1. BLG3RNT BUILDS 1.1 Introduction 1.2 Change Log 1.3 About Stats and Items 2. Flicker 2.1 Lore 2.2 Vainglory Spotlight 2.3 My Thoughts on Flicker 2.4 Abilities 3. Stats & Items 3.1 Build Stats 3.2 Build Items Examined 3.3 Optional Items 3.4 Item Economics 4. Builds 4.1 Jungle 4.2 Roam 4.3 A Final Note 5. Thank You

BLGRNT BUILDS

I've been playing Vainglory casually since around 1.6 when Rona was released. I've always been a fan of VGF guides and they've helped me a lot through the game. I never felt my understanding of the game was good enough to create build guides, I just played.

I started collecting stats and compiled ways to understand the game, and what effects the builds truly have. Hopefully that will translate well to my build guides. I'm not a pro player, but I think I am pretty good with analysis, and I think my guides will contribute to other players enjoying the game further. If you've read my guides before you'll be familiar with the format. I try to keep them all similar, so enjoy!

A final note on my guides and guides in general: The author of any guide has a particular play style. I am no different. My guides reflect my play style. They won't fit everyone's style. Typically for my builds I look for different ways to build characters. There isn't a reason to repeat the same stuff over and over, but mostly I look for what works for me. So understand these guides may not reflect the typical thought process towards a character.

Check out my other guides
Catch me streaming on Twitch
Follow me on Twitter
My YouTube Channel

Welcome to BLG3RNT BUILDS: Flicker

Flicker is a new character there are bound to be several nerfs upcoming. I call this the "Complete" guide, but it's currently not complete. I'm releasing this very early so as my understanding of Flicker evolves so will this guide. Stay Tuned...

No changes

Throughout this guide I will explain what this build actually does for your stats, how the items affect your build and abilities. It is my hope that this will help you better understand how swapping items effects your character. A guide is a exactly that, a guide. You don't have to follow this to the letter. Your game play is probably different than mine.

The reality of this, however, is that it's virtually impossible to cover every variation against every opponent. If there is something specific you are having problems understanding let me know in the comments and I'll try to help you out. I will say up front, that it is completely possible that I won't be able to answer every request. That circles back around to not being able to cover every variation.

All of the stats I give here are based on the characters lvl 12 stats

I will offer stats vs particular items. Such as "This build deals x damage vs Aegis. Since I cannot account for every character and every possible statistical build I will let you know what the stats vs that item are.

I generally math well, but if you see a calculation that might be inaccurate please, please, please let me know.

In general stats are rounded off rather than ridiculously long decimal numbers.

One final note I can think of: I searched for hours looking for basic attack speeds. I could not locate anything that stated what 100% attack speed officially meant. The closest I came to an answer was that at 100% attack speed a character would attack approximately 1 time every 1.3 seconds, so that's what I ended up using for my stat analysis.

BEHIND ENEMY LINES: FLICKER’S DISCOVERIES


INTERSPECIES POLITICS

Welcome back for another monthly addition of "What BLG3RNT thinks of the new hero". I chuckle a bit thinking about that statement. With these guides it really has become a monthly thing. It seems many of you enjoy it, and some of you don't. Oh well, these are my guides. Anywho... moving on.

Flicker. The newest hero (at the time of this guide creation) to hit the Halcyon. Flicker is the true incarnation of "size ain't everything". When I saw this character I honestly didn't expect much. Stupidly it was due much in part to his small stature setting the tone for my expectations. I was wrong in some cases and right in others.

Flicker isn't going to bring you much new in the way of game play. Certainly not in the way Samuel changed the landscape of how a character could move, and how his abilities changed how one ability could be super dependent on another ability. VG set the bar extremely high with Samuel when it comes to changing how we play the game, and since then we've got Baron, Gwen, and now Flicker. All which fail to reach that bar in my opinion. Those before Flicker, however, have all brought something new to the table with their abilities. Baron's Jump Jets & Gwen's skeddadle. Sadly Flicker fail's to even do this. His abilities are all simply damage, slow, root, and stealth. He does offer a team wide stealth, with an ability that is global, so I will give him that, but truly in my opinion Flicker really lacks that "wow" factor when it comes to bringing something new to the Halcyon Fold. So by those guidelines he is disappointing.

However, for my money Baron while introducing something "new" to VG, never truly came together in my mind. He feels clunky, niche, and isn't a game changer. Almost like he doesn't fit with himself. Slow because of (presumably) all of that armor and artillery, but at times feels like a sneeze will take him down. Flicker to me feels like a well put together character that just meshes well with himself and is certainly a game changer. We received, in my mind, what is the most polished character since Samuel.

So what did we get with Flicker?

We got the 10th highest health stat, and the 3rd amongst traditional Roam characters. (By traditional I mean those labeled as such).
He has the 4th largest energy reserve in the game, and 2nd amongst traditional Roamers, 2nd to only Lyra.
He has the 7th best Weapon damage in the game, and the 3rd among Roamers to only Lance and Fortress.
Has has average attack speed. I call it average because there are 12 other characters on his level.
His Armor and Shield are average.
Believe it or not he is inherently the fastest character in the game. (Note: I used inherently in that sentence. Gwen is the fastest with skeddadle's passive, but that can be removed by causing her damage.)
Finally he has the 5th highest inherent DPS in the game.

So in 5 out of 9 statistical categories he is in the top 10. That's awesome!

Plus his abilities are very versatile. So, with all of that being said. On with the show!

Willow Whisper Slot: Heroic Perk Flicker gains stealth and a move-speed bonus when in brush for 2s. Flicker can then leave the brush and remain stealthed for 3s. Flicker has true sight while stealthed. Taking damage, attacking or using abilities removes stealth.

This is awesome. If you think Taka or Kestrel are annoying, think about a character who doesn't have to use an ability or wait for a cooldown to go stealth. One thing to keep in mind the timer doesn't reset if you reenter a brush. Once you leave the brush you gained your stealth from the 3 second countdown begins. If you travel to another brush you will lose your stealth momentarily until you've been in the brush long enough to reactivate it. However, so long as you are in the brush that activated the ability you will remain in stealth mode unless you attack, are hit, or use an ability.

Binding Light Slot: A Flicker commands his fairies to swarm the target location for 2s, dealing damage to enemies within it. When the effect expires, fairy light roots any enemy heroes still within the area.

This ability can be close to useless on it's own. It's very easy to escape from because it's radius is so small. I recommend learning this ability first, but leveling it 2nd, and taking the overdrive.

The one thing it does do on it's own, which I'm unsure if it's a bug that will be fixed or if it's intended because they failed to mention it in the ability's description, is that if you cast it into a bush it will reveal characters hiding in the bush. I will try to confirm if it's intended or not, and if there is a radius in which it will reveal. I was also told by a teammate that they momentarily revealed a Scout Trap so it might be used for that also. However it does not highlight the trap like a flare or another Scout Trap will.

Fairy Dust Slot: B Flicker swirls fairy dust around him for 3s, slowing and dealing damage to anyone inside the dusted area. After 3s, the dust ignites, dealing a burst of damage.

Right out of the box this is easily the best slow in the game. I fully expect this ability to get nerfed. If Lyra's Bright Bulwark is continuously getting nerfed because of how frustrating it is to play against, I can't wait to see what they say about this.

This is a slow that most characters can't escape from. Why? Well because it moves with Flicker so once you've captured a player in your cloud you can keep them in it for the duration as long as you move with them. Here's the kickers. It slows them 40% at level 1 and up to 70% with the overdrive, PLUS you can attack them while moving with them, PLUS it does damage to them. Think about that with everything I've said previously. Flicker is the fastest character on the map inherently. You already can't outrun him, how will you do it while a slow is being applied?

A few things to note about this ability:
It absolutely wrecks Gwen. The damage removes the passive speed she gets from skeddadle, plus she can't skeddadle out of it because skeddadle cleanses the slow that's applied, but if she's in the cloud the slow is immediately reapplied (she can skeddadle if she's at the very edge).
Blackfeather on the other hand is somewhat immune to it. If he attacks you with Feint of Heart and remains on the rose trail the speed gain cancels out the slow, and once overdriven he can't be slowed.

This ability can be used defensively as well. Which plays into the roam aspect of Flicker's kit. If an ally is being chased you can use this to slow the pursuit of the opposing player.

This pairs extremely well with Binding Light. There are two ways to use these abilities in tandem. The first is if you have a character in the cloud and you are fighting, or even if they are focused on another player, you can cast Binding Light beneath their feet. This will increase the damage and apply the root if they are still standing on it when it executes. Why does this work so well? Because they are exactly the same color, so you can't really notice the Binding Light has been cast. The second way I use these together is if you get someone in your cloud and they try to escape, once they have committed to their escape route, you can lead them with this ability, placing it in their path, and often they will reach it at the precise time they become rooted, and if not they will at the very least take more damage.

Mooncloak Slot: C After 1s, Flicker and his allies temporarily gain stealth and a move-speed bonus. The stealth will break when a hero uses an ability, attacks or takes damage. All heroes affected by this ability will have true sight while stealthed. After a short time, that hero will stealth again so long as Mooncloak's duration has not expired.

A great ability in theory, it can be difficult to execute well. One of the most useful ways I've found to use this is an escape for your teammates. In a situation where they are low on health and retreating, so long as they aren't taking damage, you can trigger this, which will effectively remove your opponent's target, plus it grants movement speed. This is a global ability so it doesn't matter where you are in relation to them. This ability's usefulness is amplified if you are a coordinated team on discord (or however you communicate). Your teammates can tell you when they are in trouble and you can trigger it from anywhere on the map and give them the same escape.

A couple of things to note. You are stuck in place while casting this. You cannot cast it and runaway at the same time. You are, much like SAW and his Suppressing Fire, rooted in place until the ability has been cast. Another thing (which I expect to be fixed in future updates) is if an ally is casting an ability before this takes effect, they will finish that ability without becoming visible. There was an interesting situation when I was playing with Skye, in which I cast the ability, but before the effects took place she began Forward Barrage. Once the stealth effects hit there was effectively a cloud shooting bullets. I am genuinely curious as to what it looked like to our opponents.

Here are the lvl 12 stats for these builds.

Roam Health 3354 (1700) Energy 757 (0) Crystal Power 0 Weapon Power 155 (0) Cooldown 30% Energy Regen 4 Health Regen 16 Atk Spd 136% (65) Armor 230 (145) Shield 320 (235) Range 1.5 (0) Move Speed 3.9 (0.4) Crystal Lifesteal 0 Weapon Lifesteal 0 Shield Pierce 0 Armor Pierce 0 Crit Chance 0 Crit Dmg 0 Sprint 2

CP Attack Health 2304 (650) Energy 757 (0) Crystal Power 130 amp'd to 176 w/ Broken Myth Weapon Power 155 (0) Cooldown 30% Energy Regen 4 Health Regen 0 Atk Spd 201 (65) Armor 200 (115) Shield 245 (160) Range 5.1 (0) Move Speed 4.1 (0.6) Crystal Lifesteal 0 Weapon Lifesteal 0 Shield Pierce 10% Armor Pierce 0 Crit Chance 0 Crit Dmg 0 Sprint 2

Oakheart: I choose this as my starting item no matter my build. If I'm roaming Fountain of Renewal is my first item path, and if I'm in the jungle Stormcrown is my item path.
Alternating Current Speed for crystal path. This item coupled with Stormcrown makes Flicker a beast when you are attacking someone in your cloud. Gives you extra CP damage to your basic attacks, which is always good when trying to basic attack with a CP carry, plus the true damage from Stormcrown that they can't block with any defensive item. With those two items, plus using your B while attacking, may make him the most efficient jungle clear in the game. It will also allow you to solo Kraken.
Aftershock This item synchronizes well your B. Triggering your Fairy Dust to capture someone in the slow primes Aftershock and then your next basic attack applies the Aftershock passive effect.
Eve of Harvest: Sustain the entire time someone is in your Fairy Dust cloud.
Atlas Pauldron I almost always take this item over Metal Jacket. Flicker's stealth ability makes you the most efficient one to get close to the spun up SAWs of the world and apply the effect before they know you are there. Plus being a melee character and having the Fairy Dust cloud allows you to apply it to anyone easily, and since you'll always be close to your target the Atlas Pauldron is a good choice.
Journey Boots I like these boots over the others because all it takes to reset them is to touch someone with your cloud which is really easy. Then if they escape the slow, or when the slow wears off you can chase them down more easily.

Some of the items I'd put on the optional list.

Halcyon Chargers
This can give you the extra energy that you will often need. I prefer Journey Boots, but if you could choose to go with these instead.

Frostburn
I include this not to advocate for it but to tell you why not to get it. I've recently learned that slows do not stack (so I have a lot of editing to do on other guides lol), perhaps I'm the last one to know. This item will not increase the slow on Fairy Dust, just know that. Fairy Dust is stronger than this item ever could be when it comes to slow. If you do pick up Frostburn it would apply slow to Binding Light, but not if you are using it in conjunction with Fairy Dust which you probably will be 90-95% of the time. So it's kind of a wasted item on Flicker.

When you are building your items, what is the best approach to building them? We often talk about rushing items, but is that the best way to do it? Let's take a look.

Let's say the first two items we are going to build are Shatterglass & Broken Myth.

To get there we know we have to build:

4 Crystal Bits
2 Heavy Prisms
1 Eclipse Prism
1 Piercing Shard

Before finally reaching our goal. For this example let's say we start the game with a Crystal Bit and 2 Halcyon Potions, as we want to keep one item slot always open for our Halcyon Potions, so we will be left with 4 item slots.

On your first trip back to the shop you've amassed 1400 gold, which would be enough to purchase a Heavy Prism (750 by upgrading the Crystal Bit), and a Eclipse Prism (650). That's a total of 85 CP.

On the other hand we could purchase 3 more Crystal Bits for 900 gold since we know we need a total of 4 for the Shatterglass & Broken Myth we are building towards. Then we could also upgrade 1 of those Crystal Bits to an Eclipse Prism for an additional 350. Putting our total cost at 1250. In this case we'd have a total of 95 CP for 150 less gold.

This still leaves you with 1 item slot open, which you could soon place Sprint Boots in or whatever other item you like to get in the early game.

In Vainglory the lower tier items often offer more bang for your buck, so to speak. Obviously eventually we have to upgrade because we have limited item slots. If you know your build well, and plan it out, sometimes building towards 2 items by stocking lower tier items first makes you more powerful early game, instead of rushing and pouring all of your resources into rushing that Shatterglass. Also keep in mind, that in this particular scenario the Shatterglass, which we are building towards first, has no special passive that benefits us if we get there sooner, it's pure CP. Take this into account with your build when deciding if you want to rush an item or stockpile smaller items first.

Jungle is by far my favorite way to play Flicker. I consider myself a Roam Main, because I feel that's where my highest skill set is currently. However I am a Jungle Main for my team, so I'm learning that position quickly too. Flicker makes an awesome jungle character. With the health and attack stats I told you earlier he is much more formidable than his demure stature appears. Taka has shown us, for a long time now, how dangerous and annoying a stealth jungler can be. That coupled with the fact that when he does appear you are slowed, and possibly rooted, and a sitting duck not only for Flicker but for his entire team. He's not as bursty as Taka but he can eliminate the squishy ones just as quickly. He is a very easy character to jungle with, there aren't a lot of hidden tricks and tactics to teach you. Sneak up on your target, hit them with Fairy Dust, then drop Binding Light beneath them for increased damage, and whack them repeatedly with your lantern. Once you have Stormcrown built, and to be more efficient Alternating Current you can solo the gold mine and Kraken easily.

Roam is the way SEMC intended Flicker to be played. For roaming Flicker doesn't feel right for my preferred way to play the Roam position. I enjoy Ardan and Phinn for roaming. I enjoy being the impenetrable wall that bashes you in the face if you get to close to my carries. However, flicker can be a very dangerous roam. Despite the health stats I told you about earlier, however, he doesn't make a great "wall". He won't soak up as much damage as some of the other roams, because he doesn't have a perk like Ardan who gains health when taking damage, nor does he have one like Phinn who increases his armor and shield along with ignoring stuns and reducing slows. So Flicker has high base stats, but that's where they stop.

As a roam Flicker is much more of a strategist. Sneak up behind that over extended laner, slow and root them and make them a potato for your carries to take out.

Use your slow to prevent enemy escape, or to allow teammate escape.

Teammate in trouble? Turn them into a purple fart cloud (yes I said it) and leave the enemy grumbling about how much it stinks that they got away.

The downside to Flicker is that it is easy to have just as many kills as your carries do at the end of a match, which initially doesn't sound bad, but when you think about how much gold you are depriving them of it can be just like stealing minions from them. Even if you don't intend to, the simple fact that your Fairy Dust cloud causes damage to opponents will lead to kills regardless.

I've probably already said this, but I'm going to say it by itself here. Never more have I been sure that a character will be nerfed. I know that we expect all characters to be OP when released and to eventually get nerfed down. We've seen Samuel get nerfed, and Lyra has been continuously nerfed almost to the point of elimination. However, we saw Gwen recently get buffed. Flicker will be nerfed, of that I have no doubt. So enjoy him while you can.

If I had to call my shot I'd expect to see the slow on his cloud get greatly reduced. Another way to counter his kit would be to remove the damage from the Fairy Dust and let him keep the slow.

Only time will tell us what they decide, but if I had to bet I'd bet we see a very stern nerf on Flicker because he's just not really fair at the moment.

Thank you for reading my Flicker build guide. If you enjoyed it, please consider giving it an up vote. If you are familiar with my other guides then you know you can expect more content to be added to this guide. Stay tuned.

I hope this build guide has helped you better understand Flicker, and I hope I don't have to face you when you're using this build. I genuinely would love any feedback you might have for my build. If you have any questions on this build, the stats and calculations, or would like me to run through any scenarios leave a comment and let me know. I will do my best to answer as many as I can, though as I said earlier I can't handle every single scenario this amazing game can produce.

~BLG3RNT