Blaze the Firelord

Blaze is, simply put, a pyromaniac. All four of his abilities are related to fire, and without proper precautions, most enemies can be reduced to ashes within seconds. With three active damage spells, the Firelord is a powerful caster. The two non-ultimate spells allow for softening up and also finishing off his oppoenents. But his ultimate alone can take out a lower level or low hitpoint hero, that is, if the opponent is slow enough to remain under the shower of flaming meteors!

Stats
Affiliation: Demons
HP: 507
Mana: 308
Primary: Intelligence
Str: 17 + 1.8
Agi: 16 + 1.8
Int: 22 + 2.4
Range: 500
Speed: 290

Blaze begins with a high amount of mana, allowing him to use the first two abilities at least a few times. With a high intelligence growth, he can keep his enemies burning constantly. Well, the passive does that too. Blaze has slightly less range than a typical ranged hero, but this actually helps him get into range for his passive and other spells. With a somewhat low speed, Blaze needs to take out his opponents quickly, or have Boots and give chase, keeping within range for the passive.

Meteor [E]
Calls down a meteor, dealing damage and stunning units in an area. (325 aoe)



Level 1 - 100 dmg, 1 second stun
Level 2 - 150 dmg, 1.25 second stun
Level 3 - 200 dmg, 1.5 second stun
Level 4 - 250 dmg, 1.75 second stun
Level 5 - 300 dmg, 2 second stun

Cooldown: 15
Mana Cost: 100/115/130/145/160

A signature spell, this is a must for all Firelord players. Many strong players prefer maxing out this ability first, followed by Incinerate. At level five, the 300 aoe damage combined with the 2 second stun make Blaze an incredibly powerful stunner and chaser. Although the enemy has a little over half a second to respond once they see the meteor, it is usually not enough time, as the area of devastation is great. Exhaustion also makes it easier for this ability to hit by slowing down opponents.


Incinerate [R]
Blaze forces flames to erupt from the ground in front of him to burn his enemies to ashes. Deals 15% damage to buildings. Lasts 5 seconds.


Level 1 - 20 damage/second
Level 2 - 40 damage/second
Level 3 - 60 damage/second
Level 4 - 80 damage/second
Level 5 - 100 damage/second

Cooldown: 12
Mana Cost: 120

A strong secondary spell, Incinerate basically causes a line of Flame Strikes to occur going into the direction he targets. A good idea is to run near an enemy hero, cast this in the direction of his retreat, then cast Meteor on top of him. Most likely he will try to run back, but your Meteor will hit, stunning and keeping him in the fires of Incinerate for more precious time. If combined with the ultimate, it can be sometimes possible to force the opponent to suffer the entire 500 damage from this ability.


Exhaustion [X]
Blaze’s body is ever burning, thus he uses up much air near him. This mass air use causes nearby units in an aoe to become exhausted due to lack of air. When Blaze dies he will gather up extra air to cause himself to explode for damage in a 700 area.

Level 1 - 3% slow in a 200 aoe, 100 dmg explosion
Level 2 - 6% slow in a 300 aoe, 200 dmg explosion
Level 3 - 9% slow in a 400 aoe, 300 dmg explosion
Level 4 - 12% slow in a 500 aoe, 400 dmg explosion
Level 5 - 15% slow in a 600 aoe, 500 dmg explosion

Exhaustion is a very powerful passive for the Firelord, and although it does not bolster his other spells directly, the 15% slow can keep enemies in the Incineration field or under the Meteor shower for a slightly longer amount of time; a "lucky" Meteor hit may have been impossible without this. The slow is also great in team battles, since it covers a fairly wide area. The explosion damage upon death is a minor addition, but it can kill, and makes him again a great addition in team brawls.


Meteor Shower [T]
Calls down multiple meteors, dealing damage and stunning units that the meteors hit for .25 seconds, at the rate of 2 meteors per second.


Level 1 - 4 Meteors, 150 dmg each
Level 2 - 5 Meteors, 225 dmg each
Level 3 - 6 Meteors, 300 dmg each
Level 4 - 7 Meteors, 375 dmg each

Channeling

Cooldown: 140/120/100/80
Mana Cost: 200/300/400/500

Meteor Shower is a truly frightening ultimate ability. When casted, several Meteors fall in quick succession, in somewhat random locations in the targetted area. Of course not every Meteor will hit every location; in fact, in many times even at max level, only one or two out of seven will hit the intended target. But two is still 750 damage! To try to land as many Meteors on your target as possible, stun him first with the single Meteor, then cast this exactly over the enemy's head.

Unfortunately, this can be countered by stunning the Firelord, canceling the spell, or by simply running out of the Meteor Shower. Heroes with slides and jumps are extremely adept at this, e.g. Pit Lord, Raider, etc. For the Firelord, it is often helpful to have an allied disabling hero nearby, such as Dragonhawk Rider, to stop certain heroes from escaping their fiery doom. And they may throw in their own spells into the mix as well.