'Feel the Pain of 10,000 years!' Illidan Guide by NesTea

'Feel the Pain of 10,000 years!' Illidan Guide

By: NesTea
Last Updated: Apr 3, 2015
11 Votes
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Illidan

Build: Assassin (Standard)

Level 1
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Level 20

Threats to Illidan with this build

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Threat Hero Notes
1
 Abathur Not much of a threat by himself. Easily killed if caught out of position. Be careful of his abilities on an ally because they do a lot of damage and is considered ability damage so Evasion will not work.
1
 Brightwing One of the easier squishier heroes which are perfect for Illidan. Be careful of his Ulti as it can do a lot of damage.
1
 Li Li Has no disruption and is fairly squishy so pretty easily killed by Illidan, be careful of her immense heals and baits.
1
 Malfurion Easy to kill and has no damage output, Be careful of baits and roots.
1
 Murky Murky is extremely squishy and extremely easy to take down as Illidan. Try to watch where he spawns and take down his egg.
1
 Tyrande Careful not to get stunned by her arrow. Other than that extremely easy to take down since she is squishy and has no escape.
1
 The Lost Vikings Since, they don't have abilities you can thoroughly wreck them using your e.
1
 Sylvanas Extremely squishy champion, easy for Illidan to hunt down. If she tries to kite you can easily catch up to her.
2
 Gazlowe one on one Gazlowe is no problem for Illidan, be careful of his turrets however as they can dish out a lot of damage. Evasion comes in handy when trying to kill Gazlowe when he has turrets.
2
 Sgt. Hammer Dive and The Hunt comes in handy when taking down Hammer as she cannot escape and is easily taken down. Since most of her damage comes from her auto attacks Evasion is extremely useful.
2
 Tassadar As long as you manage to avoid Tassadar's storms he can be easily taken down as he has no other way to do damage and is pretty squishy.
2
 Zagara Has high DPS from ability damage, but is squishy and has no escape. Try to take her down when her abilities are on cooldown.
3
 Jaina Try to avoid her abilities as you take more damage from them. Jaina is really squishy and should pose no threat as long as you avoid her abilities. I
3
 Rehgar Can be somewhat dangerous as he can build DPS and heal but can't do damage so can be easily taken down with Illidan. Be careful of baits.
3
 Uther Uther has a lot of CC, however can't do damage by himself. Try to take him 1v1 and when he is at low HP.
4
 Tychus Tychus has high DPS and extremely good abilities. He is however very squishy. Try to take him down when his abilities are on cooldown as he cannot escape you. Evasion is also useful as Tychus has massive DPS.
4
 Valla Same as Jaina, very squishy but has high DPS. As long as you avoid her abilities and use Evasion at the right time she is easily taken down.
5
   No Threat
6
 Chen Same as the other tanks, wait till he is at low HP before taking him out. Fortunately Chen cannot do much damage without the help of his team so is a weaker threat
6
 Diablo Same as Chen. Can't do a lot of damage without his team. Due to high HP still difficult to take down. Wait till he is low on HP.
6
 E.T.C. Same as Chen and Diablo.
6
 Raynor Can be difficult to take down due to auto heal however this matchup is so-so and depends on who gets the upper hand as they both can take each other out fast.
7
 Zeratul Zeratul is still dangerous to Illidan, but not extremely dangerous, as he can sneak up from behind and take him out in a couple fell swoops. However he is not as dangerous as Nova and can easily be killed if The Hunt is used.
7
 Falstad Can be somewhat difficult to take down since most of his damage comes from ability power. However he is also very squishy so easy for Illidan to take down.
8
 Anub'arak Somewhat hard matchup for Illidan as are many tanks since Illidan is very squishy. Best bet is to wait till he is low health before taking him out Be careful of his stuns.
8
 Arthas Hard to take out as Illidan as he is very tanky and has high DPS best bet is to wait till he is at low HP.
8
 Azmodan Hard to take out as he is very tanky and has high DPS, wait till he is at low hp before attacking.
8
 Muradin Muradin is hard to deal with as he is extremely tanky and has high HP regen. Try to avoid taking him on at full hp and try to avoid his stuns as his stuns can easily take you out.
8
 Sonya Sonya is dangerous to Illidan as she can do extreme burst damage as well as have more HP than Illidan. Try to take her down when she is at low HP.
9
 Kerrigan Kerrigan would be one of the more dangerous heroes as she performs the same role as Illidan but tankier, you can take her down when she is at low health, but avoid a 1v1 when she is at full.
9
 Nazeebo Somewhat a hard matchup due to his abilities being so powerful. Try to avoid his Zombie wall or you are almost certainly dead. Engage Nazeebo when his abilities are on cooldown and he is at low HP.
10
 Nova Nova is a big threat to Illidan since he is so squishy. Since most of her damage comes from her abilities Illidan's Evasion ability is useless. Always becareful whenever there is a Nova on the enemy team and try to take her out when he abilities are on cool down as she can 1 hit you with ability spam.
10
 Stitches Stiches is extremely dangerous to Illidan as he is tanky and can pull Illidan back when he is at low HP. Be careful when there is a stiches on the enemy team.
10
 Tyrael Tyrael is one of the more dangerous heroes you encounter. He has a lot of HP and DPS try to avoid him unless he is very low on HP as he hard counters Illidan.
10
 Thrall Extremely tanky and high DPS, do not engage without team.

Intro Top

Illidan is an amazing hero. If played right, I would consider him one of the best heroes in the game. Saying this Illidan has become by favourite Melee assassin, beating the likes of Kerrigan and Zeratul. Illidan is extremely squishy, however he can dish out a lot of damage in a space of a few seconds. He is great for taking down wounded enemy heroes or just heroes that are roaming around by themselves. Illidan however, is not great in team fights because he can be focused down extremely fast, but is instrumental in chasing down low HP enemy heroes at the end of the team fight. Illidan is also a great ability spammer as he has no mana to restrict him and his trait lowers his cool down per every basic attack, kind of like Battle Momentum.

Abilities Top

Illidan is an extremely ability oriented hero. He cannot dish out a lot of damage with his basic attack so without his abilities he would never be able to kill anyone let alone to catch up to enemy heroes and get the killing blow. Since Illidan requires no mana to use his abilities, they are spammable. This is an important aspect of Illidan as you will see below.

(Q) Dive is Illidan's main attack ability. Dive allows you to interrupt an opponent's movement as well as catch up to him as Illidan is extremely slow compared to some heroes. This is his bread and butter ability and is the ability you probably will be using most to catch up to enemy heroes as well as dish damage.

(W) Sweeping Strike is Illidan's second damage dealing ability as well as an escape ability. Sweeping Strike, when used to escape, is a lot like Vault for Valla however is not as affected by pathing as Vault is. Sweeping Strike can also be used on the offensive as it increases your basic attack damage for a duration and allows you to catch up with your opponent.

(E) Evasion is Illidan's main escape ability. It renders any normal damage hitting Illidan for a duration to do no damage. This is extremely important to Illidan as without this ability Illidan would die before he can close the distance as he is squishy. This ability is useful against high DPS assassins such as Valla and Tychus to prevent them from getting the final blow, however Illidan can still be killed by ability damage so be careful when diving headlong into a bunch of enemies while their abilities are not on cooldown.

(R) The Hunt or Metamorphosis are Illidan's heroic abilities. Metamorphosis turns Illidan into a powerful Demon, however it prevents him from riding a mount as well as decreases his movement speed, but it increases his health and attack speed as well as doing area damage to the place he spawns. The Hunt is kind of like Judgment and is used to temporarily stun and enemy hero as well as do instant damage to the target closing the distance.

Trait Top

Betrayer's Thirst is an excellent trait for Illidan. Since he requires no mana to use, this trait synergizes with Illidan well. Without this trait Illidan would not be the effective assassin he is in the game because the cool downs would take too long resulting in his death long before he can kill anyone, not to mention without this trait Illidan would be taken down extremely quickly due to the lack of heals from basic attacks.

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Shadow Shield would be my pick as Illidan's first ability as Illidan is probably one of the worst early game assassins (unlike Kerrigan who excels in early game). The reason Illidan is horrible early game is because he is extremely squishy and can't do enough damage to finish off an enemy hero yet. In the early game, you tend to harass and gank the enemy heroes as much as you can and force them to retreat, leaving you a free lane to farm minions. This is why Shadow Shield is an extremely useful ability, because it protects Illidan (a little) in the early stages of the game preventing his death and giving him a bit more survivability.

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My second go to ability is usually Immolation. Immolation is great on Illidan as he is lacking splash damage except when he uses Sweeping Strike. Immolation goes well with Sweeping Strike because it provides Illidan with a bit more AoE damage to clear lanes and kill enemy minions. This ability also helps in team fights, as Illidan will be in the thick of the enemy group disrupting them. This means Immolation can hit all of them doing extra damage that can help you secure a kill.

Top

First Aid is the third ability I will always take. Illidan is extremely squishy as I have said many times before. Due to this he has to retreat constantly in order to get to a Healing Fountain or to get to the Spawn location in order to sustain attacks as he will be at low life frequently. This limits Illidan's damage output as he is constantly retreating to heal. First Aid fixes the problem by giving Illidan his own mobile healing fountain as well as an ability to save his life when he is dangerously low in health.

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Metamorphosis is the ability I always take when going Illidan. Personally I find The Hunt useless in team fights as it can only hit one enemy hero not all of them. The only use I see for The Hunt is to quickly get into a team fight by dashing across the map from your current location. Since Illidan is a great disrupt hero Metamorphosis is an amazing heroic ability to get extra damage in, in team fights, as well as catch up to your enemy. The spawn location aspect of Metamorphosis is also good as it can help you escape from enemies when no other options are present. Don't forget the spawn location aspect also does AoE damage so it can be an extremely useful initiator for team fights.

Top

Sixth Sense is your go to ability for ability #5. Since Illidan is very squishy, lowering ability damage by 50% benefits him a lot. This ability will also help him survive in team fights as well as in other situations he might have perished in. Sixth Sense is the perfect tool for Illidan as he will be in the thick of any fight, so lowering the damage the enemy can inflict of Illidan is vital.

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Blood for Blood is the best ability here. This ability will be your finishing touch, however it not only does a lot of damage to your opponent for the finishing touch, it also restores health to your hero helping you survive against all odds. Hunter's Onslaught is also a decent ability to help you recover life, however it does no extra damage to your opponent so it not as good as Blood for Blood. Not to mention you already have a heal from First Aid and shields from Shadow Shield.

Top

For your last ability Nexus Blades would be the best option, however Bolt of the Storm is not a bad choice here either, since it helps Illidan escape quickly and may even save his life a couple times due to his squishiness. I usually don't pick Bolt of the Storm because Illidan can escape with his (W) Sweeping Strike and his (R) Metamorphosis. Nexus Blades is a better option because it slows enemy heroes and increases your basic attack damage by 20%. This is a better option because you can use it to kill an enemy hero that is trying to escape (the slows help) as well as increase basic attack damage (which is important for Illidan as most of his damage comes from his basic attack). Since the uses for Nexus Blades is immense and too good to replace, it beats Bolt of the Storm in both versatility and utility.

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