Valkyrie
By: Blockk
The ancient sagas of the heathen north have long told
to the tale of the battle-women known as Valkyries.
For centuries, their ranks have thinned as the old ways
have died out and civilization stretched its smothering
hand over the frozen wilds. But some Valkyries still remain,
cold and swift as the north wind, wielding their lances with
expertise to rival the most veteran Legion warriors.
This guide is for 5v5 Forests of Caldavar and for Normal mode games, NOT easy mode.
Another day, another guide. Valkyrie is a strong ganker that has 2 high damage nukes and a very good escape move. There were only 1 or 2 Valkyrie guides out there, so I think I should provide you with the necessary info that you need.
The ancient sagas of the heathen north have long told to the tale of the battle-women known as Valkyries. For centuries, their ranks have thinned as the old ways have died out and civilization stretched its smothering hand over the frozen wilds. But some Valkyries still remain, cold and swift as the north wind, wielding their lances with expertise to rival the most veteran Legion warriors.
Powerful ganker
Devastating stun duration
Great farmer
Good escape mechanism
Not too item dependent
Can lose effectiveness late in game if not farmed
Needs alot of mana
Pretty fragile
Javelin of Light hard to use against good opponents
starting stats
lvl 25 with attribute points
Pretty good agility gain. Not so much strength or intelligence gain. She needs mana to support her 2 nukes. We will get a bottle and some cheap stat items for her health.
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Call of the Valkyrie
Really good aoe damage spell. Also your main farming tool. Only downside is you have to be relatively close to hit the targets you want, but it can lay down a lot of hurt.
Javelin of Light
Your character defining ability to makes or breaks Valkyrie players. Has an enormous range so you can cast it from just about anywhere. It can hit enemy creeps, and your target will be moving around most likely, so it can be hard to land. Obviously the further it travels, the longer the stun duration. It takes practice to master. Use it carefully!
Courageous Leap
Your escape skill, and a very good one at that. Also very good to close the gap between enemies. Very low mana cost, and you can jump over or past cliffs. A good example..
Leaping from secret shop to river
This is a good example of abusing the terrain. If enemies come to jump you, look around for the best places to jump. You always leap in the direction you are facing, so make sure you are pointed in the right area before using.
Valkyrie's Prism
This skill has 2 purposes. For getting yourself and teammates out of danger, or setting up a massive team gank. It does it's job, but it has a high mana cost and a lengthy cooldown.
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SKILL BUILD
1. Javelin of Light
2. Courageous Leap
3. Call of the Valkyrie
4. Call of the Valkyrie
5. Call of the Valkyrie
6. Javelin of Light
7. Call of the Valkyrie
8. Javelin of Light
9. Javelin of Light
10. Valkyrie's Prism
11. Valkyrie's Prism
12. Courageous Leap
13. Courageous Leap
14. Courageous Leap
15. Stats
16. Valkyrie's Prism
17+. Stats
I'm sure some people are going to question this, but I feel this is a solid skill build that can be very flexible. Some people max javelin, but I feel Call of the Valkyrie is more guaranteed damage, and it helps you farm. There's always a chance your Javelin can miss, even for the best Valkyrie players. 1 rank of leap early to help against any ganks. The ult is taken at 10 and 11, the 2 nukes are more important.
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Item Build
Valkyrie has a pretty flexible item build. She isn't too item dependent, but one must is the bottle. You don't have to get it at the start, but get it sometime early game. 2 soulscream rings for stat boosts, and always homecoming stones for ganks. Nullfire Blade is a good item on her, gives her damage, some mana, but most importantly, a purge to get rid of nasty enemy buffs (Jereziah, Hammerstorm, Zephyr) or you can get rid of nasty debuffs on yourself or teamates. It also 1 shots Hellbringers demon, which awards you with a nice sum of gold.
Mid/Late game luxury items
Upgrade your boots to Post Haste for incredible movement speed and map control for optimum gankage. I played many MANY games experimenting with each of the 3 different boots with Valkyrie and this has provided the best results. If you cannot farm well early, buy steamboots or ghost marchers, but I love Post Haste on Valkyrie.
Really..It doesn't matter. These items are all pretty good on Valkyrie, and gives you flexibility in choosing. Personally, after nullfire, I like to aim for thunderclaw(charged hammer)
Refill your charges by buying another Nullfire Blade recipe when you run out!
Optional
If you are facing a team that fast casts (demented shaman, thunderbringer, armadon) Power supply is an awesome item. Get this in the early game
NO-NO Items
Again, it's hard to choose what bad items to put on her cause there are alot of good items for her. So I just put up some obvious choices. Brutalizer is in general not very good and even worse on ranged. Elder Parasite just makes you really easy to kill, and Assassin Shroud role is taken by Valkyrie's Prism. There are other items other than these that are 10x better.
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Game Time
Early game
Valkyrie is a good solo mid hero. If you have someone on your team getting monkey courier, start off with 2 pretenders crowns, 2 sets of runes of blight and a mana potion. If no one on your team grabs a monkey courier, just start off with your bottle. Focus on last hitting and getting levels. Harass the opponent when he gets close. Make sure you check the rune spots every 2 minutes to refill your bottle. Around level 4-5, start using your Call of the Valkyrie to farm that money. If you see an opportunity to gank, head to the forest and set up a Javelin. Have allies buy observer wards, or you can always get a pair. Your job is to seek and destory unsuspecting heroes. When ganking, get at a good distance for a lengthy stun, and leap in when it hits. TIMING IS EVERYTHING!
Mid game
You should have your boots, soulscream rings, bottle and homecoming stones on you now as you farm for Nullfire. Continue to wander in other lanes, always looking for chances to gank. Remember the cast range on Javelin is huge.
Setting up a gank at the top of the river
Nailed him at the center of the map!
Leap in and deliver some blows while he is stunned and finish him off with a call!
If your team wants to group gank, cast Valkyrie's Prism and head into position. It should be easy to use your moves, so execute and win.
Late game
You should have your nullfire, and you need to be on the look out for any buffs the enemy has. Hammerstorm ult and Jereziah protective charm are prime targets. Continue to land and time perfect Javelins, aoe the crap out of your targets, and leap to chase or escape, depending on the situation. When enemies being to rez and defend their base, get your ult ready and use it to retreat when it gets hairy.
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Good Allies
Heroes that are good at keeping their targets in place are always your friend. Easy javelins win games.
Bad Enemies
Big big nukers and stunners. They will turn you into dust if they get the first move.
