Table of Contents

1. Introduction
2. Story
3. Strengths and Weaknesses
4. The Stats
5. Epic Skills
6. Skill Build
7. Items
8. Play Style
9. The Friends and the Foes
10. Replay
11. Final Words
12. Updates

Alright, lets get started. If you want to go to any section in the Table of Contents, just search for "-[section]-".

-Introduction-

Hi all, and welcome to my third guide. Once again, I focus on a hero who can control a lane very effectively and can shine in all parts of the game. It is none other than the Black Arachnia, or the Broodmother. Being a very great pusher, coupled with her (or its) amazing killing capability, it is able to farm off towers and heroes, resulting in, lots of money, which enables you to outfarm the opposition. Tough to escape from the Broodmother, and yet fighting leaves small chance (not only due to Insatiable Hunger but also because you outfarmed your opponent), no doubt she is one of the best heroes in the game.

-Story-

Once a Queen of the Nerubians, she struck fear into the hearts of those she ruled. However she made the fatal mistake of falling in love with the renegade assassin Anub'Arak , and was banished from her own kingdom. Now she accompanies her true love in the battle of the Ancients, bearing his offspring as a symbol of her undying love. An expert in weaving webs of deception, she has the power of incapacitating those who dare attack her, and sowing in them the seeds of her offspring which then tear out of the corpse of the unfortunate victim. Her lust for battle helps her grow stronger and sustain herself, leading many to believe that her hunger for flesh is insatiable.

And you are going to kill like an insatiable fag.

-Strengths and Weaknesses-


Strengths

-Excels at any part of the game
-Amazing pusher and killer
-One of the best orb effects in the game
-Very good stat growth of 6.7
-Above average movespeed
-Very good base armour
-Decent lane controller for a melee hero
-Second highest lifesteal capability in the game (first goes to Satanic)

Weaknesses

-You get owned by purge so hard
-Your decent lane control gets hurt badly by a couple of wards
-For a melee hero, base damage seems rather low
-For some extremely weird reason, BM has more STR than AGI later on
-Because you can be so overpowered at times, the opposing team will tend to go 'ALL AIM BROOD FIRST'

-The Stats-

The Normal Stats

Strength: 17 + 2.5
Agility: 18 + 2.2
Intelligence: 18 + 2

The Advanced Stats

Affiliation: Scourge
Damage: 44-50
Armour: 4.6
Movespeed: 315
Attack range: 128
Attack animation: 0.4 / 0.5
Casting animation: 0.2 / 0.51
Base attack time: 1.7
Missile speed: Instant
Sight range: 1800 / 800

-Epic Skills-



Ability type: Active
Targeting type: Unit
Ability hotkey: W
Casting range: 700

The Broodmother injects her young into a target, creating immense pain. If the target is killed by the injection, spiderlings will be born.

A totally epic skill. Summons and damages a target, which makes this skill meant for pushing and killing heroes that are out of your reach and have little HP left. When you start pushing with this skill, opponent heroes that try to defend but have no AOE skill will find themselves unable to destroy the rampaging spiders. I believe it is also possible to surround an unlucky victim with spiders and own him. With BM's decent INT growth, it is possible to spam these to a certain extent, as long as you leave some mana for emergency ulti to rape a foolish chaser.



Ability type: Active
Targeting type: Area
Ability hotkey: B
Casting range: 600
AOE: 370

Spins a web which grants the Broodmother invisibility in an area, regeneration, as well as a passive speed increase. Regeneration and speed improves per level.

Another great skill from the spider. This skill gives Broodmother a good early game, until your opponents get wards. Doubles up as a map control skill as well. Also, the increase in movespeed grants you the ability to run up to a target and start eating him alive. Always place these in a lane to ensure your safety. Other spots that you might consider webbing are the rune spots, and more importantly, Roshan.



Ability type: Passive
Targeting type: N/A
Ability hotkey: P

Gives the Broodmother venom which will greatly reduce the target's ability to function, and deal extra damage.

One of the most awesome orb effects in the game. Slows opponent by a hell lot, and if they choose to fight, they won't be able to kill you so easily. As an added bonus, it even gives you some extra damage! Think of this skill like Rupture. If you choose to fight, you die. If you choose to run, you also die.



Ability type: Active
Targeting type: N/A
Ability hotkey: T

The Broodmother develops a violent thirst for vital fluids. This lust greatly increases her attack damage and gives her a vampiric attack.

Violent would be the word when you turn this on. No matter how many heroes you run into, as long as you have this skill active, and perhaps a BKB turned on, you should be able to mow all of them down. A free Satanic with a much better duration and shorter cooldown, plus the high increase in damage, effectively giving psuedo invulnerability when combined with BKB.

-Skill Build-

1. Spin Web
2. Incapacitating Bite
3. Incapacitating Bite
4. Spawn Spiderlings
5. Incapacitating Bite
6. Insatiable Hunger
7. Incapacitating Bite
8. Spawn Spiderlings
9. Spawn Spiderlings
10. Spawn Spiderlings
11. Insatiable Hunger
12. Spin Web
13. Spin Web
14. Spin Web
15. Stats
16. Insatiable Hunger
17-25. Stats

If you don't pump that one level into Web early game, good luck with surviving. You don't get Web until much later because all you need are 2 webs. One for survivability, the other probably for map awareness so you can screw ganks up. Later on, when ganks are more hardcore, more webs are needed to spot these ganks and turn them into ruined efforts.

And then, Bite is maxed first over Spiders, which seems to run contrary to the motto of my previous guides of emphasizing the importance of maxing nukes first. Well, my reason is because, since BM already can lane control well enough with Web and Bite, and that Bite has better synergy with Hunger, Spiderlings can be saved until later. Furthermore, unlike other nukes, Spiderlings doesn't lose effectiveness as quickly, because of the secondary benefit, which is the summons. They can still prove to be effective mid-game unlike most nukes which would have already lost effectiveness by then, so getting Spiderlings later isn't that much of a compromise. Lastly, Bite gives extra damage, which helps with last hitting, though probably to a meager extent such that it could be ignored.

Conversely, the 'better' skill build is to go max spiders first and go rape towers by spamming a lot of spiders because most heroes can't deal with them well early game. In that case you should probably get a Ring of Basilius, or if there is a friendly CM around then Basilius could be skipped. Somehow takes some fun out of playing BM because, well, you get more kick out of killing heroes rather than pushing towers, right?

So I come to this conclusion. If you are playing for fun, get Bite first. Otherwise, max Spiderlings first.

Insatiable Hunger is obviously maxed whenever possible. Who wouldn't want extra lifesteal and ridiculous damage?

-Items-

Items to Go For



This isn't situational. It is an absolute, must have core. In 99% of situations once BM is picked your opponents will immediately start rushing Diffusal, and of course we need BKB to stop that. And negates disables as well that can screw BM up so easily.



Awesome item on BM. Your DPS goes up by a hell lot, plus it stacks with Bite's miss rate, making you extremely hard to hit, and even when you are hit, you regain the HP back anyway.



All 3 boots can be used by BM. Treads increases DPS even further. Phase makes you able to kill a target without fear of creep block and BoT just turns you into a hardcore pusher.



Aim to raise damage so you can get more HP back per hit.



Great burst damage and you need not fear the HP loss because anyway even if it is lost it will come back eventually.



Increases DPS even further and provides Spiderlings some ability to push faster.



Just in case you need to spam more spiders, get Basilius for the auras. Upgrading to Vlads will not be necessary, because the 2 auras are primarily what you need for pushing.



Kill Roshan quickly. BM has the tools to kill Roshan by level 16, if you have a Bfly and a couple of Wraiths, maybe Treads also.

Rejected items



Never ever get orbs for BM. You already have one, which is awesome enough.



A waste of time. You already have enough survivability.



Your dear spiders go down in 2 nukes, and you still wanna heal them some more so they can eat more? Repeat after me, they are EXPENDABLE.



No need to increase BM's ninja capability.



Actually, instead of rejected, it is more of situational. Get it when there are evasion heroes like Windrunner or PA, or maybe even a mirror match Broodmother. Or when there is an imbalanced Tinker abusing TP. But it is rejected for all other reasons because, the ministun damage does not stack with Hunger. Want damage, get Buriza.



Alright, so it works in some cases when you max Spiderlings first and go for mass pushing. Point is, you already have enough early game potential, so might as well save up for future prospects, and rush DPS items. IMO, caster BM has never been good, but it's another style of playing altogether that I'm foreign to.



Total waste of money IMO. Leave it at Basilius if you are going to spam. If you wanna jungle, summon a few spiders and get them to tank for you. If you want the auras, ask someone else with spare inventory slots to get it. If you get Vlads so that your spiders can lifesteal, please hit yourself. They deal so little damage, and get so little out of the lifesteal, and also, please repeat after me again. Spiders are EXPENDABLE.



Once again, I feature in my guide the most awesome item ever created! No seriously, you might say that Bfury increases your pushing potential as it gives mana to spam more spiders and cleave rocks. Point is, cleave doesn't stack with lifesteal, and you are way better getting damage items that increase your damage to a single target so you can get more out of Hunger.

-Play Style-

Choosing your lane

Solo the long lane always, because it gives more space for you to chase, and also because mid is dangerous with nukers and epic lane controllers. Your lane control isn't that fantastic as others, but it's decent enough for a solo. And please, always remember, to add that level of web. Not doing so effectively screws your whole game up.

Early Game (1-10)

Mix in defensive actions combined with a number of offensive ones. Whenever you feel it is safe to poke an opposing hero, do so. If it is too risky, stay back and do the usual last hitting and denying. Last hitting near towers will be common due to your defensive play style, or probably your tower won't even be touched if you are playing offensively.

A creep's worth of EXP before you hit level 6, try to hide yourself first. As soon as you hit level 6, activate Hunger and start running after your opponent. To make your life easier, animation cancel the back swing. The reason you need to hide yourself is because when you hit level 6, most players will note this as a 'start running now' incentive and start running away, leaving you unable to net a kill. Hiding yourself and taking your opponent by surprise will increase your chances of getting a kill, and face it, a creep's bounty compared to a hero's bounty, which would be more rewarding?

If at any time your opponents plant wards in lane, do not fret. Just buy a couple of wards in return, scare your opponents away with Hunger, then plant your wards to screw their wards. Alternatively, you can ask for a lane swap.

Actually, your early game ends after you killed your tier 1 lane tower, which should be around level 10.

Mid Game (10-16)

It's emo farm time. There are 2 options that you can take now that you have downed your first tower. Firstly, you can stay in your lane and enjoy the unlimited farming opportunities, probably killing as well. Secondly, you can head for the NCs and start picking off them. Thirdly, you can go and help others down towers. Whatever your choice of action is, just try to farm as fast as possible. Also, if your opponents push fast and furiously, get a BKB. If your opponents take their time and farm, get Bfly. Take Roshan as soon as you hit level 16 and if you have a Bfly. If you don't, just sit down and farm.

Late Game (16-25)

Now you get really scary. A well farmed BM can beat most heroes due to pseudo invulnerability. Insane lifesteal combined with insane damage combined with magic immunity is no joke. Rape everything in your path, but do remember to use your Spiderlings when pushing. Even though you have became a rather fearsome spider yourself, the little ones should not be forgotten. When you push, please remember to web the lane that you push, so you can escape should you get ganked.

Your opponents should most likely concede by now, or there must have been a couple of leavers. If they haven't yet, you must have went wrong somewhere with your game play, or else you are playing in a draft. Remember to be gracious to your opponents and not taunt them when you win, or at least ACT gracious.

End the game now and put an end to their suffering.

-The Friends and the Foes-

Friends



Any hero that buffs your DPS capabilities so you can lifesteal more is a good friend.



Just lets you rambo even further.

Of course, the usual stun/slow disables that are useful to any hero in the game.

Foes



Don't go OOPS when you turn on Hunger and then shoot a Spiderling at him.



Completely shuts anyone down, but in Broodmother's case it's more serious, because it destroys lifesteal and evasion, turning BM from a fearsome force into a squishy spider. Plus, it goes through BKB. When you see one of these devils, ask your team to sacrifice one of themselves for Doom fodder. After all, you are infinitely more important than them.



These 3 fags will spot you even while you are invisible.



Guess what? You don't lifesteal images. Plus, all of them (except TB) involve getting Diffusal as a core item mostly.



You run in with 20 spiders and an instant later all of them die, and that includes you. The last thing you probably see before your death is some large cow blinking in and then you remember nothing.



Of course, every fragile hero fears nukers and disablers. You are no different.



Who loves to face off a backlaning Axe when they are soloing with a melee hero? 2 options when you face this scenario. Firstly, hide in your web until you hit level 6, then you can go rape Axe. Secondly, call for someone to chase him off.



Destroys your early game greatly if you can't get rid of them and you have idiot team mates who refuse to lane swap.



I just got shocked! And somehow I don't feel that hungry for fluids anymore.



You don't eat life from the fake images.



You might be wondering how does HotD come into play. Well, if they convert a Trickster and purge off Hunger with it, it will be irritating, wouldn't it? Luckily, this is so easy to counter. Shoot some Spiderlings at it to kill it before it purges you.

-Replay-

Hopefully replay will be up soon. If I can get a decent game.

-Final Words-

Although BM is the one click kill sort of hero, you will find that it has other features that will make playing it more fun. Strive to make BM a more feared opponent than anyone else in the game in all your games. And once again, be nice when you win, and have fun.

-Updates-