There's a fine line between bravery and stupidity (6.85 guide)

Why am I doing this?

Hello everyone. Im doing this guide as other Juggernaut guides are generally quite old and not really following the meta. This is my first ever guide, so sorry if the formatting or my language isn't that good.

Lore

Yurnero, the Juggernaut

No one has ever seen the face hidden beneath the mask of Yurnero the Juggernaut. It is only speculation that he even has one. For defying a corrupt lord, Yurnero was exiled from the ancient Isle of Masks--a punishment that saved his life. The isle soon after vanished beneath the waves in a night of vengeful magic. He alone remains to carry on the Isle's long Juggernaut tradition, one of ritual and swordplay. The last practitioner of the art, Yurnero's confidence and courage are the result of endless practice; his inventive bladework proves that he has never stopped challenging himself. Still, his motives are as unreadable as his expression. For a hero who has lost everything twice over, he fights as if victory is a foregone conclusion.

Picking Juggernaut

When to pick Your team needs a position 1 Your team needs a physical damage dealer You have enough supports When to not pick Your team is Anti-Mage, Doom, Storm Spirit and Spectre. Your team needs a strong offlaner. Your team needs a support. Your team needs a f**king support.

Abilities

I assume you guys know the basics of juggernaut's abilities. You can always check it out here.

Blade Fury

• This is your main damage output in the laning/early stage of the game.
• Can be used to clear stacks before getting your Battle Fury.
• This ability renders Juggernaut Immune to magic. It can be used to dodge spells that have not reached Juggernaut yet, such as Magic Missile's or Storm Hammer's projectile.
• This ability does not prevent you from using items (such as Blink Dagger, or Shadow Blade). You can use a Town Portal Scroll to escape while spinning to prevent getting stunned(dont do it if they have a Bane or Beastmaster).
• This ability technically lets u right click, but deals damage only to spell immune targets. So you can hit towers or bkb-ed enemies while spinning.
• This ability will dispel buffs. It may remove important buffs such as haste or double damage. Phase boots should be activated after Blade Fury is casted so that the buff doesn't get dispelled.
  

Healing Ward

• Really important skill for Juggernaut to jungle before getting a Morbid Mask or Battlefury.
• Has only 1 hp, so make sure it doesn't get hit in fights.
• Bind it to a key so that its easier to control in fights. Somewhat, the 'control other units' key in the settings DOESN'T control the ward. I usually bind it to 'TAB'. To do so, select the ward and 'ctrl+whatever key you want'.
• Great for doing Roshan.
  

Blade Dance

• Essential for dps. This skill is the skill that makes Juggernaut a carry.
• Blade Dance makes use of pseudo-random distribution.
  

Omnislash

• This skill is great in 1v1 situations as long as your opponents doesn't have an escape. If the opponent isn't a tanky hero, it usually means a free kill. Try to have this on cd all the time in the early game.
• Juggernaut gains flying vision in a 200 radius for the duration of omnislash. Opponents cant juke you during Omnislash duration.
• Damage from jumps are physical. Juggernaut can perform attacks, cast spells(only Healing Ward, and use items( Abyssal Blade, Diffusal Blade) during Omnislash.
• Ethereal units from abilities such as Decrepify and Ghost Scepter will continue to be slashed, but will not take any of the damage. You get a Diffusal Blade to counter this.
• It also has a unique interaction with evasion, such as Blur and Windrun. The damage from your slashes won't be evaded, but the extra attacks can.
• Unique Attack modifiers like Eye of Skadi work.
• Omnislash is like a giant Sleight of Fists. So you can cleave during your attacks in Omnislash.
  

Pros and Cons

Pros Good for kills early game Scales well with items, but not too item dependent. Decent starting stats(4th best Agi) Free bkb Lowest base attack time(1.4) Comes online earlier than other pos1 Great Roshan hero Can outfarm other carries easily Fun!

Cons Low stat gains Mana-starved in the early game Loses out to other hard carries Lacks mobility Can be outlaned by ranged heroes.

Skill build

The skill build above isn't fixed. You can alter it as the game progresses.

You must get one point in Blade Fury. The value point is to provide magic immunity for escapes. The duration is the same for all levels, so 1 point is enough. But it is better to max it, as its your main damage output in the early game.

You'll need a point of Healing Ward in the early game for sustain. Depending on the game, you may choose to go stats instead of healing ward. Healing ward is really great for pushes and in fights, so max it out if you are pushing towers or fighting often.


You can just get one level in Blade Dance, and opt for stats. But you'll lose some dps and farm slower.

Get Omnislash whenever you can.

Starting of the game

Safe lane
You should just try to get last hits, get 6, try to kill if your laning buddy is strong. Buy Poor Man's Shield if opponent's lane harassment is strong.

Mid lane
Get your bottle asap and control the runes. Try not to die. Juggernaut isn't the strongest mid, and generally should not be there.

Offlane
Survive, get last hits only if its safe. Just sap exp till you are 6, unless you are a dual offlane/the opponent's safe is weak. If so, play like a safe lane Juggernaut.

Jungle
If your team has 4 cores, Juggernaut can jungle decently. Just use courier to ferry you tangoes when you need it. Use the jungle skill build instead. Try to gank the lanes when your ulti is up. Only do this is you have no lanes to farm, as laning is MUCH better for Juggernaut.

After 11 minutes

Battlefury build
If your lane was good you should be almost done with your Battle Fury. A good timing is around 15 minutes(a little later if you bought drums). Right now you should farm lanes and the jungle very quickly. Get Yasha after Battlefury. Build it into a Sange and Yasha or Manta Style . You can also build Shadow Blade or Blink Dagger for mobility. Whatever you build later is depending on the game.

Mask of Madness build
You should be done building Mask of Madness. Use it to push towers and farm creeps. Mostly the same as the Battlefury build.

Mid game

This is the time where Jugg is the strongest. Try to get towers and Roshan. Remember to avoid fighting whenever your Ulti is on cd unless you are confident enough. Ending the game before the 45 minute mark is advisable.

Late game

If the opponents have no harder carries than you, you should be able to win easily. If not, play carefully and try to win fights with your team. You may sell your Battlefury/MoM once you get 6 slotted.

Try to get Roshan whenever possible.

Itemization

Aquila or Drums?

MOST of the time, Ring of Aquila is the better choice. Here's why

• Its cheaper.
• Provides more damage
• The mana regen is really good
• You have phase boots so you don't really need extra ms
• Helps you to push.
• Very cost effective item

But, that said, Drum of Endurance is still a good pick up, as the charges can help you chase down enemies and take down towers faster.

I buy a Ring of Aquila in most games. It's far more cost efficient.

SnY or Manta?

Sange and Yasha


Buy this if you need to tank up, or your opponents have good aoe damage to clear Manta's illusions. SnY also provide you Maim, which is a decent slow.

Manta Style


Get this if your opponents have silences and certain slows as Manta provides basic dispel. Its also good for pushing towers. Sometimes you can confuse the enemy and make them waste some spells on your illusions. Also, Juggernaut's illusions can crit.

What should I build?

Whatever Juggernaut builds, its situational. You can build many items on Jugg, but remember that he only has 6 slots. As Juggernaut, you'll usually need at least 1 attack speed/Agility item to fully utilize your crit.


Abyssal Blade

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One of the best late game items. Provides load of damage and a reliable disable. Get against heroes with escapes like Anti-Mage or Weaver. Be careful of Linken's Sphere though.

Assault Cuirass

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Provide attack speed and armor, and removes opponent's armor. Do not build if one of your teammates is getting it. Great pickup against heroes like Dazzle, Slardar and Phoenix.

Black King Bar

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Even though you have a build in bkb, you'll still want to have one if you're facing Zeus, Leshrac, Invoker, or if they have lots of disables and nukes.

Butterfly

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One of the best late game items for an Agility carry, especially when the opponents wont/cant build Monkey King Bar. Example of carries that don't want to build Monkey King Bar are illusion-based heroes such as Phantom Lancer and Naga Siren.

Blink Dagger

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Provides mobility and a great escape. You can use Blink while in Omnislash.

Diffusal Blade

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Purge and mana burn, and provides quite a lot of Agi. Good pickup against heroes like Omniknight and Pugna. Finish all the first 8 charges before upgrading it, as the purge is very useful.

Eye of Skadi

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Provides you useful stats, and a great slow that pierces magic immunity, preventing you from getting kited.

Moon Shard

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This item actually doesn't have to be eaten. It can be a 4th or 5th item and it works great.

Satanic

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Get it if you need to manfight often. Works well with your crits.

Silver Edge

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Can be built from an SnY. The break is good against heroes like Huskar and Slark. Invis is also great if the opponents have no detection.

Monkey King Bar

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Get it if your opponent has Evasion. Try to get this asap against heroes like Phantom Assassin and Windranger. If not, get Abyssal Blade as its better. Linken's Sphere Get this against heroes that have single target spells that pierce magic immunity, such as Doom, Bane and Lina. Also good against blink hexes. Divine Rapier Please only get this when you are reeeeaaaalllllly behind, you desperately need damage to end the game, or your Mega creeps are already hitting the t4s and you wanna fountain Rampage. It is advisable you get a Black King Bar, Satanic or Aegis of the Immortal before getting Divine Rapier.

Friends and foes

Yurnero's buddies

Basically, a few type of heroes make good juggernaut teammates. They are aggressive laning supports, heroes that buff others, heroes that reduces armor, and heroes that can 'suck' opponents and make them close to each other(if you got a battlefury).

Aggressive laning supports

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As long as they have a stun/slow, you can easily deal lots of damage with Blade Fury. Its quite common to see Juggernaut get a kill when he is Lv3. Special mention goes to Crystal Maiden, who not only has a slow and root, as Arcane Aura somewhat solves Juggernaut's early game mana problems.

Heroes that buff others



These heroes have abilities or auras that boost Juggernaut's dps. More damage= good.

Heroes that reduces armor



Omnislash's damage is physical. Your right clicks are physical. You can easily slash people to death when their armor is low. Amplify Damage+ Omnislash is really scary combo. They help you kill roshan even quickly.

Heroes that can 'suck' opponents and make them close to each other




If you bought a Battle Fury, these are the heroes that can help you get a easy rampage(maybe except Dark Seer). Special mention goes to Magnus, who not only setups easily Rampages for you, but can also buff you to make your Omnislash and right clicks even scarier. A really good video made by MrFlyingNightmare
shows that.

Yurnero's enemies

Heroes that can save others, have lots of illusions(if you didn't get Battle Fury), have escapes, have high armor, or have invis are Juggernaut's foes. Some counter him more than others.

Not that bad enemies


Heroes with an escape




All these heroes have skills that lets them escape your Ulti. So, make sure they used their escapes such as Blink or Shadow Dance before casting your ultimate.


Heroes lots of illusions(if you didn't buy a Battlefury)



Get a Battle Fury against them. Omnislash jumps on illusions too, wasting jumps. For Brewmaster, you can't do much as he can just cast his ulti when he is going to die.

Heroes with high armor



They are so tanky that Omnislash can't even do half hp to them when alone. For Wraith King, he can just take your ulti and revive.


Heroes with invis




Without detection, these heroes can end your Omnislash easily. For Templar Assassin and Sand King, you can use Blade Fury to kill them. Get detection against these heroes.

REALLY BAD ENEMIES

Dazzle


This guy is a good teammate, but awful to play against. Shallow Grave prevents you from solo killing his teammates with Omnislash. Also, Weave gives his teammates much more armor to tank against your ulti and right clicks. Diffusal Blade wont work against Shallow Grave and Weave, so don't bother.

Omniknight


He's awful to lane against as a melee carry. Want to last hit? Get rekt by his pure damage nuke, Purification. Also, Guardian angel is a big f*** you skill that renders your Omnislash and right clicks useless. Please get a Diffusal Blade against this guy.

Tusk


Say hello to the most balanced skill in Doter, Snowball. Invulnerability for 3 seconds for his team. Much balance, so wow. Also, Walrus Punch goes through magic immunity so spinning is useless.

Weaver


Unless the opponent Weaver is a noob, you should almost never be able to kill him. Shukuchi and Time Lapse are incredible skills against you. If you want to kill him, you'll need the help from your team. You can get a Abyssal Blade against him, provided he didn't buy Linken's Sphere. Also, he is really hard to lane against as a melee carry.


Abaddon


Never cast your ultimate on him, unless his ultimate, Borrowed Time is on cooldown. His Aphotic Shield also helps his teammates to survive your attacks, good thing its purgable by Diffusal Blade.


Pugna


This little guy can make you cry. Decrepify makes your Omnislash and right clicks useless. In lane, Nether Ward drains all your mana, ending all your kill potential and you can't escape with Blade Fury anymore. Life Drain pierces magic immunity, so spinning won't help you. To counter him in lane, get an Enchanted Mango. Get a Diffusal Blade to purge Ethereal effects.


Winter Wyvern


She hates you. Cold Embrace makes enemies immune to all Physical damage you deal, and you can't purge it. Also, Winter's Curse makes you kill your teammates. Get a Black King Bar if you don't want to get taunted and kill your team, but you can still be the one disabled.




Items that counter Juggernaut

Eul's Scepter of Divinity


Makes enemies Invulnerable, making your slashes useless. Get a Diffusal Blade to purge them.


Ghost scepter and Ethereal Blade


The same as Pugna, get a Diffusal Blade.

Shadow Blade and Glimmer cape


Get detection. Please.


Mekansm, Guardian Greaves, Solar Crest, Crimson Guard, Vladmir's offering and Assault Cuirass


All of these items provide aura armor, or extra armor for teammates. And that is bad for Juggernaut.

Manta Style, Necronomicon


More units, means more slash targets. If you bought a Battle Fury, you have no worries.

Lotus Orb


DO NOT cast Omnislash on an enemy with Echo Shell on. Both of you will cast Omnislash, immediately ending both.

Closing Thoughts

Juggernaut is a really strong and fun hero to play. Lets hope Icefrog buffs his stat gains to make him even better. I hope you liked this guide, I will add some extra info when I am free. Please leave your suggestions, I will read them. Thank you for reading.

Changelog

25/11/15 Guide created

29/11/15 Added Aquila or Drums?, Sny or Manta? Chapters. Added early game situational items. Added Divine Rapier to Extension items. Edited the formatting. Updated Pros and Cons. Added Abilities, Skill build and Friends and foes chapter. Updated the descriptions of Abyssal blade, Assault Cuirass, Butterfly, Monkey King Bar, Diffusal Blade and Eye of Skadi.

30/11/15 Edited the skill build. Added Linkens sphere to extensions. Edited jungle section of Starting of the game.