• Log InLog In
  • Register
Liquid`
Team Liquid Liquipedia
EDT 13:00
CEST 19:00
KST 02:00
  • Home
  • Forum
  • Calendar
  • Streams
  • Liquipedia
  • Features
  • Store
  • EPT
  • TL+
  • StarCraft 2
  • Brood War
  • Smash
  • Heroes
  • Counter-Strike
  • Overwatch
  • Liquibet
  • Fantasy StarCraft
  • TLPD
  • StarCraft 2
  • Brood War
  • Blogs
Forum Sidebar
Events/Features
News
Featured News
ByuL, and the Limitations of Standard Play1Team Liquid Map Contest #22: Results and Winners7Code S Season 2 (2026): RO4 and Finals Preview12TL.net Map Contest #22 - Voting & Ladder Map Selection7Code S Season 2 (2026) - RO8 Preview8
Community News
[TLMC] Summer 2026 Ladder Map Rotation05.0.16 patch for SC2 goes live (8 worker start)83ZeroSpace at Steam NextFest - Last free demo39Weekly Cups (June 8-14): Clem and Solar double, PTR tested0RSL: S6 Finals played at BlizzCon 202611
StarCraft 2
General
Is the larve respawn broken? The Death of Cheese: From a Professional Cheeser 5.0.16 patch for SC2 goes live (8 worker start) Old Replays From 1.4.6 The future of the SC game model
Tourneys
Douyu Cup 2026: $20,000 Legends Event (June 26-28) Maestros of The Game 2 announcement and schedule ! RSL Revival: Season 6 - Qualifiers and Main Event INu's Battles#17 <BO.9> Sparkling Tuna Cup - Weekly Open Tournament
Strategy
[G] Having the right mentality to improve
Custom Maps
New Map Maker - Looking for Advice - Love or Hate Work In Progress Melee Maps [D]RTS in all its shapes and glory <3
External Content
The PondCast: SC2 News & Results Mutation # 532 Nuclear Family Mutation # 531 Experimental Artillery Mutation # 530 One For All
Brood War
General
ASL 22 Proposed Map Pool Best thing happen to StarCraft since Remastered? ProGamer Paychecks Story Data needed BW General Discussion
Tourneys
[Megathread] Daily Proleagues [ASL21] Grand Finals The Casual Games of the Week Thread [BSL22] GosuLeague Casts - Tue & Thu 22:00 CEST
Strategy
Simple Questions, Simple Answers Creating a full chart of Zerg builds Relatively freeroll strategies Why doesn't anyone use restoration?
Other Games
General Games
ZeroSpace at Steam NextFest - Last free demo Path of Exile Nintendo Switch Thread Stormgate/Frost Giant Megathread Beyond All Reason
Dota 2
Looking for a Dota Mentor Official 'what is Dota anymore' discussion
League of Legends
Heroes of the Storm
Simple Questions, Simple Answers Heroes of the Storm 2.0
Hearthstone
Deck construction bug
TL Mafia
TL Mafia Community Thread Vanilla Mini Mafia
Community
General
US Politics Mega-thread Russo-Ukrainian War Thread Canadian Politics Mega-thread The Games Industry And ATVI Things Aren’t Peaceful in Palestine
Fan Clubs
The HerO Fan Club! The herO Fan Club!
Media & Entertainment
Movie Discussion! Series you have seen recently... [Req][Books] Good Fantasy/SciFi books [TV/BOOK] *SPOILERS* Game of Thrones Discussion
Sports
2024 - 2026 Football Thread Formula 1 Discussion McBoner: A hockey love story TeamLiquid Health and Fitness Initiative For 2023 Cricket [SPORT]
World Cup 2022
Tech Support
Computer Build, Upgrade & Buying Resource Thread
TL Community
The Automated Ban List
Blogs
Listen To The Coaches!
TrAiDoS
An Exploration of th…
waywardstrategy
I'm an arrogant trash talke…
FlaShFTW
Gauntlet SC2: A Retrospectiv…
Ctone23
ramps on octagon
StaticNine
StarCraft improvement
iopq
Customize Sidebar...

Website Feedback

Closed Threads



Active: 12752 users

[H] DotA items

Forum Index > General Games
Post a Reply
1 2 3 4 5 33 34 35 Next All
rpf
Profile Blog Joined January 2007
United States2705 Posts
July 10 2007 02:34 GMT
#1
I\'m new to DotA, and I need help understanding the items.

I\'m mostly concerned with what items to get at the start. I can usually figure out what items I want based on my hero and how to make them once I give it a minute or two to look.

But I don\'t know what to get at the start.

I see people go double bracer/band/talisman, or maybe I see them go Basilius and/or Headdress, or some other thing.

What I\'m looking for is a general idea of what items to buy based on whether I\'m str, agil, or int.

Yes, I know that items can change depending on what specific hero you have, so I\'m just asking generally what\'s good for each stat.
"A fear of weapons is a sign of retarded sexual and emotional maturity." - Sigmund Freud
hrmM
Profile Joined November 2005
United States210 Posts
Last Edited: 2007-07-10 02:40:55
July 10 2007 02:40 GMT
#2
bracer/band/talisman is what you usually get first if you don't know much about the game yet - my friend when i started playing jus said always get two circlets because those three branch from the circlet always

i think basilius and headdress goes depending on the hero

and i'm kinda still new to dota but all agi heroes seem to be good with the butterfly
sMi.hrmM 勇气
Dark.Carnival
Profile Blog Joined November 2006
United States5095 Posts
July 10 2007 02:40 GMT
#3
well..it does rather depend on your hero and your teams heros... basilius/headress i'd generally get when your int in lanes with allies. when your solo you want regen items(roh etc.). if your against nukers you want some +stats/regen. i'd say most common starting items...ring of health/rings of regen, headress, basilius, stat items(branches..circlets). it is based on your hero though, your team and who your against.
@QxGDarkCell ._.
rpf
Profile Blog Joined January 2007
United States2705 Posts
July 10 2007 02:42 GMT
#4
So what's a safe bet? Two circlets/tangos? Go from there?
"A fear of weapons is a sign of retarded sexual and emotional maturity." - Sigmund Freud
poor newb
Profile Joined April 2004
United States1879 Posts
Last Edited: 2007-07-10 03:03:57
July 10 2007 02:46 GMT
#5
for a carry hero that will farm many big items either start with 4 branches and tangos, or get bottle.

if you jungle or run around and gank a lot early game, go bottle

if you need mana and have nuker ally in your lane go basilius

if you need a lot of mana for yourself go mana pots and tangos

if you go meka go headdress

for most other heros start with circlets and tangos

for item build its usually a slot for a big item, a slot for boots, a slot for tp scroll and fill the rest with bracers/null/wraith
How do you mine minerals?
thedeadhaji *
Profile Blog Joined January 2006
39489 Posts
July 10 2007 02:50 GMT
#6
mmm, if you're new you might want to just stick to one hero and really get a feel for how the game dynamics work. Limiting the hero variable will also limit the item variable, and allow you to concentrate solely on the gameplay. Once that's settled in, picking the right items for each hero for various situations will be just a matter of knowledge and some experience.

I'm personally in favor of limiting the things you need to learn at once in the beginning, but that's just my take.
Ack1027
Profile Blog Joined January 2004
United States7873 Posts
July 10 2007 02:51 GMT
#7
My guideline is this:

A hero that I get mek with [eventually] I get Ring of regen and the rest is for ironwoods that I can afford at starting time.

The majority of heroes begin with 2xbracer and some intels 3xbracer vanguard or 2x bracer vanguard

-em I believe the best items to start with are 2 circlets, 2 gauntlets, and 4 tangoes.

In serious games ironwoods are king, and the only time I buy clarities to start with 2 MAX then tangoes and maybe a circlet.

If you are gonna be a ganking hero or a range support get wards/chicken.

Bottle is for melee gankers. Both sk's, sven, tiny etc.
Ack1027
Profile Blog Joined January 2004
United States7873 Posts
Last Edited: 2007-07-10 02:53:40
July 10 2007 02:53 GMT
#8
On July 10 2007 11:50 thedeadhaji wrote:
mmm, if you're new you might want to just stick to one hero and really get a feel for how the game dynamics work. Limiting the hero variable will also limit the item variable, and allow you to concentrate solely on the gameplay. Once that's settled in, picking the right items for each hero for various situations will be just a matter of knowledge and some experience.

I'm personally in favor of limiting the things you need to learn at once in the beginning, but that's just my take.


Agreed with haji.

Irl friends and those in my vent who were completely new to dota I taught them how to play by playing two heroes:

Sniper and Sven.

They played those for about a week each and learned the important things like last hit, deny, gank, when to use and not use ulti, how to support your team, understanding auras, different item builds.

Also I have never bought wraith bands in the last several versions in serious games and have only bought them in pub games for some heroes like drow and sa. Very rarely.

You will learn that health items [bracer] are KING.
Dark.Carnival
Profile Blog Joined November 2006
United States5095 Posts
July 10 2007 02:53 GMT
#9
haji is right...stick with one hero and you'll be able to learn faster what will work best. it's hard to say a general begining build because it really is based on your hero/allies/other teams.
@QxGDarkCell ._.
rpf
Profile Blog Joined January 2007
United States2705 Posts
July 10 2007 03:50 GMT
#10
So are you guys saying to take bracers over band/talisman even if I'm not str?

It seems like going for 2x bracer/tangoes is pretty...standard.
"A fear of weapons is a sign of retarded sexual and emotional maturity." - Sigmund Freud
Dark.Carnival
Profile Blog Joined November 2006
United States5095 Posts
July 10 2007 03:53 GMT
#11
well....you need hp early so bracers are better to get most of the time.. like when i'm silencer i'll get nulls instead just because i enjoy abusing glaives early
@QxGDarkCell ._.
Rice
Profile Blog Joined July 2007
United States1332 Posts
July 10 2007 05:42 GMT
#12
id recommend starting with 2x circlet 4x tangos and chicken with the majority of heroes, and making 2 bracers with your circlets. bracers are the most cost effective way to get health early game which is what every hero needs and even gives some damage and mana to boot.
Freedom will be defended at the cost of civil liberties.
{ToT}Strafe
Profile Blog Joined October 2004
Thailand7026 Posts
July 10 2007 06:42 GMT
#13
i heard rapier is good
GeneralCash
Profile Joined December 2005
Croatia346 Posts
July 10 2007 06:54 GMT
#14
minimum 2x tangoes regardless of hero. unless someone shared chick (or u got it), then u can bring in tangoes if u get hurt.

4x ggbranch + tangoes is a safe bet for most heroes.

recently i tend to get items that help me last hit since i've been practicing new heroes.if you're new, i suggest the same thing. +2 agi (forgot the name) items on heroes like void and pa are far from an optimal choice, but help getting those last hits. so do nulls on visage or qop.

if u have a str hero, start with 2x gauntlets and 2x tangoes. amen.
rpf
Profile Blog Joined January 2007
United States2705 Posts
July 10 2007 07:02 GMT
#15
Why 4 branches?
"A fear of weapons is a sign of retarded sexual and emotional maturity." - Sigmund Freud
paper
Profile Blog Joined September 2004
13196 Posts
Last Edited: 2007-07-10 09:28:38
July 10 2007 09:28 GMT
#16
can someone explain the usefulness of branches?

its like ~38 hp, +2 dmg, and some extra mana for two branches :\
38 hp will rarely keep you alive, +2 damage wont make a kill, and that mana wont let you cast more spells than before?!

if youre not going mek, isn't it a waste of money?
or is it all about maximizing your inventory space?
Hates Fun🤔
rpf
Profile Blog Joined January 2007
United States2705 Posts
July 10 2007 09:56 GMT
#17
I'm guessing it has something to do with the best stats for the money. Personally, I've had awesome experience just going double bracer/band/talisman, following that up with boots and then moving on to more stat/hero specific items.
"A fear of weapons is a sign of retarded sexual and emotional maturity." - Sigmund Freud
testpat
Profile Joined November 2003
United States565 Posts
July 10 2007 10:46 GMT
#18
branches are basically free. They also give the best stat / cost ratio. 5 branches give extra 50 or so mana, and 100 hp - which is useful

You can load up on branches, then as you need the space sell them back and get half the money refunded.

I'd just add, that if you're going the bracer route, don't bother buying the bracer upgrade until you need the space, for the same reason as above - the upgrader itself adds very little, compared to the cost.
Suppose I don't know taste of common salt & I want to know it.
Equinox_kr
Profile Blog Joined December 2006
United States7395 Posts
Last Edited: 2007-07-10 11:40:58
July 10 2007 11:36 GMT
#19
On July 10 2007 11:53 Ack1027 wrote:
Show nested quote +
On July 10 2007 11:50 thedeadhaji wrote:
mmm, if you're new you might want to just stick to one hero and really get a feel for how the game dynamics work. Limiting the hero variable will also limit the item variable, and allow you to concentrate solely on the gameplay. Once that's settled in, picking the right items for each hero for various situations will be just a matter of knowledge and some experience.

I'm personally in favor of limiting the things you need to learn at once in the beginning, but that's just my take.


Agreed with haji.

Irl friends and those in my vent who were completely new to dota I taught them how to play by playing two heroes:

Sniper and Sven.

They played those for about a week each and learned the important things like last hit, deny, gank, when to use and not use ulti, how to support your team, understanding auras, different item builds.

Also I have never bought wraith bands in the last several versions in serious games and have only bought them in pub games for some heroes like drow and sa. Very rarely.

You will learn that health items [bracer] are KING.


Eww Ack you're such a noob hahahaha

edit: OP: Sniper is such an easy hero to play, and you can get good with him easily as well. Just get Treads then Skadi with 2 Bracers and you'll be fine. As for skills, just alternate between Range and Scattershot while getting Assassinate at its respective levels. Just last-hit, deny, gank when called to, get some kills. Easy

I had the misfortune to start DotA with Crystal Maiden (I randommed so I wouldn't look like a noob ) and I went like 0-27 or something. It was fun though :O
^-^
rpf
Profile Blog Joined January 2007
United States2705 Posts
July 10 2007 14:27 GMT
#20
Sniper is such an awesome hero. Him and Razor I like a lot.

I tried doing that thing where you fill up on branches. It sucked. I honestly don't get why you'd do that, even if it is more cost effective.

So, I wanted to give you guys some examples, so please respond how you'd gear out each hero so I can get an idea of how to play things.

Sven
Sniper
Pugna
Omniknight

And for Razor (I LOVE Razor), I usually go either Basilius, or dual bands, into BoS, Mael, Treads, Mjoll and by then either the game is over, or I'm raping. I usually go for radiance next.
"A fear of weapons is a sign of retarded sexual and emotional maturity." - Sigmund Freud
1 2 3 4 5 33 34 35 Next All
Please log in or register to reply.
Live Events Refresh
RotterdaM Event
16:30
Rotti and Rexy Monday
RotterdaM490
Railgan49
SteadfastSC14
Liquipedia
[ Submit Event ]
Live Streams
Refresh
StarCraft 2
RotterdaM 490
elazer 208
RushiSC 178
BRAT_OK 89
Railgan 49
mouzStarbuck 48
gerald23 29
SteadfastSC 14
MindelVK 1
StarCraft: Brood War
Calm 3878
Sea 1635
Mini 475
Hyuk 283
BeSt 237
Dewaltoss 151
Soulkey 146
ggaemo 129
Rush 89
hero 57
[ Show more ]
Hyun 51
Pusan 46
Aegong 39
scan(afreeca) 29
ToSsGirL 23
IntoTheRainbow 18
Bale 16
yabsab 13
Sacsri 11
Hm[arnc] 10
Dota 2
Dendi1210
420jenkins310
Counter-Strike
fl0m963
x6flipin386
zeus163
edward40
Other Games
singsing3773
FrodaN1271
B2W.Neo1013
Beastyqt453
Sick200
ArmadaUGS100
Grubby71
Mew2King42
Trikslyr41
UpATreeSC38
JuggernautJason25
Organizations
Dota 2
PGL Dota 2 - Main Stream583
StarCraft 2
TaKeTV 518
Blizzard YouTube
StarCraft: Brood War
BSLTrovo
[ Show 14 non-featured ]
StarCraft 2
• mYiSmile129
• AfreecaTV YouTube
• intothetv
• Kozan
• IndyKCrew
• LaughNgamezSOOP
• Migwel
• sooper7s
StarCraft: Brood War
• BSLYoutube
• STPLYoutube
• ZZZeroYoutube
Dota 2
• WagamamaTV543
League of Legends
• Nemesis3693
Other Games
• Shiphtur367
Upcoming Events
RSL Revival
17h
RSL Revival
1d
Bombastic Starleague
1d 3h
PiGosaur Cup
1d 7h
Kung Fu Cup
1d 18h
Replay Cast
2 days
CrankTV Team League
2 days
Bombastic Starleague
3 days
The PondCast
3 days
HomeStory Cup
3 days
[ Show More ]
Replay Cast
4 days
HomeStory Cup
4 days
Replay Cast
5 days
HomeStory Cup
5 days
Sparkling Tuna Cup
6 days
Liquipedia Results

Completed

BSL 22 Non-Korean Championship
Douyu Cup 2026
Murky Cup 2026

Ongoing

IPSL Spring 2026
Acropolis #4
CSCL: Masked Kings S4
YSL S3
CSL Season 21: Qualifier 2
SCTL 2026 Spring
IEM Cologne Major 2026
Stake Ranked Episode 2
CS Asia Championships 2026
Asian Champions League 2026
IEM Atlanta 2026
PGL Astana 2026
BLAST Rivals Spring 2026
IEM Rio 2026

Upcoming

CSL 2026 Summer (S21)
ASL Season 22:Wild Card Qualifier
CSLAN 4
Blizzard Classic Cup 2026
Kung Fu Cup 2026 Grand Finals
RSL Revival: Season 6
CranK Gathers Season 4: BW vs SC2 Team League
HSC XXIX
BCC 2026
Light Tournament 2026
Eternal Conflict S2 Finale
Eternal Conflict S2 E1
Heroes Pulsing #3
FISSURE Playground #5
BLAST Open Fall 2026
Esports World Cup 2026
BLAST Bounty Summer 2026
BLAST Bounty Summer Qual
Stake Ranked Episode 3
XSE Pro League 2026
TLPD

1. ByuN
2. TY
3. Dark
4. Solar
5. Stats
6. Nerchio
7. sOs
8. soO
9. INnoVation
10. Elazer
1. Rain
2. Flash
3. EffOrt
4. Last
5. Bisu
6. Soulkey
7. Mini
8. Sharp
Sidebar Settings...

Advertising | Privacy Policy | Terms Of Use | Contact Us

Original banner artwork: Jim Warren
The contents of this webpage are copyright © 2026 TLnet. All Rights Reserved.