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Stout Shield
Iron BranchIron Branch
Healing Salve
Tango
Clarity
Magic Wand
Boots of Speed
Ring of Health
Arcane Boots
Perseverance
Bloodstone
Boots of Travel
Blade Mail
Eul's Scepter of Divinity
Scythe of Vyse
Heaven's Halberd
Rod of Atos
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4 | 8 | 9 | 10 |  |
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2 | 12 | 13 | 14 |  |
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6 | 11 | 16 |  |
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15 | 17 | 18 |
Timbersaw is a vine-swinging, wood-cutting, branch-hacking good time. Extremely mobile and tanky, Rizzrack is a little-played hero with a lot of potential in the right hands. He's got a relatively steep learning curve, but once you can master his skills he becomes an exciting and satisfying hero to play as. I often liken him to the Strength version of 
Puck. Timbersaw's hallmark spell Timber Chain is the key to his high mobility and fun gameplay. Playing as Rizzrack is like becoming a flying cyborg spider monkey of destruction and chaos. Spells like Timber Chain are what gives Timbersaw such a high skill ceiling, which means there is always room for improvement. Whirling Death (that can deal pure damage, mind you) and a tank's passive in Reactive Armor, Timbersaw really is a target nobody wants to touch. That's if they can get their hands on you in the first place. Chakram, Rizzrack's spammable ultimate, is a spinning blade of doom that you are free to send out at your own insane discretion. It's a legit tool for hunting down fleeing enemies, blocking off pathways, or having presence in teamfights. Timbersaw is a guaranteed good time. And it's twice as fun when you're winning.
Highly mobile chaser and escapist
Spammable spells
High skill ceiling
Pure damage output on most skills
Mana intensive spellsRelatively level dependentCountered by mana-burn and silenceTerrible base-breaking ability
Whirling Death is an extremely useful area of effect nuke Timbersaw has at his disposal. If a tree is cut down by Whirling Death, pure damage will be dealt to any enemies affected. This means that Whirling Death is most effective after a tether to a tree via Timber Chain. Chakram, you can always use Whirling Death to clear a path in the forest to make a hasty escape. Whirling Death also reduces the primary stat of any enemies affected by 15% for 7 seconds. This is especially effective against Strength heroes and other heroes that rely on high numbers in their primary stat (like 
Silencer or 
Skywrath Mage).
Black King Bar will not take damage from Whirling Death but will still receive the stat debuff.
Timber Chain is Rizzrack's defining spell. With low mana cost and cooldown, you can use this spell to zip from tree to tree over and over again in both chase and escape scenarios. Timber Chain is the skill that grants Timbersaw such high mobility, no doubt. However, the pure damage done to any enemy in the way of a speeding Rizzrack is another huge incentive to use this skill and use it often. Timbersaw is mana starved in the early game, use of Timber Chain in between the lanes does massive amounts of damage and will make your opponent think twice about their positioning in relation to you. Use this spell to harass your opponent early game and possibly nab an early kill. Timber Chain takes skill and practice to reach full potential. Trees are a huge part of the Dota 2 landscape. As Timbersaw, you'll have to get closely acquainted (eek) with each and every branch on the map. Below is an image of some of the most useful Timber Chain ziplines on both the Dire and Radiant sides. Some of these can be used as escape and chase routes, and others are simply handy shop and neutral camp access!
I've left some obvious ones out, but if you have any personal tree ziplines that are not on this map, please comment and let me know! (Open this image in a new tab for a larger view.)
Whirling Death and Chakram via access of Timber Chain. These are great for grabbing some quick farm and getting in and out. The below image should give you a better idea of these spots on the map.
(Open this image in a new tab for a larger view.)
Timbersaw latches to is destroyed upon landing. You can use this to your benefit to squeeze through tight openings for jukes. Timber Chain won't be stopped up by heroes or impassable terrain, and will always travel its maximum distance wherever it is aimed.
Reactive Armor is a very useful passive for Rizzrack, making him tougher with every instance of damage he takes. Providing bonus armor and health regeneration per stack, this skill makes Timbersaw tough to kill. Reactive Armor as an impromptu healing method by using creep camps and creeps in the lane to attack you. Each stack gives you a health regeneration buff equal to 1 health healed per second. With a maximum of 16 stacks, you can see how using Reactive Armor in this fashion could heal you up quickly!
Chakram, Timbersaw's low cooldown ultimate, is another awesome and versatile tool in his arsenal. With the ability to mow down trees like nothing and slow escaping foes, this skill perfectly compliments Rizzrack's playstyle. Chakram is out on the battlefield, Timbersaw loses mana. This can be a big drain early on, (less so after the recent 6.78 buffs) but in the later stages of the game, you'll be able to toss out Chakram blades left and right. Chakram to cut off enemy escape routes. Use of this skill takes prescience and an understanding of positioning. (As most of Timbersaw's skills do.) Try to assess the area before engaging and cut off the most likely route of escape. Chakram takes some time to reach its target destination, so you will have to lead your enemy for maximum effectiveness. Chakram through the tree line and behind your enemy, then zip through the open space to the other side with Timber Chain, and finish with Whirling Death. (Pictures coming soon.) Chakram does damage on the way in, and on the way out. This means you can dole out two quick successive hits by tossing Chakram at an enemy and pulling it back immediately after hitting. This is key in bursting down enemy heroes fast. Instead of tossing out Chakram and leaving it there, it can be more effective to pull it in and out, tossing out the burst damage more often. Chakram through the creep wave or a neutral camp and pulling it back quickly is a surefire way to clean up fast, especially in the later stages of the game. Chakram is active. However, your auto-attack will be disabled.
Timbersaw. Stout Shield lets you be more aggressive in the laning phase and secure some last hits without taking too much harassment punishment. Tangos isn't even necessary with the early point of Reactive Armor you'll be taking. This is dependent on your lane match-up, but in some cases where I'm feeling more aggressive I'll instead opt for a second Clarity.
Magic Wand is too good of an item to pass up on, especially in the laning phase when Rizzrack is mana starved. Bracer provides Rizzrack with cheap stats in the early stages of the game. On top of that, it also builds into your 
Drum of Endurance.
Arcane Boots are hugely effective for Timbersaw, again, especially in the early to mid-game when he struggles with mana. Your allies will appreciate it too! Drum of Endurance is a great pickup for Rizzrack and builds from the Bracer we picked up earlier. If you aren't getting much farm into the mid-game, it's okay to skip this in favor of a faster Bloodstone or 
Heart of Tarrasque. There is a certain point in the game where buying a Drum of Endurance won't benefit you as greatly, so keep that in mind. Bloodstone, while expensive, does everything Timbersaw wants--adds tankiness and provides huge mana regeneration buffs. And, for every kill you rack up, the mana regeneration buff just gets better.
Heart of Tarrasque is another expensive but extremely useful item on Rizzrack that when in combination with Bloodstone makes him virtually unkillable. Once you have these two items, the combined health and mana regeneration will allow you to stay on the field forever. Shiva's Guard is another item that is a perfect fit for Rizzrack. Adding Intelligence and armor value, Shiva's Guard also aids your initiation game with a useful active ability.
Boots of Travel, while expensive (an unfortunate running theme with many of Rizzrack's core items), can bring your mobility to another level. Useful Teleport aside, the +100 movement speed will improve your chase game tenfold. Blade Mail can be useful if you are being focused by the enemy team. Usually, the best time to pick this up is if you have become the main carry and damage dealer on your squad. Pipe of Insight is a general utility for your team (similar to Drum of Endurance) and should only be picked up when your team is taking heavy magical damage and there isn't a support on your team who can afford one. Eul's Scepter of Divinity provides a great single-target disable you can use to your advantage while chasing an enemy down. Cast Cyclone, then toss down Chakram underneath. The stats Eul's Scepter of Divinity provides are a perfect fit for Timbersaw as well--movement speed, Intelligence, and mana regeneration!
Tusk's 
Ice Shards ability creates a perfect spot for a Chakram to be cast in. His 
Frozen Sigil also benefits Timbersaw's own chase ability.
Enigma's 
Black Hole is perfect for a well-placed Chakram.
Kinetic Field in combination with both 
Static Storm and Chakram is a devastating combination that works wonders.
Magnus's ultimate 
Reverse Polarity is another perfect opportunity to cast Chakram on. His 
Skewer can also put enemy heroes in a better position for you to deal damage.
Mana Burn is the bane of Timbersaw's existence. 
Vendetta also means Nyx has an easy get-out-of-jail-free card when you attempt to initiate on him.
Keeper of the Light's 
Mana Leak ability is devastating to Timbersaw, and 
Blinding Light can screw with positioning (a crucial aspect in Rizzrack's game).
Silencer's abilities give Timbersaw a tough time. Both 
Last Word and Curse of the Silent almost completely counter Rizzrack. Dying to a Silencer is even worse, as you'll have your Intelligence stolen, making you even more mana starved. Silencer has already been picked.
Anti-Mage's 
Mana Break is extremely annoying to deal with as Timbersaw, and his ultimate 
Mana Void can cause you some serious trouble after constant use of spells that Timbersaw relies on. His 
Blink also means he can easily escape from any initiation you try on him.
Timbersaw's ability to get in and out of situations where he is outnumbered. Timbersaw and nice things happen. Timbersaw replays, please share them in the comments section below!
6.78
Chakram initial manacost rescaled from 125/150/175 to 75/125/175 Chakram move speed increased from 800 to 900 Chakram moves 20% slower Timber Chain damage increased from 80/120/160/200 to 100/140/180/220 Chakram mana cost over time reduced from 20/30/40 to 20/25/30Changes, removals, and additions:
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