Timbersaw has the potential to deal a lot of damage to enemies and can be very hard to lockdown. He has quite a high skill cap and is quite hard to play very well. Timbersaw has a lot of kill potential, especially when coupled with allies with stuns or slows as they make it much easier for him to land his spells.
He’s very good at dealing with strength as well as creep and illusion heroes. He relies on being able to cast Timber Chain and gain stacks of Reactive Armor to survive. In most games he will need to buy at least one defensive item because there are many spells and items which make this hard for him.
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[/column]Timbersaw Skill Build
- Reactive Armor
- Whirling Death
- Reactive Armor
- Timber Chain
- Reactive Armor
- Chakram
- Reactive Armor
- Timber Chain
- Timber Chain
- Talent
- Timber Chain
- Chakram
- Whirling Death
- Whirling Death
- Talent
- Whirling Death
- –
- Chakram
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Timbersaw shreds nearby enemies, dealing damage to them and removing 15% of their primary attribute stats for a period. Whirling Death deals pure damage if it cuts down a tree. This spell is usually left at level 1 for most of the game because the stat reduction is the same at all levels. The mana cost and cooldown is the same at all levels.
If you are playing Timbersaw in mid lane, then you should max Whirling Death before Timber Chain. This is because it’s much harder to use Timber Chain in the mid lane than it is in the off lane. It can also be used to push and control the creepwave much more easily. Try to use Whirling Death to guarantee last hits and harassing the enemy at the same time, especially in the off lane where it can be hard to get last hits. It will reduce the enemy’s damage and can make it easier for you to contest last hits against your opponent. It has a 14 second duration, so try to keep the debuff on enemies as much as possible, especially in the mid lane. If possible, try to also destroy a nearby tree to get the bonus damage.
Timbersaw throws his chain out in the target direction and grabs a tree if it comes in contact with one. He will pull himself to the tree, damaging enemies in his path and destroying the tree. This is maxed secondly on an off lane Timbersaw because it allows him to escape much more easily as each point increases the latch range, speed and damage of the spell. The spell can largely be ignored when in the mid lane because it’s hard to use it in this lane. If you are in an off lane where it is hard to survive against their heroes, a point in Timber Chain at level 2 could save you. When using Timber Chain, make sure to aim it where you are certain there are trees.
In the early levels, it can be hard to judge the distance that you can jump to. For this reason, it can be helpful to click on the tree to ensure you actually latch and don’t just die. You can use spells and items while traveling with Timber Chain. For example, you can combo Whirling Death with Timber Chain to deal extra damage as you fly past them. You can use a Town Portal Scroll immediately after using Timber Chain to still travel the distance and escape from ganks. Timber will however, stop traveling if he is disabled after casting it. This can make it hard to survive in the off lane against disables. You can try to fake a cast animation or juke until the enemies is forced to use all of their disables on you.
Timbersaw gains armor and health regeneration every time he is attacked by a creep or hero. This is almost always maxed first because it makes Timbersaw very hard to kill and gives him a way to regenerate health relatively quickly. Max stacks at level 2 will give you an additional 12 armo and 11.5 HP regen which makes you very hard to kill. This is usually taken at level 1 because it makes you take much less damage from harass, and lets you trade hits more effectively. Unless you are very out of position, you likely won’t die from not having Timber Chain.
A Poor Man’s Shield or Stout Shield will allow you to get creep aggro and build up stacks without taking much damage. Simply right-click on an enemy hero when you’re near a creepwave and you’ll begin to gain stacks. Just be careful to not take too much harass. If there is no enemy in the lane you are in, you can find an enemy anywhere on the minimap, look at them and attack them. If you quickly return the camera back to your position and you are near a creepwave, you will gain creep aggro.
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Timbersaw releases a whirling saw blade that travels to and stays at the target point. It deals damage over time and slows enemies as well as damaging and slowing any enemies it passes through. Aghanim’s Scepter will add another identical, independent Chakram spell. It can be used to zone enemies from yourself, an ally or a tower as well as to chase them. Chakram will destroy any trees it comes in contact with. This allows Timbersaw to destroy any trees blocking the one which he wants to Timber Chain to. Chakram has a relatively slow travel time, so try to aim it at where the enemy is going to. If an enemy is about to leave the Chakram’s area of effect, you should return the Chakram to get the pass damage which is more than the damage per second. You can try to block enemies that are inside of your Chakram to keep them in it for longer.
The spell amplification will make you deal much more damage in team-fights. This is because all of your spells deal pure damage and Timbersaw thrives in long team-fights where he is able to cast several spells. Timber also frequently buys Shiva’s Guard and Aghanim’s Scepter, two items which provide more damage. If you expect the match to go into the late game, then the extra XP gain will help you. If the enemy has lots of disables or nukes, then the health may let you live long enough to Timber Chain to safety.
Timbersaw doesn’t usually right click very much because it’s disabled as long as Chakram is extended, and this is his main source of damage. However, it can still be used to farm quite effectively with, as spamming Chakram on creeps and neutrals can be quite mana intensive. If the enemy mostly has magical damage and heroes that aren’t attacking you in order to build up your stacks of Reactive Armor, then the damage can be good. Otherwise, the extra stacks are almost always better.
If you’re struggling to survive in fights or if you’re just taking a lot of damage, then the extra strength will tank you up considerably. Although it’s only an extra 300 HP, it will effectively be a lot more than that, because you’re likely to have built up lots of Reactive Armor stacks by the time you get that low in the first place, and this should heal you up quite quickly.
The Whirling Death attribute reduction is very good against strength heroes because it will remove more of their health. It should be taken if you’re playing against a lineup with several strength heroes. The attribute reduction can also be good against heroes that rely on stats, such as Riki, Morphling or OD. The extra Timber Chain range will effectively double the range. It’s usually more preferred, as it makes you much harder to kill, and gives you much more kill potential because it keeps you alive for longer, allowing you to whittle down enemies with Chakram, and allowing you to keep up with enemies with lots of mobility.
Timbersaw is most often played in the off lane and mid lane in Dota 2 esports. A Poor Man’s Shield is a great item on him regardless of which lane he goes to because it will reduce the amount of damage Timbersaw takes from heroes and sometimes creeps. This will let you get lots of stacks of Reactive Armor without taking too much damage. It can be purchased with starting gold if you don’t expect to take too much harass, otherwise a Stout Shield is a good start.
A Healing Salve is good for the off lane and Tangos are good for both lanes. An Enchanted Mango will build into a Soul Ring later and provide you with some more regeneration. It will also give you burst mana regen if you need to get a kill or escape. A Faerie Fire can be good for mid lane as it can be used for burst healing when trading hits and iron branches will get more regen out of your Tangos. A quelling Blade can be helpful if you are able to farm the lane and want to contest last-hits with the enemy.
A Soul Ring is a good item on Timber because it allows you to use spells more often and to use Chakram to harass and farm faster.. The HP can be regained through Reactive Armor, and the mana can be used for all of your spells.
Arcane Boots provide you with more mana regeneration and should be disassembled into Bloodstone later.
A Soul Ring in conjunction with Arcane Boots should give you enough mana regeneration in the early game, even in the mid lane. With the HP regeneration that you get from Reactive Armor, a Bottle becomes much less relevant on Timbersaw.
A Magic Wand can be a good pickup against heroes with many active spells. This is because Timbersaw is a good ganker and likes to team-fight. He especially excels at long team-fights where he can built up many charges.
Bloodstone is considered the only core item on Timbersaw. It provides him with a massive chunk of HP and mana and lots of regen for both. Timbersaw’s innate ability to survive during long team-fights gives him several chances to build up charges on the Bloodstone. The mana regeneration allows Timber to farm more effectively, as well as to be able to cast spells for longer periods of time. He will be able to kite enemies much more easily and often be able to turn on enemies that engage him. If the Bloodstone has enough charges, Timbersaw will respawn instantly. If a Timber Chain is cast right before he dies and he respawns instantly, Timbersaw will grapple to the tree from base. Remember to use the suicide if you are disabled and are certainly going to die.
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A Hood of Defiance will tank you up against magical damage and can be built into a Pipe of Insight when needed. The Hood can be purchased before Bloodstone if you are behind and face lots of magical nukes.
Lotus Orb provides lots of regen and armor. It also provides a defensive purge and reflect ability. This may be needed against heroes with silences or against lineups with several single target disables.
Timbersaw should upgrade his disassembled Arcane Boots into Boots of Travel. You can choose to get it sooner or later depending on your game, and how soon you’ll appreciate the extra movement speed and free teleport. It can be good to get it sooner against split-pushers so that you can slow them down and farm the pushing creeps.
Blink Dagger can be a strong item on Timbersaw. However it can be hard to know when to buy it and if you need it at all. It allows Timbersaw to do a number of things very well: Timbersaw can more easily and reliably land Whirling Death; it allows him to initiate a combo onto an enemy more easily; and it becomes easier to position Timber Chain. Respectively, it can be good in situations where the enemy has tanky heroes who suffer from Whirling Death, if you have a ganky lineup or if the enemy lineup is generally quite mobile. In addition to these points, it will also increase his general survivability.
Eul’s is a strong item on Timbersaw. It provides lots of mana regeneration, intelligence and some movement speed. It can be used defensively to purge a disable or to avoid taking but can also be used offensively. You can use Eul’s Scepter to cancel teleports as you lack any other means to and also to set up for a Chakram combo.
Solar Crest provides armor, mana regeneration and some evasion. This makes it a good item against lineups with lots of physical damage. If an carry doesn’t have true-strike, you can use it on them to benefit your entire team more. Remember to help your team and use it against heroes with evasion for accuracy.
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Aghanim’s Scepter will allow Timbersaw to stay relevant into the late game because of the increased damage output it provides. It will also provide lots of mana and HP from the stats it provides. If you’re team needs more damage, consider an Aghanim’s. This item is often seen during important DPC Dota matches.
Shiva’s Guard tanks Timbersaw up against physical damage. It provides lots of intelligence and armor, as well as an attack and movement speed slow. The movement speed slow allows you to land Chakram much more easily and helps when farming or pushing a lane.
In some games, a Hex is much needed. It’s a good item against heroes that are hard to lockdown or farmed carries. It couples well with Chakram as it reduces the enemy’s movement speed and makes it easier to land. Scythe also provides lots of mana regeneration and intelligence.
If the enemy team has lots of damage, then consider an Octarine Core. It will heal you as long as you keep dealing damage. It also reduces the cooldowns on all of your spells and items. This is especially helpful because of the fact that Timbersaw usually has many active abilities.
Dagon can be good in some situations. If your team lacks damage or if it has heroes that benefit from lifesteal it can be good. It can be good against heroes that tend to survive on low HP. For example, Morphling and Broodmother can both restore a lot of HP through their spells.
If the enemy has too much physical damage split among them, then a Blade Mail may not help. In cases like these, a Ghost Scepter may be more help.
Blade Mail is a strong items against physical damage dealers that can burst you down. It can be an especially good item if you are behind and taking lots of damage in fights. Blade mail also provides some armor and intelligence which is needed. It should be considered against heroes like Sven, Templar Assassin and Ursa. In some games it may even be needed before a Bloodstone.
A Linken’s Sphere may be needed against heroes that can punish Timbersaw with single-target spells. It also provides lots of mana regeneration and some all around stats.
If the enemy team has lots of magic damage and disables, then you may need a BKB to survive in team-fights. Sometimes a defensive item such as Lotus, Eul’s or Linken’s simply wont be enough.
Timbersaw is usually very hard to kill, especially when farmed. He is also a great chaser and front liner. For these reasons he is a great Gem carrier.
A Kaya can be a decent item if you didn’t go for a Bloodstone as a first major item. It’s very strong against mana drain abilities, but it doesn’t tank you up in anyway.
Against lineups, an Aeon Disk can be good. It will shield you for 2.5 seconds, which is often enough time to get a Timber Chain or off and escape, especially if you have other mobility items.
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Timbersaw is very vulnerable to heroes with silences as they prevent him from escaping with Timber Chain. Some form of defensive purge will most likely be needed.
Timbersaw is generally vulnerable to magic burst damage as it doesn’t allow him to restore HP through Reactive Armor. Heroes such as Lina, Lion and Ember Spirit are all very good at dealing with Timbersaw. Ember Spirit also has a root ability which prevents him from using Timber Chain.
Heroes with Blinks or other movement abilities are generally very hard to kill as Timbersaw. They can also usually kite Timbersaw fairly easily.
Doom’s ultimate will completely remove Timbersaw from a fight. His attack is practically useless and he wont gain stacks from Reactive Armor to protect him. Buy either a Linken’s Sphere or a Lotus Orb to deal with Doom.
Invoker has several spells that can deal with Timbersaw, especially in the late game. He also tends to buy items that disable a target, such as Bloodthorn or Scythe of Vyse. Tornado and Cold Snap can interrupt Timber Chain, EMP can remove his mana and Forged Spirits can remove the armor he gains through Reactive Armor. A defensive item such as Linken’s Sphere, Eul’s or Lotus Orb will help a lot against Invoker.
Keeper of the Light’s Mana Leak will completely render Timbersaw immobile. If he attempts to escape with Timber Chain he will lose a massive amount of mana, if not get completely drained. A defensive purge is necessary against KotL.
Bloodseeker can Rupture you which will often prevent you from using Timber Chain without taking a massive amount of damage. If you choose to not move, or get stunned, he can also silence you. A Eul’s Scepter can help with the latter, and good position and decision making with the former.
Faceless Void can trap Timbersaw in Chrono with no means of escape and prevent him from using his spells. This is particularly effective against Timber Chain as it prevents him from escaping. Time Lock can also stun Timbersaw right after he has casts Timber Chain if he is unlucky. The magic damage is also effective against Timbersaw.
Timbersaw is very effective against illusion heroes or heroes that spawn creeps, such as Nature’s Prophet and Broodmtoher. He can gain stacks from the creeps very easily without taking much damage and clear illusions with relative ease thanks to Chakram. All of his spells will also destroy the trees from Nature’s Prophet’s Sprout.
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