Well this is gonna be my first guide about my favorite and (by far) my best hero, Puck. Now I'm gonna do this in Dota 1 and Dota 2 formats. I got an idea from using Dota 2 images from DTB's Kunkka Guide since it looks good and most of PD already has Dota 2 so they can relate and there is also a DotA 1 version so that Dota 1 players can still understand the guide. Happy Reading!
Loved by aggressive players everywhere, Puck the Fairie Dragon is one of the best heroes in the game at starting fights. Puck's skills are useful in any situation, giving him a lot of flexibility and making him a great hero in both support and offensive roles. His signatue skill, Illusory Orb, is an example of this. Although it functions like a regular line damage spell, at any time during its course Puck can use his Ethereal Jaunt skill and instantly teleport to the position of the Illusory Orb. This makes the spell useful in both attacking and escaping. It also works perfectly with his second offensive spell, Waning Rift. Waning Rift deals damage and silences in an area around Puck, making it the natural choice for use after an Illusory Orb and Ethereal Jaunt. Puck's final offensive spell, Dream Coil, can be used either before or after this combo with great effect. Dream Coil traps enemies in a small area, forcing them to remain near the target point or take damage and get stunned. To complement his need to get up into his target's face, Puck has Phase Shift to help in sticky situations. Phase Shift renders Puck invulnerable for several seconds, although he is unable to move in this state. Puck is a relatively easy hero to pick up, but a rewarding one to master.
In Sentinel's search for heroes to aid them in the war against the Scourge, they discovered the lost lands of the mystical Faerie Dragons. Upon explaining the conflict to the Faerie Queen of Agrace, she sent forth Puck, a personal guardian, to turn the tides of war. Despite his small size and mischievous personality, the little dragon soon proved to pack more than his fair share of power on the battlefield, blasting through the enemy ranks with balls of magic, faerie dust, and the capability to stupefy an entire army with nothing more than his imagination. His foes all learned the hard way that size matters not in combat, and that appearances are, ultimately, deceiving.
While Puck seems at first glance a mischievous, childish character, this quality masks an alien personality. The juvenile form of a Faerie Dragon, a creature that lives for eons, Puck spends countless millennia in its childish form. So while it is technically true that Puck is juvenile, it will continue to be so when the cities of the present age have sloughed away into dust. Its motives are therefore inscrutable, and what appears to be play may in fact hide a darker purpose. Its endless fondness for mischief is the true indicator of Puck's true nature.
As you can see, starting stats are average (pretty low for Strength, can be solved buying strength increasing items), with above average starting Agility and average Intelligence. Stat gains are pretty normal.
You need to play Puck pretty safe for the early-mid game since she is so soft and can be instagibbed by 2-3 nukes. More on this later.
Learn more about Puck here. Read up on her skills and on what they do, since I would just put the skill descriptions here.
Illusory Orb
Sends a magic orb flying down a straight path damaging everything in its way. At any time during the life of the orb the Faerie Dragon may teleport up to it, taking its place.
Waning Rift
Releases Puck's mystical faerie dust around him dealing damage and silencing enemies.
Phase Shift
Shifts the Faerie Dragon out of existence for a brief period, temporarily avoiding any further damage.
Dream Coil
Puck's powerful imagination engulfs an area, creating coils of volatile magic that damages and stuns enemy unit as it latches on to them. Stretching the coils beyond 600 range causes it to snap and deal additional damage and stun time.
Illusory Orb
Puck launches magic orb that floats in a straight path, damaging enemy units along the way. At any point, Puck may teleport to the orb's location using Ethereal Jaunt.
Waning Rift
Puck releases a burst of faerie dust that deals damage and silences enemy units nearby.
Phase Shift
Puck briefly shifts into another dimension where it is immune from harm.
Dream Coil
Creates a coil of volatile magic that latches onto enemy Heroes, stunning them for .5 seconds and damaging them. If the enemy hero stretches the coil by moving too far away, it snaps, dealing additional damage and stuns.
Puck's Skill Builds
Puck is a very versatile hero. He/She/It can be played at a solo, dual lane or maybe even a trilane (but not very effectively). Because of her versatility, you can also be creative in your skillbuilds. Here are three examples.
Justification:
Illusory Orb is Puck's main nuke, escape mechanism and initiation skill (when you still don't have dagger). It's maxed to give it the full effectiveness at early-mid game. You take 1 level of Phase Shift and Waning Rift for the escape mechanism (even better that Phase Shift costs no mana today) and the silence. Max Waning Rift next to get that 3 sec silence which can be crucial in teamfights and small skirmishes. Phase Shift is maxed to lengthen the duration to 3 secs, which will allow you to properly escape with Blink dagger. Take Dream Coil whenever you can, its your best tool in teamfights.
Justification:
This is a different approach, makes your 3 sec Silence and AoE damage more dangerous during early game. We get Illusory Orb first for an escape mechanism and Phase Shift for another escape mechanism at lvl 1 and 2. We then proceed to max out Waning Rift. Take Dream Coil whenever possible.
15 + 1.7
22 + 1.7
24 + 2.4
Puck the Faerie Dragon
