Overview

Rehgar should, arguably, be played as a pure support/healing hero for maximum effectiveness; but there are times when playing an offensive build is viable. This playstyle is a hit-and-run rogue type playstyle, so I call it "Rogue Rehgar".

Pros

• High burst damage
• High mobility (escape, chase, etc.)
• High utility
• Respectable healing (even without talenting for it)

Cons

• Fairly squishy
• Healing might feel lacking in some situations
• No hard CC

When playing Rogue Rehgar you have to keep in mind you are not a tank - not even close. You are a shaman, in a robe, and you can't take damage like a warrior. What you can do is deal a lot of damage on command and get out (usually) before dying. The idea is to hit-and-run, and it makes for a fun and unique playstyle.

The talents I don't mention I don't consider part of a Rogue Rehgar build, or I would consider it a hybrid build if you took them. My focus here is purely on offense.

Level 1

Empowering Charge - This is my go-to talent for this tier in most Rehgar builds. It lets you contribute some damage passively, and for Rogue Rehgar you are definitely going to want this damage.

Level 4

Focused Attack - Now here is a talent that is going to synergize perfectly with Ghost Wolf and Empowering Charge (plus other talents possibly) making it a must-have for the build. Don't overextend and risk dying just to reduce the cooldown on this. Even without a lot of cooldown reducing, you will get plenty of big hits in with this one.

Feral Heart - I consider this must-have for nearly every Rehgar build, but Focused Attack is just so essential to Rogue Rehgar that Feral Heart has to be given up. Just keep in mind that your mana won't be coming back nearly as fast, so you have to pick and choose your attacks rather than simply lunging at people all over the place.

Level 7

Earth Shield - This is a talent so good that it's hard to imagine ever taking anything else. This is a significant boost to survivability for your team, particular paired with Lightning Bond.

Battle Momentum / Searing Attacks - While these might look good for a rogue build on paper, they both suffer from the same problem: requiring you to stay in melee too long to get the full effect. In addition, not a lot of your damage is coming from abilities so that Battle Momentum isn't a huge game-changer. However, if you feel particularly safe like you can attack and stay in range without much worry, you might consider either of these. They can also make for a more active, rewarding playstyle, if you are looking for that sort of thing.

Level 10

Ancestral Healing - While you might think Bloodlust looks good for an offensive build - and it does - Ancestral Healing is just too good to pass up, especially considering that you yourself will be in the thick of it, taking damage, more often with this build, so the mega-heal can be a real life-saver. In the right situation this is almost like making a teamfight a 6v5, and is a staple of pretty much every Rehgar build.

Level 13

Feral Lunge - A must-have for our Rogue Rehgar playstyle, this is one of the most fun and effective talents in the game. Get used to using your Ghost Wolf on cooldown (you should be using it for the attack boost anyway before you get Lunge) and consider whether to throw up Lightning Shield before or after you go into Wolf. If you have to chase, you might need to Lunge and then Shield, but if you Shield yourself first, and then Wolf, you will be lining up a very high-damage burst combo (especially combined with Focused Attack.) It's all a matter of what the situation calls for, as well as maximizing the damage portion of Lightning Shield.

Level 16

Lightning Bond - This tier has the most choice in it, but I usually take Lightning Bond. It's a fun and effective talent that allows you to get in some good damage and survivability for yourself and a (melee) ally. However, in certain team comps you might not get the most out of this talent, and it's only good if you took the previous shield-boosting talents.

Earthgrasp Totem - My go-to for healing Rehgar, this talent is sometimes good for Rogue Rehgar as well. If you feel like the utility might help in teamfights, go ahead and take it, especially if you haven't taken the other shield talents or your team comp lacks melee targets for Lightning Bond.

Blood for Blood / Berserk - These are both "win more" talents at this stage of the game. They will both improve your ability to roam around the map and duel people down, but smart opponents won't give you such opportunities. In most situations, survivability will be more important than dueling power.

Level 20

??? - You can make an argument for pretty much any choice here, except Farseer's Blessing. (The extra heal is generally overheal and the AoE makes it more difficult to get the most out of.) I generally prefer Storm Shield for the added team defense, but some people might want to play with Rewind. I don't consider Rogue Rehgar a great hero for Rewind since a lot of your power is coming from passive procs, talents, etc.

Stay Mobile

Rehgar has amazing mobility from Level 1 thanks to Ghost Wolf, and it can be used throughout the game for both chasing and escape. On top of this it empowers your next attack, but be wary of leaving yourself exposed because you went for the extra damage and now don't have an escape. That said, that damage from Ghost Wolf is a major part of your offensive ability, so you must pick and choose wisely when to attack and when to stay in form.

Once you get Feral Lunge both the chasing ability and damage boost will get significantly better, making Level 13 a significant turning point for the build.

Choose Your Attacks

Your maximum burst combo lines up the damage from Ghost Wolf/Feral Lunge, Empowered Charge, and Focused Attack (plus any of the activated talents mentioned in the previous section but not part of my standard build.) Ideally you are within melee range before you cast Lightning Shield on yourself, then Ghost Wolf for an immediate empowered attack plus Shield damage. (This situation rarely presents itself though. Normally you have Shield on already.)

If you're going to go in, it's often best to have Earthbind Totem available so that you can reduce an enemy's ability to chase after you.

Knowing when to execute your combo is key. If it isn't becoming clear yet, you don't want to simply go in and start swinging like a warrior. You want to take safe attacks and then get out. If a squishy target gets close to Feral Lunge range, it might be a good idea to go for them, but keep two things in mind. One is how exposed you will be and what you will do about it after your attack.

The other is: how likely is that target to turn tail and run once you execute your combo, vs immediately attacking back at you? This is where it helps to read your opponents and remember their reactions from one fight to the next. Often times a support or ranged assassin can be counted on to run away if you lunge them. If so you can attack with more confidence, less worried that they will unload back on you right away.

Ideally, you have the opportunity to execute your combo, then attack long enough for Ghost Wolf to come back up. At that point you can Wolf out to safety, or Wolf for another empowered attack to keep the damage rolling. You could almost look at these as "Wolf Windows" where you are deciding what to do between Ghost Wolfs, while keeping it on cooldown and always ready to switch up your style (e.g. from aggressive to retreating.)

Support Your Team

You should never forget that even though you're building offensively, you are still a support. If you aren't using Chain Heal more or less on cooldown you are probably letting your team down. It's important to keep up with your healing duties, and manage your mana accordingly. Also, with my recommended build your Lightning Shield will get increasingly powerful as the game goes on, so this should also be used on cooldown most of the time.

On the other hand, Earthgrasp Totem is one of those abilities that should be saved until absolutely needed. Here again you will usually be in a chase or flee situation, and in either case a well-placed totem can make the difference for your team. When chasing use Ghost Wolf to position yourself in the middle of their team to get the most out of your totem.