Who is invoker
Invoker, known for many things like to be one of the strongest heroes in the game, the most difficult hero to play within the game and for example the hero with the most potential if used correctly.
I am going to explain several things to you like why Invoker is currently constantly picked and banned in the competitive scene. Why he is difficult to play. How his spells work. How they actually scale and how to use them to their full potential.
This guide is focused on explaining every aspect of Invoker. It's designed to help new player's to get an idea on how to play Invoker. Nevertheless intermediate player's may learn something too.
The guide is as well explaining things on a quite high level while trying to pull you through the basics too. Don't be afraid of the length of this guide, it might demotivate you but I really try to make sure that even new players get an idea of what I am actually talking about.
Before I start to get you a little bit closer to Invoker I feel I am in need to at first explain the 3 different "build's" you may noticed at the top of this guide. These don't just differ item-and skill wise they also really differ in the way they are commonly played. More UN-experienced player's are advised to skip this part and read it afterwards for better understanding purposes!
1. The Quas-Wex-Invoker
The combination of both, Quas and Wex, granting great team fight abilities, long range initiation coupled with a crippling huge aoe mana burn rendering low mana pool enemies completely useless if catched unprepared. Means this build is mostly providing control and the ability to position yourself much easier due to the higher movementspeed granted by Wex instead of dealing huge amounts of damage. Means you have superior team fighting, initiating and tower defending abilities but are less effective in simple pickoffs.
2. The Quas-Exort-Invoker
The pure pushing build. Focuses on the ability " Forge Spirit's" to push towers much easier. This is seen quite rare even in the current metagame. (which contains early tower pushing to get yourself a good advantage for the midgame - really simplified) You are able to push great and stunlock by yourself for several seconds and being useful in pickoff situations. The big disadvantage however are your limited team fight abilities which are simply not existent for quite some time when choosing this style of play. You are able to adapt later on and adjust your skill build by yourself if something doesn't work out. I strongly recommend you to only play this build if you are playing on a quite high level or in a team with friends where your lineup is focused on pushing.
However seems like this kind of play-style is fadeing out nowadays.
3. The Exort Invoker
Deals massive amounts of damage and provides superior last hitting power. Requires excellent timing and coordination to be really effective. Somewhat squishy due to the lack of Quas and Wex early on, can get easily picked off. With some levels able to completely disintegrate a whole team if spells are timed precisely, however hard to execute well, damage differs much depending on how you hit your spells.
Notice that all of these builds and play styles focus on the beginning of the game. You will be able to use every single spell in the late game, morphing into a real fearsome power, like you actually are anyway before that time.
Pros and Cons
Pros:
+ extremely versatile
+ can be very hard to kill or chase
+ able to deal massive amounts of damage
+ ranged
+ good attack animation
+ really dominant in lane
Cons:
- hard to master
- requires precise timing to be really effective
- low standard movement speed
Know your role
What is it really what you actually do you might ask, this section will help you to understand your task in the game throughout the game.The most important thing for you to understand is that you are by no means a what is mostly considered "ganker". You are either a "pusher", "initiator" , "counterinitiater" or in general a "teamfighter"kind of hero. You are not supposed to solo gank with runes or just solo gank at all. You can support ganks with Sun Strike when you are Exort-Invoker. You are at first supposed to stay in your lane, win your lane and the most important thing: Don't die!
You are supposed to get levels because you get freaking powerful with levels. Means stay in your lane, lasthit, get experience and try to make it as hard as you can for your opponent in lane. If you see a chance capture it and go for the kill. There are some certain counters against you but you can however do what you need to do in most cases.
Ganking however as a Quas-Wex-Invoker might be appreciated in pub games but is actually not your task. As soon as you have got some levels and the first teamfights or towerpushes occur you do what you do best. You cause absolutely havoc in the fights. Avoid getting picked off and counterinitiate. When you counterinitiate, whatever you skilled, try to always hit as much enemy heroes as possible with your spells.
You need to be aware that you are really hitting either fast or hard depending on your skillbuild, so don't just run away after you got your spells off unless you expect getting focused.
Invoker Combo's - How to execute
The number and variety of spells that Invoker got in his arsenal allows him to combo up every spell with another one, means you can actually chain spells until your first used spells are of cooldown again, theoretically. Quite easily done with help of an Aghanim's Scepter.
Invoker Combo's - How to execute
I might add that these Step are here to give you an impression of what I am talking about and to make the guide a little more visually attractive, the quality somehow decreased for no apparent reason but should be solid all in all. Pls leave any sort of feedback on this if you wish this for future guides or you think it's pointless.
1. Tornado + EMP + Cold Snap
The standard combo you need to use with a Quas-Wex build, quite easy to execute though even if the timing differs on your levels of Quas and Wex.
2. Tornado + Chaos Meteor + Deafining Blast
Really useful and great damage output but only useable quite late because you miss the range on Tornado in the early stage of the game rendering this combo rather useless till the later game.
3. Tornado + Sun Strike
May secure you a kill on really long range, also useable quite late to either the lack of damage by Exort or the range of Tornado by Wex.
4. Forge Spirit + Cold Snap
Standard combo when playing Quas-Exort build and quite effective as it stunlocks an enemy hero for quite a long time.
5. Alacrity + Cold Snap
Alacrity may not be used on yourself but your maincarry while you Cold Snap his target so that he can get his damage out, especially useful for melee hardcarry's.
6. Tornado + Ice Wall + EMP
If other spells are on cooldown or you want to cut the fleeing path of enemy heroes off, this is a really good combo to do so.
7. Defeaning Blast + Sun Strike
Used quite rare but might come in handy in some situations but anyway highly dependant on your timing, hard to execute in ingame situations.
Useing Eul's Scepter of Divinity as initiate
8. Eul + Ice Wall + Cold Snap
Useful if you are chasing someone and want to make sure he is unable to escape. Even if you are unable to hit the target after your combo got off, your target will still get stunlocked by the damage of Ice Wall
9. Eul + Chaos Meteor + Sun Strike + Deafening Blast
If your Tornado is already on cooldown and you want to set your combo up perfectly, initiating with Eul's is really strong. Really hard to execute even with the help of Eul's but still possible with some practice, deals tons of damage.
10. Eul + EMP + Defeaning Blast
If you need to hold a single or multiple targets in the Aoe of EMP why dont use Deafening Blast instead of Tornado as you might need the Tornado later on.
11. Eul + Ghost Walk (Eul yourself up and immediately go into Ghost Walk)
If you are surrounded by enemies this is a really good trick to get out of certain situations. Won't work as long as your enemies carry Dust of Appearance, Sentry Ward's or a Gem of True Sight but can rescue your life.
12. Eul Stundodge
Eul's can also easily help you to dodge a stun to rescue your life or stop an enemy initiation. Enableing you to counterinitiate.
13. Ghostwalk Stundodge
It's important to be able to escape ganks or survive certain engagements, which can be done useing Ghostwalk, taking that to the next level means that you dodge incoming stuns from ganks or engagements.
To give you an impression of what Invoker is capable of
Just to show you why Aghanim's Scepter is such a great item on Invoker and what an Invoker is able to do if executeing nearly perfectly. Please note that this scene was scripted and didn't happen in a real MM game and that its purpose only is to give you an impression of what Invoker is capable of.
