Freeze 'em all! A high quality CM guide.

Welcome

Hi guys! This is my very first guide and it's about my main hero since 2009: Crystal Maiden. I hope it can be useful for both new players and the experienced ones as it shows different ways to play this amazing hero.

CM can be useless if played wrong but can be devastating and be the one who makes the difference in team fights due to her ult Freezing Field. Have a nice read and please reply if you have any questions or suggestions!

Pros and Cons

So, WHY and WHEN to pick Crystal Maiden?

As said, our little friend Crystal can help a lot your team and control enemies very well. Go ahead and pick her if:

• Your team need a support
  
• You like to play with active supports that should move around the map
  to gank
  
• Your team need disables
  

• You don't like playing support
  
• Your playstyle is throwing yourself in the middle of the other team
  
• Think that you need to farm that much, because you WILL NOT
  
• Don't know much how to ward

Item Explanation

Buy it if the other support is buying the wards.



Very good to heal after that gank or use in your carry if it's being bully in the lane



Buy it in the exit of base if you want the first blood. You can buy in the early game to gank without being noticed



Fullfills your build with your non-spent gold on consumables.



Buy when you going to a lane where much spells will be casted. Can be upgraded into a later.

and

Is a must during the early-mid game. Buy it whenever you can.



If there are some extra gold, buy it. Will help your team in team-fights and pushes.

or

Choose between one of these. If you are roaming too much, go for Tranquil. If not, go for Power Treads as it offers some extra resistence. DO NOT rush Boots of Travel, buy it only on the late game.



If you are getting extra gold, go for this item and forget about enemies stuns (be aware with Doom).

, , , , ,

These items are situationals. Buy it accordingly of what you need. The disables it offers is very utile.



ALWAYS CARRY ONE! You need to be where the fight is happening.

Skill Explanation

Well, I WILL NOT explanate skills functions, you can mouse-over them at the top of this guide. I will lead you on more: how to chain stun and coordinate properly with your team. Besides i'll explanate her ult too.



Your friend, slow for all the times
The air temperature around Rylai drops rapidly, chilling all around her to the core.


This is your main skill. It's an AoE blast that will damage and slow an enemy attack speed and movespeed. DO NOT USE IT TO FINISH OR STEAL KILLS! You are not the carry, and use it to kill only if anyone else cannot finish it.

How to use it can be simple: use after all the stuns were throwed (even yours). The reason? It's more viable use the stuns right after this spell than using it after the stuns, as the stuns will hold the target more safely and disabling completely for your team.



The three-function disable Rylai channels winds from the Blueheart Glacier, imprisoning attackers in thick blocks of ice

Your multi-way disable. When an enemy is affected by it, he will be revealed, even if it becomes invisible right after (Fu** that Riki and his Permanent Invisibility). The enemy is also rooted and unable to auto-attack or using moving spells (any sort of Blink). Deals damage and last longer on creeps, making jungling viable on the early stages of the game.

When you go to gank, you must use this skill first, as it reveals your enemy and gives more chance to succeed. You should not use it first when the enemy is carrying a Linken's Sphere. Ask for one teammate to proc it first and use yours right after.



Global mana

Well, this skill is very simple: gives for all your teammates an extra regen of mana. The amount is doubled on you and will not work while you are dead.

When to upgrade requires attention. Look at you alied heroes: if there are anyone who needs or benefits this skill for spamming to win a lane or farming ( Queen of Pain with her Shadow Strike or Phantom Assassin with her Stifling Dagger) put some points on, as it can put your team in advantage.



Snowstorm!

Once the place of her exile, Icewrack has become an anchor for Rylai's frigid onslaught.

MUAHAHAHAHA, FINALLY! This skill, can turn the tides of battles and win or lose the game to you. I'll explain separately the conditions to get a perfect ult.

The first thing is YOU NOT NEED TO FULL CHANNEL YOUR ULT. Most people thinks that to ult well with CM it's just complete the channeling of Freezing Field. It's false! There are exceptions to not complete the channeling. One of them is to eat one or more disables (if the enemy team are not so coordinated). Doing this you are saving your carry or one of your core heroes. Let's suppose that a Team Fight is happening and your carry does not have a Black King Bar but it's can deal a lot of damage. Position yourself in the middle of the enemy team and ULT WITHOUT THINKING TWICE! If you get one stun and channeled 2 seconds of your ult your job is done. One disable has been throwed away.

Second thing: positioning. How to choose a safe position to ult? Well, do the basic thing: ult on high ground. Most of people that is on the team fight will have difficulty to get into you to stop your Freezing Field. Make them waste their time searching for you as your mates unleash their damage off. If there is not a high ground, ult next to your carry as you will protect and zoning off enemies. The wombo combo position works too. If there is a Dark Seer, Enigma combo, DROP THE BEAT and watch your enemies cry (or freeze).

Last thing and the most important: WHEN to ult. Your ult needs A LOT of mana, and have a high CD. Deciding when to ult is crucible to evolve the game correctly.
First of all: wait your enemies to throw their stuns. The less stun avaliable, you will have more probability to channel Freezing Field. If they do not bursted your core heroes down, use your Frostbite and then ult catching much enemies as possible. Do not ult if you will not have mana to cast your spells after you finish. Your aura will help a little, but you HAVE TO MANAGE YOUR MANA CORRECTLY, otherwise you will fail if the fight get on.

How to act along the game

Well i will not explain what you should do exactly because every game is different. I'll subdivide what you can do as long you get levels(jungling icluded).

Level 1: If your team is coordinated you can buy a smoke to try the level 1 first blood with one more stun or disable. Get the frostbite and go hunt. When in the lane, try to bully your enemy with AA but don't get yourself or your carry out of position. Ward.

Level 2: If you got one kill in your lane, get smoke and go gank other lane immediately. Try to do the pulls if you are in the safe lane.

Level 3: Return to the lane and keep supporting your carry. Bully with AA and some frostbites. Remove the enemy wards with some sentries.

Level 4 and 5: Keep supporting your lane partner. Go jungling if he's totally safe. For that, use frostbite on the biggest monster on the camp and hit it. You will got some levels and some gold. Do the pulls. Ward.

Level 6 to 8: Now, if you have your ult, stay with your team to get some towers. If don't try to help them with your spells. Keep warding.

Level 8 to 16: Stay with your team to get towers when needed. If don't, stay with your carry to help him farm. Do some ancient stacks and keep warding and removing the other team wards.

Level 16 and beyond: Now you must stay together at all costs. Ward strategic points, search the best opportunity to do Roshan and buy smoke to get that pickoff needed to get rax or Roshan. You must have purchased a gem at this point.

Team Fighting

What you need for a good team fight.

If you see someone out of position, DO NOT Frostbite it. Wait until you can see one core or their carry to use, as it prevents AA's. Let other teammate disable it.

Don't ult at the very start of the battle. Wait as many stuns were throwed to unleash it

PROTECT YOUR CARRY! You're still the support, s³ do your best to zone you enemies out

If the Team Fight is too far away, buy a Scroll of the Town Portal to be there. IS A MUST that you have one until you complete Boots of Travel

Last, never go in thinking that you're tank, because you're not. You will be bursted down and put your team into danger as you can dirupt your enemies.

Lane Matchups!

Legend:

Red: It's a kill lane or very dangerous to play against. Hard.
Yellow: Most time the enemy lane will try to farm but have a high pontential kill. Be careful. Medium.
Green: Safe lane. Your carry can farm easily and you have the ability to control your enemies. Easy

Trilane with:
, and another support/carry.

Well, this lane is a pain in the ***, with Nightmare and Sacred Arrow combo. If one of the components of your lane get caught by it, then is 99% death. To avoid it or minimize the effects, WARD. In most cases, Mirana will try to get a 5 seconds stun. Prevent it by warding and try your best to stay in the middle of creep wave, so the Arrow will not connect. If your carry is caught by it, Frostbite Mirana or the enemy carry, as longs it prevents auto-attacks.

Duolane with:
and

This is a most farming lane until level 6. Once the inseparable duo reaches it, they can burst you down ver easily or go gank other lane via Relocate. If they go to burst one of you, FROSTBITE THE TINY. He can still cast spells but he deals most AA damage. If you see them relocating, you have to TP to the closest tower to the gank in order to help your team. In this lane your carry farm well but can be bursted when they reach the level 6.

Trilane with:
, and another carry.

I'm sorry but this lane, you and your carry are *****d. The Disruption and Light Strike Array combo are undodgeable if connected right. The difference between the lane with Bane and Mirana is that you WILL BE BURSTED DOWN. This might happen because this lane on most times will have a carry with high damage output ( Gyrocopter or Kunkka). To solve your problems, try to pick Dazzle or KILL THEIR CARRY BEFORE LEVEL 2. But be aware with ganks and their combo.

Any lane with farming carrys:
, , ,

In this lane, your carry can farm well. This happens because you can zone out the enemy from the creeps using your spells. But be careful, at level 6, these lanes can be ganked so keep warding and play wisely. If your carry can farm alone, buy smoke and go gank the mid or help the offlane.

Satan sons
, , , Doom Bringer

This people have all the tools to deal with you. In order to win games with them, you will have to outplay them and pressure in early game with your allies. Going for smoke ganks, and buying a Force Staff will help you to deal with these enemies. If you're having too much trouble, try to rush a Ghost Scepter.

God sons
, ,


They can save you from any gank or help from afar. But you still need to position carefully. For Enigma, wait until he uses his Black Hole and see if you can be stopped. If don't, you know what to do (DR-DR-DROP THE BEAT).

Notes

Thank you guys, I hope that this guide can be useful! If you have any doubt, observations os suggestions please REPLY HERE! Thank you so much <3