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14 Votes

Attack is the best defense -A Guide to Spirit Breaker

September 23, 2013 by Charnel_Pawn
Comments: 19    |    Views: 177964    |   


Hero Build

DotA2 Hero: Spirit Breaker




Hero Skills

Herd Mentality (Innate)

Charge of Darkness

2 4 8 9

Bulldoze

10 12 13 14

Greater Bash

1 3 5 7

Nether Strike

6 11 16

Talents

15 17 18


Attack is the best defense -A Guide to Spirit Breaker

Charnel_Pawn
September 23, 2013


Introduction

Hey Dota Community,I'm Charnel_Pawn or Charnel's Pawn.Charnel is the God of strife and death in a classic hot video game called "Sacrifice".Seems like we are moving a bit away from the topic ;).This is my first guide.I like to elaborate a lot about gameplay and builds so be ready to read walls of text.

I've been playing dota since a long while now and thought that i should make a guide on one of my favorite gankers,Barathrum the Spirit Breaker.He is a superb ganker with semi-carry potential and can snowball out of control if the opposite team doesn't have good supports warding all the time (or) if they do not have good co-ordination.His ganking capability is comparable even with Balanar and Furion.

He is not much seen in the competetive scene because he can be countered well with supreme team co-ordination and by experienced players.He actually saw some light recently, when team liquid picked him up as a support/naix bomber.

This guide is based on how i play Barathrum and it may not be " THE BEST BUILD EVER " because dota is a very flexible game and item choices/skill builds should be decided while playing a match and not strictly according to any guide

About Spirit Breaker

I'm not sure whether including lores and stories would help a guide in any way at all,but i also want to cover everything possible,so here is all of Bara's lore:

Dota 1 Lore:

An outcast of the Spirithoof clan, Barathrum retreated in shame to the Ethereal Plane, feeding off wandering souls to sustain himself, and wandered aimlessly for centuries, alone and miserable. Found and recruited by the Lich King, Barathrum's uncanny speed and wraithlike powers have now been unleashed upon the Material Plane, his lantern able to project nether energy into enemies, sending them backwards with sudden force. With the ability to close the distance between himself and a target in seconds, Barathrum the Spiritbreaker is more than a match for anyone.

Dota 2 Lore:

Barathrum the Spirit Breaker is a lordly and powerful being, a fierce and elemental intelligence which chose to plane-shift into the world of matter to take part in events with repercussions in the elemental realm that is his home. To that end, he assembled a form that would serve him well, both in our world and out of it. His physical form borrows from the strengths of this world, blending features both bovine and simianhorns, hooves and handsas outward emblems of his inner qualities of strength, speed and cunning. He wears a ring in his nose, as a reminder that he serves a hidden master, and that this world in which he works is but a shadow of the real one.

Spirit Breaker's role in a game :

Spirit Breaker is a fierce ganker/assassin who can decimate lone targets in a matter of seconds.If he is fed enough,he can easily carry the game for his team.In a team-fight,you can initiate the battle for your team by bashing all the heroes on your way to your target.His skills are basically meant for 1v1 battles but he can contribute a lot in team-fights too.He depends on his Greater Bash to proc and needs a bit of attack speed for this purpose.

Pros and Cons:

Pros:

1)One of the most feared gankers(or assassins) due to his Charge of Darkness and Nether Strike.
2)He can perma-bash effectively with his Greater Bash if he has decent attack speed.
3)Above average movement speed with Empowering Haste
4)Has extremely good attack animation and base damage which helps in last hitting.
5) Charge of Darkness can be used as an escape mechanism and sometimes even as a tp scroll from base to lane,because no mana will be wasted this way.
6) Charge of Darkness gives vision of the target even if he goes invisible.This can be helpful to track the target and finish him off with AoE spells if he is on low hp(Carrying dust obviously helps)

Cons:

1)Mana is quite a problem in the early game.
2)Cannot solo effectively.
3)Quite item and level dependent
4)He is a mysterious blue cow?!?!?!?!?

Skills and Skill-Build

Charge of Darkness


Spirit Breaker fixes his sight on an enemy unit and starts charging through all objects. All enemy units passed through and the targeted unit will be hit by a Greater Bash. If the targeted unit dies, Spirit Breaker will change his target to the nearest enemy unit to that location.


Charge Speed: 600/650/700/750
Stuns on Contact: 1.2/1.6/2/2.4
Range: Global
Cooldown: 35 seconds
Mana Cost: 100

Notes:

1)Barathrum will run through units and trees.
2)Allies of Barathrum (and himself) will see an animation over the head of the target.
3)Any unit you pass through (300 AoE) will proc a Greater Bash of your current level (nothing will happen if you didn't skill it)
4)The charge stops if you click anywhere, or if you are disabled.
5)Barathrum gains 400 flying vision over the target for the duration.
6)If the target dies, the charge is transferred to the nearest valid target.
7)Some items are usable during the charge without interrupting it. Using Black King Bar right before you strike will ensure your charge doesn't get countered.
8)Does NOT provide True Sight on enemy unit but it can be used to know the enemy's location.
9)Because Linken's Sphere triggers on cast, this ability can be used to instantly and globally put an enemy's sphere on cooldown.
10)Thanks to the .78 buff, now even the target gets greater bashed along with every unit Bara passes through.
11)If BKB is activated before the Barathrum reaches his target, the main stun is blocked but the greater bash is not.

Empowering Haste
Empowering Haste

The Spirit Breaker's presence increases the movement speed of nearby allied units.

Increased Allied Movement Speed: 6%/10%/14%/18%
Movement Speed Aura Radius: 900

Notes:
1)This is a passive aura so it increases your allies' speed too.This clubbed with the Drums active will give your team a huge boost in speed (compared to your enemies)
2)This is one of the reasons why Barathrum is such a good chaser

Greater Bash


Gives a chance to stun and knockback an enemy unit on an attack, as well as gaining bonus movement speed after a bash occurs. Deals damage based on movement speed.

Chance to Trigger on Attack: 17%
Damage: 10/20/30/40% of movement speed
Knockback Duration: 0.5
Stun Duration: 1/1.2/1.4/1.6
Increased Movement Speed: 15%
Increased Movement Speed Duration: 3
Damage Type: Magical
Cooldown: 1.5 seconds

Notes:
1)Does not stack with Skull Basher or Abyssal Blade.
2)Knockback distance is 100.
3)The bonus damage is added to Spirit Breaker's ordinary attack damage.
4)Because movement speed cannot be lower than 100 or greater than 522, it can't deal (before reductions) less than 10/20/30/40 damage and more than 52.2/104.4/156.6/208.8 damage.
5)This skill has only a 17% chance to proc,so high attack speed is essential.

Nether Strike


Spirit Breaker slips into the nether realm, reappearing next to his hapless victim. Upon reappearing, a Greater Bash of the current level occurs and deals bonus damage.

Damage: 150/250/350
Range: 400/550/700 (550/700/850*)
Cooldown: 75(20*) seconds
Mana Cost: 125/150/175
Damage Type: Magical

(*) values show the Aghanim's Scepter upgrade.Aghanim's Scepter causes the Greater Bash to hit an area around the initial target, decreases cooldown, and increases cast range.

Notes:
1)Spirit Breaker will move to the other side of the target seen from the point he cast it.
2)Performs a Greater Bash of Spirit Breaker's current level upon arrival, if Greater Bash is learned.
3)Teleportation and damage is delayed 1 second while Spirit Breaker is fading out; Spirit Breaker is magic immune for this time period.
4)With Aghanim's Scepter, Spirit Breaker performs a Greater Bash level 4 on all units in a 250 radius of Spirit Breaker upon arrival.
5) Black King Bar blocks the damage but the bash will still be applied

Skill Build Explanation

Barathrum's skill build can be highly variable depending upon the match.The skill build i have provided will be helpful for the new players.

No matter what build you go, max out greater bash first, its too good of a spell to keep it on hold.Its even more better now because the target is bashed when charged depending on the level of your "E".

You wanna max out your charge next because it now has synergy with your bash.You "CAN" throw a few skill points into Empowering Haste but i would not recommend it because if you are going for the Mask of Madness and drums build,you will already have enough movement speed to disintegrate your targets.If you are having a really pressurized lane, you can consider putting a few skill points onto this.

Make sure to skill your Nether Strike at the standard 6,11 and 16.Its too good.


Detailed utilization of the skills will be explained in the gameplay section

Gameplay and Item-Builds

This gameplay is according to the skill build and item build i have suggested for Barathrum.There are many ways to play him but i found this one the most easy and effective.Even new players might quickly get used to it.

Spirit Breaker is the strongest hero in the game at level 1 with respect to stats.With 701 hp, 5.38 armor and 60-70 damage, Bara can 1v1 any other hero at lvl 1 specially if you level your Greater Bash.The only downside though, is that you are a melee hero and you might get kited because you have lower movement speed compared to the other heroes which is compensated later with your Empowering Haste.So do not be afraid to trade a few hits in the laning phase.

With Bara, you will mostly have to go solo off.If your team has a better offlaner or does not have any other carry, you can farm up in the safe lane and get a few easy kills.But mostly you will be solo off or in an aggressive trilane.Just try to play it safe and try to get max xp and gold that you can get.Bara needs levels much more than money.Its highly suggested that you gank at level 6 but if you find a really good chance, you can go ahead and make a gank before.

If you are getting shut down and the game is going rough, you might abandon rushing your MoM and get treads and drums first.If you are getting decent farm ,go straight for a morbid mask and then boots.Once you have your MoM and level 6, you should start non stop ganking.If you charge right from the fountain,there is a rare chance that any enemy ward might detect you.Just use charge of darkness and activate your MoM the moment you reach your target.Make sure that your team-mates are informed of your charge.If you want to assassinate someone without the help of your team-mates,make sure that your target doesn't have any disables.This might seriously turn the assassination against you.For Example:If you charge a good lion player, he might stun you before your charge hits him and then hex you and finally finger you to death.This will be a huge loss to your kill streak and farm.Also,if you are charging an inviz target,make sure you have some dust(dont depend on your bashes).

After a few successful ganks,you will have money enough to decide building your next item.You may make Drum of Endurance or Crystalys or finish your Power Treads.You can also decide to go straight BKB after this if the opponents have too many disables.Making Drums will give you some much needed stats and a good active.Making Crystalys will highly increase your damage while the power treads will give you some attack speed and survivability.After completing your core,you can either finish your Buriza(Daedalus) or make a Black King Bar.

The mid-game is about to end now and there will be a lot of teamfights.Here,you fill the role of "initiator" very well.Just pop the drums,charge onto the squishy dps-er(glass-cannon) and activate your BKB.All the heroes you collide with,will be bashed and will provide a good prey for your team-mates while you decimate your target.If everything goes as planned,start pushing with your team or try to take roshan.

In the end-game,you have a wide choice of items to build.You might want to check the "situational items list" i have provided(though they also include a few early game situationals).You can go for a heart for more survivability.You can make a Monkey King Bar for those pesky evaders like PA.Hell,you can even think about making a Divine Rapier if you are owning.There is no end here.But always know that increased attack speed will give a higher chance rate for your bash to proc.So making an Assault Cuirass/ Mjollnir will be highly profitable.

If you are having a sloppy mid game and/or the opposition's carry is doing well,you should think about making a Blade Mail or a Heaven's Halberd.If the opposition is doing extreme magical damage,go ahead and make a hood/pipe.

Friends and Foes

Friends:

Lane Support/Babysitters

Necrolyte Dazzle Treant Protector Omniknight Undying Io Witch Doctor Warlock

Jakiro Bane Venomancer Crystal Maiden Windrunner Lina Shadow Shaman Ogre Magi Disruptor Keeper of the Light Silencer Lich Lion Ancient Apparition Pugna Shadow Demon

This list is when you go safelane.Ya,the list is a bit huge.These guys will either keep healing you or keep harassing the lane opposition to let you farm with ease.Having one of these guys on your lane will be really good for you.

Special Mentions:


Dazzle is a good support to have.He will keep healing you how much ever you are harassed.He will make sure you never die,with his shallow grave.He can even go offensive with poison touch.


This guy is real cool.He will make a soul ring and keep harassing/healing you,and can provide good magic resistance early in the game.


INFINITE HEALS ALL OVER THE MAP



If these heroes are being controlled by skilled players,they will make sure that the opponents will face hell in the laning phase while you happily farm.

Disablers/Slows:

Bane Venomancer Lina Shadow Shaman Ogre Magi Lich Lion Shadow Demon Vengeful Spirit Earthshaker Tusk... cant list everyone here :D

These guys will make sure that your target has no where to go and confirm the kill.

Special Mentions:



This guy's ult is seriously broken.It can turn a godlike carry's streak to complete nothingness coz it will confirm the kill.

Extremely Synergetic friends:



Simple.He will infest you, you charge, he will come out at the right time and you guys beat the living **** out of ANY HERO.Spirit Breaker is quite a good naix bomber.



Remember how much i talked about a SpiritBreaker requiring attack speed?This guy will make sure that you perma-bash your target to death.



One of the most efficient chasers with his boar and long duration stun.A very helpful ally.



One of the best supports/buffers in the current meta.

2 man teleport to anywhere on the map+an extra stun. Savvy? No? ok..extra movement speed,extra attack speed and extra healing. O.o

Foes:

You might have understood by now that almost every disabler is a problematic foe for bara.So lets talk only about some special heroes.



This guy might be a good ally but when you see him in the enemy team, you'd better pray that he doesn't get fed or overly farmed.He is one of the most fierce carries and can easily consume all your hp while you try to bash him.



As i mentioned before,if he stuns you before your charge,the situation might turn around.Get a BKB for this guy.This goes also for Rhasta and Lina.

Doom Bringer

You will find Lucifer in every hero's "feared foes" list.If he dooms you,you wont be able to do anything for 15 seconds(16*).This will be a problem in teamfights.



No one likes being ruptured.Spiritbreaker is no exception.Bloodseeker can either rupture you and try to kill you or rupture and run away with high MS.



Lets see,he can enfeeble you,he can put you in a nightmare and you'd better pray that he doesn't cast his ult on you.



A skilled invoker can counter almost any hero due to his large array of disables and with mana-drain.Oh and he can also go invisible.



We all know how dangerous a void becomes once he has his core items.One of the most dangerous late game carries with a dreadful ultimate.Extremely easy to gank in the early-mid game though.



This hero is becoming a really dangerous late game carry in the current meta(mainly in the pubs :P).His extremely high agility gain and 'simple to use' abilities make him a very versatile foe.Consider making an Aghanim's Scepter for this guy so that you can aoe netherstrike all his illusions and find the real one.You will need true-sight and you might also wanna get a battlefury instead of one of your core.



Even though Troll is a kinda squishy hero, he himself has bashes and a lot of attack speed.Whirling axes(Melee) also give you a 60% miss chance.He can be easily killed early on but if he is snowballing, you better think twice about it.

The End

Well I think thats quite a lot about SpiritBreaker.I have provided enough content for all kinds of players to learn something about this delightful cow.I hope the community likes this guide.

So Bye Bye and MOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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