I wrote this guide because most people throw a huge fit when I show Gaz in HL. For the longest time I couldn't figure out why because A) he's one of my favorite heroes, and B) I carry a consistent 75% win rate with him. It wasn't until I was playing other heroes, had other people pick him and proceed to ruin our team that I finally understood all the hate. So finally I decided to write this guide in hopes of Gaz finally getting some respect in competitive play.

I put this guide together with the understanding that Gaz' goals are very different from every other hero's goals. It is worth non-Gaz players reading this so that everyone can be on the same page, because I truly believe that if people started consistently playing him this way, he would be up for a nerf very soon after. He's that good.

Things you should be focusing on:

1. Gathering EXP for your team (you should be shooting for 2-3x any other player on your team)
2. Split pushing (aside from infernal shrines, you should be on the opposite lane as your teammates)
3. Hitting up mercs
4. Conserving mana for when you get to a tower/fort/keep
5. Not attracting attention to yourself
6. Going wherever the enemy is not (This includes objectives, unless it is Infernal Shrines)
7. Communicating with your teammates about your plan, giving them moral support (Seriously)

Things you should not be focusing on:

• Hero kills (You'll get them, but don't worry about chasing them)
• Attracting attention
• Team fights (Yes, seriously. More on this later)
• Map objectives (again, unless it is infernal shrines)
• Getting pissed at your teammates when they ***** about you not being in the first team fight/objective
• Using your lasers (Seriously, don't ever use them).

Gaz Mindset:

Gaz's goal is to cripple the other team by pushing so hard and fast that the other team is either off balance defending your pushes or constantly split because they don't know where you'll be. Your number one goal should be gathering EXP for your team. Your number two goal is pushing a lane. Now usually these two go hand in hand, but it's important to remember because often times it's easy to get wrapped up in pushing one lane so far that you get caught. It's 100% ok (and encouraged) to switch lanes often. The biggest challenge in doing this, almost every time, is getting your team bought into this plan. They will most likely hate on you for the first 10 minutes of the game, until they realize they're 3 levels ahead because of your 12k-15k exp. That being said, many people get discouraged before this happens, so make sure to communicate clearly with your team and have patience with them.

Rock-It! Turret [Q]

The bread and butter of Gaz's arsenal. If you can get 4-5 of these down in any one place you can feel comfortable taking on 1-2 other heroes. These are an amazing resource for pushing lanes, locking down objectives and defending yourself. Apply liberally.

Deth Lazor [W]

I honestly have no idea why this ability is in the game. Just pretend you don't have it and don't ever use it. It's a waste of mana and does about the same amount of damage as your Xplodium, which stuns. The mana spent on this skill is better used placing turrets and bombs. Repeat: ignore this skill 100%

Xplodium charge [E]

Great ability. Use this liberally on minions and to dictate the paths of enemy heroes. Often times you wont catch them in it, but they will avoid it and this can give you an edge.

Level 1:

This is the essence of Gaz. Being able to quickly recover your turrets and place more makes you such a huge threat to the enemy team. I really don't understand why people pick any other talent here. Explodium's real value is its long stun and will never do enough damage to severely hurt the other team if you some how manage to get all of their heroes in on the stun.

Level 4:

This is an extension of the above talent and will really pour on the juice when it comes to placing turrets.

Level 1:

This is a crucial choice for two reasons. First, it allows you to be a huge PvP threat when heroes attack you, since you can kite them through your maze of turrets. Second, it's the only form of escape Gaz has, in that if someone is chasing, you can place a turret and slow them down.

Level 1:

Grav-o-Bomb is so tempting! But your job is to push, not to hero fight. Robo-Goblin makes it so that you truly can push a tower in the short duration of a team fight or objective battle. Often times, when the result of an objective is pushing a fort, this gets the job done anyway.

Level 1:

I've got a fever, and the only cure is more turrets. This is just a further extension of the push build.

Level 1:

See above.

Level 1:

With this skill, you suddenly become OP in my opinion. You do so much damage to heroes, you'll be taking down most heroes in 4-5 hits and they wont expect it.

Do:

• Hold your lane
• Attack towers a little bit
• Place some turrets to appear normal
• Use Explodium to take out minion waves
• Avoid getting ganked
• Conserve your mana
• Grab some mercs if you've pushed too far

Do not:

• Draw a ton of attention to yourself
• Push too far
• Camp out next to their towers trying to wear them down
• Deplete your mana
• Use your laser for anything

At this point in the game, you can be annoying but you're not going to really do much damage and most likely the other team is laughing because your team has a Gaz. Let them think that and don't give them any reason to pay attention to you. Once you hit 10, it's a totally new game and ideally you want them focusing on the rest of your team/the objectives. Keep your mana at least 1/3 full so you can stay in lane without having to go back.

Do:

• Start pushing your lane
• Stay away from objectives
• Keep killing minion waves with explodium
• Placing as many turrets as possible around towers and forts
• Pay attention to the map (Push hard when there's a team fight, start to back up when you can't see any enemies on the map)
• Grab merc camps
• Stay on the opposite side of the map as your teammates

Do not:

• Venture outside your turrets unless you're heading back (always have some up)
• Use your lasers
• Join team fights

At this point, you finally have some firepower under your belt. Once you get Engine Gunk enemy heroes will have a tough time getting to you due to the slow of all of your turrets. If one does attack, just kite him/her around while continuing to place turrets and strategically placing Explodium. Look out for Scrap as it will not online recharge your Explodium super fast, but also give you some much needed mana. When you're pushing, place as many turrets as possible and use the Explodium to help your minions deal with the enemy minions. Once you've pushed a fort, typically it's a good idea to back up since the enemy team will be alerted to the loss. The only time I would keep going is if there is clearly a big team fight still going on. Turrets and Robo-Goblin will help you make quick work of any fort.

At this point you should have a good grasp of what you're doing. Ideally you'd have pushed at least one keep and the enemy team is severely off balance. Now it's ok to help out with team fights a little bit because most likely the enemy realizes how big of a problem you are. At this point, only split push when your team is grouped and also pushing an opposite lane, preferably with a boss/mercs. The enemy will have to pick which to defend. Communicate with your team and don't be afraid to sacrifice your life if it means finishing off a keep. Feel free to backdoor :)

I hope this guide is helpful. I have a feeling many will not like this guide right off the bat as it is relatively unorthodox, but it's worked amazingly well for me and is the reason I'm in the Gold tier for HL. Give it a shot and leave some comments about what you think. Thanks!