Timbersaw - FIREWALKER sharpens the Sawblade

I'll Cut Everyone!

FIREWALKER reporting for duty. Hopefully by now I know what I'm doing! Well, we won't know until I get on with cutting down every tree in sight this guide, so here goes...

Rizzrack the TImbersaw

Timbersaw is a tanky, melee Strength hero capable of dishing out tons of damage. Rizzrack's lore reads as follows...



Rizzrack could still hear the screams in his mind. He worked, frantically turning wrenches, twisting screws, building and carving and forging. Sleep eluded him; he only built. Months had passed since he had shut himself in his uncle's workshop, and his deliverance was nearly complete. He rubbed his back as his eyes drifted shut, and saw a blanket of flowers floating on the placid waves of Augury Bay before exploding into a cloud of pollen that silenced lives as it seized the lungs. He woke with a choking start. For hours the rhythmic sound of a whetstone filled the shop as he sharpened a set of massive blades, his mind filled with images of strangling vines garroting neighbors, enwrapping homes. The flooding of Augury Bay had been nothing compared to the violent horrors the waters left to take root beyond the city walls. But the saw-suit would make him strong and safe he thought, allowing himself this sliver of hope before the full might of his fear crashed into his fading mind. Branches and blood. When the city fell, Rizzrack fled trees that walked, and fought, and killed. Trees had shattered the gates and swarmed into the city. Trees had crushed and thrashed and stomped the last that Augury Bay could muster in defense, and stalked the few fleeing refugees. In addled silence Rizzrack unspooled the thick chain from the suit's arm, his hands quaking as he inspected each link and ran a trembling finger along the claw attached at its end. The saw-suit was ready.
With his hand trembling he sparked the bladed machine to life. Terror drove him, terror of what awaited him and of what he would have to face to have any hope of calming his mind. As the saw-suit shuddered to life he knew he must face this fear, and he knew he wouldn't like it one bit.

Stats

Strength: 21 + 1.8 per lvl
Agility: 16 + 1.3 per lvl
Intelligence: 21 + 2.4 per lvl

Health at lvl 25: 1480
Mana at lvl 25: 986

Base Damage: 26-30
Armor at level 1: 0.29
Movementspeed: 290
Base Attack Time: 1.7
Turn Rate: 0.6

Official Roles: Nuker, Durable, Escape

Initial Thoughts

Timbersaw scales well into the late game and is a fitting hero for the core position. His skills deal high amounts of burst damage, but he requires a lot of Mana to sustain this.

Bloodstone is a core item because of this, although the hero doesn't need much more.

Highly capable of farming the safelane, Timbersaw's Reactive Armor also allows him to soak up tons of harass in the offlane, using Timber Chain to escape the lane when things get hairy. The same counts for the mid lane. Whirling Death is also a very nice ability to help with last hitting, and can be used to harass enemy melee laners.

Pros and Cons

Pros

• Enormous amounts of nuke damage
• Good creep clear
• Strong teamfight damage
• Decent mobility with Timber Chain
• Capable of contesting in multiple lanes
• High Armor
  
  

Cons

• Mana promblems without items
• Needs levels and items to be usefull
• Susceptible to magical/pure damage
• Susceptible to Silences and Stuns

Ability Descriptions

Timbersaw's first ability, Whirling Death deals magical damage to enemies in an 300 AoE around him on cast. The ability destroys trees caught in the AoE, and if a tree is destroyed the ability deals pure damage instead of magical. Affected enemy heroes get debuffed, causing them to lose 15% of their primary attributes for 14 seconds.

Manacost 70 70 70 70

Damage 100 150 200 250

Cooldown 6 6 6 6

Affected by Talents: Timbersaw's Talent Tree gives an option at level 25 to increase the attribute reduction by 6%.

In the case that Rizzrack gets surrounded by the vines and plants of nightmares, he has an immediate chainsaw defense.

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Timber Chain allows Timbersaw to cross impassable terrain. Targeting a point throws out a chain towards the point, colliding with the first tree in its way and pulling Timbersaw towards it. Enemies caught in Timbersaw's path take pure damage as he passes through them.

Manacost 60 70 80 90

Damage 100 140 185 220

Range 800 1000 1200 1400

Cooldown 4 4 4 4

You never know when you might need to escape from malevolent saplings.

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Reactive Armor, Timbersaw's passive skill and the reason that he is so tanky. Every time Timbersaw gets attacked he gains a stack, and each stack provides him with HP Regeneration and Armor.

Armor per Stack 1 1,2 1.4 1.6

HP Regen per Stack 1 1,2 1.4 1.6

Max Stacks 5 10 15 20

Stack Duration 10 13 16 19

The saw-suit is equipped to react to the slightest touch with fortified defenses.

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Timbersaw's ultimate ability, Chakram, throws out a blade, dealing damage to enemies caught in its path and slowing them, disarming Timbersaw himself in the process.

Upon reaching its destination, the blade stays stationary, dealing damage per second to enemies in it's AoE and slowing them. The slow starts at 5% and increases for every 5% of HP missing from the affected enemy.

The blade will stay at the location, draining Timbersaw's mana per second. Using the ability again will recall the blade. It will return by itself as soon as Timbersaw moves more than 2000 range away, or when his mana runs out. As soon as the blade has returned, Timbersaw is able to attack again. The blade deals damage again if it returns through enemies.

Damage dealt by Chakram is pure, and the ability cuts down trees in its path.

Manacost 100 150 200

Mana Cost per Second 20 25 30

Pass Damage 100 140 180

Damage per Second 50 75 100

Cooldown 8 8 8

Upgradeable by Aghanim's Scepter: Adds another ability to Timbersaw allowing him to cast a second Chakram on its own cooldown.

The ultimate in anti-flora weaponry. Cut cut cut cut cut cut cut cut cut cut cut!

Ability Usage

Whirling Death is a strong nuking ability. It provides some extra help with last hitting in lane and decimates enemy melee laners. Whirling Death can also be used for farming, clearing out creep waves and jungle stacks. Grabbing it early ensures that Timbersaw has a strong laning presence. The stat reduction also reduces enemies' damage, creating an easier lane. Reducing a percentage of stats allows this ability to scale into the late game

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Timber Chain is a strong mobility skill that also provides some damage, though it only works near trees. It can be used to chase enemies or escape ganks. Put an early point in this if you think you might need to use it for an escape, getting out of a gank in-lane. Especially useful in this regard while playing in the offlane.

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Reactive Armor stays strong throughout the whole game. it provides Timbersaw regeneration and armor to help stay in lane in the early game. The armor increases Timbersaw's effective HP by a good margin against right clickers, even into the late game.

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Chakram is a strong, spammable nuke. It's AoE damage and slow gives Timbersaw a strong teamfight presence. The ability can also be used as a farming tool and can clear creep waves easily. Like most nukes it falls off slightly into the late game, but spamming it can continue to deal tons of damage.

Talent Tree

Level 10

+150 HP vs +10% XP Gain

The extra HP might help if the game is hard, but Timbersaw is naturally tanky.
The 10% bonus experience will usually be of more use, allowing Timbersaw to level quickly and maxing out his nukes(and skill tree) earlier in the game, allowing them to have a bigger impact.

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Level 15

+14 HP Regen vs +15 Intelligence

15 Intelligence is a lot, but at this stage you should have enough mana and mana regeneration from items such as Bloodstone to make this talent obsolete.
The HP regeneration, on the other hand, synergizes well with Reactive Armor and allows you to stay in fights longer and return to base less.

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Level 20

+5% Spell Amplification vs +125 Cast Range

5% Spell Amp doesn't seem like much, but it can make a difference.
The Cast Range provides a much different boost, affecting both items and abilities. The extra Timber Chain range can allow you to make otherwise impossible escapes, while more range on Charkram can help cut down fleeing enemies.

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Level 25

+6% Whirling Death Attribute Reduction vs +20 Strength

20 Strength provides a nice boost of 200 HP, but the bonus attack damage will go to waste.
The bonus attribute reduction can really hurt some enemies. Whirling Death has a very short cooldown, and with the debuffs stacking it allows the 6% to easily become 12, or even 18!

Item Build

Starting Items

Tangoes usually gives enough regeneration for the laning stage. Combining this with Reactive Armor allows you to sustain against great amounts of harass.



Some damage block from a Stout Shield allows Timbersaw, as a melee hero, to soak up even more harass.



Quelling Blade helps Timbersaw land some extra last hits, counter balancing his pitiful right click.



Get a Healing Salve instead of a Quelling Blade if you’re expecting a lot of harass in lane, especially in the off lane.

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Early Game Items

A standard pickup, upgradable into Arcane Boots and Boots of Travel




Soul Ring gives some extra regeneration and will later get upgraded into Bloodstone

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Core Item

Timbersaw's abilities grant him high damage, survivability and mobility. The hero's only real problem is mana. Bloodstone provides ample mana regeneration and is the only item that is really needed on Timbersaw to function. Arcane Boots can be disassembled and the Energy Booster used for the Bloodstone.

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Damage Items

Usually one of the following damage items are needed:


The second Chakram provided by Aghanim's Scepter gives a lot of bonus damage and teamfight presence. Aghanim's Scepter cannot be dropped or sold after equipping it on Timbersaw


Dagon
Dagon provides a lot of single target burst damage.

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Defensive Items

A solid pick up on all cores, Black King Bar counters many incoming spells and all magical damage.



Shiva's Guard provides some nice armor and even more teamfight presence, as well as some extra creep clear.



Timbersaw has a decent chunk of HP, perfect for turning enemies' damage against them. Though not the perfect item for Timbersaw, Blade Mail can be excellent against glass cannon carries.



Lotus Orb's active effect purges a variety of debuffs such as silences. The spell return will also make enemies think twice before they target you.



Eul's Scepter of Divinity allows you to purge yourself and enemies, and acts as a poor man's Scythe of Vyse for disabling enemies.



Though not the perfect item for Timbersaw's playstyle, Heart of Tarrasque provides a ton of raw HP.



Enemy right clickers getting you down? Ghost Scepter can easily put a stop to that! Just be weary of incoming magic damage.



Reactive Armor gives Timbersaw a high resistance against physical damage, but the hero lacks a defensive mechanism against magical damage. Pipe of Insight provides a nice aura to the team, but if they don't need it a simple Hood of Defiance will do.



A temporary defense against magical damage, Infused Raindrops also provides some mana regeneration.

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Miscellaneous

Sheepstick provides some nice stats, but more importantly a very strong disable, something that Timbersaw lacks.



No one will say no to some extra mobility. Blink Dagger allows for perfect positioning to land Chakram and Whirling Death. It can also be combined with Timber Chain, Blinking while the chain goes out, to chain in from a different angle.



A standard upgrade on most heroes, saving some slots and reducing the cooldown on Teleportation.




A good pickup on most mid heroes, Bottle can provide some extra regeneration and the ability to store runes if you choose to take Timbersaw into the mid lane, though it is not recommended when playing him in one of the side lanes.




Octarine Core provides some unique effects. Spell Lifesteal makes Timbersaw much harder to bring down, and the cooldown reduction allows him to use his abilities more often, becoming an even greater threat.


Linkin’s Sphere
A highly situational pick up, Linken’s Sphere might be needed against some single target disables.

Playstyle

Early Game - Offlane

In a 1 v 2 or 1 v 3 laning situation, the most important thing is to stay alive. Hang back and stay within XP range. Try getting a few last hits when it is safe to do so, using Whirling Death to ensure them. Against melee heroes Whirling Death also becomes a dangerous harassing tool. It can also work against ranged heroes, if you manage to get close enough. Use Timber Chain to safely escape incoming ganks and Reactive Armor’s survivability to help stay in lane.

Some offlaners such as Clockwerk doesn’t need any items to be effective. Timbersaw is a bit more greedy, as without Bloodstone he suffers from serious mana issues. Luckily Timbersaw has strong abilities, with mana being his only problem. Use these abilities to farm creep waves and jungle stacks to get enough gold.

Grab as much farm as you safely can from the hard lane, using stacks to catch up later. Stay in the lane as long as possible to at least get some experience. Use the nearby Shrine to regenerate if needed to avoid going all the way back to the fountain. The same counts for going up against a dual mid matchup.

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Early Game - Midlane

In most 1 v 1 matchups, in any lane, Timbersaw can go really aggressive. Be sure to get a good creep score, last hitting and also denying where possible. Whirling Death can help you score some extra last hits, and also push out the lane before going to grab a rune.

Bottle is a strong pickup, especially if you have better rune control than your opponent. Infused Raindrops are also a good pickup, capable of replacing Bottle by helping with mana regen. It’s also a good defense against incoming nukes.

Timbersaw can go especially aggressive against melee heroes, tanking through creep agro with Reactive Armor and dishing out tons of harass with Whirling Death.

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Mid Game

Mid Game is where Timbersaw shines. Being a tank with tons of burst damage, you can play really aggressively, using any kill opportunity with your team. Focus key targets, killing of squishy heroes instantly and disrupting the enemy carries’ farm. Use Shrines to regenerate between fights, keeping your downtime to a minimum. Remember, just being in a fight grants you more Bloodstone charges, so be present at all times

Continue farming on your own in between fights, keeping up that creep score. Remember to leave enough farm for other, harder carries on your team, but clear stacks when possible with your AoE abilities. Ancients aren’t spell immune anymore, allowing Timbersaw to farm them to. Use this to your advantage, snowballing out of control.

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Late Game

At this stage Timbersaw won’t be such a powerhouse as he was in the mid game, but he’ll still be effective. Harder carries will shine now, but Timbersaw’s burst damage will still hurt.

Timbersaw is able to transition into a more utilitarian tank role, providing a strong front liner to soak damage for the team, while still dealing out some himself. Items such as Scythe of Vyse provides the means to disable enemies, allowing your hard carries to go wild.

Timbersaw’s AoE abilities are especially effective for clearing creep waves, vital for pushing down enemy towers. Always remember to save enough money for buyback.

Friends, Foes and Food

Friends

Mana batteries such as Crystal Maiden and Keeper of the Lightsolves your early game mana problems.




Support is a key role in DotA 2 that is sometimes underrated, especially in pubs. A good support, willing to stack, can help get a snowball rolling.




Some more nukes to add to your own, quickly bursting down any enemy standing in your way.





Timbersaw provides a lot to his team, but one thing he can’t do is push down towers. Pair him up with strong pushers to fill that void.

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Foes

While their combined burst damage can devastate enemies, these same heroes can destroy Timbersaw in return, ignoring his high armor. Grabbing early Infused Raindrops and building at least a Hood of Defiance is mandatory against these heroes.


As strong a foe as he is a friend, Keeper of the Light is pain to lane against if he is part of an enemy tri-lane. Mana Leak provides the enemy opportunities to easily kill Timbersaw. Without mana Timbersaw can’t cast any of his abilities, preventing him from turning the fight around or escaping with Timber Chain. Play extra carefully in lane against Keeper of the Light, and get a defensive item such as Eul’s Scepter of Divinity or Lotus Orb to purge off Mana Leak.



Strong disables, paired with enough damage, can shut down Timbersaw easily. Positioning against such heroes is key. Linken’s Sphere might be needed against disablers such as Doom and Black King Bar against the likes of heroes such as Lion.

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Food

Melee cores really suffer against Timbersaw, having to get close up to damage him and making themselves easy targets for his abilities.




Timbersaw feasts on strength cores, reducing both their maximum HP and their damage with Whirling Death’s attribute reduction.




Heroes relying on physical damage struggle to kill Timbersaw through his high armor.





Monkey King gives Timbesaw a reason to fear trees...and a reason to cut them down.





Like all burst damage heroes, Timbersaw enjoys bullying squishy heroes.

I'm a Lumberjack and I'm Okay!

Timbersaw is a strong, well rounded core hero, capable of contending in any of the lanes. His abilities allows him to farm quickly and become a devastating force, snowballing into the mid game, while also scaling towards the late game.

Timbersaw has a lot of burst damage, but his AoE abilities also grant him a strong teamfight presence, simultaneously helping him build up more Bloodstone charges. Reactive Armor makes him really tanky, while spamming Whirling Death and Chakram can devastate an enemy team if Timbersaw is left unchecked. Chasing down stragglers or escaping ganks is a breeze with well placed Timber Chains.

Feel free to leave a comment with any criticism, suggestions or questions.


Good Luck and Have Fun
FIREWALKER out

**Updated for 7.01**