Visage

Visage, the bound form of Necro'lic, is a ranged intelligence Hero whose traits are unusual when compared to most Intelligence heroes; he can be a Ganker, Tank,  or Nuker. Resilient and ruthless, Visage is a highly aggressive hero thanks to his great Strength gain and Gravekeeper's Cloak which allow him to soak up surprising amounts of damage. This is especially true from attacks mounted by Heroes who try to chip at his health with spells and burst damage without committing to a protracted engagement. This unholy gargoyle thrives in the midst of large battles, where the abundant pain and suffering in the air charges his Soul Assumption, allowing him to fire off huge bursts of magical damage in rapid succession. Additionally, Visage's proficiency with auto-attacks is augmented by his ability to absorb the attack and movement speed of his foes with Grave Chill. Finally, his versatile ultimate, Familiars, is arguably one of the best scouting utilities in the game while also being excellent sources of damage and AoE disables. Utilizing his Familiars to their fullest requires constant split attention and good positioning to avoid feeding their large bounties to an enemy Hero. With a legion of ghostly gargoyles, incredible toughness, and fast attacks, Visage sows terror and agony, relentlessly hunting poor souls and leading them in the shackles of death to the gates of the Underscape.

Tips

 * Visage is known for his difficult learning curve due to his dependence on effective micromanagement of his Familiars. However, once mastered he is a very strong support who can push and gank very effectively.
 * Visage's abilities make him a very strong hero to have in teamfights, as he can bring a powerful array of nukes and disables to bear. He can also use his spells effectively in ganks to jump on and disable targets with little warning and burst them down quickly.
 * Unlike most intelligence supports, Visage is a very survivable caster due to possessing a high strength growth and powerful damage resistance in Gravekeeper's Cloak. Combined with his other spells, Visage can engage enemies head-on in teamfights and hold his own in the initiation phase.
 * With a 0.2 second cast animation and long cast ranges on his spells, Visage has great reach if played properly. However, his low base movement speed and slow turn rate also make him relatively sluggish, so positioning is important if he is to take advantage of his strengths.
 * While Visage is mainly played as a support, he can also become a strong semi-carry if given some farm priority. He can be played as a hard support or a farming support, depending on what his team needs, and transition into a roaming, ganking and split-pushing role.
 * is a targeted disable that reduces the enemy's movement and attack speed while boosting up Visage's.
 * Because of its scaling, only one early point in Grave Chill is needed. Each additional level only increases its duration slightly, and the reduced cooldown does not become useful until much later in the game.
 * Grave Chill is a very strong ganking spell, as it can inflict a strong slow on an enemy while also robbing them of attack speed, allowing Visage to position himself to easily body-block the enemy's escape path while bursting them down with right-click attacks. These aspects also make Grave Chill a strong counter-gank spell, since it can greatly hinder an enemy that is chasing a weakened ally and reduce their ability to finish off their target with right-clicks, allowing Visage to turn the tables on them.
 * The increased attack speed provided by Grave Chill means that Visage benefits from building intelligence items rather than simply mana items. Not only will increased intelligence give Visage a bigger mana pool, but it will also increase his base damage to allow him to use his right-clicks more effectively due to the attack speed bonus.
 * is a potentially powerful damage nuke that increases in strength based on the amount of damage that heroes in Visage's vicinity take.
 * Soul Assumption makes Visage extremely powerful in tri-lanes, as the amount of damage dealt during ganks and small-scale engagements allow Visage to quickly build up Soul Assumption charges to launch a powerful nuke at an enemy. Additionally, its extremely short cooldown allows it to be cast more than once in a fight, which can allow Visage to deal more and more damage the longer a fight drags on.
 * Soul Assumption's long cast range makes it a powerful finishing nuke against fleeing enemies. If an enemy has been weakened by allied attacks and spells and is almost about to escape, casting Soul Assumption on them can often be enough to finish them off if the salvo has built up enough charges.
 * Keep in mind that Soul Assumption builds charges based on damage taken on both sides. This means that not only can Visage add more damage on top of his teammates' when damaging an enemy, but also when allies or Visage himself take damage, making it a strong nuke no matter which side is ganking.
 * Due to the limited window during which charges are maintained, Soul Assumption is more powerful in situations where burst damage is being dealt, as damage-over-time spells can result in charges expiring over time.
 * Because of its high nuking potential, Visage benefits greatly from maxing out Soul Assumption first among his abilities. The huge nuke potential of the spell allows Visage to deal large amounts of damage whenever fights break out, giving his team more chances at getting kills against the enemy.
 * Beware that since Soul Assumption has a very low cooldown, it is easy to run out of mana to cast it if used repeatedly. Be mindful of when kill opportunities are possible, and try to conserve Visage's mana as needed.
 * Due to its low cooldown, Soul Assumption can be cast as an initiating nuke to break an enemy's Linken's Sphere prior to slowing them with Grave Chill. After breaking an enemy's Linken's Sphere, Grave Chill's low cooldown allows it to be cast at least two more times without interference.
 * is a powerful survivability passive that gives Visage increased armor and magic resistance.
 * The layered nature of Gravekeeper's Cloak makes Visage quite resistant to burst damage, which can help him to shrug off initiation nukes by the enemy. However, this also makes Visage very weak against damage over time spells, as multiple small instances of damage can easily shred the resistance layers and leave Visage open to nukes.
 * Getting multiple early levels of Gravekeeper's Cloak can make Visage quite survivable in the early game, particularly when few enemies have the attack speed to use their auto-attacks to quickly shred the cloak. However, beware if the enemy team's composition is capable of dealing damage over time, which can easily negate armor layers.
 * Even with multiple levels in Gravekeeper's Cloak, it is recommended to build up Visage's armor and magic resistance, in order to give him some measure of survivability if he must engage the enemy without his armor layers. Armor is more helpful than magic resistance in this regard, since Visage's abnormally high strength growth means that he will eventually have enough HP to outright ignore most magic nukes.
 * allows Visage to summon two Familiars that can roam the battlefield.
 * Proper Familiar management is crucial in order to play Visage effectively. Used properly, the Familiars allow Visage to gank targets, push undefended lanes, chain-disable multiple enemies, and deal large amounts of burst damage in fights.
 * Unlike other summons, Familiars will last until they are destroyed, and can still be controlled even if Visage himself is dead. Try to always be active with the Familiars, using them to accomplish tasks no matter Visage's status.
 * Familiars cannot be harmed by anything except physical attacks, so magic nukes and debuffs cannot affect them. They will always require a set amount of attacks to destroy, making them weak against ranged heroes with high attack speed that can pick them off before they can escape.
 * The most powerful aspects of Visage's Familiars is that they are completely immune to disables, and possess flying movement that allows them to ignore terrain. However, while they are very mobile they also have extremely poor vision range and extremely low attack range, making them poor scouters and forcing them to attack enemies at close range.
 * Familiars' charge-based attacks and low base attack time allow them to deal tremendous burst physical damage to enemies when they focus their fire. Combined with their flying mobility, Familiars become powerful gankers and can quickly kill fragile supports behind enemy lines. However, their reliance on damage charges in order to deal damage also cause their attacks to become extremely weak after expending all their attack charges.
 * Because of their ability to ignore terrain, Familiars can find safety in hovering over trees, where the enemy cannot easily find them. They can also escape destruction by flying over impassable terrain in order to prevent enemies from easily pursuing.
 * Remember that the Familiars do not have to be at Visage's side all the time. There are many strong advantages to moving them all around the map, since they can be used to assist teammates who are ganking on a different part of the map, push an undefended lane, attack the enemy from behind during a teamfight, and many other uses. Be creative with how the Familiars are used, and try to always catch the enemy off-guard.
 * Be very wary of the long cooldown on Summon Familiars, and try not to allow the enemy to kill the Familiars. Not only will this give the enemy a large gold bounty, but can leave Visage without his primary method of burst damage when he needs them.
 * If the enemy is about to kill the Familiars and they have no path to escape, casting Summon Familiars will instantly kill any active Familiars, preventing the enemy from getting a gold or experience bounty. However, beware that this will also leave Visage without his Familiars for an extended period of time if they are killed again.
 * will cause the controlled Familiar to turn into stone, dealing damage and stunning any enemies in their impact radius while also making them invulnerable, healing them and restoring their attack charges.
 * The most general way to utilize Stone Form is to heal the Familiars and replenish their attack charges after they expend the charges. Additionally, Stone Form can be used as an additional damage nuke and stun, adding more disable and damage to an engagement.
 * Because of their spell immunity and the autonomous nature of the Familiars, Stone Form can be used to stun enemies with little warning and through defensive measures by maneuvering the Familiars into a position of surprise and dropping them in place when the opportunity presents itself. This can be useful for executing disables that would otherwise not be possible, such as during an enemy, and can safely interrupt channeling spells from range like and.
 * Beware that Stone Form has a delay between commanding the Familiars and them becoming invulnerable and impacting; the Familiars can still be killed before they complete the transformation, so be careful about when and where to cast it.
 * By staggering Stone Form and casting it one after another on the Familiars, it is possible to chain-stun enemies within the impact area, allowing two Familiars to stun for a maximum of 3 seconds (4.5 seconds with Aghanim's Scepter). This can be doubled up, at risk, by instantly re-summoning the Familiars at close range and executing another cycle of drops.
 * Visage's combination of burst damage and disable potential allows him to build various items that can augment his ability to gank and push, though he can also build items to provide support-utility to his team.
 * and should be prioritized for the supports to purchase when needed.
 * and are important support items to buy regularly. Observer Wards give Visage's team map vision and allow Visage to better position his Familiars to take advantage of gank opportunities, while Sentry Wards allow Visage to take map vision away from the enemy; as well, Familiars can use their small vision radius to scout high ground areas for enemy wards after placing a Sentry Ward on lower ground to cover more detection area.
 * can be carried relatively safely on Visage, as he possesses survivability in Gravekeeper's Cloak. As with Sentry Wards, he can use his Familiars to scout high ground to spot and destroy enemy Observer Wards.
 * is an unorthodox survivability item that gives Visage useful bonuses. The armor gives him survivability against physical damage, while the intelligence and bonus damage give him more mana and increase the effectiveness of his auto-attacks, making him a bigger threat with Grave Chill. The active can act as a second layer of defense once Gravekeeper's Cloak has been exhausted, discouraging the enemy from attacking him while his defenses are weakened.
 * is a useful utility and support item. It gives Visage more intelligence, increasing his base damage and the size of his mana pool, and provides some HP regen to keep his HP topped up. The active allows Visage to quickly re-position himself to cast his spells during ganks and fights, and can act as an escape if needed. It can also be cast on teammates caught out of position in order to save them.
 * is an expensive investment, but can greatly increase Visage's mobility. The increased movement speed allows him to more easily position himself to cast his spells or pursue enemies with Grave Chill, and the teleport can be targeted on his Familiars, allowing him to effectively re-position himself anywhere he wishes on the map.
 * gives Visage increased teamfight, ganking and pushing ability. The item provides more strength and intelligence, giving Visage more HP, mana and base damage, and the summons can be used to help the Familiars push, or provide more damage output in a teamfight. Upgraded to level 3, the Necronomicon Warrior also provides True Sight, giving Visage increased utility.
 * increases Visage's ability to gank and solo-kill enemies. Besides giving him all-around attributes and increased intelligence for mana and base damage, the active nuke allows Visage to instantly build up Soul Assumption charges, greatly increasing his burst damage potential.
 * gives Visage more support and utility power. The item provides Visage with more intelligence and mana regeneration, greatly increasing his ability to to cast spells, and the bonus movement speed allows him to more easily position himself for casting spells or chasing with Grave Chill. The active can allow Visage to remove debuffs from himself while making himself temporarily invulnerable, or can hard-disable an enemy at range to set them up for Stone Form stuns.
 * is a relatively cheap item that increases Visage's semi-carry potential. It increases Visage's physical attack power, giving him more damage output when combined with Grave Chill, and the armor reduction on targets will increase their vulnerability to his Familiars' attacks.
 * can give Visage increased survivability and utility for his team. The magic resistance allows Visage to weather magic nukes more effectively when Gravekeeper's Cloak is down, and the magic barrier can shield teammates from magic damage during fights.
 * is a useful semi-carry item with an easy buildup that increases Visage's ganking prowess depending on the enemy lineup. It gives Visage many useful benefits, including physical damage output, more mana and powerful mana regeneration. The silence can prevent enemies from casting escape spells during ganks, and deal powerful burn damage from Visage's powerful burst damage at the end of the silence.
 * is an expensive semi-carry item, but gives Visage many powerful benefits. It gives Visage stats across the board, increasing his tankiness, physical damage output, and mana. The attack modifier stacks on top of Grave Chill, greatly slowing an enemy for Visage to bring down with his attacks and Familiar burst.
 * is a very powerful support item that gives Visage powerful utility in teamfights. The increased attributes and aura make Visage much tankier, and he can heal himself while also removing negative debuffs with the active.

Trivia

 * Visage has one of the most numerous ability remakes in the game, with Grave Chill being his only mainstay:
 * Soul Assumption, in an earlier version, was an auto-cast enabled attack modifier where he will deal bonus damage and steal the life of his enemies upon death, healing him and leaving no corpse.
 * Gravekeeper's Cloak used to be a passive aura where allies in the area will be healed when Visage takes damage, physical or magical.
 * Raise Revenants, his former ultimate, lets him summon up to eight pitch-black, gargoyle-shaped spirits from a corpse. It was likely changed because of it being a very effective scouting tool that makes map control easier. The Revenants had good vision range, a flying attribute, and can be resummoned easily since the ability neither cost a lot of mana nor had a long cooldown. This, along with the fact that the Revenants did not do a lot of damage on their own (attack modifier limits their damage to one-third the stated amount against heroes) and no special abilities give them very limited usage in combat situations.
 * Visage's rival line towards Visa rival 02.mp3 "You shall not pass!" is a direct quote from Gandalf, a character from The Lord of the Rings. This reference is due to the similarities between Keeper of the Light and Gandalf.

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