The Old Man. The Best Man (Update 4)

Introduction

Hello puny mortals. Welcome to the amazing, the spectacular and all powerful guide to Zeus. This is my first ever guide and please give positive feedback or polite criticism!

What's so special about Zeus?
High amounts of damage with low cooldowns (exclusively a nuker)
Despite being a spell caster and the fact this isn't LoL, he presence does not diminish thanks to his passive- one that deals percentile damage of their current health! (11% at max!)
Ganks like a pro.

Zeus is one hell of a glass cannon. While he deals devastating damage, he is frail and would absolutely crumble against almost everything. A little poke on the shoulder with Phantom Assassins Dagger and you would see a God on his knees begging for mercy. In this guide we will be addressing Zeus's many weaknesses and trying to "solve" them as much as we can.

Things to take note

1) Zeus's ultimate isn't to "kill steal"
2) He is not overpowered as he has his own weaknesses.
3) You're still here? Huh, maybe my guide isn't too bad after all
4) Zeus requires some "level of skill" in a sense. (Don't worry he isn't too hard!)

PROS AND CONS

PROS

-Powerful Nukes
-Relatively easy
-Great Ganker
-Spell Caster that can scale
-Counters Invisible Heroes
-Lovely beard
-Best known in the pro scene for his consistent damage output

CONS

-Frail (ironic for a god)
-Stupid Attack Animation
-Burns through mana
-Relies a lot on spells (useless when silenced)
-Really frail
-Have I ever mentioned how frail he is?

Item Analysis.

It's amazing you are still here

Congratulations- you have reached the most boring (and most important!) part of this guide.

Item Explanation

Starting Items:
The reason Zeus's starting items are relatively cheap is because you need to rush that bottle. Grab the salve if you expect you're going to need it or switch it for a mantle which you would build into your Null Talisman. Grab more clarities- the more the merrier. Your going to spam your Arc Lightning as much as possible so the clarities will help-ALOT. Spamming you Arc Lightning is EXTREMELY IMPORTANT so the bottle is a MUST if you're in the solo mid position. I will explain the importance of Arc Lightning later.

Early:
There isn't much to say here. Just grab your boots and bottle and continue farming and refilling your bottle- your courier is your servant so use it. If you got a mantle early on do craft it into a null talisman but if you didn't get it as your starting items you can still buy a talisman anyway. After all, it gives you slightly more mana and auto attack damage(though you should mainly be using your q to farm) and you eventually need to get it anyway for your Veil Of Discord. Just make sure that you get your bottle ASAP before anything else as its benefits are too good for you to ignore. WARD THE RUNES.

Core:
Ah, now I have so much to talk about here. I honestly don't really understand why everyone seems to rush an Aghanim's Scepter first. The stats it provides are great and all but the ultimate upgrade doesn't seem to good compared to a Veil of Discord. Let us do some Maths here.

Damage by Ultimate= 356 (reduction by magic resist)
Aghs: 480 (after the standard magic resist)
Veil: 475 FULL

There is a 5 DAMAGE DIFFERENCE for something that's HALF THE PRICE. PLUS the veil is not only cheaper but also boost the damage of your other skills AND the spells your team mates cast as well!

As mentioned, Zeus is frail and has no abilities that allow him to escape. It would be good having supports that can back him up by letting him escape easily. But if you don't have them both Eul's and Force Staff are great. Don't get both though! In my opinion Eul's is a much better choice than force staff. It disables and gives Zeus movement speed (Zeus has below average base movement speed) but force staff has much more utility. A blink dagger can be considered but personally I don't recommend it.

Bloodstone is great for the obvious- practically endless mana meaning more spells to cast. Great! Now what do you get- a refresher orb or a Agnahim Scepter?

Refresher Orb- TWO ULTS! WHO DOESNT LOVE TWO ULTS?
Pros: Total Damage is devastating- 475+475=950 (assuming with veil)
Good Health and Mana Regeneration
Cons: Long cooldown (160 seconds)
VERY COSTLY (375+450+450= 1275 mana)
Can be slightly unreliable

Aghanim's Scepter:
Pros: Solid damage increase
Good Stats
Cheaper than Refresher
Cons: Not as much extra damage compared to Refresher

But in the end, all of this is up to personal preference (mine is still refresher orb)
But hey, if you have the bling why not buy both?

GANKING KIT:
Zeus is slow. No offense Grandfather Mario! However, he has INSANE ganking potential due to his staggering damage output. Ouch. Similarly to Pudge he can be avoided easily. Thus grabbing a smoke of deceit and a tp scroll can help you avoid those pesky wards. The runes mentioned (invis and haste) increase the chances of a successful gank but those appearing is all luck.

Abilities

Arc Lightning

Hurls a bolt of lightning that leaps through nearby enemy units.

Cast Range: 850
Bounce Distance: 500
Number Of Bounces: 5/7/9/15
Damage: 85/100/115/145

Arc Lightning is Zeus' favourite spell to use against puny mortals.

Cooldown: 1.75 Mana: 65/70/75/80

This is your MOST IMPORTANT skill during the LANING PHASE! That's why you need so many clarity- don't blame me! Blame Valve XD!
Despite it being it being so good we are only getting one level in it as the base 85 damage is more than enough to farm. Besides, its cooldown is only 1.75 seconds on ALL LEVELS which is amazing! Do note that it does bounce meaning you can farm multiple creeps at once! This is essential as Zeus's attack animation is not the greatest and easiest to master. Thanks to the recent 6.82 update this skill's cast range increases, solving problems about enemies escaping. DO NOTE EVERYTIME YOU ACTIVATE THIS ABILITY IT ALSO ACTIVATES STATIC FIELD MEANING INSANE DAMAGE!


Lightning Bolt

Calls down a bolt of lightning to strike an enemy unit, causing damage and a mini-stun. When cast, Lightning Bolt briefly provides unobstructed vision and True Sight around the target in a 750 radius. Can be cast on the ground, affecting the closest enemy hero in 325 range.

Cast Range: 700
Damage: 100/175/275/350

Cooldown: 6 Mana: 75/95/115/135


Probably Zeus's strongest ability with only a six second cooldown and a huge 360 damage!
Things to note:

MINI STUNS- Don't be afraid to interrupt channeling spells and is probably the most reliable ministun in the game with its short cooldown since 6.82. (poor Sniper's headshot passive got nerfed...nah he deserved it)

PROVIDES TRUE VISION WHERE IT LANDS- This counters ALOT of heroes who depend on invisibility eg. Nyx Assassin and Bounty Hunter

One more thing if your enemy seems just out of range try targeting it on the ground close by and it will target the nearest enemy hero!
Just too overpowered. "Volvo plz fix"

Technically due to its "hero finder" ability its total range is 1025
If you suspect an invisible enemy is nearby use your lightning bolt first then your ultimate in order not to waste your ultimate damage. The true sight given does reveal wards so do use it to de-ward. Unobstructed vision provided as part of the "OWN YOUR FACE" package.


Static Field

Zeus shocks all nearby enemy units whenever he casts a spell, causing damage proportional to their current health.

Radius: 1200
Percentage Of Current HP Dealt As Damage: 5%/7%/9%/11%

The air crackles with static when the Thunder God walks the world.


The skill you max second! Its insanely powerful especially if they have full health and its damage scaling is similar to Nyx Assassin's Mana Burn or Lifestealer's passive lifesteal. (which is percentile damage)

STATIC FIELD FOR DUMMIES

Basically the more health the enemies have the more damage you do. That means if you want to deal the maximum amount of damage to a target using this skill you are going to have to deal minimum damage at the start- basically Ark Lightning. This should be the standard combo:

Ark Lightning...R A - - R A- - A- -
Lightning bolt..R R A - - - - - - A
Ultimate........R R R A ....(long cool down)

Legend: ---- = cooldown (1 second each dash)
A = activated
R = ready
Does not represent cast time.
During the cooldown duration you may auto attack or use your items as you please.
Use [Veil of Discord] after the first ark lightning and before your ultimate and you lightning bolt.


Thundergod's Wrath

Strikes all enemy heroes with a massive bolt of heavenly lightning, no matter where they may be. Thundergod's Wrath also provides True Sight around each hero struck. If an enemy hero is invisible, it takes no damage, but the True Sight is still created at that hero's location.

Radius: Global
Damage: 225/350/475 (440/540/640*)
Sight Radius: 1000
True Sight Radius: 900
Sight/True Sight Duration: 3

The Lord of Heaven smites all who oppose him, near or far.


Hahahahahaahehehehhuhuh...oh dear. Explaining this is going to be a pain.

HOW TO USE THUNDERGOD'S WRATH

1ST STEP: SCRATCH YOUR HAND
2ND STEP: BRACE YOURSELF FOR A WORLD OF HATE
3RD STEP: PRESS R
4TH STEP: DEAL INSANE DAMAGE TO EVERYONE, EVERYWHERE!
5TH STEP: KILLSTEAL
6TH STEP: NOW CRY AS EVERYONE HATES ON YOU.

Okay let's admit it, step 6 isn't avoidable. Not everyone can respect the power of a god. But we can avoid step 5. Instead of using it to purposely get a kill use it to rather deal massive damage in a teamfight or finish a foe that has successfully escaped with low health.

Basically Zeus's ult hits everyone on the map. Gives vision (true sight) for 3 seconds of all enemy heroes.

Side Lane

You might have noticed I have also included a side lane skill build. The only real difference is terms of skill build is when you take Static Field. The following is the reason why you take Static Field earlier in the side lane.

STATIC FIELD EFFECTIVE AGAINST STRENGTH HEROES
While Static Field does the standard 11% (at max lvl) damage despite how much health you have, technically it will deal more damage if your enemy has more health meaning more strength. Now lets analyse the amount of strength heroes that go to a specific lane.

Mid Strength Heroes:
Pudge
Brewmaster
(All I can think of)

The rest of the strength heroes generally just day dream in the side lanes. Basically it means the likely hood of a Strenght hero going to the side lane is more than a strength hero going to the mid lane. Thanks to your Static Field passive, harassing high health enemies has never been easier. However Static Field does affect creeps, pushing the lane and your arc lightning also pushes the lane thus you generally try to avoid it because while you have all the farm to yourself in the mid lane, you might be depriving your carry of his farm by pushing the lane. Then again, arc lightning already pushed the lane and its what usually is used to proc your Static Field passive. What I'm trying to say is a sidelane Zeus is something you should try to stay away from.

Items:
Start off with the basic regeneration. Grab a good old soul ring recipie as you can't purchase it from the side lane and you want to leave the courier to your mid hero.(which couldn't be you D:) Finish your soul ring and don't purchase your bottle as it is for your team mid solo. The soul ring is the first thing you rush! As you lose quite a lot of health using the soul ring, get a tranquil boots. Not only does it regenerate your health in between ganks but gives you extra movespeed and the regeneration makes up for the health loss from soul ring. DO NOT use your auto attacks to harass as it will put your boots on cooldown and your attack animation is ****py and does little damage anyways. Instead keep using soul ring and Lightning bolt to harass as Lightning bolt does more damage and does not push the creep wave.

Role Play

Aww...Zeus needs some cosmetics...

Now we will be focusing on Zeus's role during a team fight.

1) Let your team initiate
2) Stay at the back and cast spells. Ever since the recent update, the range on Zeus's spells have increased.
3)Make sure to cast your veil of discord. Use your force staff to move allies or even ally initiators into position.
4) Smite all of your enemies

Allies and Enemies

FRIENDS

These guys increase Zeus's magic damage a lot. Other heroes who fit this description : Elder Titan, etc

ENEMIES

Rubick gives magic resistance to his entire team, making your spells less effective as he throws you up in the air, steals your ultimate and laughs at you. Other heroes who have in built magic resistance include: Pudge and Anti-Mage Oh and by the way, try not to let Rubick steal your ultimate. It ain't nice.


Do I really have to explain. These guys prevent you from casting your spells, making you absolutely useless. "These guys" include Silencer himself, Drow, Bloodseeker and so on.

FRENEMY

Since the new 6.82 this guy can increase Zeus's damage by 40% but on the other hand makes the already frail Zeus easier to kill.

DESPICABLE

Zeus's enemy. Not only does he silence you, laugh as you while you flop around as a frog and kill you in a single hit with his ultimate but he also comes from Hell. Great!

LANING AGAINST THEM

There isn't much you can do against this guy. Try avoiding silencer's q and you should be fine. Use your arc lightning to last hit and then back away. If silencer gets zone out still try to stay uphill.


Try getting static field at level 2 when there is a Pudge. Generally you should be rather safe as Pudge is a melee hero. When getting rune and you can't see a Pudge on the mini map be careful. Immediately call missing and use thunderbolt on the other side of the river and always be ready to juke. Lightning bolt should reveal Pudge even if he has a smoke. If you do reveal him quickly move away from a possible hook. Always de-ward with your Lightning Bolt against a Pudge when trying to get runes.


Queen of Pain is another glass cannon similar to you. Against her you can play more aggressively. Smack her with Lightning bolt to deal some serious damage and she will back away easily. Thus grab even MORE mana pots to continue you harass. If she plays aggressive fight fire with fire. Generally remain in the uphill position and go down and smack her with a lightning bolt. Always click on the ground and do not directly click on her. In terms of runes, she will generally get there faster. Stay at the uphill near the rune and if you see her blink at the rune quickly reveal your self and zap her. There is a 6 second opening for you to kill her. She wont be to use her e as her blink would be on cooldown and she wouldn't be able to get close to you enough. Deal a good enough amount of damage so that she will go back to base. The two scenarios:

1) QOP stays in lane. Allowing you to kill her
2) QOP goes back to base. Allowing you to farm

General Guidelines Against QOP
-Play safe by staying far away and farming using arc lightning
-You can play aggressive against QOP when her blink is on cooldown (still keep a certain distance away)


This guy is one pain in the arse. Old Man meat Fat man. Fat Man meat Old Man. Generally you should be safe and away from his static remnants. The range on his disable is pretty low so you can avoid it easily. It all ends when Storm Spirit gets his ultimate, jumps on you and kills you. Not fun.


Pain right up your godly arse. Nuke? Check. Silence? Check. Unable to escape spell? 3 ticks! Bummer. How to handle him? Just spam your nukes, hope he dies quickly. In lane, fighting for the rune is going to be hard, almost impossible. Bottle crowing is your only option and thanks to the 6.83 update, bottle crowing has been nerfed. Merry christmas from valve!






(I will be adding more later on)

The End

I know it's sad. I'm crying too.

I hope you all enjoyed this Zeus guide. I know Zeus isn't popular with the ladies (in Dota anyway)! I enjoyed making this guide and as I mentioned its my first guide so please tell me what I could I improve in :D Any tips you have please tell me!

Bye all of you mortal fools!

-TheNoobyChocobo


Hit everything, Hit everyone!

6.84

6.84 in a nutshell:

New items everywhere
Mangoes are situational (Useful but pricey for a single use item)
Octarine Core= HOLY ****
- Arc Lightning= 1.3 sec cd
- Lightning Bolt= 4.5 sec cd
MAGIC STEALZ
Pricey Late game item

Bit of Zeus nerfs (nothing to game changing)

Gameplay change: Supports given much more love

Updates

9 Oct
Published Guide

10 Oct
Added Side Lane Build

11 Oct
Additional Lane Guide

13 Oct
Updating Laning Guide

9 May
6.84