GUIDE HAS BEEN DELETED

yes, if it is hard to comprehend I suggest that you watch a video.

BERSERKER'S CALL at lvl 10??? WTF
Dagon???
2nd skill build...

Not sure what with the craze over Ring of Protection, but let me explain my reasoning behind Stout Shield if I didn't do so concisely before.

Case 1: 2 Stout Shield which means 84% chance to block 20 damage and 9.7% reduction (Armor value= 1.8)
Lets say the enemy attacks you 10 times with a damage of 65.
Total damage received is [8 X (65-20) + 2 X 65] X 90.3% = 442.
Even if you're facing off a Treant Protector with base damage of 85. (By the way, Treant Protector has the highest base damage in game)
Total damage received is [8 X (85-20) + 2 X 85] X 90.3% = 623.

Case 2: 1 Stout Shield and 1 Ring of Protection which means 60% chance to block 20 damage and 18.6% reduction (Armor value = 3.8)
Lets say the enemy attacks you 10 times with a damage of 65.
Total damage received is [6 X (65-20) + 4 X 65] X 82.3% = 436.
Treant Protector calculation is [6 X (85-20) + 4 X 85] X 82.3% = 601.

By the way, you may want to consider these factors:

1) Treant Protector has a base attack time of 1.65s, and is melee, so chances are he will die of your Counter Helix before he can even land 10 hits on you. (Unless you are badly ganked)

2) Usually, based on game mechanics and human psychology, melee heroes (unless they are strength heroes) will not dare to come into contact with you. Ranged heroes are more of a threat but usually they have small base damages. (And that's why there are 2 builds to this guide, UP Battle Hunger for tower hugging ranged heroes or heroes who can't last hit well, and Berserker's Call for melee heroes). Beware of stuns however!

3) Although you can see that for Ring of Protection you receive negligible less damage, however, Stout Shield is preferred here because it is more effective for creep cutting. As you can see Ring of Protection is better against high damage nukes as lesser damage is received from Treant Protector by 22 (623-601) but reduces only 6 (442-436) from 65 damage attacks. This means the underlying relationship is that effectiveness of Stout Shield is reduced by increasing damage, but for lane creeps, who deal about 20 damage, Stout Shield is more effective against low damage attacks, which you would probably receive through early game, unless mid heroes come to gank you, then you are dead. Also, I did not include the remaining 4% block from case 1, but it is negligible.

However, I do agree that Ring of Protection is a great alternative to the 2nd Stout Shield and should be bought if you feel more confident with it. For me, I feel better with 2 Stout Shield, and just to let you know, it is not the items that dictate your wins. On your part, it is your confidence in your items that will help you secure kills, so get the one you are more confident in.

Good arguement on this part.

References:
http://dota2.gamepedia.com/Armor
http://dota2.gamepedia.com/Damage_Block
http://dota2.gamepedia.com/Creeps

I think as for the Ring of Basilius it depends mainly on your personal preference. I will not include it in this guide because I can play generally very well without it. And because of that, I am not going to get that ring, but I will finish my Blade Mail early. And also, I am already getting extra mana regeneration from Urn of Shadows. I would advise you to get your lane partner to get it if you really need it, because that 500+ gold could be used to get a Chainmail which is part of Blade Mail and that would solve all your auto-attacking problems. Also, Axe's auto attack damage is really pathetic even at late game, so I really do not recommend that you build Ring of Basilius into Vladmir's Offering.

Yes! A good idea too. I will build this section as fast as possible, but do forgive me for slow work because I have also other priorities to resolve. But I do expect it to be ready in 10-15 days time.

Thank you for your comment.

I know you have addressed this in your FAQ's but just felt I should point out to others reading this guide that if the opponents damage is above 65 you get more damage reduction from a ring of protection than the second stout shield. And although people have already mentioned the extra mana regen from a basi, one of the most important reasons to take it early on axe is that it can really improve your early game push. I'm not entirely against the second stout, just think its quite situational.

I can see that your build, (especially dagon) suits your snowballing play style, but maybe you could include another section to your item build with items to recover from a poor start or have great situational use, such as heaven's halberd?

Altogether a thought provoking and well organised guide.

I'm not a big Axe player, but a lot of the stuff that you said just doesn't make any sense. I mean unless you're team is going heaaaavy pushing, you aren't going to take down he enemy tier 2 towers by 8 min in the game. Also, what Sando said about the Ring of Protection is just overall better than a second Stout Shield. Don't get me wrong, a second Stout Shield could work against a team that doesn't harass I suppose, but in most cases a Ring of Protection will better deal with harassment. Also, the biggest thing about the Ring of Protection is that you can make it into a Ring of Basilius. This will solve your early game mana issues until you get Arcane Boots. Oh and one more thing, a dagon is actually surprisingly good on Axe. Like what you said how you're such a tank that you can easily use it twice in a team fight. Oh and I'm still undecided on Vanguard. Overall ok guide, but I disagree with some things that you said.

I think this is what he meant:

You can make links to items and skills by enclosing them in double square brackets. item name

For example, Butterfly is obtained by typing "Butterfly" between and .

Thanks for feedback, i'll try it next time, I'll skip on the ring of basilius. Made this guide in an hour, so hadn't have time to color it yet, I'll do it soon though. And may I know how do you make hyperlink for the items and skills?