Clinkz · Carry (pos. 1)
Clinkz Safe Play Guide
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This guide is assembled by the site from match data and the game's own information — nobody wrote it by hand. Official and community guides appear alongside it when they exist.
Overview
This guide is about playing Clinkz safely and consistently. Playing safe means farming behind your team's vision, never showing first on the map and letting someone else take the first contact. The kit brings sustain with Death Pact and invisibility with Strafe.
Strengths
- Invisibility with Strafe to scout, escape or set up ganks.
- Sustain from Death Pact to stay in lane and in fights.
- Long attack range (600) to harass and last hit safely.
Weaknesses
- Low base armor (0): vulnerable to physical harass early on.
- Item-dependent: weak until Desolator is done.
Build cheat sheet
Pick the build that fits what you want to do this game.
- Survival buildDefensiveRecommendedPrioritises the popular items that keep you alive — Force Staff and Hurricane Pike. Choose it against heavy disables or burst, or when you are the enemy's focus. Built from what Clinkz players buy in the public matches we measured.
- Against physical damageDefensiveSituationalFor games against right-click carries: keep your first two core items and add armor, evasion or damage block.
Builds
Survival build
When to use it
Prioritises the popular items that keep you alive — Force Staff and Hurricane Pike. Choose it against heavy disables or burst, or when you are the enemy's focus. Built from what Clinkz players buy in the public matches we measured.
Where it's played
Picked before the game: the main lane first, then the alternatives.
218%178%- Safe laneMain78% of matchesSafe lane as the farming core (pos. 1).
- MidPriority 218% of matchesMid lane, one against one (pos. 2).
Starting items
Core items
- 1Force Staff+10 Intelligence, +175 Health. Active: Force.
- 2Hurricane Pike+15 Intelligence, +200 Health, +20 Agility. Active: Hurricane Thrust.
- 3Aghanim's Scepter+10 All Attributes, +175 Health, +175 Mana.
- 4Black King Bar+10 Strength, +24 Damage. Active: Avatar.
Boots
Late game
Skill order
Max order:Searing Arrows›Strafe›Death Pact
| Ability | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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Talents by level
- -9s Strafe CooldownSearing Arrows Multishot25
- +40 Strafe Attack Speed+400 Death Pact Bonus Health20
- +50 Attack Range-10s Death Pact Charge Restore Time15
- +1.0s Strafe Duration-4s Skeleton Walk Cooldown10
Against physical damage
When to use it
For games against right-click carries: keep your first two core items and add armor, evasion or damage block.
Where it's played
Picked before the game: the main lane first, then the alternatives.
218%178%- Safe laneMain78% of matchesSafe lane as the farming core (pos. 1).
- MidPriority 218% of matchesMid lane, one against one (pos. 2).
Core items
- 1Desolator
- 2Aghanim's Shard
Situational
Skill order
Max order:Searing Arrows›Strafe›Death Pact
| Ability | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ● | · | ● | · | · | · | ● | ● | · | · | · | · | · | · | · | · | · |
| · | ● | · | ● | ● | · | · | · | · | · | · | · | · | · | ● | · | · |
| · | · | · | · | · | ● | · | · | · | · | · | · | ● | · | · | · | ● |
| · | · | · | · | · | · | · | · | ● | ● | · | ● | · | ● | · | · | · |
Talents by level
- -9s Strafe CooldownSearing Arrows Multishot25
- +40 Strafe Attack Speed+400 Death Pact Bonus Health20
- +50 Attack Range-10s Death Pact Charge Restore Time15
- +1.0s Strafe Duration-4s Skeleton Walk Cooldown10
Abilities
- Strafe30 / 25 / 20 / 15s60 / 70 / 80 / 90 mpClinkz gains attack speed and has bonus attack range. Any current Skeleton Archers within a 1200 radius of Clinkz also gain bonus attack range and 40% of the attack speed bonus.
Casting Strafe does not break Skeleton Walk invisibility.
- Attack speed bonus
- 120·160·200·240
- Duration
- 3.5
- Attack range bonus
- 200
- Searing Arrows10 mpImbues Clinkz's arrows with fire for extra damage.
Skeleton Archers will fire Searing Arrows at targets Clinkz attacks for 50% damage.
- Bonus damage
- 20·35·50·65
- Death Pact50 mpClinkz consumes the target enemy creep or friendly Skeleton Archer, healing and gaining max health. Does not take Clinkz out of Skeleton Walk.
- Duration
- 45
- Bonus health
- 175·250·325·400
- Creep max level
- 4·5·6·6
Burning Barrage17s40 mpCHANNELED - Clinkz channels and shoots multiple piercing arrows in the target direction that hit all enemy units dealing a percentage of Clinkz' attack damage and applying attack modifiers.- Arrows fired
- 6
- Range
- 850
- Damage per arrow
- 75%
- Channel time
- 2
Burning Army70s150 mpSummons a row of Burning Skeleton Archers in the target location.- Range
- 900
- Count
- 6
- Spawn interval
- 0.1
- Skeleton Walk24 / 21 / 18s80 / 105 / 130 mpClinkz moves invisibly through units until the moment he attacks or uses items. Leaving Skeleton Walk creates Skeleton Archers.
Skeleton Archers are immobile and die within multiple attacks from a hero or tower. Skeleton Archers deal a percentage of Clinkz' damage, and deal 75% less damage to buildings. Attack range is equal to Clinkz' attack range.
- Duration
- 35·40·45
- Bonus movement speed
- 25%·35%·45%
- Skeleton archer count
- 2·3·4
- Skeleton archer duration
- 20·25·30
- Skeleton archer hits to kill
- 2
- Skeleton archer attack rate
- 1.6
Infernal ShredPassiveClinkz and his skeletons apply a stacking debuff that causes their attacks to pierce up to 20% of the target's total physical armor (does not reduce their armor). Clinkz applies 3% per attack, and skeletons apply 1%.
Lasts 5 seconds.
Most played skill order
The most played order in the last 100 professional matches with this hero. Highlighted levels are the points spent on talents.
Max order:Searing Arrows›Strafe›Death Pact
| Ability | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ● | · | ● | · | · | · | ● | ● | · | · | · | · | · | · | · | · | · |
| · | ● | · | ● | ● | · | · | · | · | · | · | · | · | · | ● | · | · |
| · | · | · | · | · | ● | · | · | · | · | · | · | ● | · | · | · | ● |
| · | · | · | · | · | · | · | · | ● | ● | · | ● | · | ● | · | · | · |
Strategy
1Safe laning
Playing safe means farming behind your team's vision, never showing first on the map and letting someone else take the first contact. Trade right-clicks only when the enemy walks up to last hit, and step back as soon as their support shows up.
2Surviving fights
Walk in after the enemy has used their key disables, hit whatever you can reach safely and keep Strafe for getting out. Your way out is Strafe: if it's on cooldown, stay further back.
3Positioning and peel
Stand where the enemy has to go through your team to reach you, and protect whoever the enemy focuses.
4Playing from behind
When the game goes badly, farm what's safe, defend with your team and wait for the enemy to make a mistake: a single won fight can turn it around.
Tips
- Keep Strafe for escaping, not for chasing.
- Keep Death Pact for the enemy's burst, not for chip damage.
- Go back when your key abilities are down: a reset costs less than a death.
- Never be the first to show on the map in the late game.
- If enemies are missing from the map, back off before they appear.
Matchups
Weak against
- Spirit Breaker32.7%win rate in the matchup
Clinkz only wins 32.7% of the 55 games measured against Spirit Breaker this patch.
55 matches
- Pudge38.9%win rate in the matchup
Clinkz only wins 38.9% of the 72 games measured against Pudge this patch.
72 matches
- Templar Assassin43.8%win rate in the matchup
Clinkz only wins 43.8% of the 64 games measured against Templar Assassin this patch.
64 matches
- Slardar45.7%win rate in the matchup
Clinkz only wins 45.7% of the 70 games measured against Slardar this patch.
70 matches
- Razor46.3%win rate in the matchup
Clinkz only wins 46.3% of the 54 games measured against Razor this patch.
54 matches
Changelog
- Guide created for patch 7.41.
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