Phoenix/Guide

Initiator
Phoenix is best played as an initiator, as it can deal heavy damage per second over time with its abilities. should be the first maxed-out ability, acting as a pseudo-disable that can fool the enemy into thinking they can fight back. Adding more levels to applies more DPS to an enemy when harassing during the laning phase or when initiating. Avoid leveling early on as you require the mana for Fire Spirits and Supernova, and Phoenix' mana pool is not very large early game. can turn the tide of battle if used properly. Quick reaction time, proper positioning, and an aggressive, risk-taking mindset is important, so that it can land all its debuffs on most (preferably all) of the enemy team prior to using your ultimate, dealing immense magic damage in a large area that can be difficult to escape from. Faster spell activation will give the enemy a smaller window of opportunity to try and disable you before you can activate your ultimate. Items that synergize with Supernova well (such as magic amplification and AoE effects) are best gotten for Phoenix players that go by this play style.

Support
Phoenix' abilities are also very good at disorienting the enemy team and keep your team alive in teamfights. Instead of focusing on initiating with, it is reserved only as a follow-up for its team's other abilities, preferably AoE disables such as or. will be Phoenix' staple ability, as its scaling and gradually increasing damage can easily whittle an enemy's health down, and even heal allies at the same time. Fire Spirits should be the next priority as it is still important in keeping the Supernova alive, while Icarus Dive only increases its damage with levels, meaning it should be maxed last. Positioning is still key, so that Sun Ray may be in an angle that lets it heal and damage simultaneously. Items to go for in this play style are preferably those that aid in the survival of your own team, such as auras like or, but if  becomes an option, Sun survivability should be top priority to prevent having two deaths at once in your own team, so buying items like  or  are good possible next items.

Ability Builds

 * should be the top priority to increase its attack speed slow as soon as possible to protect the Phoenix Sun as it is very vulnerable with a level 1 (only taking 5 hits before being destroyed), and while 's scaling is poor (as it only increases the damage while the other stats remain the same), inflicting both the Dive's and the Spirits' debuffs on an enemy will mean they will take high damage no matter where they may go, as long as they get hit by Phoenix even just once.


 * Maxing out first gives Phoenix' lanemate(s) a bit more survivability, and the growing damage may be enough to fend off enemies early game.  should still be maxed after Sun Ray as it helps tremendously in keeping the Phoenix Sun alive, but since the Phoenix Sun will be mostly used defensively, it won't be as important.

Aggressive/Initiator Phoenix

 * When choosing to do an aggressive playstyle, Phoenix must increase its spell damage output and its capability to contribute to teamfights a lot more. Since initiator Phoenix players will use Supernova to get into fights often, the additional health, Strength and armor are not too important as the Phoenix Sun does not use these values. Instead, the reduced respawn time will allow Phoenix to return to the battlefield as soon as possible, and the extra Fire Spirits damage and spell damage amplification will increase Phoenix' danger in teamfights, heavily damaging enemies that choose to not disengage from your initiation.


 * The last talent tree section is highly situational. If the enemy team is composed of high attack speed Heroes, choosing the extra Supernova hit count will assist the ability's completion. Meanwhile, if the enemy Heroes are either lacking in attack speed or have difficulty escaping your initiation, choosing the additional stun time will be helpful in keeping the enemy in place and let your team follow up with their own damage.

Support Phoenix

 * For the support Phoenix, such players won't be throwing themselves deep into the fight with their ultimate, rather will be using their spells from afar to cripple the enemy and aid their allies while staying away from harm, or perhaps initiate as well but mostly using their already available spells to add damage to a gank or teamfight. The additional health and armor will increase Phoenix' lane survivability, and perhaps more protection from would be gankers or should it be the focus of a teamfight, the extra gold per minute will allow faster purchasing of expensive core items like, ,  or , and the additional Supernova hit count stacks with 's as well, meaning should Phoenix absorb an ally into its Sun, enemy Heroes could have great difficulty destroying it if the entire team doesn't focus it down as soon as possible or if they lack the attack speed.

General

 * Quick timing, good positioning, order and aim are necessary for the perfect initiation as Phoenix. Cast Fire Spirits beforehand, concealing yourself from the enemy team so they will not expect your initiation, then try to Dive through as many enemy units as you can to inflict the movement speed slow debuff. During the Dive, try to cast Fire Spirits on as many heroes as possible and, if available, cast and  just right before you cast Supernova. If done in the right order and with quick enough casting, the Supernova would end up right in the middle of the fray, preventing the enemy from stunning you. Most, if not all, enemy units will be afflicted with all your debuffs, taking amplified damage and crippled with the slows, making the Supernova incredibly difficult to kill and/or flee from. Should an enemy stay within the ultimate's area for the whole duration, the enemy could take a total of, more or less, 1850 magical damage (provided the enemy has the base 25% magic resistance, with Veil of Discord's debuff factored in, adding 100 more damage if the +50 Fire Spirits DPS talent is chosen).
 * Remember to keep at least 310 mana on Phoenix at all times, so that you have enough to use and  should the need arise. Try not to waste too much mana with your spells as lacking these abilities to use can make escaping difficult if  is unavailable. Defend yourself by activating Fire Spirits, applying them quickly to enemies and then cast Supernova to protect yourself. If done right, you will be reborn with refreshed abilities, health and mana, as well as stunned opponents, letting you Dive away to safety.
 * Phoenix' non-ultimate abilities are very weak at level 1. Try to get to level 3 first to obtain a level 2 Fire Spirits/Sun Ray to harass the enemy with. Supernova is also rather fragile at level 1, so great caution must be taken when using the ability at low levels.
 * Mana, armor and health regeneration are all Phoenix lacks but so direly needs. Consider buying Intelligence items to increase your mana pool, armor-increasing items for more survivability, and health regen items to "refund" the health costs its abilities use.
 * If playing aggressively as an initiator, Phoenix is best played at either middle lane or offlane, where it can go solo and have as much gold and experience as it can get. Harass your lane opponents with your debuffs to prevent your opponents from obtaining last hits and denying you from your own.


 * Icarus Dive has no mana cost, meaning it can be used any time it's off cooldown and not silenced.
 * Be wary of silences while Diving, as it will prevent you from cancelling the dive and result in you turning back to where you started.
 * You can attack, use abilities and items while Diving. Try to finish off an enemy by applying its debuff, getting to land a few attacks and perhaps use other abilities/items such as or, then let yourself circle back to your original location.
 * Phoenix does not need to turn to use abilities/items while Diving, so they can be used in quick succession regardless of where you are in the Dive.


 * Always try to apply the Fire Spirits debuff on all enemy Heroes before using Supernova, so that destroying it will at the very least, be slow to make the most use of it.
 * Remember that Fire Spirits does not stack with itself. Try to spend the four spirits wisely so that you can make most of the ability for its entire duration.
 * The spirits have a fixed movement speed, and therefore take some time to reach their destination. Try to lead your aim so that it can hit a moving enemy, or try to predict where the enemy might move to next. This also means that firing the spirits from its maximum distance (especially if cast range is increased) will delay their impact further compared to firing from a closer distance.
 * The attack speed slow can be enough to completely nullify an auto-attacker Hero for a meanwhile. If you are suddenly ganked, try to apply the debuff on your assailants, and perhaps try to turn the fight around or escape.
 * The attack speed slow also works on Roshan. Accompany an ally and help out by casting it on Roshan, making sure to use the Spirits one after the other's debuff to make full use of them.


 * Reserve Sun Ray for healing purposes or if there is a fleeing enemy within reach. Sun Ray is fairly weak when the enemy is at or is close to full health.
 * The damage/heal increases the longer the Ray is activated, so try to keep the Ray pointed at an enemy/ally for maximum efficiency.
 * Sun Ray's heal is not as quick acting as other heals, therefore it is best to be used while an ally is being attacked at full health instead of using it as a last-ditch save attempt.
 * Sun Ray gives vision along its path. Use it to scout areas such as Roshan's pit, above cliffs, or the juke areas inside trees where enemy Heroes would tend to hide in.
 * When movement is toggled on, Phoenix can fly over cliffs and destroy trees, as well as be unaffected by any sort of slows. Depending on the situation, it can be used to escape a gank or a failed teamfight to get yourself to safety. You can use it to fly over 's or 's, to break free from 's  or 's , or to ignore the slows from 's  or 's.
 * Phoenix can still cast abilities and items while firing the Sun Ray. A wise escape tactic can be to toggle the Ray's movement on (preferably through a cliff) and then teleport back to base while moving so enemies may have a harder time trying to stop you from escaping.


 * Supernova is best used if Phoenix is at low health and mana to make the most of its refreshing ability at the end. However, having quick reaction times and judgment is important so that Phoenix cannot be silenced, disabled or nuked down before it can use the ability.
 * Illusions cannot destroy the Phoenix Sun, but clones such as those from or  can.
 * No ability can affect the Sun, meaning abilities like or  are no threats against it.
 * Situations to best use Supernova in is if the enemy team is clumped together so that they will take the AoE damage for as long and as much as possible. Such times will be if they are trying to push a tower, at Roshan's pit, or if they are captured in an allied AoE disable, such as or.
 * With, if the Sun is destroyed, it gives away a double kill to the Hero that gets the last hit, meaning trying to use Supernova offensively while having an absorbed ally is highly not recommended. Instead, cast it as far away from harm as possible, to reduce the chances of having it destroyed, and so the reborn ally is not immediately returned to the fray, possibly killing them quickly.
 * The Sun can be denied when it reaches 50% health. If you got good communication with your allies, you can tell them to deny your Sun if it is about to be destroyed by an enemy and it has no chance of completing.
 * Using towards an uphill and casting Supernova will greatly increase the chances of Supernova completing, as there is an uphill miss chance and melee units will not be able to hit you if they're not on the same ground.
 * Even when afflicted by 's debuff, preventing healing, Supernova will still reset your (and your ally's with Scepter) health back to full.
 * Keep in mind that while Supernova applies a strong dispel, it is still unable to remove certain debuffs such as or.

Items
Starting:
 * es and a are basic starting game health regeneration items that are much more useful on Phoenix as all of its non-ultimate abilities have health costs.
 * is enough to let Phoenix regain enough mana if it spams Fire Spirits or Sun Ray too much early game.
 * es give Phoenix much needed stats, as well as be later built into either a or.
 * lets Phoenix cope with its low base armor, aiding survivability, as well as be built later into.

Early-game:
 * should be Phoenix' choice of footwear as its armor and health regeneration all help Phoenix recover from its weaknesses. If Tangoes are still available in your inventory, try using them while the Boots are unbroken so that you gain 20 HP regeneration per second instead of the usual 12.
 * helps restore health after successful skills, or perhaps add even more DPS if Phoenix is aggressive and is successful at it.
 * should be the first item for to be bought, as Phoenix is still lacking on armor and health regeneration.

Core:
 * practically removes the base 25% magic resistance that Heroes have, letting Phoenix' abilities deal their full damage. Its added armor, health regeneration and Intelligence are all also good stats to have on Phoenix.
 * is the main core item on any Phoenix, as both its aura and active possess attack speed slows that aid in the Phoenix Sun's survivability if used right before Supernova. The additional intelligence gives Phoenix a much larger mana pool, and the armor combined with the passive attack speed slow aura gives it much more survivability against physical damage. Using the active blast during Icarus Dive causes the wave to follow Phoenix, allowing it to apply the slow and additional nuke to multiple enemies in a larger area in a short amount of time, and the attack speed slow still works during Supernova​, greatly increasing the odds of success.
 * fits a Phoenix performing the initiator role. Not only does it add more damage to Phoenix' output, but the 17% miss chance might make a difference in having a successful Supernova should the enemy decide to focus it down.
 * is more for a support role Phoenix, turning Supernova into a very powerful "heal". It is more effective on Heroes with long cooldowns on non-ultimate abilities (such as or ) or gets into skirmishes often (such as  or ), but saving any ally from certain death should be great enough on its own. Unlike when initiating, Supernova is best preferably used far away from enemy Heroes to increase the chances of having the Sun survive.

Situational:
 * lowers Phoenix' slightly lengthy cooldowns by a considerable amount. It also lets Fire Spirits practically have a very short downtime if they were active for their full duration. The spell lifesteal can also help negating the health costs of Phoenix' abilities.
 * gives health regeneration and magic resistance, giving Phoenix and its team even more survivability in teamfights.
 * gives armor and health regeneration, all important to Phoenix. However, Mekansm costs actually more than Supernova, and considering Phoenix' low mana pool early on, you may end up being able to use only one of either, not both.
 * fits the support Phoenix much better as its mana cost-free active allows restoration of health and mana to itself and its allies. The increasing health regen upon reaching low health is great for Phoenix and its constantly dwindling health, as well as remove debuffs from itself.
 * , for the aggressive Phoenix, offsets is poor base movement speed and give it extra mobility to jump from one lane to another to help out and contribute to teamfights.
 * completely negates the health costs of Phoenix' abilities, enabling it to dive deeper into enemy territory and initiate better without risk of dying before using Supernova. However, do remember that upon using Supernova, Heart's health bonuses no longer matter, so be very prudent in deciding which may be better: Using or not using your ultimate.
 * can just be the trick for enemy Heroes with quick attack speed, such as or . The additional Strength can also aid in Phoenix' survivability.
 * gives health and mana to Phoenix, allowing more ability spam with the increased mana pool, and its active root can help keep enemies in place so they can take the most of your abilities' damage.
 * increases Phoenix' survivability considerably by giving it armor and regeneration, both of which it lacks. Its active lets Phoenix purge off silences or DoT abilities off of itself, as well as perhaps deter enemy Heroes from placing targeted abilities on it in the first place.
 * gives high mana regeneration, allowing Phoenix to spam Fire Spirits and Sun Ray more often. Its active not only purges debuffs, but may also come in handy if Phoenix is silenced during Icarus Dive. Using the active on yourself while Diving and silenced stops Phoenix mid-Dive, preventing Phoenix from circling back to its original location.
 * should only be bought if the player is sure on how to make the most of it. It is best to not use Refresher Orb immediately after Supernova as the ultimate already refreshes Phoenix' other abilities, making Refresher's active rather pointless. Instead, spend the other abilities first, then refresh so you may perhaps have a third Icarus Dive/Fire Spirits/Sun Ray to use and a second Supernova to refresh them.