Sando's Guide to Weaver

Time Lapse. Heart of Tarrasque gives you the most HP of any item in the game (~1060 I think), and Time Lapse can effectively double it if used correctly. A hit and run hero like Weaver can also utilise the strong healing effect pretty well. It's not an every game item, but it definitely merits consideration.

Also remember that you can't run a Satanic if you've bought a Desolator or other orb effect unless you sell them.

Because HP.

Weaver is basically a right click hero, so of course Desolator and Monkey King Bar is a good choice. And Satanic for survivability. What I don't get is why Heart of Tarrasque??

Fair enough on Tinker and Earthshaker - they're definitely BKB games, alhtough I wouldn't necessarily repick against them. Beastmaster has a good stun that can cause you problems, but again no repick, and he can't lane against you. Kunkka can be problematic too.

Hand of Midas - I'm not a fan, but there may be situations where you pick one up - e.g. if you're safe lane against a nasty offlaner and your supports are having to hang around and are soaking xp. Otherwise I'd rather get on with having impact earlier.

Hand of Midas is missing from this guide! +100GPM is a big factor in the early game!

A few big counters I can think of off the top of my head are:

Tinker - Big burst damage and a common matchup with you in the laning phase. Weaver is typically offlane or mid, and Tink is usually safe lane or mid. He really only needs two quick spells or a spell and a Dagon to burst you down completely, so he can be a lot of trouble. Plus his March can completely make a large AoE off limits to squishy little Weaver for a few seconds, which makes it hard for him to navigate teamfights and pushes.

Beastmaster - Same thing as Bane really. That stun will make you useless and very easy to burst down until you get a Linkens (which can still get popped anyway). Also Necrobooks are fairly common on this guy, so you can't always rely on invis to reposition yourself.

Earthshaker - AoE stuns galore. Plus he can put a spike of ground through a fight to cut you off from chasing. However, a well-positioned Time Lapse can mend this. Still, he's one of the tougher supports for you to overcome.

Death Prophet - None of her spells are single-target so Linkens won't help here. A BKB will blcok her silence and nuke, but you still have that rough ult to deal with unless you're invis.

Thanks guys - the Satanic pickup is basically a different option late on when you may be thinking about picking up a Heart - if you've got enough damage it can pay off pretty well in a straight fight.

Orchid Malevolence isn't a standard pickup for a few reasons - 1) Weaver generally wants raw damage over attack speed. 2) It can interfere with your build - e.g. delaying your defensive or damage item. 3) Although you can go invisible, you can't stalk the jungle in the same way as say Clinkz or Bounty Hunter. I'd say it's super-situational - say you're against a hero like Anti-Mage or Faceless Void and your team needs more silence to deal with them.

Maelstrom...not really. It's not a terrible choice, but Weaver isn't particularly big on attack speed - damage is more important to make Geminate Attack work hard. E.g. a hero with high attack speed will proc a lot of lightning, Geminate Attack only works every few seconds. I'd say Desolator is a much better option in a push lineup.

Thanks guys - the Satanic pickup is basically a different option late on when you may be thinking about picking up a Heart - if you've got enough damage it can pay off pretty well in a straight fight.

Orchid Malevolence isn't a standard pickup for a few reasons - 1) Weaver generally wants raw damage over attack speed. 2) It can interfere with your build - e.g. delaying your defensive or damage item. 3) Although you can go invisible, you can't stalk the jungle in the same way as say Clinkz or Bounty Hunter. I'd say it's super-situational - say you're against a hero like Anti-Mage or Faceless Void and your team needs more silence to deal with them.

Maelstrom...not really. It's not a terrible choice, but Weaver isn't particularly big on attack speed - damage is more important to make Geminate Attack work hard. E.g. a hero with high attack speed will proc a lot of lightning, Geminate Attack only works every few seconds. I'd say Desolator is a much better option in a push lineup.

I'm not entirely sure whether or not this item pickup is viable since I don't play Weaver, but would buying a Maelstrom be worth it if your team lineup primarily focused on pushing? Keep in mind that as of 6.82, Geminate Attack can now proc items.

I like the guide, though I never play Weaver. He(?) just doesn't suit my playstyle.

Although I was curious what the feasibility of Orchid Malevolence would be for Weaver? He is it gives him a utility disable as well as mana regen and intelligence?

Great guide! +1 from me!

One thing I take a note on is the Satanic, I don't usually get a lifesteal item on a weaver. Even though he would be considered a rightclicker. I shall have to try this build in future matches. In my opinion a Morbid Mask would do the job so you can put more gold to other items( Butterfly Monkey King Bar etc.) but I will try with the Satanic. For boot choices I tend to go Phase Boots if I am duel laning, but if I am soloing, Power Treads are better. In my opinion Weaver is best offlaning early game. You open up a spot in tne safe lane and when you are mid laning there is not as much room for mobility. And with your awesome escape ability soloing the offlane is not that bad, plus there is lots of room to mobilize. I hope I don't sound too pessimistic, I think this is a great guide.

Thanks for all the nice comments guys. I've settled in to my new job now, but my writing time is still considerably reduced - but I should be able to do a guide now and then.

On the comments - AC is a good item, but I'd rank it behind some of the other choices on Weaver, just because he needs stats/damage more than armour/as. Still, the armour reduction is nice. Ideally someone else will buy one.

To be fair, I'd somewhat ignored Crystalys/ Diffusal Blade - partly because crits rely on existing attack, partly because you never used to consider diffusal on Weaver. Crystalys is actually pretty good value for money, even if I'd usually get it later when your damage/as is higher. Could see it working as an earlier/cheaper buff that can be upgraded later. Diffusal Blade - interesting, it does quite a lot for your damage, and the purge can be useful (even if you're already a great chaser). I may well build them into the guide as alternative damage options.

EDIT: Thanks Peppo - I always especially value your input on these. It does annoy me when people "automatically" build a Linken's on him. BKB really can be the better option, and building both too soon leaves you with very poor damage output.