It should be no secret that Spirit Breaker is currently on a rampage around the pub. With a 52% win rate across all brackets and 54% in Divine+ games, Barathrum is definitely a hero to nag, especially given how fun and easy his wins are. Today we will talk about some unexpected tricks that Spirit Breaker players use best in their matches.
This is pretty much self-explanatory and everyone should probably know about Vanguard and how it can be dismantled in 
Octarine core. The interesting part is that Spirit Breaker, especially a support, doesn’t really need Vanguard early.
Most players actually prefer it 
Durability Drum after 
Boots phase on the hero. This maximizes the hero’s damage and burst speed, providing a good amount of survivability stats.
That said, once you get your starting MS items, it’s sometimes a good idea to get the occasional Vanguard for survivability, which can later be converted to the larger item. Make sure you get it 
Aghanim’s Scepter as well, probably before dismantling the Vanguard in the Octarine Core. Cooling down is active The charge of darkness definitely worth it.
Another interesting trend is that Spirit Breaker players really don’t mind going for dual boots. Phase Boots are great for the hero because of the extra armor and extra MS, but 
Bearing boots are often purchased alongside them.
This is mostly done in games against slow heavy, be it 
Venomancer or 
Crystal Maiden. In most games, refreshing your charge lower by going the Aghanim and Octarine route will probably be more beneficial, but sometimes you just need to be able to get away from some annoying slows.
Armor is a very important stat, especially for a hero like Spirit Breaker, which is all about charging. However, when it comes to level ten talents, getting the extra night vision should be a priority.
There are some heroes against whom no distinction will be made. Characters like 
lazy, 
Luna, 
Night Stalker and a few others will still see you before you see them at night.
However, against the vast majority of other heroes, you have to pick and choose when to engage. This is not an easily measurable benefit, but it makes all the difference at the highest levels of play. If anything, in most cases it will help you survive better than the extra 4 Armor you get otherwise.
Another interesting new change is the level 20 talent for the hero. Previously it gave +10% chance. Big Bash, later changed to +13% and finally to +17%. This is a negligible talent, as it basically gives Spirit Breaker a BKB Pierced Bash every three hits.
The hero doesn’t attack very often, of course. He has a very high BAT of 1.9 and low dexterity gain. From level 20 with a default build, he usually attacks once every ~1.10 seconds. Worst case scenario – three attacks take the hero ~3.5 seconds and we are expected to get a 1.5 second hit during this period.
Basically, the worst case scenario is that Spirit Breaker gets about 40% expected time on his BKB piercing disable, if he is allowed to attack his target. Add bash guaranteed by The charge of darkness AND Nether Strike and you get a hero that can more or less stun a priority target.
We’re not saying it’s always the right way to play, but in certain games, especially when facing a 4+1 strategy with a strong single well-defined hold on the enemy team, going this route can be more beneficial than the extra MS and damage on Charge of Darkness.
Spirit Breaker is probably one of the easiest heroes to play right now. Between the high survivability and direct impact, there’s very little reason not to give it a try. As long as the hero player doesn’t overdo it too often, he will be an asset to his team.
We hope you found some of the tricks useful and feel free to share your findings in the comments section below.
