Ring of Regeneration
2. Boots of Speed
3. 2x Null Talisman
4. Power Treads
5. Ogre Axe, Broadsword=>Black King Bar (BKB)

b ) The Hunter-Setup
1. Ring of Regeneration
2. Boots of Speed
3. 3x Wraith Band
4. Power Treads
5. Chainmail

*c ) The Guinsoos-Build
1. Ring of Regeneration
2. Boots of Speed
3. 2x Robe of the Magi
4. Chainmail
5. Power Treads
6. Sobi Mask, Quarterstaff=>Oblivionstaff
7. Voidstone, Staff of Wizzadry=>Guinsoo's Scythe
of Vyse
8. Broadsword, Claws of Attack=>Crystalize
9. Crystalis, Buriza recipe=>Buriza

Secondary setups

a ) The Damage-Setup
1. Broadsword, Claws of Attack=>Crystalis
2. Crystalis, Buriza recipe=>Buriza

b ) The Ias-Setup
1. Mithril Hammer, Gauntlet of Ogre Strength=> Cranium Basher
2. Eaglehorn, Quarterstaff=>The Butterfly

Which item should I choose first? Boots is a very noobish choice because they don't help you to farm, stay in battle, harass or kill. Of course, later they are needed but never get them as a first item! In at least one of three games there will be someone that sends you back to your fountain every few minutes when you got Boots first.
In each case, a regen item is needed first. I believe that a Ring of Regeneration is better than the RoH in most cases. You can buy it at once and you don't have to lose any exp while going for the RoH. You can start your basic tactics at once since your hp will regenerate fast enough. At last you will sell this ring, so RoH is in most cases a waste. 2x RoR looks more attractive now because they lowered its cost a bit. This can replace early spellshield, but you will need an extra fountain trip and extra gold.

Here are the primary setups that I propose:
1.) You need a regen item, so either Ring of Reneration or you save some money for a Ring of Health or 2 RoRs. Also it is possible to get some flasks and stats adding items even though I don't like it.
2.)On your first trip back (optimal: save money until you have 1650Gc, means lv6-8) you should buy as much as you can. First item now are your Boots because they are needed to start the hunt.

These were the basic items you get first. Now you need something to boost your mana. Why? Well, let me explain. You want to start killing at lv 6-7. You will only have the mana to blink once and use Mana Void. This won't be enough to kill anybody, trust me. You will only get some kills if your enemy is already damaged or you do the last hit on a fleeing hero.
Next point is that the Antimage has some limitations. You will notice that sometimes you need only a few hits to kill the enemy. He reaches his Tower and you can not follow him because the Antimage hasn't got much hp or armour to survive this.
The other limitations are stunners. Stunners are the only heros an Antimage has to fear! You can kill other heros easily and blink away after. But what happens mid/late game if there is a big fight between your allies and your enemies? You blink to an enemy caster: BOLT, HEX, IMPALE, gg Antimage.... The enemies will wait for you to blink in keeping a finger on their hotkeys to stun and focus you at once you do so. Your spellshield will help you a lot against the pure damage of the spells, but not against the 5 heros focussing you while stunned. Also a little hp boost would be nice. That�€™s why here is the primary setup which helps you killing. Get it after your Boots every game.

3.) Get Power Treads here. Power Treads are a must have for the Antimage as they are for nearly any other hero, too. They give you a nice ias(increased attack speed) boost for low cost while they only need one inventory slot. If you want to play a bit more defensive or you see that your enemies are hugging their towers get the Chainmail before Treads.

a ) The Anti-Stunner-Setup
-2 Null Talismans
The 2 Null Talismans are for mana as I said. They give enough for 2 Blinks, which is the optimal amount to get an enemy without "wasting" too much money. The also give a small hp, ias and regeneration boost. I don�€™t get Wraiths here because I want to save one slot and some money and I also need a bit more mana because avatar needs it.
-Ogre Axe, Broadsword=>Black King Bar(BKB)
If there are a couple of stunners or disablers, you will be glad you got it! It has nearly the same cooldown as your Mana Void and gives you 9 sec invulnerability against spells (Attention: Some spells go through Avatar!) which should be enough for a kill. You can hunt an enemiy to the death, simply laughing about his allies who try to help him. You can escape easier from ambushes. You can kill that spell-spamming lion who is a danger for your whole team between 2 guarding heros. It also gives the needed hp boost and a small bonus dmg. Of course it is not cheap but when you first saw what this baby can do for you and your team you will want to get it nearly in every game.
I'm really annoyed about the last nerfs to BKB. 9 seconds are not enough to kill if the enemy runs at once and the higher price also hurts. But since there is no alternative this is still a must have against many disablers. I only go for this build if I'm 100% sure I need it. When you become better you will know how to kill disablers even without BKB. The key is to be patient and have an optimal point of time when to blink in.

b ) The hunter-setup
-3x Wraith Bands
Another way to get the needed mana: +9 intelligence is kind of a minimum! Replace one of the Wraiths with a Null if you have problems with Mana. 3 Wraiths give +18 agility in addition which is a lot. It really helps to kill enemys due to the ias and extra dmg. 3 Wraiths are better than 2 Nulls imo.
-Chainmail
This item is just made for the Antimage. Although you won�€™t combine it with anything else this item is really great! The +5 armour is a joke for only 650Gc. This item gives you the ability to chase and kill next to towers. You can even blink to a ½ hp hero hugging his tower if he has no disabling spell. You can chase your victims till they reach their firebush. This item is also great against high dmg outputter like Bone with Burize or a Medusa with high dmg output or a against armor decreasing items/spells etc.

Choose one of these setups for your game. You need some experience again to know what the best choice for this special game is. Don't get the Anti-Stunner-Setup if there is only a noob dragon knight that prefers stunning your caster creeps. In general you should aim for the Hunter-Setup because it gives way more offensive potential. Get the BKB if there is a dangerous disabler like Lion or more than 2 stunners. Take this as your rule for your first games with the Antimage. Than start to exchange items for others till you found your own style. Just get something for mana, hp and protection. I wouldn't advice to get Chainmail together with BKB because they are both not cheap and you need some ias and dmg to get kills.

Well, these were the basic items you should get. Now I will move on to your main items, your secondary setup. I think that even the main items should be choosed situational.

---Sometimes a Gemis needed. But with my new build (3 Wraiths Bands) it is no longer possible to carry it since you have not enough space. You can buy a Gemfor your team and give it to someone who can protect it. First you should ask farmers like Medusa or Razor to buy it but if no one wants to buy one you should do because it is really important not to let guys like Bone become too strong.---

Here are the secondary setups I propose:
There're two ways to make your Antimage own. Two different thoughts.

1)You want to use your manabreak optimal. In addition, bash is nice to stop running enemies.
Take advantage of the Antimages high attack speed. The higher it is the more mana is burned. For this reason the Butterfly is the best choice to push this. But pure ias is not always optimal. Combined with a Basher you take even more advantage of it.
2)You want to blink in, quickly kill an enemy and blink out. Stun is not needed, you rely on your killing speed.
Use the Burize, a great item for the Antimage. It gives you the wanted fast-killing potential.

a ) The Damage-Setup
-Broad Sword, Claws of Attack=>Crystalize: You get 250 dmg crits with this. Already not bad for finishing heros off.
-Crystalis, Burize recipe=>Burize
Let me explain why this item is so good for the Antimage. First of all I have to admit that there is no other serious dmg item than MKB which gives less dmg as I show in the What about... section.
When you use the Burize you will notice that the criticals are really strong for getting a finishing blow on heros . If that Lion runs away with 300 hp and you will only have the chance to hit once the MKB/Basher/Butterfly/whatever would not kill him. But a critical will. You get around 450 dmg crits which is nice together with your naturally fast attack speed.
In addition the Crystalis already helps with killing, more than a single Demon Edge would do.

b ) The Ias(=increased attack speed)-Setup
-Cranium Basher
Even with only Power Treadsthe Antimage has a quite high attackspeed. As a conclusion, a Basher works well. Getting a bash when you chase an enemy means most time the kill. This item also helps you to face strength heros when you have to. Disabling them for a few seconds is great and gives you a chance vs these tanks and other high dmg outputter. Bash can, like the MKB, stop channeling spells. The small bonus dmg is also nice. At last, it has a moderate price.
-Eagle Horn, Quarterstaff=>The Butterfly
Well, in most cases the game is over till you get it. But when you finish Butterfly after your Basher, you will be able to make even strength heros fear you. The evasion is great; you can even solo a tower if you think you need it^^. Evasion also helps you fighting the late game creeps with their high dmg. Most important thing about it is the great ias you get. Combined with your Basher you have a high chance to kill the enemy before he can dmg you seriously. This is also good to fight some heros that went straight for high dmg items like Burize or Divine Rapier^^
This setup is quit expansive but when you got your Basher at around lv 15, you should be able to kill every non strength hero with one lv3 items and Treads in a 1v1 fight; using your ulti of course.

What after these items? Most games do not go that long but if a game does feel free to get everything you want. You could buy a (second) Basher or the item from one of the 2 setups you didn't get. (MKB does not stack with Basher!) Hyperstones are always nice for some additional ias. Normally I buy Butterfly if I went for the dmg-setup and Burize if I went for the dmg-setup.
Remember that the evasion of two Butterflys does not stack and that any orb effects will cancel your great mana break.

Advanced Setup
!Warning! This Setup needs a bit more skill to own with, but if used right it is deadly. Please train your general DotAskill and your skill with the Antimage before trying it.

*c ) The Guinsoos-Build
This is a skill-heavy build using Guinsoos Scythe of Vyse. Most of you will think that it sucks for Antimage, but it is a great item for him! Let me explain...:
-First of all: what about the high price?
Let's say you go for a Basher (=3200 gold or something). You need some mana before which means 3 Wraiths (=1500Gc). So all in all you need 4700 for the Basher and mana, which comes close to the cost of a Guinsoos.
-but a Basher gives damage!
If you looked at your Guinsoos you will notice that it gives a nice +30dmg buff (=the dmg of the Basher).
-what about the stun?
When you have Basher at around lv 15 you won't do that many bashes until you get your Eaglehorn. Guinsoos gives you a great stun that comes more frequently than the one from Basher. You can use it whenever you want, maybe to save a retreating ally or to instantly stop a channeling spell. With this stun you can be sure that you get a retreating enemy; situations like "Damn, so unlucky! Didn't get a single stun with my Basher ..." simply won't happen.
Here are the pros and cons of the Guinsoo's build:

Pros:
+gives you much mana. You will never die because you didn't have the mana for the last saving blink.
+no enemy will be able to escape your blade if there is no further ally that stops you.
+more efficient than the Basher in mid/late game.
+cancels channeling spells at once
+saves allies
+great to kill windwalkers! Hit and run against your team won't be possible any longer because you can stun a windwalker at once and kill him
+good for 1v1 fights; even strength heros are killable because you can burn much of their mana away while they are sheeped.
+hit and run possible: Blink in and sheep an enemy. Do around 4 hits to lower his mana and then blink out.
+sheep stops evasion!: This is true, Guinsoos works very nice against heros with evasion like Faceless Void or Bounty Hunter. It stops any kind of evasion, also the one of the Butterfly!
+Fast killing of an important enemy supporter possible.
+allows you to travel much faster since you can spam blink
+ all in all a good teamplay item.

Cons:
-really needs some skill to own with. You need to use the hotkeys for blink, void and Guinsoos now. Best you use the number keys, but they are not easy to use (reach^^). However there are tools which help you to move those keys to your mouse for example.
-no joke, biggest problem is to click on that mini sheep after you stunned an enemy! If you click only next to it, stun is over before you could land a single hit.
-This setup does not give any bonus hp.

Here is the build:
-RoR
-Boots
-2x Robe of the Magi: I prefer to get it before Eul's because you also get some IAS and dmg through it, while only one Robe and the Sobi Mask don't give enough mana early-mid game, so get the second Robe you need for Eul's anyway here.
-Power Treads
-Chainmail: As I said there is no hp boost at all, you will need some armor at least.
-Sobi Mask
-Quarterstaff
-Voidstone, Staff of Wizardry and Guinsoos recipe.
Now you should go for the Buriza; the IAS setup is not needed here because you already have a stun and you now need more damage.
I know, most of you guys will try this setup once and then say its bullshit because it didn't work at all. That's the wrong attitude. It is not easy to use this setup, you need to train again and again before you own with it, but trust me, you will.
Note: This setup was developed by me in 5.84c times. Guinsoos has been nerfed a lot since this version.
Another argument is that since I replaced the 2 Nulls in my build with 3 Wraith Bands you really have the ias to support a mid game Basher.
I think this build still works but it is even harder to succeed with it.

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