Balanar the Train (Choo Choo!)

Introduction

Hi all! This is my second guide in Dotafire.com. I accept all criticism better than praises.

So you want to pick Night Stalker eh? First you must learn that he is a very scary hero during the night and a weakling during the day. He cannot tank and deal out enough damage UNLESS he is built correctly

If you are not familiar with Night Stalker already, watch this video made my DotaCinema.
Play Video

Lore

Firstly, to play Balanar, you have to BE Balanar.

Of the Night Stalker, there is no history - only stories. There are ancient tales woven into the lore of every race and every culture, of an impossible time before sunlight and daytime, when night reigned alone and the world was covered with the creatures of darkness creatures like Balanar the Night Stalker.

It is said that on the dawn of the First Day, all the night creatures perished. All, that is, save one. Evil's embodiment, Night Stalker delights in his malevolence. He created the primal role of the Night Terror, the Boogeyman, and as long as there have been younglings, his is the specter summoned to terrify them. This is a role he relishes-nor are these empty theatrics. He does indeed stalk the unwary, the defenseless, those who have strayed beyond the lighted paths or denied the warnings of their communities. Night Stalker serves as living proof that every child's worst nightmare....is true.

How we are going to build the Night Stalker

LIKE A TRAIN. CHOO CHOO MOTHERF*CKERS

Pros and Cons

Pros:
1. Relatively easy hero to play.
2. Can outrun anyone once a Boots of Travel is picked up
3. Longest silent in the game
4. The nuke is also a slow which would make chasing easier.
5. Able to wallhack once Aghanim's Scepter
6. Has a very tanky health when built correctly.

Cons:
1. You will be severely nerfed during the day
2. The duration of the Crippling Fear spell is shortened.
3. You must have some basic knowledge before playing him. E.g, Ganking, Juking and the correct hero to silent

A heads up

1. Night Stalker is a ganking machine during the night. Not ganking during the night may result in a game loss.

2. Diving past towers are most of the time worth it UNLESS the enemy hero has his whole team backed up or is at full health. This is where many people would mess up. Normal people would dive past towers even if that one hero is at full health.

3. Night Stalker is meant to be played as one of the scariest heroes in the game. So man up and rush to people. Do not play like a little B*tch.

4. The items and skill builds listed above are meant to be followed but not completely. You have to adapt to the game. For example, if you feel that you do not need a Shadow Blade, then skip it and build your Morbid Mask first.

5. To play Night Stalker correctly, you have to improve your knowledge on the juking spots and familiarize yourself with some tower and spell mechanics to chase effectively.

Skills Explanation and Justification

[Q] Void

This skill slows down the enemy while doing a 335 magical damage nuke on enemy units. Not only does it slow them by 50%, it also decreases their attack speed by 35%. This would be the primary damage source for Night Stalker. Please note that Void is spammable when the mana pool is managed correctly.

P.S Void does full damage during the daytime but only slows for 2 seconds. and it ministuns the target so it would cancel tps.

[W] Crippling Fear

This skill affects enemy unit. Crippling Fear silences the enemy target for upto 8 seconds during the night and 3 seconds during the day. It also applies a chance of the attacks of the targeted unit to miss.

[E] Hunter in the Night

This skill is what gives Balanar the name Night Stalker. It is a passive ability that increases [[Night Stalker]'s movement speed by up to 35% and increases his attack speed by up to 75. Note that this passive would only work during the night. So during the day, he would not benefit from this skill at all.

[R] Darkness

This skill is what synergies with Night Stalker's other skills. Basically, he would pause the Day/Night clock and create a night cycle to up to 80 seconds. The more you skill this skill, the more the cooldown decreases and the duration increases. So ultimately, you would be able to get a full uninterrupted 20 minutes night, provided that this skill is used the moment it turned night and the skill is continuously used when the cool down is off.

NOTE: When you use this skill during the day, it must be for a GUARANTEED kill or to escape a whole team chasing after you.

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You have to max out Void and Hunter in the Night first as when the first night approaches, you would want to be seen as a train charging to the enemy. BUT add your Crippling Fear at level 5 just in case an enemy is trying to spam their skills on you during your ganks also, is also will help secure an early first blood if your partner is good.

Crippling Fear is generally always a good skill when you roam and gank the other lanes as most heroes would depend on their skills often. However some do not depend on active skill. I.E Sniper, any other hard right clickers.

When the first night comes, it is recommended that you get your level 6 quickly to extend the night time by using your ultimate Darkness.

Item Justification

-Starting Items

1. Tango and Healing Salve - Basic regeneration items


2. Gauntlets of Strength - This Gauntlet gives you 3 strength which is your primary attribute. more strength means more health means more tank.

3. Stout Shield - This item is common in most of my builds as it blocks great damage from creeps and from heroes when you are lucky. It is like having Phantom Assassin's Blur or Faceless Void's Backtrack but only better. This can be built into a Poor Man's Shield later on.

4. Quelling Blade - You can substitute this item with Stout Shield but later on you have to buy the whole Poor Man's Shield but you will be last hitting better. You can get this additional item if you random Night Stalker.

-What you should have when the first night arrives
(You should be getting this before 5 minutes)

1. Boots of Speed - This is the basic item every hero should get when they have the money so no explanation is needed.

2. Urn of Shadows - Since you would be doing a lot of ganking, you would need Urn to store charges and to heal you and your allies up after a successful gank. It also gives you decent mana regeneration to keep you in the battlefield longer before returning to base to regen your mana. (YOU MUST HAVE THIS BEFORE YOU GANK. IF YOU DONT, YOU HAVE TO GANK THE OTHER LANE WHEN YOU HAVE THIS ITEM)

3. Bottle - This item gives you enough regeneration of mana and health before you gank to make sure you are able to cast your spells. Bottle also helps you to last hit better as it gives you mana to cast your Void

-Core Items

1. Phase Boots - This item would make you run at maximum speed when activated during the night provided that your Hunter in the Night is at level 4. Many heroes cannot outrun Night Stalker when he runs at max speed. Just imagine a blue beast running at you and gaining. Phase Boots would give you a little more damage to farm when it turns to day.

2. Drum of Endurance - This item gives good stats and damage. More stats -> More strength -> More Health -> More tanky. Also when activated, it gives bonus armor for everyone in your team!

3. Shadow Blade - This item makes you invisible and it makes you an initiator for teamfights. Shadow Blade also gives you a speed buff when activated. This item is extremely useful for getting away during the day when you are nerfed heavily.

4. Helm of Dominator - This lifesteal item is ideal for Night Stalker because it gives you more damage and more armor which makes Night Stalker a little bit tankier to physical attacks.

5. Skull Basher - This item lets you bash enemies that are getting away giving you time to catchup or unleash a few more hits on them to secure the kill. Take note that Skull Basher also gives you a damage boost of 40 and a 6 strength boost which would make you become a little tankier.

6. Armlet of Mordiggan - Armlet gives you more damage and health when activated sooo it would make you more tanky if you weren't already. Also, while getting away, there is such a thing called Armlet toggling. It means switching off and on the armlet to give you another 450 health.

-Luxury Items
(Oh now you are farmed as heck)

1. Boots of Travel - This item lets you run at maximum speed during the night at ALL times. Making you more feared for. You can also split push with this mechanism

3. Heart of Tarrasque - This item makes you the TANKING MACHINE. It gives you a whopping 300 HP and 40 Strength. That makes your hp go up by a thousand at least. Also please note that when you are not being attacked by any hero, for 10 seconds, you will quickly regenerate health like Slark's Ulti Shadow Dance.

4. Abyssal Blade - This item can be upgraded from your Skull Basher. This item will give you 10 strength and 100 damage. This would make you more tankier and even harder to kill. Also, please note that Abyssal Blade's active stun WILL go through magic immunity. So watch up Lifestealer and Juggernaut.


7. Black King Bar - Is there a need to elaborate on this item?

Most Important Item of All

The Eul's Scepter of Divinity gives Night Stalker what he lacks and that is teamplay and mana. This item would give an INSANE amount of mana regen for Balanar. Eul's Scepter of Divinity also helps the team by disabling a hero completely from a team fight for at least 2.5 seconds. That would give time for you and your team to finish off the rest of the enemy team.

Choosing your lane

--> Middle Lane
Many people have said strongly this is the best lane for Night Stalker mainly because he could gank either side lanes and reach his ultimate a little easier. In my opinion, this is partly true about the ganking the side lanes. But you will risk the two of the sidelanes ganking you during the daytime. Thus this lane is not recommended. Choose this only when your safe lane is occupied.


---> Safe lane. (A.K.A Top for Dire, Bot for Radiant)

In my opinion, the safe lane for Night Stalker is the best because

1) Safe farm to get his items to make him tanky early on.
2) Only the middle lane would gank but Night Stalker could hug the tower to prevent the effectiveness of the gank.
3) Easy to disappear into the fog to gank the mid lane.

---> Hard lane

This lane is suicide for you. Hard lane is generally for heroes that are ranged because they usually have a escape mechanism and it is easier for them to last hit before getting aim-ed at by the enemy's tower. Only choose this lane when you have no other choice to.

An example on how to play Balanar (with screenshots!)

I just launched a game. These are your starting items Tangos, Healing Salve and a Gauntlet of Strength

I headed to the top lane and checked out my opponent. Then i headed to the side shop

Get a Quelling Blade if your opponent have no hero that can harrass you that badly

or else get a Stout Shield

I last hit averagely and just got my Urn of Shadows when it just turned night time. I also reached level 6 and added Darkness. I'm heading to the jungle to gank middle lane

Do not forget to use your ultimate when it turns night time! it would extend the night and make you a train. Choo Choo!

I did a successful gank! I am heading to the bottom lane to gank!

Look at the map properly, those are the routes I recommend you take to gank the lanes from the top-mid, mid-bot

Done ganking bot lane and they are having a teamfight! Now what? Now you head to top lane. While the bottom are still suffering from the teamfight, head to the top lane and down the tower. Your armor and health right now are able to tank all tier 1 and tier 2 towers!

Reinforcements have arrived! Well like what you did just now, head over to the bot lane now to down the tower. Also, you should have enough cash to buy a Vanguard

Continue farming for your Phase Boots to make you really unstoppable!

Sh*t!. Its day. Well now back off as you are at your weakest state. I suggest quickly head over to the lane with no heroes!

Now, farm up for your Morbid Mask and head to the jungle.

Now you have your basic lifesteal item, go and tank all the jungle creeps' damage and gain your health back! Remember to stack every 55 seconds. Farm for your helm of the dominator next.

Now you have your Helm of Dominator. Take control of the strongest creep you can find and put him at the ancients. Stack the ancients at xx:51. This would increase your gold rate.

Hell yea its night again!. Well now you are in a good shape to gank and gank again! Follow the early game ganks again. if there are no hero line ups in the lanes, hold back for a teamfight as of yet. Wait until one person initiates. You have to be one of the first few but not the first to show up in a team fight

Teamfights are over! your team won the teamfight now what?. Well you solo push a lane to their tier two tower of course. While your other team members push the other lanes. Also keep in mind to last hit the tower as well!

Here, I sold my Poor Man's Shield to purchase a Void Stone and i also purchased a Skull Basher from the resulting gold we gained from that split push.

You should be able to farm the ancient stack you stacked up just now! When you are low on health, just retreat and urn yourself!.

Once you have your Eul's Scepter of Divinity, you should be able to solo roshan. It would be quite difficult at first but you will down roshan. Ask your team's carry to take the Aegis of Immortality. Don't forget to ulti everytime it is off cooldown during the night!

Like the strategy, have a teamfight, win and Split push!. But now, you can tank tier 3 towers!

Ah ****! its day again. Who cares? You are a Mother F'in tanky Night Stalker. YOur team carries are fat, you are a tank. You do not need the night to be effective anymore! Since you have already downned their Barracks and Towers.

If the game has not ended yet, you should be farmed enough to get a Heart of Tarrasque. And as you can see, I sold away my Phase Boots and Eul's Scepter of Divinity because by now you are unkillable unless the whole of enemy team focuses on you! Because you have 3000+hp and at least 12 Armor!. Even the fountain is scared of you! (Do not go in to the fountain).

Trick to solo Roshan

T&C
1. You must not be feeding
2. You have the items shown in the picture
3. Your team carries are not feeding

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Roshan has a spell called Spell Block which is basically a Linken's Sphere. Disable it first using your Crippling Fear then quickly cast your Void. Once your Crippling Fear cool down is over, silence Roshan to make him have a chance to miss you. <--- This is not really necessary when your mana pool is very low. The essence of this is to

1. Use your Crippling Fear to dispel Roshan's Spell Block.
2. Use your Void continuously to deal a 300 damage nuke and to slow his attacks on you while you whack away at him.
3. Your Skull Basher would also stun him sometimes, giving you time to lifesteal back some of your health back

End ^_^

Once again, I have finished another Dota 2 Guide! Hope you like and give me your feedback on this guide. Any changes that you think should be implemented just comment and if i agree, I would make changes to the guide.

Special Thanks!

-Any future critics to this guide!