Manipulating time lets Paradox outpace an enemy in one on one combat. She thrives by subjecting her enemies to timely swaps into a waiting pulse grenade, her wall, or into the middle of her teammates.
Manipulating time lets Paradox outpace an enemy in one on one combat. She thrives by subjecting her enemies to timely swaps into a waiting pulse grenade, her wall, or into the middle of her teammates.
Description
As Paradox, you want to be either assisting your teammates in initiating/securing their kills, or ambushing squishies and showing them why it's a bad idea to farm alone. Your build should be very flexible and dependent on the enemy team composition. This build is fully annotated to help you decide what items to get during each stage of the game.
Item Build
Lane - Weapon
500
Good increase in early damage. [+SPIRIT SHIELD] [SELL IF SLOT NEEDED]
500
Useful orb denial tool + Pristine Emblem component. [+BULLET SHIELD] [SELL IF SLOT NEEDED]
1250
Big boost in damage. [19 SPIRIT POWER] needed to proc Mystic Burst. Will proc twice with Carbine.
1250
Buy before Mystic Shot against Gun enemies [Wraith, Vyper, Vindicta]. Synergizes with Combat Barrier. [+BULLET SHIELD]
Lane - Vitality
Extra Health & Stamina are Core
500
Early game survivability + Fortitude component.
500
More movement. Very useful against Warden early.
1250
Extra damage + sustain against gun enemies. Get Long Range over Mystic Shot for that extra bullet shield. [+BULLET SHIELD]
500
Against (non-mobile) burst heroes. [SELL IF SLOT NEEDED]
500
Against poking heroes + Return Fire component. [SELL IF SLOT NEEDED]
1250
Against ability harassment heroes [Geist, Grey Talon, Ivy, Mirage] [SELL IF SLOT NEEDED]
1250
Anti-Bebop. Very useful if you or your lanemate gets surrounded. [SELL IF SLOT NEEDED]
1750
Against gun enemies. More survivability than Combat Barrier if that's needed. [SELL IF SLOT NEEDED]
500
Only buy if you're planning on getting Slowing Hex. Heals ~50 to ~100 during your combo.
Lane - Spirit
500
Increase ult and bomb range early. [SELL IF SLOT NEEDED]
500
Increase Carbine damage when procced. Only buy after getting at least 1 Weapon Item. [+SPIRIT SHIELD] [SELL IF SLOT NEEDED]
Mid-Game Core
3000
Your combo should start with Alch Fire when possible. Amazing stats and very good for taking objectives.
3500
S+ survivability item. Not only allows you to heal yourself without going back to base, but also increased damage and movement when engaging.
1250
More chances to run your combo. Get after picking up some items in Mid-Game Flex.
Mid-Game Flex
Dependent on enemy
1250
Anti-heal. Healbane only procs once per enemy, so get Decay instead if teammates are buying Healbane.
1250
Anti-heal for enemies that rely on lifesteal/healing. [Abrams, Mo & Krill, Dynamo, McGinnis]. Gives you 1 extra pulse on bomb.
1750
For mobile enemies [Abrams, Lash, Shiv, Infernus, Vindicta, Grey Talon]. Also, slows people to confirm kills.
1250
For fast-fire rate enemies [Wraith, Haze, Infernus, Vyper]. Also, Bullet Resist reduction to confirm kills.
3000
For flying enemies [Vindicta, Lash, Grey Talon] or channeling enemies [Seven, Dynamo, Bebop, M&K].
3000
For ability-reliant enemies [Yamato, Lash, Shiv, Lady Geist]. Apply silence twice in a row if needed with T3 wall and this.
Mid-Game Sustain
1250
Against debuff enemies (duh). [Infernus, Pocket, Abrams (charge stun)]
4250
For debuff enemies [Bebop, Pocket, Wraith (ult), Geist (succ)] or items [Slowing Hex, Decay]. Incredibly useful in most games.
3000
Able to get you out of tight spots quickly. Get this if lots of close-range enemies [Abrams, Geist, M&K, Lash]
3500
Very good roaming and escaping item. Invaluable against a team with lots of slows, slowing hexes, and Warden.
1250
For when you think "Huh, that Wraith/Vyper/Haze sure did a lot of damage to me."
1250
If lots of spirit damage in lane, get this early.
Late-Game
Pick the most useful T4s
4250
Even more combos. Get when transitioning to late-game. Imbue on 4 normally.
6000
If you can headshot, this ramps up damage on your enemies very quickly. Generally, priority 1 unless you're buying Curse. [DIMINISHING STACKS]
6000
For when the enemy team has that one particularly over-farmed player. Or against a team-wide ult enemy [Lash, Dynamo, Seven]
6000
The Toxic Bullets of Silence Glyph. Good to get for enemies you really want to silence [Lady Geist, Yamato, Calico]
6000
Good if you're continuing with Swapdox. Essentially a late-game Slowing Bullets with more survivability. [DOES NOT STACK]
Late-Game Optionals
LTR for situation rarity
1250
Good flex-slot filler if needed. Early alternative to Crippling Headshot. [DOES NOT STACK]
1250
Alternative to Bullet Resist Shredder as flex-slot filler. [DOES NOT STACK]
3500
When you're choked on flex slots, this offers a decent damage boost. If possible, aim for T4 item instead.
3000
The big boy for when there are a lot of lifesteal enemies and you can't afford to save for Leech. Requires 9 shots to proc.
3500
Imbue on 3. More damage for tanky heroes if needed. If possible, aim for T4 item instead.
1250
For gun enemies, get Withering Whip, Metal Skin and Improved Bullet Armor. Then, finally, if nobody else has this, get this.
4250
An optional upgrade to Suppressor, an optional buy. Not the worst if going for Bombdox though with reduced CDs.
6000
For flying enemies [Lash, Vindicta, Grey Talon]. If ONLY they are causing you trouble, this is Curse on a shorter CD. Also, gets you out of bad swaps.
Late-Game Sustain
6000
For CC enemies [Lash, Dynamo, M&K]. Very useful when trying to secure Rejuvenator.
3000
By now, some gun enemies deal a lot of damage quickly. This evens the playing field if you're caught unawares. Getting shot? Just say no.
4250
The man who could outsmart boolets.
4250
Why is this icon so different to the other armors? Has anyone thought about this? It looks like it should be the Debuff Remover icon. Valve, please fix.
Bombdox
The side-grade
6000
Inevitable big team fights? Get this for 2 bombs. Does not do well against Spirit Resist so get Crippling first if needed.
3500
Bigger bombs.
4250
Longer Bombs. Imbue on 3. You will need 2 of [Decay, Diviner's Kevlar, Magic Carpet] and imbue this on Bomb to hit the mythical 8th pulse.
Luxury
LTR for general usefulness
6000
Decently good late-game sustain and damage.
7250
Alternative to Siphon Bullets to keep you alive. Is also an anti-heal. Stacks with Healbane but not itself.
6000
On the rare games you have not filled your active slots, this is a very good survival item.
7250
This is really a Vitality item disguised as a Weapon item. Use the move speed to get out.
6000
But being as this is a 34% chance to proc, you've got to ask yourself one question: "Do I feel lucky?" Well, do ya, punk?
9500
You have too many souls, man. End the game already.
Ability Point Order
Pulse Grenade
Time Wall
Kinetic Carbine
Paradoxical Swap
1
2
1
1
2
5
1
2
5
2
5
5