Focus all your hatred on me!
Mogul Khan



1. Introduction
2. Stats
3. Skills
4. Skill Build
5. Item Build

1.Introduction

Well hello again my Dota citizens and welcome to my beloved Axe guide. This guide you will read now will have the honour to be my first real guide. With real I mean a guide which will be constantly updated. I know my previous guide heroes have had some changes and I know I didn't update it (also because I got a lot of work but that actually may not be an excuse) but that time is over, from today all my guides will be updated into every detail you guys expect! I hope you will further enjoy my guides I will release and I hope they will help a lot!



2.Stats

Range: 125 | Move Speed: 290
Primary: STR
Str: 25 + 2.5 | Agi: 20 + 2.2 | Int: 14 + 1.6
Damage: 49-53 | HP: 625 | Mana: 182
HP Regen: 1 | Mana Regen: 0.57
Attack Speed: 0.71 | Armor: 2

The History of Mogul Khan

I think it’s obvious, before we start, that I first let you know where he comes from. As you all know Mogul Khan was once the leader of the Half-Tribe of the Bloodied Axe Clan. He was a great leader and always knew what was good for his people. Sadly to say he was slain by human Paladins and his people all despaired because their great leader was gone forever, and they swore to avenge his death.



Just when the Clan wanted to go to war to destroy the humans once and for all, they mysteriously saw their leader hunting down the humans already. They soon regrouped with their leader, still very confused if he was a hallucination or not. After having defeated the scout camps of the humans, he told them that he was revived by The Lich King and demons while at the same time refreshing his spells to give him only 1 purpose: slaughtering humans.



The Clan, both relieved and astonished, are now reuniting with their leader once more. But not only with him, they are all loyal servants now from The Lich King. That was the price Mogul paid, serving the Lich King together with his Clan for all of eternity. Now that you all know his history it’s time to learn how to play with this fabulous strong hero in DotA.

Now we all know Axe is a strength type hero. Although people say he isn’t that good at late game, I say differently. I strongly believe he can be a very good late gamer if you truly know how to play him, which is what most people seem lack. Almost everybody says that Axe is a noob-friendly-hero, that he isn’t difficult to play with, that he’s imba,… and so on. These people are wrong.

Axe is truly a hero which requires some skills, tactics and last but not least, bravery. Being the “Tank” of your team isn’t an easy job. More so with a stat gain with +2.5 for strength, when other tanks have +3.0 or more.

He is very good early and mid game because of his skills, which I will explain later and he is an early game decent killer. When you reach mid game nothing changes in his tasks. Still hero killing, but also disabling (which actually I also do early game because I level up Berserker’s Call). When entering late game, nothing really changes except that he will be the main tank of your team. A lot of people call Axe a useless hero in late game… Wrong again! Since when are tanks considered useless? When are 3 second disablers useless? Although if he gets a really but I mean really bad start it might be impossible to tank all the farmed up heroes but hey, your job is to not let them reach that stadium.


3.Spells
Berserker`s Call (E)
Mogul Kahn focuses all of his enemies' hatred on him, causing them to attack him at all costs.
Level 1 - 5 Bonus armor, forces enemies to attack Axe, lasts 1.5 seconds.
Level 2 - 10 Bonus armor, forces enemies to attack Axe, lasts 2 seconds.
Level 3 - 15 Bonus armor, forces enemies to attack Axe, lasts 2.5 seconds.
Level 4 - 20 Bonus armor, forces enemies to attack Axe, lasts 3 seconds.
• Berserker's Call affects units with magic immunity.
Area of Effect: 300
Mana Cost: 80/90/100/110
Cooldown: 14
Comment: FACTS AoE Level 1/2/3/4: 300 Berserker's Call will not affect units held in Rhasta's Shackle. Berserker's Call affects nearby spell immune units. Berserker's Call affects nearby invisible units.

Battle Hunger (R)
Afflicts a target with a terrible killing hunger. The target will take damage per second until it kills a unit.
Level 1 - Deals 15 damage/second, lasts 10 seconds.
Level 2 - Deals 17 damage/second, lasts 13 seconds.
Level 3 - Deals 25 damage/second, lasts 16 seconds.
Level 4 - Deals 33 damage/second, lasts 19 seconds.
• Damage type: magic
• Heroes affected with this buff cannot be denied when their HP is low.
• Killing illusions or destroying buildings will also remove the spell.
• Casting range: 900
Mana Cost: 75/85/95/105
Cooldown: 25/20/15/10
Comment: FACTS Casting Range: 900 Battle Hunger wears off when the affected unit kills/denies another unit. Battle Hunger deals Magical damage. Battle Hunger triggers Linken's Sphere but the spell's effect still works. Battle Hunger can't be dispelled by Purge or Mirror Image. Allied heroes affected by this spell can't be denied.

Counter Helix (X)
Mogul Kahn counters some blows made to him dealing damage to all nearby enemy units. 17% chance to trigger.
Level 1 - Deals 100 damage.
Level 2 - Deals 125 damage.
Level 3 - Deals 150 damage.
Level 4 - Deals 175 damage.
• Damage type: physical
• Counter Helix checks for triggering whenever an attack against Axe begins, not when Axe is actually damaged by said attack.
• Area of Effect: 300
Mana Cost: N/A
Cooldown: 0.7/0.65/0.6/0.55
Comment: FACTS AoE Level 1/2/3/4: 300 Illusions of Axe can also deal damage by Counter Helix. Counter Helix triggers when the attack animation begins, not when attacked. Counter Helix deals Normal Damage. Counter Helix deals damage to invisible heroes.

Culling Blade (C)
Purges the weak from Mogul Kahn's sight. Deals moderate damage, but will kill a target that is low on life.
Level 1 - Deals 150 damage, kills if target is below 300 HP.
Level 2 - Deals 250 damage, kills if target is below 450 HP.
Level 3 - Deals 300 damage, kills if target is below 625 HP.
• Damage type: magic (regular), 100000000 physical (killing blow)
• The killing blow is dealt at the target if its HP is below 300/450/625 respectively, depending on the level of Culling Blade.
• The killing blow goes through magic immunity.
• The killing blow removes all buffs from the target unit before killing it.
• Casting range: 150
• Aghanim's Scepter reduces cooldown to 15 seconds at all levels
Mana Cost: 120/160/200
Cooldown: 75/65/55 (15 with Scepter)
Comment: FACTS Casting range: 150 Culling Blade deals Normal Damage. Only Phase Shift can dodge Culling Blade. Linken's Sphere will block this spell when target ain't below 300/450/625



4.Skill Build
1. Counter Helix
2. Berserker`s Call
3. Berserker`s Call
4. Counter Helix
5. Counter Helix
6. Culling Blade
7. Counter Helix
8. Berserker`s Call
9. Berserker`s Call
10. Stats
11. Culling Blade
12. Stats
13. Stats
14. Stats
15. Stats
16. Culling Blade
17. Stats
18. Stats
19. Stats
20. Stats
21. Stats
22. Battle Hunger
23. Battle Hunger
24. Battle Hunger
25. Battle Hunger

Now the questions of the day, why do you get this skill build? Why you max out Counter Helix right at the start? Why you not max out Berserker’s Call immediately if that is your build? Why you delay Battle Hunger till the last levels? Do you even use Battle Hunger?

Ok let me answer those.

Why do you get this skill build?

Because I think this is the most efficient way to play my precious Axe.

Why do you max Counter Helix first?

Because I think every little damage output helps. If you are going for level 1 only in early game then you only have a 100 damage Counter Helix nuke without the armor reduction. If you take it at lvl 4 (so if you max it out as fast as possible) you got a 175 damage Counter Helix nuke without the armor reduction. Looks kinda better for me to get those kills early game. The time in between Helix’s also gets reduced so you have more of a chance to proc Counter Helix in shorter amounts of time.

Why you not max out Berserker’s Call immediately if that is your build?

Because I think a 2 second disable in early game is enough to kill a hero with your Counter Helix together with some enemy creeps for the triggering. If he isn’t dead yet, he must be a huge tank or healer to take all that early game and of course you always got your unique ultimate to finish them off.

Why you delay Battle Hunger till the last levels? Do you even use Battle Hunger?

To answer the last question, no I don’t use it. And to answer the previous one, I don’t find it that effective to hero kill with this because I think Berserker’s Call is better all around to do that. After all you can simply get rid of the spell by denying or last hitting a hero or unit which in my opinion is not worth to level it at all since most high level players last hit anyways. Also it can seriously be avoided by some good regeneration. Nope I’m not a fan of this spell at all. I don’t level it up in mid game because I think stats are a lot better for his strength and intelligence at that point. Strength for tanking and Intelligence for spamming the awesome Dagger and Berserker’s Call.



5.Item Build


Stout Shield (250)
Passive: Damage Block
60% chance to block 20 damage if the wielder is melee (10 if ranged).
We start off with a Stout Shield mainly because Axe wants enemies to attack him so this item is a perfect synergy with it.

Ring of Health (875)
5 HP Regeneration
This one is for Vanguard/Hood of Defiance.

70 Movement Speed
24 Damage
Active: Phase
Gives 12% movement speed bonus and lets you move through units. Using items or abilities cancels Phase. Lasts 5 seconds. 10 second cooldown.
Note: Movement speed bonus doesn't stack with Boots of Travel, Phase Boots, Power Treads, or Boots of Speed.
Boots of Speed + 2x Blades of Attack
Best boots for Axe in my opinion because the excellent speed and the surprise effect.

Hood of Defiance (2150)
30% Spell Resistance
8 HP Regeneration
Planeswalker`s Cloak + Helm of Iron Will + 2x Ring of Regeneration or Ring of Health
A tank with good regeneration and good magic resistance is my key to victory.

Vanguard (2225)
6 HP Regeneration
300 Hit Points
Passive: Damage Block
70% chance to block 40 attack damage if wielder is melee, or 20 damage if wielder is ranged.
Ring of Health + Vitality Booster + Stout Shield
You see that? I finish my Vanguard as my 3th item, no need to rush it.

Kelen's Dagger (2150)
Active: Blink
Teleports the caster to 1200 range. Can't be used if the carrier was damaged by an enemy player-controlled unit or Roshan in the last 3 seconds. 75 manacost. 14 seconds cooldown.
Note: can't be held by Butcher or Vengeful Spirit.
Perfect for escaping/chasing/initiating with Berserker's Call.

Talisman of Evasion (1800)
25% Evasion
A tank with evasion, I think this doesn't need further explanations.

Heart of Tarrasque (5500)
40 Strength
300 HP
Passive: Health Regeneration
Regenerates 2% of max health each second. Only regenerates health when the bearer has not taken damage from a player owned source or Roshan in the last 8 seconds. Doesn't stack with itself.
Messerschmidt's Reaver + Vitality Booster + Heart of Tarrasque Recipe Scroll
Pretty obvious, no need to justify that. So my item slots are full but no worries, more late game items will make their entry.

Why not Boots first? It helps with the harassing…

Buying Boots first is probably the most idiotic thing you can ever do. Why? Because it give you no help whatsoever with lane controlling and staying alive. No help at all. Sure you get the extra MS in early game, but it won’t let you get more kills because your kills are coming from Counter Helix. With the Boots you also have no Stout Shield and not enough Tangos in the beginning which concludes in making it more difficult to survive and to tank the attacks of the creeps and heroes.

Why not Flasks instead of Tangos? They heal more so it’s better…

Wrong, the Tangos will help Axe to tank the attacks of the creeps and heroes WHEN rushing into them to trigger some Counter Helixes. A thing you can’t do with Flasks. Because Axe needs to be in the fight all the time the Tango’s will help to recover some of the lost hp in the battle.

Why do I never see 2 Stout Shields in your build? Are you not getting 2 Vanguards?

NO, I WILL NEVER GET 2 VANGUARDS! Wonder why? Because 1 Vanguard already blocks enough damage and the money that would be spent on another Vanguard can be better used to spent on another item, in my case Hood of Defiance). I get this item to also become a little more tanky against the nukers. Also the regeneration this item gives is very nice to jungle and to survive in team clashes.

Let’s explain HOW they stack diminishingly. You can find all the combinations at this thread by Flodian. Only thing that is incorrect is that Vanguard can block 40 damage, not 35.

DotaStrategy.com - Does 2 vanguard or 2 stout shield stack?

I’m going to use the 2 Vanguard example. Now 1 Vanguard gives a 70% chance to block 40 damage. Now what happens to the other percentage from the second Vanguard? Well we still have 30% to get the total damage so we have to calculate how many percentage 70% is of the remaining 30% which is 21%. So this percentage we have to count with the other 70% of the first Vanguard. Together we will get a total of 91% to block 40 damage. I think I calculated this well.

I hope everything is clear now and that this second Vanguard is not worh it. People often think that they have a chance of 100% (even higher 0_o like 140%) that they will block 40 damage. This is not true!

Why not Ring of Basilius? It gives armor and mana regeneration for spamming your Berserker’s Call…

The mana regeneration I currently get in early game is enough to get some good Berserker’s Call’s in. Note that the manacost from Lvl 2 Berserker’s Call is only 90 mana. So you can spam it already a little in early game if you want. But always look out for some good occasions. Don’t rush with Berserker’s Call. The armor we get from Ring of Basilius is also not that good as getting a Stout Shield and Tangos.

No bracers at all, or even Null Talisman?

Getting those will only delay your item build, Axe won’t need those. He has enough mana in early game to cast some Berserker’s Call’s together with his ulti. He also got enough hp being a Strength type hero and regeneration at this point is more important for him than rather getting more strength or intelligence.

And stacking up some Stout Shields?

Don’t spend your money on something you will have to sell later on. If you are planning on stacking up some Stout Shields let’s say 3 Stout Shields then you have to spend 750 gold on it. Gold that you can use better for getting a Ring of Health.

How about Poor Man's Shield now which got introduced at 6.60?

I personally think Poor Man's Shield is made for the agility heroes who are very fragile early game, for that I'm not even gonna build it because I am going for a Vanguard. Also the 6 agility is almost useless for you, the little armor won't help.



Optional items


Assault Cuirras

+ 10 Armor
+ 5 Armor Aura
- 5 Armor Aura
+ 40% Attack Speed
+ 15% Attack Speed Aura

The reason I get this is because of the support auras and to make Axe a little more late game orientated or DPS orientated, it also gives good armor bonuses. Your allies will also love you in return when you finished this item.


Shiva's Guard

+ 30 Intelligence
+ 15 Armor
Freezing Aura
Arctic Blast (active)

Although a little weird in this stage of the game, Shiva still gives armor. But also a new slow which can be used to slow down your opponents. It also gives a freezing aura which results in a -25% IAS for your enemies. You would probably say that I am nerfing my Counter Helix but in the end it ain’t a big difference.


The Butterfly

30% Evasion
+ 30 damage
30% increased attack speed
+ 30 Agility

This item makes my Axe complete, this item will also make Axe more late game orientated so DPS orientated but also more tanky. 30% evasion and being and awesome tank? I’m surprised if you can kill him. Don’t forget agility also gives armor.

Conclusion
First of all I want to thank you all for your patience and for your long waiting, I hope I didn’t disappoint you guys with this guide, I tried my best to make it as best as possible. I hope you all enjoyed reading my guide and I hope you will leave comments for me in the future and also tell me what you think of this guide. Suggestions are welcome as always, o yeah 1 thing, I will personally warn anybody who suggests 2 Vanguard on Axe in my guide, Deal with it, off you go!