Description
Skaarf is really simple and effective skill-shot mage/laner that very effectively counters tanky heroes and also pretty effective at taking objectives (turrets and miners). There are generally two types of play-styles Skaarf has which is, auto-attacking and increasing his
Fan the Flames perk and nuking enemy heroes with his
Goop ->
Spitfire combo. Unfortunately due to his low health, Skaarf has to be extremely aware of his positioning and the potential threat of the enemy team while moving around the map. Outside of learning to land skill-shots, Skaarf needs to practice perfect positioning. There are lots of characters in the game that can punish him with a kill for being out of position. He can be an amazing carry or feed very easily.
Ability Notes
Spitfire
The fireball will only hit one target.
First source of fire.
The fireball will travel through walls.
Goop
Pools do NOT provide vision.
Pools of goop can only be lit on ignited by fire from the Skaarf that created it.
Spitfire can hit things behind a pool of goop but will still ignite it the moment it makes contact.
Dragon Breath
Second source of fire.
Can be used to get under Catherine's Stormguard.
Skaarf will not auto-face stationary targets. You will need to manually move him.
Description
This build is designed to work around
Eve of Harvest. Skaarf can be surprisingly survivable in fights due to his multiple sources of crystal damage that crystal vamp can work with. Unfortunately for Skaarf,
Eve of Harvest does not grant crystal vamp off damage dealt to turrets. So while he is spending his abilities on objectives, he will be temporarily vulnerable afterwards. Aside from his vulnerability while over extending, Skaarf has a HUGE amount of control in the lane. Offensively, he can prevent and punish a lot of needless harassment. He forces heroes to commit to an engagement or take more damage than they expected while running away from Skaarf. Enemy heroes in lane will want to keep the minions between them and Skaarf. That said, he can use this to his advantage and force heroes to position themselves closer to bushes they may not want to be near. I recommend maxing
Goop first since it offers the most utility over all. He only needs one point in
Spitfire to be able to do his B -> A combo. I use
Dragon Breath mainly to vamp and deal AOE damage in team fights. Outside of that Skaarf's ult is a tough one to master. The trick to this build is focusing on good
Goop combos and placement. The burst damage and tick burn it offers is the key to victory.
Basic Plan of Action
Initiating
Always stay at max range.
Ensure they are on fire before using your B.
Use your B in places that will slow enemy heroes from joining a team fight.
Team Fights
Try and stay close enough to the enemy tank to auto-attack them and increase the Fan the Flames perk.
Punish the enemy team for fighting too close together with Goop or Dragon Breath.
Try to stand in your own Goop to defend yourself against melee heroes.
Kite people with with Spitfire and not your auto-attacks.
Pro Tip
It is possible to do A -> B combos, which is quicker than B -> A combos.
Skaarf can leave burning pools of goop over jungle camps and miners to heal up.
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