Lina

Lina is a caster capable of delivering massive bursts of magic damage, making her one of the most effective early gankers. Her 3 ability nuke combo is extremely powerful.

Lina has the slowest attack speed in the game and as such, coupled with her only stun to have a considerable delay, beginners shouldn't be using her. She is recommended for intermediate to advanced players.

Tips

 * Combining Light Strike Array with a guaranteed stun such as Vengeful Spirit's Magic Missile or Sven's Storm Hammer makes Lina a serious ganking force early on.
 * Positional items such as Blink Dagger, Force Staff or Phase Boots can help you a lot landing Light Strike Array and thus your whole spell combo without relying on other heroes.
 * Always cancel the backswing animation after casting your spells. Especially when you plan to skill Fiery Soul
 * In teamfights it can be very beneficial to quickly focus on low hp or support heroes, as Lina has very good nuking abilities.
 * Laguna Blade should not be used as a finishing blow, since that can waste most of the spell's massive damage. It is best used to cripple enemy carries or obliterate their supports; but using it when its damage far exceeds the target's remaining HP is a waste. There is a temptation to use it on fleeing heroes as it is the only one of Lina's abilities that is long range and target-unit; but it is wiser to build Blink Dagger instead to avoid having to expend it.
 * Note that owing to Pugna's ability to amplify magic damage, when combined with him Lina's burst damage becomes truly colossal to the extent that a sceptred Laguna Blade used on a decrepified enemy with full HP can often kill them outright.

Trivia

 * The original Lina Inverse "The Slayer" was modeled after the main character from the anime/manga Slayers.
 * Lina was the first hero to be made in Dota 2.