TROLL WARLORD GUIDE (by mustin98)

• Tittle: Master of the Axe
• Author: mustin98

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Pros

• Can choose to fight in ranged or melee
• High base damage
• Fast attack animation
• High MS
• Abilities give IAS
• Good AGI gain
• Decent STR gain for a carry
• Longest lasting Bash ability (2 sec)
• Global Ultimate
• Low mana costing skills
• Short cooldowns
• Ganker and carry

Cons

• Must be in melee to gain many benefits
• Will be aimed in team fights
• Squishy
• No escape mechanism
• Lowest base INT and gain
• Low Bash chance (10%)
• Switching targets hinders DPS

When to pick Troll?

• You can pick him whenever you want but these may screw up your game:
• If your team already has a lot of carries
• If your team has few disables
• If the enemy team has a lot of disables
• If the enemy team is heavy with nukes

And these may make it easier to play Troll:

• Enemy team has lots of squishy Heroes
• Enemy team is full of carries
• Your team has a auto attack DPS strategy (lol)
• You're lucky
• You're a good farmer

Skills

 Berserker Rage

Jah'rakal goes berserk, using his throwing axes as melee weapons. He gains bonus damage, movement speed, attack speed, hit points, armor, and the Bash ability, but can only attack at melee range.

• 1. Mana 0 / Cooldown 0 / Switches between Melee and Ranged
• 2. Mana 0 / Cooldown 0 / Until Switch BackSelfSwitches between Melee and Ranged
• 3. Mana 0 / Cooldown 0 / Switches between Melee and Ranged
• 4. Mana 0 / Cooldown 0 / Switches between Melee and Ranged

• When Jah'rakal goes into melee mode he gets the following bonuses: +20 Movement Speed (+30 at level 4 of the skill), +15 damage, reduces his base attack time to 1.55, the Bash ability and 100 extra HP.

_____  Bash: Gives a chance that an attack will do bonus damage and stun.

• Duration 0.8 seconds / 10% chance to deal 20 bonus damage and stun
• Duration 1.2 seconds / 10% chance to deal 30 bonus damage and stun
• Duration 1.6 seconds / 10% chance to deal 40 bonus damage and stun
• Duration 2 seconds / 10% chance to deal 50 bonus damage and stun 

• Damage type: magical
• Jah'rakal only gets this skill when he is in melee form.
• The stun goes through magic immunity.
• Does not stack with Cranium Basher.

 Whirling Axes

Troll is a master of the axe, learning axe skills in all forms of combat. When in melee form, summons magical axes to whirl around him in a circle. When in ranged form, Troll hurls a fistful of axes in cone formation.

• 1. Gains two skills, one active at a time depending on the current form
• 2. Gains two skills, one active at a time depending on the current form
• 3. Gains two skills, one active at a time depending on the current form
• 4. Gains two skills, one active at a time depending on the current form

• The two abilities are independent: you can cast one, transform into your other form, and cast the second ability immediately.

_____  Whirling Axes (ranged): Troll hurls a fistful of five axes in a cone shape. Axes travel up to 900 range, slowing and damaging enemy units.

• Mana 50 / Cooldown 20/ Duration 3 seconds / Slows movement speed by 30%, deals 75 damage.
• Mana 50 / Cooldown 20/ Duration 3.75 seconds / Slows movement speed by 30%, deals 75 damage.
• Mana 50 / Cooldown 20/ Duration 4.5 seconds / Slows movement speed by 30%, deals 75 damage.
• Mana 50 / Cooldown 20/ Duration 5.25 seconds / Slows movement speed by 30%, deals 75 damage.

• This skill is available when Troll is in ranged form
• Damage type: magical

______  Whirling Axes (melee): 

Troll unleashes a set of magical axes which whirl around him in a circle. Nearby enemies take damage and have a chance to miss on their attacks.

• Mana 50 / Cooldown 12 / Duration 4 seconds / 125 damage, 60% miss chance
• Mana 50 / Cooldown 12 / Duration 5 seconds / 175 damage, 60% miss chance
• Mana 50 / Cooldown 12 / Duration 6 seconds / 225 damage, 60% miss chance
• Mana 50 / Cooldown 12 / Duration 7 seconds / 275 damage, 60% miss chance

• This skill is available when Troll is in melee form
• Damage type: magical

 Fervor

When Jah'rakal engages an opponent, his animalistic nature grants him even greater proficiency in single combat. With each continuous blow on the same target, Jah'rakal gains understanding of the prey's defenses, increasing his attack speed by 20 per attack.

• 1. Maximum of 40 attack speed bonus
• 2. Maximum of 60 attack speed bonus
• 3. Maximum of 80 attack speed bonus
• 4. Maximum of 100 attack speed bonus

• If Jah'rakal changes targets, his rage counter drops to zero.

 Battle Trance

Jah'rakal unconsciously uses dormant magic to awaken the savagery of every warrior on the battlefield. Greatly increases attack speed for a short duration. Lasts 7 seconds.

• 1. Mana 75 / Cooldown 30 / Duration 7 seconds / Increases attack speed by 60%
• 2. Mana 75 / Cooldown 30 / Duration 7 seconds / Increases attack speed by 120%
• 3. Mana 75 / Cooldown 30 / Duration 7 seconds / Increases attack speed by 180%

• Does not affect illusions.

Skill Build

Basic Cookie Cutter build

• Level 1 - Berserker Rage/Whirling Axes
• Level 2 - Whirling Axes/Berserker Rage
• Level 3 - Whirling Axes
• Level 4 - Fervor
• Level 5 - Whirling Axes
• Level 6 - Battle Trance
• Level 7 - Whirling Axes
• Level 8 - Fervor/ Stats
• Level 9 - Fervor/ Stats
• Level 10 - Fervor/ Stats
• Level 11 - Battle Trance
• Level 12 - Berserker Rage/Stats
• Level 13 - Berserker Rage/Stats
• Level 14 - Berserker Rage/Stats
• Level 15 - Stats/Berserker Rage
• Level 16 - Battle Trance
• Level 17+ Stats/Berserker Rage

Berserker Rage is taken first for its benefits or Whirling Axes if you try to get first blood. Whirling Axes is maxed as soon as possible because it is most effective in the early game as a nuke. It will make you more of a threat and gives you some defense. Fervor is more beneficial than extra levels into Berserker Rage so that's taken second. At level 11, you'll have about 270 IAS naked from your skills alone (100 from Fervor, 120 from Battle Trance, and the rest from your AGI). This is enough to make leveling up Berserker Rage worth it because you have more chances to proc a Bash and it's his last remaining skill anyway. Stats may be taken over Fervor and Berserker Rage if you are having a hard time surviving.

The Jungle build (Not Recommended)

• Level 1 - Berserker Rage
• Level 2 - Fervor
• Level 3 - Fervor
• Level 4 - Whirling Axes
• Level 5 - Fervor
• Level 6 - Battle Trance
• Level 7 - Fervor
• Level 8 - Whirling Axes
• Level 9 - Whirling Axes
• Level 10 - Whirling Axes
• Level 11 - Battle Trance
• Level 12 - Berserker Rage
• Level 13 - Berserker Rage
• Level 14 - Berserker Rage
• Level 15 - Stats
• Level 16 - Battle Trance
• Level 17+ Stats

Berserker Rage is taken first for its benefits. Fervor is maxed as soon as possible because it is need to build up your IAS to jungle. Whirling Axes is more beneficial than extra levels into Berserker Rage so that's taken second. It can be used as a nuke to help jungling as it is also an AoE. Take Berserker Rage last as it's his last remaining skill and more beneficial than stats.

It is extremely hard to jungle with the new Troll because he just doesn’t have enough IAS to clear creep camps fast enough without dying. It MIGHT work if you are extremely lucky with the neutrals camps but Troll is a lot stronger in lane anyway.

Item Build

Starting Items

• Justification: Mix and match some of the above items. Stout Shield if you have aggressive ranged enemies in your lane, Quelling Blade for easier last hits, some regen to stay alive and GG Branches for Magic Wand, some stats, and a good game.
• Notes: You will not have enough starting gold to purchase every item so buy what is most fitting to the situation.

Early Game

• Justification: Because of his high IAS, Troll doesn't need to get any more IAS. Instead he should try to optimize his DPS by getting damage items. Check out this link to get a better understanding of optimization of DPS: Dota: Fun to Think and Imagine - DotA Guides. We have Phase Boots because it gives the most damage for boots and it gives you burst MS for getting closer to the enemy and for jukes.
• The Magic Wand and Bracer are just for some extra HP and clutch moments where you need that little bit of HP or mana to kill someone or get out alive. If you feel you do not need the extra stats from Bracer, feel free to skip it.
• Ring of Basilius is useful if you plan to gank a lot. The passive mana regen is very beneficial especially since Troll has very cheap spells. Feel free to skip Ring of Basilius too if you don’t plan on ganking or don’t need the mana regen.
• Bottle is probably the best item that a ganker can have since it gives him sustenance to keep hitting up the lanes and it allows him to keep a powerful rune with him to use when needed. Like Ring of Basilius, you can skip it if you don’t plan on ganking. 
• Always carry a TP for ganks and counter-ganks.
• Notes: You cannot Bash or Crit while phased.

Mid Game

Lothar's comes to mind because it offers an escape mechanism, a surprise attack mechanism, some decent damage, and a good amount of attack speed. Try to build it by buying the Claymore first. It gives a lot of damage for its cost. However, you may choose to get a Shadow Amulet instead if you plan on pushing towers (read “Extra Info”). The Janggo is for escaping/chasing, build up from Bracer, and to help with Troll's horrid INT a bit. Crystalys is the logical follow-up because it is a pure damage item. More crits due to high attack speed. If the enemy team is disable-heavy, get a BKB. Get a Mask of Death when you feel you do enough DPS to make good use of it. It can even be used for taking on Roshan or to upgrade and use the creep to stack the ancient creep camp.

Late Game

If you think you can deal damage without dying, build up your Crystalys to a Buriza and then finish off your build with a Satanic. Note that Satanic has an active 175% lifesteal! When you’re dishing out 1300 DPS, that means you can gain all your HP back in a few second. It works almost like an Aegies if timed well. Some might think that Buriza isn't as good as other items such as MKB or Butterfly but the crit chance makes it pull through. Troll's DPS hits about 1300 at the Late Game. Buriza gives the most damage besides Rapier.

Luxuries

Get one of these after you got the above items and any situational items needed. Chances are, you won't have inventory space or the game will be over by the time you get to buy one of these.

 Buriza-Do Kyanon: I am not kidding when I say this. Even though you already have one, Buriza still gives the most damage (besides Rapier). Chance to crit does stack totally, but multiplicative, not additively. Basically, a second Buriza will add 81 + 28.125% of your total damage on average.

 Divine Rapier: This will give the absolute highest increase to Troll's DPS. It also has the lowest cost/damage ratio. Of course getting this item is risky because if you die, you will probably lose it, and there goes 6200 gold. Get it if you haven't been dying.

Situational

This is one of the most important sections in this guide. I can already see the "wheres bkb in core? noob 0/10" or "no mkb in luxury?! fail guide." But please, in an ideal game where there are no disables/nukes on the enemy team, no blinkers on the enemy team, and no TPs on the enemy team, we wouldn't need any of the following items. Unfortunately, there are those things in almost every game so you will end up buying one or more of the following items.

 Black King Bar: The most commonly bought situational item. Why? Because in almost every game, there are enough disables on the enemy team to perma-stun you. Get this if you want a disable-free fighting environment

 Monkey King Bar: MKB is a favorite amongst many players because it, like Buriza, gives a lot of damage, but since Buriza gives more damage, MKB is left as a situational item. Get MKB against evasion users and TPer's that always get away. Truestrike is very important against a lot of other carries because a lot of them get Butterfly and some already have evasion such as Mortred and Windrunner.

 Butterfly: Get this for more evasion against carries WITHOUT MKB. Coupled with your Whirling Axes your opponents have a 0.4 * 0.7 = 28% chance to hit you making you almost unkillable against physical attacks. It also gives the 3rd most DPS against Buriza and MKB.

 Linken's Sphere: Get this when there is a single targeted spell that keeps getting you killed... a lot, namely long lasting stuns or ultimates. Dismember, Fiends Grip, and Primal Roar are all reasons to get this item. This isn't recommended though as it is very expensive and offers little DPS. It’s best if your team initiates before you enter the fight so you don’t need to eat the stuns first. 

 Heart of Terrasque: More survivability at the cost of DPS. This item is only recommended if you need a little more slack when fighting in the late game. This items offers 0 DPS and takes up an item slot so be careful when you buy it. As a carry, Satanic should offer enough HP to do your job. 

 Battlefury: Get this against illusion heroes or if you have teammates that can round up the enemy and keep them still. Gives some cheap damage and nice regeneration. 

 Vanguard: Cheap way to increase your survivability in the early game. Get this if you don’t have enough HP to do your job. I feel that a Bracer or Ogre Axe is enough because they can be built into Janggo and BKB, respectively.

 Hood of Defiance: Cheap way to lessen the hurt from nukes. Get this against nuke heavy teams but if there are a lot of disables, you may want to get a BKB instead.

 Sange and Yasha: I am mostly against this item on Troll because it offers very little DPS for its cost but it packs a lot of little things into one item. This item is similar to Janggo. The slow is the main difference and it's a good way to follow up your Whirling Axes. Get it if you need another chase mechanism.

 Orchid Malevolence: Get this item against blinkers that always get away or heavy casters. It is pretty pricey but it gives decent damage and IAS. 

 Hands of Midas: Get this if you know you will only farm for the next 15 minutes or so. Also if you can get this item in the first 10 minutes or so. It offers bonus gold and experience but is only effective if used on every cooldown and you don't die. Getting this takes up an item slot and the IAS is redundant. 

 Diffusal Blade: You get it for the Purge against specific enemies. If you want it ONLY FOR THE PURGE, you can get it with lifesteal because lifesteal overrides it anyway but is recommended for someone else to get it if it fits them better. Ex: SA, PL, Naga. 

Used against: Ghost form, Repel and Guardian Angel, Insatiable Hunger, God’s Strength, Overpower and Enrage (the latter 3 can also be semi-countered with Whirling Axes)

 Stygian Desolator: The Corruption orb is particularly effective against certain enemies and with certain lineups. If your team can hold the enemy down, Desolator is some of the cheapest damage items in the game. The downside of it is that it is an orb effect so that means no lifesteal. Get this if your team is doing well in the early game and is able to push for the win. The minus armor works against towers and structures so it helps with pushing and backdooring as well.

 Maelstrom: This item is potent because of Troll’s massive IAS. In Dota 2 the chain lightning orb will only override lifesteal when it procs so having these two orbs is viable. Get this as an alternative to single target dps. The chain lightning can help to clear creep waves and farm faster and is strong in teamfights.

Rejected

 Mask of Madness: 1. You already have 280 IAS from your skills. 2. It gives mediocre lifesteal that isn't good late game. 3. IT MAKES YOU TAKE 30% EXTRA DAMAGE! Why make a squishy hero even squishier?

 Cranium Basher: I wish this item would still stack with the Bash from Berserker Rage but unfortunately, it doesn't. Don't get it, it doesn't work. It will work in ranged mode but 10% Bash is just silly.

 Abyssal Blade: The upgrade from basher. That’s already one reason not to get it. The damage might be pretty good but for its cost, no way. The active ability is good, but not worth paying that much to get it.

Vladmir's Offering: Waste of an item slot. The lifesteal is mediocre and only works when Troll is in melee form. The auras aren't good enough for Troll to carry. If your team needs it, tell someone else to get it.

... Orb effects do not stack. It's that simple. We want lifesteal on Troll because it allows him to take on other carries in the late game. Some other orbs might seem strong but you become too easily killable in the late game when the only healing you have is natural regen. Lifesteal is better than other orbs most of the time because it gives you a way to stay alive longer. I say most of the time because in some very very rare situations, getting a Desolator or a Diffusal (for purge) may give you a higher chance to win. If you really need an orb, just know that the lifesteal from Vlad’s works with any orb.

Strategy

Chasing

When you chase in the early game, you just want as much MS as you can get so use Phase as you see fit. The thing to be careful of is just how far you need to run in order to hit your target. If you are too far away and you run in anyway, you may end up dead. Take a look at that list above and check how fast your enemy is.

A  with power treads has a base MS of 390. If she got Yasha then she would have 429 MS. If she were 600 range away and running, it would take Troll wouldn’t catch up in a reasonable amount of time. That’s when Whirling Axes comes in.

A 30% slow would drop Luna’s MS to 312 for 5.25 seconds. This means that Troll will get into attack range after 3.2/3 seconds giving him a couple hits before the Phase wears off. Then hopefully he will land a bash and continue to kill Luna. Do note that Luna will run backwards about 900 units before you catch her so be sure to chase only in long lanes close to your base or if you know her team is dead.

Notables: Clinkz with lv 4 windwalk, Bara running away with Charge of Darkness, Blinkers, Slark if he goes into fog (very fast and regen) Slardar with sprint, Lycan in wolf form, Tethered heroes, Doom with Kobold aura, Janggo, Scorched Earth, and S and Y (12%+5%+10%+16%+12%), Night Stalker at night, most heroes with slows/ensnares, Syllabear with Rabid 

If the enemy is already slowed or stunned by your team, DO NOT USE PHASE as it will prevent you from Bashing and Crit. Use Magic Wand or toggle forms to cancel the buff.

Juking

If you are being chased, try to cut vision off from your opponents. Phase Boots can help you with that. It gives you a lot of speed for a short while so you can juke your opponents in the woods or to simply out run them. Always use Phase Boots when trying to escape.

Phase Boots and Troll’s high MS just makes it easier to do. And always, be creative when trying to escape so your opponents can’t read your next move. Use Tangos and Quelling Blade to cut down trees or appear to run one way then run the other way.

Phasing

This is simple. Use it to run through creeps to get to your opponent. Use it to run through stuff when running away. Use it after you run into trees and run through your opponent. Use it anytime you want to run through something, whether you’re chasing or fleeing, or even trying to trap your enemies with creeps.

Game Progression

Starting Off

First before anything, assess the other team. Are there a lot of nukes? Are there a lot of disables? Am I probably going to be in an aggressive lane? Do they have squishy heroes? Who are their carries? Figure out what your item build is going to be. It might change as the game goes on but try to get an idea of what you want for now. You also want to look at your own team. If your team has a lot of invis or you have teammates that can mass disable, you probably want to opt out of Lothar’s.

Grab your starting items, and if there is a disabler on your team, ask him to lane with you. You don’t want to lane with an ally carry because you want all the last hits you can get. Competing for last hits means you will get less money. Remember, bot lane for Sentinel and top lane for Scourge are recommended. 

Laning Phase

Try to get as many last hits without losing a lot of HP or getting killed. Also, remember to look at the minimap for missing heroes. The last thing you want to do is die, even worse if it’s by the enemy carry. 

Buy your Boots and then build them into Phase Boots when you can. If against spammers like Batrider get a Magic Stick. If you are unable to gank or you know that you will farm for the next 15 minutes or so, get yourself a Hands of Midas.

vs. weak lane: If your opponents have low lane presence, feel free to stand next to the creep wave and farm away. When they get far away from their tower, try to get a kill. Use Whirling Axes and then use Whirling Axes. Let your lane mate know when you are going to attack so they are ready to throw their spells at the enemy too. 

vs. strong lane: You probably won’t be able to do anything for a while. Try to get as many last hits possible without losing too much HP. Use ranged form to last hit and if they are denying or harassing, change to melee form. You gain more exp from denied creeps and less damage from the harassment in melee form. Call for a gank or switch lanes with a teammate. If your team doesn’t help, just stay alive. If harassment is really bad, just stay in experience range (1000 AoE) when the enemy creeps die.

Early-Mid Game

If you at least have Boots and are level 5, then you can try to gank (much easier if you already have Phase Boots. Try to go for the squishy heroes or the enemy carry. You combo is:

Whirling Axes and let your allies throw their nukes and disables. Whirling Axes after all the disables are over (enemy will probably be dead by now) and continue to attack. Try to get the last hit.

If your ganks are unsuccessful, go back to farming. Try to get an empty lane that is close to your tower. Then try to keep creep equilibrium. If the other team is playing safe and you cannot gank them, go farm. Remember, you are still a carry and farm is important. 

Finish your Phase Boots if you haven’t already and build a Bracer if you need some HP. Also, finish up your Magic Wand and go for a weapon to build up. If the enemy team has a lot of anti-invis or you don’t need Lothar’s, go for Crystalys. If they have an evasion hero or are going for Butterfly, go for MKB. If there are a lot of disables, go for BKB. Get the Ogre Axe first for some HP.

Mid Game

Continue to gank when the opportunity arises and free farm when you aren’t ganking. Finish up your Lothar’s or Crystalys or whatever you’re making and your Janggo. After you get Lothar’s, you can even solo gank if you’re confident. Grab a Mask of Death If you got some extra money or want to take on Roshan. As always, try not to die and continue doing what you’re doing. 

Roshan: If you want to take down Roshan for whatever reason, you can do it now because the IAS bonus from Battle Trance to the team and yourself makes it a piece of cake to kill him. Many people say that Troll should rush a Dominator, take an Ogre Magi and then solo Roshan but that limits your damage for ganks and it’s a lot faster when you have the help of your team and your Battle Trance.

Pushing: If you want some towers now is also a great time to push because of your Battle Trance and your team’s DPS.

Team Fights: This is the point in the game where team fights will be more common and push the game in either teams favor. Try to stay alive. Don’t be the one to lead your team into a fight, let your initiator do that. After the big disable goes down run in and use everything to get kills. Aim for their carry or most dangerous player. Never aim tanky heroes (unless they are close to death) because they take a lot of time to kill and are most likely not the most important person to kill. Always try to kill as many people as possible. If your team wins the fight, push.

Late Game

If your farm is decent, you will probably finish your Buriza around this time and your DPS will skyrocket. Upgrade your Mask to Helm of the Dominator and dominate a Centaur Warchief or a Dark Troll for their disables or an Alpha Wolf for his Command Aura. If the game drags on, finish up your build with a Satanic.

Team Fights: These team fights are the most important. They can decide who will win the game. It is very important to stay alive in these fights. Tell your team to stay away from team fights when you aren’t there. When a team fight starts, do the same thing you did in the Mid-Game. Let someone else initiate and follow them after most of the disables are used. If you have an enemy carry that relies on autoattacks and doesn’t have MKB, save your Whirling Axes for them. 

Buyback: After your build is complete, stop buying components of items because you probably won’t have inventory space to hold them. Only buy luxuries when you have enough money to complete the entire item. The rest of the money should be saved for buybacks.

Edited by basicdotaguide.blogspot.com