An Army... of Me

Foreword

Hello guys! My name is Xcalibur, this is my guide to Phantom Lancer or PL for short. This guide is a guide dedicated among pub players. I'm not sure about this build's effectivity in competitive plays, considering my gaming history. Yup, never played inhouses or even tournaments. I hope this guide really helps! I am sure there will be mistakes in this guide or more options, so please leave a comment. Also, don't forget to vote! :D

Pros/Cons

+Highest AGI gain per level (4.2)
+Very strong presence late-game
+Fairly spammable nuke/slow
+Amazing escape mechanism
+Strong pusher
+After getting Diffusal Blade, can gank lone (squishy) heroes

-AoE-based skill and cleave clears off illusions relatively quick
-Dust, Sentries and Gem counters his escape mechanism
-Very squishy
-Item and farm dependent

What Is PL?

PL is a hard-carry in a unique way.

Why unique?
Because not like other carries who take enemies down fast through 1K criticals or permabash, PL uses illusions - lots of illusions - to deal tons of damage. Thanks to this unique playstyle of him, illusions will confuse your enemy and the enemy will eventually die before finding out the real you, and also makes his pushing power like crazy.

PL's Skillset

Q - Spirit Lance

ABILITY: TARGET UNIT
AFFECTS: ENEMY HEROES
DAMAGE: MAGICAL

Casts a magical spirit lance on a target enemy unit that damages and slows, while a Phantom is summoned to attack the unit.

SLOW DURATION: 3
MOVEMENT SLOW: 10%/20%/30%/40%
ILLUSION DURATION: 2/4/6/8
ILLUSION DAMAGE TAKEN: 300%
ILLUSION DAMAGE DEALT: 25% DAMAGE: 100/150/200/250
COOLDOWN: 7 SECONDS
MANA COST: 125/130/135/140
This skill provides PL a fearsome ganking skill. A slow, nuke and another you to hit your enemy makes this skill very useful to grab an early first blood attempt. Another use for this skill is to last hit if you are getting harrassed a lot. I don't really recommend you spamming this skill prior to Soul Ring.

W - Doppelwalk

ABILITY: NO TARGET

Renders Phantom Lancer invisible, while generating a duplicate image to confuse enemies.

DURATION: 8
BONUS MOVEMENT SPEED: 15%
ILLUSION DURATION: 20
ILLUSION DAMAGE TAKEN: 300%
ILLUSION DAMAGE DEALT: 25%
COOLDOWN: 30/25/20/15
MANA COST: 150/120/90/60

This skill makes you highly elusive and also confuses enemy, making them wasting their time chasing your illusion or if you're lucky, wasted ultimates. Make sure you don't use this skill when it's not really necessary, since its cooldown is pretty long during early-game, and the mana cost is huge.

E - Juxtapose

ABILITY: PASSIVE

Phantom Lancer's attacks have a chance to create illusions to confuse enemies.

CHANCE: 12%
MAX ILLUSIONS: 2/4/6/8
ILLUSION DURATION: 20
ILLUSION DAMAGE TAKEN: 350%
ILLUSION DAMAGE DEALT: 25%

A very nice passive, which gives you very nice pushing power late-game, and your main reason to buy a Diffusal Blade, since the Feedback Unique Attack Modifier is applied on your illusions' attacks as well. This skill also compliments well with your ultimate.

R - Phantom Edge

ABILITY: PASSIVE

Phantom Lancer hones his abilities. Improves chance of Juxtaposing, and the Juxtapose illusions can now create their own illusions. Phantom Edge also increases Phantom Lancer's magic resistance.

MAGIC RESISTANCE: 10%/15%/20%
ILLUSION DUPLICATE CHANCE: 3%/5%/7%
JUXTAPOSE CHANCE BONUS: 2%/4%/6%

The chances might seem very small, but don't underestimate it. It gives you a very powerful pushing power and makes you a very huge threat late-game.

Skill Order

Start with either Doppelwalk or Spirit Lance. Never pick a skill right after picking a hero. You gotta be able to adapt to the situation. If you and your lane partner decided for an early first blood, grab a Spirit Lance, otherwise, pick Doppelwalk.

Next is getting Spirit Lance at level 1 (or 2)3, 5, and 7. This is essential since the slow increases per level, and so is the damage.

At level 4 and 6, instead of grabbing Doppelwalk, grab Stats for more survivability, mana, damage and AS. In this case, Doppelwalk isn't taken since you can turn the Soul Ring on, then escape to safety.

Grab 1 level of Juxtapose after you finished maxing Doppelwalk, which is level 11. Then, max it out at level 12, 13 and 17.

Phantom Edge is picked right after the first level of Juxtapose. This is because a level of Phantom Edge before Juxtapose will give you nothing but magic resistance. After that, max it out. This comes first to max out compared to Juxtapose.

The Carry Build

Starting Items

or
Starting items are Ring of Protection or Quelling Blade, 3 Iron Branch, a Healing Salve, and finally a set of Tango. I usually prefer Ring of Protection over Quelling Blade. Firstly, Ring of Protection is required to build Tranquil Boots, but unfortunately it's not available in the Side Shop. Second reason is it gives you more "tankiness" from harrassments from the enemies. Those are my justification, but if you think that your partner is kind of unreliable of giving you almost every farm, grab a Quelling Blade instead.

Early Game Items

Your very first item to be gotten is Tranquil Boots, then get a Soul Ring. These two items will ensure you regeneration for both your mana and HP, plus Soul Ring also gives you HP regeneration. If you wanna harrass your enemy using Spirit Lance, make sure to pop out Soul Ring first, then shoot. Another use is to pop Soul Ring before using Doppelwalk. Especially useful during early-game, since the mana cost is fairly large.

Core Items

Farm up Radiance ASAP. This item is just what you need. It applies the Burn aura r to every of your illusions, so that you and your illusions can catch up and deal TONS of damage in seconds. Mostly aim guys with ~1000 HP or less.

Next item to get is Diffusal Blade. The Feedback Unique Attack Modifier and the Purge active skill makes you dangerous. After you have obtained this item, you and your illusions are just like monsters. They will decimate your foes in seconds, that is if your enemy doesn't have any escape mechanism or don't have time to react.

Finally, a very cheap but important item, Town Portal Scroll. ALWAYS carry it anytime. Getting ganked? Doppelwalk, juke, then teleport to another lane for safe-farming. Your team needs you in a war? Teleport. It has lots of uses, and increases your GPM if used correctly.

Core-Luxury Items

I usually consider Heart of Tarrasque a core or luxury because by this time, you are usually already owning the other team. Why is Heart of Tarrasque more of a first choice rather than Butterfly? Because Heart of Tarrasque makes you and (most importantly) your illusions tankier than ever, so that it is much harder to find out the "real" you.

Manta Style really fits into PL. The Mirror Images can also create more Juxtapose illusions, and thus adding more pushing power and Damage. Furthermore, it increases your AS, damage output, and slight more HP.

From both items on the list, consider choosing the order. Heart of Tarrasque if you need more HP, or Manta Style if you need to help out your team more (either to prevent or do a push).

Luxury Items

Butterfly is every Agility carries' luxury item. This item makes you and your illusions much harder to kill since evasion is applied to illusions as well. Plus, the AS increase, AGI is also applied to your illusion, and it makes your illusions to hurt even more.

Daedalus is a very awesome item. Combined with all other items you've obtained, you hit so hard you produce ~900 crits.

I usually get Boots of Travel for more extreme chases, and also to defend or attack the Ancients (or towers, or raxes) in seconds. Just disassemble your Tranquil Boots, sell your Ring of Regen and Ring of Protection, pick your Boots of Speed up and upgrade it into Boots of Travel.

Assault Cuirass increases your AS very much that your illusions will proc very quick. Plus, the armor reduction aura makes your enemies turn into paper.

Take Eye of Skadi to replace Diffusal Blade. Yes, your illusions will not deal damage as much as when you had Diffusal Blade, but with very painful slows on each hits, this item is worth every penny you spend. Plus, you have much more stats than with only Diffusal Blade.

Situational Items

Getting Hand of Midas should be considered for even more GPM. If you do consider taking this, make sure you get it below 8 minutes, or even better, 6 minutes. But never ever take only Gloves of Haste and a Tango only for starters. Not a good idea.

I never get Black King Bar in any one of my games, but if the opposing team is full of CC (crowd control), disables or nukes, grab it to help out a bit. I suggest getting it after Heart of Tarrasque, so that you are much more unkillable.

Getting sick of Phantom Assassin dodging your hits? The enemy carry was able to farm up a Butterfly? Facing a Brewmaster? Got Lasered almost all the time by a Tinker? Then Monkey King Bar is an item for you! True-strike means your attacks won't miss no matter what happens.

Farm Timing

As a carry, you need to make sure you have very good farming/last-hitting skills. You should obtain these items in:
[*] and OR only = 5-8 mins.
[*] or = 18 mins.
[*] (if opted for buying Radiance) = 25 mins.
And the list goes on and on. The point is getting your Sacred Relic or Diffusal Blade ASAP is the key to carrying your team, so make sure you have it fast.

Illusion Tips n' Tricks

Illusions has MANY uses in the game. Here are some tips on how to use them:

[*] Learn about the fade time of Doppelwalk. Doing very great timing will enable you to dodge many projectile-based skills ( Magic Missile, Shuriken Toss, etc.)
[*] If you have all your skills maxed out (around level 17), try going in jungles to proc your illusions, then leave after you finished a creep camp. Then, move your illusions to other camps, while your real guy is pushing the lane or farm in a lane.
[*] Use your illusions to scout in jungles or anywhere else before you go there. For example, if you want to push or farm in the Radiant bottom lane, use Doppelwalk and move your illusion into the jungle to scout out for gankers. If there are many, leave. Only one, try to gank him. Or just leave for more safety.
[*] If you suddenly got ganked, use Doppelwalk and control yourself and your illusion into separate ways, and try to make your illusion's movements as realistic as possible to convince the enemy on wasting out their skills.
[*] If you have cleared a creep wave and have lots of illusions, order them to keep on pushing (press "A" and select a targeted ground to arrive on a place, but attacks anything on their way), while you yourself use Doppelwalk to scout for your prey.

Friends and Foes

Friends

Mana batteries

Both of these heroes are you pals. They provide you almost unlimited mana, strong CC skill and awesome harrassment to ensure you a safe lane and excellent farm. Oh yeah, and don't forget guys with these things...

Self-explanatory.

Basically all heroes with stuns and slows are your friends

Oh yeah, don't forget this guy!

He might not be an aggressive support, but he has lane sustainability, which is something PL badly needs. Purification instantly heals you for 360 and damages enemies around you, and also a free Black King Bar every 14 seconds. Degen Aura also helps your chases a lot. Throw a Spirit Lance, let him catch up and hit the enemy up together.

Friendly Carries

Frost Arrows, Silence, and a Spirit Lance usually makes a dead enemy. Plus, she can also harrass your enemy well. Just make sure she can co-operate well with you.


Their extra illusions and yours will create helluva confusion in team fights. Moreover, their stuns and your Spirit Lance will create a very awesome First Blood attempt.

Foes

Any AoE casters and heroes with cleave attacks will ruin you, but...

Your illusions and you create echoes from his ultimate, which means, you are dead meat if you haven't got your Heart of Tarrasque.

Outworld Devourer
His Arcane Orb hurts your illusion a lot. Plus, Sanity's Eclipse makes you cry late-game.

Invis Detectors

They make you much easier to spot, foil your gank or escape attempts, and it is not good. But, Amplify Damage, Track and Dust of Appearance can be dispelled by using Purge on yourself. That is if you already have your Diffusal Blade. For Zeus, just keep distance between yourself and him. He's dangerous. Finally, to counter Sentry Wards, tell your support pal to buy Sentry Wards as well to counter-ward them.

Although the description of Phantom Edge says it only gives illusion proc chance on Juxtapose illusions, it also procs on illusions from other sources. That includes Illusion Rune, Manta Style, and THESE GUYS. Wall of Replica creates illusion of you, only they hurt even more that you could, and so are the illusions from the illusions. Disruption doesn't hurt as much, but still, they are gonna be painful since you're basically facing yourself.

In the end...

Well then, this guide is over. I am finally able to finish everything. If you think I still missed a pointer or two, please leave a comment so I can add/fix it up. :) Thanks for voting and commenting, and most importantly for reading this guide! :D