Brewmaster
by flemeister (as of v6.59)
http://planetdota.blogspot.com
Changelog:
{ Contents }
I. Introduction
II. Stats
III. Skills Description
IV. Skill Build
V. Primary Items
VI. Secondary Items
VII. Gameplay
VIII. Good Allies
IX. Replays
X. Q&A
XI. Final Words
XII. Credits
{ I. Introduction }
Panda has seen mixed usage over the years, from the classic Panda + Rhasta lane during v6.34,
to his demise under the reign of Dagger during v6.43-6.49, to his slowly growing popularity after
Dagger's re-balance. His concept is that of a "tank-caster", in that most of his skills revolve
around supporting his allies with his extensive arsenal of spells, and surviving focus-fire, all
while dishing out the pain with Drunken Brawler. He is immensely fun to play, whether you're
playing casual or organised DotA.
This guide will aim to give newer players an idea of how to play Panda, and a general item/skill
build to get them going. Panda is one of the most well equipped hero concepts in DotA, even if
his ultimate may seem weak during late-game. Use the Benevolent Schizo to fulfill whatever role
your team requires.
{ II. Stats }
For comprehensive descriptions regarding Panda's stats and skills, visit the DotA Wiki.
Strength: 23 + 2.9
Agility: 16 + 1.95
Intelligence: 14 + 1.25
QUOTE
Thunder Clap
Slams the ground, dealing damage and slowing the movement speed and attack rate of nearby
enemy land units. Lasts 4.25 seconds.
Manacost: 90/105/130/150
Cooldown: 12 seconds
QUOTE
Drunken Haze
Drenches an enemy unit in alcohol, causing his movement speed to be reduced, and causing his
attacks to have a chance to miss. Lasts 7 seconds.
Manacost: 50/50/50/50
Cooldown: 12 seconds
QUOTE
Drunken Brawler
Gives a chance to avoid attacks and deal 1.8 critical damage. Lasts 9001 seconds.
Passive
QUOTE(Ultimate)
Primal Split
Splits the Pandaren Brewmaster into elements, forming 3 specialized warriors, adept at survival.
If any of them survive until the end of their summoned timer, the Brewmaster is reborn.
Manacost: 125/150/175
Cooldown: 180/150/120
For detailed descriptions of each schizo Panda, refer to these links, from the DotA Wiki:
Justification:
Thunder Clap is your nuke and disable, dealing big instant damage early-game, and is your best
chance at early kills. It should always be maxed first, no arguments.
One level of Drunken Haze for the sexy evasion and minor slow. 45% miss can be useful in
those toe-to-toe encounters. Also, if you've only got 50 mana (not enough for Clap), then it's
better than nothing. If you're on 100hp, and your ally is being pwned, you can throw the keg
before legging it back to base.
Early Attribute Bonuses are mainly to cover Panda's low starting INT and INT gain. I've been
doing this on Panda since I started playing him, and it's quite effective at giving him a
respectable mana pool. His mana pool is a mediocre 338 at level 11. Even 2 Bracers only bumps
it up to 416. 4 Levels of Stats gives you an extra 104 mana to play with. The other levels of Haze
can wait until 17-19 unless you're against a particularly tough enemy DPSer.
Drunken Brawler gives your physical attacks a boost, with or without dps items. The evasion
also helps as you move into late-game. Unless you're playing a full support Panda, you'll want
this maxed before late-game for it's two pronged benefits.
This is an awesome skill. As long as your micro isn't piss poor, you'll have these useful spells at
your disposal:
• Cyclone (6 sec duration against heroes, 20 against creeps [including Spirit Bear,
{ V. Primary Items }
You should choose starting items according to the situation. However, the above items are, imo,
suited to the greater majority of situations. +6 to all stats is hard to beat at this stage of a game,
and Tangos give you the most optimised regen for the first 15-20 minutes of the game. Mana isn't
really a problem. Clap only costs 90 mana at Level 1, while you've got 260 mana to play with.
Core Build:
/ / /
Bracers are cheap, easy to build, and provide excellent stats. Three of them, combined with early
Stats, secures your mana and hp for most of a game. Always carry a tp scroll. 135 gold for
priceless flexibility in movement. How much would you pay to save an ally on the other side of
the map? Or to farm a lane on the other side of the map? That's 135 gold invested well (270 gold
if you carry two at a time, which I strive to do).
Tangos give you +7hp/sec on demand. When you go to use a charge, don't forget to cut paths
through trees every so often. Try and do both at the same time for the sake of efficiency. Check
out Isiloki's guide to escape by juking for an exceptionally detailed guide on this. When you're
on 100hp with an enemy up your arse, you'll find those routes very handy for juking. Just keep in
mind that trees respawn every 5 minutes starting from the 5 minute mark. No, you can't get
caught in them, but looking for a non-existent path that you cut earlier...
Flasks become better than Tangos once you have 3x Bracers, since you can regain a lot of hp
very quickly. One trick you can do is to use a flask while running into fog/up a hill. When the
enemy comes up the hill, greet them with Thunder Clap and ~200-300 more hp than before.
Only get Bottle if you're going to roam, otherwise Tangos/Flasks will suffice. Ring of Health is
an expensive last resort, for when you're constantly taking damage in lane. Luckily, you can
upgrade it later on if desired.
Blink Dagger provides for your initiating and escaping needs. It's instant nature will get you into
battle before the enemy can competently react. Defensively, it will get you out of trouble before
that Storm Bolt even hits you.
An excellent stats boost, oodles of mana regen so that you always have enough mana to support
your allies, and 3.5 seconds of free hits on an unlucky enemy. This is the best support item for
Panda, giving you a total of 5 disables (Clap, Haze, Hex, Boulder, Cyclone). Use it before you
Split for maximum efficiency; so you can cast it again when you re-form.
Perfect when against a mainly spellcasting enemy team. Soulburn also ruins orbwalkers, while
+40 damage and 30% IAS is fantastic combined with Drunken Brawler. To top it off, it's easy to
build up, with Oblivion Staff being quite a nice standalone item.
Synergy with Drunken Brawler, and easy to build up. Deso should be your primary dps item,
because gives a nice damage boost while also fitting your support role by reducing enemy
armour for allies to pound on.
Radiance may have gone out of fashion, but it's still a fantastic item when you're able to farm it.
You can plant yourself right in the middle of the enemy formation, annoying them with
Immolation, until your last sliver of hp... and then cast Split. The +60 damage goes alright with
Drunken Brawler. The only issue is farming Relic, and even if you get that much gold in one go,
you'll probably want to get Dagger first. Nevertheless, if your team needs you to be the tank, you
already have Brawler to draw fire, and Split to survive. Radiance will serve you well by
complimenting these skills.
Battlefury secures your regen and farming needs. +65 damage with Cleave is great with Brawler.
With this item, your late-game farming will be fast and free of fountain trips.
Heart is fine. Some say that you already have Split to survive, but that's just being cheap arse.
One minor perk is that you can get 19 x 15 = 280 hp regen while split. Add your natural regen to
that, and you've got a default 300hp heal tacked on to Primal Split, plus the 1000hp from the
item. That combines to give you an excellent survivability item, that actually compliments
Primal Split.
So, you want to draw fire, but not enough to get wtfpwned or rendered useless with a single
disable? Linken's [usually] fixes your problem. Of course, if they have lots of expendable spells
that cancel Disentangle (eg. Mana Drain, Headshot), then you're better off skipping it. Linken's
pwns most single target disables. If that's what is pissing you off, then Linken's will force your
enemy to spend at least 2 disables if they want to neutralise you, thereby fulfilling your role of
tank.
Shiva's is excellent support, let down only by the hideous build up. I'll just quote Patccomi's
comments on it, since he covered it nicely 9 months ago:
QUOTE(Patccmoi @ Mar 28 2008, 01:10 AM)
Pandaren? Yes, i actually tried it and liked it quite a bit on him. It increases his tanking power
and his potential as an anti-carry [referring to the -25% attack speed aura in conjunction with
Thunder Clap's -55% AS], and he can certainly use the extra mana to Clap-Haze and keep
enough for his Ulti. The snare also stacks with Thunder Clap, pretty much stopping people from
moving (they have ridiculously low MS AND AS). If you plan to carry with Panda, likely not
your best bet, but a Shiva's Guard + Radiance/Heart or Satanic/Armlet makes Panda a
ridiculously annoying tank and anti-carry. Not necessarily superior to other builds, so Grade C,
but efficient and fun nonetheless.
Starting Items:
By ~20 minutes:
By ~30 minutes:
By ~40 minutes:
{ VII. Gameplay }
Check out this link for all sorts of articles that will help you improve your gameplay. You need to
cover both theory and practice if you want to learn effectively, so read up.
Early Game:
Lane with a ranged disabler if you want to get kills. Let him/her initiate, while you run up to cast
Clap. If you're against a nasty dual-disable lane, then just be passive and ready to cast Clap in
defense. Don't forget to use Haze when chasing. 10% slow can mean the difference between your
ally catching up or just missing their disable. Imo, don't go off ganking this early; stay in lane
and help control it with your ally. I like rushing Dagger if possible, and going roaming will just
delay it.
Mid Game:
Now that you have Dagger, you can place Clap exactly where you want it. Ganks have become
prevalent, and Dagger will be useful both offensively (initiating) and defensively (blinking
before you get focused). Now that you have some Bracers, you can be the meatshield for your
team's carry hero. Prioritise his/her life over your own, keep the gameplay smooth and in your
team's favour, and prepare to push/defend. Use your spells with these aims in mind, especially
Split.
Late Game:
All 10 heroes are well into their item builds, and the carry heroes are becoming huge. Clap's
damage is now moderate, but you become fantastic late-game support, with your 5 disables.
Guinsoo provides the hard disable that you otherwise lack, and completes your arsenal as the
Benevolent Schizo.
The classic lane partner. Shackles + Clap is powerful enough, but at level 6 you gain awesome
synergy between your ultimates. Cast Primal Split away from view, Cyclone the poor sod, Cast
Mass Serpent Wards right on top of the Cyclone, and go to town when they come back down.
She has dual nukes/disables for mass pain, and the sheer utility of Brilliance Aura will have you
shooting your load quite often. Saving hundreds of gold that would otherwise have gone to mana
regen/mana pool items is great. In teamfights, you can Cyclone/Boulder the most dangerous
enemies so that Freezing Field lasts for more than 1 second.