My Mirkwood Guide (Beware: Long Post)

**My Guide To Mirkwood**

This is a popular custom game out right now, but unfortunately most people that participate in it have no idea what they are doing. This leads to games ending up as a complete stomp with multiple leavers, because it is very easy for the few people in the lobby that do understand how to play to completely dominate and take over the game. Understandably people don't want to play when an enemy can just stroll in and 1 hit you, or when you simply get swarmed by neuts everytime you spawn and repeatedly die, so hopefully I can give you a better insight into the game.

**The Concept**

* You kill neutrals which gives gold and drop passive abilities which you can pick up, activate and level up
* You then use your superior abilities and stats to kill opponents
* When they have died to you 60/90/120/150/180 times (depending on which setting was chosen) you win the game
* But unfortunately there is a lot more complexity to fully understand and appreciate the game

**The Basics**

***Heroes***

There is no significant difference determined by which hero you choose, asides from whether they are melee or ranged, and their primary attribute. Certain abilities only impact melee heroes, and certain abilities only impact ranged heroes. All ranged heroes also have the same attack range as eachother, ie picking sniper does not give you a range advantage over someone who picked gyro.

***Abilities***

There are a total of 21 abilities available in the game, with many abilities being auras that effect you and your nearby allies/enemies. On any single hero, you can have no more than 8 abilities activated, which means you must cherry pick the abilities you think will give you the best chance of winning the game.

Abilities can be leveled up in 2 ways. Either a neutral can drop an ability that you have already have activated, and using that ability again will level up that ability. Or an ability level-up can be purchased from the shop to be spent into any of the abilities you have activated. Furthermore, ability levels are independent of, and cannot exceed that of your hero level, eg if you are level 4, then your abilities will not automatically be level 4, and cannot be levelled beyond level 4.

***Note:*** 2 abilities in the game are melee specific (Command Aura and Vampiric Aura), as in they only effect melee heroes, and 1 ability is ranged specific (Trueshot Aura). 1 ability (Bash) operates similar to abyssal blade, as in it gives melee units using it a better chance of stunning in comparison to a ranged unit.

***Money and the Shop***

Money is currently denoted in the very top right of the screen in a decimalisation scheme. It is acquired by killing the mirkwood neutrals or enemy heroes, and a passive income provided over time. Also, money is not lost on death. Money can be spent at the shop to achieve 5 different things. You can;

* Purchase ability points to upgrade the level of passives

* Purchase the removal of an already activated passive

* Reroll your star count

* Increase your max star count

* Trade stat points between strength, agility and intelligence

***Note:*** As of current time the 2nd shop option of purchasing a removal is redundant as right clicking on the ability will remove it for free

***Star Count***

This is the concept that seems to confuse a lot of players. Your current amount of stars (as seen in the top right corner) governs your stat gain, i.e. the permanent amount of stats gained when you level up. By re-rolling, you will be given a random amount of stars that may be better or worse than your previous amount, which in turn will either improve or worsen your stat gain.

Improving your max star count will also generate a reroll of your star count, but you provide yourself with the opportunity of gaining a higher stat gain then was previously achievable. Ie, if your max star count is 10, and you're lucky enough to roll onto 10 stars you can achieve a stat gain (for str, agi and int) of 10 per level. However if you increase your max stars to 11, and you're lucky enough to roll onto 11 stars you can achieve a stat gain of 11 per level which was previously unattainable.

***Stats***

Stats operate the same way as in a regular game of Dota 2. As a result intelligence plays literally 0 role in the game since all abilities are passives, and there are no primary intelligence heroes available to be chosen, so you want to trade this out at the shop asap for strength or agility, depending on your heroes primary attribute. For those who perhaps don't know, strength governs raw hp and hp regen (and damage if your hero is a str primary), and agility governs armour and attack speed, (and damage if your hero is a agi primary).

***Neutrals***

Neutrals aggroed onto players will have red glowing hands, and some have abilities that can hamper your movement. Spiders, furlbogs and leshracs will slow you, whilst bears are able to entangle you to prevent movement completely. Deaths conceeded to neutrals (including enchantress) will also not effect your teams death count. Neutrals will also get stronger as the game progresses.

***Enchantress***

Enchantress is Mirkwood's version of Roshan. Her arrival is first at 5:12 and she will appear at the ping on the minimap and lurk in that area, if that ping is near you it is a good idea to move away. In general you want to avoid her until you feel really strong (usually ~20 minute mark) because otherwise she will sodomise you and anyone else around. Killing enchantress will result in a large drop of abilities, as well as the occasional drop of a few special items that grant a variety of effects. Forest Wrath provides a chance for a 200%-400% crit, Guise of the Protector gives a wide circle of unobstructed vision around the tree used on, Forest Wind gives a chance for a 100ms boost when attacked and Forest Leaf gives the chances to heal ~3% when attacked.

***Basic Walkthrough***

* Locate and reach a shop before creeps spawn if possible
* Sell your base int for str/agi, whichever is your primary attribute
* Reroll your star count until you get within at least 2 of the max star
* Kill creeps and use basically all abilities picked up early on (remember you can remove them without cost by right clicking them although this is probably a bug)
* If bug is patched, early on activate at least 1 sustaining ability (Life Regen Aura, Lifesteal or Vlads if you are melee) and at least 1 defensive ability (Elf Aura, Harden Skin, Spiked Carapace or Devotion Aura) so you can farm without dying/being too low. Superfluous abilities are costly to remove!
* Continue to farm neutrals and low hp enemy heroes if you come across them and find out what the abilities do!
* Regularly visit the shops to trade out int for your primary attribute
* Begin to swap out abilities and build towards your favoured build as you get stronger and access to a wider range of abilities
* Begin to upgrade your max star count whenever viable
* Shit talk your opponents when you are killing them repeatedly do assert your authority ^Kappa
* Avoid enchantress until you are strong enough
* Have fun!

***All Abilities***

*Bash*

* Gives chance to stun and apply bonus damage to attacking target
* Bash Chance: 15
* Bonus Damage: AbilityLevel*80
* Stun Duration: 0.5 Melee/0.3 Ranged

*Plunder*

* Loot certain amount of x-gold when attack landed
* Plunder Percentage: 5+AbilityLevel*3

*Devil Aura*

* Gives you and nearby allies health regen and move speed
* Radius: 900
* Life Regen: AbilityLevel*1
* Move speed Bonus Percentage: Ability Level*3

*Harden Skin*

* Gives the ability to avoid damage when attacked, but the damage can't be lower than a certain value
* Block Damage: AbilityLevel*5
* Min Damage: AbilityLevel*3

*Endurance Aura*

* Increases the attack speed and move speed of nearby allies
* Radius: 900
* Move Speed Bonus Percentage: AbilityLevel*4
* Attack Speed Bonus Percentage: AbilitiyLevel*5

*Evasion*

* Gives bonus evasion
* Evasion Chance: 5+AbilityLevel*1.5

*Spiked Carapace*

* Gives bonus physical armour, reflects damage when attacked
* Armour Bonus: AbilityLevel*2
* Damage Reflection Percentage: 5+AbilityLevel*1.5

*Attribute Bonus*

* Gives bonus attributes
* Bonus Strength: AbilityLevel*3
* Bonus Agility: AbilityLevel*3
* Bonus Intel: AbilityLevel*3

*Command Aura*

* Increases damage of nearby melee units
* Radius: 900
* Attack Damage Bonus Percentage: AbilityLevel*5

*Trueshot Aura*

* Increases damage of nearby range units
* Radius: 900
* Attack Damage Bonus Percentage: AbilityLevel*5

*Death Aura*

* Deal damage to nearby enemies
* Radius: 900
* Damage Per Second: AbilityLevel*4

*Life Regen Aura*

* Increases your and nearby allies health regen
* Radius: 900
* Health Regen Increase: AbilityLevel*4

*Devotion Aura*

* Increases your and nearby allies physical armour
* Radius: 900
* Armour Bonus: AbilityLevel*2.5

*Lifesteal Aura*

* Gives nearby melee units the ability to heal when attack landed
* Radius: 900
* Lifesteal Percentage: 5+AbilityLevel*2

*Elf Aura*

* Decrease nearby enemies base attack damage and percentage attack damage
* Radius: 900
* Base Attack Damage Reduce Percentage: 5+AbilityLevel*2
* Damage Reduce: AbilityLevel*5

*Lifesteal*

* Gives the ability to heal when attacking
* Lifesteal Percentage: 5+AbilityLevel*3

*Smash*

* Gives a chance to apply AOE damage when attacking
* Splash Radius: 500
* Splash Damage: AbilityLevel*60
* Smash Chance: 15

*Corrosion Aura*

* Reduces nearby enemies armour
* Radius: 900
* Armour Reduce: AbilityLevel*2

*Entropic Aura*

* Decrease the move speed of nearby enemies
* Radius: 900
* Move Speed Decrease: 5+AbilityLevel*2

*Thorns Aura*

* Gives you and nearby allies the ability to reflect damage when attacked
* Radius: 900
* Damage Reflect Percentage: 5+AbilityLevel*2.5

*Damage Upgrade*

* Gives base attack bonus damage
* Attack Bonus Damage: AbilityLevel*5

***Tips, Tricks and General Info***

* Ability levels are capped at 30 and hero level is capped at 50.


* Command Aura and Trueshot Aura are essential for anyone looking to maximise DPS, but don't contribute much early game. Try and keep an early game ability (Harden Skin for example) until you've filled 5 slots in your inventory with Trueshot/Command Aura before you commit to replace it. This can be said the same for any high level ability you were using at the start but do not want to keep, store what you want to replace it with so you're not swapping out a level 6 ability for a level 1 ability.

* Don't be afraid to die to neutrals early on, especially if you are nowhere near a shop. It doesn't count as a kill for the opposition, you lose no gold and you respawn quickly, it's basically a free tp and restart. Similarly if confronted early on or with ench nearby in a losing battle, try to get yourself denied by them!

* Shops tend to spawn around the same areas each game (I would guess around 12 or 14 different common spawn points), so as you play more you can begin to guess where they are most likely to be.

* You can gain an advantage if you co-ordinate auras with eachother but right now there's not enough knowledgeable players to make it worthwhile.

* Orb walking is absolutely essential in this game, especially at earlier levels.

* The most important thing to do at the start of the game (yes even more important then running around as a group to find some poor unsuspecting soul) is to split up and locate some shops.

* A clicking around the map is by far the most efficient way of farming so get used to it!

* Given all stats can be traded with eachother, don't be disconcerted with a high int gain and low str/agi gain, all that matters is the stars, as long as you can access a shop it is largely irrelevant.

* If you roll onto max stars early on, it's best to save until you can purchase 2 or 3 max star upgrades, as if you have 10/10 stars chances are by upgrading by one you won't be lucky enough to get full stars (ie 11/11) and will most likely roll 10 or less out of 11 which will either worsen or leave your stat gain unchanged. From experience I believe the worst case scenario is rolling 4 below the max and even that is quite rare.

* Endurance Aura is (imo) the most important early-mid game ability in existence. Its buffs to as and ms greatly improves farming rate, and in early fights if your ms is greater than your opponents you control the decision of whether to fight or not. If you're losing simply run away and (unless you get rooted by a bear or slowed by neutrals) you will always escape, and if you're winning the opponent simply doesn't have the option of escape.


* Early gold investment can be used in 2 different ways. Early investment into max star upgrades and stat growth will benefit the ultra late game as levels are capped at 50 but will hamper you farming and fighting in the early-midgame. Early investment into ability point purchases can give faster farming rates, more kill potential and faster leveling resulting in a stronger early-mid game, but relatively low stat gain. How to spend will depend primarily on how the enemy is doing and how many kills the game is set to (ie 60 is very unlikely to provide enough time for stat gains to make a significant difference vs 180 which will probably see everyone max out levels and ability levels upon which ench items, base stats and the types of abilities will determine the match).


**Please comment anything I've missed/haven't clarified that you want to know or you think I should add!**